Monthly Archives: May 2009

A peripheral replica of Paul McCartney’s Höfner bass guitar will be included in The Beatles: Rock Band Limited Edition Premium Bundle.

It’s wireless and works with all versions of Rock Band.

Don’t worry right-handers. It’s not lefty like the real deal.

Game lands September 9.

Thanks, Joystiq.

Scans from the upcoming Game Informer issue featuring Modern Warfare 2 have landed.

Looks rather good, and a bit snowy. Go look at them here on Tiscali.cz.

Details from the mag have already leaked as well.

Thanks to David Sarkisjan for the heads up.

Update: First scans are up.

Modern Warfare 2 details are starting to leak out of the next Game Informer issue bit by bit.

Here’s what we know so far:

• No co-op in story mode, but separate missions reminiscent of CoD4′s Mile High Club include cooperative multiplayer.

• In the wintery bits of the game, snowmobiles will be used to escape attack, but it’s unclear whether players will be driving or shooting from the vehicles. Ice walls can also be climbed by alternating between the two triggers.

• A live-patching system will be implemented for online multiplayer, forgoing the need for a downloadable patch.

• Game will run at 60 frames-per-second, with better detail than CoD4.

• Riot shields, movable turrets and customized weapons for single-player enemies were mentioned.

• Gameplay’s a bit more open-ended than CoD4 but is still linear.

• Stealth can now be used if  you like.

• Infinity Ward’s working on fixing enemy respawn issues (CoD4′s enemies would constantly respawn unless a player crossed a certain line).

• The single-player campaign will be longer than it was in CoD4.

Get more through Gamezine.

Atari has decided not to exhibit at E3 this year, although the company still plans to attend.

Speaking with Joystiq, an Atari representative told the site that a “proactive decision to attend but not exhibit at this year’s E3 event” was made so it could focus on “other selling and marketing initiatives” for Champions Online, Ghostbusters, and other unannounced titles.

While the publisher still feels E3 benefits the industry, its reasons for not attending will be announced in detail “sometime soon”.

Hit the link for the rest.

Cyanide and author George R. R. Martin announced today that a game based his fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire, is currently in development for PC and consoles.

This is just another addition to expansion of the series as a card game has already been adapted, and HBO are turning the novels into a television series.

“We are all huge fans of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’, so it is a true honor for our teams to be entrusted with creating the first video games inspired by this masterpiece,” stated Cyandie’s Patrick Pligersdorffer in the press release.

“The twists and turns of the plot will allow us to deliver an experience which can be enjoyed by both long-time fans as well as gamers new to the series.”

Sure as hell hope so.

We’ve shot off an email to Cyanide asking for more information. So stay tuned.

More through the break.

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Attendees who brave the crowds at BlizzCon 2009 or order the DirectTV broadcast of the event will be given Grunty the Murloc Marine as a World of Warcraft exclusive.

Last year it was the polar bear mount, this year it’s a pet that packs a gauss rifle it fires into the air to make sure no invisible spacecraft are honing in for the attack.

Can’t go wrong there. Watch him below.

BlizzCon 2009 takes place on August 21-22 in the Anaheim Convention Center. Tickets go on sale May 16 and again May 30.

Visit the official site for more details.

Image and video courtesy of MMO Champion.

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Activision has announced that it’s releasing a Guitar Hero Metallica bundle exclusively for Europe.

The Guitar Hero Metallica Solo Guitar bundle will include a copy of the game, a wireless guitar controller and an exclusive faceplate with the Metallica skull design.

Game’s out in Australia and Europe May 22, and the UK on May 29 for PS2, PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii.

Read on for the press release.

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Remedy’s announced a partnership with motion-capture group Imagination Studios to help on the infinite development of Alan Wake.

Said Remedy’s Lasse Seppänen: “It is with great pleasure that we can recommend Imagination Studios. Remedy has been extremely pleased with their co-operation and devotion in bringing the characters of Alan Wake to life.”

E3, please. More on Develop.

The Going Rogue expansion for City of Heroes was (sort of) announced earlier today through SteetWide Concepts, and now NCsoft has seen fit to make it official.

This will be the first major expansion for the City of Heroes franchise since City of Villains was launched in 2005, and promises to “blur the line between heroes and villains”.

Both heroes and villains will be thrust into Praetoria, which is governed by Tyrant, the evil incarnation of the game’s main protagonist, Statesman. As both heroes and villains go forth to deal with this menace, it will cause the opposing forces to question their loyalties.

A new alignment system has been implemented allowing each side to switch teams, along with additional missions and two new characters, Maelstrom and Desdemona, to represent the alignment shift in the game’s lore.

More details are expected in the “coming months”.

Press release is below.

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EA’s just announced a new Country Pack for Rock Band, coming to all formats on July 21.

