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Starhawk beta goes public starting with PSN Plus subscribers next week
For the last few month, LightBox has been running a Starhawk private beta, which just concluded on January 3. Like a big bouncer guarding the door of your city's hot new club, the developer barred entry to all Joe and Jane Schmoes looking to get their taste of what's to come. Boys and girls, soon you'll have your chance: the beta's going public. PlayStation Plus subscribers get first crack at the public demo starting next week on January 17 for the US and January 18 for Europe, PlayStation Blog reports. If you picked up Uncharted 3, you'll get a crack at the public beta two weeks later: January 31 in the US and February 1 in Europe. Finally, if you've got a regular ol' free PSN account, you can jump in on February 21, when the beta is open to all US users; European users get in on the following day. If you were one of the lucky few to get into the private beta, you'll have access to the public beta starting next week, granted you didn't erase your original beta files.
Starhawk dev rethinking DLC strategy: It 'might be surprising'
Starhawk will enter public beta soon in North America, Europe, Japan, Korea and Latin America, senior produer Harvard Bonin tells Respawn Action. The closed beta ended Jan. 3 and Bonin says the mix of veteran Warhawk and new players caught a lot of unsurprising bugs and balance issues, and that update 1.2 will fix a lot of these. There are plans for "a bunch of" free DLC that "might be surprising," Bonin says, although he adds that he'd be "happy to take your money" for some of the planned content. "We rethought our DLC strategy and we'll reveal more about it as we get closer to release," he says. More information on the Starhawk public beta will come "very soon," Bonin says, and the game will release "when it's damn good and ready."
Starhawk beta flies away January 3
The Starhawk private beta will end its run on January 3, according to an announcement from the European PlayStation Blog. If you haven't had the chance to take part in a giant robot fight over space oil, we suggest checking it out now while you still can, as Sony and LightBox are kindly keeping it running through the holidays. However, that might be easier said than done. We happened to try to play a round today, only to be greeted by a "server connection error." At least after January 3, we'll know ahead of time that the beta won't work.
Come and get your free Starhawk beta keys [update: we're out!]
We had the weirdest night. Typical Monday, we hassled Tom the Soup Salesman about those two shillings he owed us until he slipped us some free broth and gave Cratchit some grief about Christmas. No big. But no sooner had we drifted off to sleep then we were visited by three spirits. They showed us how callous we'd been to our fellow man through an increasingly elaborate set of what we can only assume were broth-induced hallucinations. This morning, we awoke to find that not only had we not missed Christmas, we hadn't even missed the series premiere of Storage Wars: Texas. To show the spirits our gratitude and that we're serious about our new commitment to generosity, we're giving away one thousand codes good for entrance into the closed Starhawk beta. What? ... No, they didn't cost us anything, Sony gave them to us for free. But if you think about it, isn't gifting something you got for free double generous? ... Alright, funny guy, just shut up and get your key. [Update: And just like that, our generosity dries up. No more keys, paupers! Back to your ... you know, pauper caves!]
Starhawk beta invites start rolling out on Tuesday
You're only a few short days away from sampling Starhawk, folks! Well, okay, you have to be a veteran Warhawk player and have opted-in for the beta, but we're sure you already did that, right? At the very least, we're sure you'll get to check out some videos on YouTube. But we digress. The PlayStation Blog reveals that Tuesday beta keys should be hitting anxious inboxes for the select few who'll be in the semi-private beta. If you don't see a key on Tuesday, don't fret: SCEA's Harvard Bonin says this will be a "slow rolled" beta -- as the beta chugs along, Sony will slowly be adding more players. So try to be patient!
Starhawk launching a semi-public private beta for Warhawk veterans in November
Lightbox Interactive is hosting a private beta for Starhawk in November, but with a twist -- this private beta will be selectively public. Lightbox will invite "a bunch of" dedicated Warhawk players to test out Starhawk this November, chosen by their rank in Warhawk, their community involvement and a few other undisclosed parameters, president Dylan Jobe said. The public private beta will include access to a secure SCEA forum for players to discuss the game and ask questions of the Lightbox team, who will also post their PSN handles and be available for voice chat in-beta. If you're a Warkhawk beast with a clean record, look for an email with an invite soon.
