Monthly Archives: August 2009

Titan Studios has released a multiplayer fix for Fat Princess in North America.

No more disconnects for you, apparently.

The patch improves server stability, reduces lag, and fixes a few in-game bugs (broken hat machines, scoring exploits).

Unfortunately Europe will have to wait until next week. While not very fair, at least the single-player should hold you over until then.

Thanks, Joystiq, full notes through here.

Marvelous Entertainment announced yesterday a Japanese release date for Valhalla Knights: The Eldar Saga.

The first Wii title in the series will arrive on October 8, and players will be able to create a custom character, with over 100,000 possible part combinations, and team up with other players for multipalyer via Wi-Fi. Connection.

GameStop has it listed for a September 15 release, and last we heard, it was on for a November release in the UK.

More over on Andriasang, via GoNintendo.

Rhianna Pratchett has discussed the merits of cutscenes and interactive storytelling over on Gamasutra.

While she is a firm believer in “artfully crafted” cutscenes, the last thing she wants is a game turned into a “wannabe movie”.

“There’s no denying that given the fan-base of games like the Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy series, many gamers enjoy cutscenes, even incredibly loquacious and lengthy ones,” she told the site.

“Whilst, personally, I’d rather a game wasn’t turned into a wannabe movie, I believe there’s still a place for artfully crafted, well timed and smartly paced cutscenes. Granted, the games that manage to do all three are fairly rare.

“Putting interactivity aside for a moment, there’s still a lot we can do to improve our linear storytelling. There are exceptions (there always are) but our strength in this regard is by no means across the board. It is improving though, title by title.

“Cutscenes are still an important tool in our narrative toolbox, and we shouldn’t throw out the hammer just because we keep hitting our thumb with it. We just have to learn how to wield it a little better.”

Pratchett goes on to discuss cutscenes vs. direct during-gameplay storytelling and how each can co-exist.

Stuart Beattie has been shopping around his Halo: Fall of Reach script and according to a report over on IESB, none other than Steven Spielberg has his eyes on it.

According to the the site:

“IESB has learned exclusively (believe me this is solid and I’ve confirmed it three times over with studio executives and our close ties to CAA) that one of the biggest producers in Hollywood history is currently in active negotiations to develop the feature film adaptation and no it’s not Jerry Bruckheimer or Peter Jackson. It’s the man behind Jaws, E.T., Indiana Jones and Transformers, Mr. Steven Spielberg.

Spielberg is blown away by writer Stuart Beattie’s take on the game in his script entitled HALO THE FALL OF REACH. This coupled with the fact that his Dreamworks umbrella is looking for a big tent pole to help launch their newly independent studio with distribution over at Walt Disney Pictures after losing Transformers to Paramount in the separation, it’s the perfect combination.”

Keep this as a rumor until we hear something different, and since the IESB site is currently down, big thanks to Kokugamer for the link.

An SEC filing indicates that Midway’s San Diego studio has been sold to THQ, and its French and German divisions to holding companies formed by their heads, resulting in what is “effectively a management buyout for each regional distribution area.”

According to a report from Gamasuta, THQ will offer employment to at least 40 of the 100 employees working at the studio, but “specifically excluded from the bankruptcy purchase by THQ is the contract with the TNA iMPACT! video game in development at the studio, as well as the third-party tools such as Unreal Engine being licensed for the game’s creation.”

At least there’s some good news for the employees of Midway.

More through the link.

Thanks, Blue.

New behind-the-sceens video for Batman: Arkham Asylum talks art design and animation.

It’s very interesting, and posted after the break courtesy of BigDownload.

Game’s consoles later this month and on PC in September.

Demos for all versions are out now.

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EA has revealed some of the premium packs gamers will be able to download for Madden 10.

No word on pricing for any of these, but here is what is known so far:

• Super Superstar – Downloading this will enable your Superstar to get maximum progression for the length of his career.
• Pick A Superstar – Downloading this will allow you to pick any NFL player to start Superstar mode with.
• Dig Deep – For one play, your players respond to the challenges of the moment. All players receive a 10% boost to all stats.
• Game Day Instincts – For one game, your coaching staff is in the zone. All players receive a 5% boost to all stats; can be used once per year, per franchise.
• PK Scout – Download this to use a special scout who will reveal all true stats for Punter and Kicker prospects in the upcoming offseason. This is usable in Franchise only.
• Play Through the Pain – Using this allows for one player to recover from any injury no matter what the severity; usable once per season, per franchise.
• Not Done Yet – Downloading this allows you to keep one player out of retirement for one more year; usable once per season, per franchise. This is used in Franchise Mode only.

In addition to these, players can purchase Elite Status through the multiplayer lobby, which provides access to “exclusive VIP lobbies, leaderboards” and access to “the all new Elite Gametype” which features “All-Madden difficulty level and is tuned exclusively for the hardcore”, which IGN says will run you $5.00.

Game’s out next week. Hit the links for more.

Via Joystiq.

Tekken 6 on PSP will have everything the console versions have, according to Namco Bandai public relations manager, Arne Cual-Pedroso.

