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Archived News:
Though Matthew Higby avoided the recent round of
layoffs at Daybreak Studios, he has now resigned his position as creative
director for PlanetSide 2, the MMOFPS (thanks
PCGamesN via
GamePolitics). He made the following statement
on Reddit: Hey guys -
Working on Planetside 2 has been the absolute highlight of my career, but after
4 years working on the game, it's time for a change. Today was my last day on
the Planetside 2 team and at Daybreak games. This is a move I've been
considering for a while now, and the reorganization provided the right
opportunity for me to exit.
Planetside 2 is in great hands, with terrific people who honestly care about the
game and the players. I can't stress this enough, the folks working on every
aspect of the game, developers, marketing, community are talented, hard working
people who care more than you can imagine - I'm fully confident they're going to
do an amazing job on the next leg of the journey.
Finally, I wanted to thank all of you in the Planetside 2 community with whom
I've shared the last few years, whether in stream chat, tweets, pms or comments
you guys have motivated and inspired me all along. You are an amazing community
that I'm looking forward to remaining a member of for a long time.
See you on Auraxis!
Matthew Higby
Former Creative Director
Planetside 2
Edit: thanks a ton for all the positive comments, it's been a super emotional
week and it really means a lot to me. I want to state the obvious though: making
video games is a team sport. If you love Planetside 2, or it is your favorite
game, it makes me really really happy and proud... But, "I" didn't make the
game. I just was lucky enough to be able to play a role on a TEAM that made the
game. A lot of that team is still there, still working their asses off, and they
need your support right now.
There is
an interview with Peter Molyneux on The Guardian, talking with the designer
about the uproar over the failed
promises of Godus. The thrust of this is his noted habit of letting his mouth
write checks that his games cannot cash, which has become a thornier issue now
that it involves directly disappointing crowdfunding backers. He explains some
of the project's failings, including the lack of reward
for the winner of the Curiosity "game," saying: "The problem we have is we can’t start his reign as God
of Gods until we implement the technology that allows him to have influence over
people’s worlds and crucially allows him to be challenged in competitive games
of Godus and as people have pointed out we have to add combat to Godus still."
He concludes telling them the interview would be his last. Imagine their
surprise when they discovered he said the same thing to
Rock, Paper, Shotgun, and they say they hear he did another interview after
theirs. The RPS interview, meanwhile, takes a contentious, if not hostile tone, starting with
the question, "Do you think that you’re a pathological liar?" The site
is hosed right now, but the article can be read
through a cache. For the record, here's his answer to the liar question:
"I’m not aware of a single lie, actually. I’m aware of me saying things and
because of circumstances often outside of our control those things don’t come to
pass, but I don’t think that’s called lying, is it? I don’t think I’ve ever
knowingly lied, at all. And if you want to call me on one I’ll talk about it for
sure." They proceed to call him out on a variety of statements in a very
uncomfortable conversation.
Techland announces that Dying Light was the top selling game in the
United States for January, more impressive considering the game was
released on January 27th, so it was only
available for the last five days of the month. They say 1.2 million unique
players played the game during that period, adding that the game is also the
fastest-selling new IP in the survival/horror genre. "We’re extremely humbled
and motivated by how enthusiastic players have been about Dying Light.
Especially since the game was out in January for only five days and is yet to be
released in other regions," says Adrian Ciszewski, Game Director. "But we don’t
want stop there. We’re working hard to deliver more exciting content for Dying
Light, including a special Hard Mode, so we can keep our fans entertained for a
very long time."
Indie developer Black Shell Games announces SanctuaryRPG: Black Edition is now
in full release on Steam
following an early access stint for the ASCII RPG.
This post outlines all the changes in the patch accompanying the release
version, including new art and music. Here's word on the game: As the
world's first fully-ASCII game to grace the Steam platform, SanctuaryRPG: Black
Edition is a humorous and strategic turn-based dungeon crawling adventure.
