Doug Kefling: Builders Are Best

Take off! You mean, I get to write a guest blog post, and all sorts of people, including gamer hotties, will read it? AWESOME!

I'm Doug, and I'm a Builder, eh? So uh, that means like, me and my brothers are big muscley Keflings that can lift massive building pieces like they were made of wool. Which, some of them actually are, eh? And my brothers and I think you're SOOOO awesome that we want to follow you around and help you build your kingdom.

If you build a bunch of pieces we builders will pick them up and follow you around until you find a place to build, eh? Then we'll bring you more pieces while you put them together like a giant puzzle of awesomeness!

Oh, and if you're like, putting together something we've already seen you build then we'll know how to finish it for you, eh? Like, if you ever need to build a bunch of houses, eh, all ya gotta do is, like, build the first one by yourself. For all of the rest, just set down the first piece and put some love down next to it. Me and my builder brothers will take care of the rest. That should leave you with more time for your, uh, lady friends, eh? Unless of course you're... a girl, or... don't like the ladies or... something.

Keep in mind though, we can only keep track of one building at a time. So like, if you start building pieces for a bunch of different buildings all at once, we'll get super confused - like that time I watched Yellow Submarine.

Oh, and like, we don't get level-ups like regular Keflings, but you can drink potions that make you more awesome, and the more awesome you are, the more awesomeness rubs off on us.

Somebody as mind-bendingly amazing as you can totally help me find my lost brothers, and they'll start helping out, too!

Anyway, I'm SUPER pumped to help out with your kingdom. It's gonna be a beauty - like if heaven and the X-Games got married and had a baby, eh? So, see ya around.

Doug

Play A World Of Keflings With NinjaBee This Sunday to Unlock 2 New Avatar Emotes

Ahoy. Captain Ratbeard at yer scurvice, I mean, service.

I love to dance a merry jig while singing sea shanties. It be just the thing to lift me spirits before pillaging, I mean NEGOTIATING with another merchant ship. Argh! All you gotta do to jig up a storm is use your emotes in game. YARGH!

To do an emote, just use the D-pad. It be that little grey area on the controller that looks a little like an anchor. Alright, maybe it looks more like a ninja star, but ninjas be pansies, so pretend it looks like an anchor. YAR! If ya press the anchor, the emotes menu will come up. Just choose the first one up and press "A" - you'll start bustin' a move fit to call the kraken! Truth be told, that dance only calls Keflings to yer side, not krakens, but that be just as good.

There be other dances and special moves you can learn too but they be secret, like buried traysure, and the only way to find them is to build up yer kingdom to the fullest. There also be emotes you can only get with friends in local and live multiplayer, and there be emotes that are only unlocked by gettin' achievements in other games! You can learn some pretty sweet moves from those land-lubbers in Band of Bugs, let me tell ya.

Also keep your eyes open for those sneaky NinjaBees. They'll be teachin' people two secret emotes that you can only learn from someone else that knows it. Aye. If ya be playin' on Sunday December 26th around 7:00 p.m. PST (I think that stands fer Pilferin' the Seadog's Traysure...) ya may run into one. They'll be playin' their little hearts out, spreading their viral emotes like a bad case of scurvy.

I think you've heard enough from me, mates. I'm off to swab the poop deck... I mean CLEAN THE BATHROOM. Aye, merchant's gotta keep his bathroom clean. See ya in game.

Capt. Ratbeard.

Get A World of Keflings Early!!!

A World of Keflings officially releases tomorrow!!! We're throwing a launch party tonight in 'A World of Keflings' forums on NinjaBee.com and Xbox.com to count down till release. We'll be there to answer questions and give away some fun prizes.

NinjaBee Forum

Xbox.com forum

But wait... there's more! If you come to the party just ask us and we'll send you an invite to play A World of Keflings - at which point, you'll have the option to buy it early!

Okay, so actually anyone could help you get it early if they already have the game, but for those of you who don't know anyone who has it, show up, ask, and we'll invite you!

See you tonight!

(P.S. We're not sure if you have to be a Gold member or not for the early access to work)

Tick tick tick tick... boom!

