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Assassin's Creed director's next game is 'historical action'
Former Assassin's Creed series Creative Director Patrice Desilets discussed the direction of his upcoming game this week. The game will be of the third-person, "historical-action-survival" variety, as noted in a press release found after the break. Desilets launched Panache Digital Games just over one month ago, a Montreal-based studio consisting of "industry veterans that got together to tell stories that we feel are original and cool," according to the developer's website. "Indeed AAA Games, I believe in them," Desilets added. "I believe wholeheartedly that this medium we call 'video games' can be a positive force for change in our society and that AAA quality gaming experiences have unmatched strength to achieve this." The statement complements Panache's mission, per its website: "We make AAA quality third-person action-adventure games, with a narrative twist. We're not a 'me-too' company. We don't do trendy game models or content." To thank "first and beloved supporters" that showed immediate interest in Panache's ambitions, Desilets said the team decided to give those fans a "full copy" of its next game. "Let's call it a free to play game that's not a 'free-to-play' game," he added. Desilets was let go by Ubisoft in May 2013, marking his second departure from the company. The Assassin's Creed director first left the publisher in June 2010 to take a "creative break from the industry" before joining THQ Montreal one year later, following the expiration of the non-compete clause in his contract. THQ Montreal was acquired by Ubisoft in January 2013 along with Desilets' project at the time, 1666. Just two months after Desilets officially re-joined Ubisoft, the publisher suspended development on 1666. He filed a lawsuit against Ubisoft in June 2013 with the option to acquire the rights to the game. [Image: Panache Digital Games]
Sons of Anarchy creator says first-person game will 'definitely' happen
Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter says the video game based on the show is back on. Sutter tweeted that while he can't provide any other details, "there will definitely be an SOA GAME," adding his own qualifier that "it's pretty fucking awesome." He did note that the game will be a first-person, action-adventure game with HD graphics and will represent "the evolution of gaming." Sutter first announced plans to bring the property to the gaming world in February 2012, initially planning a browser-based game before deciding later in May to create a "real, console-based" experience. The Sons of Anarchy game stalled out in August 2012 when Sutter revealed that it was getting no traction and its "big publisher" pulled out of the project. [Image: FX]
Witch and the Hundred Knight screens show brawls, fine dining
The Witch and the Hundred Knight won't reach US PS3s until March 25, but some new screens can help give you an idea of what you'll be getting into. More specifically, it appears players can eat literal garbage between bouts of chopping up enemies and raiding houses.
PSA: Dust: An Elysian Tail explores Steam today
As promised, Dust: An Elysian Tail has found its way to Steam today. Until May 31, you can grab Dust for $13.50, ten percent off its usual $15 asking price. The action-adventure RPG from Humble Heart made its debut on Xbox Live Arcade back in August as part of the Summer of Arcade promotion. Despite how vast Dust: An Elysian Tail is, it's actually missing a third of its intended story, which was cut due to the months of extra time it would've taken to finalize the larger vision. Even with the omitted content, Dust: An Elysian Tail turned out to be a fine game.
