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Synthspace recreates the physical presence of a modular synth in VR
Synthspace gives you the physicality of a modular synth in VR, just without the over-the-top costs.
Report: EA shuts down Bright Light after consultation process
EA's Bright Light Studio in the UK has been officially shuttered, Develop reports. In October Bright Light was in the midst of a formal consultation process, a period of time required by UK law before a company can shut down completely, dependent on how many employees it has. Bright Light, responsible for three of the most recent Harry Potter games, closed late in 2010, Develop says. EA said previously that it would consider Bright Light employees for positions at other EA Studios, and Develop reports some have indeed moved to EA's Criterion and Playfish, while others have joined nearby studios Jagex and Supermassive Games. We have contacted EA for confirmation on the closure.
EA Bright Light in process of closure
The body count for established British studios keeps rising, with EA Bright Light the latest in the crosshairs. EA confirmed to GamesIndustry.biz that a "formal consultation process" has begun at the studio. That's a fancy term for the time required under UK law (dependent on number of employees) before the publisher can shut down the studio. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 was the latest project from the studio, a title we couldn't be bothered to review after the previous installment. Apparently we didn't miss anything. "Employees that are impacted will be considered for positions at other EA Studios including those in the UK," EA said in a statement. "The UK is a vital centre of game development for EA and we intend to maintain a strong presence here." You know, with the one studio EA officially has left on the island.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 preview: COGwarts
Last November, our review called the first Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows game a "failure on many, many levels." It ran down the various ways that the game didn't deliver: as a representation of the franchise, as a game, as a demonstration of Kinect and, finally, as an overall product. EA's proprietary engine, used to build DH Part 2, has been beefed up a bit, giving Harry and co. a bit more sheen than before, and the spell-switching has been streamlined to rely on face buttons to swap spells. Otherwise, it's still a pedestrian third-person shooter with a Harry Potter wrapper, with few meaningful ties to J.K. Rowling's series. (And the Kinect part is just gone).%Gallery-126846%
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 cuts Kinect, launches on July 12
When The Boy Who Lived makes his big return to Hogwarts for the finale of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, he'll be doing it without the aid of motion peripherals on the Xbox 360. EA producer Gary Napper confirmed to Joystiq that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 won't have any Kinect functionality (unlike its predecessor), as the development team at EA Bright Light made a decision "early on to focus on the core of the experience, get as close to the atmosphere of the movie and make the flow of the combat feel right." The first Deathly Hallows game arrived last November to negative reviews. The sequel will touch down on July 12, just three days before the final movie launches in US theaters. Unfortunately, its short development time -- it's been approximately eight months since the first game launched -- raises questions about how much the sequel can really improve beyond Potter's previous outing. According to Napper, "We didn't want to dilute any of our efforts on other things that would require a lot of the team's time to perfect." We were told that EA Bright Light currently has two unannounced projects in development.
Create review: Losing the spark
I've spent a lot of time with EA Bright Light's Create over the last ten days. It hasn't exactly enjoyed a ton of fervor (or marketing support) and was only officially announced a few months back, plopped unceremoniously in a dark corner of EA's NYC summer press event. Frankly, the game hasn't been given a lot of attention, and taking a more thorough approach seemed like a great way to explore what folks might be missing. But after spending hours playing through puzzle after puzzle, the unfortunate truth is there just isn't that much game in Create to dive into deeply.%Gallery-98649%
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%
Create moving into stores on November 16
Taking to the US PlayStation blog, EA Bright Light producer Justin Manning revealed the imminent release date for his studio's next game release, Create: November 16 (aka: next Tuesday!). We've also confirmed that Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii iterations of the game will arrive on the same day next week. Given the game's user created level sharing ability via PSN and PlayStation Move functionality, perhaps Create can fill the hole left in your heart by the LittleBigPlanet 2 delay? M ... maybe?
Create demands your most convoluted contraptions
It's not just about getting from point A to B in EA Bright Light's Create -- it's all about the score multiplier. The most recent trailer shows off elaborate, Rube Goldberg-esque contraptions resulting in far higher scores than a simple solution would ... if you can piece them together, that is.
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.
