Mark down March 17th because that’s when one of the best first-person shooters of-all-time is making a return. Microsoft has announced that Perfect Dark, the classic title for the Nintendo 64, is getting its re-released on that day for 800 Microsoft Points. Microsoft has also revealed that from March 3-30 is when Xbox Live House Party will take place.
According to them, House Party is playing host to some of the most anticipated titles for Xbox Live, which obviously includes the spiritual successor to Goldeneye. Including Perfect Dark — three games will be part of the ‘House Party’ and if gamers buy all, they be refunded 400 Microsoft Points. If they are already a Gold subscriber, they’ll get one month free to Xbox Live.
The two other games are Toy Soldiers; which comes out on March 3rd and Scrap Metal; which has a release date March 10th. While I’m sure the other games will be fun, I’m craploads more excited for Perfect Dark. During the PSX and N64 generation, Perfect Dark was, and in many ways still is \, one of the best games to play with friends. But thanks to Xbox Live, I’ll be able to play with the same people as I did almost ten years ago, over the online service. I get the feeling Rare is about to take a lot of my time once again…
After the jump, check out a description for each game. (more…)
Summer is universally known as a slow time for gamers. Most of the anticipated titles skip the warm season and generally come out when the weather gets colder, just in time for the holidays. However this year, Electronic Arts has decided to change up the theory “when games should be released.”
Barring no major setbacks or delays, EA is set to release both the reboot of the Medal of Honor game, which is set in modern times and Realtime World’s ambitious title APB (All Points Bulletin) will be released this summer. The publisher expects to release both games between July through September; however no exact date was announced.
The company also announced vague dates for a couple other important games as well. From October to December, Crysis 2, Criterion’s (Burnout) first take on Need for Speed and EA’s MMA game will all be launched. Following December and ending in March, Dead Space 2, a sequel to Dragon Age, an unnamed Epic Games shooter, along with a unannounced action title, are all scheduled to ship.
It has been three years since we last saw a Ghost Recon title. However, that’s about to change thanks to a Ubisoft announcement. The publisher has confirmed that their studio Ubisoft Paris, the same team who developed the Advanced Warfare series, is underway working on Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.
The company is promising the title will include “cutting-edge technology, prototype high-tech weaponry, and state-of-the-art single-player and multiplayer modes,” which isn’t hard to believe since pretty much every Ghost Recon has been considered a “Grade A” series.” And honestly, it was the Modern Warfare before Modern Warfare and not only that, the older Recon’s are STILL some of the most realistic shooters of-all-time.
The game sounds like it will launch sometime this holiday season; however, if you own an Xbox 360 you’ll get a chance to experience a tease beforehand. Included with Splinter Cell: Conviction will be a Ghost Recon: Future Soldier beta key. Exactly what that will entail is unknown, but we’re pretty sure multiplayer will be the focus.
If you haven’t heard yet, Microsoft plans on shutting off the servers for all the original Xbox Live games. This means iconic games like Halo 2 will no longer be playable over the online service, which will officially end the era of an important idea introduced to the console industry.
In response, Bungie has left a note on their website which told their fans to mark down April 14th because they plan on sending Halo 2 off in style.
“That said, mark your calendars now – on April 14th let’s all rally to go online for one last hoorah. One final farewell and one final opportunity for all of you to kick our asses at Halo 2.”
They promised full details of what to expect besides just playing with some of the developers and that information will be forthcoming in the upcoming weeks, so will be checking back for you. Although, I have the feeling the company has something up their sleeve, which should be worth booting up the 5-year-old game. Halo 2 and Xbox Live both played a part in helping the studio grow into one of the biggest in the world.
Just a side note, April 14th falls on a Wednesday, in case any of you were wondering.
Since Project Natal and Halo: Reach were announced at this past E3, speculation was right away suggesting that both the game and the peripheral would work together. Even Bungie’s studio president Harold Ryan chimed in with the Seattle Times and kept the rumors afloat by saying that ‘Reach’ could “absolutely” be “enabled” with Natal. Today, Bungie has shot-down those rumors.
