The growing popularity of free-to-play type games pose a significant threat to the walled gardens of console platforms, according to EA’s free-to-play head Ben Cousens. Speaking at the London Games Conference per a GameSpot report, Cousens reckons that in the next two to five years, titles like Battlefield: Pay4Free will win consumers over to the point of second-guessing whether to invest in […]
It seems Bethesda parent ZeniMax is on an acquisition spree as of late. Mere weeks after the company acquired Shinji Mikami’s startup Tango, word emerges that it has also inked a strategic move to snap up MachineGames, an upstart studio comprised mainly of former Starbreeze staffers. Starbreeze was responsible for 2004’s well-received hit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher […]
While multiplayer in the original Crysis was a solid effort, it arguably lacked polish and many of the usual hooks to hold interest. For the sequel, however, Crytek is touting multiplayer as a integral part of the experience. In fact, it aspires to compete with genre titans — namely, Activision’s Call of Duty franchise. That’s according to Crytek UK’s managing director […]
When it comes to product promotion, Activision is leaving no stone unturned with the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops. The publisher sent word today that the game’s November 9 release will coincide with availability of the official soundtrack. Scheduled to hit iTunes and “other major digital media retailers,” the 30-track offering features music of film composer Sean Murray, […]
While it may be hard to believe, EA’s parkour-inspired Mirror’s Edge hit store shelves nearly two years ago. Backed by a refreshing visual flair, the title garnered favorable reviews from critics and gamers alike. So where’s the sequel? It’s coming — when EA is ready to break the silence, that is. EA Europe prez Patrick Soderlund explains in an interview […]
While Epic’s Unreal Engine 3 may be a robust middleware solution, its out-of-the-box state hasn’t quite satisfied the needs of BioShock developer Irrational Games. Although the studio is using UE3 as a base for BioShock Infinite, several tweaks are being incorporated into the underlying codebase — many of them significant. According to technical director Chris Kline, Irrational is doing “whatever […]
Last month’s release of the Medal of Honor reboot fell short of internal ‘quality expectations’ within EA, according to the company’s European VP Patrick Soderlund in a frank interview with EG. Mixed reactions aside, EA is hardly deeming it a failed effort. In response to average scores from critics, Soderlund’s believes the Afghanistan-set shooter was given unfair treatment in reviews. “Medal […]
F.E.A.R 3 (F.3.A.R) is now planned for a March 22nd launch in the US and a few days later on the 25th in Europe, after initially being delayed from this fall. F.E.A.R 3 will introduce a new co-operative gameplay for the series allowing the player to command Paxton Fettel and his special time-slowing abilities on top of other new gameplay […]
Shortly following Crytek’s acquisition of UK-based developer Free Radical, the studio has remained mum on plans for its satire heavy TimeSplitters universe, despite the fact that a fourth installment was announced way back in 2007. Although that project has since been put on hold, Crytek UK is reportedly still mulling over the idea of a comeback, company managing director Karl Hilton has […]
Publisher Activision sends over an explosive launch trailer for what is destined to be one of the biggest game releases this year – Call of Duty: Black Ops. With a musical score backed by The Rolling Stones to fit the ’70s era, this clip features an appearance from US President John F. Kennedy. Treyarch’s latest effort pulls no punches when it comes to […]
2K Games has had a change of heart, retracting its decision to withdraw support for the PC version of BioShock 2. 2K rep Elizabeth Tobey confirms that development on the Protector Trials and Minerva’s Den DLC packs has resumed. Additionally, a final patch is in the pipeline. Not to keep you in suspense any longer, I’ll sum it up with […]
If there is one big problem I have with Crysis 2, it’s that it didn’t come out this month. Consequently for those of us who love great single-player FPSs this year’s been a bit disappointing so far. Aliens Vs Predator was awful, Medal of Honor and Halo Reach weren’t as great as they could’ve been (I’m talking campaigns here multiplayer […]
2K Games sends along word that its mobster-entrenched shooter Mafia II will receive a third downloadable content pack entitled Joe’s Adventures on November 23. Following up on Jimmy’s Vendetta, this add-on expansion serves as an extension to the original narrative of Mafia II, chronicling Joe Barbaro’s search to uncover the truth behind his best friend’s imprisonment, Vito Scaletta. In addition […]
David Bateson — the well-mannered voice behind Hitman’s star assassin Agent 47 — let slip in a recent interview with The Gaming Liberty that Hitman 5 is indeed in development. Despite being “under contract” to keep his lips sealed, Bateson was surprisingly transparent regarding the status of this yet-to-be announced title: I have to plead the 5th Amendment on this […]
Valve lands yet another coup on one of the biggest game releases of this year, sending along word today that all PC copies of Black Ops — whether digital or retail — will leverage Steamworks, just like Modern Warfare 2 before it. With Steamworks integration comes a wealth of benefits, including perks like auto-updating and achievements. “We are delighted to […]
Team Fortress 2’s latest major update brought with it the arrival of an in-game storefront where players can spend their hard-earned cash on virtual in-game items such as fancy hats, secondary weapons, and avatars. Apart from Valve’s in-house offerings, the company is stocking the Mann Co. store with contributions from that of community members, giving them a cut of any […]
Minecraft’s main man — Notch — has tweeted that server interlinking via portals will come to Minecraft at some point in the future. Essentially, this would make bouncing back and forth through separate worlds feasible in multiplayer sessions, paving the way for a near-limitless mining landscape. The possibilities are nothing short of mind-boggling. Yes, you will eventually be able to link servers […]
Valve’s digital distribution service Steam continues to grow at a rapid pace as the company announces that the service has amassed more than 30 million accounts since its 2003 inception. Valve has shared a few other nuggets of activity and sales data to herald this far-reaching milestone. Notably, user growth increased by 178 percent over the past year while Steam […]
Valve has put the kibosh on rumors suggesting that the company had plans to implement a trade-in service on Steam. Citing anecdotal evidence, outspoken Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter proclaimed earlier this week that such a system was in the pipeline. “Steam’s about to let you do that supposedly, you know like trade and exchange, but they’re going to take a fee […]
Valve just announced the development of Defense of the Ancients 2 for both Mac and PC with IceFrog, the current designer of the Warcraft III custom game. DotA 2 will be, more or less, a port of the current custom game, bringing over all 100+ characters and items. Valve and IceFrog aren’t about to change a formula that already works […]