Everplay Interactive plans a solid lineup this year
Developer Kris Jones started out his iOS game design career at a company called Thunder Game Works, which made a popular early App Store game called Trenches before the company connected up with EA as a publisher. These days, Jones runs his own studio of twelve people called Everplay Interactive, and they've created some really great games for iOS, including Spell Sword (one of my favorites), Free 2 Die, and the simple but devious 1001 Attempts. Jones met up with me at GDC last week to chat about what he's working on now, and he and Everplay have a full plate of different titles incoming. Ace of Blades is probably the highest profile release he's working on: It's a Spell Sword followup that turns the original arena-based survival game into a full action adventure title. Ace of Blades has you exploring a 2D platforming world, fighting new enemies and facing down puzzles, as you collect a number (probably four, says Jones, but that may change) of blades with different magical abilities. Ace of Blades looks very impressive -- Jones admits that he and his team did "bite off a lot," as obviously a full action platformer game takes much more content than Spell Sword's more focused arena levels. But the title does look excellent, and it should answer a lot of the requests fans have sent Everplay about being able to explore the world that Spell Sword hinted at. Ace of Blades is due out sometime later this year, probably around May or June, according to Jones. Before that, Everplay has another game called Lumber Jacked, arriving later on this week. Lumber Jacked is a more hardcore speedrun platformer, similar to (though even a little tougher than) the excellent games Mikey Shorts or League of Evil. You play a lumberjack (obviously) who can punch and jump his way through a series of levels, aiming for the fastest time possible. We'll have a closer look at Lumber Jacked when it arrives this week. And finally, Jones showed me one more game Everplay is working on, called (at least tentatively) Bill Killem. The name is obviously a joke on Duke Nukem, and the game is somewhat similar to Duke's early 2D adventures, with one major difference: It's endless. With the world ending in the background Canabalt-style, Bill Killem runs along a 2D foreground, jumping gaps and shooting enemies as quickly as he can. There's an explosion chasing Bill the whole time, but grabbing collectible items in the environment will keep that explosion back and allow you to keep playing (similar to crossing through checkpoints in older racing games). This title is relatively early in development, still -- we'll probably see it out sometime after Ace of Blades, says Jones. It seems like fun, and Jones says it might be free-to-play as well. Most of Everplay's titles are releasing at a premium price of 99 cents, so Bill Killem (if that's what it's called) might be an interesting experiment. All three of these games look like solid titles. We'll look forward to seeing all of these games and anything else Everplay is putting together for the rest of 2013.
LucasArts hiring for FPS, aerial combat, action/adventure games
On top of last month's outed job listing for an open-world RPG, LucasArts is now hiring for a first-person shooter, an aerial combat game and an action/adventure game. GameSpot noticed the listings, which call for a level designer for a FPS title, a senior gameplay engineer for the aerial combat game and a producer for an action/adventure title. LucasArts sure seems busy these days! The aerial combat game seems like a no-brainer -- LucasArts has a stable of Star Wars aerial combat games it could pull from, so that's our guess considering the position emphasizes a familiarity with "space-based shooters." The other two require even more speculation ... and we certainly wouldn't mind seeing another Republic Commando game.
Sledgehammer's action-adventure Call of Duty isn't dead yet
Sledgehammer Games is currently hard at work on Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, in conjunction with Infinity Ward. But what of the game Sledgehammer was originally supposed to have been working on, the one meant to "extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre?" Well, Sledgehammer isn't working on it now, but it may put its momentum back into that project following MW3, if Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg's feelings are any indication. "Right now Sledgehammer's 100% focused on Modern Warfare 3," Hirshberg told IndustryGamers. "We haven't announced the future slate or future plans for the studio. They were originally working on an extension of the Call of Duty franchise into an action/adventure genre and that's a game I still want to play." His personal interest in playing it may not be enough to get Sledgehammer focused 100 percent on the action-adventure project, however; when asked if the genre change was a good idea, Hirshberg said only that "it remains to be seen."
