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EA: Medal of Honor, Dead Space 2, Crysis 2 before March 2011
During EA's half-hour investor callstravaganza yesterday, CEO John Riccitiello unleashed a flurry of game titles set to be released in the company's "FIscal 2011." For EA, that falls anywhere between April 1, 2010 and March 30, 2011 -- a window that now holds the release of "a great new version of Medal of Honor, a revitalized Need for Speed, Sims on console, FIFA in a World Cup year, an innovative and new take on Madden, Dead Space 2, Crysis at full margins, a new MMA game, and many others." Considering this laundry list of games is getting little more than a 12-month window for release, we're taking the logical next step and throwing darts at images of the games on our cork-board calendar. According to our impeccable aim... everything is coming out in November. Not helpful! [Via Eurogamer]
Visceral teases us with Dead Space 2 '3D' screenshot
[Game Informer] It was hinted at again and again... and again, until it was finally confirmed. Dead Space 2 is officially a thing that exists, and the sequel will land on the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC at some point. Until then, EA's Visceral Games is in full-blown tease mode. Today's tidbit of Dead Space 2 info comes in the form of a Game Informer-exclusive "3D" screenshot. The image features the game's hero, Isaac Clark, fighting off a horrific childlike necromorph. Well, to be honest, we assume the pair are fighting. For all we know the two characters could be moments away from a beautiful holiday embrace. (Mistletoe may or may not be involved.) Check out Game Informer's dedicated Dead Space 2 site to see the shot in all its interactive glory.
Dead Space 2 producer confirms Sprawl, doesn't sweat Schofield departure
Dead Space 2 is shaping up to be quite the sequel, as executive producer Steve Papoutsis told CVG a lot of what we've heard about the Game Informer cover story is in fact true: engineer Isaac Clarke is a lot more vocal in the sequel and won't be confined to the claustrophobic corridors of the Ishimura. Instead, he's now an inhabitant of the space metropolis Sprawl. Papoutsis did more than validate suspicions in his interview, as he also pointed out a greater focus on action and telekinesis in the sequel. See, Isaac won't just be able to move objects around, but he'll be able to destroy those objects and employ their debris as offensive weaponry. In fact, Isaac can even use dismembered enemy limbs to kill more enemies. It's kinda like when that bully at recess used to make you punch yourself, except he's sliced your arm off first and is firing it toward you at blue hedgehog-like speed. Of course, an interview about Dead Space 2 can't go by without discussing the sudden departure of Glen Schofield and Michael Condrey, the two gentlemen now running Sledgehammer Games for Activision. Papoutsis said that most of the team from the first game is on board for the sequel, and that it "takes a lot more than 2 people to make a great game." We hope so, because we have high hopes for this sequel.
Europe getting Dante's Inferno 'Death Edition,' includes playable Isaac Clarke
In an inspiring attempt to try and take even more gratuitous liberties with the works of Dante Alighieri, Visceral Games has announced a Europe-only special edition bundle of its upcoming Hell-based action title, Dante's Inferno. The "Death Edition" bundle comes with a copy of the poem, some making-of documentaries, and an art book. However, its greatest bonus is a new skin for the game's scythe-wielding protagonist: The slot-helmeted outfit of Dead Space's hero, Isaac Clarke. Check out the full costume after the jump. Now that we think of it, there's something pretty similar to this cross-promotion in the text of Dante's epic poem: "I saw multitudes to every side of me; their howls were loud while, wheeling weights, they used their chests to push. They struck against each other; at that point, this space miner came in and killed them with this big scythe. Needless to say, it was pretty [expletive deleted] radical." Source: Console Planet (Google Translate)
Rumor: Dead Space 2 info extracted from Game Informer
