Monthly Archives: November 2009

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot has revealed that preorder numbers for Assassin’s Creed II are up 80 percent compared to the original, which is in stark contrast to Monday’s report from Janco analyst Mike Hikey, citing preorders for the sequel were up 10-20 percent on the original.

This bit was revealed during Ubisoft’s financial call to investors, along with the news that the company expects 15-25 percent higher total sales of the sequel.

Guillemot also said that Ubisoft and Sony signed a television marketing deal this year, which means that TV spots featuring the game will be PS3centric only.

Take that other formats, we reckon.

Via GI.Biz.

Robert Bowling has revealed that Infinity Ward is not “tied to making Call of Duty games”, and in the future may possibly create something else should the franchise “stop being fun”.

“Once this is done, maybe we’ll see about doing something new,” he told Develop. “If we do want to do something else, then we will do it.

“We don’t feel tied to making Call of Duty games.

“We still make Call of Duty games because we’re having fun doing it. And when it stops being fun, we’ll move onto something else.”

Modern Warfare 2′s out this month, just in case you’ve been trapped in a cave someplace and are just now escaping.

Blizzard has announced that its opening an in-game pet store for World of Warcraft, where players can purchase a strictly cosmetic Pandaren Monk or Lil’ K.T., the Littlest Lich, for $10 each.

Half the proceeds for the Pandaren Monk goes to the Make-a-Wish Foundation until the end 2009, and all of the Lil’ K.T. proceeds go to, well, Blizzard we suppose.

At any rate, more pets will be added to the store in the future, and to get said pets, you must make sure your WoW account is linked with Battle.net.

Instructions and more information can be found through the linky.

Thanks for the heads up, Michael.

THQ’s Q2 2010 financial call to investors has just ending, during which it was announced that UFC 2009 Undisputed has been in the top five on the NPD charts for the last nine months.

This information was also included in the fiscal figures released to the public, and pertains to both the Xbox 360 and PS3 version.

CEO Brian Farrell said during the call to investors earlier that UFC 2009 Undisputed was just one of the titles that will continue bringing revenue in for the company during the coming months.

More through the link.

THQ has released its financial 2010 results for its second quarter which ended September 30, 2009 and will conclude for the year in March 2010.

While reporting a loss, things are looking up for the company as it has reduced its operating loss and is closer to breaking even since financial problems that plagued it last year.

While the company had no major product releases in the fiscal 2010 second quarter, net sales were driven by previously released games.

The company reported net sales of $101.3 million, compared with $164.8 million in the same period last year. On a non-GAAP basis, for the three months ended September 30, 2009, the company reported net sales of $100.4 million, compared with $151.6 million a year ago.

From the release:

For the three months ended September 30, the company reported a net loss of $5.6 million, or $0.08 per share, compared with a net loss of $115.3 million, or $1.73 per share, in the prior-year period. On a non-GAAP basis, for the three months ended September 30 the company reported a net loss of $25.2 million, or $0.37 per share, compared with a net loss of $30.4 million, or $0.46 per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

The company expects to report fiscal 2010 second half net sales similar to last year’s second half, with fiscal 2010 third quarter net sales that are approximately 5-10% below the same period last year, and a stronger fiscal 2010 fourth quarter than the prior-year quarter.

THQ plans to improve revenues year-over-year once its starts operating at a profit, and is confident that will happen once a predicted decline during the Q3 fiscal quarter is over.

CEO Brian Farrell said during the call to investors earlier that “THQ is now operating as a more efficient company”, and UFC 2009 Undisputed, WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010, and MX vs. ATV Reflex will continue bringing revenue during the coming months.

Full PR passed the break.

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Brian Farrell, CEO of THQ, said during the company’s financial call to investor that, so far, they are pleased with sales of PS3 since the new model and price point has taken effect.

He also said that the company’s goal during the holiday shopping extravaganza is to “continue migrating PS2 users to PS3″.

The main goal of this is to “drive consumers to the higher price point” for both the games and the system.

Good to know.

THQ CEO Brian Farrell has just said during the company’s financial call to investors that plans are underway to continue building the WWE franchise.

One way is through the online game in Asia, and other ideas “currently in the works”.

Not surprising considering Farrell said during the call to investors that the company plans on continuing the franchise “until at least 2014″.

The call is still ongoing, so we’ll keep you up to date on anything interesting.

