bionic-commando
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EverQuest Next Landmark shows the awesomeness of the grappling hook
Do you remember Bionic Commando from way back when (or its remake)? It was a decent run-and-gun platformer that was most notable for the main character's grappling hook arm. If swinging through the air instead of running like a chump appeals to you, then you'll definitely want to check out EverQuest Next Landmark's grappling hook. A new video from SOE shows this unusual (at least for MMOs but not for Batman) method of rapid transporation. The grappling hook can launch out to snag surfaces a good distance away (or straight up) and pull the user to them. It's part of the EverQuest Next focus on increased movement options, and it is something you have to see in action. Check out the video after the break and let us know: Should all MMOs put in grappling hooks? I think we know the answer to that.
NintendoWare Weekly: VVVVVV, Bionic Commando
Two games hit the eShop today, and they both seem worthwhile! Terry Cavanagh's devious puzzle platformer, VVVVVV, is now playable on the go, courtesy of Nicalis. Bionic Commando is also made portable, courtesy of ... the Game Boy version Capcom made years ago. On DSiWare you can get Cake Ninja, though you'd probably hate yourself for buying such an outright Fruit Ninja clone. Get it only if you're lacking a conscience, much like its developers.
Rad: Bionic Commando swings to 3DS eShop this week
Surprise! The 3DS eShop is getting not-terrible! The original downloadable games are starting to stack up (Pushmo, Mighty Switch Force), and the Virtual Console is home to a lot of interesting games -- like, for example, the Game Boy version of Bionic Commando, coming out December 29 in both North America and Europe. We aren't sure how it's able to make it to the shop when the NES Bionic Commando never could. That's the same day North America gets VVVVVV. See what we mean about the eShop no longer being a terrible destination for games?
Let's play the blame game: Inafune on what went wrong with Capcom's original IP push
In the latter half of 2009 and early 2010, Capcom released two major retail games in collaboration with prominent Western devs: Crimson Skies dev Airtight Games created Dark Void, and gun-for-hire Grin rebooted Bionic Commando. Those two games, however, were prominent sales flops. One even contributed to the eventual closure of Swedish dev Grin. For its part, Capcom promptly returned to its tried and true franchises, with a lineup today featuring many more sequels than back in 2009. At the time, Mega Man co-creator Keiji Inafune was overseeing production on Capcom's retail titles, and when I spoke with him this past week at the Tokyo Game Show, I wanted to know what went wrong. Beyond sales, neither game was particularly loved by critics, especially Dark Void. "[It's] very, very simple: The publisher was Japanese and the developer was foreign. Even inside Japan, when you work in two different companies, they always blame each other for any small mistakes, so that's pretty much what happened in those two games -- blaming each other," Inafune explained. He went on to compare those development experiences with that of Dead Rising -- a game that has since become a major franchise for Capcom, not to mention a commercial success.
Inafune: 'Messed up' working relationship led to Bionic Commando's Wifearm
"At the end of developing Bionic Commando, things got really messed up between the two companies," Mega Man creator and former global head of production at Capcom Keiji Inafune told me in an interview this week. Sitting in a quiet corner of Tokyo Game Show's business area, Inafune was addressing the retail version of BC developed by the now shuttered studio Grin -- a game that helped nail the coffin shut on the Swedish dev house, and scared Capcom off of its big third-party push. In case you weren't aware, at the end of BC's main campaign, it's revealed that the protagonist's bionic arm is, at least partially, made from his dead wife. Seriously. "I don't even know what happened there," Inafune lamented. The project was apparently rife with development issues, which Inafune exemplified with a phrase that represented the attitude Grin and Capcom had for each other at the time: "Whatever, do what you want, I don't care." Though he couldn't say what specifically happened to result in such a bizarre game ending, Inafune explained that the issue of foreign companies working with Japanese ones was at the heart of the situation. "At the beginning, things are very, very good between the two companies. Things get kind of weird from the middle, and it gets really bad at the end -- especially for the Japanese companies," he said of the development process. "They should be more flexible about things," Inafune added, no doubt part of his decision to leave his long-time employer late last year. "If you don't do that, everything will become messed up from the middle. And that's the most important part. Not the beginning, but in the middle and finishing the game."