Drawing heavy inspiration from both Roguelikes and Japanese RPGs, the game was
meticulously designed to offer a truly compelling role-playing experience
complete with a robust action-RPG inspired combat system.
Black Edition builds upon the classic SanctuaryRPG formula with all new
procedurally generated artwork, as well as a plethora of areas to explore, races
to experiment with, skills to master, and loot to collect. Whether you're a
valiant hero or a dastardly villain, the fate of Sanctuary is in your hands.
Features
- Enjoy a blast from the past with retro ASCII
graphics
- Travel through vast dungeons with classic
roguelike action
- Experience hundreds of hours of immersive gameplay
- Put your strategies to work with a sleek combat
system
- Over 160 class and race combinations to experiment
with
- Wreck your enemies with over 1400 weapons and
armors
- Rock out to an original 8-bit chiptune soundtrack
Publisher Daedalic Entertainment and developer Shining Gate celebrate Friday the
13th with the release of Decay - The Mare, their horror/adventure trilogy for
Windows and OS X, which can be found on
GamersGate, Steam,
and other digital distributors. Here's the pitch: "In Decay – The Mare, you
control Sam, an addict who ends up in an institution named “Reaching Dreams” –
hoping to kick his drug problem and clean up his miserable life. But during the
first night, something goes wrong and he gets stuck in a seemingly endless
nightmare. Decay – The Mare is a 3D psychological horror adventure and homage to
the Resident Evil and Silent Hill games, as well as to horror adventure games
like Phantasmagoria, The 11th Hour and Gabriel Knight."
Shiver Games announces the release of Lucius II: The Prophecy for Windows
on Steam, offering an
action/adventure sequel picking up the story of the original game. The game
carries a 15% discount for the next week, and
this launch trailer
offers a look at "some the more gruesome aspects," and features music for Lucius
the game from Lucius the band. Here's word: Lucius II: The Prophecy is a
sequel to the notorious horror game Lucius, where players get to experience true
evil in an atmospheric 1970’s setting. The game is a 3D splatter-adventure
sandbox where you play as Lucius, the son of the devil, wreaking havoc on
everyone in your path: taking the weak and punishing the wicked. The gameplay in
the sequel has been greatly revamped to add freedom, with more twisted
opportunities for sinning and devastation than ever before.
The story in Lucius II continues where the original game left off. This time
around, the young boy Lucius emerges from the burning wreckage of his parents'
home as the lone survivor, unscathed by the flames and ready to repeat his
ruthless slaughter. Lucius is taken to the psychiatric ward of St. Benedict’s
Hospital by unsuspecting caretakers, where whispers of an ominous prophecy find
their way to the boy’s ears. Lucius decides to act yet again to regain his lost
powers. But little does he know of his new adversaries.
Continue here to read the full story.
Digerati Distribution announces they have picked up the rights to
Paranautical Activity, and are looking to make amends for the game with the
release of a Deluxe Atonement Edition, which is now available on
GOG.com,
The Humble Store, and
Steam. "We've taken over the PC rights for Paranautical Activity, because we
loved the game and were sad that people weren't getting to play it. I wanted to
thank everyone who had already supported the title in its early access stage, so
we've added some new in-game content - a new level, item and weapon as well of a
bunch of other cool unseen digital bits and bobs," explains Nick Alfieri,
Digerati. "Working with GOG, Steam & the guys at Humble is always a pleasure and
brings the game to a wider, different audience so it's great to be going (back)
out on all these stores on the same day!" A
new trailer show
things off, and here's more: The Atonement Edition includes a new 'special
floor' - a slippery slidey Frozen variant; a new weapon - the thumping 'Recoil
Rifle', used to create space between you and enemies and traps, and giving an
interesting new angle to gameplay; and a new item - the Digerati Defibrillator,
because well, someone had to bring this game back to life, right? There are also
developer commentaries, wallpapers and The Seafarer's Guide, which helps players
understand the enemies, items, weapons and bosses. Paranautical Activity: Deluxe
Atonement Edition will launch at $9.99 with a 30% discount.