THQ has released a list of games expected to be released by the company during its third and fourth quarters of fiscal 2010.

The list is part of second quarter financial results.

Here’s the full thing:

Q3 Core Games

• WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PS2, PSP
• MX vs. ATV Reflex: Xbox 360, PS3,  DS, PSP – mid December (US), Q4 elsewhere

Kid and Family Games

• All Star Cheer Squad 2: Wii
• Disney Pixar’s Cars Race-O-Rama: Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PS2, PSP (14 million Cars games have been shipped in the series in the past)
• Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter: Wii,  DS
• Marvel Super Hero Squad: Wii, DS, PS2, PSP
• SpongeBob Truth or Square: Xbox 360, Wii, DS, PSP (10 years of memorable SpongeBob moments)
• The Biggest Loser: Wii, Nintendo DS
• World of Zoo: Wii,  DS, PC

Online

• Company of Heroes Online
• Dragonica Online

Q4 Core Games

• Darksiders: Xbox 360, PS3
• Metro 2033: Xbox 360,  PC
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II – Chaos Rising: PC

Update: The US PS Blog has a video up now.

Original: Good news folks. Braid lands on PS3 in North America on November 12.

Of course this makes you happy, because you’ve been gagging for it since it was announced for the system back in August.

Therefore, set back $14.99 in the kitty for it, because that’s how much it’s gonna run you.

No word yet on a European PS3 release, but it can’t be too off now.

Still don’t know what the fuss is all about? Shame on you. Steam has a PC demo of it here. We’re sure it’s elsewhere too, so find it and play it already.

Via PSU.

Thanks, Gek.

Robert Bowling has tweeted that some Modern Warfare 2 Avatar gear is heading to Xbox Live.

Here’s the tweet:

Uploading a bunch of #MW2 avatar gear to XBL tomorrow, including this full GHOST outfit!

The outfit in question is posted above. Hopefully pricing and other goodies involved will be announced soon, as it’s expected to drop tomorrow.

Don’t worry PS3′ers – according to Bowling: “We’re working on some Dynamic Themes for PS3 as well. I’ll be sure to post a preview when they’re going out.”

Hit the link, there.

A new Star Trek Online video has been released by Cyrptic.

In it, you’ll find all things Klingon, what with their battle against the Gorn lasting for several years and all resulting in the Klingon Empire vying for territory lost to the Federation.

Now, there’s a new war, where pals are now enemies and vice-versa.

See how how the Klingon fight on land and space with tasers and Birds of Prey. Ah! Heghlu’meH QaQ jajvam!

Star Trek Online is expected to be released in 2010.

Video is posted below courtesy of BigDownload.

More »

Robert Bowling has explained to Develop that Twitter was a very important tool in creating Modern Warfare 2.

Not only was it used as a sounding board for ideas to be submitted to the community, but also used as a direct line to the customer and press alike.

“I try to be very transparent on Twitter with the game development and what’s going on with us. I communicate with our Twitter followers the same way I’d communicate with my office buddies,” he told the site. “So if something happens I just throw it out there and opinions come in and we converse.

“Also during development, if we are sitting in a design meeting and we are arguing about something, no matter what it is I can just turn to what is now 60,000 [now 66,308] people and post the same question.

“‘Do we think will players like this?’ well why don’t we ask 60,000 of them and get a good representation of what we think they may like. Twitter has been fantastic throughout development, and I would recommend many, many more people adapted that into their design schedule.

“We listen to all of it. And then you have to filter out what fits within our design philosophy and what doesn’t. Some suggestions are really good but they’re just not good for our game. But some of that stuff can be inspirational. So maybe this exact feature they’re suggesting doesn’t work for Call of Duty, but maybe the end result they’re looking to get out of it, maybe that does. And some ideas go in directly, and some are used for inspiration.

“It is why I started the Twitter account in the first place. I have direct line to our audience and the press. Many editors will follow me, and they can direct message me and I can clarify things. There is no middleman. We are responsible for what we say and what we do, and we can be held accountable for our successes and failures.”

Loads more through the link.

It looks as though Konami’s bringing Ninety-Nine Nights II to Xbox 360 users worldwide.

According to a listing over on GameFly, the FeelPlus developed game is no longer a Japanese exclusive, and is expected to be made available in March 2010.

Good news if you were looking forward to battling gazillions of enemies all at once, again.

Via, Siliconera.

