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Metareview -- Alone in the Dark (Euro edition)
Early reviews of Atari's anticipated frightfest, Alone in The Dark, have generated quite a bit of controversy. A couple of 3/10s will do that, most of all when the publisher's scorn comes from the suspicion that said European articles were based on preview or pirated code. Though several other sites have now chimed in with their thoughts and less dire scores, Eden's efforts seem to have fallen just short of the game's ambition and promise. It seems everybody wanted to love Alone in The Dark, but had their feelings rebuked by clumsy controls and obvious padding to the game's length. Xbox World 360 (73/100): "As much as Alone In The Dark deserves to be criticised for its problems, it equally deserves to be lavished with praise for some outstanding ideas and set-pieces. A gracious failure, AITD should stand as a lesson for other developers to see what they should be striving for." Eurogamer (70/100): "The problem is that every time you get excited about Alone in the Dark, it shuts you down. At times it's akin to Atari's Boiling Point: Road To Hell of three years ago; throw any score on the ten-point scale and it will stick to something, but there's so much friction on the lower end that it's often impossible to pull away and remember when you brushed past genius. You want to love it, but it just keeps letting you down, and in the end that's the impression that sticks to the wall and stays there." Gamer.nl (50/100): "The game can be compared to an aggressive puppy without potty training. You want to keep him so badly, but every time it seems to go right, it bites, scratches and shits on your carpet." (Translation)
Alone in the Dark producer talks design
At a recent Atari event, the same one in which Phil Harrison stated that Atari would no longer pursue big budget, single-player titles, Gamasutra sat down with Nour Polloni, producer of Alone in the Dark. The interview focuses mainly on the gameplay and design choices that Eden made for the game. Of particular interest is Polloni's thoughts on the game's open design, which allows players to solve problems in ways that make sense to them. Said Polloni, "we didn't want you to search for the golden key to open the door." She emphasizes that players shouldn't be asking themselves what they can't do within the game. In other words, if a player thinks of a logical way to open the door -- smashing it with a fire extinguisher, for example -- it will work. It all boils down to logic and accessibility.It's really a refreshing idea, and one we'd like to see implemented in more games. The interview is a worthwhile read. We suggest you check it out. Oh, and just so you know Polloni isn't merely spewing hot air, check out Joystiq's (very positive) impressions of the game.
Alone in the Dark sees the light, goes gold
Exciting news Alone in the Dark fanboys, Atari just announced today that the Joystiq approved and fire friendly Alone in the Dark has wrapped up development and has gone gold. Currently being copied to DVD at some manufacturing plant overseas, Alone in the Dark will arrive on the Xbox 360 in Europe on June 20th and a few days later, June 24th to North America. And for comparison's sake, it will release to the PS3 sometime later his Fall. Central Park will not be the same later this month, so we advise walking your dog or doing the picnic thing in the park prior to experiencing Alone in the Dark.
No more big budget games for Atari
Phil Harrison, recently appointed president of Infogrames (parent company of Atari), has gone on record stating that Atari isn't likely to pursue any more big budget, single-player games after Alone in the Dark. Harrison told Gamasutra, "I don't see that we're going to be making huge-budget, single-player games in the future." Harrison did add that the company will still pursue "really incredible games that have high quality, high execution, and high innovation, but they won't be one-player, narrative-driven, start-middle-end games." Harrison sees online, socially driven games as the future for Atari and places emphasis on episodic content.So, while a direct sequel to Alone in the Dark sounds unlikely, it's possible we might see similar games released in an episodic manner instead (as was the original plan for Alone in the Dark, which still incorporates an episodic structure). Harrison sees episodic games with integrated community features as a new direction for Atari and the games industry in general, giving video games the kind of "water cooler" effect that television shows enjoy. Sounds interesting to us.[Via Joystiq]
Joystiq is impressed by Alone in the Dark
One lucky Joystiq blogger managed to get some extensive hand-on time with Alone in the Dark, the upcoming series revival being created by Eden Games. When all was said and done, Joystiq got to sample three hours of gameplay, giving them the chance to try out the combat, driving and platforming elements present in the game. The verdict: it's good. Surprisingly good, actually, with Joystiq equating the game to "a great season of 24, albeit one with a supernatural twist." Head on over to Joystiq for their full impressions. Hopefully, we can all get some hands-on time with the game ourselves soon, as a demo should be arriving any day now.
Free Alone in the Dark music tracks
While the verdict is still out on Alone in the Dark as a full game, there is no denying that the music is right on target. Honestly, what better fit for a survival horror game than a creepy children's choir, right? Right. Good news then, as our friends at Gamertag Radio are giving away three samples from the game's soundtrack -- performed by Grammy winner Mystery Of The Bulgarian Voices -- for free. We've checked out all three tracks and can assure you that they are of adequate sweep, depth, and creepitude. Head over to GTR to grab 'em for yourself. Also, GTR will apparently have some pretty extensive hands-on coverage of the game going up tomorrow, so keep your eyes peeled.
