It takes a special kind of person to get into Barnyard Blast: Swine of the Night. It's an action platformer parodying the original Castlevania and starring a cowboy pig. If you're one of those readers who comes here every day to read about eccentric titles that hardly anyone else cares about, this one's right up your alley!

Even executive producer Yan Marchal wasn't initially fond of the game: "I was busy with other vital issues in the studio while this took place ... Our 3D artist likes designing pigs, while our 2D artists are fans of Castlevania and Ghosts'n Goblins. When I took the project back in hand, I thought it would be unmarketable as such, but the timeline was too tight to reshape it before San Francisco's [2007] GDC."

A few of those "special kind of people" took to the concept, however, so Yan and Sanuk Software were able to sell Barnyard Blast to a publisher, and the rest is history. History being a cowboy pig fighting the undead.

These are strange times we live in.

Before we huff, puff, and blow our Barnyard Blast: Swine of the Night review down, let's have a quick look at the Castlevania parody's cover design. Notice anything wonky? Look directly underneath the game logo and awesome subtitle!

We were quite proud of ourselves for contributing the subtitle to Barnyard Blast: Swine of the Night, but Insert Credit's Brandon Sheffield was actually brought in to help rewrite the script! Why don't developers ever hire us to help plot out their projects? We have this wonderful idea for a game in which you play a cat who has to wake people up from their nightmares.

Though Brandon doesn't exactly give the Castlevania parody his vote of confidence, citing its linearity and difficulty as rough points, he does promise a plethora of "retro game meme" references.

Robert: Julia, I alone can save our son!
Julia: Robert, my love! I just want to tell you ...
Robert: No, no, don't try to stop me, Julia!
Julia: Get some bread while you're out, okay?
Robert: ...
Robert: The time for bread has passed ... perhaps forever. I'm off!
Julia: It's dangerous to go alone! Take this.
Menu: Get equipped with: Slayer Whip

Jeuxvideo already has an unflattering review posted with new screenshots (viewable in the gallery below) and video from the first eleven-and-a-half minutes of the game's French release. Koji Igarashi apparently tried out the game and gave Brandon advice on possible improvements, so if enough copies sell, maybe we'll see a much-more-polished sequel? Barnyard Blast will be available for public purchase this Friday, but you likely won't find it anywhere outside of Amazon, where it's listed for a bargain $19.99.


See also: DS Fanboy interviews Barnyard Blast's Yan Marchal

Read - Barnyard Blast out Friday
Read - Jeuxvideo review

Considering that the game has been on shelves for a bit now, you'll have to excuse us how long it took to find time to get our hands on what could very well be the last great GBA game. And, you know what? Based on our findings, this is the last great GBA game. Well, probably the last great GBA game we'll ever get to play.

Let's be real here, kids: No matter how much we sing its praises or try to draw you into our distorted interpretation of reality, Barnyard Blast isn't really going to be on anyone's 2008 Handheld Game of the Year list. Considering Advance Wars: Days of Ruin's release a week after Barnyard Blast's, it's doubtful we'll even see it grab the Handheld Game of the Month prize.

We can safely pledge, however, that, despite the rough bits in the above trailer, Barnyard Blast will be the best Castlevania parody game to ever star a cowboy pig and appear in stores on January 15th, 2008. Yes, it's a hard gamble, and we're really putting our reputation on the line here, but we're going to hold our breath and roll the dice anyway.

See also: DS Fanboy interviews Barnyard Blast's Yan Marchal

[Via GoNintendo]

With the holiday season and its big-ticket games approaching like a bullet train, threatening to deafen all with its passing roar, we're not surprised that most people haven't thought to pick up The Legend of Spyro: The Eternal Night. The GBA version of the multiplatform release, in particular, received very little promotion or attention when it hit stores two weeks ago.

It really is a shame, as, barring any surprise localizations for Rhythm Tengoku or Mother 3, The Eternal Night could be the last great GBA game. Available at GameStop for only $15 (with Wendy's $5-off coupon), there's no excuse for any fan of polished action platformers to pass on this title. Some are calling its combat system a 2D interpretation of Devil May Cry; as you'll see in the trailer past the break, that comparison hasn't been made in jest.

We sat down with Amaze Entertainment's Sean Epperson, The Eternal Night's producer, to talk about why the game shouldn't be left ignored. Read on to learn more about this GBA gem and its features.