Press Play’s Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is finally available for Xbox 360 and PC after being exclusive to the Xbox One since last year. The action platforming title is a remake of Max and The Magic Market, and sees you playing as Max, who embarks on a journey across 20 different levels in seven different worlds to save his brother Felix.

Creative Director Mikkel Thorsted talked about the game’s release for the previous gen and PC, stating that, “We put a lot of love and hard work into bringing Max to Xbox 360 and PC. The most important thing for us was to bring over the quality and atmosphere from the Xbox One version to these platforms and I am really proud of what we have accomplished.”

Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is available for $14.99/€14.99/£11.99 on Xbox 360 and PC (available via Steam). Will you be picking it up for either platform? Let us know in the comments below.

Press Play’s Xbox One platformer Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will finally be arriving for Xbox 360 and PC via Steam with the former releasing on April 9th and the latter out on April 15th. As a remake of Max and The Magic Marker, The Curse of Brotherhood features twenty levels spread across seven worlds.

Creative Director Mikkel Thorsted stated that, “We are really proud of releasing what we believe will be one of the best-looking games on XBLA. Originally, Max: the Curse of Brotherhood was developed for Xbox 360. Late in development we couldn’t turn down the opportunity to re-position the game as an Xbox One launch title. Since we shipped the Xbox One version, we have worked to make what we believe is the best possible Xbox 360 and PC versions of the game.”

Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will be available for $14.99/€14.99/£11.99. You can check out review of the Xbox One version here.

GamingBolt got in touch with studio director Mikkel Thorsted to gather more information on Max: The Curse of Brotherhood.

"Boiled down to a handy catchphrase, we like to refer to Max internally as a "cinematic puzzle platformer" - a puzzle-game with light platforming and an emphasis on story."

Ravi Sinha: Max: The Curse of Brotherhood and Press Play kind of just materialized during Microsoft’s E3 2013 presser. What can you tell us about the studio and how you went about developing the concept for the game?

Mikkel Thorsted: Press Play is based in Copenhagen, Denmark. We are about 25 developers and in many ways we resemble a lot of indie studios, however we are a part of Microsoft Studios. Last Summer we were acquired by Microsoft under what they call a light touch acquisition meaning we have a lot of freedom in what games we want to make and how we run our studio.

The concept of the game is very much a product of working with ‘Max and the Magic Marker’ and wanting to do something more ambitious with the idea of Max and his Magic Marker.

Ravi Sinha: There’s not a whole lot we know about Max: The Curse of Brotherhood currently other than that it reimagines Max and the Magic Marker. Could you tell us about some of the mechanics of the game, which is a 2.5D side-scrolling platformer?

Mikkel Thorsted: Boiled down to a handy catchphrase, we like to refer to Max internally as a “cinematic puzzle platformer” – a puzzle-game with light platforming and an emphasis on story. You take on the role of Max, our titular character, and have to guide him through a hostile fantasy world to save your brother who have been taken by a giant monster. You have a powerful tool at your disposal though, a Magic Marker imbued with fantastic powers that lets you manipulate the environment in a variety of ways. To name some of them, you could grow a tree that you can climb, or pull long vines out of the ceiling to swing across a deep ravine, or maybe create a geyser that catapults a huge boulder at an incoming enemy.

Ravi Sinha: Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will also be releasing on the Xbox 360. Will there be any key differences, either visually or in terms of gameplay between the Xbox 360 and Xbox One versions?

Mikkel Thorsted: This summer we decided to bring Max to Xbox One. We went back and worked hard on enhancing everything in the game from controls and animations to graphics and performance. We even added some extra puzzles and did a lot of overall polishing. Basically we did what we could to take advantage of the extra horse powers we got with the upscaling of the project to Xbox One.

We are right now working on finishing the Xbox 360 version of Max, which will be released early 2014, and we want a lot of the improvements from the Xbox One to spill back into the 360. Xbox 360 is a very important platform for us and we want this version of Max to be as good as possible.  So hopefully the two games will feel and play the same. But of course Max: The Curse of Brotherhood for Xbox One will benefit a lot from running in full HD and playing 60 fps.

