News Headlines

Command & Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight closes out the tiberian saga, likely with some grand explosion and a laughing visage of Kane. It’s available today at retail and online so C&C can finally get some answers they’ve been seeking for the last 15 years, like why Kane is bald and how he keeps it so shiny.

If STALKER proved anything it’s that Western gamers can appreciate games set in post apocalyptic Eastern Europe / Russia.

Metro 2033 is  a shooter that puts players in the Moscow subway system (circa. 2033) on a “a desperate mission to the heart of the Metro system, to warn the remnants of mankind of a terrible impending threat. Your journey takes you from the forgotten catacombs beneath the subway to the desolate wastelands above, where your actions will determine the fate of mankind.” Sounds good to me. And early critical response has been very good.

Here’s a snippet from the press release:

“Metro 2033 offers gamers an experience unlike any other,” said Richard Williams, Vice President, THQ Global Brand Management. “We’ve taken an extremely deep, engaging story, an incredible Russian twist on the post apocalyptic setting, and wrapped it up in some of the very best cinematic, first person action gameplay. The world of Metro 2033 is going to be talked about for years to come, just like other great gaming worlds that have gone before.”

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A long time coming, Sony has announced that God of War III has shipped to retail.

We’ve already posted our review of God of War III and it confirms that fans of Kratos’ brand of mayhem (and sex, of course) will be satisfied.

Car/racing MMO’s haven’t faired well. The two I can think of — Motor City Online and Auto Assault — both failed relatively quickly, so it’s with interest that I read the news that EA is taking another run at a racing MMO with the launch a closed beta for “Need for Speed World” which is expected to launch this summer (on PC only).  For details on the beta test check world.needforspeed.com.

It’s not just racing though.  They’re including a  ”power up system and deep RPG style progression to create a truly massive, socially-connected white-knuckle Need for Speed experience.” Time will tell how Need for Speed World turns out but based on past experience, they have an uphill climb.  We wish you all the best!

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To coincide with the re-launch of the official website and the Game Developer’s Conference in San Francisco, Bethesda has released a new cinematic for their upcoming game, Brink. For some reason I couldn’t shake the feeling of a Crackdown/Shadowrun mash-up somehow (at least, from the cinematic). Take a look:

It’s only a couple of screenshots so far, by it looks like developer Crytek is going to melt your GPU and CPU in one super-powered kick to your PC, nevermind what Crysis 2 will do to your Playstation 3 or Xbox 360. The cityscape environment is a departure from the tropical island settings that Crytek has mastered. Based on the screenshots, it looks like it’s a world of possibility.

Our Crysis Warhead post mortem interview with Eric Lagel, Producer.

Okay, so the math might not compute but this is a team-up worth noting.  EA Partners and Hothead games have signed “an exclusive publishing agreement that will bring DeathSpank to Xbox LIVE® Arcade and PlayStation®Network in 2010. Developed under the vision of The Secret of Monkey Island creator and industry icon Ron Gilbert, DeathSpank blends a story filled with Gilbert’s unique humor and wit with classic and addictive action RPG gameplay.”

There was definitely some buzz around Deathspank at PAX ‘09 so it’s great to hear that this deal is in place.

The setup for Vanquish is in line with the insanity that seems to be the the norm from Platinum Games:

The story of VANQUISH is set in the near future. Russia and the United States are vying for ownership of the world’s fast-depleting energy resources and the US has constructed a space station in order to harness energy from the sun. Russian forces capture this space station and divert its harvested solar energy into a blast wave that destroys San Francisco, aiming to force the US into a total and unconditional surrender. In response, the US tasks its armed forces with recapturing the space station before the Russians can annihilate their next target – New York.

I think I’d play it based it on the setup, without watching the trailer or having seen any screenshots. But you can below or you can just wait to play it sometime Winter 2010 on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3:

Sam Suede in Undercover Exposure was shelved January 2007 by iBase Entertainment and the first rumbling that anything was happening with it was announced today, three years later.

If you all remember, Sam Suede was a project that Leisure Suit Larry creator — the original Larry creator who had nothing to do with the last two “Larry” games — Al Lowe was involved with but there’s no word of this news on his website and he doesn’t even get a mention in the press release, which leads me to believe that it’s possible he may no longer be involved in the project. Come to think of it, iBase (the original developer) doesn’t even get a mention so it’s possible this IP was sold.

