Sierra-Entertainment
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Crash of the Titans demo crashes onto XBLM
Once something of a Sony mascot (remember when consoles had to have mascots?), Crash Bandicoot gave in to the sparkling allure of multiplatform cash long ago. The latest incarnation of the series, Crash of the Titans, now has a demo available on Xbox Live Marketplace. Honestly, we don't know much about the title at all. In fact, the official website still seems to be under construction, as all the relevant sections are still listed as "coming soon." Still, even with the minimal knowledge that we have, we can make a few educated guesses. There will be things to collect, there will be boxes just aching to be broken, and Crash will spin around like a mad man to do so. Go try out the demo and tell us if we're right or not.
PAX 07: The World in Conflict party
Sure, we had a lot of blogging to catch up on, but we couldn't help but stop by Sierra's splashy Word in Conflict party last night if only to play our favorite game: "How Much Do You Bet This All Cost?" Alongside what appeared to be real military vehicles (they're scary looking in Real Life) and Communist propaganda were the requisite "booth" (party?) babes and overpriced drinks. How overpriced? How does upwards of $7 or $8 sound? It's a good thing anyways, we'd have just drank too much, riflebutted a guard, then drove one of those tank-things out of the building and through downtown Seattle. %Gallery-6395%
World in Conflict declares war on PC Sept. 18
On September 18, Sierra's World in Conflict is ready to go all alternate timeline, and make us experience what could've happened if the Cold War had gone hawt. The game will retail at $49.99 for the normal box and $59.99 for the collector's edition. Our time with the game was so-so, but we definitely enjoy the Magnum P.I. trailer that was put together (which can be found after the break). But what about the Xbox 360 version, you may ask? Being completely ignored on the press release, we called up Sierra and it turns out that the game "is still scheduled for this year." Although you can expect to purchase the Xbox 360 version at the "collector's edition" price of $59.99 -- minus the History Channel DVD and piece of the Berlin Wall. %Gallery-4917%
Joystiq impressions: World in Conflict
Think of a real-time strategy game session as a bell curve. At the lower end is the beginning, when there's a lot of resource-gathering and scouting. In the middle and the higher portion, there's lots of action. As the battle winds down, so does the action. Massive Entertainment's World in Conflict was described to us as a strategy game with the lower ends of the bell curve cut off, and from what we saw at the Sierra suite, it's a pretty accurate description. The story of World in Conflict is based in an alternate future where the Berlin wall didn't fall and the Cold War went hot. At the beginning of the battle, the player is given 6,000 in currency that can be used to purchase and deploy troops. Once a troop is destroyed, its value is returned to the player for purchasing more troops, keeping the intensity up. %Gallery-4917%
The Bourne Conspiracy to conspire on 360
Sierra Entertainment has announced Robert Ludlum's The Bourne Conspiracy for Xbox 360 (and PS3 ... blah, blah). Developed by High Moon Studios, creators of the vampiric western, Darkwatch, the game puts players in the shoes of brainwashed government assassin, Jason Bourne. The game promises to let players experience Bourne's evolution from deadly assassin to rogue agent. Given the visual similarities to Splinter Cell Conviction and the attachment of Robert Ludlum's name to the title, it looks like Sierra is doing everything it can to establish a competing franchise. With Conviction seemingly borrowing from the Bourne films, it will be interesting to see the inevitable comparisons between the two games when The Bourne Conspiracy ships next summer.More info will be revealed at E3 next month, and a cover story will appear in the August issue of OXM. Check out the first batch of screenshots in the gallery below.[Via Joystiq]%Gallery-4286%
World in Conflict Collector's Edition to include piece of Berlin Wall
What is a publisher to do when everyone and their mother is offering up a "collectors edition" of their game? You fill it with history is what. Sierra Entertainment must have been particularly inspired when they decided to include an "authentic piece of the Berlin Wall" with the special edition of their upcoming strategy title, World in Conflict. Though the recently announced 360 version of the title is not mentioned, the PC's collectors edition contains not only a chunk of the Cold War era, but a bonus DVD from the History Channel as well. We're willing to award Sierra with a well deserved golf clap for their ingenuity, but at the same time it does feel odd to commercialize a historic world event with a video game about Russian forces invading US soil, Red Dawn style. For those curious about the game itself, 1UP previewed World in Conflict today in this weeks episode of The 1UP Show. [via Blues News]
World in Conflict not conflicted about 360
Rumored earlier this month, Sierra has confirmed today that the Massive Entertainment RTS, World in Conflict, is heading to the Xbox 360. The PC version is expected in September with the 360 version following sometime after. No date has been given, but an official announcement is expected soon. World In Conflict looks to set itself apart from other RTS games, such as Command & Conquer 3, by doing away with resource management and a fixed camera. 1UP notes that the game also features Tears for Fears (we'll let you guess which song). Check out the official World in Conflict website for plenty of images, videos, and info.
Confirmed: Riddick remake is really real
Uncovered last week, the remake of Chronicles of Riddick for new-gen consoles has been confirmed for Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. As previously revealed, the game will be titled Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena. The game will receive a graphical face-lift and will feature a new single-player episode that takes place after the eponymous escape from Butcher Bay. Not only that, but the game will also feature online multiplayer. We must note, as does Joystiq, that the developer's commentary mode that was hinted at last week is not mentioned in the Sierra press release. Here's hoping it makes it into the final game.Assault on Dark Athena is expected to arrive by the end of the year.[Via Joystiq]
Xbox 360 impressions: TimeShift
TimeShift has nailed balance. Our biggest fear about this game was that the ability to control time (slow down, pause, and rewind it) would make it too easy. This is not the case, even on normal difficulty. We got laid out on our first attempt when we decided to rush a seemingly innocent pair of enemies.At first glance, TimeShift appears to be a run n' gun shooter, but it calls for strategy. Of course, this often boils down to attacking (and draining your time controls powers), retreating, recharging, and repeating. Thankfully, the AI is moderately intelligent and will seek you out if aware of your presence.We were disappointed with the visuals, which certainly don't live up to second wave (Xbox 360) expectations. This can likely be attributed to a painful development cycle that has seen two different publishers and abandoned an Xbox version. Still, the time control concept adds an interesting twist to an otherwise mediocre FPS, as it looks to offer a stimulating mix of attack strategies and environmental puzzles.[Note: TimeShift will also feature multiplayer modes. Details were not available at the Vivendi booth.]