"The scope of the new game is something in a completely different class from the old game, but at the core it remains a game about being Max and altering your environment with the Magic Marker."

Ravi Sinha: Max has been developed using Unity for the Xbox One and Xbox 360. What kind of support did it offer in terms developing the game this time around and did it provide any advantages to prior development processes?

Mikkel Thorsted: In general we use Unity for all our games and that comes with certain advantages like ease of use and fast prototyping, but also with a range of disadvantages. It would be fair to say Unity is not the most proven engine on consoles.  However Unity is still our preferred choice.

Ravi Sinha: There’s a pretty clear design change in Max from the Magic Marker to the Curse of Brotherhood. Could you explain the process and the reasoning behind changing the look and tone of the game for Xbox platforms?

Mikkel Thorsted: That’s a good question, and one that’s directly tied with our decision to make this game a spiritual successor or reimagining rather than a direct sequel. The fact is that since we made the first Max game, we have grown as a company – both in terms of number of employees, and in terms of raw skill. We are simply capable of creating a much more ambitious title now than we were back then, and Max: TCoB is the result of that. We went with full 3D graphics over the hand-drawn 2D of the old game, and at the same time went for a much more ambitious game world, mechanics and story. The scope of the new game is something in a completely different class from the old game, but at the core it remains a game about being Max and altering your environment with the Magic Marker.

Ravi Sinha: Will Max be taking advantage of features such as Kinect or SmartGlass? Every game on the Xbox One seems to be implementing both features in some way or another. What are your thoughts on using either Kinect or SmartGlass to expand on the gameplay experience?

Mikkel Thorsted: We are not using either Kinect or SmartGlass to expand on the gameplay. We are really happy with the controller-only control scheme we have now. It is a control scheme we have worked hard on testing and tweaking to provide a smooth gameplay experience when controlling Max and the Marker. But who is to say what will happen in the future. In many ways we think that Kinect shows a lot of potential and it is something that could be interesting to look into.

"We’re proud of the relationship between Press Play and Microsoft. We have been able to maintain our independent culture, and are able to make our own product decisions, with the full support of Microsoft."

Ravi Sinha: How long does the single player campaign last?

Mikkel Thorsted: The game has twenty highly different levels both in terms of graphics and gameplay. We estimate that the average player will finish the game in six to eight hours. But as always, your mileage will vary depending on your skill and the amount of secrets and pickups you go for – a completionist will likely spend significantly longer in the game.

Ravi Sinha: Can you please tell us some of the special skills and moves that Max will have at his disposal this time around?

Mikkel Thorsted: (please see question 2)

Ravi Sinha: Crayon Physics played a big part in the first game. Now we know that is returning in Curse of Brotherhood, but how are you making it even better this time around?

Mikkel Thorsted: (Already answered in question 2)

Ravi Sinha: Does Max take advantage of Cloud computing to further improve the game or make changes after its release? Could you tell us a bit about how this process would work?

Mikkel Thorsted: Since everything wanted to do with Max could run on the hardware, we never looked into cloud computing.

Ravi Sinha: Furthermore Microsoft believes that using the cloud, Xbox One games can have even better graphics and physics. From a development perspective what are your thoughts on the same?

Mikkel Thorsted: I don’t know enough about it yet but is sounds like something that could be interesting.

Ravi Sinha: While the Magic Marker was released for PC and Mac, Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will be released exclusively for Xbox platforms. What kind of relationship does Press Play currently share with Microsoft? Is there a chance we could see Brotherhood on other consoles like the PS4 somewhere down the line?

Mikkel Thorsted: We were acquired last year by Microsoft. We’re proud of the relationship between Press Play and Microsoft. We have been able to maintain our independent culture, and are able to make our own product decisions, with the full support of Microsoft. We view the relationship more as a partnership – than anything else. But since we are a Microsoft Studio I feel safe to say that Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will not be released on PS4.

