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Archived News:
Ubisoft announces Avatar, an upcoming game based on an upcoming James Cameron
movie. We have tried to get a clarification on what platforms this project is
targeting, but have received no word so far. Here is what's being announced at
this point: SAN FRANCISCO – July 24, 2007 – Today, Ubisoft, one of the
world's largest video game publishers, announced that it will develop and
publish the video game based on Twentieth Century Fox's "Avatar,” the upcoming
feature film written and directed by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker James
Cameron, whose previous films include "Titanic,” "True Lies,” "The Abyss,”
"Aliens,” "The Terminator” and "Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”
"Avatar” is the story of an ex-Marine who finds himself thrust into hostilities
on an alien planet filled with exotic life forms. As an Avatar, a human mind in
an alien body, he finds himself torn between two worlds, in a desperate fight
for his own survival and that of the indigenous people. More than ten years in
the making, Avatar marks Cameron's return to feature directing since helming
1997's Titanic, the highest grossing film of all time and winner of eleven
Oscars® including Best Picture. The "Avatar” cast includes Sam Worthington, Zoe
Saldana, and Sigourney Weaver. Academy Award-winning visual effects house, WETA
Digital, renowned for its work in "The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy and "King
Kong,” will incorporate new intuitive CGI technologies to transform the
environments and characters into photorealistic 3D imagery that will transport
the audience into the alien world rich with imaginative vistas, creatures and
characters.
"Ubisoft is excited to partner with 20th Century Fox and James Cameron on this
important project. 'Avatar's' rich scenario, onscreen action and special effects
will provide a wealth of inspiration to create a unique interactive experience,"
said Yves Guillemot, chief executive officer of Ubisoft. "True to their
reputation, Ubisoft's creative teams are looking forward to recreating Cameron's
high definition 3D environment in a compelling game for film and game fans."
James Cameron commented: "For the movie 'Avatar' we are creating a world rich in
character, detail, conflict and cultural depth. It has the raw material for a
game that the more demanding gamers of today will want to get their hands on --
one that is rich in visuals and ideas, and challenging in play. I told the
Ubisoft team I wanted them to be free to do their very best work, and not think
of this as a movie-based game. They responded with a fully realized presentation
which captured the soul of the world and the characters, while promising to be a
knockout game on its own terms. Their passion inspired my confidence that they
are going to do something transcendental."
Elie Dekel, Executive Vice President of Fox Licensing and Merchandising added:
"James Cameron's "Avatar” will re-define the movie-going experience forever.
Cameron's vision and innovative approach to film-making demand that we align
this breakthrough project with the most talented and creative partners in the
world. As we embark on the incredible journey that is "Avatar,” we are thrilled
to be collaborating with Ubisoft on the development of the video game. After an
extensive review, it became clear the talented Ubisoft team is uniquely able to
bring Cameron's vision into the interactive realm."
The game is expected to release in conjunction with the movie's planned opening
in May 2009.
The City of Heroes
Community Website has word that Issue 10 of City of Heroes and City of
Villains is now live (thanks Liquid-sex). New content in Cryptic's superhero
MMORPGs include a return of the invading Rikti's, missions where heroes and
villains will work together, and new missions aimed at level 45-50 characters.
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of
Angmar Referral Program is now live, offering the opportunity for
subscribers of Turbine's MMORPG. Word is: "For every friend that buys the retail
edition of the game, registers a retail product key at myaccount.turbine.com,
and subscribes to the game, you'll get a referral credit that can be redeemed
for 30 days of FREE game time that can be added to your subscription to that
game! If you're already a Lifetime Member we'll issue you a 30 day game card key
to give to a friend who is a game subscriber."
This press
release announces that Delaware St. John Volume 3: The Seacliff Tragedy is
shipping in North America: Haarlem, The Netherlands – July 24, 2007 –
Leading Publisher Lighthouse Interactive today announced that their
investigative thriller adventure game Delaware St. John Volume 3: The Seacliff
Tragedy for Windows® has began shipping to retail stores across the U.S. and
Canada. Players will enter the eerie paranormal world of Delaware St. John as
they investigate the abandoned Seacliff Amusement Park haunted by unsettled
spirits. This PC CD-ROM game is available at all major retail outlets.
The Settlers Website now offers a home
to The Settlers: Rise of an Empire, the next installment in Blue Byte's strategy
series. Also, GamersFirst is a new
website dedicated to K2 Networks and their various MMOGs. Word is: "While
visiting GamersFirst.net gamers can download games and learn about all of K2
Network’s titles. Special features and services that the company offers will
also be listed, including a new community destination, Gamer Scene, the
Affiliate Center and much more."
- The Scourge Project
A trailer for The Scourge Project
shows off the just-announced Unreal Engine 3 shooter, available on
Gamer's Hell.
