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Score FIFA 14 for $36 in this week's Xbox Deals
With the World Cup 22 days away, Xbox is getting into the festival mood with a 40 percent sale on FIFA 14 for Xbox One and 360 - that's right, not the World Cup game that just came out. That discount takes the sportsballer down to $36 (£30/42 euros), and as with all of this week's deals, that price stays good until Monday, May 26. If you prefer your contact sports with more bloodshed, the Killer Instinct Ultra Edition is 50 percent off for Combo Break owners, and 12 percent off for everyone else. While the base game is free, the Ultra Edition adds all Season 1 characters, costumes and accessories as well as the classic arcade game from the 90s. Finally, Bandai Namco has a selection of Xbox 360 games on sale that includes musically classic RPG Eternal Sonata for just over $5, the offline-playable Soul Calibur 2 HD for $10, and the Serkis-enhanced Enslaved for around $5 too. For the full list of games and their discounts, hop on over to Major Nelson's. [Image: EA]
Enslaved: Premium Edition takes a Trip to Steam, out now
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West completed its journey to PC, meaning the game is out now on Steam in a new Premium Edition. Priced $20, it includes the Pigsy's Perfect 10 DLC and three character skins including one simply titled "Sexy Trip" [insert debauched holiday destination joke here]. The Premium Edition also came to PSN this week. Ninja Theory's vivacious re-imagining of Monkey charmed us back in 2010, with our review praising the fantastical adventure for being a "a fine reminder that if you have talented people and a little respect for your audience, great storytelling in games can be not only possible but profound."
Enslaved undertakes Odyssey to the PC later this month
Namco Bandai is bringing Enslaved: Odyssey to the West to PC for the first time, releasing a new "premium edition" of the game later this month. A representative for the publisher told Polygon the re-release is also coming to PS3. It's unclear what makes this edition of Ninja Theory's fantasy adventure a premium one, although we'd wager it features the Pigsy's Perfect 10 DLC. We're also unsure if it's coming via retail and/or downloadable channels, although the game appeared in Steam's database earlier this year. We've reached out to Namco for more info. It has to be said, it's somewhat surprising to see Enslaved get a re-release three years on. Despite being a hit with critics including many of the Joystiq staff, it didn't set the world alight with its sales, shifting 450,000 copies in three months after a rather lo-fi promotional campaign. In that regard, maybe a sudden re-release isn't that much of a surprise.
Ninja Theory: Enslaved performance prevented team expansion
Every year, critics and fans provide the word-of-mouth support to several games that barely subsist on a whisper of marketing. "Enslaved should have done better," says Tameem Antoniades, head of the game's developer, Ninja Theory. "Right now we should have been doing a sequel and perfecting that sequel and doing what franchises do, which is get better over time." The comments come from a new issue of Edge (via CVG), and go on to show that the studio's longterm plans were altered by Enslaved's so-so sales. Antoniades reveals that Ninja Theory meant to expand to two teams, but have now remained a "smaller shop" to focus entirely on the Devil May Cry reboot for Capcom. Though team members had "mentally prepared" themselves for this outcome, Antoniades said in October of last year, it's clear that the game's success had been embedded in the studio's plans for growth. (At least Enslaved wasn't a racing game.) Since Devil May Cry is a firmly established brand, Ninja Theory's expressive characters may yet find themselves in a hit -- and perhaps even a finely tuned action game.
Namco Bandai climbs out of the red with pair of million-sellers
For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011, Namco Bandai's "Content" division -- which includes both home-console and arcade games, in addition to music and video products -- increased sales just enough to post a modest operating income of ¥3.09 billion ($38.5 million). In turn, the company turned around from the previous fiscal year's net loss to scrounge up ¥3.78 billion ($46.9 million) in profit. The publisher put out 88 games (including individual iterations of multiplatform titles) across six systems, selling roughly 20.9 million software units in the 12-month period. Its efforts were focused primarily on handheld releases, with 30 games on DS -- plus three more for the 3DS launch -- and 29 for PSP. The company's two bestselling titles during the fiscal year, however, were for home consoles: 2009's still-kicking Tekken 6 accounted for 1.15 million unit sales on PS3 and Xbox 360 in the US alone, and Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm 2 sold 1.1M units worldwide on those same consoles, according to the company's financial highlights document [PDF]. While Naruto performed above initial expectations, Enslaved failed to muster numbers in line with even the revised sales forecast reset by Namco Bandai in November. Ninja Theory's action-adventure had to settle for 730,000 units sold across PS3 and 360, falling short of the hoped-for 800K mark. As for Splatterhouse and Majin, the publisher did not report their individual sales, as both titles' performances seemingly fell below 400K units (Namco Bandai's cutoff line for "Main Game Titles," as they appear in the financial highlights report). For the current fiscal year, which began April 1, Namco Bandai forecasts continued gains resulting in ¥8 billion in profit. The publisher has plans to release 90 games during the period, including 26 titles bound for PS3. Props to anyone that can name three of them! (No googling.)