Apogee Software and Icarus Studios (of the MMO, Fallen Earth, fame) announced that:

“We have been searching for a cutting edge technology to bring Sam Suede to the market,” says Ken Wegrzyn, Sam Suede creator and Executive Producer. “Icarus’ xScapeTM platform not only meets but significantly exceeds our vision for Sam Suede”

“We see Sam Suede as a big leap forward in the video game experience,” say’s Jim Hettinger, CEO of Icarus Studios. “We are excited to bring our technology and expertise to this innovative property!”

“We have been searching for a cutting edge technology to bring Sam Suede to the market,” says Ken Wegrzyn, Sam Suede creator and Executive Producer. “Icarus’ xScapeTM platform not only meets but significantly exceeds our vision for Sam Suede” ”We see Sam Suede as a big leap forward in the video game experience,” say’s Jim Hettinger, CEO of Icarus Studios. “We are excited to bring our technology and expertise to this innovative property!”

But that’s pretty much it. Sam Suede has been taken off the shelf but there are no other details provided or even a screenshot or two. Hopefully there will be more developments on this story.

Today Sony announced that the company has bought LittleBigPlanet developer Media Molecule, which will become “part of SCE’s global development operation, SCE Worldwide Studios.” It doesn’t quite have the same ring as “Media Molecule,” but I’m sure no one is losing sleep over it.

“Since Media Molecule’s inception, we’ve had a uniquely close relationship with SCE.  Over the years they have consistently shown their dedication to Creative Gaming and Media Molecule, not only through their support of the company, but their willingness to take risks and embrace our often unusual approach and ideas,” said Alex Evans, co-founder of Media Molecule.  ”What we’ve achieved already with LittleBigPlanet has proved this to us and we’re excited by this new chapter of innovation and creative gaming, for all involved.”

This strange news item comes from The Escapist.

It seems that the Council of Derby (about 20 km west of Nottingham, England), made a misstep when they “went to the public for help in naming two sections of the city’s inner ring road that had just been built.” One of these inner rings will be called “Lara Croft Way.”

Maybe not well known for being a “Native Daughter” of Derby, as evidenced by Councilor Lucy Care’s response that, “The vote really captured the imagination of people from across the world and, despite my lack of gaming knowledge, I accept that a majority of 89 percent for Lara Croft is too overwhelming to ignore! She was created in Derby and deserves [to] stand alongside some of the more traditional icons of the city.”

The creators of Lara Croft (of the Tomb Raider series), Core Design, was located in Derby until “the studio was bought out by Rebellion in 2006 and, as Rebellion Derby, is reportedly being considered for closure.”

If Derby City Council is thinking ahead they should be mass producing Lara Croft Way street signs and selling them in gift shops because if they don’t they’re bound to go mysteriously missing from signposts.

Just about a month to go until the inaugural PAX East begins and they’ve released the full panel line-up, which includes:

Podcasting (f)or PR

Naga Theatre

Saturday, 5:30pm

Podcasting has become the new medium of choice for developers cultivating early relationships with “Alpha” gamers — those who influence the buying decisions of the unwashed masses. In this panel, we’ll talk about how firms like Irrational Games and Insomniac use in-house podcasts to keep their communities engaged, and how the media- and fan-affiliated podcasts rely on developers for a steady stream of content.

Panelists Include: Julian Murdoch [Freelance Writer, GamersWithJobs.com], Jeff Green [Editor-in-Chief, EA], Ken Levine [Creative Director, Irrational Games ], Larry Hryb [Major Nelson, Microsoft], Shawn Elliott [Podcast Producer, Irrational Games]

News on Splatterhouse always tweaks my sense of nostalgia so I thought I would share some screens just released by Namco Bandai:

Previously, Sega has sent press releases reporting that the spy RPG has been delayed. But today, Sega can confirmed a ship date: Tuesday, June 1, 2010.  I’d wager that the game is done at this point and developer Obsidian is going spend the remain months squashing bugs.

With a plot torn from today’s headlines and more twists than a season of “24”, Alpha Protocol brings a new level of modern day realism to the world of RPGs. Tasked with uncovering the perpetrators behind a tragic missile attack on a passenger jetliner, players dive into a story rich with characters and locations to discover an international arms-dealing conspiracy. Through their actions and choices, players direct the outcome of the game as they ultimately decide who to befriend, trust or kill.

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… onto retail shelves!

I’m one of those people that has been waiting for Heavy Rain for a very long time. As a follow-up (but not a sequel) to 2005’s Indigo Prophecy (or Fahrenheit, depending on where you live), this has been a long time coming. And now that day is here.

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