"Developing for the Xbox One has been a smooth experience and the great specs has removed a lot the fiddling we are used to when making our games run on consoles."

Ravi Sinha: What is the development process like on the Xbox One? Do you find it easier or harder in comparison to developing on PC?

Mikkel Thorsted: Developing for the  Xbox One has been a smooth experience and the great specs has removed a lot the fiddling we are used to when making our games run on consoles.  In comparison to PC working with Xbox One is great. You know the exact specs and resolutions you want your game to run in and all the meta systems like Achievements and DVR are build into the platform. Making games for the Xbox One is like assuming all your users have a powerful gaming PC with a certain set of specs, which makes developing games a lot easier.

Ravi Sinha: Furthermore what are your thoughts on Xbox One’s GPU? Do you think it will stand the test of times in the coming years, especially given that PC gaming is growing at a faster pace?

Mikkel Thorsted: The Xbox One’s GPU based on our experience is very capable and I think it will stay competitive for many years. Looking back at the Xbox 360 specs it stayed competitive for many years even though the specs on PC were much better.

I also think there is a great future for a console being as versatile as the Xbox one. Not only does it support the widest possible definition of games, but it also works as the center of all entertainment in the living room.

Ravi Sinha: Finally, what are your thoughts on Microsoft’s current indie game policy especially given the wholly open nature of the same?

Mikkel Thorsted: It is my belief that Microsoft is doing everything to welcome and support indies as much they can without compromising the quality of their service.

Even with the lesser number of exclusives and some hardware problems, both the Xbox One and PS4 have presented an ideal development solution thanks to their x86-based architectures. This makes it easier to create cutting edge visuals and optimize the game without too much effort. GamingBolt recently had a chance to speak Press Play studio director Mikkel Thorsted, who worked on Max: The Curse of Brotherhood for the Xbox One, to find out just how much easier it is to develop for the next gen console as compared to the PC.

“Developing for the Xbox One has been a smooth experience and the great specs has removed a lot the fiddling we are used to when making our games run on consoles. In comparison to PC working with Xbox One is great. You know the exact specs and resolutions you want your game to run in and all the meta systems like Achievements and DVR are build into the platform. Making games for the Xbox One is like assuming all your users have a powerful gaming PC with a certain set of specs, which makes developing games a lot easier.”

Given that The Curse of Brotherhood is a remake of Max and The Magic Marker, which released for PC and Mac, and the former is an Xbox exclusive, what does that say about the relationship Press Play has with Microsoft? Thorsted pretty much snuffed out any chance of the game coming out for the PS4 or any other consoles down the line.

“We were acquired last year by Microsoft. We’re proud of the relationship between Press Play and Microsoft. We have been able to maintain our independent culture, and are able to make our own product decisions, with the full support of Microsoft. We view the relationship more as a partnership – than anything else. But since we are a Microsoft Studio I feel safe to say that Max: The Curse of Brotherhood will not be released on PS4.”

What are your thoughts on the development process for the Xbox One? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

Younger siblings can be a pain but inadvertently banishing them to a weird and magical world full of chomping beasties and perilous pitfalls is just plain mean. Fortunately, in Max: The Curse of Brotherhood, our hero is armed with a Magic Marker that allows him to manipulate his environment and help him on his way. It’s up to you to guide him across seven chapters through arid landscapes, lush forests and gloomy caves to save Felix from the clutches of aptly-named bad guy, Mustacho (he has a massive moustache, you see).

"Aimed at all ages, the puzzles throughout are fairly simple and never prove too challenging; areas that can be manipulated by your pen are clearly signposted and the controller even rumbles when you hover near the appropriate spot."