Tracks:

• Alan Jackson – Good Time
• Brooks & Dunn – Hillbilly Deluxe
• Dierks Bentley – Free & Easy (Down the Road I Go)
• Dixie Chicks – Sin Wagon
• Drive-By Truckers – 3 Dimes Down
• Jason Aldean – She’s Country
• Kenny Chesney – She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy
• Kenny Rogers – The Gambler
• Lucinda Williams – Can’t Let Go
• Martina McBride – This One’s For the Girls
• Rascal Flatts – Me and My Gang
• Shania Twain — Any Man of Mine
• Steve Earle – Satellite Radio

$30 the lot.

id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead has said that company philosophy prevents over-selling its multiplatform Tech 5 engine because games come first and licensing the engine second.

“Our philosophy really hasn’t changed from what it’s always been, which is games first, licenses second,” Hollenshead told Gamasutra. “Working on Rage and working on Doom [4], which are both id Tech 5 games, are certainly our top priorities.”

Instead of  handing out loads of licenses and doing heavy promoting, id has instead “seeded tech out to a few licensees”.

“Our philosophy on that has been that we’d rather have a small number of good-fit, high-quality developer licensees than a bunch that aren’t really good fits or that may not be that bright of a licensee anyway.

“We think that the licensees…are going to have an impact on how the technology is perceived.”

More through the link.

The second game update for MotorStorm Pacific Rift has gone live.

Along with fixes and gameplay improvements, the update includes 40 unique Microbadges, and Sugar Rush no longer has a shortcut and it’s respawn point has been fixed.

More information and how to download it can be found through the link.

Dante’s Inferno is being developed equally across PS3 and 360, producer Jonathan Knight has told VG247, and the game has no “lead platform” to speak of.

“We’re developing for Xbox 360, PSP and PS3 simultaneously, and the two consoles versions should have parity with each other. We don’t have a lead platform, per se,” said the developer, speaking at EA’s spring showcase in London.

Knight said differences between the platforms, such as PS3 coming with a Blu-ray drive, presented little challenge to the studio.

“[Visceral's] in pretty good shape as regards to that,” he said.

“We’ve shipped a number of titles simultaneously on the major consoles platforms as well as handhelds and Wii and so forth, but just specifically talking about PS3 and Xbox, our tech is pretty well suited to shipping simultaneously.

“Obviously, you’ve got differences with the [terms and conditions] and the different rules and menus and stuff that you have to follow… but generally every day I get a build of both versions and both work equally well every day. It’s not really a problem for us.”

Dante’s releasing next year.

A new study has claimed that 23 percent of UK households now contain a games console.

“Brits have been taking advantage of the heavily discounted sales both before Christmas and in the first part of 2009,” said a rep from Harris Interactive, the company the published the findings.

“It seems that the investment in home entertainment will mean people saving money by staying in, and preparing for some tough months ahead.”

More on MCV.

Word that Guerrilla Games started looking for testers to try out it’s next bit of downloadable content for Killzone 2 surfaced yesterday, and the firm says it’s going to be the best yet.

NextGamer heard the talk, got on the horn to the game’s producer Sebastian Downie, and asked him what the extra team members were needed for.

“It’s DLC for Killzone 2, and all I can tell you is that it’s best looking thing we have ever made,” he replied.

Not exactly surprising news is it? At least you know the next bit’s coming eventually though.

Read on through the link.

Q has trademarked something called Guardian Hearts, reports Siliconera.

As the site points out, Q isn’t “trademark-happy” compared to other publishers, and has only applied for six since it opened: Meteos, Q? (the company logo), Lumines, Every Extend Extra, Genki Rockets and Guardian Hearts.

We love you, Mizuguchi. Make something good.

Jerry Bruckheimer Game Studio has signed Jay Cohen, ex-senior vice president of publishing at Ubisoft US, and Jim Veevaert, executive publisher of Halo 3.

The studio’s aim is to develop new IPs across games, TV and film.

External development teams will be used. The first Bruckheimer products will appear in three to five years.

There’s an interview with Cohen and Veevaert on Edge.

Wii is now in the 20 most requested items on Debenhams wedding lists, according to this Telegraph report.

Tracey Yates, senior analyst, Gift List at John Lewis, said: “Two years ago, the top 20 products on the Gift List were exclusively traditional items from linens, kitchenware, china and glass but, in the second half of last year, the Wii sports pack made it to the top 20.”

The world’s gone mad. Thanks, DarkZero.

Oh, sweet jeepers. Via its Office 2010 Twitter account, Microsoft has told people to “hold off from buying an iPhone/Pre” and that “June 2009 will be an important month for Zune lovers”.

Let’s do some amazing detective work. E3 is in June. iPhone and Pre are phone products. Zune could be a phone if Microsoft put a phone in one. Miss Marple says Microsoft may announce a Zune game-phone at E3.

Might not, obviously. Might, though. We’re guessing at “might”.

Thanks, Engadget.

EA just formally announced Spore Hero and Spore Hero Arena for Wii and DS respectively.

Spore Hero’s a story-based thing, while Hero Arena centres on – you guessed it – arena combat.

Both games will release this autumn. Get the PR after the break.

Update: There are some shots and a trailer of it on CVG.

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