As many of you know may know, it’s been over a year since James E. Silva won the XNA Dream Build Play competition with his game, The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai - a stylistic action platformer for XBLA which showcases non-stop action, deep gameplay, and a unique visual style. The story revolves around an undead samurai dishwasher in a dystopian universe on a quest for revenge against the evil cyborg army.

The wait is almost over and we’re proud to share with you some more details below, straight from James himself!

1) Killer Solos Minigame:
- After I got addicted to Guitar Hero and Rock Band, I ended up a bit curious to see what it would be like to implement my own rhythm minigame. The one in The Dishwasher proved to be such a hit that I kept it in there. You can beat Killer Solos to earn Psycho Picks, which you use to upgrade your stuff. You can play solos with either a gamepad or guitar peripheral (Rock Band and Guitar Hero work fine).

- You can also earn Psycho Picks in Time Attack challenges, where you have to kill a certain number of enemies in a short amount of time (duh).

2) Phantom Guitar:
- After finding the Amulet of Phantom Rock, you'll be able to have a friend plug in a guitar and help out as the Phantom Guitar. The Phantom Guitar player can lock onto enemies with the whammy bar, play notes and chords to deal damage, and do a death-dealing spinning attack by lifting the guitar. You can also make your own music this way, but I won't be surprised if the new Guitar Hero does a slightly better job in this department.

3) Massive Damage, Massive Combos
- The more damage you can deal before your combo meter runs out, the higher your score will be. Compete with the rest of the world in 50 Arcade Challenges, the Dish Challenge level, and the Tourney Solo Campaign. Hit 100 million in an arcade level, there's an achievement in it for you! Look for The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai in the months to come, exclusive for Xbox LIVE Arcade.

Stuart Platt, XBLA Producer