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Next Mass Effect snags Halo 4's lead writer, gets concept art
The next Mass Effect game from BioWare is being written by Chris Schlerf, the lead writer of 343 Industries' Halo 4. BioWare revealed Schlerf's role for the game today in a blog that introduced a few members of the its development team. The lead writer for Mass Effect 2 and Mass Effect 3, Mac Walters, is staying on for the next installment as the game's creative director. Schlerf joins the team as lead writer following the departure of the series' creator and executive producer back in August, Casey Hudson. In celebration of "N7 Day" today, BioWare hosted a developer roundtable via its Twitch channel to reveal pieces of concept art for the upcoming game and discuss the developer's visions and ambitions. Shying away from calling it "Mass Effect 4," the next game will emphasize space exploration and features the return of the series' much-maligned vehicle, the Mako. The team also noted that the game's protagonist will not start the adventure with "legendary status" like the previous hero, Commander Shepard. Check out our slideshow of the concept art shown during the livestream below, which certainly beats the teasers shown by BioWare last year. [Image: BioWare]
EA's BioWare touches on new Mass Effect, new IP at E3
Fans hoping to learn more about the new Mass Effect didn't have much to go on from EA's E3 conference, although BioWare did reveal it's working on a new IP. In a short video on the sci-fi follow-up, BioWare devs talked about new worlds, characters, and potential lovers in a "whole new region of space," rendered by the power of the new consoles. While BioWare Montreal is working on the new Mass Effect, the team at BioWare Edmonton is developing a "completely new IP." Again the discussion was nebulous, but the studio said it wants to take on "very contemporary stories" while realizing worlds that compare to the scopes of previous BioWare games. Along with those two projects, BioWare also has Dragon Age: Inquisition in development, and it's set to launch on October 7.
New Bioware universe coming from Mass Effect and KOTOR creators
That new fictional universe in production over at BioWare Edmonton has some pedigree behind it, namely the folks responsible for critically acclaimed Xbox classic Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. "Most of our core team that worked on SWKOTOR has been together throughout the Mass Effect series, and now our new IP project," Mass Effect producer Casey Hudson tweeted earlier this week. Hudson initially announced the project during a PAX East panel last March, but beyond the fact that it exists and is being worked on by an RPG-centric team, nothing else is known about the new property.
BioWare Edmonton and producer Casey Hudson working on 'a whole new fictional universe'
During a panel this weekend at PAX East, Mass Effect producer Casey Hudson revealed that his team at BioWare Edmonton has started work on "a whole new fictional universe." Other details weren't shared, except that Hudson said that he and BioWare's Senior Creative Director Preston Watamaniuk are going to be "building something new" together.Hudson oversaw Mass Effect 3 as an executive producer, and he says he'll still serve that role on the next Mass Effect title. But that game is being developed at BioWare Montreal, so Hudson's team at BioWare Edmonton has moved on to something completely new. Hopefully we'll hear more about it soon.
BioWare producers tease potential Mass Effect 3 DLC
Last December, BioWare Edmonton confirmed that more DLC is in the works for Mass Effect 3. Today series executive producer Casey Hudson and producer Michael Gamble both teased screens, with no information beyond that.Above you can see what looks to be the Silversun Strip, a den of future iniquity with a casino and presumably a lot of dancing Asari – we've been to enough neo night clubs to know how things work. Past the break, you can see a towering Krogan warrior wielding an equally hulking mace. We're not sure if the guy is trying to kill ghosts or cockroaches but we wish him godspeed all the same.
Next Mass Effect gets a rough launch window of 2014 - 2015 [Update: Or not]
Update: Gamer Syndrome, the source of this interview, has removed its own story and provided the following statement: "This interview has been removed. The information provided previously by the author of this post was deemed to be obtained from an inaccurate source and NOT an official Bioware or EA interview response. We apologize for the inconvinience."Original story: The next Mass Effect game, in development at BioWare Montreal, has a tentative launch window of late 2014 to mid-2015, according to Mass Effect 3 producer Mike Gamble. Speaking to Gamer Syndrome, Gamble provided "rough idea on a release window" with the following estimate:"Late 2014 to mid-2015. I honestly can't tell you an exact because full development on the game started a month or two ago."In September BioWare outed a new Mass Effect game from series executive producer Casey Hudson, and in November we learned it would run on Frostbite, from BioWare Montreal rather than Edmonton, which handled the previous iterations."While I can't comment on why it changed studios, fans can expect a similar style of choices and action that they've come to know in Mass Effect," Gamble said. "Casey Hudson is very much involved in the new Mass Effect game, as well as many from Edmonton. BioWare Montreal is a great studio and they did fantastic with the multiplayer for Mass Effect 3, so fans should know the series is in good hands."The game isn't far along in development so I can't comment on specifics because they isn't any yet. Frostbite 2 is a really good game engine that we are also using on Dragon Age 3. As far as release date, there's nothing to be announced yet. You'll hear more about the new Mass Effect game in 2013."