On Bungie’s weekly update on their site, they teased its fans with a round of “Halo: Reach Mythbusters,” and tried to set the record straight with some of the gossip surrounding the anticipated first-person shooter.
“Truth be told, it’s just a good ole fashioned bug. Bug #15163 to be exact,” Bungie wrote. “Halo: Reach is NOT a Natal title and is being developed expressly with the traditional Xbox 360 controller in mind.”
There you go, the biggest game of the year for the Xbox 360 won’t take advantage of what Microsoft is hoping will be their biggest hardware launch, since they released the Xbox 360 console. It would have been cool to see what a talented developer like Bungie could do with Project Natal and see if they could make a ‘hardcore’ game in-mind with peripheral that has been accused of being a casual game device. With that said, I only think Project Natal games should be made from the ground up, and not be thrown at the last minute just to convince hardcore gamers that should buy it.
Up top is a leaked video of the opening of the Halo: Reachbeta that some of you will be playing this spring, just as long as you bought Halo: ODST. Sadly for those expecting to see some gameplay in the clip, you should stop because there isn’t any. The video is a quick tease on how the menu will look.
With that said, what it does do is prove the leaked screens that we posted a few months ago, are indeed real and not fake — which is what most of us thought in the first place. But it’s good to know we can finally confirm the legitimacy of the photos, and not speculate anymore.
If you haven’t seen these photos, check out them by clicking here.
Yikes! EB Games (Gamestop) has leaked photos of Bungie’s upcoming game Halo: Reach for the Xbox 360. The official website to the retailer posted the pictures, which I have included after the break; however, some have already seen these exact same screens because of the latest issue of Game Informer. The only problem, most people have yet to get their hands on this month’s issue. So this was a major screwup by EB.
The screenshots really showoff the direction Bungie is headed with their final chapter of the famed first-person shooter. Reach is expected to take a much grittier/darker take when compared to the previous installments, and these pictures prove those expectations some have.
While Halo was far from being a non-serious action title, these screens make the game look like Bungie is going after a much more realistic approach and the studio is definitely upping the graphics department. And for the first time, Halo will look like it belongs on this generation.
Again, after the jump, check out all the screens. (more…)
We already know Treyarch is working on the seventh installment of the Call of Duty Series. For the last couple of years or so, Infinity Ward, who originally started working on the famous first-person shooter games, would one year release a Call of Duty, but the following year Treyarch would launch the next in the serious. It’s a way for Activision to keep milking the franchise fresh. It has been the pattern for awhile now — and for the time being, it’s gonna stay that way.
The last time Treyarch released a Call of Duty game was back in 2008, when World at War was launched. If you didn’t play it, you should be able to guess the story was told in the World War II era; however, rumors have suggested the studio plans on having the player fight a different war this time around.
A few months ago, we heard Treyarch is going to try and have the narrative be told during the Vietnam Conflict; however, nothing has been confirmed. Today, planetxbox360 is reporting that it is indeed going to be set in Vietnam, according to whom they call “reliable sources.” They also have written about some details about what we should expect when the game hits store shelves.
The spy told the website that Treyarch plans on focusing “heavily” on the story, and will try to capture the struggles of each soldier starring in the videogame. Of course, as the player fights though the game, the same engine which was developed by Infinity Ward will be included in the first-person shooter — obviously. Treyarch, apparently also wants to have the pacing of the Steven Spielberg’s World War II classic, Saving Private Ryan, but also “borrow” some of the action scenes from Platoon, Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket.
