FatShark
Latest
After Math: Merry Christmas, you filthy animals
It's been a wondrous week working up to Christmas Eve and not just for the guys with the Tommy Guns. Alamo Drafthouse announced it is starting a rental store and loaning out rare VHS, Protera is going to wake up tomorrow with an order for 25 of its electric buses under the tree, and Google is practically giving away its digital movie rentals. Numbers, because how else will you know how many gold rings you've got coming?
Fat Shark's 101 starter set is a gateway to drone racing
Fat Shark, the de facto name in drone-video goggles, is moving into the drone game proper with the 101 "drone training system." As the name suggests, the 101 is a quadcopter with new pilots in mind. There are many options at the entry level -- Parrot has plenty -- but these tend to be aimed at casual users. The 101 targets those who might eventually want to move on to something more serious but aren't ready to invest in a full kit yet. Or maybe this will appeal to those who are curious about first-person view flying (FPV) but don't know where to start. Basically, you start here.
UVify's Draco drone is fast, furious fun for wannabe racers
I'm flying high above the San Francisco Bay, maybe 150 feet in the air. I look down and start gliding toward a dilapidated skate park. Once I'm near the ground, I pull my nose up and look level with the horizon. Spotting two trees, I race toward them, pass between them, then turn on a dime, skirting some shipping containers on my left. It's like every dream I've ever had about flying, but faster. It's also not a dream. I take off a pair of video goggles, and I see the shipping containers come into focus, this time directly in front of me, as my eyes adjust to the sunlight. This is my third "first-person-view" flight with the Draco drone, and it's more exciting every time.
These drone racing goggles could spark the sport's digital era
Drones with digital video capabilities already exist, but in the racing world, analog is still king. For now, at least. Fat Shark has been the go-to maker of racing drone goggles for several years, and it's about to double down on digital, which in turn could be the nudge toward dropping analog feeds that the sport needs. The $350 Base HD is the company's first all-digital headset, and it comes with a fancy new 720p LCoS (Liquid Crystal on Silicon) display improved brightness, contrast ratios and clarity and a 28 degree field of view (this might sound small, but drone racing doesn't call for a huge FOV).
First-person-view drone flying is the closest thing to being a bird
Just moments ago, I was flying like a hawk. It wasn't a dream, or even virtual reality. It was a real, immersive experience fully under my control. Moments later, I'm very much on the ground, poking at some dense, tangled shrubbery with a stick. I had been operating a tiny camera-equipped mini-quadcopter, via video goggles that beam the drone's eye-view right into your peepers. It's known as "first-person view" (FPV) flying, and it's an incredibly fun out-of-body experience. Imagine being shrunk to the size of an ant and sitting in a virtual cockpit and you'll have an idea of where I'm going here. Why the stick, though? Today I went too high, got caught by a gust of wind and landed on a canopy of vegetation. I'm prodding at the knotted vines in the vain hope I might dislodge it. I've become so fond of my zen-time in the goggles that my stomach sinks at the thought of all that coming to an end. I'm not leaving until I find this thing.
Escape Dead Island or lose your mind
Dead Island is spawning a new game with mystery in mind, thanks to a partnership between Deep Silver and Swedish studio Fatshark. Escape Dead Island, which is both the game's title and obvious directive, is a third-person game that favors sneaking over wild extermination of the undead, and it tells a different kind of story to match the slower pace.