Angels Online celebrates new Eden expansion
Angels Online, the free-to-play MMO based around factionalised angels adventuring in various bizarre realms, recently released its new expansion, Eden. In addition to offering players such MMO conventions as elite equipment and tougher monsters, Eden revealed a long-awaited in-game marriage system. (There's a lot of it about, you know.) Over the coming days, the players have the chance to celebrate the new expansion with an in-game event.Called Mysterious Exploration, the event offers the chance to win impressive rewards. There's an overall theme of mystery: Production Angels who enter the Mysterious Area have rare materials to collect, while Fighting Angels can gain more in-game money and experience by fighting the Mysterious Monsters. An abundance of new items is also available.Mysterious Exploration runs from May 15th to 29th.
A pair of Spring Showcase Alone in the Dark videos
Of all the things that could have been showcased for Alone in the Dark at Microsoft's Spring Showcase, we're not sure we would have picked the two sequences featured in these videos. Alone in the Dark is a survival horror game, right? As such, one would expect to be treated to sequences of surviving horrifying situations. Speaking literally, we suppose these videos do just that, but we were expecting some ghosts, monsters, a mutant insect, something. What we get is some ledge-grabbing platforming and a car escape sequence. Don't get us wrong, it doesn't look bad -- in fact, these are things you don't see in many other survival horror games -- but we're just waiting to see some gameplay that lives up to the atmosphere created by the cinematic trailers that have been released.Who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and see the promised demo before the week is out. We're really hoping it will make believers out of us. We want to believe.
Alone in the Dark special edition detailed, flashlight not included
One of our, surprisingly, most anticipated titles of 2008 happens to be the latest installment in the Alone in the Dark series. Taking advantage of our suspiciously piqued interest for the game, Atari has announced and detailed a special edition that will release along side the standard package. Included in the over-sized box edition is the game (duh!), making of documentary, CD soundtrack (8 tracks), art book and a figurine of in game hero Edward Carnby.While no price has been confirmed for the special edition, this package would be a steal for an extra $10. Here's hoping the special edition price-point doesn't dim the lights on our bank account when it releases this summer.
Alone in the Dark scares up a limited edition
For pack rats who salivate for all things Carnby, Atari has released images to CVG of what collectors can expect to find inside the Alone in the Dark Limited Edition box. Currently only confirmed for release in Europe, the box will contain an Edward Carnby doll, official soundtrack CD, art book, making-of documentary and the game. There's currently no price attached and the limited edition is available only for Xbox 360, Wii and PC.We'll take this as a sign that the oft-delayed game might actually (shockingly) release June 24. After all, how can there be a "making-of documentary" if the game isn't done, right? Whether the game actually sells as well as Infogrames is predicting ... we'll have to wait and see.
Alone in the Dark pushed to June 24
At this point it's difficult even to make a joke about Alone in the Dark's constant delays. It's been delayed so much that we're losing track. First it was November. Then it was March. Then it was May (after Atari announced that it wasn't delayed until September). It's like one of those nightmares where the thing you desire is always just out of reach. The latest push, if you insist on keeping track, is to June 24 in the US and June 20 in Europe. The reason behind the delay is to allow developer Eden games some more time to polish the game to a mirror shine. For what it's worth, this is the first actual date we've seen attached to Alone in the Dark for some time (as opposed to a more nebulous release month).All we know is that if we don't get our horror fix soon, we may have to resort to something drastic like reading.[Via Joystiq]
Alone in the Dark delayed until June
Eurogamer reports that Atari's technically impressive horror, Alone in the Dark, will be missing its previously planned May release, instead creeping out of its dingy corner the following month. The Xbox 360, PC, Wii and PS2 versions are now scheduled to arrive in the US on June 24th, with Europe getting them a tad earlier on June 20th. The PlayStation 3 edition suffers no such delay, but that's one of the benefits of having a nebulous, "sometime in 2008" release date.Atari and developer Eden are reportedly utilizing the extra time to further polish the game, no doubt to match the shine emitted by one of Atari's new heads, Phil Harrison.
Menacing new Alone in the Dark trailer
Alas, it's not another sticky tape laden tech demo. No, this one is a straight up CG trailer. No gameplay here folks, move along. That said, it is certainly one sexy CG trailer. Featuring one Edward Carnby seemingly running for his life and one nameless evil that is seemingly bent on taking it, the video -- at the very least -- gets us excited for the possibility that Alone in the Dark might actually be good. You know, if it ever comes out.