So when should we see the title? Well according to the site, winter of 2010. While all the information above sounds legit, I’m pretty sure I could have guessed it all. To me, that only means one of two things. One, the site is making this stuff up, which I don’t think they are. Or two, Treyarch isn’t being as original as they should be. Hmmm…
German film composer Hans Zimmer has written some of the best movie scores in recent history. His work includes The Last Samurai, the last two Pirates of the Caribbeans and more recently The Dark Knight. In 2009, he started to dip his hands into the videogame industry and worked with Infinity Ward to write some of the main themes to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
Lately, some of the more terrific scores like Halo’s composer Marty O’Donnell, have had the privilege to see their work released in CD form as a soundtrack. If you played the action game, which according to the sales you probably have, you would have noticed the music was on par with most blockbuster films released today. Naturally, a soundtrack release has been set in motion by Activision, which was first tweeted by Infinity Ward’s Robert Bowling.
Now Hans Zimmer has confirmed that the Modern Warfare 2 score will be released in stores and hopefully iTunes. Unfortunately, no Specific date has been set, but I’m sure it will be soon rather then later.
The MAG beta has been available for a few months now. Some of you either got it by reserving the game, filled out a questionnaire or by other means, but many of you didn’t get your hands on a key code. Thankfully that is about to change. Today, Sony has just announced that anyone who owns a PlayStation 3 and has a PSN ID, can now download the beta. That’s right, the MAG beta is officially open to the public, but make sure you download it quick because it will only be running until January 10th. So after that date, you’ll have to wait until the 29th to play the full retail version.
On a side note, if you happen to check it out today, you might run into trouble. Sony has confirmed some connection issues because of the amount of gamers logging on. So before you smash your TV in a fit of rage, give it a day before it runs smoother.
The UK version of the Official Xbox Magazine, released the first details of the upcoming reboot of Medal of Honor. While the post on the mag’s official website is more of a tease of the actual article inside the next issue, which hits newsstands on January 7th, it’s the first real information since the trailer debuted at last month’s Video Game Awards show.
According to the publication, the game will be told in the unstable country of Afghanistan. Just from that piece of information, it sounds like the first-person will focus more on today’s Middle Eastern conflict, rather than take the Modern Warfare 2 approach and write a completely different story, that really has nothing to do with today’s politics. One of the reasons for Infinity Ward to take that route was because they didn’t want to make the videogame to ‘preachy.’
When EA sent out the first press release back in December, it read that the title will follow a “badass” main character. We weren’t sure if that meant players would only play as one guy, or if EA planned on having multiple playable characters. Today, OXM confirmed players will play as several Tier 1 Ops soldiers, who were “brought in to help with authenticity.”
A feature that sounds like it could work great in a multiplayer game is the ability to shootout lights and put on night-vision goggles. While they have yet to confirm if it is only in the single player campaign or they plan on using it in an online match, I hope its for both. Imagine playing a team-deathmatch, and a light is shining right on you with swarms of enemies surrounding your area and with the flick of the trigger button, you take out the lights — throw on the night-vision goggles and take out each and everyone of them — and before they know what happened, they’re dead. It’s a simple concept, but it certainly sounds like a fun one.
This next installment of Medal of Honor is naturally going to be compared to the Modern Warfare series, so why not steal a few things from the popular FPS. According to the magazine, there will be sprinting and a knife melee attack, which apparently reminded them a lot like Call of Duty. I just hope the team behind MoH, are also going to try and innovate more, and make it feel like they’re own videogame, instead of making it Modern Warfare 2.5.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 isn’t just the biggest game of the year in terms of sales, it was the most pirated games too. Although that isn’t necessarily a shocker, popular titles mean people want them, it’s just a matter if they are willing to pay for them or not. TorrentFreak is the website that did the research and according to them, Modern Warfare 2 was downloaded illegally about 5 million times, which means Activision lost about 300,000,000 bucks because of those pesky pirates.
The site figured about 970,000 of those downloads were for Microsoft’s console the Xbox 360, while about 4.1 million were downloaded for the PC. Even though the sales were much higher for the consoles, people who download games are doing it on a computer, which makes it much easier to run the game on the same machine — hence the numbers of downloads were much higher on the PC.
