Monthly Archives: February 2009

EA’s just predicted that a slew of sequels will form the bulk of the company’s revenue for fiscal 2010.

Madden, Need for Speed SHIFT, Bad Company 2, the next Harry Potter game and The Sims 3 were named as the those likely to be the biggest games for the firm in the next financial year by CEO John Riccitiello.

BioWare’s Dragon Age was the only original IP named in the list.

EA announced a loss of $641 million for the quarter ending December 31 today, and the loss of 1,100 jobs.

EA just confirmed a Wii version of Dead Space in its Q3 investor call.

The firm said it is to focus on stronger marketing for Wii in the coming year, with Dead Space, new tennis titles, three MySims games and Hasbro brands

We’re a little unclear on release date for the new version of 2008′s celebrated horror, but this year is a safe bet. Mr EA’s call’s a little flaky in the quality department.

The news comes on the back of confirmation of a heavy Q3 loss for the developer.

Update: N’Gai Croal reckons Mass Effect 2′s only been confirmed for PC and 360. Thanks, PT.

EA just said in its Q3 conference call that both Mass Effect 2 and a Battlefield: Bad Company sequel will release in the first three months of 2010.

CEO John Riccitiello appeared to confirm a multi-platform release for Mass Effect 2, suggesting that it will hit both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 at launch, and possibly PC.

The first Mass Effect was a 360 exclusive. Expect the fanboys to go crazy ape bonkers.

The Bad Company sequel is presumably the DICE game that was supposed to be shown this week in the UK.

More on Shacknews.

EA’s just confirmed that The Sims 3 has slipped from its planned February 20 release to June 2.

“The June launch combined with the break-through game the team is building gives us the perfect runway to create awareness for The Sims 3,” said EA marketing boss Russell Arons.

The news arrived today as EA announced both a slip for the PC version of BioWare’s Dragon Age and a nose-bleed Q3 loss of $641 million. Staff cuts are to total 1,100 as a result.

Let the good times roll. BioWare’s just confirmed a nasty slip for PC RPG Dragon Age, back from the first six months of this year to the “last half of 2009″.

The game will now release simultaneously with planned console versions, the Canadian developer said in a release.

“Dragon Age: Origins is shaping up to be quite amazing in its level of quality and polish,” said BioWare boss Ray Muzyka.

“I’m really proud of our team, who are working very hard to make Dragon Age: Origins the biggest and most exciting BioWare game yet, and we will work to ensure it not only meets, but exceeds the expectations of our loyal audience of fans.”

More here.

The news comes on the back of the announcement of heavy EA losses for the Christmas quarter and the loss of 1,100 jobs at the firm.

EA’s posted a huge loss for the three months ending December 31, amounting to $641 million.

Revenue for the period was was $1.65 billion, up $151 million compared with the $1.50 billion for the prior year.

FIFA 09, Rock Band 2, Need for Speed Undercover, Rock Band, Left 4 Dead, Dead Space, Madden NFL 09, Littlest Pet Shop, NBA Live 09 and Mirror’s Edge were named by the firm as Christmas cash-drivers.

The news, however, is bad. EA said today it’s to extend planned redundancies from 10 percent to 11 percent of its total workforce, meaning 1,100 staff now face job loss.

In addition, 12 EA facilities are to be closed as part of a deep cost-cutting exercise.

Sir John’s brow is beaten, but that lip remains stiff.

“Our holiday quarter came in below our expectations and we have significantly reduced our financial outlook for fiscal 2009, a clear disappointment,” said CEO John Riccitiello.

“We delivered on game quality and innovation in calendar 2008, with 13 titles rated 80 or above — more than any third-party publisher. We expect to build on this great quality record in the year ahead while delivering more profitability.”

The full press release is after the break.

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Atlus USA is to launch a new community-driven game portal for fans of its online games and anime.

Aptly titled Atlus Online, the folks behind it have promised a “content-rich, reward-driven platform for social interaction,” and are encouraging everyone interested to pre-register here.

Once live, members will be able to help shape the evolution of the portal with feedback, and will get exclusive access to unannounced online games.

Shinichi Suzuki, president and CEO, feels that, “Atlus Online will emerge as an extremely user-focused destination” and added that the site will “be a premiere interactive entertainment destination for online gamers and anime fans alike.”

Just imagine the look of pure ecstasy washing over the faces of Persona and Trauma Center fans as we type.

Full press release after the jump.

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Warrior Epic, True Games’s upcoming action MMO, is accepting applicants for a closed beta test.

The game’s site was recently revamped, so while you’re over there signing up for a bit of hack and slash  you can also check out some screens and a video.

Space for the beta’s limited, so get on with it. There’s more in the press release after the jump.

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Ubisoft’s bought a developer called Action Pants. Seriously.

The acquisition marks the arrival of Ubi’s first in-house studio on the North American west coast. It’s based in Vancouver.

