Comic Jumper vaults to XBLA this week

Last week’s Xbox Live release slate was spearheaded by pugilism and robots, but this week’s focus is on a funny jumper from an indie developer.

Having established itself with The Maw and last year's Summer of Arcade standout Splosion Man, Twisted Pixel's Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley (1,200 MS points, or $15) will follow the adventures of the appropriately named Captain Smiley as he leaps into different comic books in an attempt to set right plotlines gone wrong. The journey begins on October 6 and will see Smiley traverse a quartet of comic styles through 11 2D and 3D levels, with an assortment of eight additional challenge missions and unlockables to keep gamers playing.

Captain Smiley probably isn't smiling here.

Leaping onto Xbox Live today are two new demos, the first of which is for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. The sampler gives players a look and feel for the vampire-themed action game from Mercury Steam. Players are thrust into the boots of Gabriel Belmont, a member of the Brotherhood of Light armed with the Combat Cross.

The other trial hitting Xbox Live today is for Namco Bandai’s sci-fi platforming action game Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Set in a postapocalyptic America, the game tells the story of slaves forced to work together for survival. The game's protagonist, the muscular Monkey, is captured by slavers along with the techno-savvy woman Trip. The pair escape, but Trip hacks a slave headband to tie her life to Monkey's, forcing him to protect her as they search for refuge.

This week’s Xbox Live Deal of the Week is on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's two downloadable content packs. This week only, players can pick up both the Stimulus Package and the Resurgence Pack for 600 MS points, or $7.50.