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Grand Theft Auto creator rebuilds the original game for 2013
1997's Grand Theft Auto was presented as a two-dimensional, top-down sandbox title, but Michael Dailly hopes to rejuvenate the franchise's humble origins in full 3D. Fortunately for Dailly, the original GTA world map was created in 3D. Most players would have missed this due to the game's 2D aesthetic, but a proper 3D map was the simplest method for the developers to show height in the game's buildings, and the only way to allow players to traverse bridges and tunnels. Its even possible to alter the game's code and play through the original GTA from a ground-level perspective, not unlike more recent entries in the franchise. Before you get your hopes up for a new, fully-fledged GTA entry hot on the heels of Grand Theft Auto 5, it should be mentioned that Dailly currently has no plans to implement Grand Theft Auto-style gameplay within his game, nor any definitive idea of what he'll do with this project once it's complete. Instead, his goal appears to be a simple proof of concept. As head of development at YoYo Games, Dailly has been using the company's flagship GameMaker software to rebuild the GTA engine, and if nothing else he hopes his remake will serve as evidence of what's possible with YoYo's software.
Report: Day of the Tentacle remake '80 percent' done before LucasArts shutdown
A remastered Day of the Tentacle seems doomed to lie at the bottom of the ocean, despite being "80% done," according to a Kotaku source. A source reportedly "close to the project" told Kotaku that Day of the Tentacle was being remade with updated art and cutscenes, much like when its 90s adventure game sibling The Secret of Monkey Island got the same treatment in 2009. Although Kotaku's source referred to the Day of the Tentacle remaster as a "dream project" for many employees, the game was never technically greenlit, meaning even if it had been 100% completed, even if Disney hadn't shut down LucasArts, there's no guarantee it would have been released. And thus, the LucasArts Sadness Train keeps on rolling. Choo choo-awww.
Final Fantasy 4: The After Years coming to iOS, Android this winter [Update]
Final Fantasy 4: The After Years will launch on Android and iOS this winter, the European Square Enix blog announced. Set 17 years after the original Super Famicom game, the Japanese mobile game first launched in 2008, later arriving on WiiWare in 2009 and PSP in 2011. The "full 3D remake" of Final Fantasy 4: The After Years features "completely recreated graphics," as seen in the accompanying announcement trailer. Square Enix doesn't specify whether the game will launch in North America, nor does it mention a price for the game, though the now-available Android version of Final Fantasy 5 is priced at $15.99/£10.99/€14.99 on the Google Play store. Update: Square Enix has informed us that the game will be coming to North America.
Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD Remix trailer has flashbacks
This trailer for the PS3-exclusive Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD Remix reflects on the series' history. That might be wise, given it's one of the most difficult storylines to sort out in all of gaming. The pack contains KH 1 Final Mix, KH Re:Chain of Memories and a non-playable movie of KH 358/2 Days.
Earthbound and children at play
This is Making Time, a column about the games we've always wanted to play, and the games we've always wanted to play again. Earlier this month, a friend on Twitter asked his followers to name a "perfect game." The resulting conversation was fascinating, as hordes of players listed games while also admitting that each had "flaws," or that the plot wasn't strong enough to be considered perfect. Some refused the notion that a perfect game could ever exist, or argued that it shouldn't exist, because perfection is unattainable. After spending time with Earthbound's recent Wii U Virtual Console, I've come to think otherwise. Earthbound is perfect. To be clear, it's not perfect because it's a flawless product, but because it expresses a coming-of-age adventure in every ounce of its code. At its roots, Earthbound (Mother 2 in Japan) is like a group of children at play, in a world much larger and darker than themselves.%Gallery-195204%
Pre-order Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD at Amazon for $50
The upcoming Wii U port of the Gamecube's treasure-hunting The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD is currently $50 on Amazon. The remake features off-screen play and revamps the original's cel-shaded visuals into a Pixar-esque cartoon style in 1080p. The new "Tingle Bottle" item allows players to communicate over Miiverse by channeling Sting hurling bottled messages into the ocean. Messages will also wash up on the shorelines of other players. The original game's "Pictograph" camera now carries Miiverse support and will allow players to post screenshots in the social service's Wind Waker community. Wind Waker HD will launch in October 2013 on Wii U.
Gearbox remaking Homeworld 1 and 2 for Windows
Gearbox announced plans at PAX Australia to warp drive HD remakes of Homeworld 1 and 2 to Windows this year, following their recent acquisition of the franchise from THQ for $1.35 million. Direct ports of the original games will also be made available on unspecified digital distribution platforms for Windows. Gearbox Software CCO Brian Martel expressed his fondness for the series in April after the purchase, stating his intent to make them "accessible on today's leading digital platforms" in a statement released by Gearbox. Relic Games, creator of the Homeworld franchise, was sold to SEGA during the liquidation of THQ's assets and is currently working on Company of Heroes 2. Part of the Homeworld development team has since left the mother ship to begin work on a more grounded RTS, Hardware: Shipbreakers.
