Carcassonne arriving tomorrow

By Tom Bramwell Published 26 June, 2007

On Xbox Live Arcade.

Not merely content with the prospect of iceberg-saving Lumines bonuses, Microsoft has queued up the Sierra Online version of boardgame Carcassonne for release on Xbox Live Arcade tomorrow morning.

Carcassonne is a tactical strategy game about annexing the medieval countryside. If you're ignorant of its charms, don't be put off - remember that Catan worked quite well and perhaps give the demo a go.

The full version will include a full step-by-step tutorial "to teach you the game in minutes", according to the Xbox people, along with the traditionally unlockable 12 Achievements for a total of 200 gamerpoints.

Once you're proficient, you'll be able to go online in five-player games, and you can even dust off the Xbox Live Vision camera for a bit of face-to-face with your friends, or enemies.

We'll bring you our thoughts on how it works out once we've annexed a willing brain to process it all, but in the meantime, why not browse the contents of our Carcassonne screenshot gallery to help get you in the mood?

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (15) Latest comment 5 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • chupachups #1 5 years ago

    Carcassonne and Catan are possibly attempts to make the 360 more popular in Europe. These two boardgames have sold really well on the continent.

  • spadge #2 5 years ago

    Carcassonne is a simply brilliant board/tile game. Give your gaming diet some nourishment :) I actually prefer the social element of the real deal, but I'll be getting this as soon as none-the-less.

  • Peew971 #3 5 years ago

    You've got plenty, if not too many arcade shooters on XBLA. It's nice of MS to put some variety in the platform, they do need more board games.

  • espadachin #4 5 years ago

    tom, any idea what this is going to cost?

  • Leolian #5 5 years ago

    Am thinking .... 800 points! Am I right?

  • afghan_jones #6 5 years ago

    I'd like to see Live Arcade used a little differently. When it comes to games, I'd rather play quality full prce titles rather than old arcade ports and board games.

    howsabout using the Arcade to deliver new dashboard apps or other content? Digitised Graphic novels would be cool. Imaging reading the 300 or watchmen on 40 plasma in HD.

    In terms of apps, these could range from boring, quick stuff like organisers and calendars. The calendar could also have options to ping up reminders for new DVDS, movies, games that were released.

    Other stuff, like photo editing programs would be cool, or music making software. If they wanted to get really clever, have the dashboard link to tescos online so when the missus tells you youre out of milk, you can open the dashboard, order some and get back to playing Gears rather than going to the shops.

    I just think there are better uses for Arcade than actual arcade ports. Being able to download small, add-on programs to the dashboard would be ace. Even links to popular sites like facebook or myspace would be very cool.

  • groovychainsaw #7 5 years ago

    Woo! More board games! Excellent for the geeky amongst us (you know who you are).

  • afghan_jones #8 5 years ago

    @disc

    Kind of. Just a nice big screen one in the living room I can use sitting on the sofa, nad play xbox games on.

  • Monkey_Puncher #9 5 years ago

    It's called Xbox Live Arcade, not Xbox Live Random Applications and other stuff...

  • afghan_jones #10 5 years ago

    @Monkey_puncher

    I know what its called, and yeah, if it did do a bunch of other stuff maybe it would be called somthing else. but dont assume the name Live Arcade is some kind of immutable law handed down through generations that can never be changed. For now, it is arcade, in the future, who knows.







    actually that makes no sense and is mostly bollocks. Keep arcade if you want and call this bit 'Live Apps' or something. Microsoft can sort the name out. Im not coming up with all their ideas for them you know.

  • LOLLERS #11 5 years ago

    "Imaging reading the 300 or watchmen on 40 plasma in HD. "

    I Imagine that would be terrible. Try a book instead, they're also wireless and portable. Reading things in HD doesn't make them better.
    Edited by 1 at 26/06/07 @ 12:11

  • afghan_jones #12 5 years ago

    @Lollers

    Yeah, but I dont have any huge 40 inch books. do you?

  • bslsimes #13 5 years ago

    As long as you don't sit six feet away from the books when reading them, you don't need to.

  • optimusprym8 #14 5 years ago

    connect PC to said 40" TV and get wireless setup.

    looking forward to this but am finding more and more games on xBox Live seem utterly b0rked when it comes to hosting a full online lobby of invited friends only, can never seem to get it full, someone always gets "lobby full" error message when it isn't and I have only invited enough people as space allows. Getting three other mates into a game of Catan is near impossible for me, no matter who hosts and invites.

  • chupachups #15 5 years ago

    "I Imagine that would be terrible. Try a book instead, they're also wireless and portable. Reading things in HD doesn't make them better."

    I agree, it's far more comfortable and easy to read a real book. If you buy them second hand they're also much cheaper.

    We shouldn't be using technology just for the sake of using technology, it has to have some advantage. :-)