“(Almost) Total Mayhem”, or “Almost Total Mayhem” as it’s spelled on the Dashboard, is a one or two player affair where you attempt to destory the other player’s castle using a bomb that each player must fight over. It brings together defensive gameplay and offensive gameplay into a seamless whole, in an interesting way, allowing people to focus on their strengths and desired play style. It’s possible to win with a largely defensive stance, and also possible to win with a largely offensive stance. You could in fact play with nothing but offensive, but if you take a largely defensive stance then *some* offense will be required.
It’s a 2 vs. 2 affair, either you and a friend co-op against the AI, or each of you leading an AI teammate. 1 player has you leading an AI teammate against two opponent AIs. The mix of gameplay types allows you to simultaneously satisfy two different human players who prefer different kinds of play styles (for example, deathmatch and capture the flag). A great game for 80 Microsoft Points.
Here’s what the developer (Peanut Gallery) has to say about the game:
“(Almost) Total Mayhem is a fast paced, 2D action platformer. (Almost) Total Mayhem pits two teams of two combatants against each other. The objective for each team is simple, defend their castle and blow up the opposing team’s castle. There is a single bomb within the 2D level and players must race to discover its whereabouts and devise a route to toss the bomb onto the enemy’s base.”
Writings of Mass Deduction 