Microsoft patent: Remakes running concurrent engines for old, new visuals
Microsoft has filed an interesting patent for a video game "having a plurality of game engines" running concurrently. The patent was filed in December of 2011, right after the launch of Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary – a game allowing players to switch between the updated visuals and the original Xbox game's graphics on the fly. The Halo Anniversary example seems to be the best illustration of what this patent is aiming for. Further down, the patent specifically calls out "remakes" of games, where the original graphics are described as "leveraging" player emotions tied to the original experience. "However, this may be lost as modern graphics may cause the gamers to lose that feeling of nostalgia," the patent reads. So having that ability to switch between an original experience and enhanced visuals seems like a good middle ground this patent is trying to lock up. A trio of 343 Industries employees, including executive producer Daniel Ayoub, are listed in the patent filing.
BioShock creator confirmed as scriptwriter for Logan's Run remake
The mind behind BioShock's Big Daddies and BioShock Infinite's Songbird is apparently also getting behind the script for a Logan's Run film remake. Irrational Games creative director and head Ken Levine is working on a Logan's Run remake script, Irrational confirmed to Engadget today, which he was tapped to pen by Warner Bros. "I can confirm that the information is indeed correct, but unfortunately there is no other information we can share or comment to be given at this point," the rep told us. According to a Deadline report that surfaced earlier this week, Levine is continuing his work at Irrational in the meantime -- the studio's working on a few content packs for its latest BioShock release, and assuredly other things -- while Jon Berg oversees the Logan's Run project. Also in the report: this remake has been in the works for some time, though Levine's addition is new to the project. In case it wasn't already clear, there's a pretty sweet Logan's Run movie (based on the original 1967 book) starring Michael York as "Logan 5." The very, very mid-'70s poster for that film is cropped just above.
Finger Tied Jr. coming next week
Finger Tied is an iPad app that arrived late last year. It's put together by developer Owen Goss, and he says that a lot of users have asked him to create an iPhone version of the app, but given that it's a game that uses the iPad's big screen for lots of finger-swiping space, he didn't want to make it until he was sure he could do it justice. Apparently he found a way, because he's delivering the iPhone version next week, with a game called Finger Tied, Jr. There's a short post up on his blog talking about the game, and as you can see from the picture above, it's more compact than the full iPad title. But that could be fun anyway. Finger Tied, Jr. is due out next week, May 23. Stay tuned for a full look at the app sometime after that.
New Prince of Persia on the way to iOS this summer
Here's a nice blast from the past: Ubisoft has announced new Prince of Persia game, which is a remake of the second title in the series, made specifically for smartphones and tablets. Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame is being remade as a 2.5D action title -- it seems to feature the same basic levels as the 1993 original, but the graphics are all completely updated, and there are going to be some new gameplay elements as well. It looks like a lot of fun, as you can see in the trailer below. The game's being developed by Ubisoft Pune, and it'll have either virtual sticks or tap-to-move controls, depending on your choice. The game's also designed to be more accessible, which will be nice for those of us that weren't very good at the games back in 1993. But if you want a challenge, Ubisoft says, there will be timers on all the levels, so you can try to complete them as quickly as possible if you want. [via 148Apps]
Laying the groundwork for Galcon 2
Developer Phil Hassey kicked off our meeting at last week's GDC by showing me a necklace and a fridge magnet set both based on his oft-remade game Galcon, just two of the different rewards in the Kickstarter that recently raised him over $25,000 for development. Hassey has remade Galcon quite a few times during his years of development (including for a few popular iOS versions), but Galcon 2 promises to be his biggest work yet. Not only will it bring multiplayer to the title, but Hassey has a whole bunch of wild ideas about how far the gameplay can go. The basic idea of Galcon is that you have a series of planets on your screen, and you can drag your finger from one to another to send ships to attack. Make sure you control more ships on that planet than anyone else, and you own it, with the eventual goal being to take over the whole screen. But that simple gameplay has spun off into dozens of variations for Hassey. Armed with his Kickstarter money (not to mention the extremely dedicated fanbase that comes