God of War: Ghost of Sparta review: This Spartan stands tall
The past 12 months have been very good to fans of the God of War franchise. Nearly a year ago, we got HD versions of the original PS2 game and its sequel, followed by the excellent God of War III for PS3. Then came the revelation that Ready At Dawn, developer of the knockout God of War: Chains of Olympus for PSP, was returning to the system with a brand new entry, God of War: Ghost of Sparta. As great as Chains of Olympus had been, the idea that a portable God of War could satisfy after the epic PS3 iteration seemed, well, like it would take an act of ... gods. It's a good thing, then, that Ready At Dawn clearly drew on some otherworldly powers in creating Ghost of Sparta: a game that upholds the standard of quality in gameplay, storytelling and sheer wow factor of the series, while also -- like Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker before it -- blurring the lines between portable and console experiences with its amazing presentation.%Gallery-92258%
Surprise! Atlus's 'Catherine' is really bizarre [update: now with trailer]
If you thought you knew what to expect from Catherine, the HD debut from Atlus's Persona team, you were probably wrong. The first screenshots of the action-adventure game for grown-ups are equal parts cheesecake and nightmare. Main character Vincent is first seen dining with the beautiful Catherine, and then, um, walking around some kind of labyrinth in his underwear, gradually turning into a sheep. He is told he has to endlessly climb the stairs of this nightmare world in order to avoid death. Famitsu indicates that the "action" in this action-adventure takes place in this nightmare world. We expect to see those sheep creatures in our own nightmares soon enough. Update: Famitsu posted a trailer for the game, which you can see after the break. It's NSFW-ish! And, again, strange.
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West set free from its bounds in October
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West will bring its post-apocalyptic action to retail in October, according to the E3 trailer released today by publisher Namco Bandai. But release date news isn't all the trailer has to offer! It's loaded with melodrama, suspense and lots of action, as Goku and Bulma Monkey and Trip try to navigate a perilous future version of New York. There's even a guy with some Borg-style junk on his face! That's how you know it's the future! Well, that and the mechs, which seem to really freak Trip out. %Gallery-91853%
Fable 3 dev diary reveals Jasper the butler, played by John Cleese
We can't imagine anybody being a better butler than John Cleese. It's not that we've always pictured a life of indentured servitude for the man -- we're just excited by the prospect of hanging out with him in Fable 3. After you've seen this latest Lionhead dev diary, you'll wish you had your own, luxurious Jasper immediately. Oh, there's also talk of the game's new 3D graphical interface -- but is that played by John Cleese? We thought not.
Sledgehammer Games working on Call of Duty game
When Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey left Visceral Games to form Sledgehammer Games with Activision, you may have jokingly speculated that the Dead Space creators set to work immediately on Call of Duty. After all, it was either that or Guitar Hero. You would have been correct. Activision today revealed that Sledgehammer is working on a Call of Duty game with a targeted 2011 release date, which will "extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre." No other details were released about the game, but it sounds more like a spinoff than a sequel. Third person, perhaps?
Swag Sunday: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers (Wii) [update]
Update: We've chosen a winner, closed the comments, and started the ceremonial "choose a winner" dance. We'll have an email out to them shortly, so check those inboxes! We're no strangers to the occasional strange Wii game giveaway here at Joystiq, but you must understand that someone needs to find a loving home for these niche gems. We have to imagine that, somewhere, there's a Wii-owning airship pilot to-be aching for their chance to shine. That time is now! For a chance to win one copy of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers, all you have to do is tell us what you would name your very own airship (an explanation of 'why' would be nice too). As is always the case, please keep it clean and keep your eye on your email over the next few days to see if you've won. You've got 24 hours, folks -- get to it! Leave a comment telling us what you would name your very own airship (an explanation of 'why' would be nice too). You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec, partially based on our feelings about the Battle of Quebec in 1775). Limit 1 entry per person per day. This entry period ends at 5:31PM ET on Monday, February 15. At that time, we'll randomly select one winner to receive one copy of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers for Nintendo Wii ($49.99 ARV). For a list of complete rules, click here. %Gallery-70584% What is Joyswag? Since we don't keep the games and merchandise we receive for review or promotional purposes, it becomes "Joyswag," which is passed along to our readers. Please note that Joyswag may be in "used" condition. For more info on our policy, click here.
