Weekly XBLIG Picks - 1/31-2/6

In this week's installment of Weekly XBLIG Picks (just imagine I stretched that out and used a deep, booming voice), there really weren't too many games that evoked the jump up and scream response. Well, some did, but not in the way that will make you rush to enter your 16 digits and buy more Microsoft points. When the week ended, I really only found three games that I felt comfortable recommending. And here they are, in no particular order:

Random - Indie Board Games

A quick note before I go to bed. If I could turn everything into some sort of card-based game, I would. Fighters, RPGs, street racing, heck I almost joined Weight Watchers because of that awesome card system they had for keeping track of your points (I'm 5'8" and weigh 130, so this would probably kill me). Needless to say, few things capture my attention like shuffling and drawing. Earlier tonight, as my girlfriend and a good friend of mine were playing a three-player game of Innovation, I was reminded of my love for all games indie and how that spills over to my hobbies that don't involve electricity.

So, would you believe there's the board game equivalent of XBLIG?

Thoughts - Why XBLIG's Online Requirement Kills Certain Genres

There's a requirement for certain Ubisoft games that you MUST be online while playing said game. The punishment for trying to play offline is the obvious: you don't get to play. If you're a gamer, there's a pretty good chance you already knew about this and have made your long, angry, anti-Ubisoft blog or forum entry. But Ubisoft is a giant Splinter Cell-cranking corporation. Surely it's an isolated incident that wouldn't reach the world of indie gaming, right? As unfair as it is to word it like that, we all know it's been like that for XBLIG since the beginning.

And until this changes, competitive gaming will never be seen on XBLIG.