The ONLY XBLA game to date worth $15!!
Now that's outta the way, this is Roboblitz. This game pits you as Blitz, a utility robot forced to fight the baddies from the space station. Don't be looking for an interesting story, cuz its a freakin arcade title. What this game DOES offer however is a completely unique mixture of puzzle and platforming. the unique part of the game is the great physics-based challenges. Like I said, It's built off Unreal 3 engine, so expect plenty of nice touches like shiny surfaces, and overall a clean, deep look to the game. A cool thing about this game, as revealed in an interview, there is NO designer-drawn animations, everything is determined by physics. For instance, Blitz rolls around using a ball-like structure, and as he rolls his body responds realistically. It's got a really cool feel to it, download the trial and see for yourself.
Blitz is armed with a variety of tools. One is his arms, which can grab onto objects and utilise them as weapons. Another is your standard blasters. Among your arsenel are rockets, but theres this REALLY cool weapon (its name escapes me) that you can shoot an enemy (or object) with this little disk of energy, and then tether it to something else. For instance, if you chain a few boxes together with the weapon, you can pick it up and swing the box-chain around like a flail, killing everyone around you. The physics open up endless possibilities, which is what I love about it. The sound's nothing special, just some decent sound fx. The game is only single-player, but it lasts a good amount of time, plus there's scoreboards and promise of downloadable content.
Overall, because of it's great look and fantastic physics mechanics, this is one of the best XBLA titles. If you can get past shelling out fifteen bones for it, you'll find it to be a refined and thoroughly fun experience. My only complaints are lack of multiplayer and minor framerate problems. This is the only arcade title to date that is truly worth 1200 points. Try it, buy it, enjoy it