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Report: Whore of the Orient gameplay footage leaks
The latest bit of hazy information about Whore of the Orient, the next game from the creators of L.A. Noire, is a leak that VideoGamer claims to be footage supplied by a "trusted source." The clip is the first we've seen of the game's... well, anything. In the footage we see the main character, some combat and get the sense the game is open-world. Currently we don't even know if Whore of the Orient is in production; the game's lead designer formed his own studio earlier this year following reported layoffs at Kennedy Miller Mitchell , the company that absorbed L.A. Noire dev Team Bondi in 2011. The game is allegedly targeted for 2015.
Report: Whore of the Orient faces uncertain future, studio layoffs
Whore of the Orient, the next game from the makers of L.A. Noire, looks to be in jeopardy following multiple reports of its team being laid off by Kennedy Miller Mitchell. MCV Pacific, Kotaku, and Player Attack sources say KMM has shuttered the Whore of the Orient division; KMM absorbed the remnants of L.A. Noire developer Team Bondi in 2011. KMM partner Doug Mitchell didn't comment on the reports when speaking to MCV, but noted the company is still "actively pursuing the right investor to partner with" on Whore of the Orient. Online sleuth supereroregatory dug up a blog post, now deleted, by a purported partner of a KMM staff member which indicated Warner Bros pulled out from the game in December 2012, and that any new deal with a new publisher, expected to happen this month, "would come too late." As Kotaku notes, KMM Interactive, the company's games division, advertised for a Lead Engine Programmer as recently as April 5, raising doubts over the Whore of the Orient team being laid off so soon after. In any case, without a partner to invest in it, the game's future is in doubt. If it does come out, rumors suggest the earliest we'll see it is 2015.
LA Noire team's 'Whore of the Orient' headed next-gen, published by WB
A new website for LA Noire dev Team Bondi's next game, Whore of the Orient, popped up this morning (as discovered by OPM), along with new information about the barely mentioned "great untold story." The game is headed to "next generation games consoles and PC" with Warner Bros. Interactive as publisher.The game's set in 1936 Shanghai, China – "Whore of the Orient. Paris of the East," as the website calls it. A "group of Western cops hopelessly trying to keep the lid on and keep the peace" seems to be the focal point of the game (the group's known as the "International Police Force"), though it's unclear exactly what kind of game it is. It sounds to be just as hard-boiled as Team Bondi's last effort, LA Noire, and the gritty look of the image above incurs the same comparison.Team Bondi leader Brendan McNamara is once again at the head of the project, leading the remnants of LA Noire's dev team picked up by Kennedy Miller Mitchell.
Report: Team Bondi sells assets to Mad Max studio, KMM; staff offered new jobs or severance
Following last weekend's rumor that Sydney-based L.A. Noire developer Team Bondi was to be acquired by Kennedy Miller Mitchell, the Australian production company thought to be working on a Mad Max game, comes a report from UK trade site Develop seemingly corroborating the rumor. "Game IP and other remaining assets owned by Sydney studio Team Bondi have been sold off," Develop reports, citing a single anonymous source "who engages with both companies locally." The staff at Team Bondi were reportedly "given choice of new job at Kennedy Miller Mitchell or severance pay." Develop doesn't know if Team Bondi will continue to exist and the developer has declined to comment. Develop lists several additional, unconfirmed rumors or bits of speculation, including whether or not the studio has "gone bankrupt" or whether Brendan McNamara would join KMM as well, reuniting the Team Bondi leader with the "many staff" that left during L.A. Noire's troubled development. While the sale ostensibly included "game IP," one thing KMM won't be getting is the L.A. Noire IP, which is owned by publisher Rockstar. Depth Analysis, the company whose technology powered L.A. Noire's eye-catching facial animation, "is not thought to be affected" by the sale, Develop reports.
