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Peter Molyneux's new game is about pioneering
Web and smartphone game publisher Kongregate and Peter Molyneux's 22 Cans are teaming up to launch a new mobile game. The Trail is an Oregon Trail-style adventure title where players strap on a backpack and pioneer their way across an undiscovered wilderness. As they progress, they can collect items that can be used to craft weapons and tools that'll help them hunt down sources of food. That can then be traded with other explorers to build a fortune that'll enable you to settle down in a Deadwood-style community. It's available for Android and iOS devices, although it's yet to hit the latter's app store just yet for free, with in-app purchases.
'Godus Wars' developer kills microtransactions after outcry
Last week Peter Molyneux had to contend with a hacked Twitter account, but this week he's dealing with disgruntled gamers. His 22cans studio just released a Steam Early Access version of Godus Wars, the much-anticipated, more fighty sequel to Godus. However, buyers weren't happy to discover that the title, which is free to buyers of the original Godus and $14.99 for everyone else, included a $5 microtransaction package. As Steam user Mucker_2202 said, "to release this into early access and ask for any kind of payment should be a crime."
No, 'Fable' designer Peter Molyneux isn't retiring today
Peter Molyneux is not done making video games. Molyneux appeared to announce his retirement from the video game industry in a series of tweets today, but it turns out his account was hacked. The impersonator also claimed that Molyneux was shutting down his latest game, Godus, but that's not true, either.
Mega mobile update to Godus is 'game-changing'
That is the general point of an update, after all. The first major expansion to the mobile version of Godus is live today, adding a seafaring migration mission and a new, desert land for your Followers to inhabit. Players will have to build an Ark, fill it with 500 Followers and set sail for the arid environment of Weyworld. "It's a desert world where the trees and rocks you're familiar with in Homeworld are replaced by cacti and baked earth," 22Cans says in a blog post. "That's not the only difference, however – in Weyworld, crops need to be built on verdant land and mines on rugged land if your want them to flourish and your Followers to prosper." This marks the beginning of the Frontier Age in Godus, and the update includes a new Timeline, cards, stickers and abilities to unlock. Abilities include the power to keep skies blue and clear or stormy, call down a more powerful meteor, dig directly downward, and crop rotation. The update also refines the Voyage system: "You no longer have to complete a Voyage within a limited amount of time. However, the more quickly you complete a Voyage, the more points you'll earn. What do points mean? Points mean prizes!" The update also enhances the iOS version of Godus. The Android version is due out soon and the Steam version gets the Balance File Editor modding kit on October 31.
DeNA and 22 Cans bestow Godus upon iOS devices
Godus, the game that gives you phenomenal cosmic power, is now available on an itty-bitty living space: your iOS device screens. Mobile game developer / publisher DeNA has translated Peter Molyneux's game that quite literally lets you play god for Apple's iPad and iPhone, while simultaneously removing the price tag, meaning Godus is free to download and play. Meanwhile, the PC version of Godus continues to evolve on Steam Early Access, with a recent post announcing that those who contribute "the most interesting, informative and helpful articles" to the Godus Wiki will receive signed merchandise from the team at developer 22 Cans. [Image: DeNA/22 Cans]
Godus hits iOS so you can play God on the go
Want to act like an omnipotent creator while sitting in your boring cubicle with a boss breathing down your neck? You're in luck! Godus -- Peter Molyneux's newest God game -- is now available for iOS, letting you amass followers and rule them with an iron fist or caress them with kindness. The game is currently also available on Steam, via early access, but while that version costs a cool US$19.95, the App Store edition is entirely free to play. Developer 22cans notes that the game isn't in its final state, and will "evolve over time," adding features and additional god powers for the player to keep the experience fresh for as long as possible. Keep an eye out for a full review of Godus here on TUAW in the coming days.