Preview: Create
Though the target audience for EA's just-announced puzzle/creation game, Create, would seem to skew younger, my take on it from a recent press event was that gamers of all types could find something to like. And don't write it off as "My First LittleBigPlanet" just yet. Create features entertaining puzzles powered by a robust customization engine. Create's title screen is its opening level. I spent nearly a half hour on this stage (it actually looks like a theater), learning the ins and outs of the extensive customization tools while a producer tinkered with the big 'Create' letters -- reminiscent of Mario's interactive face at the opening of Mario 64. The actual game is a lot like World of Goo in that you build the components of a stage rather than play through them. The levels are designed on a 2D plane and task you with various objectives (get a coin to a particular part of the map, for example). To complete these objectives, you have a mixed bag of objects with which to assemble a Rube Goldberg-like contraption that sprawls across the level. Once you've completed your creation (or exhausted the level's item constraints), you press "Play" and watch what happens. %Gallery-98649%
EA's customizable puzzler 'Create' coming this November
EA's hoping you'll take off that silly santa hat and don a thinking cap this holiday, when you play "Create," a new game from its UK-based Bright Light studio. "Create uses families' imaginations to develop new ways to play together that are both fun and challenging," said Harvey Elliot, VP and general manager of Bright Light. So, the game's about ... inventing stuff? Not quite. The actual nuts and bolts of gameplay are about completing "level-based challenges" and solving Rube Goldberg-esque puzzles in ... creative ways. The more you complete, the more objects and tools unlock to customize the environment. The game is set to launch on PC, Mac, Wii, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Create will support the PlayStation Move, though no indication is given that the Xbox version will employ Kinect. Based on the first trailer (see it after the break), the game seems comparable to LittleBigPlanet -- though it's lacking that adorable little sack guy -- and The Incredible Machine. Create will arrive at retail sometime this November. %Gallery-98649%
EA studio boss would love to revisit Bullfrog IP; EA renews Bullfrog trademarks
In an interview with Kikizo, EA's Bright Light Studio head, Harvey Elliot, mentioned that he would "love" to work on old Bullfrog Productions properties like Populous and Theme Park. Elliot cautiously noted that Bullfrog's classics were "right for their time, and the trick with those games is coming up with what's right for the time now." In other words, he's not entirely keen on "just a 'remake' or something." With a new edition of Bullfrog's Syndicate rumored to be in production at Starbreeze Studios, one might conclude that Harvey isn't the only one at EA looking for "what's right for the time now." And one might conclude even harder when database digger Superannuation finds that Electronic Arts has filed new trademarks for Populous, Theme Park, Wing Commander and Road Rash. Pure speculation? Yes. Highly desirable? Also yes. Source -- Why there's hope for Bullfrog IP returning [Kikizo] Source -- Superannuation
Three new Harry Potter videos apparate onto the web
Don't worry, Hogwarts devotees, you won't need a Marauder's Map to find these new Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince videos. First, direct your gaze to the launch trailer above. Once finished, point your wand to the break and two more videos will magically appear. Said videos are "making of" featurettes that discuss, unsurprisingly, the making of the game, including the new dueling, Quidditch and potion-making features. You'll also get to see Tom "Draco Malfoy" Felton working his best PR / Marketing schtick.Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ships for every platform under the sun this week.
Report: EA's Criterion, Bright Light studios safe from layoffs
At least two studios appear to have sidestepped the torrent of layoffs that have loomed over the game industry in recent months. Develop reports that UK-based Burnout dev Criterion and Bright Light, Electronic Arts' casual game studio in Guildford, have been given immunity from EA's recent round of layoffs. That sound you hear is a collective sigh of relief.Staff cuts at EA have been particularly deep, with numerous employees at its Mythic, Black Box and Tiburon branches given their walking papers in just the last week. With news of Bright Light's amnesty, it seems certain that EA is looking to casually dig itself out of its financial hole. Then again, maybe once Criterion gets its time circuits working we can all go back to a time when money was easier to come by.
Zubo's rhythm-RPG mashup gameplay
EA isn't taking it easy on the hyperbole in their description of the kids' rhythm RPG Zubo. One staffer at EA Bright Light enthusiastically described the game as the first "next generation" DS game, with graphics surpassing the normal DS abilities. With a concept like theirs, they're free to say all kinds of crazy stuff, because it sounds brilliant. Uh -- for kids. Yeah, that's it, for kids.Zubo combines RPG battling with monster collecting with ... rhythm gaming. Your party can carry up to three Zubo creatures, which come in three classes: Fighter, Performer, and Defender, each with different abilities in battle. The fights are turn-based, with the extra requirement of tapping in rhythm to power your Zubos' attacks. Science proves that the addition of rhythm-based gameplay improves any genre. Not to mention the great toy-like style.
