James-Macauley
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Firefall developer secures $23 million in funding
Bright skies might be ahead for Red 5 Studios: the Firefall developer announced today that it secured $23 million in additional funding. Red 5 said that it entered into share purchase agreements for the funding from Shanghai Oriental Pearl Culture Development Co. and shareholders. Red 5 Acting CEO James Macauley pointed to the influx of cash as a sign that the battle-worn company is moving forward: "This additional round of funding will offer us the means to execute on our plan for successfully launching Firefall in 2014. This is the year Firefall takes flight. The entire Red 5 tribe is focused on creating top quality content that will take Firefall to the next level and we are excited for this next stage of development." The studio has plans to create a new story campaign for Firefall, take the fight to the Chosen, and reveal some of the burning secrets that have been in the game. [Source: Red 5 press release]
Mark Kern addresses his departure from Red 5 Studios
Using a mixture of geek culture references, former Red 5 Studios CEO Mark Kern posted a brief statement on MMORPG.com to address his departure from the Firefall studio. Kern referenced the event as his "Kobayashi Maru test" and insinuated that fans shouldn't fully believe what they may have heard. "While there have been rumors about whether I was demoted, terminated, or maybe even corporately executed, I will only say this: Remember that Han always shot first," he wrote. Kern said that he had fond memories of his time with the company and wished the studio success in the future. Mark Kern was let go from Red 5 on December 19th and replaced by acting CEO James Macauley. [Thanks to ArchDevi for the tip!]
Firefall's open beta trailer highlights dynamic events
If you happen to be in Cologne, Germany next month, you can stop by Firefall's booth at Gamescom to check out the inbound improvements and new content because Red 5 Studios announced that it is returning to the convention this year. James Macauley, Vice President of Development, invited players to drop in: "There are plenty more upcoming additions and features to talk about at Gamescom, so come and visit us on the show floor!" The studio will discuss the dynamic events, three new melding pockets, the upcoming Gamescom milestone, and more. Firefall fans, however, don't have to wait until Gamescom to see some of the new content coming to the PvP game. A newly released official open beta trailer, shown after the break, showcases these dynamic events, combat rewards, unlocking the world, and more. To join open beta, sign up on the site. [Source: Red 5 Studios press release]
New Red 5 dev diary details Firefall's extreme makeover
What's going on with Firefall lately? Only the biggest patch in the title's history, according to Red 5's James Macauley. "We wanted to make the game more competitive, more skill-based. We wanted to reward you for your level of mastery," Macauley explains. Core combat has been completely overhauled, and everything from run speed to jump height, jump jets, weapons, and abilities were tweaked. The dev team even added the new Biotech class. Player progression was also adjusted via the removal of traditional levels in favor of battleframe tiers. The changes are designed to put advancement choices in the hands of players rather than force everyone along the same pre-determined path. Firefall's extreme makeover also includes new crafting functionality and a 3-D battleframe garage instead of the old paperdoll loadout screen. More changes are detailed in the full dev diary video, which you can view after the cut. [Thanks to Cory for the tip!]
Firefall video blog says farewell to levels, hello to skill
The team at Red 5 Studios has been working hard on making Firefall the best game it can be, and as it turns out, that happens to be a game without traditional levels. A new video blog featuring lead designer Scott Youngblood and development VP James Macauley drops the news that the level system is being discarded and replaced with a much more organic system for player growth. Under the new system, players still earn EXP. That EXP will be spent on specific upgrades at a player's discretion rather than marking off specific levels, allowing you to unlock the upgrades that feel relevant in the order you want them. It also places less emphasis on levels in head-to-head matchups, something Macauley stresses is important to the team. There's more than just the removal of levels at work, however; the development team is also overhauling crafting to be more complex and rewarding as well as developing a new system of equipment tiers to keep players advancing. The full diary just past the break only gives brief glimpses of several new systems, but Firefall fans should be quite happy with what's over the horizon.