Godus iOS soft-launches on New Zealand App Store
Peter Molyneux's new god-game spread its dominion to iOS after soft-launching in the New Zealand App Store over the weekend. Godus is available as a free download, and although no official announcement's been made its arrival downunder is likely the prelude to a full release in the coming weeks. The iOS version offers gems as in-app purchases, with 100 gems costing NZ$6.49 (around $5.60). Purchasable gems have been a subject of contention for Molyneux and devloper 22 Cans, harking back to Godus' launch on Steam Early Access last year. However, the industry veteran denies his mobile model is like other free-to-play games. "What we need is a new term," Molyneux said earlier this year. "And that term is more like 'invest-to-play'. What really are we doing? We are tempting people to invest some of their money into a game." [Image: 22 Cans]
Peter Molyneux wants more from VR than what's available
"I just want to make a world which I can be a god in," jokes developer Peter Molyneux (Fable, Curiosity) in a San Francisco hotel suite. "Imagine being able to make and construct a world under your own rules." He's speaking with us at GDC 2014, painting a picture of what he would do with access to a perfect virtual reality interface. Despite his history of building deity simulators, he doesn't have any plans for building the ultimate virtual god game -- today's virtual reality leaves him wanting. "The problem is that, as a designer, I'm like a greedy child. I just want more." That's not to say he doesn't recognize how far virtual reality has come in recent years. Dragging on an electronic cigarette, Molyneux recalls using awkward "virtual reality" headsets in 1980s arcades. "It was a very different kind of VR," he says. "The Oculus Rift and the Sony stuff is a great step forward, but I want more. Really, what VR is, is immersion. I want my eyes to be immersed, my ears to be immersed ... I want to touch things in the world and I want to be able to see my hands." The technology to create the perfect Matrix-like playground he envisions simply isn't available yet -- not that it's stopped him from building god simulators.
Molyneux: Godus will be invest-to-play
Godus, Peter Molyneux's Kickstarted world-builder, will not be "free-to-play." It will be free and you will be able to play it, but "free-to-play" doesn't apply to the monetization process Molyneux envisions for Godus, he tells Pocket Gamer. "There cannot be a term that is less true," he says. "What we need is a new term. And that term is more like 'invest-to- play.' What really are we doing? We are tempting people to invest some of their money into a game." He doesn't break down exactly how Godus' monetization will play out, but he provides one detail: Monetization will enter the game at different points for every player, only when each one is "in the right mindset." Molyneux wants "to tempt people to think about being proud about investing," he says. "Before we even talk about monetization, we want players to feel like Godus is a hobby, not just a game." Molyneux is turned off by the monetization process in EA's Dungeon Keeper, a new, mobile version of the game he originally created – but he's aware that trying to change the free-to-play formula may not be profitable. "Yeah, I'm worried about that, but those risks are worth taking," he says. "We could layer in 'it takes six days to build this house', and maybe we'd make a shitload of money, but that's not my ambition for games."
Godus half-off this weekend on Steam
Peter Molyneux's world-shaping strategy game Godus is 50 percent off this weekend on Steam, allowing amateur deities to take out their frustrations on an unsuspecting populace for under ten bucks. Godus was released as part of Steam's Early Access program, and is frequently updated with new content as development progresses. The game's Kickstarter campaign raised over £520,000 in 2012, and developer 22cans continues to keep backers informed of new project developments and other additions. Godus is currently available for Windows and Mac. A Linux port is also under consideration.
Godus v1.3 update adds bronze age, agriculture, weather system
Peter Molyneux's god game Godus has received a sizable update on Steam, where the game has been available as an Early Access product since last month. In addition to a multitude of bug fixes, the version 1.3 update adds bronze age amenities and agricultural advances, as well as tweaks to Follower behavior and some modified tents. Amongst the 12 new bronze age additions are politics, farming and cartography, according to the update's patch notes. New Farmer Followers can grow crops outside of settlements, which can then be harvested to feed the population. A new weather system will also affect your tiny virtual folk, with lightning storms that damage Abodes located outside of settlements. Meanwhile, felt tents now house and produce Followers, rather than generate Belief. Followers can now also communicate with the player through Prayers, which we assume are delivered via Post-It Note like in Bruce Almighty. Okay, probably not. Molyneux recently told us that Godus' evolution is an ongoing process, and that it can take anywhere from "a day to two weeks" for him and his team at 22 Cans to crank out a new build. "That's an amazing, incredible way to develop a game," he said. "I'm not a designer, I'm a design curator."
