Posts tagged Matthew Peters
Alice down DS, Wii, PC rabbit hole March 2010
Jul 25th
Disney to release new games based on Tim Burton’s upcoming Alice in Wonderland film, with iPhone and iTouch editions out next year.
The 2000 horror adventure game American McGee’s Alice depicts the heroine of the original Lewis Carroll story as an adult who fights her way back to sanity while trapped in her imagination. Nine years later, Disney announced today a slate of games that will also depict a mature Alice, though they will be more whimsical and less morbid than their Electronic Arts counterpart.
Developed by Spyro’s Etranges Libellules in France, Alice in Wonderland will be based on Tim Burton’s upcoming film of the same name, due out on the Nintendo DS, Wii, and PC during the week of the movie’s March 5 release next year. The film will star Johnny Depp, Helen Bonham Carter, and Stephen Fry. Mia Wasikowska will star as Alice, and the movie takes place after Carroll’s original Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass stories. Disney will also release mobile games for the franchise on the iPhone and iTouch in 2010, with a promo app out this December.
The Wii and PC editions will follow the plot of the film, allowing players to join up with such characters as the Mad Hatter and Cheshire Cat to help Alice as she fights the Red Queen and Jabberwocky to return Wonderland–now called “Underland”–to its previous glory. The DS version touts an exclusive playable character and unique art style.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
Fallen Earth drops September 9
Jul 22nd
Icarus Studios’ postapocalyptic MMOG to reach digital and retail shelves; features 1,000-square-kilometer-plus environment.
Back in mid-2006, the postapocalyptic massively multiplayer online game Fallen Earth was announced, and now it is finally nearing release. Today, Icarus Studios announced that the first-person shooter/role-playing hybrid will reach the US on September 9 via retail and digital distribution for the PC.
As previewed by GameSpot, Fallen Earth will have several unusual features, like a deemphasized leveling system and no preset character classes. The MMOG is expansive, with 70 towns and an environment measuring over 1,000 square kilometers. The in-game economy is particularly important, as 95 percent of the world’s items–including the most epic gear–can be crafted by fellow players.
Fallen Earth takes place 100 years after a viral outbreak decimates humanity, and players can ally with one of six factions to unite scattered shantytowns. The game centers around the Grand Canyon as characters explore the remnants of civilization.
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BattleForge dealing out Renegade Edition August 25
Jul 22nd
EA’s RTS/card battle hybrid to release more than 60 cards, two factions next month; new PVE scenario coming this week.
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League of Legends going free-to-play
Jul 16th
DotA-inspired RTS/RPG hybrid will use a microtransaction system; players can pay to cosmetically accessorize avatars but can’t buy improved character performance.
Gamers may be familiar with the custom scenario for Warcraft III, Defense of the Ancients, which one prominent industry group called “likely the most popular and most-discussed free, non-supported game mod in the world.” Now, the modders behind DotA have revealed that their new project League of Legends: Clash of the Fates will be like the Warcraft III mod in at least one respect: It’s also free.
“One of our goals at Riot has been to set a high quality bar for core games that are available for free online as we believe that a relentless focus on delivering tremendous value to online communities will earn player loyalty,” said Brandon Beck, co-founder and CEO of developer Riot Games.
The LA-based studio–which includes talent from Blizzard Entertainment and the mod community that made DotA–said the online real-time strategy/role-playing hybrid would generate revenue from a microtransaction system. Riot Games asserts its business model will not allow players to buy their way to victory, as users can only purchase novelty items and upgrades to their character’s appearance.
In League of Legends, players will control champions who destroy as many creeps, heroes, and enemy structures as possible. The champions will be controlled by Summoners, which will be accessorized with vanity items from the game’s upcoming virtual store. For further details on this PC-exclusive title, check out GameSpot’s hands-on preview.
Flash Player 9 is required to watch this video.
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Fallout 3: Mothership Zeta descends Aug. 3
Jul 15th
Bethesda reveals release date for final add-on to post-nuclear RPG, along with new screenshots and gameplay information.
