transformers war for cybertron
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Netflix's first 'Transformers' teaser reveals a hopeless war
Netflix has posted the first teaser trailer for its Transformers animated series, and it's now clear just how the service will take on the robots' origins. The clip for the first part of the War For Cybertron trilogy, Siege, portrays the Autobots fighting a seemingly hopeless war to prevent the Decepticons from finding the Allspark (the source of the machines' power) and destroying the essence of what the Transformers are. It's not the most complex narrative, although it's surprisingly bleak for kids' fare. It even draws eerie parallels with human politics by having Megatron spin the Autobots' efforts as "aggression."
Direct2Drive cuts select Activision game prices in half this weekend
Whether your interests include futuristic technology, automobiles or futuristic technology that can turn into automobiles, Direct2Drive's got your back this weekend. The site's offering Blur, Singularity and Transformers: War for Cybertron for half-off starting today at 10 a.m. PDT.
Transformers: War for Cybertron 2 confirmed for 2012
Transformers: War for Cybertron was surprisingly ... well, good. In fact, it was so good that there are plans for a follow-up. "This is the most highly-rated, critical success of any game that's had the Hasbro brand yet," Mark Blecher, SVP and General Manager of Digital Media & Gaming, said during an investors call earlier this week, according to IGN. "We're looking forward to a sequel in 2012." The 2012 date makes it likely to be a different game than the previously-teased release for 2011. Considering Activision's penchant for annualized franchises, we're not particularly surprised. [Thanks, Shockwave!]
War for Cybertron DLC adds Zeta Prime, Dead End, new maps
Autobots and Decepticons have some new playmates thanks to new Transformers: War for Cybertron DLC. It's available today for 800 MSP and $9.99 on Xbox and PS3 respectively. Keep reading for full details, screens and a trailer of the new content in action.
Transformers: War for Cybertron offers double XP this weekend
Transformers: War for Cybertron developer High Moon Studios is offering two distinct ways to accrue extra experience through the game this weekend. The first is by doubling all XP players earn in the game's multiplayer component from tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET until Monday at 3 a.m. ET.
Transformers: War for Cybertron DLC rolls out next week
If you lamented the limited availability of the retailer-exclusive Transformers: War for Cybertron characters, or if you simply want more War for Cybertron, you'll soon be able to solve both problems, using only the power of a small amount of money. Next week's Map and Character Pack will include former pre-order bonus characters Shockwave, Demolishor, and Jazz, as well as new characters Scattershot and Onslaught, playable in Escalation mode, and with playable chassis in multiplayer. The pack will also come with four new maps: District and Forsaken for Escalation mode, and Havok and Fortress for multiplayer.%Gallery-98009%
UK charts: Harry Potter casts Chartium Supremus on Red Dead
If you're wondering what it would take to best Rockstar's dust-em-up, Red Dead Redemption, in a battle for UK chart supremacy, it would seem it only takes a wizard -- a blocky, mute interpretation of the nation's own Harry Potter. It only makes sense that Lego Harry Potter: Years 1–4 would debut at the top spot. Isn't he like the UK's Prime Minister now? The boy with a scarred forehead has pushed nearly everyone down a spot from last week: Red Dead Redemption has fallen to second, while Super Mario Galaxy 2 now takes up third. Also of note are strong UK debuts of several games, including Naughty Bear, Demon's Souls and Transformers: War for Cybertron. Find the complete top ten sales breakdown posted after the break.
Review: Transformers: War for Cybertron
It's practically become a cliché at this point: If you want to make a good licensed game, don't base it on anything -- not a specific movie, TV show or ringtone. By being engineered from the ground up to work as games, releases like Spider-Man: Web of Shadows and Batman: Arkham Asylum managed to each be the best in their respective breed, unhindered by timed releases and narratives fluffed up to match a two-hour cinematic story. Transformers: War for Cybertron not only proves this new paradigm, it surpasses it, serving up the best use of the license since Beast Wars went off the air more than a decade ago. %Gallery-92293%
Transformers: War for Cybertron trailer hearkens back to simpler, robot dinosaur times
Here's another trailer for the upcoming Transformers: War for Cybertron. This one has a good look at in-game boss Trypticon, a gigantic beast that can transform from a full-sized mobile battle station into a robotic T-Rex. In other words, it's just like the piece of plastic that you spent a good half hour unsuccessfully begging your parents for, only to get to school the next day and discover that your friend Jimmy already had one. That Jimmy, he always had all the good toys. What a jerk. Of course, twenty-something years later, he's now managing a Walgreens and you're blogging about video games! Who's got the awesome plastic toy now, Jimmy?