Just two more days until A World of Keflings arrives on XBLA!!! We thought we'd wet your whistle with some added info about one of the game's new features - musical cannons.

You've seen this teased already in the trailer, but here's some interesting info about this new feature. The cannons were designed as an end-game feature to extend gameplay possibilities and give players something fun to do in their kingdom once they've finished the game.

To build cannons players must first collect gears they find around the world or receive as rewards for completing quests. Take the gears to the Machinist building and you'll be able to build cannons. By the end of the game you'll be able to build more than 80 cannons.

Different sizes of cannons hold notes for different lengths of time. Each cannon can be assigned a different voice (instrument) to sound when a Kefling fires through it. With more than 80 distinct instruments to choose from and a slew of firing effects, the musical possibilities are endless!

Tip: The cannons in the video that rotate are using counters. They're a great way to make your 80 cannons go further. A counter holds still and let's a Kefling fire through it as many times as you set, and then rotates to send the Kefling through another track of notes. After it rotates it returns to point its original direction.

Launch Party!!!

Are you excited for the release of A World of Keflings? We are too! Come count down to launch with us in digital launch party on our forums and in games of A Kingdom for Keflings over Xbox LIVE!

We'll be talking about the new game, answering questions and giving away cool prizes like this poster (and just maybe a couple game codes)!

Here are the details:

When: Tuesday Dec. 21 beginning at 10 p.m. Eastern / 7 p.m. Pacific.

Where: NinjaBee A World of Keflings forum

Xbox.com A World of Keflings forum

Within games of A Kingdom for Keflings on Xbox LIVE!

It's almost here!!! See you at the party!

Confessions of a teenage tiny queen... er... princess

Sharing Collectibles Gets You More Stuff to Build in A World of Keflings!

Hey, everyone! It's me, the Princess. Andrew asked me to explain one of the new features in the new game all about me, A World of Kefling Princesses. Wait, no, I forgot they changed the name at the last minute. Marketing people suck.

Anyway! As you probably know, I'm super passionate about saving the planet, especially the *cute* parts of the planet. And nothing makes the planet cuter than a variety of collectible custom building pieces. And it turns out that "collectible" means I can get more of them. Hooray! Getting stuff is my favorite hobby!

Daddy says it's better to giftinate than to receptify, and he's right just this one time because it's the best way to prompt your friends to send me stuff! I mean send you stuff.

So, how to share collectibles: From the main menu or from the pause menu, hit the "Sharing" button. This shows all the collectibles you've gotten so far, and all the ones you still need in order to feel a sense of self-worth. Hit the "Share Collectibles" button. Now you can select a gamertag or enter a new one. On the next screen you can edit the text that gets sent along with your collectibles. (Maybe you don't want to use the L word with somebody you just met!)

Of course, doing this one at a time for each of your friends could take forever, if you have as many friends as I do. I heard Microsoft is installing a new server to keep track of all the messages about how lovely my hat is. Fortunately, you can add a bunch of recipients to a single message by hitting the "Edit Recipients" button before sending your message. You might also want to add voice to your message, like an enthusiastic A'capella performance of Teenage Dream by Katy Perry. Everybody loves that song.

One more thing: If you want to send collectibles to somebody not on your friends list, but the "Enter Gamertag" button is all grayed out, it's probably because of your crappy Privacy settings. From the Xbox dashboard go to My Xbox, select your profile slot and hit A, then scroll over to the "Online Safety" page and hit "Change Settings". Make sure "Voice and Text" show up in the "Allowed" section. If your dad set up your safety settings and you can't change them, then go tell him to let you live your dreams and stop stifling you! Sheesh!

And that's it! Together we can save the baby sea-whale-condor, restore the lush rainforests of lower Idaho, and make the world a better place for me to visit!

Check back each day between now and Dec. 22 for new info about my game!

Love,

The Princess

New Games for the Holidays Trailer

Check out the cool cross-game content offered as part of "Games for the Holidays."

By the way, have you seen this week's episode of 'The SENTUAMESSAGE Show?" They talk about A World of Keflings. It's currently up on the Xbox Dashboard. Go check it out!