Terrifying video game news site Rely On Horror claims to have recently gotten its hands on the next issue of Game Informer, which contains a pretty comprehensive breakdown of the new methods of Necromorph murder featured in Dead Space 2. According to the site, the Informer article reveals that the game's designers are trying to make the game spookier, placing hero Isaac Clarke (who learned the ability to speak between games, it seems) in more death-defying situations, and likely a few impossible-to-defy-death situations as well. According to the report, the game's action has moved off of the Ishimura, instead placing Clarke on the similarly monster-infested interstellar city Sprawl, which dwarfs the original game's setting in size. Finally, the article supposedly ends with the developer dropping the following tease regarding multiplayer: "All I can say is it's really fun, and you'll get to strategically dismember your friends." Oh, man -- Bushido Laser-Saw confirmed! Or, rather, it might be confirmed. There's no way to tell for sure until we get our hands on the Clarke-covered magazine. [Via VG247]
Dead Space 2 announced for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360
Not official art, actually Do us a favor and read the following sentence really slowly -- seriously, savor it. It's been hinted and teased at enough to give the world's remaining necromorphs a heart attack, but Dead Space 2 has finally been officially announced for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Now, you might be wondering why you had to take your time with that easily understandable sentence. Well ... we don't really have anything else to tell you. It's still Visceral, it's still Isaac Clark, it's still the necromorph invasion. We don't even have a release window. The best thing EA has to say is, "Survival isn't the only thing on Isaac's mind in Dead Space 2 – this time, he calls the shots," which makes it sound like our engineer protagonist dumped his abusive boyfriend and moved to the big city to work in an office pool with Dolly Parton and Morgan Fairchild. ... Actually, that sounds pretty good.
Dead Space 2 possibly teased by Necromorphic ink blot
What do you see in the ink blot above? A butterfly with cattails attached to its wings? Well, that probably means you're insane. The popular theory is that the image, which was linked to on the recently relocated official Dead Space Twitter page, is actually a teaser for Dead Space 2. This much is supported by the strange script featured at the bottom of the image (visible in the full picture, posted after the jump), which, when translated using this helpful guide (via horror game news blog Hell Descent), reads "the nightmare is over but it will not end." There's also a few Necromorphs hidden in the ink blot, including Mr. "I'm going to stab you with these sharp tentacles" and Mr. "I'm just a baby but I'll bite your face off." (Disclaimer: Those probably aren't their Christian names.) We feel we can confidently add this to the growing pile of evidence for an upcoming announcement for the follow-up to last year's dismemberment simulator.
Rumor: OPM teases Dead Space reveal in December
Considering the artwork depicted on the "next month" page of November's Official PlayStation Magazine, it requires only the slightest of hops to reach the conclusion that a new Dead Space announcement is lurking just around the corner. Allegedly snapped by GOONL!NE (as in the connectivity instruction, not the lineup of criminals), the artwork features a grotesque, tentacled creature viewed through what appears to be the iconic toaster visor of Dead Space protagonist Isaac Clarke. The site confidently suggests that the creature itself is derived from the original game's concept art. Now's the time to strategically remember several job listings, which mentioned a Dead Space follow-up, along with EA CEO John Riccitiello's recently expressed desire to have EA focus on more profitable, safer games. What could be safer than an isolated spaceship sending out a distress call? The November issue of Official PlayStation Magazine is on sale behind youuuuu in the UK right now. [Via CVG]
EA job listing hints at online multiplayer for Dead Space 2
If an Electronic Arts job listing is any indication, Dead Space 2 is set to receive a gameplay feature that none of us saw coming -- online multiplayer support. The listing, which calls for the aid of a "Senior Online Level Designer," mentions that the new hire should "be able to work collaboratively with Creative Director and Online Producer to create extremely fun, satisfying and polished multiplayer levels." Those who desire to create droll, unsatisfying and shoddy multiplayer levels should probably look for employment elsewhere. We'd call this move surprising based on the fact that we have no idea how it would work out. Given the first game's heavy focus on "strategic dismemberment," we can only imagine that multiplayer matches will quickly devolve into hilarious, appendage-removing duels. Kind of like Bushido Blade meets the Black Knight scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. (Actually, that sounds pretty awesome!) [Thanks, Andrew!]