More Mass Effect 3 DLC from almost 'every' BioWare Edmonton writer
Mass Effect series developer BioWare Edmonton is working on a new piece Mass Effect 3 DLC, and it's "all hands on deck," level designer Jos Hendriks said on the BioWare forums."It's all hands on deck for this one. Pretty much every ME3 DLC writer here in Edmonton is involved (which would include both Patrick Weekes AND John Dombrow)," Hendriks wrote. Other writers included Jay Watamaniuk and Cathleen Rootsaert. Additionally, composer Sam Hulick tweeted that he's working on "unannounced Mass Effect 3 DLC.""Tossing in piano and muted strings for this one particular piece. High potential for tears. #ME3DLC," Hulick tweeted.Twitter previously outed Seth Green and Raphael Sbarge, voices of Joker and Kaidan Alenkowere, as working on something for Mass Effect 3. Neither appeared in Omega, the DLC that hit last week.
BioWare Montreal's Mass Effect game runs on Frostbite
BioWare Montreal was largely responsible for multiplayer in Mass Effect 3, with some additional input on the single-player side like the upcoming Omega DLC, but it looks like the studio is ready to undertake its own game in the series. In fact, it already has – the next Mass Effect is already in the works at BioWare Montreal."To ensure a proper and effective transition, we'll continue to be supported by the Edmonton studio through the game's development, working with and learning from them on some critical initiatives," BioWare Montreal studio director Yanick Roy says in a blog post. Casey Hudson will still serve as executive producer from BioWare Edmonton, but the project director will be firmly entrenched in Montreal. Roy can't go into specifics on the new game, but he says it will be powered by Frostbite, which has been "enhanced by many of the systems that the Dragon Age III team has already spent a lot of time building."Roy also adds the team is looking to explore new gameplay avenues and story ideas – while paying respect to the heritage the original trilogy has built, it seems like the team at Montreal is looking for new directions to take the series in. "You can still expect the pillars the franchise is known for to be fully intact though, including diverse alien races, a huge galaxy to explore, and of course rich, cinematic storytelling," Roy adds.
BioWare docs defend subscription model, tease free-to-play iteration of classic IP
Understandably, BioWare heads Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk seem tired of beating the drum for Star Wars: The Old Republic's subscription-based business model. I didn't actually bother asking them about their thoughts on subscription vs free-to-play gaming during an interview early last week, but Zeschuk launched into a spirited defense nonetheless, perhaps conditioned by being asked over and over in the run up to SW: TOR's launch last Monday. "You look at the online space in general and it's fragmenting into all these different areas, but the core still works. The subscription model still works," Zeschuk said. "We know a lot of people say, 'Oh, everything's just going free-to-play.' But that's just one slice. There's one slice that's free-to-play, there's one slice that's social, there's traditional subscription still going." He was also quick to point out that, "it's obviously been the free-to-play guys trumpeting this," though his own company certainly isn't above working in the free-to-play space, as evidenced by Warhammer: Wrath of Heroes. "I'm not saying it's better or worse. It just doesn't supplant the other things. 'Cause we can do some things no one else can," Zeschuk added. In his eyes, a free-to-play dev isn't able to throw the same amount of resources and time at an MMO project, and that marks a big differentiation between the two business models. "The free-to-play people can't invest to the level we can invest, and can't create something of the size and scale of something we can create," he said. The idea that free-to-play will take over all other MMO business models, he said is, "from a business perspective, ridiculous."
Dragon Age 3 artists wanted, Bioware sr. director tweets
Dragon Age 3 was unceremoniously outed on Twitter last night in a call by BioWare creative lead Alistair McNally for new artists. "I'm looking for exceptional environment artists to join me at #BioWare Edmonton, Canada to work on #DragonAge3," he tweeted yesterday evening. He added a few corresponding hashtags, but otherwise left the subtle reveal at that. An hour later, seemingly with environment artists still on his mind, McNally was praising The Witcher 2 for its topnotch graphics. "Looks stunning with DX11 and everything turned up," he tweeted. [Thanks, Tyler C.]