Some other notable games which were download for “free” were: The Sims 3, Street Fighter IV and Prototype. Although Activision could spin this negative into a positive by handing out a statement that reads that gamers were more willing to play Modern Warfare 2 than EA’s Spore because when that came out in 2008, it was only downloaded 1.7 million times.
When id Software first revealed their next project Rage, it was originally announced as a Electronic Arts’ published videogame. That has now officially changed thanks to a Zenimax press release. According to Zenimax, their subsidiary Bethesda Softworks, who has released famous titles like Fallout 3, is now going to publish the anticipated first-person shooter/racing title.
“Electronic Arts will not be involved in the sales and marketing of RAGE,” read a statement from Zenimax. “The ongoing development of RAGE is unaffected by this development.”
I’m sure some might be quick to point out that not having EA control the marketing behind Rage, could potentially hurt the sales of the game. Obviously, this stems from the perception that the company has an unlimited pocket for promoting a title; however, I would disagree with this simple theory. Lately, EA has had some issues with their marketing department and have been dead wrong on their anticipation of sales numbers — especially when it comes to a new IP. If you need some examples, look no further than Mirror’s Edge and Dead Space. While they were good games, the sales were considered a disappointment.
EA is known for developing and promoting sequels — that’s where a large chunk of the cash comes from. Now of course, any company would find it easier to promote a next installment of an already known game, but EA’s having trouble advertising and selling something new to the gaming world, and Rage would be the same type of challenge.
Bethesda picking the rights to publish Rage is a good thing for id. They have proven time and time again, that they know how to advertise an open world videogame. I know you could easily point out that Fallout 3 and Elder Scrolls, which are published by Bethesda, are sequels. But, both of those franchises were considered by many, niche titles, before they have seen the recent success. Somehow, Bethesda was able to bring these titles into the mainstream — which is something I couldn’t see EA being nearly as successful at.
The marketing ball has started to move forward for Halo: Reach. Last night, we all saw a real glimpse on what to expect from the first-person shooter, thanks to a trailer and I must say — it was rather impressive. I’m sure some of the hardcore Halo fans who are anticipating the beta — which if you bought ODST, you are already invited — are wondering when it will be released. If you are one of those folks, and are hoping to see it soon because Microsoft, along with Bungie have released the trailer — you might want to stop doing that. Saying it is a long time before the public gets its hands on it, is a little unfair to write. That’s because it all depends on what you think a long time is.
IGN is reporting that the Halo: Reach beta is schedule to launch sometime this spring; although a specific date has yet to be revealed. According to the site, gamers will be playing the beta it in the early half of the spring. So to some, it’s not that long of a wait. They could look at it this way; in Just a few more days it’s officially winter and the next season will be the spring and that’s when the beta should be out. However, it should be noted the winter is the longest season of the year.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about Medal of Honor going all modern combat on everyone. If you didn’t hear, Electronic Arts announced last week that their successful series will put the World War II theme on the back-burner and have this newest installment be told in today’s era. It’s pretty obvious the company has seen what their rival, the Call of Duty series, from Activision, and they have experienced nothing but a lucrative bank account since they decided to take the game into the modern times.
Last night, EA showed off to the world for the first time a trailer for the Medal of Honor reboot. After watching it, it’s hard not to compare the title to Modern Warfare 2, not like we weren’t already doing that in the first place. So the question is, how does it measure up to MW2? Well, it’s too soon to know really. But so far, I’m mighty impressed — in fact graphically speaking, it looks as good as Modern Warfare, maybe even a tad better. Of course, EA is only hand picking what scenes look fantastic, so when people do watch it and think Call of Duty, they might think it could be a MW2 killer — that’s kinda the point of the trailer.
But before anyone jumps on the Medal of Honor bandwagon, let some people play it and let the previews trickle down a little bit, before we give it the first-person shooter crown. But it’s definitely something I’m gonna be watching out for in the near future.
