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Blacklight: Retribution loses studio, continues on anyway
It turns out that the worst news for an online game -- having its studio close -- may not be the end of the world after all. Zombie Studios, the devs behind multiplayer shooter Blacklight: Retribution, announced today that it's closing shop and that a new studio has arisen from its ashes to take care of the game: "Now it is time for us to part ways and close our doors [...] We want to congratulate and wish nothing but success to Builder Box, the new studio starting up that has acquired some of the work Zombie is parting with, including all rights to Blacklight: Retribution. The new studio is comprised of past Zombie employees that put their hearts into Blacklight and we have no doubt will continue to do so." Builder Box's Facebook page also posted a notice, reaffirming the game's future: "What does this mean for you the fan? While ownership of the game has changed, the people behind the scenes who have been constantly contributing to the Blacklight universe for the last four years remains intact. Builder Box will be working with Perfect World so that, as a fan, you can look forward to more updates and exciting changes in the coming year."
Daylight developer closes, passes Blacklight IP to new studio
Seattle-based developer Zombie Studios is closing its doors after over twenty years of operation. The developer announced the news on its website, noting that the studio's owners are retiring. As a result, former Zombie Studios employees started a new company, Builder Box, and "acquired some of the work Zombie is parting with." That includes all rights to Blacklight: Retribution (seen above), Zombie Studios' 2012 cyberpunk first-person shooter. Builder Box was formed by Andy Kipling and Russell Nelson, Zombie Studios' director of production and technical director, respectively. In a PlayStation Forums post last week, Kipling assured Blacklight: Retribution fans that "the people behind the scenes who have been constantly contributing to the Blacklight universe for the last four years remains intact," and that players "can look forward to more updates and exciting changes in the coming year." Zombie Studios formed in 1994, launching its first game the following year, a spaceship simulator known as Ice and Fire. The developer is known for creating the Spec Ops line of tactical shooters, starting with Spec Ops: Rangers Lead the Way in 1998 for PC. Among the final games developed at Zombie Studios is the Atlus-published survival horror game Daylight, which arrived on PC and PS4 last year. [Image: Zombie Studios]
Blacklight: Retribution patch adds new game mode, multiplayer maps
Developer Zombie Studios has issued a patch for the PlayStation 4 incarnation of Blacklight: Retribution that, along with the standard bug fixes and balance tweaks, delivers the new Onslaught game type as well as two decrepit multiplayer maps. Onslaught pits four Blacklight players against endless waves of the infected. Over time these waves of enemies grow progressively more difficult and complicated, forcing players to adapt or be overrun. According to Zombie Studios producer Kael Hammond, "[t]hose who find a way to succeed will be rewarded for their efforts," though it's not mentioned what exactly that reward might be. Today's patch also introduces two new multiplayer maps, "Metro" and "Decay." The former drops players into an abandoned subway station full of tight corridors and narrow passageways, while the latter takes place in a "slum fortress" featuring multiple floors and just as many angles of attack. Best of all, this content is being added to Blacklight: Retribution at no cost to players. More details on the gameplay tweaks introduced by this patch can be found at the PlayStation.blog. [Image: Zombie Studios]
Blacklight: Retribution launches today for European PS4 consoles
Zombie Studios' free-to-play multiplayer shooter, Blacklight: Retribution, is set for launch on European PlayStation 4 consoles today. The game, which hit North American PS4s as a launch-day beta, does not require a subscription to PlayStation Plus. Blacklight: Retribution originally released in April of 2012, hitting Steam a few months later. Since then, it has become one of the most-played shooters on Valve's digital distribution platform. The game was originally slated to land in Europe with the PS4 but suffered a brief delay.
Blacklight: Retribution arrives on European PS4s following brief delay
As launch delays go, it's no Driveclub - free-to-play shooter Blacklight Retribution is out today on PlayStation 4 in Europe, after missing the console's arrival on the continent last week. The Zombie Studios game is already out for PS4 in North America, and was released on Steam earlier this year. Blacklight: Retribution was one of two super-last-minute delays for the PS4's European launch, the other being aquatic eco-sim flOw. According to EU PlayStation Blog Manager Fred Dutton, the thatgamecompany game should surface sometime this week.
PSN limited in EU at PS4 launch, Blacklight and Flow pushed back to next week
The PlayStation 4 launched in Europe today, but players will have to wait until current PlayStation Network demand stabilizes before they are able to access some of the service's features. In response to the influx of new PSN users, Sony has temporarily disabled the PS4's "What's New" and "Content Information Screen" features. SCEE blog manager Fred Dutton notes that the features are slated to be switched on in a few days, "once the intensity of launch day calms down." Sony also revealed that two of Europe's planned launch games, flOw and Blacklight: Retribution, have been pushed back from their original release dates, and are now slated to premiere next week. "Both flOw and Blacklight have been subject to brief delays," Dutton told PlayStation LifeStyle. "They should be with you next week."
