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Twisted Pixel's Kinect Game "The Gunstringer" Announced

Finally, a game where you can control an undead cowboy by waving your hands around.

Another one of Splosion Man creator Twisted Pixel’s in-development projects has been revealed. IGN has the scoop on the The Gunnstringer, a Kinect-supported Western shooter that stars a skeleton puppet looking for revenge on the dudes who made him a skeleton.

It looks like Gunstringer is taking more than a few cues from Twisted Pixel's last Xbox Live Arcade downloadable Comic Jumper, as it’ll feature 2D side-scrolling action as well as double-fisted, perhaps on-rails shooting sections created in full 3D. And as for the controls, it appears as if you’ll be holding out your hands above the action, acting as if you were controlling a character on strings (which makes sense, strangely). 
  

  
The game’s development blog has a few more details on the Kinect support in general, soothing some fears out of the gate. Lead designer Dan Teasdale promises that you’ll be able to play the game sitting down. Also, he says that won’t be any motion-controlled shenanigans like mini-games, impromptu photos, or dumb gestures.  

The blog post also gets into the look and feel of the game. As you’d expect, Twisted Pixel is going a bit unconventional with the aesthetic. The game will feature handcrafted “actors” and props and even some actual people if that video shoot in Texas last weekend is any indication of what to expect.  
 

No Caption Provided
 
“The Gunstringer marries all of this with really fresh and fun gameplay mechanics,” the post reads. “From the start of this project, we’ve focused on getting across the feel of marionetting a puppet’s movement through a 3D world, then mixing that with the fun and mayhem of targeting-focused shooters like Rez."  
 
"One minute you’ll be navigating the Gunstringer over tricky ravines or towards secret paths, the next you’ll be ducking behind cover to take out a half-dozen clockwork alligators with your six shooter.”

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BradNicholson

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Edited By BradNicholson

Another one of Splosion Man creator Twisted Pixel’s in-development projects has been revealed. IGN has the scoop on the The Gunnstringer, a Kinect-supported Western shooter that stars a skeleton puppet looking for revenge on the dudes who made him a skeleton.

It looks like Gunstringer is taking more than a few cues from Twisted Pixel's last Xbox Live Arcade downloadable Comic Jumper, as it’ll feature 2D side-scrolling action as well as double-fisted, perhaps on-rails shooting sections created in full 3D. And as for the controls, it appears as if you’ll be holding out your hands above the action, acting as if you were controlling a character on strings (which makes sense, strangely). 
  

  
The game’s development blog has a few more details on the Kinect support in general, soothing some fears out of the gate. Lead designer Dan Teasdale promises that you’ll be able to play the game sitting down. Also, he says that won’t be any motion-controlled shenanigans like mini-games, impromptu photos, or dumb gestures.  

The blog post also gets into the look and feel of the game. As you’d expect, Twisted Pixel is going a bit unconventional with the aesthetic. The game will feature handcrafted “actors” and props and even some actual people if that video shoot in Texas last weekend is any indication of what to expect.  
 

No Caption Provided
 
“The Gunstringer marries all of this with really fresh and fun gameplay mechanics,” the post reads. “From the start of this project, we’ve focused on getting across the feel of marionetting a puppet’s movement through a 3D world, then mixing that with the fun and mayhem of targeting-focused shooters like Rez."  
 
"One minute you’ll be navigating the Gunstringer over tricky ravines or towards secret paths, the next you’ll be ducking behind cover to take out a half-dozen clockwork alligators with your six shooter.”
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ursa1979

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Edited By ursa1979

sounds cool... although I am skeptical about any kinect shooter. 

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byrjun

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Edited By byrjun

first? 
 
EDIT: Wait, how does that quest work? I thought I finally had it!

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Vinny_Says

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Edited By Vinny_Says

cowboys.....

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shoddyrobot

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Edited By shoddyrobot

a friend of mine did some music for this. should be good!

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WinterSnowblind

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Edited By WinterSnowblind

Twisted Pixel have made some really excellent games and it's nice to see something for Kinect that seems to give you a little more control over the character..  I'll be interested to see how this turns out but it's far from a reason to own a Kinect.

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JJOR64

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Edited By JJOR64

Looks great.

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49th

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Edited By 49th

That was a cool trailer but I don't know how well it will work.

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Wiseblood

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Edited By Wiseblood

Those reticules reminded me of something and it just hit me.  Those are totally the things you put into cap guns.

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Jayross

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Edited By Jayross

Oh, I thought this was an article about the release date for PixelJunk Shooter 2.

When is that game coming out, anyways?

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Dany

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Edited By Dany

So its an XBLA game?

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ryanwho

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Edited By ryanwho

Kinect lightgun game. Ew.

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city17

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Edited By city17

The actual gameplay footage looked pretty bad to me. I hope they can show something better than that.

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borgmaster

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Edited By borgmaster

at least the trailer had dumb FMV.

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Skullomania

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Edited By Skullomania
@City17 said:
" The actual gameplay footage looked pretty bad to me. I hope they can show something better than that. "
Yup, looked like bad Comic Jumper.
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bricewgilbert

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Edited By bricewgilbert

Wish there were strings hanging from the top of the character.

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ProfessorEss

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Edited By ProfessorEss

Nice to hear something at least.

Twisted Pixel have more than proven themselves in the "Trailers & Presentation" department for me, but are still very much in the "Prove Yourself" territory.