Also, we're going to have a virtual launch party for A World of Keflings in the evening of Tuesday Dec. 21. More details to come! Check back on the blog for more info soon.

A World of Keflings to Kick off Microsoft's "Games for the Holidays"

The wait is over!!

Release Date: December 22, 2010

Price: 800 MS points

This holiday season A World of Keflings will kick off Microsoft's "Games for the Holidays" for Xbox LIVE Arcade when it releases Dec. 22, 2010, for 800 Microsoft Points.

Along with Raskulls and ilomilo, A World of Keflings is one of three titles in the holiday-themed promotion. All three games include unique content that unlocks if a player owns and earns an achievement in one of the other games.

"The cross-title features are really cool," said Steve Taylor, Keflings creator and President of NinjaBee. "If you buy Raskulls or ilomilo you can build homes for characters from those games in A World of Keflings. Then those characters live in your game world and you can kick them around with the rest of your Keflings. At the same time, if you own A World of Keflings you can choose to have a Kefling as your playable character in Raskulls or dress up ilo and milo in swanky Kefling costumes."

As part of "Games for the Holidays," players who purchase A World of Keflings will get early access within the game to buy the full versions of Raskulls and ilomilo before they officially release. Each of the three games can be purchased from within the others.

"Something all three 'Games for the Holidays' titles have in common is a strong local-multiplayer experience," Taylor said. "A World of Keflings, for one, has this amazing dynamic split-screen system for local multiplayer. The second player can join and leave on the fly at any time."

A World of Keflings also supports online multiplayer for up to four players over Xbox LIVE.

"Games for the Holidays" is the perfect collection of games to let players create, compete and collaborate together with friends and family over the holidays.

About A World of Keflings

Build a robot, rescue the princess, make friends with a dragon and help a creepy witch get even creepier. Take your Xbox LIVE Avatar on a journey through exotic

lands while you help the tiny Keflings build and customize their kingdoms! Play with a friend on the same console or with three friends over Xbox LIVE in

this story-based, kingdom-building adventure.

The game includes several new key features not found in the first game, namely local-multiplayer, ability to push buildings, upgradable Keflings, musical Kefling cannons, magical kingdom gates that transport players between the different kingdoms of the Kefling world and much, much more. A World of Keflings will be the first game on the Xbox 360 to allow players to bring their avatar props and pets into the game world.

Get Band of Bugs for 50% off!

Bug-themed Deal of the Week

Our XBLA turn-based tactics game, Band of Bugs, is on sale this week on Xbox LIVE! Microsoft is doing an 'Infestation' Deal of the Week that includes Band of Bugs for 50% off.

The game is now just 400 MS points if you grab it before next Monday (December 6). Hurry and try the free trial version now!

A World of Keflings: Desert Kingdom Reveal

Today we showed off the first screenshots from the third land you'll explore in the Kefling world when A World of Keflings releases this winter. Check out the Desert Kingdom and the Keflarabians who live there (yes, that's really what they're called).Our Art Director, Brent Fox, had this to say about the different kingdoms you'll build in A World of Keflings:

"In A World of Keflings you travel back and forth between the different lands of the Kefling world through magic portals called Kingdom Gates. Beyond each gate are new lands with distinct climates and different kinds of Keflings who want you to build them cities. And in each kingdom you'll build buildings that match the style of that land made from the resources available in that part of the world."

A Kingdom for Keflings PC gets DLC for free!

Get the Full Game + 2 DLC packs for $4.95

If you don't own a copy of A Kingdom for Keflings for your PC, now might be a good time to change that.

Yesterday NinjaBee released its first DLC for A Kingdom for Keflings PC. Available exclusively on Direct2Drive.com, the two DLC packs are included in a bundle with the full version of the game for just $4.95 USD.

This heavily discounted price is only available for a short time.

The DLC packs, Kingdom Pack 1 & 2, each contain two new playable kingdom maps - the same map packs currently available as DLC on the Xbox 360.

The map packs will be made available separately on NinjaBee.com at a later date.

NinjaBee Halloween!

Yeah, we know Halloween isn't for a couple more days, but, being Friday, we celebrated today with our annual NinjaBee costume contest. Check out the slideshow. Can you guess which costume won?