Molyneux: You can doubt me, but Godus will evolve
Godus creator Peter Molyneux told me how much he's enjoying responding to feedback and using analytics to change his game in "massive ways." In the din of the Eurogamer Expo press area, the 54-year-old designer showed me spreadsheets stuffed with values that he could adjust there and then, things like how much an in-game follower wants to build temples or how social they'll be. It wasn't lost on me that I was watching the man behind the multi-million selling Fable series show me the Excel innards of his indie game. Molyneux described these values as smaller changes that are easier to effect, but he talked about how 22 Cans has "totally changed" the rules of the game's multiplayer in Steam Early Access: "We love the Early Access thing, we love that every week there's going to be radical changes to this game."
Molyneux's Godus manifests on Steam Early Access
Just as the prophet Peter Molyneux foretold, Godus is now available through Steam Early Access. Godus, which puts players in the heavenly shoes of a God who monitors and fosters the growth of a loyal indigenous people, is currently in development at Molyneux's indie outfit, 22cans. The game, which sought financing through Kickstarter and ultimately earned £526,000 ($852K) in funding, is a reinvention of Molyneux's lauded classic, Populous. As with all Steam Early Access games, this isn't the final version of Godus but an ongoing development project that Steam users can buy into. 22cans hopes to launch Godus on PC, Mac and mobile platforms initially, but is also considering Linux.
Peter Molyneux talks royalties and offline play for Godus
Bryan Henderson, the winner of Peter Molyneux's Curiosity experiment, will be receiving a "financially worthwhile" percentage of the game's profits when he takes on the (temporary) role of god of gods in Godus, Molyneux recently told Rock, Paper, Shotgun. "The first game that I did, I think I got less than 5 percent royalties from it," Molyneux said. "I'm not saying he has 5 percent royalties. But it's more than a percent." Godus will be available to play offline. Molyneux told RPS that if he were to say the game was always online, "this red dot would appear on my forehead and I'd be sniped to death." Molyneux cautioned, however, that playing offline removes the game's most "charming" features, like syncing with a villager's social feed. "My wife tweets and it comes up in the world," Molyneux explained. "It's a stupid feature. It's just a piece of text. But you end up ... caring for your little people, because they love you so much." Early access for Godus will be available on Steam on September 13, with an iPad version due at the end of October, and an Android version two weeks after that.
Peter Molyneux's Godus scheduled to land on Mac on September 13
If you've not heard of Godus, the upcoming deity simulator by heralded developer Peter Molyneux, you need only glance at the game's ultra successful Kickstarter to see how popular it already is. The title is scheduled to arrive on Mac and Windows through the Steam Early Access program on September 13. The game lets you play as a god who must manage a civilization and defend against attacks and other threats. When Molyneux's iOS app Curiosity -- a "game" of sorts that had users chipping away at a giant block with only a single person winning the right to view what was inside the core -- finally concluded, it was revealed that the winner would become the über-God in Godus for one year. This player can cause huge shifts in the game world that impact all other players, and that individual will also receive revenue from sales once it is released. An iOS version of Godus is also planned, though no details on a firm release window have been offered at this time. [via Joystiq]
Let the god games begin: 22cans' Godus beta available on Steam Early Access September 13th (update: iOS and Android release dates)
A collective effort pulled back Curiosity's curtain early this summer, and now it's nearly time to play god. On September 13th, 22cans and Peter Molyneux will make the beta release of Godus, the studio's latest "experiment" in god gaming, available via Steam Early Access for PC and Mac. The early release will cost eager overlords $19.99 and allow them to "sculpt every inch of a beautiful world," and, of course, destroy those worlds in multiplayer battles with other virtual gods. The Kickstarter-backed nod to Molyneux's Populous reached its funding goal in December of last year with the promise of PC, Mac and mobile compatibility and continued his focus on the video game as social experiment. Final release details are still under wraps but you can see an updated trailer after the break. And for more Molyneux, check out our interview from E3 2013. Update: We had a chance to catch up with Molyneux following his keynote at PAX and, among other things, he revealed release dates for iOS and Android versions of Godus: October 31st (Halloween) and November 14th (Day of the Colombian Woman), respectively.