Buying Uncharted 3 gets you into next year's Starhawk beta
When you buy Uncharted 3, you won't just get Uncharted 3 (and an optional belt buckle); you'll get a ticket into space. All retail copies of Uncharted 3 will include a code for entry into a Starhawk multiplayer beta that will be active sometime in early 2012. Think of it as Sony's response to the persistent complaints that the Uncharted series doesn't have enough transforming mechs or mutant cults. Or, more realistically, think of it as more evidence that Sony's marketing plan will pack a beta of some first-party PS3 game with every other new first-party PS3 game from here on out.
New Starhawk trailer goes to space, brings cowboys and their friends
Did you totally dig the Starhawk reveal a few months ago, but get turned off by all that dirt? Well, good news! There's less dirt in space. Unfortunately, there are hordes of pissed off war-painted people up there. It's a trade-off.
Fantastic Arcade to keep Austin weird on September 22
If you're fortunate enough to live within (or near!) the borders of Austin, Texas, you should clear your schedule for next weekend. Fantastic Arcade will take over The Highball from Thursday, September 22 to Sunday, September 25. The event will play host to 21 indie games, such as the psychedelic Dyad, the audio-only panic game, Deep Sea, the heartwarmingly bizarre Octodad, the perspective-shifting Fez, and the utterly magical Owlboy. There's also a Starhawk gameplay demonstration from fellow Austin-based studio Lightbox Interactive, and a panel hosted by a whole bevy of PSN developers. Check out Juegos Rancheros for the full lineup, trailers and a schedule of events for the weekend.
Starhawk makes a smooth transition into a new cutscene trailer
Starhawk first got us excited with its E3 cinematic teaser, in a Borderlands, Halo, Red Dead Redemption, Terminator kind of way, and now LightBox Interactive is revealing more graphic goodness at Comic-Con, showing off the game's transitions between cutscenes and gameplay. The video follows the story's introduction, featuring Emmett Graves, a mercenary with a special connection to both the overrun town of White Sands and the Outlaw who are holding it captive, making the game kind of like a backwards District 9 as well. But whatever we call it, Starhawk's transitions sure do look smooth here (also like Shaft).
Starhawk's brutal universe detailed in E3 2011 cinematic
There are, like, so, so many things in Starhawk to drive/pilot/murder with, and the latest cinematic teaser for the forthcoming sequel depicts nearly all of them doing what they do best. There's even a dude with glowing eyes! Talk about cinematic!
Starhawk multiplayer footage loosed from Sony Santa Monica
We have to imagine that editing the two and a half minutes of Starhawk multiplayer footage -- pulled from a Sony Santa Monica in-house tourney -- was extra difficult, given the ubiquity of expletives thrown around at tournaments; nonetheless, Sony persevered! Check it out after the break.
Starhawk has matchmaking, server lists ... and space battles
Though LightBox Interactive blew the doors open on Starhawk a couple of weeks ago at a reveal event, not every question about the game was answered. To provide more information to anxious fans, LightBox head Dylan Jobe took to the PlayStation Blog for a Q&A. Among the most interesting tidbits is the news that Starhawk multiplayer will allow players to find each other using either matchmaking or a server list. And for those of you wondering whether you'd be able to leave the planet's surface, apparently you can. " 100% YES," Jobe said in response to a question about the existence of space battles. "The outer space environment set that the art team here at LightBox Interactive has put together is really awesome. Super fun to play on and looks great." Whether that means specific levels take place in space, or if you'll just be able to fly straight up in one of the transforming robot/plane "Hawks," remains to be answered. Jobe isn't talking details about this feature yet: "Some of the elements are still being worked on and we don't want to show it untill we're 100% happy with it," he said.