Halloween Time!

Remember the last time you carved a pumpkin for Halloween? Like when you were eight? That ugly jack-o-lantern? Yeah... that was sad. But guess what? It's time to totally redeem yourself!

Do something frickin' awesome this year to decorate for Halloween by carving a NinjaBee pumpkin!

Just save and print this pumpkin stencil and you're on your way to having the coolest jack-o-lantern ever carved! That special someone you like... they'll dig it. And you know what they say about NinjaBee pumpkins, right? They bring good fortune, wealth, good looks, fame and tact!

Okay, well, technically we can't guarantee it will bring you any of those things. But if Halloween arrives and you haven't gotten that stuff, at least you'll have a sweet-lookin' pumpkin! Win-win!

Special thanks to an awesome fan, Wolfiesden360, for creating this and sharing it with us!

(Instructions: To use this pattern, print it and tape it to the pumpkin. Then use a poker to outline all the black areas. You will be cutting away all black and leaving all white.)

Check this out!

Okay, it's plug time for our awesome friends at Twisted Pixel.

In case you've been living under a rock and haven't heard, Comic Jumper by Twisted Pixel released this week on XBLA. You really NEED to play the trail - the game is hilarious. Seriously, we're not joking. We're talking laugh out loud, maybe cry-a-little-on-your-face-type funny.

Go check it out! You can download the trial game right now to your 360 by clicking below.

Download Comic Jumper Now!

AWoK Video Preview up on GameSpot

This last week GameSpot featured A World of Keflings in an episode of it's video podcast "On The Spot!" The video gives a preview of the new dynamic split-screen local co-op feature as well as a couple other new features.

Check it out here: A World of Keflings GameSpot Video Preview

The Keflings action starts about the 19 minute mark.

Enjoy!

A World of Keflings Trailer!!!

Be warned: This is not your same old Keflings game.

A World of Keflings will also be making it's big debut at PAX. If you're coming come and find us! NinjaBee won't be exhibiting, but the game will be available to play at Microsoft's booth!

The Digital Future is Near

Game Disc Supporters Still Clinging to False Hope

I recently read an article online that demonstrates how those who believe that that the main method of distribution of games will be on a disc that is sold in retail store, may just not be making a sound evaluation of the facts.

Here is a link to the article: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/report-debunks-disc-is-dead-claims

Article Summary

The headline on this article reads …Report debunks “disc is dead”. This conclusion is drawn because of results of a study. The article also claims that “80 to 90 percent of videogames bought in 2009 were on physical media” The key statement that everything in this article appears to be centered around is “According to the Entertainment Merchants Association, combined DVD and Blu-ray disc sales totalled $17.9 billion in 2009, nine times the revenue generated by digital distribution.”

Future not the Past

My first question is has anyone ever claimed that the disc is already dead? My belief is that digital distribution will overtake disc distribution soon. The disc won't even “die” soon it will just be overshadowed by digital. This report covers 2009 and not it’s about this year, or even more important, it has little to do with the next couple of years. Even more interesting is that the decision to put effort and money into the digital games released in 2009 most likely was made in 2008 and in some cases in 2007. I’m more interested in how much effort is going into digital games now and next year than I am about decision made two years ago.

Number of Games VS. Gross Revenue

It also appears that the study results didn’t compare the number of games purchased but instead compared gross revenue. This actually makes the claim that 80% to 90% of the video games purchased were bought on physical media inaccurate. Instead the real fact is that 80% to 90% of the gross revenue came from retail games. If only 90% of the revenue came from retail games that can cost 6 times as much as a $10 downloadable game, the actual percentage of digital games purchased would be much higher than this article suggests. A real percentage of digital games sold might paint a very different picture of the state of the industry.

Profitability is the Key

Of course revenue is important and in some ways reveals more important information than the number of games sold. But again, I also wonder how this article would change if the study revealed profitability instead of just gross revenue. Some important questions need to be answered to give a clear picture. How much more money was spent on the retail titles compared to digital in 2009? How much smaller is the percentage, of that gross number, that publisher earns on a retail game compared to a digital game? How much of the money included in gross earnings for a retail game goes to the retail stores, making the disc, shipping, returns, etc.? Profitability is what will really drive the market not gross revenue.