Watch War For Cybertron's multiplayer customization
You may have heard about the multiplayer customization features in Transformers: War for Cybertron, but now, thanks to the video above, you can actually see them in action. Before you ask, no, you can't create your dream Transformer that transforms from a Lamborghini into a totally sweet dragon. Instead, War for Cybertron allows players to select a character class and then customize that character with several different abilities. And, as we discovered during our reason hands-on session with the game, it's actually pretty fun.
Interview: Matt Tieger of High Moon Studios on Transformers: War for Cybertron
High Moon Studios' Matt Tieger, director of Transformers: War for Cybertron, says his game is influenced by the movies -- but not just those directed by Michael Bay and starring CGI robots. Instead, Tieger pointed to Sam Raimi and a certain webslinger as big influences for his upcoming release, as he spoke to a group of press during a recent preview of the game at the studio's offices in Carlsbad, Calif. Tieger says that even though his team is creating a licensed Transformers game, he wants it to be like the first Spiderman film in that it appeals to three audiences: folks who just want a good action ride; brand fans, who want to be reminded of what they liked about the universe as kids; and hardcore fans, who will get every single reference and inside joke -- he wants to "smash you in the face with nostalgia." Following his presentation and a hands-on preview of the game, I chatted with Tieger about War for Cybertron and what game he would "love, love, love" to make next: Joystiq: So what was the pitch behind this game? What was the impetus behind a game like this? Matt Tieger: Well, we knew that Activision came to us and said, "We think you guys are a good fit for a Transformers game." Based on our sensibilities for some things that we had done before, we had done some prototypes, and they thought we were a good match. And we had lots of Unreal Engine experience. And they wanted to make a non-movie based Transformers game. So they asked, "What do you want to do," basically, within the confines of that. And we came up with a plan, and redesigned a bunch of characters and then started talking to Hasbro.
Hands-on: Transformers: War for Cybertron
Transformers: War for Cybertron is a game that hopes to survive its license. Following a few, ahem, questionable blockbuster movies and a universe continually littered with brand cash-ins, High Moon Studios has the somewhat unenviable job of trying to make a game worth playing out of a brand that seems to have its best days behind it. There's nothing wrong with the idea of Transformers -- you know, gigantic, transforming robots at war. With War for Cybertron, High Moon Studios is attempting to recreate that intriguing premise as an Unreal Engine-based third-person shooter. I played through several single-player and multiplayer levels of the game during a recent press event at High Moon Studios' offices in Carlsbad, Calif., and it was apparent that the developer has brought all of its Unreal experience to the fore. There are some very cool gameplay ideas at play that should make for an entertaining romp, especially when experienced with a friend or two. (Hey, if a 50 Cent game can pull it off ... ) %Gallery-92293%
Transformers: War for Cybertron video shows Jazz, Demolishor and Shockwave in action
Joystiq would never condone violence; however, when it comes to robot-on-robot violence, we're all for it. It's not like they can feel anything, right? So we'd like to bring your attention to some pre-order bonuses for High Moon Studios' upcoming not-a-movie-game Transformers: War for Cybertron. Should you decide to enlist in the robo-wars early, you can nab yourself an exclusive character: Jazz, if you pre-order through Best Buy, Demolishor, should you go through Amazon, and Shockwave, if you go the GameStop route. Check out a video of Demolishor above and be sure to head past the break to catch a glimpse of the other two.
Two more Transformers join the War for Cybertron
Click for more pictures to meet the eyeIn Transformers: War for Cybertron's multiplayer mode, you can make your own characters, with cool Transformer names like, uh, Robot ... guy, and Metal ... punching ... bot. We're not good at naming Transformers, apparently. But the single-player game is full of classic characters reinterpreted for their pre-Earth, pre-Earth-technology appearances. The latest characters to be revealed for the game are Autobot Ironhide, who is best known for transforming into a truck and being old, and Decepticon Skywarp, a jet who could teleport in the classic Transformers series, and now has cloaking technology instead. That makes more sense, actually -- why would you need to transform into a jet if you could teleport? Both characters will be playable in the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC versions of War for Cybertron, out June 22. %Gallery-91441%
Create a Transformer in War for Cybertron's multiplayer
Since Transformers: War for Cybertron takes place before the robots made it to Earth, they all look like weird alien robots in this game instead of weird alien robots that are half truck. That freedom from real-world machinery means leeway in character design, which then translates to character customization. What we're saying is that you can make your own Transformer in this game. In this trailer, see the four different classes available in War for Cybertron's multiplayer mode. Even though the "turning into fighter jets" bit is out in favor of turning into space tanks and other fictional vehicles, the other main linchpin of the Transformers franchise is fully intact: robots fighting constantly. Transformers: War for Cybertron meets the eye (and the shelf) June 22.