The Last Story, Pandora's Tower due in Europe in 2012, more Euro releases dated
The Wii does have a lifespan beyond 2011 -- in Europe. Nintendo of Europe sent out a list (PDF) of upcoming titles today, including the two other games for which Operation Rainfall is campaigning: Mistwalker's The Last Story and Ganbarion's Pandora's Tower. Both are slated for 2012 in Europe now, and have yet to be announced in North America. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will be released in Europe November 18 while Kirby's Adventure Wii is coming in December. The release list also provides November and December windows for Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 on 3DS, respectively. Super Pokemon Rumble will also be released in Europe this December. On DS, DQ Monsters Joker 2 is coming October 7, Kirby Mass Attack is due October 28, and Professor Layton will answer The Spectre's Call in November. Cave Story will finally come to DSiWare in Europe in Q4. A few standout downloads listed: in Q4, the 3DS Virtual Console will see releases of Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, Metroid II, and the Game Boy Bionic Commando game. Nintendo previously blocked the NES version from Virtual Console.
GRIN founders say Square Enix turned their smiles upside down
Despite shipping three poorly received titles back-to-back – those would be Wanted: Weapons of Fate, Terminator: Salvation, and Capcom's reboot of Bionic Commando – it was still quite a surprise when developer GRIN suddenly closed its doors in August of 2009. Shortly after the shuttering, we learned that the Swedish developer had been working on a new Final Fantasy game titled 'Fortress' for Square Enix and now, nearly two years later, co-founders Ulf and Bo Andersson are finally pointing fingers. And they're both pointing right at Square Enix. "We wanted to come in and revolutionize Final Fantasy, which is exactly what they need," the brothers told Sweden's Aftonbladet in a far-reaching article on the demise of the once-mighty studio. "The latest version sucks of course." After working on Fortress for Square Enix for six months without receiving any payment, the studio simply couldn't afford to stay open. Square Enix, for its part, introduced seemingly impossible restrictions on the delivery of milestones. At one point, GRIN was directed to deliver its code to Japan via fax. Bo Andersson told Aftonbladet, "It is as silly as it sounds. It is an impossible requirement, you can not send ascii or binary codes on the fax. It is backward. Really retarded. It was almost a criminal activity." To make matters worse, Andersson claims that Square Enix then said the milestones were not being sent to the right person and instead should have been sent to the legal department. The Andersson brothers suggest that Square Enix had already made up its mind that Fortress wasn't a project it wanted anymore. "Nothing seemed good enough. Square did not believe anymore that the Nordic style suited Final Fantasy," the Anderssons said. To test their hypothesis, they sent over concept art from Square Enix's own Final Fantasy XII, to which Japan responded, "It does not look like Final Fantasy." While many former GRIN staffers landed at studios like Fatshark, others formed their own outfits, like Might&Delight, Outbreak Studios, and Whiteout. The Anderssons, however, have been hard at work on a new studio, one with a notable change: It won't be dependent on big publishers. They'll be at E3 next week showing off their new project, so expect to learn more about it – and more about the demise of GRIN – then.
Play Magazine rounds up haunting, embarrassing dev quotes
Play Magazine has realized every game director, producer and marketing flack's worst nightmare. The publication has dug up a collection of pre-release buzz quotes about games that failed to deliver on said hype. Granted, nobody promotes a game by admitting how horrible it's going to be, but it's rare that we glimpse back at how so very wrong some stated expectations can be: "We've listened to feedback and addressed the problems such as the targeting system, but we've also layered on what we did well the first time around. We listened to what we did well the first time round. We listened to what people liked and have given them more of it this time." –Brett Rector, producer, Star Wars: Force Unleashed 2 And how about these hauntingly prophetic words of a Bionic Commando dev: "We want to make players open their minds because we believe that the new-gen isn't just about better graphics. But the gaming has to step up and go into a new direction. If we don't do that, we'll go out of business." –Ulf Andersson of shuttered developer GRIN Play has more quotes on its website, with the full piece available in the next issue -- on sale now in Europe and available in the US around March 18.
