The Godfather II Announced

EA has officially announced Godfather II. The game will be available on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox360.

Press Release:

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Paramount Digital Entertainment today revealed the first details of The Godfather® II videogame, the sequel to the 2007 multi-platinum hit. Inspired by the film and Mario Puzo’s Corleone family drama, The Godfather II game goes beyond the film’s story by setting players in the world of organized crime in 1960’s Florida, Cuba and New York. Read more

EA gets RAGED

 

id Software’s latest project, RAGE, will be published by EA. More details of RAGE will be made available in QuakeCon 2008.

EA has signed an agreement to publish RAGE, the next blockbuster from id Software, the inventors of the first person shooter. Built on the id Tech5 engine, RAGE will be released on the PLAYSTATION(R)3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360(TM) videogame and entertainment system from Microsoft, PC and Macintosh(R) computers. More information about RAGE will be available at QuakeCon 2008 in Dallas, Texas from July 31st to August 2nd. More information about QuakeCon is available at www.quakecon.org.

This Is Vegas Delayed, Now Coming in 2009

Midway’s moneyshot (heh) title has been pushed back to 2009. The reason for the delay is extra polishing, which is always good.

Midway is committed to developing and publishing the best quality products. It is important for us to make sure the game was given the development time needed in order to make This is Vegas a triple-A videogame and a must-have for all PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC owners. 

Newest Gothic title renamed

The upcoming Gothic IV: Arcania RPG has officially gotten a new name: Arcania: A Gothic Tale

Another interesting tid-bit:

Oddly enough ‘market research’ revealed that Europeans prefer muted and gritty colors, while Americans prefer bright and beautiful, so JoWood plans to release it with two different color palettes.

The title will be coming to PC as well as PlayStation 3 & Xbox360. You can check out the first screenshots here.

Ben Cousins: “Web is the future of gaming”

Ben Cousins, DICE’s executive producer and the senior developer of upcoming Battlefield: Heroes game was interviewed by GamesIndusty.biz. Cousins says the web will be the dominant gaming platform of the future. This statement holds plenty of ground when you look at the crazy popularity of “casual” web based video games. Ofcourse, let’s not forget Battlefield: Heroes is also browser based and is catergorised as a “casual” game.

“People talk about which of the two, PlayStation or Xbox, is going to be the big platform of the future,” Cousins said.

“I think the web is going to be the big platform of the future, whether it’s running on an iPhone or a Mac or on the PC.”

Prototype Delayed till 2009

According to GameSpot, Sierra’s sandbox action title Prototype has been delayed till 2009. The reason for the delay is adding extra polish to the game.

A representative with Sierra Entertainment today confirmed that to be the case with the company’s upcoming open-world action game Prototype. Originally set for release on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC this fall, the game has been bumped to a nonspecific 2009 release date.

“Since its announcement, Prototype has been regarded by many as groundbreaking and taking the open-world genre in new directions, and in the simplest explanation possible, we need more time to deliver the game the team initially set out to create,” the representative said.

72% of US Population Plays Video Games

According to NPDGroup, 72% of US’s population plays computer/console games. This number is up from 2006’s 64% study. Half of the total gamers play online on either XBOX LIVE!, PlayStation Network or PC.

Four out of 10 online gamers are ages 2-17, driven heavily by kids ages 6-12. Kids ages 2 to 12 are driving more than 25 percent of online gaming, while 18-24 year olds only represent 10 percent of online gaming. Among those who use a video game system for online gaming, Xbox 360 is the top system used, with 50 percent stating they play games online via that system. On average, Xbox 360 owners spend the most time per week using their 360s to play games online, followed by PC and PS3 owners using these respective systems for online game play. According to the report, 13 percent of online gamers spend 20 hours or more per week on online gaming. Per platform, 33 percent of portable online gamers, 29 percent of console online gamers and 13 percent of PC online gamers are in this heaviest online gaming group. At this point in the lifecycle of today’s video game consoles, multiple console ownership is low, with only 3 percent reporting that they own two of the three “next-gen” systems and only 2 percent claiming to own all three systems. “Despite the buzz in the industry regarding online gaming, it is still relatively small compared to offline gaming,” said Anita Frazier, industry analyst, The NPD Group. “There is still a large, untapped market for gaming in general and online gaming in particular.”

Remember, when you run into retards while playing, it’s not your fault.

NPD Press Release 

Borderlands Delayed

In the same Investor QnA in which BioShock 2 went official, Take-Two have announced that Gearbox Software’s upcoming sci-fi first person shooter has been delayed from the original Fiscal Year 2008 to Fiscal Year 2009. From the official press release:

Fiscal 2008 guidance reflects the release of Borderlands for Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION 3 and Games for Windows® in fiscal 2009 instead of fiscal 2008 in order to allow additional development time for this highly anticipated game and provide a better balance in the release of Take-Two’s triple-A titles.

In the meantime, check out 5 high resolution Borderlands screenshots after the break. Read more

Tiberium Interview with Chris Plummer

play.tm scored an interview with Chris Plummer, the producer for upcoming Command & Conquer based FPS: Tiberium. Tiberium is EA’s second take on making an FPS in C&C world (first being Command & Conquer: Renegade, 2002) Snippet from the interview:

The FPS genre is notoriously crowded. How will Tiberium stand out from some tough competition, and what games have proved influential?

We think we’ve created a deep, engaging world that’s really going to draw people in. We’ve spent a lot of time developing this universe and we can’t wait to share more with you. We also think we’ve got a solid science-fiction hero in Ricardo Vega. His story, the toys we’re giving him to play with and his role in leading the action is something that I think gamers are going to gravitate to.

Read more

Mirror’s Edge QnA, New Screenshots

On Mirror’s Edge, the official fansite of Mirror’s Edge (upcoming first person shooter from DICE) did a QnA with DICE regarding Mirror’s Edge. They question everything from the birth and origin of the concept to graphics and estimated release date. Here’s a snip:

1. Why did DICE decide to make a game like this?
It was a very deliberate decision. We wanted to create a new IP that was very different from Battlefield and would appeal to a slightly different audience whilst still building on our strengths in 1st person. When we looked at the market we realized that although there were a lot of first person games out there, most of them were focusing on the gun and not the person. So we decided to do a game that was about the person not the weapon.

Mirror’s Edge is DICE’s take on re-inventing the FPS genre, presenting a game that focuses more character interaction rather than action. Mirror’s Edge centers around Faith, a sexy runner who’s job is to deliver confidential information between various parties. Full interview and 15 images (including a sexy wallpaper!) after the break. Read more

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