Molyneux's Godus available September 13 through Steam Early Access
Peter Molyneux's 22cans is set to launch Godus for PC and Mac through Steam Early Access on September 13. The game is priced at $19.99 (£14.99 / €18.99). "For a long time I've been excited with how the game is evolving, I already feel there is nothing in the world like Godus," said Molyneux. "This is the type of game I have dreamt of making since first getting into the industry; having people play the beta and give us valuable feedback while doing so, makes that dream a reality." Godus was announced last year and successfully Kickstarted in December with £526,563 ($852K) in funding.
Peter Molyneux talks next-gen consoles, communal gaming and Oculus Rift
Fabled (and Fable) game designer Peter Molyneux has long been a visionary in the gaming world, and his most recent effort, the Kickstarted title known as Godus, has piqued our Curiosity. However, as a veteran of the console world, we jumped at the chance to get his take on next-gen along with an update on his own projects. Surprisingly, Molyneux wasn't particularly enthused with the new generation of consoles. Part of the problem, as he sees it, is that consoles are still too focused on the living room, while our digital lives are much more mobile -- which is why, in part, Godus is being built for laptops and phones first. "I wanted them [the consoles] to shock and surprise me" with new ways to integrate with mobile devices, he says, but the current mobile features feel like a "bolt-on" rather than an integral part of gameplay. Aside from all the next-gen talk, we got an update on the man who removed Curiosity's final block (he's just beginning to enjoy the fruits of godhood), and got his thoughts on Oculus Rift (spoiler: he's a fan). While words describing an interview are good, an actual interview is better -- this one awaits you after the break.
Curiosity's Godus prize is temporary
Scotland's Bryan Henderson may be the god of all gods in Godus, but for all his godliness his godly status isn't eternal. As revealed by 22 Cans' Peter Molyneux to Rock Paper Shotgun, Henderson, who won the Godus prize by discovering what was inside the Curosity cube, will dictate the god game's rules for something "approaching a year" after its release, as well as earn a portion of its income. After that time, developer 22 Cans will reveal how he can be usurped, and someone will indeed usurp him. Also, the length of Henderson's reign may depend on Kickstarter backers' impressions of the god game and how all this madness comes together throughout alpha and beta testing. "It didn't seem right to me that Bryan would be god of gods for all time," Molyneux told Rock Paper Shotgun. "It seems right to me that he has a period of time to be god of gods, and that can't just be a few days. It needs to be substantial. And in that time, many things could happen. And of course, the amount of physical money he gets depends on how successful the game is."
Curiosity ends; Winner will become Godus' god
We've been following the saga of 22Cans' Curiosity ever since it started last year, and after speeding up the project just recently, Peter Molyneux has announced via Twitter today that it's now done. The last cube has been tapped by a winner in Scotland named Bryan Henderson, and the prize is that Henderson will become the actual god of Godus, which is Molyneux's next game in the works. As you can hear in the winner's video, Henderson will get to help decide the rules of the game going forward, and there's a little monetary compensation as well: He'll get a cut of the proceeds whenever someone spends money in Godus. Thus ends the saga, then, of what's in the cube. Or maybe not -- the app is still live in the App Store, and the last cube currently is showing a Twitter search of the hashtag #whatsinthecube. 22Cans has finished its experiment, and while the cube didn't exactly become a mainstream phenomenon as Molyneux may have hoped, the project, we heard, was profitable, and considering that someone did reach the end, I'd call it a success. We'll have to wait and see what Godus looks like when finished, and then if Molyneux has any other social, experimental ideas like this in the works going forward.
