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Amazon will make a 'The Man in the High Castle' series
Philip K. Dick's imagination has been juicing TV series and movies since the early '60s, most famously inspiring Blade Runner, Total Recall and Minority Report. It should come as little surprise, therefore, to see that Amazon's pilot for Dick's The Man in the High Castle was the company's most watched pilot ever. As a consequence, the company will now commission a full series for its Netflix-esque Prime Instant Video. Of course, we just have to hope that the show is a little better than the last time someone adapted the author's work for TV -- 1999's deeply forgettable Total Recall 2070.
Employee reviews blast Carbine Studios management
Whenever you hear of a studio laying off 60 people, you have to think things aren't going well. Sometimes it's a matter of bad luck and circumstance, but sometimes it's a case of bad management and poor decisions. Current and former employees of Carbine Studios attribute it to the latter, with the company holding a 41% rating on Glassdoor.com as reported by The Escapist. The reviews uniformly emphasize that WildStar is an excellent game, but they also point out universal flaws with management, decision-making, and communication. Several employee reviews characterize the studio as a "boy's club" with only the top decision-makers given leeway. There are also criticisms of the studio's overall implementation of strategies and willingness to adapt. As the reviews come from both present and former employees, the negativity speaks to some underlying problems at the studio and certainly does little to alleviate the sense of general anxiety for players regarding the state of the game.
Comcast might start selling movies via its cable boxes, instead of just renting them
According to the infamous "people with knowledge of its plans," cable TV giant Comcast will move from renting video on-demand movies to selling them, in rumors reported by Reuters and The Wall Street Journal. Hollywood studios love pushing the digital sales of movies and have recently expanded efforts to release flicks early for purchase on internet services, weeks before they come out on disc. Any offering by Comcast will probably be similar to what's already out there from stores like iTunes, Walmart's Vudu and even Target, except that instead of just digital access through the Xfinity website and apps, viewers could watch movies right on their cable boxes as well. According to the WSJ, the offering will not be tied to other stores using Ultraviolet authentication, at least at first, so any digital collections will have to start fresh -- something that may not appeal to end users who could find access restricted if they switch service or move to a non-Comcast neighborhood. Verizon FiOS TV already sells movies to end users through Flex View, while Dish Network is mentioned as considering a similar move. One thing that could make Comcast's dive into movie sales more interesting however, is if it follows up on a 2011 patent dug up by Fierce Cable, describing a Groupon-style method of adjustable prices that lower if more people rent or purchase first-run movies while they're still in theaters. Unfortunately, what we'll probably see is just another video store indifferent clothing, but we'll know more once it's officially announced.
Rumor: BioWare San Francisco shuts down
According to GamesRadar's unnamed sources, BioWare San Francisco has reportedly been shut down as of today, resulting in the layoffs of 25-30 employees associated with the studio. The studio formerly known as EA2D was responsible for the Dragon Age Legends Facebook game and the browser-based Mirror's Edge 2D. While it was focused on developing mobile and social games, Electronic Arts found that handling development in the area was too expensive and has shut down operations. Our condolences to all those affected by this shutdown.
Baldur's Gate for iPad will be under $10, include multiplayer
Good news on that new version of Baldur's Gate that was just announced. Not only is it going to be released for under $10, but it'll also include multiplayer of some kind. What kind? Details are still fuzzy, but developer Beamdog says not only would it be crazy to sell it for more than $10, but there will also be some way to play with your friends, included. Here's hoping that's some real-time co-op gameplay, and not just competitive leaderboards. Though we won't turn down competitive leaderboards either, for that matter. And there's even more than that: The game's sequel, Baldur's Gate 2, is also coming to iPad even later on in the year. It's been a long time since we've seen these games, but if you're ready for a return to the D&D setting of the Baldur's Gate series (or are just interested in visiting for the first time), you're in for a treat.
Fox and Universal titles blocked from Apple TV's iCloud, HBO is the culprit
Another season, another reason for Cupertino to update its major product lines (hello new iPad!) and one particular hobby: Apple TV. The revamped box, now imbued with an ability to stream videos in 1080p, will allow users to download previous iTunes store purchases from the iCloud. But before you dive in and revisit those cinematic gems in full HD, bear in mind not every studio is on board. According to All Things D, titles from Fox and Universal's libraries won't be made available as they're currently locked within an exclusive release window with HBO. For the pay cabler's part, a company exec has hinted that a resolution could be forthcoming, although no specific time frame for that peace-making play was specified. It's a down note to an otherwise exciting day in the land of Cupertino, but hey, at least we still have that $99 price point to keep our frustrations in check.