Bethesda had been tight-lipped on the details of its alien-abduction-themed add-on, divulging only its name, Mothership Zeta, and a few scant details. However, the developer has finally beamed down some vital information surrounding this fifth and final update pack, announcing the title will go downloadable on August 3 for the Xbox 360 and PC for 800 Microsoft points ($10).
In an update to the official Fallout 3 Web site today, Bethesda revealed that Mothership Zeta would allow players to recruit an “unexpected array of characters” to help overtake an insidious alien vessel that abducts the protagonist. With the help of new equipment–like the Alien Atomizer, Drone Cannon, Gemini-Era Spacesuit, and Samurai Armor–the hero can commandeer the UFO before it wreaks havoc on earth and its irradiated inhabitants. The developer’s announcement also comes with several new screenshots of Mothership Zeta.
The most recent update Fallout 3 update, Point Lookout, was released without a major hitch on June 23. That can’t be said for some of the previous add-on releases, like Broken Steel and The Pitt, which were hampered by crippling technical problems at launch. Mothership Zeta will be the final add-on to be included in the Fallout 3: Game of the Year edition, which will package all five expansions with the original game. The edition will cost $50 for the PC and $60 on the Xbox 360 when it ships in October–one month after the PlayStation 3 begins receiving the expansion packs.
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Battlefield Heroes enlists 1 million
Jul 15th
EA DICE’s free-to-play shooter hits milestone less than four weeks after release.
Early last year, Electronic Arts announced a new Web and microtransaction-based model called Play 4 Free, with Battlefield Heroes to inaugurate the program. Despite a few delays in beta testing, EA DICE’s third-person shooter is now rolling through its fourth week of release, and today, the publisher revealed it has surpassed 1 million sign-ups.
Although the game has registered a sizable number of players since its June 25 launch, it’s unclear how many will buy into the title’s microtransaction system, which is the primary revenue stream for this free-to-play shooter. According to EA, the PC-exclusive title generates income through advertisements and the purchase of in-game items and character customizations. As detailed in GameSpot’s hands-on preview of Battlefield Heroes, the shooter features an over-the-top aesthetic and centers around multiplayer gameplay.
Battlefield Heroes faces the challenge of standing out not only in a crowded field of shooters, but also a crowded field of Battlefield games. Last week saw the launch of Battlefield 1943 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, with Battlefield: Bad Company 2 following this winter for the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. There’s also Battlefield 3, which may not be out until considerably later, with EA COO John Pleasants stating the game wouldn’t launch before April 2010.
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D&D Online free-to-play August 6
Jul 9th
Turbine to roll out new subscription model of Dungeons & Dragons MMORPG alongside free Eberron Unlimited update, microtransaction store.
When Turbine announced that Dungeons & Dragons Online was going free-to-play in the summer, it left the precise date as an open question. However, today the publisher cleared up that ambiguity by announcing that the 2006 massively multiplayer online game would open its doors to free access on August 6 in North America.
The new subscription model will coincide with the launch of the free update Eberron Unlimited and its new microtransaction store. Eberron Unlimited was put into closed beta the moment the free-to-play model was brought to light, with former subscription holders enrolled into a new “VIP program” that grants access to beta testing.
Once the new microtransaction plan is in place, premium members will receive special benefits, such as Turbine points, which can be used at the DDO store. All players will be able to use the currency on commodities like potions, equipment, and adventure packs.
Eberron Unlimited also boasts a slate of improvements like a raised level-20 cap, new adventure packs, “major combat improvements,” and the “favored soul” class. VIP members will be able to play the live version of Eberron Unlimited on August 4, two days before everyone else.
Check out the video below for footage from Dungeons & Dragons: Stormreach.
Flash Player 9 is required to watch this video.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
Blizzard: Free-to-play WOW ‘possible’
Jul 8th
Lead designer Tom Chilton says the multiplatinum MMORPG champion could abolish monthly subscription plan by adopting microtransaction system.
The microtransaction-based Free Realms recruited 3 million users less than seven weeks after its launch, inviting players to its casual family-friendly world to buy accessories for their postmen and chef characters. However, its revenue has yet to match World of Warcraft’s, which had more than 11 million subscriptions by October 2008. Despite its extraordinary commercial success with a traditional subscription model, WOW lead designer Tom Chilton said the dominant MMORPG could go free-to-play in the future.
