Bizarre-Creations
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First look at PGR 4
Over at Xboxygen they've wrangled up a few foreign magazine scans for upcoming racer Project Gotham Racing 4. The magazine scans don't show too much and we really can't tell if they are in game or just rendered goodness, but we're in love with that rainy car shot. With the graphics bar being raised by other racers like Forza 2, we are seriously looking forward to what Bizarre can pull off with the fourth in the series. Our fingers are crossed in hopes that these scans turn out to be what PGR 4 has to offer and the game ends up being one beautiful looking game.
PGR4 The Win
While you patiently await for some other media to be come readily available on the internet, we can tide you over with something completely different. The May issue of Official Xbox Magazine has a cover story on Project Gotham Racing 4 and how it builds on the 360 launch title. The key points to look out for is the wider selection of weather conditions from rain, snow and sleet, with the in-car view taking full advantage of the first person view with added realism. Speaking of in-car view, they plan on sprucing that up with more "involved" animations from the driver, from a shaky cam when going at break neck speeds to pumping their fist after a victory. The game also promises a more robust selection of cars and tracks to ride them on with over 200 courses across 10 locations. The best part is that it's only scratching the surface. Are you looking forward to accumulating Kudos this fall?[Thanks, teknomusik]
BBR and The Club updates from Bizarre
Aside from mind blowing videos of EA producers with too much time (or skills) on the hands, Bizarre had a nice studio update this week. On The Club side of things, they revealed that several levels are now reaching the standard they set forth graphically to meet, as well as rapidly approaching having all the content present in the game, in one form or another. They also teased about having something special to show us regarding The Club in the near future. Back with Boom Boom Rocket, Ben gave us word that the game has hit Partnernet this week, and is close to launching, though they haven't decided on a date yet. He also showed off the Bonus Run's graphical style with a slew of screenshots, complete with Geometry War style shockwaves, rising water levels and reflecting windows on skyscrapers. Check out the other screenshots by clicking the "Read" link.
Video: Perfect BBR Run blind-freakin'-folded
Sometimes you come across displays of greatness that just cannot go without acknowledgment. Meet Joe, a producer at EA, who has what can only be called an intimate understanding of the game Boom Boom Rocket. This can be demonstrated by his ability to play 1812 Overdrive, on hard, blindfolded, and hit 100% of the fireworks. Damn, we don't know what else to say, but watch the video, and be amazed. Then watch it again. We've got more BBR news for you coming right up, but felt this deserved special attention.
More screenshots of The Club
Xboxygen posted up some more pictures of The Club, Bizarre Creations' upcoming action-shooter. Our first shot of the game looked very pretty and the four new ones are no different. The character models look realistic, and very promising considering where the game is in terms of development. Lighting from muzzle flash and other sources also look like they're coming along nicely. Click the "Read" link to give them the once over. What do you think? Can Bizarre Creations make a quality shooter this side of Fur Fighters?
Geometry Wars was 'supposed to be' free
In a recent interview with IGN, Ben Ward of Bizarre Creations said Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved was intended to be a free gift to hardcore gamers. They eventually realized they couldn't pull it off, so they went with the bare minimum price Microsoft would allow: 400 points. As we all know, Bizarre later attacked the free Geometry Wars clone for the PC, Grid Wars, claiming it "impacted the sales" of their game. Why so uptight when they wanted their game to be free in the first place? We understand that operating a business requires you to protect your intellectual property, but if the intention was to give it away, clones shouldn't be an issue. Either the Grid Wars fiasco was Microsoft-induced or these latest comments are nothing more than PR-speak. Something doesn't quite add up. [Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
Bizarre wanted Geometry Wars to be free
In an interview with IGN about their upcoming game Boom Boom Rocket, Bizarre Creations' own Ben Ward revealed the true ambitions behind that uber hit Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved. When asked about their experience with the XBLA and comparing the risks involved between Boom Boom and Geo Wars, Ward said that, "Geometry Wars was really intended as a gift to hardcore gamers and we initially wanted to give the game away for free. When it became evident that we couldn't do this, we said to Microsoft "what's the absolute bare minimum we can charge". They said 400 points, so we went with that." We have yet to find someone who has complained about paying 400 Microsoft Points for Geometry Wars, because the game is good enough to charge 1200. But how cool would it have been to get it for free? We always knew that the guys at Bizarre were good folks which makes us want Boom Boom Rocket all the more. Speaking of Boom Boom, make the jump for the complete interview where Ward discusses everything Boom Boom related. And feel free to express your disgust with Microsoft for not allowing Geometry Wars to be a free download ... long live the free content!