Interview: Might&Delight's Jakob Tuchten
With little more than a cursory announcement a few weeks back of Might&Delight's existence, the ex-GRIN staffers making up M&D's numbers haven't been vocal about what they're working on next. And according to art director Jakob Tuchten, that's (at least partially) because the future is still somewhat unknown for the fledgling studio. "We have had some really nervous and positive meetings with publishers, and we´re sketching up some promising ideas." M&D has said, however, that it aims to "continue doing what we started with [Bionic Commando] Rearmed ... small, fresh games with strong old school flavor." So when we asked about working on more licensed properties, it wasn't surprising that Tuchten teased, "We have a tasty list with publishers and their old titles that we would love to remake." That said, he added that M&D probably won't head in that direction. Hit the break to find out more about the studio's plans for the future, as well as everything else that Tuchten had to tell us.
Capcom calls earnings 'sluggish' over last fiscal year
Usually, a company's financial results press release is just called "Financial results for [insert time period]" or something equally neutral, but Capcom went ahead and put "sluggish" in its own headline to describe its fiscal year ending March 31. The publisher's net sales for the year were ¥66.84 billion ($751.35 million), down 27.3 percent from the previous fiscal year, and net income plummeted 73.1 percent year-over-year to just ¥2.17 billion ($24.36 million). Capcom blamed the financial decline on the delays of Lost Planet 2, Super Street Fighter IV and Monster Hunter Tri to the current fiscal year, though the company previously took these delays into account in a revised earnings forecast last December. (On the bright side, actual nets sales did surpass the predicted figures by about ¥1.84 billion.) In addition to the delays, earnings suffered from sluggish sales of Dark Void, Bionic Commando and Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, which all failed to meet Capcom's expectations.
Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 jumping into Q1 2011
Download in HD from Big DownloadRumored over the weekend to have been revealed at Captivate 2010, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 is now official. The game is slated to once again hit Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network in Q1 2011 -- no PC version has been announced. While fans might have hoped development would be helmed by Might & Delight, the studio formed by the ex-Grin staffers responsible for the original Rearmed, the task's been handed to Fatshark, the studio behind Lead & Gold. The sequel sees Nathan Spencer return, this time fighting the presumably evil General Sabio, "a new technologically sophisticated foe," who is "on the brink of launching a deadly missile attack." Rearmed 2 also promises new weapons, two-player co-op (no word if it's online this time) and new tunes from the same composers who created the brilliant soundtrack for the original Rearmed. Of course, none of that is important because, as the debut trailer makes quite clear, Nathan has learned how to jump. %Gallery-91177%
Marvel vs Capcom 3 for Xbox 360 & PS3 announced, along with Bionic Commando: Rearmed 2 [update]
Update: Capcom has officially announced both Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and Bionic Commando: Rearmed 2. Additionally, a Capcom representative clarified some details about the MvC3 character roster for Joystiq: "We're not necessarily hyping the number of characters with MvC3, we're hyping quality. These aren't just sprites you can plug into the game. This is a full, disc-based release with gorgeous 3D models powered by the latest version of MT Framework. At this point, there are roughly 30 characters in the game, but that number will increase. You can rest assured that Niitsuma-san and his team will be working hard to include as many characters as possible before the game hits next year." Original Story: There have been rumors swirling around about a sequel to Capcom's superhero-flavored fighter Marvel vs Capcom 2 pretty much since the game arrived 10 years ago. And given Capcom's recent success with a Street Fighter revival -- not to mention the sales rampage of MvC2 on XBLA and PSN -- the sequel rumor mill has once again begun turning furiously. This week's press-only Captivate event in Hawaii, held yearly by the Japanese publisher, is said to have showcased just such a sequel in Marvel vs Capcom 3 for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, claims PlanetXbox360. At the same event, a sequel to Bionic Commando: Rearmed is alleged to have been announced, though no details were provided in the post. According to the report, MvC3 will receive a retail release "later this year or early 2011" and will run in "full 1080p." Allegedly, while the full character list is unknown, some have been confirmed. "Wolverine, Spider-Man, The Hulk, Magneto, Storm, and a few others will be back; but the team behind MvC3 have said they will be blowing fans out of the water with the sheer number of characters this game includes," alleges PlanetXbox360. The rumored sequel is said to be a nontraditional 2D fighter, which suggests that it could feature 3D elements, as seen in Street Fighter IV. PlanetXbox360 claims we'll hear more about the title next week and that the game will be playable at E3 this June. When reached for comment, Capcom told Joystiq, "We don't comment on speculation and rumors." [Thanks Nathan Garcia!] Editors' note: Joystiq did not attend Captivate this year. We determined the perceived environment, and associated downtime, of the event was not in accordance with our editorial policy. We expect to provide firsthand preview coverage of all Capcom titles shown at Captivate during E3 this June. For more information on our policies, click here.