Q-Games reveals 'PixelJunk Eden,' hints at future titles
In closing his GDC post-mortem on the PlayStation Network's PixelJunk games, Q-Games president Dylan Cuthbert briefly showed off the next game in the series of downloadable, 2D titles. PixelJunk Eden comes across as being far more experimental than the independent developer's previous titles, boasting psychedelic visuals, an electronic soundtrack and swinging, ball-based platforming. We're quite sure we haven't written a description like that in quite some time. Eden started development in June 2007, and Cuthbert told us that he expects it to arrive on PSN sometime "before Summer." Also mentioned but never elaborated on was PixelJunk Dungeons, the fourth title in the series which Cuthbert assured us would, in fact, feature dungeons of some kind. Finally, the presentation revealed that Q-Games would eventually focus its efforts on 3D gaming in a second series of PixelJunk. We'll bring you a full report on the PixelJunk postmortem (and forthcoming games) soon.
Infogrames: Atari collapse will not affect our development program
Although Atari has waved goodbye to game development, parent company Infogrames wants you to know that it isn't following in its child's footsteps. In a statement released today (via GameDaily), Infogrames said Atari's decisions "do not undermine the Infogrames Group's ability to carry out its video game development program and to continue selling products under the Atari brand name." The clarification seems oddly unnecessary, given that Atari is just a subsidiary of Infogrames. The holding company also owns Eden Games (Test Drive Unlimited) and Shiny Entertainment (Earthworm Jim, MDK); development will presumably continue as usual.
Via's one-watt Eden processor gets official
Just as expected, Via is indeed releasing an uber-efficient, one-watt Eden processor. Reportedly, the 500MHz Eden ULV boasts "an idle power of just 0.1-watt," and is targeting "a wide range of industrial, commercial, and ultra mobile applications." The fanless CPU resides within a 21- x 21-millimeter NanoBGA2 package, is manufactured using a 90-nanometer process, and should be on display (and in a number of wee devices) at the Embedded System Conference taking place right now in Taipei.
VIA readying one-watt Eden processor?
Apparently, VIA is hoping to stretch the battery life of devices that sport its forthcoming ULV processor, as the chip manages to hum along at 500MHz yet only consumes one-watt of power. According to DigiTimes, the company announced the CPU during a press conference held yesterday, and also noted that it will "adopt the same VIA V4 bus and 21- x 21-millimeter nanoBGA2 packaging as other Eden models." Reportedly, several industrial PC makers "including Advantech have already adopted the new Eden ULV processor" and hopes to have products shipping to market later this month, and if this thing actually does sip power as its creator suggests, we've all ideas Advantech won't be the last firm placing an order.[Via Wired]
Survival horror creeps onto the DS
Rumours are going around the internet that Alone in the Dark 5: Near Death Investigation will be heading to the DS, along with versions for the home consoles and PC. The latest entry in the survival horror series sees Edward Carnby fighting for his life in Central Park. We'll get an episodic story and the chance to hot-wire a car in a minigame.Atari is also bringing at least five other titles to the DS: Tabaluga 2, Lucky Luke: Go West, Asterix Olympic Games, Cooking and Fashion Academy. Something for everyone then, and a real treat for image conscious chefs who like French cartoons.
Alone in the Dark confirmed for Wii ... later than others
Score one for logical deduction: Alone in the Dark developer EDEN GAMES posting a job offering for Wii programmers did in fact mean that the game is headed toward everyone's favorite shiny white console. We're so smart. A recent interview with German gaming site AreaGames has confirmed that the title is headed to pretty much every platform under the sun ... in two waves. Gah.The game is scheduled for the 360, PC, and PS2 in late 2007, but the rest of the bunch (Wii, DS, PSP, and PS3) will have to wait until an undisclosed period in 2008 for the goods. If you can stumble through a horrendous Google translation, head on over to the transcribed site and check out some more details.
MiniPC's ED612E silent, mini-ish PC
Yeah, it's not as mini as those other minis, but if you're looking for that sweet sound of silence then the ET6512E from MiniPC might just be the way to go. Featuring a cool runnin' 1.2GHz VIA Eden proc, this fanless mini measures in at a medium 8.03 x 7.4 x 2.79-inches and 4.4-pounds. The specs don't make much noise either with 256MB (1GB max) DDR2 memory, a 40GB SATA disk, VIA CN700 graphics chipset, 4 x USB 2.0, Firewire, S/PDIF/composite video out, and even a couple of PS/2 jacks to get old-school. Still up for it? Ok, then prepare to fork-over the ¥78,750 or about $679 green when the ED612E drops later this month in Japan.[Via Impress]