What's in a Name: LightBox Interactive
While a raucous Starhawk multiplayer session went on in the front two rows of Austin's Alamo Drafthouse theater, LightBox Interactive creative director Lars DeVore spoke to Joystiq about the high concept behind the name of the studio formed by Incognito expats. We sat around and we did the whole list of names. What it comes down to is that the "lightbox" itself is the idea of restrained energy. We felt like we were at a point as a studio where we were boxed in, and we wanted to be able to explode that box, and to express this energy, these ideas, and this creativity openly. We wanted to be able to bust out. Get that feeling out there. LightBox Interactive is working on Starhawk, a PS3 exclusive coming out in early 2012. Like this feature? Be sure to check out the What's In A Name Archives.
Starhawk gameplay footage highlights 'build and battle' features
You've read about it -- now see Warhawk's successor, Starhawk, in action in this developer video featuring LightBox Interactive boss Dylan Jobe. Using plenty of gameplay footage, he breaks down the new universe, "build and battle" strategy elements and, of course, transforming jets -- er, Hawks.
Starhawk preview: The final frontier
Rather than just remake Warhawk with spaceships, Texas-based developer LightBox Interactive built Starhawk into something that maintains the DNA of its predecessor, while adding a few major components that turn it into its own thing. It's got a single-player mode, for example -- with a storyline and everything.%Gallery-123409%
Starhawk takes Warhawk into the future on PS3
You've probably heard the name before, but now Sony and LightBox Interactive have officially unveiled Starhawk, the follow-up to 2007's multiplayer-only PS3 game, Warhawk. Due next year, Starhawk brings the on-foot and vehicle-based third-person shooter into a new setting -- desolate moons full of highly valued "rift energy." It also adds a single-player story mode and a new "Build and Battle" system that allows players to choose structures from a menu and drop them into the level as they fight, adding a layer of real-time strategy-esque gameplay. You can see the first screens in our gallery, and a LightBox dev diary after the break. You can also read about the game in more detail in our hands-on preview!%Gallery-123409%
Rumor: Starhawk reveal coming in mid-May (Us: Try to act surprised)
We've been hearing about a rumored follow-up to Warhawk for nearly two years after Sony Computer Entertainment of America registered a trademark for a game known as "Starhawk." And though the rumors have gone quiet for quite some time, SystemLink PlayStation claims to have spoken to an anonymous Sony employee who revealed a wealth of details about the alleged sequel -- details that are reported to be part of a big reveal in mid-May. Lightbox Interactive is said to be in the pilot's seat -- a studio made of ex-Incognito devs, the same folks who made Warhawk -- and the game will be exclusive to the PlayStation 3. According to the report, the core gameplay doesn't deviate too much from its predecessor -- "a third-person shooter with jeeps, APCs, tanks, and now spaceships." As for space combat, the piece claims that only some maps will allow spaceships to exit the planet's atmosphere, with specific areas intended for ground combat. The game is also said to feature both single- and multiplayer, with a heavier focus on the latter. No details are provided as to whether it's a digital or retail release (or some combination of both, like the original game). As the piece points out, Lightbox Interactive president Dylan Jobe has been tweeting up a storm with his excitement, with such missives as "Been running in silent mode for too long. This is killing me. I can't wait to be able to talk about it" and "Thank you all for your patience. Really! I want nothing more than to show off the new game to our fans!" For what it's worth, an SCEA rep told us, "We don't comment on rumors or speculation," but we'll hopefully find out what's what in a few weeks.
SCEA registers trademarks for 'Starhawk' and 'Dominion'
Sony Computer Entertainment America recently staked claim to two intriguing video game monikers at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The first title, Dominion, is definitely a code name for the reboot of the Crash Bandicoot franchise we've been waiting on for so long. Or, possibly, a new God of War. Or, perhaps, a mash-up of the two franchises. Fine, we have absolutely no idea what Dominion is -- but if it turns out to be God of Bandicoot, remember that we totally called it.The second trademarked title, Starhawk, might actually lend some credence to rumors of an upcoming space-themed follow-up to Warhawk which we heard last month. See, they replaced "War" with "Star," which is a celestial body that can be found in space. Don't feel too bad for not catching it. That kind of journalistic sleuthing is the reason we get paid the big bucks.[Via superannuation]