PS4 launch day shuffle: Blacklight: Retribution, Trine 2 in; Pinball Arcade, Tiny Brains out
The PS4 launch list for North America has been updated over on the PlayStation Blog. Both PS4 Pub Fund pioneer Blacklight: Retribution and Trine 2: The Complete Story have been confirmed for launch in North America on November 15. Two games have also been omitted from PS4 launch day: Pinball Arcade and Tiny Brains. The former is pretty self-explanatory, while the latter is an action puzzler and the first game from Montreal-based indie outfit, Spearhead Games. The updated official PS4 launch day list can be seen in full past the break.
Blacklight Retribution adds Sonic Tomahawk, Dropzone map
Zombie Studios has updated its Blacklight Retribution multiplayer shooter. The title, which is published by Perfect World, now boasts a new map called Dropzone that hearkens back to Zombie's 2010 Blacklight: Tango Down. Zombie says that due to the map's small size, gameplay will be "fast and frenetic." The team has also raised the level cap from 40 to 50 and added new titles, camouflage, and gear including Riot Shield and Sonic Tomahawk melee weapons. [Source: Perfect World press release]
Blacklight and Primal Carnage, PS4's newest games, in motion
Last night, Sony showed off two indie games coming to PS4. Blacklight Retribution and Primal Carnage: Genesis are different, united only by the circumstances of their announcements – and by having trailers you can see here.
Sony announces more indie partnerships, Blacklight: Retribution and Primal Carnage: Genesis for PS4
At GDC 2013 Sony has decided to focus on its relationships with indie developers, revealing free-to-play PC shooter Blacklight: Retribution and episodic adventure Primal Carnage: Genesis are coming to the PlayStation 4. That makes three self-published games destined for Sony's next-gen console, including Jonathan Blow's The Witness. Blacklight: Retribution is also making use of Sony's Pub Fund for marketing support, the first game on the platform to do so. Sony hasn't forgotten about its existing platforms however, also announcing Spelunky and Divekick for PS3 and Vita, Metrico for Vita, and the handheld debut of Limbo on Vita later this year. Check after the break for a press release that details the announcements, plus trailers for several of the new games.
Blacklight Retribution announced for PS4, first Pub Fund game for platform
At a PlayStation Indie Arcade event, Blacklight Retribution has been announced for the PlayStation 4. Developed by Zombie Studios, it is the first game from Sony's Pub Fund for the platform.Although no pricing was announced at the Sony event, Blacklight Retribution is a free-to-play shooter that arrived on PC last year.Update: Jared Gerritzen, studio head of Zombie Studios, tells Joystiq the game will be free to play on PlayStation 4 as well.
Hands-on with Blacklight: Retribution's biggest update yet
February 27th will mark one year since Blacklight: Retribution threw the doors of its beta wide open. Since then, it's ranked among Steam's 50 most-played shooters. For the game's first anniversary, publisher Perfect World Entertainment is hoping to keep the free-to-play shooter's success story going with an update called Onslaught, its biggest content push to date. I recently attended a preview event for Massively to sample Onslaught for myself. Let's start with the small and work our way up.
Massively Exclusive: Check out these sweet Blacklight: Retribution screenshots
Blacklight: Retribution is getting its "largest update ever" soon. What better way to whet your appetite than with some tantalizing screenshots of two upcoming maps? Welcome to Safehold and Metro, agents! The Metro map is set underneath the ruined cityscape, bringing players into the old subway system to go mano-a-mano with the enemy. Above ground, the Safehold features an open plaza and its surrounding buildings. Get a taste of the new maps in the gallery below. %Gallery-178151% [Source: Perfect World press release]
Massively Exclusive: Blacklight: Retribution shows off the end of the world, part 5
The adventure of the Blacklight team comes to an end today with the last motion comic setting the stage for Blacklight: Retribution's major patch World's End. And after facing no small number of enemy troops and zombified locals, the group finally arrives at its designated target to find something very different from what it had originally planned. Remember, if there's one thing worse than failure, it's the success you never knew you didn't want. This final video brings the story full circle and explains more of what's out there... but what happens next is up to the players -- unsurprisingly, since this is meant to provide backstory for a game and all. So if you've been following along for the last few installments, you'll want to catch the last one just past the break, and then probably load up your weapon and get to shooting in the game proper.