GameFly sale: Bionic Batman and the Brutal Beatles
Here's the good news: According to our budget-minded buddies (budgies?) at CAG, GameFly has a sale on several appealing Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 titles, including Batman: Arkham Asylum (360 / $19.99), Bionic Commando (360 / PS3 / $9.99), Brütal Legend (360 / $14.99) and The Beatles: Rock Band (360 / $21.99). We also spy some stellar deals on Red Faction: Guerrilla (360 / PS3 / under $15) and 2D fighter BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger ($19.99 / $24.99). GameFly games are guaranteed to be in working condition and include manuals and cases. And here's the bad news: The sale comes to an end on March 30. Also, our industry is woefully ill-equipped to produce a product called "Bionic Batman and the Brütal Beatles" and will succumb to creative and financial bankruptcy long before you ever get to play something of such magnificent magnitude. Oh well.
Capcom Q3 2009 financials reveal monster sales of Monster Hunter Tri
If you're anything like us, you immediately tore into the recently released Capcom Q3 2009 financial report looking for the number of Mario Party Fushigi no Korokoro Catcher arcade machines the company sold in the last nine months of 2009 (80, in case you were wondering) only to find a wealth of information about the publisher's other games. For instance, worldwide sales (sell-in, not sell-through, mind you) of Bionic Commando crept over 700k, while Monster Hunter Tri moved 1.15 million in Japan alone -- we worry deeply for the monsters of Japan, being hunted relentlessly by all of those people. At this point in the post, we'd like to point out that these numbers are for the nine months ending December 31, 2009, and thusly don't reflect January's sales. Also, things are about to get really boring. The Japanese publisher is reporting a 5.9 percent increase in net sales for the nine month period, and boasts an 84.3 percent increase in "operating income compared to the same term in [Fiscal Year 2008]," which is to say sales increased by ¥49,987 million from the same time period last year (netting ¥1,731 million). Whew - glad we got through that! Capcom itself doesn't ruminate on the numbers too much either, saying "only a few flagship software titles were released from our home video game division, while both arcade operations and content expansion were weakening." Unfortunately for us, there's still no word on the US arrival of Mario Party Fushigi No Korokoro Catcher. Source -- Capcom 3rd Quarter Financial Results (warning: PDF) Source -- Capcom 3rd Quarter Financial Results press release
Best of the Rest: Justin's Picks of 2009
Time Gentlemen, Please This was hands-down the funniest game released in 2009, and 2009 was a year in which we got a new Tim Schafer game and the return of the Monkey Island series, so that's saying something. If you missed out, please go buy it, it's cheap as can be and a true delight.
