Microsoft's 'House Party' Titles Get Release Dates

As we all know, Microsoft has a real fondness for compartmentalizing its bigger swaths of Xbox Live Arcade releases into neat, tidy promotions that have catchy names. In the early goings of the year, the company has taken to placing its collection of big titles under the House Party banner, a moniker that implies a great deal of ruckus and tomfoolery, probably hilarious chaos and destruction, and also possibly the inclusion of Kid & Play.

Recently, Microsoft announced that titles like Warp, Alan Wake's American Nightmare, and I Am Alive would be included in this year's House Party promotion. Today, Microsoft announced the prices and exact release dates of the four titles flying the House Party flag. They are...

• Warp - February 15 | 800 Microsoft Points
• Alan Wake's American Nightmare - February 22 | 1200 Microsoft Points
• Nexuiz - February 29 | 800 Microsoft Points
• I Am Alive - March 7 | 1200 Microsoft Points

While this makes it the third year in a row that Kid & Play were tragically left on the sidelines for the promotion, we can all take comfort that these are big, interesting games lots of us probably want to play, and that somewhere out there, Christopher Reid and Christopher Martin are probably having big, ridiculous Pajama Jammy Jams that Microsoft totally isn't invited to.

Whose house?

@Kyou42: Sorry. Shocked I got it myself.

I Am Alive is an XBLA game? Wow, I need to pay attention.

Nexuis is finally coming out? Is that the Cryengine game?

I will be picking up AW:AN and I Am Alive. The other titles don't peak my interest.

Super intrigued to try out I Am Alive.

I Am Alive will be eaten alive with that release date..! Check out what comes out the day before.

Really looking forward to Alan Wake. Might pick up I Am Alive as well, seems interesting enough.

It doesn't sound like it will be from what Remedy has been saying, but I do hope that this new Alan Wake is closer to the DLC than to the main game.

Also interested in I Am Alive, even though I have no real idea of what's going on with that game.

Wait, did I miss Game Feast last year? Or did they just not have one. These seasonal sales always mess me up.

But when do we get FEZ?!

Interested in seeing Warp but where is Fez?

Hmm. I guess that means Fez won't be out until March 14th at the earliest.

A grindhouse inspired shooter and a post-apocalyptic action game? Sounds like a House Party.

Alan Wake? YES! DAY ONE!

The rest? Demo's and maybe pickup at the next sale.

I wonder how many games have been released on February 29th?

Couldn't find that House Party 3 image? Damn.

wait, microsoft said they would offer 800 points to people who bought all the games

but I don't want nexuiz, so what would be the point in buying it?

Is I Am Alive coming to XBLA first?

Is there some sort of "buy everything" promotion?

@onan: yes, buy everything and get 800 points

which seems useless since you could just save 800 points by not buying one of the games

Looks like Patrick's article was ejected into space!

Nobody messes with the might of Kid & Play.

@PsEG said:

Looks like Patrick's article was ejected into space!

Nobody messes with the might of Kid & Play.

Poor Patrick. :(

Guess this happens when Alex is making havoc on the east coast.

hmmmm, I liked Alan Wake but from the bombcast impressions it seems like this game is going to be focused on the combat which I hated in Alan Wake, maybe I will get Warp. And I am Alive ain't going to be living with that release date so close to Mass Effect 3.

House Party seems like the wrong way to label most of those games.

I might pick up Alan Wake and Warp. I don't know what Nexuis is. Definitely getting I Am Alive though.

Thank you for the Kid & Play pic.

@onan said:

Is there some sort of "buy everything" promotion?

I believe it's 800 free MS Points if you buy them all.

Wait I Am Alive is a downloadable game?

Hey yea son get yo Kid n Play!

Wait its not actually a House Party game? I call false advertising!

OLD NEWS IS OLD!

Okay, so I might've had one or two of the dates mixed up when I originally put this up in the forums about three weeks ago or whatever, but nonetheless, psyched for some XBLA House Party titles!

Man, I was so hoping Trials Evolution would be listed here. I can't wait much longer!

@Mr_Skeleton said:

Wait I Am Alive is a downloadable game?

Exactly what I was thinking

:?

Looking forward to more Alan Wake, though the focus on combat is disconcerting. Maybe Remedy made some tweaks to make it more fun. I Am Alive looks pretty good too.

I would play a Kid & Play video game, good or bad.

Gonna get all 4 of these!

I'll definitely be picking up Alan Wake, though frankly I'm a little worried that it's taking things in the wrong direction. Really curious to see how I Am Alive turns out.

@mabber36 said:

wait, microsoft said they would offer 800 points to people who bought all the games

but I don't want nexuiz, so what would be the point in buying it?

A free game that you might enjoy playing if you try it?

If not, you didn't lose any money.. so, why not?

@SerHulse said:

@Mr_Skeleton said:

Wait I Am Alive is a downloadable game?

Exactly what I was thinking

:?

Also news to me.

@DaBuddaDa said:

I Am Alive will be eaten alive with that release date..! Check out what comes out the day before.

do tell

@Law313 said:

I will be picking up AW:AN and I Am Alive. The other titles don't peak my interest.

Yep, same here. Though, I'm not so sure about I Am Alive. I'll have to see the reviews, and play the trial before I pay for it.

Thought for a second Fez would be in that list, but then I realised they always want us wanting for that game.

Wow. I Am Alive launching one day after Mass Effect 3. Sent to die.

Warp looks like a really cool take on the stealth genre, I'm looking forward to it the most from this group. I love Remedy so I'll pretty much buy Alan Wake's American Nightmare regardless of how it reviews, though I hope its good.

I didn't get a great feeling from the recent I Am Alive trailer, I feel like Ubisoft is pushing it out the door with the least amount of funding they need to finish it, but I hope I'm wrong. I think Nexuiz's development history is just so bizarre, as has been covered by this very site, and I don't really feel the need to play a twitch shooter right now. However if I Am Alive reviews okay I'll grab it and then I might as well get Nexuiz at that point because with the 800 points back it would essentially be free. These Microsoft promotions always seem to have at least one game being carried by the quality of the others.

Warp seems really awesome, so I'll be picking that up for sure, and I loved Alan Wake, so I'll probably be grabbing American Nightmare too.

I was surprised to see that Warp received an M rating. I guess when you can warp into dudes and explode them into a bloody mess, that equals 'mature' or something. Or maybe it's the strong language?

Anyway, I'll be interested in seeing how these all turn out. They could all be lame...or great, I guess, so we'll see.

Seriously...Just give me Alan Wake and Nexuiz now while there still ain't shit to play.

House Party went up on streaming a few months back, and I watched it for the first time since the 80's. That dance off and rap battle were amazing still.