First screen of the Club
German site Xbox Front got their hands on the first screenshot of Bizarre's upcoming action-shooter, The Club. The cool thing about this is it will retain a "Kudos"-ish system wherein you get points and multipliers for kills done in quick succession. For those of you nay-sayers that Bizarre is incapable of pulling off a shooting game, look no further than their Dreamcast release of Fur Fighters. While that cutesy third person shooter had a couple bugs here and there, it was a fluffing good time. Do you think Bizarre can pull it off? The full resolution screenshot is also available to what the engine can do. [Via Xboxic]
Geometry Wars Vista available on MSN Games
Microsoft be a cold pimp, turning out its Xbox Live Arcade darling onto the uncharted streets of Windows Vista. There's no crawling into bed with a trusted XP customer for this version of Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved. Vista-only. For its sake, Geometry Wars won't be working the MSN corner alone, as it's joined by fellow newcomers Bliss Island and Crystal Quest. The cost might have gone up (from $5 on XBLA to $7.95), but the experience will be over just as fast for the average john (patience, it takes practice) -- do remember to bring your Xbox 360 controller for an authentic experience. Play safe, folks.
BBR Logo & Price announced
The lads over at Bizarre Creation showed off their logo for the upcoming Xbox Live Arcade title, Boom Boom Rocket. They also told us that EA announced the pricing for the game, which is 800 MS Points. They go on to confirm that there are 10 songs, 3 difficulties, 4 game modes and multiplayer. They say that they're happy with the price point, given all that we're getting for the price. What do you think? Should we be paying the same as we did for Geometry Wars, or is there enough added to this experience to warrant double that price?
Boom Boom Rocket music & modes
IGN got some hands-on time with Bizarre's Boom Boom Rocket, and spilled the proverbial beans on some of the game's elements. First off, with the controls, as you saw from the video, the fireworks are color coded like the A, B, X , and Y buttons on your 360 controller, and the direction corresponds with the the button's placement. The game modes include single songs, endurance mode where you will play a song as long as you can whilst the difficulty ramps up, and practice mode. All of those are available over three difficulties. Local multiplayer is available where a friend can join in and either compete to get the better score in a single song, or outlast you in endurance mode. Players are differentiated by the color of the arrow on their fireworks: black for one player, and white for the other. Continue reading after the break for the song list and other details.
The Club mini-update
This week's Studio Update from Bizarre Creations touches on their upcoming third person action title, The Club. Unfortunately, their update is more about the tech behind the game, but teases that next week will touch on gameplay and all that fun stuff. It gives good insight on how their teams works together and what a studio tour is like from their perspective. Their bits on particle and water effects are rather interesting, and it even has a really cool wireframe screenshot of a explosion of cubes with fire and smoke effects. They also go into the character creation process from concept to modeling. A good read, and it leaves us wanting more, which we'll get next week, thankfully. Are you a Bizarre fan, and been looking forward to another action game from them since Fur Fighters?
New Boom Boom Rocket details, video
The folks at 1UP scored some time with Bizarre Creations to talk about Boom Boom Rocket, the upcoming title for Xbox Live Arcade. While there aren't too many new details -- Bizarre recently revealed quite a bit -- the interview makes it clear that Bizarre is out to create a simple yet addictive experience. The game will be instantly familiar to any fans of rhythm games, in which you press the appropriate button in tune to the music. The best part of the interview, the pièce de résistance if you will, is a video of actual gameplay. You can find it after the break.
Boom Boom Rocket preview
Speaking with Bizarre Creations' Ben Ward, 1UP has stirred up new Boom Boom Rocket details. The developer hopes to follow-up Geometry Wars with another broadly appealing Xbox Live Arcade title (the team has a 3-year-old tester) that's built on deceptively simple gameplay. BBR isn't gonna reinvent the rhythm genre, but it might win over some new fans. Purdy particles, Ian Livingstone's 'classical' soundtrack, and a trippy bonus mode add up to XBLA gold. Let's just hope the price doesn't reflect the quality... (but with EA publishing, don't expect another $5 gem).%Gallery-1637%
Boom Boom Rocket Details and Screens
Bizarre Creations latest studio update gives a synopsis of their upcoming Arcade title, Boom Boom Rocket. It is a rhythm game wherein you hit the indicating button/direction when the symbol hits the line at the top of the screen, thus setting off the firework. The better your timing accuracy, the more points its worth. That's the foundation for any proper rhythm game, and BBR is no different. The thing that Stu stressed was the speed of the game itself, with players be able to hit rapid strings of explosions in no time. Similar to Guitar Hero's multiplier system, Boom Boom Rocket has a bar that fills from 1x to 4x multiplier, and even has "Bonus Runs" where you get 8x multiplier when you activate Star Power pull either trigger when the bar is full and sparkly (pictured above). Due to the limited time of the Bonus Run, strategically activating it will be pivotal to getting the highest score possible.The soundtrack will be comprised of recognizable remixed classical tracks, and really fits the mood and style of the game. Stu says he'll be supplying a track list and go into the graphical style in a future update. We can't wait to see the game in motion, but in the meantime leave you with a couple screens of 1st/4th of July goodness. Enjoy them after the break.