Press Play’s side-scrolling platforming puzzler is a follow up to the popular 2010 Wii and iOS game, Max & the Magic Marker. It’s this Marker that differentiates the game from all those other platformers; at any time, pressing RT brings throws a large pen tool up on the screen, which can be used to harness the power of the elements by interacting with highlighted objects. This means Max can draw vines to swing on, make pillars of earth erupt from the ground, create streams of water or shoot powerful fireballs.

On your travels you’ll have to outmanoeuvre fireflies, avoid voracious vegetation as well as escaping club-wielding troll types and spikey snail-like critters. It all concludes with the final confrontation at Mustacho’s castle – perhaps the weakest portion of the game where learning to avoid a few set-piece attacks will see you safely return home with your bro.

Aimed at all ages, the puzzles throughout are fairly simple and never prove too challenging; areas that can be manipulated by your pen are clearly signposted and the controller even rumbles when you hover near the appropriate spot. Some do require a far bit of trial and error to succeed, however. You could, for example, be standing at the edge of a precipice with only a branch and a short length of vine ahead of you, knowing full well that neither will help you get across if used independently. But connect the vine to the branch, then sever it at its root and the vine becomes just long enough for you to swing to the next platform. Very clever.

"The Curse of Brotherhood is a fantastically good-looking game, with the 2.5D environments boasting a depth of field akin to recent titles like Mickey Mouse’s Castle of Illusion and Flashback."

Lives are unlimited and the checkpoints are generous so it’s really not a problem if you do mess up. For that reason, it’s worth experimenting and seeing whether a chasm can be leaped across or an enemy disposed of.
My only real bugbear was the inaccuracy of the controls using the gamepad – but you quickly master them and will be able to quickly draw/destroy your creations in no time. And the fact the pen snaps to the nearest point of interest helps things no end.

Thankfully, Press Play opted against trying to shoehorn Kinect functionality into the game too. In theory, the Magic Marker mechanic would be perfect for motion control but in those fraught moments when a monster is chasing you, rocks are tumbling and lava is flowing, it’s tricky enough to draw a vine to shimmy up with your controlpad; Kinect integration, would quite honestly, have been a big mistake. So well done the developers on that front.

The Curse of Brotherhood is a fantastically good-looking game, with the 2.5D environments boasting a depth of field akin to recent titles like Mickey Mouse’s Castle of Illusion and Flashback. The backgrounds are truly gorgeous, with the bright colours, lighting and detail really making it a spectacle to savour. The camera cleverly pans in and out, changing perspective and perfectly showcasing the dangerous surroundings in which you find yourself. Ropes ripple and bob after you’ve leapt from them, lava flows convincingly, lightning storms flash in the background, rocks fly out of the screen towards you when smashed, and the screen shudders when the massive Beast chases you. Even some of the cave levels where Max’s silhouette darts along the caverns is really attractive and has clearly been influenced by the likes of Limbo. It’s a fantastic experience.

"Quite unexpectedly, it was Max’s escapades that dominated my gaming time over the holiday period, despite the lure of all the other big budget Xbox One titles."

My first playthrough took around six hours and 300 deaths, but I soon delved back into the level select to track down those missing collectibles and mop up a few achievements. There are 75 evil eyes to yank from their roots and 18 amulet shards to find in total, some of which are tucked away in devilishly tricky places.

Quite unexpectedly, it was Max’s escapades that dominated my gaming time over the holiday period, despite the lure of all the other big budget Xbox One titles. It’s an engrossing tale and quite addictive once you master the slightly unwieldy pen.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox One.

Microsoft is running an offer on Xbox Live for the Xbox One, offering a three month Gold subscription for free if you purchase three games.

There’s a catch or two. The qualifying games include Crimson Dragon, Killer Instinct (both paid packs), Lococycle, Powerstar Golf and Max: the Curse of Brotherhood. So it’s not a case of just picking up Dead Rising 3 or Forza 5 or even Peggle 2 and taking advantage of the offer. No, you unfortunately have to go for the lesser games. You’ll also need either one or two of the qualifying games listed to be eligible.

