Castle Crashers (Xbox Live Arcade)
 

Has anyone else tried this game? It's just a simple side-scrolling beat-em' up with some minor rpg elements, but I'm hooked. Castle Crashers is definitely a contrast to the games I usually play, which are almost exclusively racers. It's not a terribly deep game, but there's no shortage of things to do, especially if you have any completionist tendencies. The animations are delightful (although there is some potty humor) and the soundtrack is pretty good too (yes, an xbox live arcade game has an honestly good soundtrack.) I've only played multiplayer so far, but I can't imagine playing a side scroller alone to be as much fun as with good friends over.

http://www.castlecrashers.com/

The funny thing is, I haven't even gotten the full version on my own Xbox; I've just mooched off of my friend. (My console died two weeks ago and I just got it repaired . . . that's what I get for always going cheap on ebay.) I think I'll hook my Xbox up to the internet and plop down the 1200 points to buy the full version once I get my console back today.

Anyway, check out the free demo.