Certain Affinity
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Joystiq hands-on: Plunder (XBLA/PSN/PC)
Certain Affinity is close to finishing Plunder, a downloadable real-time strategy, multiplayer pirate game. The Capcom-published title will be released in late Spring or early Summer for XBLA, PSN, and PCs. Pricing has yet to be announced. With inspiration from Settlers of Catan, Certain Affinity decided to create a hex-based game but with a real-time twist. Each player -- up to four on one system and eight online -- uses a pointer to guide their own ship. Teams win by capturing a certain number of towns or holding the majority when time runs out. I played a few test games on an Xbox setup, tapping the A button to issue movement orders. Much of the rest of the game is automated, with ships attacking towns and enemy pirates when within range. Neutral and enemy towns pelted my boat with canon balls until I pummeled them into submission. If I held the defeated town for a moment, I'd claim it, causing it to attack only opposing boats. %Gallery-18253%
Pimps at Sea (sort of) in development!
Originally a long standing joke at Bungie Studios, it appears that the fake-game moniker Pimps at Sea did provide game-makers with some actual inspiration. Certain Affinity, the studio formed by ex-Bungie devs and currently working on the 360 port of Left for Dead recently announced that their first original work will be an XBLA/PSN RTS game, inspired by Settlers of Catan and called Plunder. The pirate-themed game is based on the amount of land controlled by the players, and the designers are shooting for that sweet-spot of easy-to-learn, hard-to-master type of gameplay. Similar to Catan, the game will use a tile-based interface and will including things such as ship upgrades, town captures, curses and more. Not only will the gamplay have depth, but the feature set is very well-rounded as well. With a map editor, 4-player split screen, and a party-based online system, Plunder looks like it could steal the show when it hits this summer.
New Halo 2 maps get ripped apart
The new Halo 2 maps Tombstone and Desolation have been released for like, what, 30 hours and are already being torn apart. Over at Halo.bungie.org the legendary Mr. Wu posted a bunch of links cataloging all the glitches and easter eggs surrounding the two new maps, including an original Halo pistol sighting. And yes, you can pick it up via modding. People have even found a way to get out of the map in Tombstone, avoiding the instant kill barriers that float above head. Poor new Halo 2 maps ... you didn't even stand a chance.
Fresh Halo 2 maps feel like home
With the new Halo 2 maps coming out on April 17th, Frankie thought it'd be a great idea to talk to developer Certain Affinity about the two new maps. And for those who don't know, Certain Affinity was semi-contracted out to create the two new Halo 2 maps, "Tombstone" and "Desolation". In Frankie's interview they discuss the creative process and the challenges the team faced in creating new multiplayer maps that were based on Halo originals. It's a great read to really get into the heads of Certain Affinity and to see what kind of thought process goes into the development of new content. And did we mention there are new screen grabs and concept art of the multiplayer maps? Heck, that's reason enough to make the jump ... so start jumping![Thanks, un1qu3 n3wy0rk]
Bungie talks Halo 2 maps
In Bungie's latest Weekly Update, Frankie went into greater detail with regards to Tombstone and Desolation. He complimented Certain Affinity's ability to bring Hang 'Em High and Derelict successfully to Halo 2's gameplay changes from that of Halo. There was obviously a lot more thought put into the changes than just changing the textures and taking away the roof, as the map also features fall damage, which we believe is to be exclusive to that map at this point. As for Desolation, it's been streamlined for competitive play and features grav lifts, ramps around the perimeter, as well as face lifts, moving from an abandoned spacecraft to an open forest.
Certain Affinity talks about Microsoft and Halo
GameIndustry.biz interviewed Max Hoberman, Certain Affinity founder, about his reasons for braking away from Bungie, what projects they are working on, and the future of their company. Max explains why he left Bungie and how supportive both Bungie and Microsoft have been in his start-up venture. Bungie happily contracted Certain Affinity to work on the new Halo 2 maps that will be coming out in the spring and they are also working on another special 360 project. Max also went on to compliment the Xbox platform and Xbox Live, giving further praise to Halo 3's multiplayer saying "it's years ahead of everything that's out there". The interview is a good read if you're at all interested in Bungie's internal operations or how Microsoft works with its developers. And yes, we're holding you to your Halo 3 multiplayer comment Mr. Hoberman.
Bungie dev departs to deploy new studio, Certain Affinity [update 1]
Halo 3 multiplayer lead Max Hoberman has left Redmond-based Bungie Studios to form his own studio, Certain Affinity in Austin, Texas. In a swan song interview with former employers Bungie, Hoberman confirms that he will still remain close to the Bungie staff. Hoberman notes that since this decision has been in the works for some time, his multiplayer vision and planning will continue to haunt the team finishing up Halo 3, now in its alpha stage of development. Certain Affinity is currently a staff of nine experienced developers, averaging 12 years of industry experience apiece, and are currently seeking an Art Director for team player number 10. Their first project will be finishing up Halo 2 multiplayer maps. Certain Affinity is "simultaneously building a game of our own" that we guess will be made using the Halo engine, once the team is acclimated to it. What's amazing is that, from what we can tell, Hoberman's experience in the games industry revolves entirely around Halo. Despite this, Hoberman is able to assemble an experienced team with accredited backgrounds and track records for his studio. Never underestimate the power of a key franchise. Previous high-profile Bungie employee to set out on their own include co-founder Alex Seropian, whose studio Wideload Games adapted the Halo engine to make Stubbs the Zombie in "Rebel Without a Pulse," and lead producer Hamilton Chu, whose studio Giant Bite has yet to announce a project.[Update 1: As many commentors have pointed out, Bungie moved from Chicago to Redmond. Sorry about the confusion!]
