No news post today as we gear up for an upcoming feature. The feature will be big and awesome, so check back on Friday when things get rolling!

If you need something to tide you over, go get The Maw‘s downloadable level on XBLA. Seriously. It’s $1.25. They could repackage an old level for that price and it’d still be worth it.

Twisted Pixel Games recently announced that there would be 3 new levels of downloadable content (DLC) upcoming for The Maw at $1.25 each. Gamers immediately cried foul, accusing the independent developer of price gouging. Twisted Pixel, insisting that the additional levels had started development after the original game was finished, had the following to say: [...]

The Maw is a puzzle platformer that’s loaded with personality and polished until it shines. Twisted Pixel’s labor of love may be about eating things and getting bigger to eat more things, but the first thing Maw will devour is your heart.

If you’ve followed this blog for any length of time, you may recall that we earlier had a chance to talk to Mike Henry of Twisted Pixel Games. The independent developer announced on Monday that their upcoming action-adventure game, The Maw, will be released on January 21st, saying:

Twisted Pixel Games, working in conjunction with the Galactic Council, mistakenly let The Maw escape from his quarantine early Monday afternoon. Scientists predict the destruction of all life in the galaxy “probably by next Wednesday.” Twisted Pixel’s CEO Michael Wilford responds: “Real sorry about that. That’s totally my bad.” Twisted Pixel refused further questions, instead announcing the award-winning game’s release date, price point, and website location. The Maw is the company’s first original IP, a product of monumental effort by a passionate and loving team, and also their first venture into galacticide.

If that doesn’t catch your interest, recall also that The Maw won the PAX 10 Audience Choice Award despite stiff competition from nine other worthy titles. Interested players can expect to shell out $10 (800 MS points) to download it on XBLA and curious gamers can poke at the media available at their (now officially launched) website.

We’ll have a review of the upcoming “Eat ‘em all and let your digestive tract sort ‘em out” game just as soon as we can.

It looks like the cowardly purple eating machine has gnawed its way into PAX attendees hearts, because Gamasutra is reporting that Twisted Pixel took home the PAX 10 Audience Choice Award. The Maw is a third-person action adventure that tracks the exploits of its eponymous blob and his partner/keeper Frank (check here for more details), but this news also comes coupled with a tentative release frame: Q1 2009.

All the entries to the PAX 10 were unique and difficult to compare, but our congratulations go out to Twisted Pixel undiminished.

Mike Henry of Twisted Pixel Games was on hand to tell us about his adorable purple people eater, The Maw. The game is a third-person action adventure that you’d get if Jak and Daxter crossbred with Ico, and the baby was a craven purple eating machine (and adorable to boot). The player actually controls Frank, a blue alien with a high-tech leash that in turn controls the Maw. You direct the little predator to eat and grow and do all the heavy lifting that requires no courage at all. Frank gets stuck with everything else.

The Maw doesn’t have a scheduled release date yet, but you can check out the trailer at the official site to get a sense of what to expect when it hits XBLA. In the meantime, click the jump to find out more about Frank, how the Maw got so cute, and how feasible it is to make a lot from a little as a developer.