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Mystyr_E

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Edited By Mystyr_E

looks underwhelming actually. If it didn't have the Twisted Pixel name, this probably wouldn't be on my radar

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rjaylee

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Edited By rjaylee

 Well if it doesn't play that great, I'm sure it will be hilarious.

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SaucySala

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Edited By SaucySala

This looks so awesome! 

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jacksukeru

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Edited By jacksukeru

Funny how there was a Wii-mote in there.

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Soulglove

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Edited By Soulglove

You are the strings

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HibikiRush

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Edited By HibikiRush

My Kinect has been gathering dust for a few weeks now.  Excitement died down pretty quick and these future titles aren't looking all that hot either.

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Rising_ixa

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Edited By Rising_ixa

I'll definitely check this out

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JJWeatherman

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Edited By JJWeatherman

Dan Teasdale?! What?! Since when is he not working for Harmonix anymore? What the hell. I totally missed that announcement. 
 
Edit: Turns out I'm nearly a year late on this one. I feel like I just walked out of a time machine or something.

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mrcellophane

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Edited By mrcellophane

I actually just finished Comic Jumper today! Now I'm looking forward to more TP games, although I don't have Kinect

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JustinSane311

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Edited By JustinSane311

So far everything Twisted Pixel has worked on has been great,  can't wait to give this a try.  

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Little_Socrates

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Edited By Little_Socrates

Skeptical, but also very interested. Let me know when we have an ETA.

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traynrek

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Edited By traynrek

I think I really want this. I think? Gotta love Twisted Pixel's zaniness though.

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tourgen

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Edited By tourgen

doesn't look good.  looks like a mediocre PS2 game.  $5?

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Julmust

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Edited By Julmust

What the hell are you guys on? This looks like some budget game, Twisted Pixel have truly lost their touch.

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1nfinitum

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Edited By 1nfinitum

I have a feeling they needed actors not for the game, but to show off the game.  I mean it is a kinect game after all.

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CharlesAlanRatliff

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Twisted Pixel has yet to disappoint me, so I'll be looking forward to this!

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ptc

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Edited By ptc
@Wiseblood said:
"Those reticules reminded me of something and it just hit me.  Those are totally the things you put into cap guns. "

Yes!  Good call. 
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Edited By brehonia

At the very least we know we can trust Teasdale from his games and presentations etc, but apparently they're doing something new with the Kinect (fast, accurate, sitting down) so there's no telling whether it'll be any good. 
 
Add to that the usual Twisted Pixel flair (awkward jokes; off-putting graphics and art; a lame and tedious compulsion to insert themselves into their games), I'm pretty sure I'll hate it, but the general reception could go either way.

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SkinnyBlue

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Edited By SkinnyBlue

So Comic Jumper's gameplay with motion controls? No thank you.

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Edited By sgt_match

Skeptical, but a different kinect approach... So... 50/50 shot on the gameplay... Twisted Pixel may figure it out.   Watched the trailer and got excited when the article mentioned Rez.
 
But good character design.  And Marionettes... who doesn't love some string puppets?

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Edited By Death_Unicorn

Too bad I don't have a kinect, nor will I be getting one any time soon...
I love Twisted Pixel...

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Edited By KillerBears

I was totally with this until they showed the gameplay. It looks stale and simple, and the reticles looks terrible. The art direction on the character is 100% amazing but everything else looks pretty bland. Hopefully this is a really early version. 
 
In theory, a puppet based Kinect game could really be something special. Definitely a step in the "not just replacing a controller with gestures" direction that only dance central seems to have hit.

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SockLobster

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Edited By SockLobster
@byrjun:  Make sure you put the word "First" in your comment and comment first...not second
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Edited By FreakAche

So... is this another downloadable game?

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yukoasho

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Edited By yukoasho
@Skullomania said:
" @City17 said:
" The actual gameplay footage looked pretty bad to me. I hope they can show something better than that. "
Yup, looked like bad Comic Jumper. "
I was about to say, isn't that what Twisted Pixel does?  Make games that would be so amazing were it not for the part where you have to actually play the bloody thing?
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FinalCut

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Edited By FinalCut

That looked... kind of bad. I mean their games can be quite funny, and generally quite stylish but this is probably going to be the lowest point in TP gameplay.

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gunharp

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Edited By gunharp

Well the reveal sure was surprising! But I am kind of bummed out by this Twisted Pixel powered Kinect joint. 
 
I feel like TP should do something like....what Take-Two had/let Indie Built do with Amped 3. Anyone feel me on that? 

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Bloodgraiv3

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Edited By Bloodgraiv3

hopefully TP can pull it off, it seems neat. 
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Edited By goulash_enjoyer

Call me a naysayer, but the gameplay looks really bad. Good trailer, though.

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Residentrevil2

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Edited By Residentrevil2

I really do want this.

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Levio

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Edited By Levio

If you shoot by making a finger gun, that would be a world-first.

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Edited By virtua_ben
@Bummey said:
" Call me a naysayer, but the gameplay looks really bad. Good trailer, though. "
I agree COMPLETELY.  I liked how the trailer poked fun at the other systems, but beyond that the game didn't interest me.
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Edited By Portis

I'll have to see more obviously -- but man this really doesn't look so hot gameplay wise (the little that was shown, but if that's what most of the game will be...err yeah.) Or graphically. 
 
And I love Twisted Pixel. But, woo boy.