Missing Information

I’m also not sure what they included in the research study. Did they count all of the iPhone games, Facebook games, MMo subscription fees or money earned from in-game advertising of digital games? Did the study only count full game sales or did they also count DLC and all of the other extras that often accompany a digitally distributed game?

Current Example

I read the other day that over 20 million copies of DLC have been sold for the latest Call of Duty game alone. At an average of $10-$15 that provides some huge numbers. This fact alone makes it appear that digital game downloads are a lot bigger right now than this article implies. What does this mean for the next couple of years?

More Evidence

This article has a link to another article that seems to discredit the assumption made in the title. The second article claims “US PC game digital downloads are reaching parity with in-store purchases”. The study that the second article focuses on seems to count the number of games sold and not necessarily the gross revenue. However, no matter how you look at those numbers, it seems like digital distribution in the PC market is huge. Did the author just ignore this information or does the new research study somehow cancel out this previous information.

Don’t be fooled by the unbelievers. The digital gaming future is very close.

New Keflings coming in A World of Keflings

Meet Doug.

Doug is not your average Kefling.

You'll meet a new type of Kefling when A World of Keflings releases later this year - the builders. For the first time, certain Keflings will actually be able to help you carry building pieces and, in some cases, build buildings for you. Not bad for a guy who would trouble reaching the light switches in your house.

Also, Doug is addicted to Facebook. If you friend him you just might see him hinting stuff about the upcoming game from time to time.

Become Doug Kefling's friend here!

Even blogs need vacations... sometimes

A little blog goes a long way...

You've probably wondered what happened to this blog, or asked yourself, "What's gives NinjaBee? Don't you love us anymore?" Well, our poor little blog was pooped and needed a vacation to recharge. But great news, the blog is back!

Lucky for you, being its inter-web savvy bloggy self, it took some pictures to share it's holiday with you! Isn't it a cyute widdle foughtful bloggy woggy?

A Kingdom for Keflings arrives on PC with sale of Kelfing-tine proportions

Limited-time 50% off sale kicks off today’s PC release of A Kingdom for Keflings

Whoever said bigger was better? Today Independent video games developer NinjaBee announced it has released its award-winning game, A Kingdom for Keflings, with a fitting promotion - for a limited time you can start building a kingdom for those half-sized Keflings for half the price.

NinjaBee President and co-owner Steve Taylor had the following comments about the new game:

“Keflings with a mouse?

Snow falling on tiny hats,

On my home PC!”

A Kingdom for Keflings became available to purchase for today exclusively on NinjaBee.com for the discounted price of $9.99 USD. The special 50% off offer will last for just more than two weeks through April 7, 2010. Following the sale the game will return to its full price of $19.95 USD. At that time A Kingdom for Keflings will also be made available through other video game distribution portals.

The PC version includes four new playable giants not included in the Xbox LIVE® Arcade version, bringing the total number to eight characters players can choose from to help build up and customize kingdoms for the tiny Keflings. Featuring a light-hearted, play-at-your-own-pace style of gameplay with beautiful visuals and catchy, frolicsome music, A Kingdom for Keflings offers players a relaxing, fun experience that is unexpectedly addictive.

The popular, innovative city-building title originally arrived on Xbox LIVE Arcade on Nov. 19, 2008 and more than a year later remains among the downloadable service’s most downloaded titles. A Kingdom for Keflings was voted the 2008 Xbox LIVE Arcade Award-winner for Best Family Game.

The PC version does not include the option to play as your customizable Xbox avatar.

Download the free trial here: http://www.ninjabee.com/a-kingdom-for-keflings-pc/.

We love St. Patrick's Day SOOO much! Have free iPhone games!

Scaireanna NinjaBee réir bhrí an fíor Lá Fhéile Pádraig

OREM, Utah – March 17, 2010 – Nothing says “Happy St. Patrick’s Day” like free games for your iPhone™, right? Maybe? Okay… so it’s just a blatant excuse for a sale. But as luck would have it, independent video games developer NinjaBee is making the most of the Irish holiday by giving away all of its games for iPhone and iPod touch for free!