In an interview with VideoGamer, Chilton said, “I certainly think it’s possible that we could do some kind of microtransaction stuff. Whether or not World of Warcraft ever goes the direction of, I guess like Anarchy Online has gone the direction of going free-to-play with microtransactions. Whether we ever shift to a free-to-play model is really too hard to say at this point.”
If the game adopts a free-to-play model in the future, it won’t be the first premium MMORPG to switch to a microtransaction-based revenue stream. In June, Turbine announced that the struggling Dungeons & Dragons Online will abandon its subscription-based system later this summer.
Chilton declined to comment on the subscription model for Blizzard Entertainment’s upcoming top-secret MMOG. However, the WOW developer-publisher has said that the game will be an entirely new IP unique enough as to not compete with World of Warcraft.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
Grease dances to Wii, DS
Jul 2nd
’50s-themed musical to be adapted by Paramount and 505 Games.
Earlier this year, Paramount Digital Entertainment promised to expand the “core casual gaming audience” by publishing several games based on three teenage coming-of-age films. Paramount’s “Pretty in Pink” (1986), “Clueless” (1995), and “Mean Girls” (2004) were adapted for the PC and Nintendo DS to the presumable delight of those films’ fans. Now, Paramount plans to adapt another one of its movies, diving back into the 1970s to bring Grease to the Nintendo DS and Wii.
Paramount announced today that it would collaborate with 505 Games to adapt the 1978 film into a party game for casual and family gamers. Players will sing and dance with Danny Zuko, Sandy Olsson, and the rest of the T-Birds and Pink Ladies. According to Paramount, the game will “take full advantage of Nintendo Wii’s motion-sensing controls and microphone and the DS’s touch screen.” It’s unclear if Paramount and 505 Games were referring to the Wii Speak peripheral or third-party microphones used by such rhythm games as Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Band.
This won’t be Paramount’s last film-to-game effort. The studio announced in February that it plans to release an XBLA-exclusive game based on gangster beat-’em-up “The Warriors”, coming this July. The producer has yet to give a release date for the Grease adaptation.
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Halo 3: ODST, God of War III top E3 favorites – Survey
Jun 19th
Nielsen study released yesterday reveals the top 12 games presented at the expo that are most likely to be purchased by gamers.
According to a June 8 report by research group Nielsen, New Super Mario Bros. Wii garnered the most online “buzz” at this month’s Electronic Entertainment Expo. However, a report released this week indicates that such ephemeral attention might not translate into hard sales.
The survey asked gamers which games presented at E3 they were definitely or probably interested in purchasing. Some 53 percent of respondents were likely to purchase Halo 3: ODST, with 49 percent for God of War III. On the other end of the list, The Beatles: Rock Band ranked last at 12th with 30 percent.
One interesting factoid by Nielsen is that there were no massive changes in interest in the 12 titles from pre-E3 to post-E3. As the research group puts it, “In other words, games that already tugged at gamers’ hearts held on.”
The results of Nielsen’s June 7 to 14 survey are listed below, along with a video of GameSpot’s Halo 3: ODST demo.
TITLE – RELEASE DATE – PERCENTAGE INTERESTED
1) Halo 3:ODST – September 22, 2009 – 53%
2) God of War III – March 2010 – 49%
3) Wii Sports Resort – WII – July 26, 2009 – 45%
4) Guitar Hero 5 – September 1, 2009 – 42%
5) Final Fantasy XIII – Q2 2010 – 37%
6) Madden NFL 10 – August 14, 2009 – 35%
7) Guitar Hero: Van Halen – Q3 2009 – 34%
Assassins Creed 2 – November 17, 2009 – 32%
9) Need for Speed: Shift – September 22, 2009 – 32%
10) Need for Speed: Nitro – Q3 2009 – 32%
11) NCAA Football 10 – July 14, 2009 – 32%
12) Beatles Rock Band – September 9, 2009 – 30%
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Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