Capcom may shift established franchise development overseas, Q1 delays 'strategic'
Capcom will apparently focus original IP development in its Japan-based studios and outsource established franchises to other lands, according to a Question and Answer session (warning: PDF link) posted on the company's investor relations site. No executives are named in the Q&A brief, but the transcript is of a phone meeting with analysts. In it, a Capcom representative states that the reboot of Bionic Commando, developed by the late GRIN, "demonstrated the difficulty of outsourcing the development of [a] new title to overseas companies." The document adds that the company is "considering ways to separate the roles of activities in Japan and overseas." International companies may be used to develop existing games series with "well-established characters and universal themes." A little less clear is this note: "Overseas companies will also handle certain parts and/or lineups of such games." Also mentioned is the "strategic decision" which prompted the recent Q1 2010 delays of major franchises, making for a rocky financial quarter. Capcom allegedly "combines management and development to reach various decisions ... [it] would not decide to postpone the launch of a title" purely for development reasons. Source -- Q&A Summary [PDF Link]
Capcom posts strong Q2 2009 earnings, despite 'soft' overseas sales
Capcom has posted its financial results for the six months ending September 30, 2009, and things are definitely looking good for the company. The publisher reported net sales of ¥38.892 billion ($426 million), up from ¥31.236 billion ($342 million) during the same period last year, which amounts to a 24.5-percent increase. The majority of those sales were generated by Capcom's home video games division, which pulled in ¥27.748 billion ($303 million) -- up from ¥16.486 ($180 million); a staggering 68.3-percent increase. Capcom credits strong sales of Monster Hunter Tri in Japan, as well as continued sales of Resident Evil 5, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite and Ace Attorney: Investigations to its recent financial success. However, the company stated that overseas sales remained "soft" for the period thanks to the delay of Dark Void and the weak performance of Bionic Commando and Monster Hunter Freedom Unite. Joystiq readers will recall that Capcom leveled complaints at the same games in its first quarter report earlier this year. It's worth noting that overseas sales still amounted to ¥11.739 billion ($128 million), which accounted for 57-percent of the home video games division sales. We suppose Capcom might consider that "soft," but the suits can't be too broken up about it. Source -- Capcom | Favorable Financial Results for the 6 months ended September 30, 2009 Source -- Capcom | Consolidated Financial Results for the 2nd Quarter of the FY2009
Capcom may offer more game collections in 2010
With the recent release of the Capcom's Xbox 360 Platinum Hits Triple Pack, many are wondering if we'll see similar, value-oriented bundles from Capcom in the future. Chris Kramer, Capcom's resident PR dude, told VG247 that while Capcom doesn't have any immediate plans for other titles, he "wouldn't rule out more collections in 2010."Though the last $40 pack, containing Lost Planet, Devil May Cry 4 and Dead Rising, certainly appealed to our interests, our miserly ways have forced us to wait for some more triple-packs to arrive ... and then get a triple-pack of those. Sure, the cover art will be have degraded considerably by then, but just think of the money we'll save!
Licensed game from High Voltage inspired by Bionic Commando
In addition to the Wii Astro Boy game, High Voltage Software is making a Secret Saturdays game for D3 Publisher. Like Astro Boy, which is inspired by Treasure's Astro Boy: The Omega Factor, High Voltage took cues from an excellent game when designing this children's game: Bionic Commando. The good one, that is, not the new one."Yes, we were playing Bionic Commando Rearmed when we were initially pitching the concept for the game to D3Publisher," producer Josh VanVeld told Siliconera. The Claw allows Zak Saturday to grapple (amongst other things), so that kind of mechanic seemed like a perfect fit and gave us the opportunity to try out a new 2D/3D hybrid camera system in our engine."While Zak's grappling-based gameplay seems to be most prevalent, VanVeld said that there are "literally dozens of other characters, all of which have unique play styles." The mere mention of grappling was enough to get us to try a game based on a cartoon we've never watched.[Thanks, Ed!]
Bionic Commando developer GRIN closes
Recent reports of layoffs revealed that Swedish developer GRIN was in financial trouble. Today, in a statement on the GRIN website, founders Bo and Ulf Andersson announced that the company was officially closing, citing an "unbearable cashflow situation" due to delayed payments from unnamed publishers.In the statement, the founders mentioned "our unreleased masterpiece that we weren't allowed to finish" and thanked many of the companies they worked with, including Ubisoft and Capcom -- but not Warner Bros., for whom GRIN made Wanted: Weapons of Fate and Terminator: Salvation. As reported earlier today, several GRIN staffers who had previously been laid off have gone on to form Outbreak Studios.[Via Kotaku]
