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EA: Movie licenses going the 'wrong way' for game publishers
EA Games president Frank Gibeau has told Develop that the licensing deals involved in the development of movie-based games are going the "wrong way" for publishers. He described the movie-game business as "falling apart," with returns on investment often failing to justify the costs involved in securing popular properties for a video game. According to Gibeau, EA considers itself better off working on its own IP like Dead Space, rather than spending it on something with the creative limitations like the James Bond series (a license now held by rival Activision). "The days of licensed-based, 75-rated games copies are dead like the dinosaur," the executive said. Well, that's something we can agree on -- the days of 37-rated movie-based games has dawned, as evidenced recently by EA Bright Light's abysmal Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 review: A tragic spell
If you can point to one attribute responsible for the worldwide success of the Harry Potter franchise, it's that it works on several levels. Whether you're an adult or child, softy or stoic, you're bound to find something in the books that speaks to you. In a twisted reflection, EA Bright Light's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 manages to fail on many, many levels. No matter what you may be willing to forgive, rest assured, Hallows has already found several other ways to skirt competence. %Gallery-93897%
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 'epic' trailer blasts anything that moves
EA has what it deems to be an "epic" trailer for its Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 video game. More like: Harry Potter and the Revolving Door of Blastable Bad Guys: Part Pew-pew-pew
North American Kinect launch window games rounded up
When you get your shiny new Kinect, what games will you get with it? Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb has provided a handy guide to the full Kinect launch lineup -- including launch day games and those arriving soon after. If you wagered there would be four sports minigame collections (Kinect Sports, Deca Sports Freedom, Game Party In Motion and MotionSports), you win! The seventeen-game lineup also includes three dancing games (Dance Central, Zumba Fitness, and DanceMasters), four exercise games (Your Shape: Fitness Evolved, The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout, EA Sports Active 2.0, and the aforementioned Zumba Fitness), and two 'boarding games (Adrenalin Misfits and Sonic Free Riders). See the full list after the break. Major Nelson notes that the Xbox 360 launched in North America with 18 games, just one more than Kinect is launching with -- bearing out Shane Kim's comment that Microsoft would treat the Kinect launch like a new system. Or, it would, if this list didn't count the Kinect games coming out weeks after the Kinect release date as "launch games" vs. the 360's 18-game launch day. In any case, the Kinect has a lot of choices, even if they're all within a few categories.
Bright Light teases unannounced XBLA/PSN game from Spare Parts team, explains internal dev culture
Bright Light, EA's Guildford-based (UK) studio, is hard at work on at least four titles: Create, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Episode 1, Spare Parts and a fourth, "secret [downloadable] project." At an EA press event last week, we spoke with Bright Light senior international PR manager Deborah Coster, who teased the "secret project" and explained the studio's dedication to fostering creativity and its at least partial focus on smaller, polished titles. "The team's actually been doing the equivalent of 'iron man development,' so they're making two games," Coster told Joystiq. "And they've been making a secret game, which we haven't announced yet, but they've been making it at the same time as Spare Parts. So they've been basically doing week one: Spare Parts; week two: secret game; week three: Spare Parts; week four: secret game -- literally back-to-back." Coster confirmed our suspicion that the Spare Parts/secret project team is focusing solely on digitally distributed titles. "Yeah, this is a group that's been looking at 'What can we do digitally? We don't really wanna be making packaged goods, so what can we do?' And XBLA and PSN: the numbers are getting bigger and bigger and bigger," Coster reasoned.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 includes a Kinect mode
EA just announced at its GamesCom 2010 conference that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 for Xbox 360 will magically lift butts off of couches, with some Kinect support. EA didn't put it exactly the same way, of course. The game features an on-rails mode in which players gesture to cast spells, moving automatically from location to location, and competing to achieve the highest score. This would explain why Walmart offered Deathly Hallows: Part 1 in pre-order Kinect bundles. The game has, however, since been removed from the promotion.
Walmart offering $200 Kinect bundles, includes game and gift card
The saga of the ambiguous price point for Microsoft's Kinect continues today with a new hardware bundle from Walmart. For $199.99, shoppers can pre-order the peripheral itself along with one of the device's launch titles, including Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One, Dance Central, Joy Ride, Kinectimals, Kinect Sports and Kinect Adventures. Shoppers can also grab another game from this list for an additional $60 (or $50 for Harry Potter). The bundle also includes a $30 Walmart eGift Card. It's worth noting that Walmart's $60 price point for Kinect software and $150 price for the device itself corroborates listings we've seen from other retailers. Of course, Microsoft has yet to confirm any official pricing details for the motion-sensing peripheral -- still, with that free gift card, Walmart's offer seems like the most cost-effective one to date. Unless, of course, Kinect ends up being cheaper than $150, in which case, just tell us the freaking price already.
First of two Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows games coming this fall
Just as the story of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is being told in two movies, EA and Warner Bros. announced two game adaptations of said movies. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, the game, will be released this fall on, well, most of our Muggle gaming devices --PS3, Xbox 360, Wii, DS, PC, and mobile. According to EA's announcement, players can expect a different, darker experience with the first Deathly Hallows game. "On the run with a horde of merciless enemies on their tail, players will find themselves in unknown territory, far from the safety of the school grounds, fighting for survival at every turn." Just for fun, developer EA Bright Light has thrown monsters from the previous films in with all the Death Eaters and Snatchers (no, not those) Harry has to deal with. And don't forget the thrill of controlling a slightly older Daniel Radcliffe avatar than in the last game. %Gallery-93897%
