Xbox Live Arcade games you may have missed

Redmond-based Microsoft’s Xbox Live Summer of Arcade event is almost upon us. In preparation for the event, a bunch of lesser-known downloadable Xbox Live titles have now been released. Most video game publishers save their big titles for the Christmas season, and leave the summer absent of big releases.

Microsoft tries to combat this pattern by rolling out some downloadable titles in the months of July and August. Here are a few game titles that can draw you interest until the awesome Xbox Live Summer of Arcade games start dropping.

Minecraft XBLA:

Minecraft for Xbox 360 is very popular with the hardcore gamers, but when it comes to mainstream recognition Minecraft rarely receives due acknowledgment. This game places throws you into a pixelated land of blocks, and challenges to place blocks to build anything you can imagine. It challenges you to survive by foraging for resources, blending them to create useful items to burrow into the earth. Then you are challenged to protect yourself from foes and construct the fortress of your dreams.

Download: Minecraft XBLA

Kinect Joy Ride:

Downloadable Xbox Live Arcade title Joy Ride allows players to make use of their Xbox Live Avatar to take control of a vehicle. Its stunt mode lets players to drive around in an open environment and launch their vehicles off ramps.

Download: Joy Ride Turbo

Dragon’s lair:

Designed with beautifully drawn graphics and gameplay, Dragon’s Lair is a high-definition remake of the 1983 classic Don Bluth adventure video game. To progress through the adventure activity, the player is challenged to use specific buttons on the controller as a scene plays out on the display. It provides the player with an unlimited number of lives so that trial & error becomes a frequent activity.

The game could not stand the test of time, but it still offers entertainment, and is thus worth checking.