Looks like the teaser trailer to American McGee’s Alice sequel posted earlier in the week was fan-made and not an official trailer, wrote McGee on his blog.

“Yesterday, a few sites picked up a video of Alice made by one of our fans and confused it as an official trailer of Alice 2,” he wrote. “I wanted to clear up any confusion – as I mentioned in my post it was unofficial, and does not represent any of the final art direction or story elements in Alice 2.

“We look forward to sharing information on the game in the future.”

Too bad. It was rather cool.

Via CVG.

Bayonetta’s out in Japan, and to commemorate it, SEGA’s released a video.

It posted below, courtesy of D’toid.

In it, you’ll get to see some neat combos and some of the weapons she uses to kill those pesky angels.

Game’s out January 5 and 8 in the US and UK, respectively.

More »

Valve has sent over a new Left 4 Dead 2 TV spot featuring the single “Electric Worry” by the band Clutch.

It’s passed the break.

The commercial’s set to air in North America this week, and throughout Europe early next week.

Enjoy.

More »

Ubisoft’s financial results for the first-half of its fiscal year ending September 30, reveal that sales for the company fell around 52 percent compared to the same time in 2008.

First half sales totals were down 51.7 percent at €166 million ($246 million), with second quarter revenue at €83 million ($123 million).

While these figures were line with company expectations, its target of €1 billion in sales for the year is expected to be met thanks to future titles on the horizon.

“As expected, in the first half of fiscal 2009-10 the market was very difficult both for Nintendo DS games and for our back-catalog titles, with few new releases,” said CEO Yves Guillemot. “The second half of the year should be significantly more favorable with a return to strong growth and profitability.

“Although the environment is still uncertain and the full effect of the sharp drop in console prices has yet to be felt, Ubisoft has the advantage of a diversified and very high-quality line-up for the crucial Holiday period, including the blockbusters Assassin’s Creed 2 and James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and a wide-ranging portfolio of very well-calibrated games for the Wii such as Your Shape, Just Dance, Shaun White and Rabbids Go Home.

“Growth is expected to be even stronger in the fourth quarter, fuelled by the launches of Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Conviction, Red Steel 2 and RUSE.”

More through GI.biz.

Splinter Cell Conviction is based on fact. Fighting fact. A video Ubi’s going to release tomorrow will prove that fact beyond all doubt.

“In this video, the developers of Splinter Cell Conviction give you an inside look at how the Israeli martial art Krav Maga and real-life firearm techniques inspired Conviction’s new gameplay,” said a rep today.

“You’ll also learn about Sam’s newest toys, such as EMP grenades and improvised gadgets, and get a look at how the storyline will be taken in surprising new directions following the tragic events of Double Agent.”

Tomorrow morning. November 5. At 9am GMT. Fact.

Infinity Ward’s Mackey McCandlish and Ryan Lastimosa had an online chat with the Best Buy community, and in it, the developers discussed the petition for dedicated servers in Modern Warfare 2 and also let slip that servers across all platforms will max out at eighteen players.

Here’s some highlights from the chat, just the bits about the server issues, courtesy of Brave New Gamer.

When asked if there will be dedicated servers added later:

“We feel the PC game is great in it’s current form. We put a lot of work into IWnet in an effort to make the PC experience better for our users. We believe MW2 is better than CoD4:MW.  The reason iw.net exists is to improve the gameplay for our users. If there is a need for something more in the future we will address as needed. Our goal is to provide the best experience for our users, so nothing is ever “off the table”. We are always evaluating our options.”

When asked about the petition for dedicated servers:

“All I can say is that we changed it to make it a better and easier experience. Also, not all of the [178,000] names on that list are legit. 402 signed it 4 times I heard.”

On the PC version. Are all games hosted by players, and is there a 5 second delay when host migration is in effect?

“Yes.”
“Games cap out at 9v9. The software has great latency tolerance.”

On LAN Parties:

“We can play at work on our lan by doing private match and there is no lag.”

All that was categorized a bit for you. The full chat is through the link there.

Via D’toid.

Nintendo plans to launch demos of different WiiWare games later in the month.

This bit of info came straight from Satoru Iwata during Nintendo’s financial briefing, stating that it was to help stimulate sales of offerings on the service.

Initially, it will cover only a few titles and it is also unknown at this time whether the option will make it outside of Japan or not, so we’ll contact Nintendo and see if we can find out more for you.

Via CVG.