along with a successful Kickstarter), Hassey has turned Galcon into an engine, essentially. He's created a mod system that allows anyone with the tools to dive in and tweak the Galcon ruleset as they see fit, and this has brought about lots and lots of interesting new twists on the old Galcon gameplay. For one thing, Hassey was able to remake all of the previous Galcon modes with his mod tools as mods, so all of the different modes from Galcon Fusion (including Stealth, where ships can be invisible, and Assassin, where a round of different players each needs to take out just one other target at a time) are already ready to go for Galcon 2. Plus, he's passed off the mod tools to his alpha testers, and they've made some really incredible stuff already, including a map of Earth you can play Galcon on (by sending ships around to different cities), and other ideas like dual Galcon (where two players can play on the same screen), and a turn-based variant. All of these mods are already up and running, and while Hassey hasn't optomized any of it, he and his community have basically built an infinite Galcon machine. When the game finally does come out on iOS, Hassey will be able to take the best of both his and users' mods, and update the game with them as he sees fit, which means he'll have an endlessly replayable, ever-evolving Galcon title. Currently, the graphics on the game are fairly basic, with simple shapes for ships and planets alike. But Hassey's also working on making those look better -- the fridge magnets, in fact, are the first colorful signs that planets will each have their own colors, renders and flavors. Hassey says he plans to work more on getting the world of the game to look just as impressive as the mechanics running behind it already are. And then, says Hassey, he has even bigger plans. He told me that he envisions not just a multiplayer game, but essentially a Galcon universe, with a galaxy of stars in various clusters, each of which makes up a multiplayer Galcon map. Guild functionality is already something he's working on, so the idea is that players could form up in clans, and then battle across this virtual map, earning victory points to conquer stars in each constellation. In this game, players could have different classes (with different abilities like invisible ships or faster moves), and would have to work together to try and take over the whole galaxy together. It's a wild idea, but Hassey says he's never been more excited about development. Working with the Kickstarter community has given him no shortage of excitement and creativity, and the sky is the limit on what this game could eventually become. It's hard to say when we'll see the "final" version of Galcon 2, but maybe there doesn't need to be one. Hassey says he's released seven different beta builds since January, and that's the current plan for the game going forward: just to keep feeding his Kickstarter backers new game content and see what they do with it. Whenever the game does officially arrive, it's sure to be very impressive indeed.
Karateka compared on the Apple II and the iPhone
Jordan Mechner is the original creator of the classic Prince of Persia series, and as we mentioned earlier this week, he's recently remade another game of his, Karateka, in a brand-new form on the iPhone and the iPad. The video below, however, isn't really about the game itself -- it's about the devices used to run the game. Mechner compares the device he originally created Karateka on (the Apple II, or the Apple ][, as us oldsters know it) with the device he remade it for, Apple's iPhone 5. The differences are fascinating, and the video will either serve as a trip down memory lane for anyone who remembers the old days of floppy disks and big-box software, or as a wakeup call for those who are only used to quick and easy digital distribution and the App Store. Mechner also notes that software prices have dropped quite a bit -- but then again, audiences are much bigger these days, and software is generally more accessible. It's an interesting comparison for sure (and of course it's nice promotion for the new game, too).
Final Fantasy IV headed to iOS on December 20, Android version to follow in 2013
That Nintendo DS re-make of Final Fantasy IV may add 3D graphics, a variety of bug fixes, and a fresh localization, but who wants to lug around their old Nintendo DS? Thankfully, it won't be much longer before the same version of FFIV ends up on iOS, as spotted by the folks at gaming forum NeoGAF. The game arrives on the iOS App Store for both iPhone and iPad starting on December 20, and is headed to Android sometime next year. As of now, it's only got a Japanese pricing of ¥1800 ($21.77), but we expect it'll cost about $17.99 when it launches Stateside. In anticipation of the pending release, Square's marking down prices of its other iOS FF games (which are usually priced absurdly high), so now's a good time to snap them up on the cheap. If you'd like to take a gander at the first images of the iOS port, Japanese publication Gamer has a first-look.