Peugeot's PGR4 finalists for concept contest revealed
Back in September we briefly reported on Peugeot's contest to design a concept car for them to use in the upcoming Bizarre Creations title, Project Gotham Racing 4. Well, the contest is now closed, and they are currently displaying the top ten finalists, complete with multiple angle shots and words from the designer on their inspiration. Not only will the winner's car be used in the upcoming racer, but Peugeot will be making a scale-to-life version to put on display for the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Click the "Read" link to be taken to a translated (you're welcome) page showing off the selected designs. Which one do you want to rack Kudos up with the most?[Via Gaming Bits]
PGR3 image used to promote Gran Turismo HD
Major Nelson just caught Sony in a major faux pas. On the PSP Connect site -- a site that offers downloadable goodies for PSP owners -- there is an ad for a new Gran Turismo HD trailer. There's only one problem though, the image used for the ad is from Project Gotham Racing 3. Seriously, check out the original image on Bizarre's website. Looks like someone didn't get the memo that GTHD and PGR3 are, in fact, different games. And just in case someone wises up and changes the picture, Major Nelson caught it on his Flickr account. We won't even go in to the hilarity of mistaking a year old 360 launch title for a brand new "4D" Playstation 3 game. Oh no, we couldn't do that. It would be too low. Check out the incriminating evidence after the break.
EA to publish Bizarre's new XBLA game
EA's first downloadable console title will be Boom Boom Rocket, a new rhythm game from the geometric warmongers at Bizarre Creations. The game sees players traveling through a 3D cityscape and launching rockets to the beat of the music -- the more accurate you are, the more spectacular the resulting fireworks become. Gamedaily Biz reports that Boom Boom Rocket should arrive on Xbox Live Arcade in Spring.Chip Lange, EA's vice president of online commerce, feels they've crashed the party at the opportune moment. "Now feels like the right time. Across EA there's been a lot of internal excitement about Arcade and we're at a point where we can dedicate resources to building Arcade games. We're very excited to be entering this space. This is a great way to develop new IP and work with small development teams internally and externally to build a casual, fun game experience." Originally thought up by EA's own Pogo casual games team, the game should be a welcome addition to the XBLA lineup, especially given the grievous lack of any other rhythm games. The fireworks in Boom Boom Rocket will be accompanied by ten original tunes from Ian Livingstone -- we certainly hope he's familiar with synesthesia.
Bizarre and EA team up for XBLA title
Electronic Arts announced today that it is partnering with Bizarre Creations -- creators of Project Gotham Racing and Geometry Wars -- to create a brand new game for Xbox Live Arcade. Entitled Boom Boom Rocket, it will be the first Xbox Live Arcade game from Electronic Arts. Boom Boom Rocket is described as a rhythm music game in which players launch rockets to a musical beat. Better timed explosions create bigger fireworks displays. The game is set to include both single player and head-to-head play. Head-to-head, strangely, will be limited to local matches only (both players on the same Xbox), though there will be online leaderboards. The music tracks will be composed by Ian Livingstone, who has considerable experience creating music for film, television, and videogames. We're a little puzzled by the lack of online play -- especially this far into Live Arcade's lifespan -- but we're always open to new games. The title is expected to hit in the spring of this year. Follow the "read" link for a PDF of the official announcement.[Thanks, Darksaviour69. Via Major Nelson]
Today's most geometric game video: Geometry Wars PC 'Vista'
Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved has had its own little evolution, going from minigame, to full-fledged console game, and now it'll be dropping onto PCs everywhere and we've got the video to prove it. Yes, it's retro gaming action that takes you back to the land of arcade quarter-eaters like Tempest and Qix ... and it's incredibly addictive fun. Check out the Vista version in action after the jump. It looks pretty spiffy on that monitor, or else the brightness levels are just kicked up to 11. Either way, PC users can finally toss Minesweeper and Solitaire away, because this will be the new king of the timesuck in cubicle-land.