As of now, the offer applies for the UK, United States and Canada. It’s valid from December 26th to January 1st. Simply head to the third title under “Featured” on your home screen to check it out. Does it sound like a decent deal or just a way to offload some games? Let us know what you think below.

(Source)

Game Overview:

Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is a 2.5D side scrolling game. The game sees the return of Max as he sets across a daunting journey across deserts and forest. The player will be able to manipulate environments and objects using a magical marker.

Max: The Curse of Brotherhood  is developed by Press Play. It is published by Microsoft Studios. The game is now available for the Xbox One and in 2014 for the Xbox 360.

Check out the video walkthrough of Max: The Curse of Brotherhood below and let us know if you have any questions in the comments section below.

For video game guides, tips and wikis, check out our gaming portal here.

Press Play’s 2.5D side-scroller Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is finally available for the Xbox One and the developer has released a launch trailer celebrating the occasion. Check it out above and let us know what you think in the comments below.

As a re-imagining of Max & The Magic Marker, The Curse of Brotherhood will see players take on the role of Max who jumps, slides and traverses his way across multiple levels in order to bring down a deadly monster. You’ll have the Magic Marker by your side though and it will help shoot projectiles, extend paths forward, raise platforms up and many other functions to help push you forward.

Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is currently exclusive to the Xbox One but is expected to arrive on the Xbox 360 some time in 2014. We’ll be taking a closer look at the game in the coming months, so stay tuned for more details and news.

In a surprising announcement, Press Play have announced that Max: Curse of Brotherhood will be releasing tomorrow for Microsoft’s Xbox One. GamingBolt were able to get in touch with Press Play studio director, Mikkel Thorsted to get his thoughts on Xbox One’s GPU and whether it will stand the test of times in the coming years, especially given that PC gaming is growing at a faster pace.

He believes that the GPU is competitive and the console itself is versatile . “The Xbox One’s GPU based on our experience is very capable and I think it will stay competitive for many years. Looking back at the Xbox 360 specs it stayed competitive for many years even though the specs on PC were much better. I also think there is a great future for a console being as versatile as the Xbox one. Not only does it support the widest possible definition of games, but it also works as the center of all entertainment in the living room,” he said to us.

We also asked whether there will be any key differences, either visually or in terms of gameplay between the Xbox 360 and Xbox One versions, to which he replied: “This summer we decided to bring Max to Xbox One. We went back and worked hard on enhancing everything in the game from controls and animations to graphics and performance. We even added some extra puzzles and did a lot of overall polishing. Basically we did what we could to take advantage of the extra horse powers we got with the upscaling of the project to XboxOne.”

He also confirmed that the Xbox One version of Max: Curse of Brotherhood will run in full HD at 60 frames per second.

“We are right now working on finishing the Xbox 360 version of Max, which will be released early 2014, and we want a lot of the improvements from the Xbox One to spill back into the 360. Xbox 360 is a very important platform for us and we want this version of Max to be as good as possible.  So hopefully the two games will feel and play the same. But of course Max: The Curse of Brotherhood for Xbox One will benefit a lot from running in full HD and playing 60 fps,” he confirmed.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

In a recent interview with OXM, Lasse Jacob Middlebo Outzen, the lead artist over at the Microsoft subsidiary, Press Play, confirmed that the small development company behind such games as Max and the Curse of Brotherhood have a bevy of brand new IPs on the way.

According to Press Play’s PR statement, the company has “full control of its projects,” which is a dream come true to the creative types like Outzrn. This creative control apparently comes without the supervision of Microsoft, which is surprising. But hey, they said it. Why would they lie?

Outzen spoke to the prevelance of indie gaming, and the dawn of a new era that isn’t just focused on violent shooters:

“I think it’s changing, actually. I think the whole indie scene has done quite a lot to move the industry away from that. I think a lot of the big players are realising that as well.

“I don’t think it’s necessary any more, and I think a lot of gamers are attracted to gamers like this. A lot of the big players have been too focused on guns for quite a long time.”

Source: OXM