Ransack Steam for War of the Vikings
Those of you who woke up this morning with a craving for blood and glory will be happy to learn that publisher Paradox Interactive and developer Fatshark have officially launched War of the Vikings. Normally this is where we'd outline the historical action game's features, but in this case we can do you one better. Last week our own Richard Mitchell and Anthony Agnello were joined by War of the Vikings producer Gordon Van Dyke for a Joystiq Stream. Don't worry if you missed the initial broadcast, you can find an archive of the entire thing by visiting our original post. If that hour-long glimpse at the blood-slicked chaos of battle has piqued your interest, you can pick up War of the Vikings from Steam at a price of $25. Alternately, those of you with deeper pockets can spring for the $35 "Blood Eagle" edition of the game which offers an art book, soundtrack and special in-game gear, or the $175 "Valhalla Edition" which features all content found in the Blood Eagle version of the game, along with all future DLC content, a strategy guide, a digital novel, and quite a bit more. [Image: Paradox Interactive]
War of the Vikings begins on April 15
War of the Vikings will launch in full for PC on April 15, following a stint on Steam Early Access and other online distributors. Publisher Paradox Interactive and developer Fatshark plan to announce new features and release plans during a Twitch livestream today, March 5, at 2PM ET. Executive Producer Gordon Van Dyke will host the stream and play the latest version of the game. War of the Vikings is a close-quarter combat game set in Britannia during the Viking Age (but you probably already guessed that part). It's built with the same tech as Fatshark's previous close-quarters game, War of the Roses. We're getting in on the viking action with a livestream featuring the developers on April 8, right on the Joystiq Twitch channel. [Image: Paradox]
War of the Vikings trailer pays in blood
We imagine the thrill of the kill is its own reward in War of the Vikings, but there are also more tangible gains – like improved equipment and weaponry. In this trailer for War of the Vikings, we're shown how a soldier progresses and pays for new equipment with his opponents' blood.
Spill Norse and Saxon blood in War of the Vikings today
Paradox Interactive has announced that War of the Vikings, the follow-up to multiplayer medieval combat game War of the Roses, will join Steam Early Access. An Alpha version of the game is available right now on Steam, and those who've picked up the Kingmaker edition of War of the Roses can try out the sequel free until October 4. War of the Vikings is based on the Viking Age, a period around 800 AD when the Vikings scoured Europe looking for conquest and trade. The game, which doesn't stray very far from the foundation established by War of the Roses, will launch fully on Steam early next year.
War of the Vikings is 'historically inspired,' not historically accurate
War of the Vikings, a sequel to multiplayer melee combat game War of the Roses, is currently in development at FatShark, for launch on the PC sometime in 2014. It's a game that executive producer Gordon Van Dyke says will be "historically inspired," not necessarily entirely historically accurate. This choice gives FatShark some wiggle room when it comes to technology of the time and the types of weaponry the development team can put in the game. "We wanted to have a broader range of stuff. Even though there were a lot of places the vikings went, their technology stayed the same for 300, 400 years," Van Dyke said. "So we wanted to be able to use any style we wanted from those time periods, but we also wanted to make sure there is real evidence of these weapons so there's no fantasy, there's nothing made up. We're very factual but maybe not 100% accurate. We didn't want to paint ourselves in that corner."%Gallery-195410%
Indie Royale 'Evolved' bundle offers The Path, Krater and more
Indie Royale has armed a new bundle of five games, headlined by Talawa Games' side-scrolling puzzler, Unmechanical. The "Evolved" bundle, which throws in a few soundtracks and some additional DLC if you pay a few bucks more, also contains The Path, a horror game for PC and Mac inspired by the classic tale Little Red Riding Hood.Fatshark's Krater, a post-apocalyptic dungeon crawler in which Swedish adventurers scavenge for goods from the lost world, is sandwiched in the middle of this group. You'll also get Sugar Cube: Bittersweet Factory, a 2D platformer about a sentient sugar cube escaping a cookie-bound fate, OIO, a platform-puzzler starring a wooden boy who must save his kind from a frozen state.Indie Royale's "Evolved" bundle will be around for the next week and, as of the time of this writing, has already moved 10,000 bundles.
War of the Roses free content update does battle on December 19
Warriors in Paradox Interactive's War of the Roses can expect a free content update on December 19, aptly titled "Winter Has Arrived." After all, that is generally what happens after it's been established that "Winter is coming."Winter Has Arrived brings two new snowy maps based on the battles of Wakefield and Towton, new armor and new weapons. Two additional, new weapons will come at a price on Decemeber 21, based on medieval depictions of the Virgin Mary – the Dagger and Sword of Mary for Christ's Mass. They will be sold at a discount through December 26, when they will transform to full price.
PSA: Krater co-op, Mayhem MK13 DLC packs drop today
Krater's latest DLC is out today on Steam, and it's co-op-tastic. The co-op DLC is the first of three free packs, while the Mayhem MK13 character is $3. He's also ugly. But in a good way. We think. Check out the video above and screens below to decide for yourself.