Spacetime Studios' games hit 100 million play sessions
Spacetime Studios has hit a pretty crazy milestone, even in the ever-more-massive world of iOS and mobile gaming. The company's MMOs on the iPhone, Android, and Chrome platforms have hit a total of 100 million play sessions, which means people have loaded up and logged into Spacetime's titles more than 100 million times. They're not just checking them out, either: Spacetime says their players are in the game for 25.2 hours a month, which is twice as much as the average gamer plays total. Pretty amazing. I've said this before, too, but Spacetime really has done all of this way under the radar. The company was originally set to make full MMOs for PC, but after running out of funding, had to spin its scope back down to the mobile platforms. That hasn't stopped Spacetime from creating full massively multiplayer online games, though, first with Pocket Legends, then with Star Legends, and now the company is planning a vampire-themed take on the forumla with Dark Legends. Spacetime has seen some serious growth, and I'd guess it's far from over. We'll be talking to the company at next month's GDC conference, so stay tuned for more from them then. Show full PR text Spacetime's Legends Mobile MMO Franchise Surpasses 100 Million Play Sessions AUSTIN, Texas – Feb. 9, 2012 – Spacetime Studios' mobile MMOs Pocket Legends and Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles have been played more than 100 million times. Spacetime players spend about twice the number of hours playing Legends titles than the average gamer spends across all mobile games each month. Users with iPhones play games for 14.7 hours per month while Android users play around 9.3 hours per month according to Nielsen research. The average Spacetime player spends 25.2 hours per month playing Legends titles alone. Since the inception of Spacetime Studios, the primary focus has been to bring the immersive MMO experience traditionally found on the PC to the mobile world in meaningful, bite-sized play sessions. "MMO games by their nature are more engaging and involved than most genres, but making that work in the mobile world is very delicate balancing act," said Cinco Barnes, Chief Vision Officer and co-founder, Spacetime Studios. "With each launch of a Legends title we make it our mission to innovate and it has become the largest, most successful mobile MMO franchise in the world." Spacetime Studios has continually expanded the Legends franchise since the advent of Pocket Legends and its rich fantasy world in 2010. The second title and sci-fi adventure, Star Legends: The Blackstar Chronicles was made commercially available in 2011. The third entry in the franchise, vampire-themed Dark Legends, will be released in the first quarter of 2012.
iTunes Replay launch reportedly still far off
We've heard before that Apple may be working on a service for iTunes called "Replay," sort of a Netflix Watch Instantly-style service that lets you download and stream any movies or TV shows that you've purchased from iTunes. Obviously, with the iCloud infrastructure in place (and iTunes Match already announced and on the way out), it's not too big a stretch to see that actually happening. But if such a deal is underway, the latest reports say it won't be available for a while. CNET says it has been poking around film studios about such a deal, and at least six different major studios have yet to sign agreements for a service like this. Apple has indeed been trying to chase down agreements that would allow customers to stream purchased movies any time, but those agreements aren't done deals, and they'll need to be before this thing gets off the ground. The biggest sticking point seems to be a few older agreements with HBO and streaming service UltraViolet, which allow for some exclusive periods where only those companies can host digital downloads. Apple is probably willing to pay to unlock those periods, but studios aren't in any position to make deals happen fast -- they'd rather see demand (and thus prices) go up. At any rate, if Apple does want to make iTunes Replay happen, it still has at least one tough nut to crack here. [via iPodNN]
Captain's Log: To boldly go where... Perfect World has never gone before?
Captain's Log, Stardate 64918.1... Hello, computer (and players)! Isn't it amazing how the MMO gaming world works? One week you might be ecstatic about the planned updates for your favorite game, and the next week you are wondering if that same game is even going to last another day. Like many other Star Trek Online players, I was in this boat just last week. When Atari announced that it was going to be divesting interest in Cryptic, many players initially went into panic mode. But as I stated in my entry last week, I strongly felt that things were going to turn out just fine, possibly for the better -- and they definitely have. Earlier this week, Perfect World Entertainment announced that it would acquire a 100% equity stake from Atari, with Cryptic Studios remaining as the sole shareholder. Made famous for its free-to-play games, including Perfect World International, Pocketpet Journey West, and Forsaken World, Perfect World has the potential to help STO continue to grow. While the new owners are very excited at the opportunity to utilize the engine Cryptic is famous for, they are also excited at the fact that Champions Online uses the free-to-play business model. Oh dear -- here we go again. Ensign, warp 10! Everything is going to be OK and here's why...
