Project-Mercury
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Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is 38 Studios' first game, due fall 2011
EA just took the wraps off of its 38 Studios-helmed, single-player "open-world" RPG, previously codenamed "Project Mercury." The real title: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. (Yeah, we also preferred Project Mercury.) The platforms: PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. While Reckoning isn't 38 Studios' long-in-development MMO, codenamed Copernicus, it takes place in the same "mysterious and magical new fantasy world created by New York Times best-selling author R. A. Salvatore." Developed by Big Huge Games, which 38 acquired from THQ last year, Reckoning is "being developed under the leadership of" Ken Rolston, who you may recognize as lead designer of Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. With a fall 2011 release window, you can imagine details are scant, but Rolston did have something to say about his game. After detailing the contributions from novelist Salvatore and artist Todd McFarlane, Rolston said, "And we've added something new that we've always wanted from the genre -- a fast-paced, graphically stimulating action combat experience with fluid control and immersive, discoverable gameplay fans haven't seen before in other fantasy RPGs." We're sure to learn more on Thursday when McFarlane, Rolston, Salvatore, and 38 Studios bossman Curt Schilling take the stage at Comic-Con for a panel discussion on the game.
38 Studios meeting with Rhode Island reps regarding studio move
A week before 38 Studios is finally set to reveal its EA-published title, "Project Mercury," former baseball player Curt Schilling's Massachusetts-based studio is playing hardball for tax breaks. The Boston Globe reports studio heads are set to meet with Rhode Island reps on Thursday to discuss, in part, up to $75 million in loan guarantees in exchange for moving the company down south (about a 90-minute drive from its current location). Representatives from the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation state that 38 Studios approached them about the potential move. According to the Globe, Schilling has said the studio plans to hire over 300 workers over the next couple years at 38 Studios and Maryland-based Big Huge Games, which the company acquired last year.
38 Studios' Project Mercury to debut at San Diego Comic-Con
It seems that 38 Studios' plan to detail its upcoming MMO in 2010 isn't happening just yet, but 38 Studios-owned Big Huge Games will apparently show off its EA Partners-published RPG – codenamed "Project Mercury" – at this year's San Diego Comic-Con. A listing among the legions of other presenters at Comic-Con was recently spotted by Big Download with the description, "World premiere of the first game from 38 Studios!" The listing goes on to say that folks in attendance will "be among the first in the world to see the video game debut from Curt Schilling's 38 Studios," more specifically adding that Todd McFarlane, executive creator of worlds R. A. Salvatore, lead designer Ken Rolston, and founder and chairman Curt Schilling will be debuting the game for folks. Further, Comic-Con's site claims the panel will unveil more than just the first trailer, but also the project's actual name. And hey, if that's not enough, apparently you'll get a "limited-edition poster" just for showing up. Huzzah! The panel takes place at 1:15PM on Thursday, July 22, but we wouldn't suggest you start lining up just yet.
Big, huge interview: Big Huge Games head Tim Train
When 38 Studios isn't busy hiring former Nintendo execs, Curt Schilling's Massachusetts-based MMO developer is buying up close-to-death development studios -- take, for instance, Big Huge Games. Tim Train, the studio's president, illuminated the near-death experience that Big Huge had in a talk at PAX East earlier this year (slides from said speech can be found below). He explained how, with just a handful of days left and termination letters ready to send out, 38 Studios swept in and saved Big Huge and the vast majority of its staff. We found his story so interesting, we thought we'd follow up with Train and have him explain it once more, as well as speak about other topics. Will Big Huge ever produce another digital board game? Unfortunately, it looks like you could be waiting on that for quite some time. Hit the break for the whole thing. %Gallery-92043%
Impressions: Medal of Honor
It's impossible to avoid comparisons between EA's upcoming Medal of Honor reboot and Infinity Ward's Modern Warfare series ... so, I'll just get it out of the way: Medal of Honor unapologetically follows in the footsteps of Call of Duty. In fact, I'm willing to raise the possibility that Medal of Honor could be the "true" sequel to the Call of Duty 4 campaign many of us are still waiting for after suffering through Modern Warfare 2's increasingly preposterous storyline. Recently, I got a peek at a new Medal of Honor trailer which lays it out like this: There are two sides to every war: the sledgehammer and the scalpel. What Call of Duty 4 did so well was to portray exactly how these two components work in tandem, as it featured scenarios in which large assaults aided small elite forces, and vice versa. Medal of Honor promises to recreate similar battlefield situations, with the "scalpel" represented by the Tier 1 Operators, an elite branch of SOCOM. %Gallery-87981%
GDC10: Copernicus' Project Mercury being published by EA
If you have been eagerly awaiting news on the top-secret Copernicus over at 38 Studios, you'll be pleased to hear that 38 Studios broke the silence today. "Project Mercury," a single-player title set in the Copernicus universe, will be coming to the PC, XBox 360 and PS3. 38 Studios signed a publishing deal with EA to bring the game to market. "Project Mercury" is described as "an epic single-player role-playing game," and is being developed by 38 Studios-owned Big Huge Games under the guiding hand of Ken Rolston (Morrowind and Oblivion). This will be the first Copernicus project launched by Curt Schilling's team after years of anticipation and heavy speculation. As NASA's Project Mercury set out to test the boundaries of space by putting a man into orbit, "Project Mercury" looks to be testing the waters of single-player RPGs before diving into the realm of MMOs, similar to the approach of fan-favorite Torchlight. Stay tuned to Massively, as we meet with Copernicus' R. A. Salvatore later this week at GDC to pick his brain.
EA to publish 38 Studios' first project, developed by Big Huge Games
Electronic Arts will publish 38 Studios' first game -- which will not be the studio's interminably tardy MMO Copernicus -- the company announced today. The game has been codenamed "Project Mercury" and is being developed by Big Huge Games, acquired by 38 last year. The mysterious, "epic single-player" RPG is under the stewardship of Ken Rolston, former lead of the last two Elder Scrolls titles. "Project Mercury" is set in the Copernicus universe, created by fantasy author R.A. Salvatore, with artistic direction by Spawn creator Todd McFarlane. Salvatore is expected to speak later this week at GDC. The game is scheduled for release on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC when it's done.