“Why are we doing it? We just really like Irish people,” said Brent O’Fox, Art Director at NinjaBee. “And it’s not just the people; it’s the other stuff too. We’re big fans of corned beef, Lucky Charms, shamrocks, leprechauns and the color green. Oh, and Tom Cruise’s accent from Far and Away.”

For a short period of time NinjaBee’s three iPhone games, Kaloki Adventure, Kaloki Love and Kaloki War, will be available for free on the iTunes App Store. Together the three games contain the full content (including DLC) from NinjaBee’s Xbox LIVE® Arcade title, Outpost Kaloki X, which was among the original games released when the downloadable service’s debut in 2005.

“I trace the inspiration for these games back to my Irish roots,” said NinjaBee CFO Lane McKiriyama. “Why, when I was a kid back in Dublin it seemed like the only thing anyone ever talked about was growing up to become space station managers.”

So what does this mean for the average St. Patrick’s Day celebrant? They too can fulfill their Irish childhood dream of building up centers of commerce in deep space, falling in love with strange robot women and defending their customers from onslaughts of hostile attacking ships.

The free Kaloki space station tycoon games for iPhone can be found by clicking these links to the iTunes App Store.

Kaloki Adventure: http://linktoapp.com/kaloki+adventure

Kaloki Love: http://linktoapp.com/kaloki+love

Kaloki War: http://linktoapp.com/kaloki+war

The three apps regularly sell for $1.99, $0.99 and $1.99 USD respectively. Interested iPhone users should act quickly, or like those wee leprechauns, this opportunity will disappear.

Short delay

Earlier this week we hinted via Twitter that the PC version of A Kingdom for Keflings would be released this week. We weren't able to make this happen and have to postpone the release temporarily. We're sorry for the delay and especially sorry for the disappointment. It's only fair that we let you know why.

NinjaBee.com is pretty outdated and has been in need of an update for a while. We've redesigned the site and were getting ready to launch it this week but ran into some technical problems that delayed the transfer to the new site. Since A Kingdom for Keflings PC will initially only be available for download at NinjaBee.com we wanted to ensure the site works without any problems first.

Again, we're sorry! We'll have some news soon about the release.

Ancients of Ooga - First Screenshots

It’s time for a first look at NinjaBee’s next Xbox LIVE® Arcade original title, Ancients of Ooga, the upcoming action-adventure platformer from development team J. Kenworthy Entertainment, the team that created Cloning Clyde.

These screenshots from an early beta version of the game reveal a first look into the Oogani world where this new action-adventure platformer takes place.

Though not a sequel to Cloning Clyde, developers of the title consider Ancients of Ooga to be the classic XLA game’s spiritual successor. The game was heavily influenced by Cloning Clyde, taking on characteristics like extremely unique gameplay, a distinct artistic style, a cast of characters bursting with personality, and a dose of random, silly humor.

“The Ooganis aren’t your typical heroes,” said Brent Fox, NinjaBee’s art director. “But that’s what makes this game so fun to play. They’re quirky, bizarre, and at times borderline foul. An Oogani’s world is centered around eating. You have to eat, chant, dance and even puke your way through the primeval land of Ooga. This is definitely the most gluttonous game you’ll play in 2010 – it’s gonna be out of this world!”

Ancients of Ooga is set in a bizarre, tribal universe where, to the Ooganis, it’s customary to eat anything you can get your hands on. Meet, befriend, and finally acquire several other zany Oogani tribes. Uncover their lost, ancient powers and exploit their abilities to lead them in a revolt against the tyrannical Boolis. There are over 50 amazing levels, great replay, plus, narcotic slugs that make you loopy!

This 2 1/2D-side-scrolling adventure is packed with puzzle solving, bad-guy fighting, ladder-climbing, catapulting, strange-object eating, puking enjoyment. Nearly anything is edible: dried wormies, charcoal, peppers, and yes, even your Oogani brothers. But be careful what you eat – while some objects can give your Oogani special powers, others won’t have such a pleasant effect.