Steam Holiday Sale begins; MMO deals make gamers fear for their wallets
All right gamers, it's time to make a choice: Either lock up your wallet and throw away the key or bust it out and prepare to blow some money because the Steam Holiday Sale is now on, and there are quite a few tasty MMO deals to be had. Steam's free-to-play category is particularly ripe for the picking: DC Universe Online's The Last Laugh DLC is currently 50% off (for $4.99 US), and Lord of the Rings Online's Steely Dawn Starter Pack is 50% (for $9.99 US). On top of that, starter packs for virtually every F2P MMO under the sun are on sale as well. Tribes Ascend's raider and starter packs are 70% off, bringing them down to $4.49 and $5.99 US, respectively. If you're more the shooty type, Blacklight Retribution starter packs are 50% off for $9.99. If you're craving a more action-flavored fix, Rusty Hearts and Continent of the Ninth Seal starter packs are available for $4.99 US and $20.99 US, respectively. To browse all of the delicious sales (which include even more games such as Star Trek Online, Fallen Earth, and then some), just head on over to Steam's store page, or alternatively just boot up Steam and say a little prayer for your bank account.
Massively Exclusive: Blacklight: Retribution shows off the end of the world, part 4
As it turns out, moving through the heart of darkness is no easier in Blacklight: Retribution than in the real world. As the motion comic previewing the game's major patch World's End nears its climax, it turns out that yesterday's zombie-filled antics and general civil unrest were not the worst problem that Spade and his team will have to encounter. After all, the Order is still out there, and it turns out they're no slouches in battle... The second-to-last installment is a little longer than its predecessors, moving the protagonists from their perpetual quagmire to the doorstep of their ultimate objective, but not without taking a few more lumps on the way there. So how do we get from here to the intro we saw back in the beginning of the week? To find that out, you'll just have to check back in tomorrow for the concluding episode.
Massively Exclusive: Blacklight: Retribution shows off the end of the world, part 3
It's time for further installments of the motion comics accompanying Blacklight: Retribution's upcoming major patch, World's End. The first two comics yesterday set up the team and the stakes, but today's comic kicks off as the Blacklight team lands in Balik and starts getting down to business. Or not; the mission starts going cross-eyed almost the moment the team touches down. Obviously, the place is a mess by governmental standards, which makes sense when you consider that the team sent in is supposed to be the best of the best. But as the team trails the shadowy Order, it quickly becomes clear that this is more than just a fight against opponents with superior weaponry. But you don't have to take our word for it. If you want to see things going from bad to worse, you can check out the next two issues just past the cut and tune in tomorrow for another step along the path.
Massively Exclusive: Blacklight: Retribution shows off the end of the world, part 2
Yesterday we previewed the trailer and the raw content information regarding Blacklight: Retribution's upcoming patch, World's End. But what's the story behind the patch? For that, we turn to the first two parts of a six-part motion comic from the team behind the game at Perfect World Entertainment. The comic details some of what happened leading up to the events of the update... starting with a single man touching down on a hospital rooftop about ready to bleed out from injury. From there, the first two chapters go on to establish some of what's at stake in the game's lore and what happened on the main character's disastrous mission. If you're curious, the videos are each only a couple of minutes long, a chance to get a little does of lore and an idea behind the setting. But what happens next? Check in tomorrow to see more.
Massively Exclusive: Blacklight: Retribution shows off the end of the world, part 1
If you're a fan of Perfect World Entertainment's competitive MMO shooter Blacklight: Retribution, you're in for the end of the world. The game's latest update, World's End, is coming after the end of this week's scheduled maintenance, and it's a big one, complete with new playable characters, new specialized assault robots, and new maps to shoot your way through. Chronos, the new hero, is meant to act as a group's computer specialist, with an innate ability to hack control nodes faster. He comes equipped with an auto-turret and HRV decoy by default, allowing him to place traps or simply defend himself while hacking. These skills will be put to good use in the new maps, Decay and Trench, with the former featuring close-quarter alleyway combat and the latter giving plenty of mid-range sniping spots. Take a look at the official launch trailer just past the update screenshot gallery, and stay tuned this week for more previews leading up to the patch launch! [Source: PWE press release] %Gallery-126205%
The Firing Line: Exclusive Blacklight Retribution Evac Q&A
It's been a while since The Firing Line took a look at Zombie Studios' Blacklight: Retribution title. The sci-fi shooter, published in conjunction with free-to-play giant Perfect World, has added quite a bit of content since that pre-launch preview, and more is coming this week courtesy of the Evacuation Update (including a new map and premium/private server functionality). Join us after the cut for an exclusive chat with Zombie devs on that and more. %Gallery-126205%