War of the Roses' first content update rides for November, adds new weapons and armor
Paradox's new permanent franchise team is getting straight to work. Next month, War of the Roses will get its first content update, adding new weapons, armor and color customization options to the multiplayer-based title.At some point this "winter," Paradox plans on injecting two new game modes across a pair of new snow-covered locales. The first new mode is called 'Pitched Battle' and will go into beta "soon," though Paradox hasn't revealed any exact details on the mode.The two new War of the Roses maps will be modeled after the historic winter battles at Wakefield and Towton. The November update is the first of monthly content releases Paradox has promised for War of the Roses.
War of the Roses publisher announces permanent franchise team
Paradox Interactive has announced its recently released War of the Roses will receive a permanent franchise team to support the series, led by executive producer Gordon Van Dyke."The game's reception from players has exceeded expectations and we are truly grateful for the continued support from the community," said Van Dyke, who had previously been a producer on the Battlefield series for six year before joining Paradox in May of 2011. "We'll continue to improve the game and add substantial content for all players."We reached out to Paradox CEO Fredrik Wester and asked why he has such faith in this series less than a week after launch. The executive told us, "It's based on the fan feedback and the sales numbers so far. Our goal is to continue improving the game together with the fans."War of the Roses, which launched at a value price of $30, is expected to have monthly content updates. If you know nothing about this game, check out our previously recorded JoyStream.%Gallery-165451%
Krater DLC drops to earth on October 23
Krater's coming batch of free co-op DLC is set to hit on October 23 via Steam, bringing with it updates to the single-player campaign."The game experience from day one to now is very different," says Fatshark producer Robert Bäckström. "We have listened to the player feedback. There is a lot things adjusted and added to the game. If you played the game at release, and play it on October 23rd, you will get a whole new experience."Shortly after this DLC drop comes some new character DLC, focused on visual customization. As we noted in our Snapshot of Krater, adding vanity items to your characters is a lot like dressing up your favorite sword or gun, since the characters themselves behave more like intricate weapons than standard avatars. But now they're pretty weapons.
JoyStream: War of the Roses with senior producer Gordon Van Dyke [watch the replay!]
War of the Roses, FatShark's multiplayer melee combat game set in the Middle Ages, launches on Steam on October 2. Today, we're sitting down with Paradox Interactive senior producer Gordon Van Dyke to talk about the famous conflict that inspired his new game and his transition from working on big-budget Battlefield games at EA to his first project at Swedish publisher Paradox Interactive.From 10am until 11am PT (1-2pm ET), we'll be streaming some multiplayer matches with the QA team and Gordon Van Dyke. Feel free to lob some questions at us and Gordon by following Joystiq on Twitch, or you can drop your questions right into the comments section of this very post.You can watch the stream on the Joystiq Twitch page, or in an embed after the break. Follow our Twitch page for future streams and giveaways.Update: The stream is over. Watch the replay above.
War of the Roses post-launch plan: monthly content updates
War of the Roses, FatShark's multiplayer melee combat game set in the middle ages, launches on October 2 on Steam and I was able to get some hands-on time with the game alongside senior producer Gordon Van Dyke. We waged war together and even fought each other a few times.But as we fought in a server full of the QA team, I couldn't help but wonder what would happen after launch? Would Fatshark and Paradox continue to support War of the Roses? Van Dyke was all too happy to confirm that work on the game would continue well after launch.%Gallery-165451%
War of the Roses pre-order details sally forth
Pre-orders for Fatshark's bloody medieval brawler, War of the Roses, are now open, publisher Paradox Interactive has announced. There are two special editions up for pre-order, the House of York Deluxe Edition and the House of Lancaster Deluxe Edition. Each comes packing several faction-specific bonuses, including a plate cuirass, royal helm, charge, sword and crest. Both editions also include the soundtrack.The House of York Deluxe Edition is available from a number of download services, including GameStop, Green Man Gaming, GamersGate and more. The House of Lancaster Deluxe Edition, on the other hand, is available only on Steam. A pre-order for either edition will set you back $30. War of the Roses will take to the field of battle on October 2.