- Crysis
The Crysis Island Walkthrough Trailer is now
available on
inCrysis in high definition with no watermarks.
- Unreal Tournament 3
The
Unreal Tournament 3 Q&A on Computer and Video Games talks with Chris
Wells about Epic's upcoming shooter sequel: "I like to look at other
cultures when I'm working on a character. For example, in Unreal Tournament
III Akasha... what I wanted to go for with her character was a more of a
Mediterranean/North African feel where she has henna all over her face, and
some of the ornaments she has on here armour are indicative of that culture.
Other ones, like the Ronin, tend to take from more oriental styling. In
general, the Necris also have a more... I don't want to use the term 'Borg',
but there's the real feeling of it being a power-suit, a suit that's powered
by pipes and so forth."
- LucasArts
New
directions in gaming? on SiliconValley.com (thanks Neutronbeam) is a Q&A
with Jim Ward of LucasArts about the company's future direction: "I don't
see it as black and white as that. . . . Look, Microsoft is all about
broadening the audience. One can argue whether they're doing that
effectively or not, but through efforts like (the family game) 'Viva
Pinata,' I think their head's definitely in the right place. And certainly
their head is absolutely in the right place in terms of XBox Live and Xbox
Live Arcade and all of those types of persistent online opportunities,
because that in essence is going to give us the back-end revenue stream that
we so sorely need."
- Loki
Loki's
Joe Ryan delves into the mythos and game mechanics for Cyanide's title on
GameZone talks with Cyanide's PR Manager about Loki, the upcoming
action/RPG: "The basic characteristics of each character are totally
different, so their gameplay is totally different. However each progresses
through identical mechanisms. The Egyptian is magic-based; the Greek is a
range fighter (using disks, bows and traps); the Aztec can change shape and
spawn allies and the Norseman is an out-and-out fighter who revels in
hand-to-hand combat. Each has three specific skill trees with 17 skills each
(for a total of 51 per hero) and these are unblocked as the game advances,
depending on whom the hero is worshipping at the time. There are four
totally different experiences within the game."
A new version 1.02a of Privateer
Gemini Gold updates this cross-platform freeware game based on Privateer, a
venerated installment in the Wing Commander series. Word is: "This version will
basically iron out a few nasty bugs and upgrade graphics."
Tragnarion Studios announces The
Scourge Project, an upcoming squad-based shooter due for release next year
on PCs and consoles that will use Epic's Unreal 3 engine. The
media section
offers the first screenshots from the project which, if it were announced in the
90s, surely would have been simply named Scourge. Word is: MALLORCA, SPAIN
(GamesBizWire) - July 24, 2007 - Developer Tragnarion Studios will use Epic's
Unreal Engine 3 for their new multiplatform shooter featuring a unique focus on
co-operative narrative and gameplay. "The Scourge Project" will be the first
story-driven FPS game built from the ground up for co-operative squad play,
where up to 4 players each experience a personal story, whilst playing together
as a squad.
Carl Jones, head of Tragnarion Studios, made the decision to use Unreal Engine 3
after finding that the technology lived up to the high ambitions of the
Tragnarion team.
"We've been amazed at the speed and quality of results on Unreal. We've only had
the engine for a couple of months, yet we've already been able to build a
great-looking, fully playable prototype, which we'll soon show to publishers,
featuring our innovative narrative system for multiple players and our unique
co-op focused game play mechanics. Every single feature we want is easily
implemented in Unreal - for all the major high-end platforms."
Mark Rein, VP at Epic said, "When we saw the demo that Tragnarion produced, we
were really impressed with the progress they had made in such a short time. The
high quality visuals, innovative game features and co-operative story have come
together in only a few months. It made us very proud to see how quickly they
were able to learn Unreal Engine 3 and we can't wait to get a look at this title
again in a few more months."
"The Scourge Project" is due for a 2008 release on PC and consoles, check it out
at www.thescourgeproject.com.
Check your calendar, as
Matrix Games announces the release of Frank Hunter's Guns of August:
Take to the trenches and battle out the First World War the way you see
fit!
Matrix Games and Adanac Command Studies are excited to announce the release of
Guns of August! Now players can experience the thrill of commanding massive wave
assaults on the trenches of WWI or race in the laboratories to develop new armor
units and tip the balance of power in their favor in this highly anticipated
turn-based grand strategy title.
David Heath, Director of Operations at Matrix Games, said "Guns of August
presents World War I fans with an elegant and innovative design so that they can
engage in one of the world's most intense conflicts in a fun and addicting way.
I for one an particularly glad that I can still wage the First World War in all
its strategic intrigue without having to worry about getting trench foot!"
