Happy Wars Message Board

Happy Wars developer Toylogic issued the eleventh update for the game today, allowing all Xbox 360 owners to play it regardless of their Xbox Live subscription level. As the platform's first free-to-play game, it was previously locked to those with a Gold level subscription. Instead, unpaid Xbox Live users can play every facet of the game save for multiplayer, missions and the treasure map sections, which remain locked to Gold subscribers.

The update also adds a new game mode called Bounty Hunters, in which players earn bounties by defeating enemies, Big Towers and conquering other towers, adding to their team's total. The mode is available today until January 29. The title update also fixed issues that prevented progress in the Castle Defense mode, adjusted the item leveling system and changed the game's training mode into "Skirmish Mode." Happy Wars first launched in October 2012 and exceeded six million downloads one year later.

Free-to-play Xbox Live game Happy Wars has reached 2 million soldiers on its leaderboards, developer Toylogic announced today.

"We always continue to make improvements on improvement to have millions Happy Wars fans be happy. We'd like to continue to deliver additional updates in the future," said Happy Wars game director Yoichi Take.

The latest update, which is number four if you're counting, adds a new mode, more items and additional customization slots. What is war good for? Making people happy, of course!

Microsoft's first free-to-play MOBA hits Xbox Live Arcade to...moderate success, at best.

Today was supposed to be the launch day for Xbox Live's first free-to-play game, Happy Wars. However, the free-to-play revolution hasn't taken hold on Xbox yet, because the game isn't there. As of writing, the only Happy Wars content available on the Xbox Live Marketplace is a trailer; the game's entry on the Marketplace as accessed on the Xbox only gives you the option to "rate" it.

"I know the team is aware of the issue and actively working on it," Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb told Joystiq, promising to tweet an update when information is available. In the meantime, you'll have to find another cheerful skirmish on which to take out your frustrations.

Happy Wars didn't quite make "September," but we're not complaining about a free game arriving a little later than expected. Happy Wars, Toylogic's 30-player XBLA action game, will be free to play for Xbox Live Gold Members when it arrives on October 12.

Naturally, it'll be supported by microtransaction-based character customization, though you can also dress up your adorable little warrior by earning in-game currency. Be sure to equip a jacket! Your poor little merciless combatant might get chilly while he's out laying siege to an enemy castle.

Ascend: New Gods, from Toy Soldiers developer Signal Studios, is the second confirmed free-to-play game coming to XBLA, following Happy Wars' launch in September, Microsoft tells OXM. Ascend: New Gods is scheduled to ship "in several months."

XBLA's free-to-play games require an Xbox Live Gold subscription, "as many of the games planned will be multiplayer games by nature (an Xbox LIVE Gold subscription is required for multiplayer gaming)," Microsoft says. The free-to-play games will "leverage the Microsoft Points system," which we assume means they will "use Microsoft Points to offer players pretty, but useless items. And tons of people will buy them."

Meet Xbox Live Arcade's first free-to-play game.

Happy Wars, an adorable multiplayer action combat game, just got even easier to try out. Microsoft announced that it will release ToyLogic's game as XBLA's first for-real free-to-play game. When Happy Wars launches this "autumn," it'll be a free download for Xbox Live Gold users, supported by the purchase of "lavishly rendered items" to customize your character.

Microsoft has made moves toward free-to-play on XBLA before, but never quite closed the deal. Crimson Alliance seemed to be embracing a free-to-play model, but instead just had a glorified demo and "flexible" pricing. Dungeon Fighter Live is based on a F2P PC game, released on XBLA as a $10 purchase. Rumors had Microsoft adjusting infrastructure to support F2P last year.

I saw a lot of games at E3 about war, but none were anywhere near as adorable as ToyLogic's multiplayer XBLA game, Happy Wars. It's an online multiplayer (15 versus 15) action game about capturing territory and defeating everyone in sight, but with a distinctly rounded, cutesy look that makes it stand apart from its peers. Finding myself put off by all the gore and elephant monster brains that featured in this year's games, I welcome a more family-friendly take on fighting.

You control one of three classes to storm the enemy's part of a map. I was a warrior, who could use sword attacks and a variety of special attacks, like rock throws and spin moves, that rely on a refilling meter. You capture territory by destroying enemy statues and working together to rebuild new ones - which become spawn points for your team. The match ends when, using a giant battering ram weapon, you break into the enemy fortress. Before that, there's a lot of rushing into crowds and mashing on buttons to attempt to survive the pandemonium.

The combination of cute characters and chaotic fighting seemed incongruous, until Toylogic CEO Yoichi Take told me his influences: "We played the Battlefield series and Castle Crashers." Take believes that Japanese gamers will find a cute war game more palatable than other realistic, brutal and bloody war games.

Why, then, is it on Xbox - the least popular console in Japan - if it's hoping to capture a Japanese audience? "I would like to play Happy Wars with people worldwide," Take said, and the Xbox is more popular worldwide. "Happy Wars is a multiplayer game, and Xbox multiplayer is most played."

Originally shown only in Microsoft's booth at TGS, the trailer for Toylogic's Happy Wars is now available for all to see. And now that we can actually look at it, it looks really fun!

Players choose their chibi, cartoony character class (warrior, mage, or cleric), and then take part in 15-on-15 battles which mostly seem to involve crowds of players hacking away at one another while other players shoot at them with cannons. There also appear to be tower defense elements, but those seem to be less important than the fightin'.

At the official website, you can see new, cute footage of each class's special attacks. Happy Wars will break out on XBLA next year.

Could this be the answer to Fat Princess?