“Pretty much everything in the console version will be in the PSP,” the rep told Siliconera, and that includes all the downloadable content.

No mention of just how much DLC gamers can expect was mentioned, but if Namco’s past is any indication, expect loads.

Thanks, Joystiq.

QuakeCon starts on August 13, and to get you ready, id has released the list of happenings.

The first public showing of Rage, Splash Damage’s Brink, and John Carmack’s keynote are just some of the goodies to expect.

Our devoted Nathan will be there, so expect something from him as well.

The free event takes place from August 13-16 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas.

The full schedule of events follows after the break.

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Four screens for Forza MotorSport 3 have popped up over on Gameinfowire.

Dunno if these are new or not, but the pics show cars. You like cars. We like cars.

Therefore, everybody wins.

Game’s out in Europe October 23 and in the US on October 27.

Yesterday, LucasArts tweeted that it would make an announcement regarding a title from its back-catalog.

Unfortunately for those wanting news on a re-release of X-Wing, the news is not so good.

Here’s the tweet:

“Got a back-catalog announcement on Monday. It’s not X-Wing! I’m heading THAT rumor off at the pass!”

Guess we’ll just have to wait until Monday to find out what it is.

Yesterday, D’toid reported that the BioShock 2 website had an event scheduled for different parts of the world today, and each location -ten beaches in all- would receive a teaser of sorts for the game.

Sure enough, today, buried Acadia wine bottles were found on Bondi Beach in Australia, and inside each were three promotional posters for Rapture, and ads for two plasmids: Electrobolt and Decoy.

Kotaku readers from Brighton Beach, The Hague in the Netherlands, Vancouver, Jones Beach in New York, and Santa Monica sent in pictures of what they found as well.

Marketing with a fun twist. No major hints about the game were given, but a least folks walked away with some nice souvenirs.

More through the links.

An unnamed source has told IndustryGamers that Atomic Games has laid off all but about a dozen staff members at its Raleigh, North Carolina offices.

“The remaining team is basically a skeleton cleanup crew that will be gone soon too,” stated the source, adding that the firm is “pretty much dead”.

Atomic Games announced earlier this week that it had let some staffers go due to not finding funding for Six Days in Fallujah.

No word on the exact number of redundancies was made available.

An interesting article over on Develop talks about the score for Fable II and the story behind its creation.

In it, composer Russell Shaw states that he wanted the music in the game to “convey the world of Albion, but also enhance the story.”

He discusses how each region had its own sound and divulges the inspiration behind Bowerstone (Celtic, Scottish, folk, gentle), the way the combat music is based on the size of the battle, and how music reflects the player’s actions.

Definitely a good read if you are interesting in musical composition or game music.

Thanks, Joystiq.

BioWare has confirmed to IGN that Dragon Age: Origins will miss its original October 20 release date and will instead hit retail in November.

“Dragon Age Origins will be released on November 3 in North America and November 6 in Europe for Xbox 360 and PC,” a BioWare rep told the site. “The PS3 version will follow later in November.”

Yesterday, Shacknews reported that the game had slipped after seeing it listed for November on game rental service GameFly and online retailer Newegg.

Not much of a slip, but a slip nonetheless.

More through the links.

Johnny Cash’s likeness will be featured in Guitar Hero 5 – you knew that already though.

Since the fella is no longer around, Cash tribute artist Terry Lee Goffee provided the motion capture for the game, and the video of the result is posted after the beak.

The Man in Black looks rather good pixilated.

Game’s out for the usual suspects in September.

Via Kotaku.

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Namco Bandai and Penny Arcade are teaming up to bring you a new webcomic based on Tekken 6.

The limited series is a six-parter focusing on the mysterious past of Roger who was created using Kangaroo DNA.

At least we assume it’s Roger because that’s how his creation was explained in Tekken 2. Who knows where the guys at Penny Arcade will take this.

Game’s out October 27 in the US for PS3 and Xbxox 360.

Full press release after the break.

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After the break, we’ve posted a new video from The Beatles: Rock Band courtesy of Joystiq.

Ticket to Ride is the track, and the site was nice enough to remove the scrawling notes so you could get the full animated effect of the Fab Four.

Awesome.

Come on September.

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50 Cent has lent his voice to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, according to his official website.

Confirmed by Robert Bowling of Infinity Ward, the rapper is one of a few “casual cameos in the game, none of which I can name at this point,” said Bowling.

Fiddy’s site shows him at the studios playing the game with Benji and Joel of the band Good Charlotte who Bowling assures just “came along with him when he was here recently to check out his voice in the game.”

When playing multiplayer, participants will hear his voice spout the words and phrases: “Reloading,” “Watch your fire,” “I’m down, get me up!” and “Tango Down!” according to Bowling.

Hopefully he and whomever else has a cameo will do just as good of a job as Gary Oldman and Jack Bauer Keifer Sutherland did in World at War.

Via Kotaku.

Activision has released the debut video for Guitar Hero: Van Halen.

It’s out in the US on December 22, and “TBD 2010″ for Europe.

Watch it below courtesy of Gamespot, and judge for yourself.

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