Nicalis wants your input on The Binding of Isaac's makeover
Nicalis is proposing four different art styles for The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, the console remake of Team Meat's bizarre PC game. Fans can vote on the four mock-up 16-bit art styles seen in the gallery below to determine which direction Nicalis will take the remake in.According to The Binding of Isaac creator Edmund McMillen's Tumblr blog, the game is getting a face lift "because I think the art is tired and I'm sick of looking at it." The survey also asks for input on which platforms the game should appear on, with 3DS and Wii U listed as options.Nicalis will begin development on the project in January and hopes to launch PS3, Vita and PC (Steam) versions of The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth by the end of 2013, with Xbox 360, iOS and Nintendo console ports a possibility. %Gallery-172447%
Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition due out November 28 (mostly)
We've heard before about Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition, that slightly upgraded remake of the original great Bioware RPG that's coming soon to the iPad. This version is being put together by Beamdog, and creative director Trent Oster has tweeted that the game will finally arrive on (or at least around) November 28 later on this month. I say "around" because Oster hedges his bets on exactly when Apple's review process will allow the game through on iOS, so it might be a few days after the 28th. But suffice it to say that we're less than a month away from playing the original Baldur's Gate on the iPad. I got to see the game in action a little while ago at PAX, and I can tell you that it is indeed Baldur's Gate running on Apple's tablet. There is new content, and there are definitely some tweaks and improvements, but for the most part, it's the game you'll remember. Some new users may be turned off a bit from the title, just because it does stick to the original's complexity, and the touch interface translated to a game that's really best driven with a mouse and keyboard can be a little confusing. But Beamdog has made the decision to stick with the original game rather than updating it for the touchscreens too much, and that means that old school Bioware fans will probably be pleased. We'll look for the game on the App Store later on this month. [via Joystiq]
PSA: New Twisted Treeline map now live in League of Legends
The brand new version of the 3v3 Twisted Treeline map in Riot Games' League of Legends is now live for players. This is no mere tweak: Riot has completely remade one of the game's three modes. As you can see above, there's a new layout and redone art, new map-specific items in the store (no more generic wards!), Dominion-style speed shrines, and special altars with buffs to grab. There's also a new giant spider boss named Vilemaw who, like Baron Nashor, will grant a teamwide bonus when defeated. The map is still in beta right now and is expected to be considered as such for a while, though the new version is being used in ranked Season 3 play already. Twisted Treeline's 3v3 player variant has almost always been part of League of Legends, but with this revamp LoL's millions of players have gained yet another way to experience the game.
Daily iPhone App: Rayman Jungle Run
Rayman Jungle Run is the kind of iOS game that should be terrible. It looks from the outset like a blatant cash grab by Ubisoft, re-using the various sounds, graphics and gameplay from its popular Rayman Origins console platformer on iOS. But here's the thing: Rayman Origins is such a gorgeous and well-designed game that even this small-screen re-imagining is oozing with magic and fun. Yes, these graphics are being re-used, but they are still completely beautiful, and there's been so much new craft put into creating these levels and settings that Rayman Jungle Run feels just as fresh and enjoyable as the original console title. The controls are a big part of it -- rather than using a more traditional virtual D-pad and jump button, Ubisoft's developers have completely taken movement out of the equation, so Rayman simply runs forward without stopping. Instead, you just tap the screen to jump at certain moments, so the whole proceeding is all about timing (which, technically, great platformer games always have been about anyway). Later on in the game, further levels allow you to hover while jumping or punch as you go, but the controls are so simple and clean that you instead get to focus on the game's pitch-perfect gameplay. And there's plenty of that: Four different worlds with about 10 levels each, extra levels to unlock as you play and multiple goals per level, including time runs and extra Lums to collect. Rayman Jungle Run is an absolute pleasure to play -- don't be turned off by the fact that you've seen this art on the console before. It's available as a universal version now for $2.99.
Black Mesa scheduled to launch on September 14
Black Mesa, a fan-made Half-Life remake that began development in 2004, will see its first public release on September 14. According to a post on the game's official forums, the launch won't be of the entire game, but will include the team's "re-envisioning of Half-Life all the way up to Lambda Core," which constitutes about eight to ten hours of gameplay.Black Mesa is a "total conversion" Half-Life 2 mod that uses the Source engine in order to tell the story of the esteemed 1997 first-person shooter by Valve, Half-Life. No launch date has been announced for the full version of the PC-only remake.[Thanks to everyone that sent this in!] %Gallery-164145%
The Binding of Isaac in production for consoles, PC as a new game
A revamped version of The Binding of Isaac is crawling to consoles and PC via a mystery publisher and a new team, Edmund McMillen reveals on his Formspring account. This is more than an update to the existing Binding of Isaac available on Steam – it's a brand new game."The remake will be more than just an expansion, it will be a new game with all new graphics, music, etc. It will also feature an expansion-sized pack of all new content, bosses, characters enemies, items etc.," McMillen writes. "And yes, in about a year if/when it comes out, the Flash version of the game will appear obsolete for sure. But a year is a long time and I'll do what I can to make sure the guys who remake it make it substantial enough for you to play through all over again."The new Isaac will have local co-op and is aiming to launch on all platforms; McMillen even gives the 3DS a 50 percent chance. McMillen is "avoiding all the business BS," but the team has been talking to Microsoft for a while, and "they seem to also want Isaac a lot, but only time will tell if anything gets signed."McMillen says he'll ask the investors about selling the new game at a discount for current Binding of Isaac and Wrath of the Lamb owners, but since he's not the one fronting the money he doesn't call the shots.