Gearbox Software offers
Making of the Homeworld
Remastered Collection - Episode Two, a second video promoting the upcoming
space strategy remake. Word is: "The Making of the Homeworld Remastered
Collection is a three-part series that takes a behind-the-scenes look at the
development of the Homeworld Remastered Collection featuring commentary from the
teams at Gearbox Software and those originally involved in the creation of the
series, some of whom are now at Blackbird Interactive. The series was edited and
produced by Mediajuice Studios." Continue here to read the full story.
This video uses a
combination of live-action footage and footage from Total War: ATTILA to
offer a brief biography, of sorts, for Attila the Hun. Word is: "Highlighting
the Huns’ powerful, unmatchable horse riding and bow skills, this documentary
covers the key events that made Attila a name feared throughout the Roman world.
We’ll learn of his rise to dominance, his fearless assault against the Roman
Empire, and the eventual brutal end of the Hunnic invasion." Continue here to read the full story.
1C Game Studios announces that development is underway on IL-2 Sturmovik:
Battle of Moscow, the long-rumored next installment in their combat flight
simulation series. They are practically hiding the announcement in
this post to a two-year old thread where they say preorders should commence
next month and offer images of the planes this will include. Here's word:
We are proud to announce that the 1CGS team has started to work on the
next title in the the series - IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Moscow. The next stage
of this project is set to begin this March - that’s when we’ll be ready to
reveal the details and tell you more about the new game’s compatibility with
BOS, Early Access Plans and other important details.
And the iconic Р-40 E-1 and MC.202 Series VIII aircraft are going to be offered
as Premium planes. Remember that our Premium Planes are an opportunity for us to
build interesting and popular aircraft that had a presence on the Eastern Front,
but not necessarily a regular combatant.
Later, in March 2015 we’ll start the pre-order program for BOM and will publish
all necessary info about the future editions. We do understand that you have
endless questions, and we’ll answer them in up-coming developer blogs which are
going to be posted during Pre-Order and Early Access stages.
Chris Wynn
tweets about a
job opening for a line producer for Mass Effect 4, indicating the next
installment in the sci-fi action/RPG series will include multiplayer, saying
"Things are getting real now and I need an excellent Producer to come shape
online for the next Mass Effect" (thanks
Polygon).
This detailed listing has more in their list of responsibilities:
- Create and champion the vision of the
multi-player, connected experiences and online features of the game which
respects the project leadership goals and be accountable for the quality
targets and the results achieved.
- Provide strong leadership to the team by providing
clear guidance, instructions and directions.
- Provide clear context to the team for how the
features fit into the larger game, how they fit into the market place, and
how it serves and delights our fans.
- Help team prioritize highest business value
features and set quality targets.
- Be the Voice of the players for the area of
ownership, articulate clearly fans expectations to the team and provide
actionable items.
- Cultivate a strong development organization: grow
talent, make timely decisions, inspire and create a motivating workplace.
- Responsible to create strong relationship and
partnership with key stakeholders
- Once game is launched, responsible for strategic
oversight and operating live services. Work with analytics and digital
marketing resources to make key daily/weekly decisions in providing the
right mix of features, content, and investment into the live services on an
on-going basis to optimize growth and profitability for digital services.
- Represent game in both internal and external
communications. This includes delivering strong presentations and taking
responsibility for internal reviews with key organizational stakeholder’s
partner companies, and handling external interviews with the media.
- Serve as a coach and mentor resource to junior
producers, assisting them in the resolution of complex problems and growing
their skills and knowledge.
- Support the Studio leadership and contribute to
strategic short and long term planning and decision making for the overall
game.
Publisher Square Enix and developer Avalanche Studios offer a
new "Firestarter" trailer
from Just Cause 3 with the first look at the return of their sandbox action
series. Word is: "The trailer, entitled “Firestarter”, takes a look inside the
mind’s eye of Rico Rodriguez, the most explosive action hero in gaming. " In
addition to the video, we also have
a big batch of new screenshots from the game.
