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American McGee announces next 'twisted tale' project after Grimm
We're not sure what it is about American McGee that makes him so fascinated about putting dark spins on Western tales. The former id Software developer and Electronic Arts' consultant found his niche in 2000 with Alice, though since that release he's done little to make us believe that his name slapped on the front of a game's box carries any more weight than the UPC code on the back. His latest project is a morose 24-episode take on the Brothers Grimm in development at McGee's Shanghai studio Spicy Horse, a project that according to a blog post by McGee is halfway completed. Excited, the developer has let the proverbial cat out of the equally proverbial bag by confirming work on another project. While details are light, McGee writes that the game will be built on Epic's UE3 engine, and is a "big publisher, multi-platform, twisted tale project." This of course makes us think that McGee will once again be paying a visit to the children's section of the local library in search of inspiration. Might we suggest Winnie the Pooh, as nothing is quite as frighting as a vicious bear that's rumbly in his tumbly. [via Gamasutra]
Sarah Michelle Gellar really wants to make Alice movie
Not content to star in the single greatest television series ever, Sarah Michelle Gellar wants yet another nerdy project under her belt and one more way to permanently graft her image to the hearts of the world's geeks. The actress formerly known as Buffy says that her passion project is a big screen version of American McGee's Alice. It's true that we knew that this project had previously been in the works, but we thought it had died in development, never guessing that SMG had such a passion for McGee's game. She even goes so far as saying she'd write it herself, if that's what it took. Keep on believin', Sarah. If we've said it once, we've said it a thousand times: When you're married to Freddie Prinze Jr., anything is possible.[Via CVG]
Rob Pardo at the Hollywood and Games Summit
The always awesome Alice Taylor from Wonderland was at the Hollywood and Games Summit this past week, and Blizzard's Rob Pardo made an appearance in a panel about creating a "parallel experience" between entertainment media and MMOs. Alice put up summaries of the various points made, and the result is a pretty interesting read into how Blizzard is working on their upcoming Warcraft movie.The whole panel is a good read (reps from MTV and Sony also make appearances to talk about how they're taking audiences across media), but Pardo specifically makes the point that in whatever media you're in, you have to balance how you're using that media against how you're using the intellectual property the media is based on. "Demographics," he says, "follow the IP," so Blizzard clearly thinks that if a Warcraft movie is released, that Warcraft players will run to see it in droves. But at the same time, he says the media must define how you use the IP-- Warcraft RTS is a different experience than WoW, and WoW will be (supposedly) a different experience than a Warcraft movie. He does want to make sure "the epic scale of the IP shows up in that movie."He also speaks to Blizzard's plans to make "episodic content" for WoW rather than "boxed content," and says that they haven't delivered content as fast as they've wanted to yet. But he also claims, "We've got our head round it now." So maybe they really will have a new expansion for us ready on time next year.
Uber apron and other WoW crafts
Alice from Wonderland posted this great apron Craftster dishwasher182 (I guess we know what she does after the pizza is eaten) made for her significant other for Valentine's Day. That's a great on-equip buff. Too bad it's soulbound, though-- if you want one, I guess you'll have to make your own custom printed iron-on. And bonus points to another Craftster for pointing out that the apron itself is in fact a blue item. Ha!There's also this knitted Tauren hat, which looks great, but I can't quite see how it's supposed to be worn. How can you see wearing it with that big bullsnout hanging in your face? Also Tauren-related, this hilarious sketch currently for sale on Etsy. And there's also these handmade (not by the same Alice, though) Ankh earrings-- perfect for the shaman in your life who occasionally needs some resurrecting (see #5 in the description).It's probably because I have no craftmaking talent whatsoever, but all this great fanmade craft stuff continues to amaze me. Keep up the good work, guys.
Alice now Universal Binary on Mac
American McGee's Alice has been updated into a Universal Binary, and the tens of Mac gamers who both use Intel Macs and enjoyed this title -- or at least its gnarled art direction -- can now run the game natively. (Okay, we jest; there must be at least hundreds of us, including this writer and other Joystiq contributors.)We salute Aspyr for offering a free update to this older title. This sort of support makes us want to keep playing Mac titles, even though the platform's gaming future is uncertain at best. Now excuse us while we dig up old copies of Alice and recite incantations for a Deus Ex update.
Weekly Webcomic Wrapup: tardy edition [update 2]
Oh, look at the time. The webcomic branch of Joystiq HQ is running a bit behind today, so pardon our sloth behavior and enjoy the selection we've picked today.Don't like the white rabbit? Well, we don't think he likes you either. Just look at his pixelated eyeballs staring you down, and those two front teeth yearning for flesh. Human flesh.... heh, sorry to get sidetracked. Here are our picks for the week's best gaming comics, be sure to vote for your favorite! The hook, line, and sinker Our poor, European brethren Tycho, Gabe, what are you doing here? Me and my shadow Gaming Scientific cubed Ubisoft strikes back Dawn of Next Gen Oh God, please no! Puzzling conclusion You can't fight instinct I've said it before, they'll say it again How's this for a Burning Crusade? Free polls from Pollhost.com [Update 1: Dueling Analogs and Digital Unrest are both back up and online, so go send them your traffic!]
American McGee gets episodic in Shanghai
American McGee is looking for a few dark, twisted types to join his new independent studio in Shanghai, as he prepares to ride the wave of two contemporary trends in the gaming industry: episodic content and Chinese food.With Bad Day L.A. set to launch soon, the man behind Alice and Scrapland is now focusing his attention on building "an episodic game set in a dark, fairy tale universe." This project could be related to Oz or Grimm, a pair of graphic novels McGee is producing with Cellar Door Publishing.A former game designer for id Software and Electronic Arts, McGee also founded The Mauretania Import Export Company, and has served as the Creative Director for Enlight Software.
Brain Age owners flaunt their art [update 1]
One part of the popular DS game Brain Age is the drawing mini-game where players are required to draw a picture of, to name a few examples, Mona Lisa, Henry VIII or a bulldozer entirely from memory. As the above examples demonstrate, results may vary! Check out the Flickr pool of Brain Age drawings and don't forget to add your own "creations".[Via Wonderland]Update: I misspelled "Brain" in the title. What? It's early!
Update on Alice and Max Payne movies
The Hollywood Byte is a weekly column on Yahoo! covering the convergence of video games and movies. This week they talk with Scott Faye, producer of the movie adaptations of American McGee's Alice and Max Payne. Though they've been in development for about 6 and 8 years, respectively, Faye is confident they'll get made soon. He says Alice could begin shooting as early as this summer, with Sarah Michelle Gellar in the lead role, and be ready for a 2007 release. The adaptation of Max Payne is a little more tenuous. A screenwriter has just been hired, and they hope to begin filming late 2006, early 2007. We're not holding our breath at this point.[Via Cathode Tan]