Snap Judgment: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
When we review a game without finishing it, we call it a Snap Judgment. Read why here. Time played: 10 hours Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers is a game with seemingly no built-in audience. There aren't any Final Fantasy fans, that I can imagine, who love the series but hate all that role-playing and complexity, and there's likely a very small portion of the fanbase that love the Crystal Chronicles universe, but hate multiplayer. Because of that, because of the current climate for third-party Wii games, and because of the sizeable budget and long development time that went into this project, Crystal Bearers is a bold experiment that's unlikely to be repeated. Which is a shame, because I've really enjoyed what I've played so far, and I feel like some small tweaks in a sequel could make a truly great game out of what is currently an interesting, flawed (and very, very strange) game.
Dante's Inferno creators explain 'Violence' in latest dev diary
You might be wondering exactly how Visceral Games managed to get a level themed after "Violence" into Dante's Inferno -- a game where the lead character spends roughly 100% of his time killing anything near him. We were wondering too, and so it was really nice of Visceral Games and EA to release the above dev diary for the "month of violence" that the game's marketing campaign is currently embracing to promote the game's level based on the seventh circle of Hell. The real question now: what can we expect EA's marketing team during this month's theme? We're not sure just yet, but given its recent track record, we're hoping no one goes to our Editor-in-Chief's house to give him a lesson or two in violence. %Gallery-45836%
New Crystal Bearers trailer is exciting, a little mean
Square Enix has created a thrilling, cinematic trailer for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers -- and it didn't even have to lean on the Bon Jovi crutch! The latest trailer for the Wii action title makes it look kind of like a Final Fantasy take on the Indiana Jones style of adventure story -- complete with the hero being a total jerk. Instead of a whip and years of archaeological study, however, Layle has the ability to lift stuff with his mind. We always feel compelled to remind everyone about this game, especially since it's tucked away the day after Christmas. So here it is. Once again, that's Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers.
TGS 2009: Hands-on: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Seeing that everyone around me was playing the same introductory sequence of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers that I had seen at E3, I loaded up a random save, fairly confident it would place me in another carefully chosen demo location. (Or at least that it would be some other part of the game.) Whether intentional or not, I hit demo paydirt with a sequence of the game that involved combat, exploration and heavy use of the game's telekinetic grappling hook.%Gallery-70584%
Interview: Square Enix's Akitoshi Kawazu on Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Square Enix's Akitoshi Kawazu was the very first person to diverge from Final Fantasy's formula, while simultaneously inventing it. Following the success of the original game, Kawazu created Final Fantasy II, which set precedent by lacking continuity with the world of the first game, but which also added named characters to the game, and removed the experience point system. Kawazu went on to create the SaGa series, which is most closely associated with the producer, as well as the Crystal Chronicles series. In a group interview with Joystiq, 1UP, and Gametrailers, Kawazu spoke about the game that is now breaking away from the Crystal Chronicles formula -- the Wii-exclusive single-player action RPG Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers.%Gallery-3302%
Hands-on: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
Of all the shocks out of Nintendo's E3 presentation, perhaps nothing was as shocking as the revelation that Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers is still happening, and even happening in North America. Well, not really. But we must admit that even when we saw the demo station in Nintendo's booth, we didn't really ... believe it was real. And they even let us play it. Really. We played Crystal Bearers. Have a look at some new screens and then check out our impressions after the break.%Gallery-3302%
Square Enix admits to slow production pace
Eidos won't be releasing games before they're finished just to hit deadlines, according to Square Enix president Yoichi Wada. Wada told GamesIndustry.biz that alleviating worries like that was "what I hope to achieve for the entire group." However, he noted that Eidos's new parent company must also address a scheduling issue. "But we at Square Enix also have a problem - it takes too long for us to produce a game..."Final Fantasy XIII, which just saw the release of its first demo, was announced at E3 2006. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers was announced at E3 2005, with details only now starting to be released.Square Enix's problem seems to be based on conflicts between management and developers. "I personally believe that having a good cost performance and having a good quality game can co-exist - I think that this relationship is actually a positive one," Wada said. "But when you look to the creators they tend to think that if they're asked to pursue a better cost performance, they have to sacrifice quality."
