Speedball II for XBLA

By Robert Purchese Published 12 June, 2007

In August. About time.

Empire Interactive has finally stamped confirmation on Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe for Xbox Live Arcade.

The plan is to release it in August, complete with sparkly high-definition resolutions, more teams and downloadable content. No price has yet been mentioned, although we expect a figure of 800 gamerpoints is likely.

"We are pleased to be bringing this all time classic to Xbox Live Arcade," said Ian Higgins, CEO Empire Interactive. "With its brutal and addictive gameplay, plus the ability to play multiplayer over Live, we are sure this will be the definitive version of Speedball."

Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe is a violent sports game that pits two teams of heavily armoured and steroid-pumped players up against each other. The aim of the game is to throw your metal ball into the other team's goal, smashing through all opposition in your way. It's a bit like American Football gone mad, if you can imagine that. And if there were rules in the game, we can't remember them.

You can also ping the ball around the arena to trigger bonuses or thunder around collecting cash. This money can then be used to upgrade your team's abilities or to buy new players, helping you on your way to winning the league.

Bitmap Brothers developed the original for the Amiga back in 1991, which went on to sell over two million copies.

Head over to our Speedball II: Brutal Deluxe gallery for the latest screenshots.

Bitmap MD Mike Montgomery is also currently overseeing a remake of Speedball 2 for PC. French outfit Kylotonn is developing it, and we jetted out to Paris in April to get a look at how it was all going.

Pop over to our Speedball 2 preview to find out what we thought of it, or head over to our interview with Mike Montgomery to hear his thoughts.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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