Captain's Log: The breakup
Captain's Log, Stardate 64903.4... Hello, computer (and players)! When most relationships come to an end, the dumpee can often feel a sense of abandonment. As Star Trek Online players, we are currently feeling something similar after the announcement that Atari is "parting" ways with Cryptic. As we noted last week, Atari announced during its May earnings report that Cryptic is a now "discontinued operation," which leaves us pondering what will become of the game we are so passionate about. In an attempt to counter the rumors flying on the internet, I spoke with Cryptic's PR team and can confirm that that there is no official press release yet and there are no comments that have been or can be made by Cryptic. So all the rumors out there about what is going on are currently just that... rumors. All we know right now is that Atari is planning on putting Cryptic Studios up for sale. With that said, and rumors aside, I would like to share some of my thoughts, explore the feelings of the playerbase, clear up some misconceptions, and explain why this could actually be the best thing to happen to STO. Ensign, warp 10! There is no looking back now...
Lionsgate, Studiocanal to distribute Miramax movies, Pulp Fiction Blu-ray coming in June
Lionsgate and Studiocanal have signed a deal with Miramax to distribute its library of movies around the world, with Lionsgate handling things in the US while Studiocanal takes over the UK and Europe. Most specifically, Miramax CEO Mike Lang reveals in a blog posting that the first three Scream movies will be rereleased when Scream 4 comes to theaters in April, and the long awaited Pulp Fiction Blu-ray will finally be released in the US in June. All the rest of the details are in the press release after the break, check the blog post for more of his thoughts on DVD extras and the future of digital delivery -- Ultraviolet isn't mentioned by name, but clearly he thinks the digital locker concept is the future of video.
Doodle Jump makes deal with Universal, gets movie tie-in
Here's an interesting story out of Macworld this week. Doodle Jump, recently featured as the Top Paid App of all time, is going to Hollywood, but not quite in the way you might think. Rather than a Doodle Jump movie, the movies are instead coming to Doodle Jump, as Universal has announced a deal to put the main character of its upcoming film, Hop, in the popular iOS game as a promotional download. The movie comes out April 1, but in February, Doodle Jump will get an Easter-related level, with the official Universal character in the app as a bonus. Sure, it's probably not the most exciting iOS tie-in -- the film was directed by the same guy who did the recent Alvin and the Chimpmunks movies, and unless you brought kids, it wasn't much to write home about (and even then, we hear it wasn't all that great). But still, this is an iOS title that's making a major deal with a Hollywood studio -- very impressive for the folks over at Lima Sky, and it's probably an indication that we'll see more collaboration between indie iOS developers and other forms of entertainment in the future.
iMovie blocks studio names in new trailers
Perhaps its testament to the quality of the iMovie '11 trailers that Apple is blocking the use of big name studios in the titles. Ironic since Apple provides templates that ape the Paramount snow-capped mountain (pictured after the break) and familiar Universal Studios globe. Just don't try to enter those studio names into the title sequence -- the words "Paramount" and "Universal" will be replaced with hyphens. We suspect other studios are affected as well. Hard to say if this is Apple's doing or the studios as both are notoriously controlling. We'd laugh if only we could stop crying.
Activision and EA trade barbs over corporate cultures
Activision's Bobby Kotick and EA's Jeff Brown engaged in a little Battlefield of Duty: Corporate Warfare 2 match this week, lobbing sound bites back and forth at each other. Kotick was first, boasting in the latest issue of Edge (via Next-Gen.biz) that his company allows its studios to maintain their independent cultures; citing Treyarch, the embattled Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games as examples. Kotick suggested that EA doesn't offer this luxury, and that's why Activision has successfully hired developers from its competitor's ranks. "We have no shortage of opportunity to recruit out of EA," he said. "That's their biggest challenge: Its stock options have no value. It's lost its way." Of course, Brown, EA's corp comm VP, was quick to respond: "[Kotick's] company is based on three game franchises -- one is a fantastic persistent world he had nothing to do with; one is in steep decline; and the third is in the process of being destroyed by Kotick's own hubris." Though Brown didn't clarify which franchises he was referring to, we'll throw out three names for you -- and you can play the matching game! Here goes: Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and World of Warcraft. The two suits probably had more to say to each other, but at that point the other players muted them both, and a few seconds later the actual match started up.
Blizzard, NCsoft talent form developer En Masse Entertainment
The MMO industry, despite some setbacks over the past year or so, has been growing at a steady rate for some time and doesn't show much sign of slowing. It's hard to argue that two of the most influential companies in that success have been Blizzard Entertainment and NCsoft, with the former keeping a stable of several successful games and the latter running a game well-known enough to not need a mention. So when staffers from both companies join up to form a new development studio, it's worth paying some attention to what the company is doing. En Masse Entertainment, as reported by our sister site Joystiq, has just announced their formation as a company. Their staff includes talent from the aforementioned studios as well as Microsoft, ArenaNet, and Electronic Arts. According to the official press release, their first project is bringing the Korean MMORPG TERA to western audiences -- which might sound like another free-to-play game coming over until you note both the stunning visuals and the fact that it's slated to be a subscription model "like other triple-A titles." We'll be keeping a close eye on the new studio -- it could be a combination that produces some interesting results.