Continue here to read the full story.
The
Kickstarter campaign for Shadowrun: Hong Kong is heading into its
final days, and the game's ultimate $1,000,000 funding goal remains within
reach, which would add an additional mini-campaign to the RPG sequel. To help
push things over the top, Harebrained Schemes has added three new reward tiers
for backers. Here's word on how this will work: We are now on track to
reach our $1 million funding goal that will allow us to create an a 4-5 hour
Shadows of Hong Kong MINI-CAMPAIGN which takes place after the story ends. The
mini-campaign will allow players to import their character from Shadowrun: Hong
Kong to extend their challenge. The Shadows of Hong Kong Mini-Campaign will be
FREE to Backers at the $15 level and up and will be available for purchase as
DLC when it is released
Keeping in mind both tabletop fans and fans of the SNES and Genesis videogames,
we also added two new bonuses for Backers at the $35 level and up, as well as a
new $65 and $100 Reward Level.
ArenaNet announces details about Stronghold; a new PvP mode coming to Guild
Wars 2: Heart of Thorns, the upcoming first expansion for Guild Wars 2,
their MMORPG sequel.
This blog post has a detailed outlook on the new mode, and the developers
plan to show this off later today in a livestream on
Twitch, which should get underway
at 1:00 pm EST. Word is: "On the stream, Hugh Norfolk will join host Joshua
Davis to reveal all the new game mechanics and gameplay intricacies that
Stronghold has to offer." To help eager fans pass the time until the stream,
they offer some
new screenshots.
Rise of the Terminators
trailer from Space Hulk: Deathwing offers a cinematic look at the Warhammer
shooter in the works at StreumOn Studio. Here's word on what we're seeing: "Each
and every one of the game's elements have been carefully crafted by the talented
teams from StreumOn, with flawless regard for detail and respect for the Space
Hulk license created by Games Workshop. This is perfectly illustrated in the new
trailer Rise of the Terminators. Supported by an original soundtrack from band
Kadebostany "Walking with a Ghost", its powerful images will immerse you in the
Warhammer 40,000 universe. Terminators and Genestealers come alive and clash
together in a deadly struggle, and this is only beginning." Continue here to read the full story.
The Steam page for Hatred
is now online, an expected development of the game's
greenlight, and
DSOGaming notes this is the first Adults
Only rated title sold on Valve's service. The listing also offers some system
requirements, though they warn these may be subject to change: MINIMUM:
OS: Windows® 7 (SP1) / Windows® 8 / Windows® 8.1 / (64-bit only)
Processor: 2.6 GHz Intel® Core™ i5-750 or 3.2 GHz AMD Phenom™ II X4 955
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 or AMD Radeon HD5850 (1 GB VRAM)
DirectX: Version 11
Hard Drive: 8 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX-compatible
Additional Notes: Requirements may be changed in the future
RECOMMENDED:
OS: Windows® 7 (SP1) / Windows® 8 / Windows® 8.1 / (64-bit only)
Processor: 2.5 GHz Intel® Core™ i5-2400S or 4.0 GHz AMD FX-8350 or better
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 or AMD Radeon R9 290X or better (2 GB VRAM)
Hard Drive: 8 GB available space
Sound Card: DirectX-compatible
Additional Notes: Requirements may be changed in the future
Friday the 13th! It's bad luck for anyone outside around here right now, as it's
close to 20 below zero with the wind chill factored in. I got to experience a
little of the mixed fortunes of nature yesterday, as I discovered a huge bird of
prey on the garage roof making a meal of a squirrel. The snow-covered roof
showed off the gore dramatically, and it sort of looks like the wood chipper
scene in Fargo. I feel really bad for the squirrel, but the larger bird (I think
it was a hawk) was obviously happy with the outcome. He spent well over an hour
up there, and thankfully took the remains, so I don't have to figure out how to
deal with them myself.
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