Action Pants – seriously – first Ubi project is a Shaun White game.

Ubi’s not really slowing down on the growth front. It bought a Brazilian studio only last month.

More here.

Harmonix founders Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy are to be given GDC’s Pioneer Award next month.

That’s what dreaming up Guitar Hero and Rock Band does for you.

According to GDC organizer Think Services, the Pioneer Award “celebrates those individuals responsible for developing a breakthrough technology, game concept, or gameplay design at a crucial juncture in video game history, paving the way for the many developers who followed them.”

Yay them. More on Gamespot.

Looks like the end has finally come for Hellgate: London, at least in its current form.

As of yesterday, the game servers and official website have finally, actually been closed.

Never fear, though. If you enjoyed the game you’ll eventually be able to start anew in its free-to-play form when HanbitSoft relaunches the game complete with new content and gameplay changes.

You may have to fear a little, though. The exact release date and territories to be serviced by the revamp are still to be announced.

More through Massively.

SCEE’s launched a Europe-wide PlayStation photography competition, as you can see on ThreeSpeech.

Al you have to do is upload a photo you believe captures the “spirit of PlayStation” and upload it to the contest’s site.

The main winner gets €1000 and a Sony D-SLR a350 camera.

That’s sweet, shutter fans. Get snapping.

Paramount Digital Entertainment has appointed John Kavanagh as SVP of videogames.

In what is probably the driest news story in the world, Kavanagh previously established Kuju America and was VP of product development at Eidos.

“We are very excited to have someone as experienced as John come aboard to lead our videogame group,” says Thomas Lesinski, Paramount Digital president.

For the streets.

Eidos has released a showcase video of Beneath the Ashes, the soon-to-be-released DLC for Tomb Raider: Underworld, and very swish it looks to.

The featurette takes a look at environments and gameplay elements in the content. Watch it on Shacknews.

It’s out on February 10. A second episode releases on March 10.

After the break. The RTS’s latest vidoc shows heaps of aliens fighting and men talking over the top. That simple.

Doesn’t cost to look.

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Sega announced this morning that Marvel and the development team behind the first Iron Man game are hard at work on a sequel.

The game is slated to be released simultaneously with the Iron Man 2 movie in May 2010.

Not much else was revealed except, like the previous title, the game will be a multi-platform release.

Full press release after the jump.

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For those of you in the US eagerly awaiting Sega’s Phantasy Star Portable for PSP, your months of pining are almost at an end. According to Joystiq, the game is slated to be released on March 3.

Expanding on the RPG’s 360 version, Phantasy Star Universe, the game will feature four player ad-hoc missions, over 150 new weapons and exclusive items, as well as a new partner NPC named Vivienne.

Players will be able to select between three class types and four different races.

More through the link.

Original Story: The recently revealed Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings is to feature a co-op campaign – in which Indy fights along side a previously unplayable character – and is set in various locations throughout the globe, Eurogamer reports.

The LucasArts title will ship for DS, PS2, PSP, and Wii, but has no set release date as yet.

Staff of Kings will pit the famous archaeologist against evil rival Magnus Voller, as both try to get their hands on the Staff of Moses.

Expect plenty of puzzles, gun play, bar room brawls and whip usage throughout. And yes, the Wii version will take full physical advantage of motion control for the whip bits.

Different vehicles will be available to get Indy around, including elephants, planes and tanks.

Multiplayer will include four-person interaction where you can wallop each other via different free-for-alls with biplanes, tanks  and other as of yet unnamed modes.

Screens look a bit sketchy at present, but can be viewed here.

UPDATE: Looks like you will also be able to unlock the classic Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis game at some point (Kotaku).  Might be well worth it after all.

The Major is reporting that Rock Band aficionados can now download more music for their pretend bands in the way of Nikko, Pat Benatar, The Pretenders and Thin Lizzy. The full list is as follows:

• Nikko- Break My Heart, Don’t Tell Me
• Pat Benatar – Hit Me With Your Best Shot
• The Pretenders – Precious
• Thin Lizzy – The Boys Are Back In Town, Jailbreak, Cowboy Song (all live tracks)

All songs will run you the usual 160 Microsoft Points, except the Nikko selections which are 80 Points each.

If you feel the need, you can also get the Thin Lizzy selections in a nifty track pack for 440 Points. PS3 users will get these tracks via the usual PSN store update.

Guitar Hero fans may notice that The Boys Are Back in Town is also to be included on the upcoming Guitar Hero: Metallica game, and Hit Me With Your Best Shot was on both Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock and Guitar Hero: On Tour.

Just in case you nearly bought them twice.

Evo 2009 will take place on July 17-19 in Las Vegas, the event’s confirmed.

The tournament-heavy gathering focuses solely on fighting games, the roster this year including Street Fighter IV, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Soulcalibur IV, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Guilty Gear XX Accent Core and Street Fighter III: Third Strike.

There’s more detail on the official site.

Thanks, Kotaku.