Ray Muzyka: Bioware producing a lot of content, more to come at E3
Bioware's Ray Muzyka has been spilling some Bio-beans over on Eurogamer today. In the public interview, he says that while there is both PDLC (the "P" stands for "Premium") being developed for Mass Effect 2 and expansion content planned for Dragon Age: Origins, most of the core team for the sci-fi series has already started working on the as-yet-unannounced Mass Effect 3. He does promise that there's been a vision from the beginning and that the vision has been tweaked and changed as the games are coming along, so hopefully the trilogy will lead to a worthwhile conclusion. He also hints that there's lots more to see coming from Bioware -- Muzyka is working on both PS3 and 360 titles (some still secret) "across the studios I manage," and of course The Old Republic, which he describes as "KotOR 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 in one project," is in development as well. And at the very end of the interview, to a question about what we can expect at this year's E3, he only answers a cryptic, "Yes!" Maybe Muzyka should have been in charge of the dialog trees in Dragon Age; the game would have been a lot shorter. [via NeoGAF]
BVA, movie studios spending a few quid to push Blu-ray
Looks like the British Video Association is looking to push those impressive percentage gains it keeps touting even higher. It's joining forces with the major Hollywood studios on a million pound (only a million (($1.6 million)? well, we are in a recession) ad campaign pushing the "benefits of Blu-ray" on flicks like Terminator Salvation, Inglorious Basterds, Snow White and other high profile titles due this holiday season. The Hollywood Reporter says the plan to broadcast TV spots across all major channels throughout November and December should bring the message that Blu-ray is the best way to enjoy films at home, we just hope someone sits down Peter Bradshaw and indoctrinates him.
iQuarterback 1.1 from former Ensemble Studios devs
The folks at FuzzyCube Software dropped us a note that their first game, iQuarterback, is in the App Store now, and it looks all right -- rather than actually quarterback a game, you mostly just try to hit passing targets. And while the game is pretty barebones right now (it's only 99 cents, and they're planning to add new modes to it in the next version), the most interesting thing about the game isn't what it is, but who's making it: the guys behind FuzzyCube are a few refugees from Ensemble Studios, the legendary developer of Age of Empires that got shut down by Microsoft on the eve of their recent Halo Wars release.Now that's interesting -- a big time studio forced to close by their corporate overlords is finding new life in iPhone development (FuzzyCube isn't the only studio to come out of the Ensemble breakup -- Robot Entertainment, Bonfire Studios, and Windstorm Studios are all being started by ex-Ensemble employees right now, though FuzzyCube is the only group to have released a game so far). Lots of game developers are facing a crunch right now, and with the iPhone easy and cheap to develop for, we might see even more of these former larger game devs turn to the smaller screen.Update: My apologies to the folks at Newtoy -- they are apparently the first Ensemble refugees to have released an iPhone game, dropping Chess with Friends in the App Store last December. But the point stands: bigger studios who've been asked to dissolve can seemingly find a nice place developing for the iPhone.
Universal, Fox and Summit close VOD-DVD release gap
About two months after a Lionsgate executive spoke out about the phenomenon of day-and-date DVD / VOD releases, and merely days after we heard that digital distribution wasn't expected to overtake packaged media in the near term comes this. Universal, Fox and Summit have all pledged to close or eliminate entirely the gap between when a title is shipped on DVD and when it's available in on-demand form via iTunes or programming providers. At least with some titles, that is. The move is supposedly being made in order to take advantage of the growing thirst for instant gratification when it comes to films, and rather than getting left behind, these three are choosing to adapt to changing customer desires. Not surprisingly, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is still sticking to a 30 day (or so) delay before it releases a title to VOD, but considering its Q4 figures, it might want to consider hopping on the bandwagon.
Digital Copy becoming more prevalent on Blu-ray Discs
Is it any wonder that Blu-ray Disc buyers are taking advantage of Digital Copy more frequently than ever? According to a recent writeup at TWICE, it's becoming even easier to find 'em. Today, a grand total of 52 BDs, practically all from seven major studios, are available with Digital Copy versions of the movie for playback on portable media players and computers. Unfortunately, the total of Digital Copy-enabled DVDs wasn't available to compare, but we are told that Warner Home Video is leading the charge on the Blu side with 19 Digital Copy-equipped Blu-ray Discs. As for the other guys, Lionsgate and Universal offer eight apiece, while Disney offers up three with a fourth coming in February. So, have you taken advantage of Digital Copy on the BD flicks that you've purchased?