Dead Space tops on Riccitiello's list of faves
When John Riccitiello needs to unwind from a long day as CEO of EA, he does it with dismemberment. That's the word from an interview with Fox Business in which Riccy (No? Well, worth a shot) names Dead Space as his favorite game of the past 12 months. We're assuming he's not talking about the Wii version of the game, since it's a statistical improbability that he owns it. After his revelation that digital distribution offset retail sluggishness, the publishing boss went on to say it takes him around "50 to 60 hours" to finish a typical game. It prompts the question: Exactly how many times is he planning on fending off the necromorph threat?
Reuters: RE5 sold 1.94M in US; Dead Space 2 in development for 2010
In a story about the scarier games (it's almost Halloween, don'tchaknow?), Reuters mentioned two things we thought would be good for this website we got going here. First, there's Capcom's Resident Evil 5, which Reuters reports has managed to sell 1.94 million copies in the US, according to NPD Group figures. The second part of the Reuters story talks about EA and its spookier titles for 2009: Left 4 Dead 2 and Dead Space: Extraction. While there isn't anything new on the former, in a discussion of the latter, Reuters revealed that Dead Space 2 is apparently planned for a 2010 release, which would seem to confirm what we've heard about the game so far.
NPD: Dead Space Extraction sold 9,000 copies in September
EA's latest experiment with mature Wii games doesn't seem to be going so well. According to numbers given to Edge by the NPD, Dead Space Extraction only managed to sell around 9,000 copies in September -- although it should be noted that the game was out for only five days in the NPD's September sales period (September 29 - October 3). EEDAR's Jesse Divnich, however, cites the sales as the result of a successful not telling anyone about the game experiment. "Electronic Arts didn't market Dead Space Extraction as much as it does with other titles," he told Edge. "And the success or failure of a Wii title usually correlates directly to marketing spend. If Electronic Arts spent little on marketing, I am sure the sell through was no surprise to them." It was, like everything, a complete shock to Dead Space Girl.
GTA IV, Dead Space coming to Xbox 360 Games on Demand this month
The Xbox 360's Games on Demand service is getting quite the booster shot this month, as Microsoft has announced six new titles coming to the service in October. The festivities kicked off earlier this week with the release of Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and Call of Duty 3. Here's what the rest of this month has in store: October 13 Grand Theft Auto IV October 20 Midnight Club: Los Angeles Army of Two Sonic Unleashed October 27 Dead Space DiRT There's no word on price for any of these titles right now, so we've checked with Microsoft and will be sure to update you when we hear back.
Metareview: Dead Space: Extraction (Wii)
Did you know that Dead Space: Extraction landed in stores this week? It's true! We certainly dug it in our Snap Judgment, but in case that just wasn't enough for you, we've compiled a few other folks' opinions on the game just below. Worried about not seeing that beautiful screaming face in the future? We are too, folks. We are too. GamePro (100/100): "An experience that's more captivating and engaging than any light-gun game I've ever played before. [The story] mirrors Dead Space's thoughtful dialogue, characterizations and pacing which is a good thing all around." GameDaily (80/100): "Although we questioned EA's decision to do this, as well as bring Dead Space to the family centric Wii, everything clicks and the game's surprisingly enjoyable. Instead of conjuring up a cheesy narrative (as seen in other shooters like Ghost Squad), the developers put a lot of effort into the story and its characters." Eurogamer (80/100): "Gameplay is straightforward, yet it's a refined familiarity, borrowing numerous elements from the original Dead Space in abundance while wrapping them around the well-worn demands of a typical on-rails shooter ... One area that definitely benefits from the on-rails nature of Extraction is the overall pacing. Sometimes you creep along agonisingly, other times it feels like the enemy onslaught is never going to end. There are few occasions where you don't come away feeling like your scraped through by the skin of your teeth, and even on the game's lowest 'Normal' difficulty, there's a definite sense of achievement when you get through." Giant Bomb (60/100): "Extraction's marketing campaign would like you to think of it as a 'guided experience' that whisks you through the dramatic beginnings of the series' horrible space-monster outbreak, but in blunt terms, Extraction is an on-rails shooter. Blunter still: it's a light-gun game. These days, that's not a style of game serious game players usually gravitate toward. But keeping the genre's inherent restrictions in mind--not to mention the limitations of the Wii hardware -- Extraction is really pretty good, for what it is." %Gallery-49881%