Transformers: War for Cybertron pre-order includes Shockwave or Demolishor
Click to transform into gallery Playable versions of Decepticons Shockwave and Demolisher are part of Activision's pre-order bonuses for Transformers: War for Cybertron. Squishy humans who pre-order through Amazon will receive an unlock code for Demolishor, while GameStop customers receive a code for Megatron's cold and calculating companion, Shockwave. (Sorry, Amazon, there's just no competition here.) The bonus codes are available for the Xbox 360 and PS3 deployments of the game. Wii's Transformers: Cybertron Adventures currently has no announced pre-order bonus. %Gallery-89867%
War for Cybertron dubbed 'Transformers: Cybertron Adventures' for Wii
After popping up on the ESRB and OFLC rating websites, a game called "Transformers: Cybertron Adventures" for Wii led some to wonder whether it was a new, unannounced game. An Activision representative tells Joystiq that it's "the Wii version" of the company's upcoming Transformers: War for Cyberton on PS3 and Xbox 360. The DS version of War for Cybertron, which comes in two versions with Autobot and Decepticon campaigns, still maintains the less family-friendly title. So, Wii owners can expect "adventures" with the Transformers this summer, as high-def consoles prepare for "war."
Impressions: Transformers: War for Cybertron
Remember those other awful Activision Transformers games based (in some part) on the Michael Bay movies? No? Good, let's work from there. Transformers: War for Cybertron, developed by High Moon Studios (The Bourne Conspiracy, Darkwatch), takes its inspiration from the G1 universe of the '80s cartoon. Actually, that's not entirely accurate. It's more like what the new J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie is to the original. The characters are the same, their motivations are similar; however everything has a whole new (in this case, literal) paint job. Lead Designer Matt Tieger tells us the game presents "nothing that violates your expectations" and the studio worked closely with Hasbro to stay true to the original idea of the Transformers ... speaking of the original idea of Transformers, there will also be action figures based on the game's interpretations of the characters. In War for Cybertron, players participate in two campaigns, one following the righteous Autobots and the other shadows the misunderstood Decepticons. Both campaigns take place on the Transformer home planet of Cybertron and, as Tieger puts it, "Ends up with them having no place to go." Each campaign features three-player online (no offline or "couch") co-op. For the Autobots, the level we saw featured Optimus (not a Prime, yet) and Bumblebee meeting for the first time, and rolling along in the always awkward "third wheel" spot was Ratchet. The Decepticons included Starscream, Thundercracker, Skywarp, Soundwave and Megatron. Of course, in both cases, there are several more playable characters. For fans of the original series, many of the voices will sound wrong -- sadly, in some very important instances, the cartoon's original voice actors have passed away. %Gallery-86611%
Transformers: War for Cybertron media brings the fight home
The upcoming Transformers: War for Cybertron seems determined to impress with its rendition of the titular transforming robots' home world, Cybertron. But see, there's one crucial mistake made by the game, one that hasn't been entirely evident until now: No matter what planet he's on, no matter where he is, Optimus Prime is only allowed to transform into a truck and not Tim Burton's version of the Batmobile from 1989. Well, okay, we lied -- we'll also accept Optimus in gorilla form, too. After you've checked out the trailer above, be sure to morph into our gallery below, which is packed with a bunch of new screens from the upcoming robo-brawler. %Gallery-86611%
Activision: Transformers: War for Cybertron due in May, Singularity in June [Update]
After narrowly escaping Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's impact crater in late 2009, Raven Software's tardy, time-bending first-person shooter, Singularity, finally appears to have settled on a new ETA. Speaking in an investor conference call following the release of the company's latest financial results, Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith mentioned that both Singularity and star vehicle / vehicle star Transformers: War for Cybertron were due some time in May 2010. [Update: Activision's Dan Amrich has an updated release timeframe for Singularity, confirming a June release.] If neither of those appeal to you, Shrek Forever After: The Game is also set to release during the same month. But ... really? You don't like transforming robots or time-distorting techno-gloves? What if the robots were wearing the gloves?