Guns of August puts players in command of waging World War I at a grand
strategic scale from Paris to Baghdad. The entire Western, Eastern, Italian and
Balkan fronts are included as are the three fronts of the Ottoman Empire.
Production, Combat, Diplomacy, Research, Trenches, Fog of War - Land, Sea and
Air combat are all included! Use land units like infantry corps complete with
separate artillery units for precisely directing barrages on the enemy's line.
As time goes on, players must deal with changing combat situations like the
introduction of Stossstruppen and even mighty tanks charging through lines to
break through the stalemate! Guns of August fully supports a robust AI to fight
against or play by email. Step back to the early 20th Century and hear the guns
of August!
THQ and Shanda
Announce Company of Heroes Online is a press release from last week
announcing plans for a 2008 release of an online edition of Relic's World War II
RTS game in China (thanks Gamer's Hell).
There are no announced plans for a western edition of the game, which will offer
a persistent RTS experience and, presumably, an added layer of security in an
area where piracy is rampant: Company of Heroes Online is set to deliver a
persistent Company of Heroes experience for online gamers where players will be
able to build their character up from private to general through new multiplayer
cooperative missions, gameplay modes, and player versus player combat. The teams
at Relic Entertainment and Shanda are joining together to create a persistent
RTS experience across the expansive battlefields of World War II Europe.
"This new deal is a significant milestone for THQ as it supports two significant
growth drivers for the company - building our product offering across Asia and
expanding into new digital revenue streams," said Brian Farrell, president and
CEO of THQ. "Shanda's leadership position in the online space makes them the
ideal partner to serve as both co-developer of Company of Heroes Online and
operator of the game across China."
Matrix Games now
offers the first patches for Commander - Europe at War, updating the World War
II turn-based strategy game to version 1.02. There are separate patches for the
Matrix and Slitherine editions of the game, each of which can be found on the
Matrix Games
Downloads Page. Word is: "This latest update will bring many improvements
ranging from PBEM and TCP/IP multiplayer fixes and enhancements to interface
tweaks, balance changes and much more."
Kalypso Media announces Universal Boxing Manager, an upcoming value-priced game
that puts the player in the glamorous role of a boxing manager: Kalypso
media today announced Universal Boxing Manager, its latest big hitter to step in
the ring in the battle for management sim fans' hearts. Why lace up the gloves
and risk your delicate visage when you can encourage someone else to slug it out
for you?
Starting as a lowly hopeful, players are tasked with managing up to six
different budding champs with high hopes of glory. As an eagle-eyed trainer it’s
your job to sort the Ricky Hattons from the Ricky Gervais, buff them up in the
gym, broker the right fights against the right opponents and reap the juicy
financial rewards. Just as any good manager would offer, it’s also your job to
play Mr. Motivator and power talk your charges to victory, or give them the hair
dryer treatment should things go decidedly the way of Bruno vs. Tyson.
Easily accessible to even the most modest gamers, Universal Boxing Manager is a
pick-up-and-play insight into the world of the boxing promoter, the perfect game
to wile away a lunchtime. Alternatively, gamers looking for a bit more depth can
tackle the career mode, and take responsibility for buying new equipment, hiring
better medical staff and trawling through the 17 different weight classes to
pick a champ or two from the roster of over a thousand unique boxers.
All fights can be watched in real time in an overhead view of the ring, with
options to concentrate on healing or motivate your boxer between rounds, as well
as advise him on tactics and where to expose his opponent’s weaknesses. From
heavy to featherweight, Universal Boxing Manager will bring out a little Don
King in all of us this autumn.
Published by Kalypso media, Universal Boxing Manager will be released for PC
this September priced £9.99.
A new DirectX 10 trailer from World in Conflict shows off the advanced graphics
in Massive Entertainment's upcoming World War III strategy game. The movie is
available on
ActionTrip and
FileFront.
The
Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer Q&A on GameShark talks with Kevin
Saunders about the upcoming expansion for the D&D RPG sequel: "I think we've
made some major improvements to the Influence system. First, now your companions
(and you, perhaps) will gain game play benefits for having high influence.
Second, if Influence goes low enough, the companions will behave more
realistically and actually leave you. Also, we've spent a lot of energy on
polishing how Influence works with the companions. For example, increases and
losses will feel more natural and appropriate to the characters' personalities
and goals. Except for the very beginning of the game, none of the companions are
required and players who don't like them can adventure alone if they wish. So if
you don't like dealing with Influence, it's entirely optional. Of course, if
you're into the story, you'll find the companions add a lot of depth."
I'm nursie Blue today, as MrsBlue is a bit under the weather with a sore throat
and other cold symptoms. She has my sympathies, as summer colds are that much
ickier than those in other seasons, and it's that much tougher to offer care and
comfort wearing this HazMat suit.
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