Dead Space 2 entering production in 'next few months'
LinkedIn continues to provide our only link to the status of a true sequel to Dead Space. A recent job posting on the professional networking site, created by EA senior recruiter Jeff Ballard, reports, "The previous installment in the Dead Space franchise received numerous awards ... and the same core team is in place to create an even better follow up." The posting adds, "The game is in the later stages of pre-production, ready for production in the next few months, with many of the navigational and combat mechanics in place."With the point-n-shoot spin-off, Dead Space Extraction, releasing this week for Wii, confirmation that the core-series sequel (expected for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC) will soon roll into production phase comes as welcome news to fans looking for the franchise to stay the traditional course. Hopefully, EA and developer Visceral Games' transmissions will continue to pick up from here on out.[Via superannuation]
Dead Space: Extraction launch trailer prepares us for the inevitable
If there's one thing we've learned from books, film and – when you really think about it – media of any kind, it's that man is destined to discover unspeakable evil off-world some day. Such is the case for Dead Space Extraction's Unitologists who've thrown caution to the wind and went out into the verse. And, as you can see in the trailer above, they're paying the price, which makes us think two things: Humanity needs to prepare for the inevitable. No, we're not talking about making a bunch of Arnold Schwarzenegger clones, but we could all stand to beef up on our diplomacy skills. Necromorphs have an amazing work ethic. They never take breaks and wouldn't dare dream of calling in sick.
Want to see the first 15 minutes of Dead Space Extraction?
Well, we don't. And we imagine the odds are that you don't either. We don't really understand these special people that want to see 15 minutes of a game they're not playing and spoil the experience for themselves, but if that's how you want to be introduced to Dead Space Extraction then allow us (well, Vooks) to be your vessel. ... Well, how was it? How about that dirt? Is it washing off? No, we didn't think so. [Via GoNintendo]
Here are the victims of Dead Space Extraction
It sucks to be in the Dead Space universe. If you're not turned into a horribly mutated zombie, then you're being ripped apart by aforementioned zombies. The upcoming Dead Space Extraction for Wii certainly places its characters between a rock and a really horrible, bloody place. The latest dev diary for the rail shooter reveals the characters of the game, and talks about how each character has their own unique motivations. They are united by one thing though: the incredible desire not to meet a bloody, guts-splattering death.One key thing to note about Extraction is that it's far more story-driven than the first game, offering five times the dialogue as the original. Considering you're traveling with a group of people, instead of exploring solo, that makes a lot of sense. It'll be interesting to see how the Wii audience responds to yet another third-party M-rated game.
Latest Dead Space Extraction trailer reveals really big boss battle
The latest Dead Space Extraction trailer comes horrifyingly close to uttering the line, "You should buy this game because it's totally, like, full of scary von scariness." However, it's good at showing some more of the gameplay we can expect from the on-rails shooter when it injects into retail on September 29th.Some highlights include a look at a big tentacle boss, some of the "mini game" elements -- like building a barricade -- and a nice clear look at how stasis and strategic dismemberment will look. Oh, strategic dismemberment, it's been too long.%Gallery-49881%
Dead Space Extraction pre-order instantly unlocks 'challenge rooms'
Dead Space Extraction has gone gold and is ready for its on-rails debut on September 29. Those who pre-order the game from participating retailers will receive four challenge rooms. Of course, that does away with the actual challenge of unlocking them, since you normally gain access simply by playing through the game's chapters. Perhaps that explains Dead Space Girl's terrified expression on the cover -- she didn't pre-order and now has to play the game she just bought. %Gallery-49881%