Enslaved, 007: Blood Stone, Napoleon: Total War soundtracks nominated for Ivors
The Ivor Novello awards are back. Named for the Welsh composer, the British awards honor the best scores and original soundtracks for movies, television and video games. This year's nominations have been published -- but, as with last year, at least one-third of the composers nominated must be British or Irish, which might knock a lot of your favorite soundtracks out of contention. Still, congrats to Ninja Theory, Bizarre Creations and The Creative Assembly, whose Enslaved, James Bond 007: Blood Stone and Napoleon: Total War, respectively, have each been nominated for Best Original Video Game Score. The winners will be presented on May 19, so stay tuned then to see who walks away with the Ivor.
Namco: Enslaved was launched at the wrong time
Hindsight being 20/20, Namco Bandai's execs had some choice things to say about Ninja Theory's Enslaved, a game that was hailed by many critics but failed to garner commercial success. President Makoto Iwai told Siliconera that despite the poor sales figures, he's proud of the publisher's ability to get it off the ground. "Results are everything for a business unit, so we have to face it. But, we are proud of ourselves for being able to launch that game," he said. But the most telling comments came from VP of marketing, Carlson Choi, who pegged it all on poor timing. "It launched in the midst of a busy holiday season." He went on to say that while the game "had the quality needed to address gamers," it ultimately came down to "getting into the market at the right time." When it launched on October 5, Enslaved had some tough competition in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, Def Jam Rapstar, NBA Jam and NBA 2K11 that week alone -- the following weeks would see the launch of several big hitters, including Medal of Honor, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and, of course, Call of Duty: Black Ops. As for the prospect of an Enslaved sequel, Choi isn't ruling it out. "I can assure you, a title like Enslaved, and every title we've worked on in the past, we're going to re-examine them and say what is the potential for the game?" Namco showed interest in a sequel back in October, but that was before the sales figures came in.
Enslaved underperforms with 460,000 sold worldwide
Well, it seems as though Namco Bandai's strategy of half-heartedly promoting the excellent Enslaved has worked just as planned, with the game selling 460,000 units across the globe in the three months following its release. It was originally predicted to move a million units, though that was revised to 800K by Namco in November. We know it's sad, but we can hope for a silver lining (and some corporate foresight) in the dark cloud on which Monkey finds himself. Dead Space sold under a half-million in the month after its release, and now you can't swing a cat without hitting a disembodied necromorph limb. Here's hoping Monkey finds the same sort success later in life -- and if not in a sequel, perhaps in another game like it. Developer Ninja Theory is now hard at work on DMC, a reboot of Capcom's Devil May Cry series.
12 Days of Joyswag: Enslaved Collector's Edition resin statue and game
To celebrate the holidays, we're kicking off twelve straight days of giveaways from now through Christmas day. And while we say it's to celebrate, really ... we're simply getting rid of some of the larger packages around the ol' office. Which gets us to our first prize: A limited edition (look, only 250 made!) resin statue for Ninja Theory's under-appreciated Enslaved: Odyssey to the West. Since you can't put statues into game systems (not easily, at least), we're coupling it with a copy of the game on the winner's platform of choice (PS3 or Xbox 360) and some additional merch. %Gallery-110574%
Enslaved dev diary explores Pigsy's fascination with 'The Perfect 10'
If there's anything this developer diary for the upcoming Enslaved DLC, "Pigsy's Perfect 10," has taught us, it's don't judge a book by its cover. The guy just wants a friend and he'll do what it takes to earn one -- er, build one, in this case.
Pig out on these new screens of Enslaved's Pigsy DLC
Enslaved's sharp-shooting porktagonist, Pigsy, is looking for love -- in all the wrong places, evidently. Instead, these new shots from Ninja Theory's upcoming DLC, "Pigsy's Perfect 10," suggest that the portly fellow finds a lot of angry mechs bent on roasting his rump.
Bad sign, good deal: Enslaved for $25 on Amazon
For those who haven't bought Enslaved: This morning, you have a great opportunity to get on at the bottom floor of this exciting new IP, thanks to a killer deal on Amazon that'll net you the first game in the series for just $25. Hurry, and make sure you're prepared for the next step in this exciting franchise! For those who own Enslaved: OK, we're not going to lie to you. This isn't a good sign. We know what we told those other guys, but we have no idea if there's going to be another Enslaved. It certainly doesn't look good, does it? But if we're going to get the sequel we so richly deserve, we'll have to convince others that there's still hope, and that might require us saying some things we're not strictly proud of. If you don't have the stomach for it, we assume you can find the door.
Enslaved underperforms for Namco, Naruto exceeds expectations
Namco Bandai may have suffered less terrible losses in the first half of its fiscal year compared to last, but several of the publisher's major titles aren't expected to hit sales goals. Andriasang has a list of comparing the company's hopes for its software to the harsh reality, with Ben 10 Ultimate Alien Cosmic Destruction and Naruto Shippuden Ultimate Ninja: Storm 2 being the overachievers. Ben 10 is expected to have 800K sales -- 100K over forecast -- and Naruto may move a million copies, 300K more than planned. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West is expected to sell about 800K units, which is still good, but the publisher expected it to sell a million. Other titles expected to underperform, according to the company, will be the as-yet unreleased Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom with 300K units (-700K below) and Splatterhouse at 350K (-650K below). Enslaved deserves better so, with some luck, hopefully Monkey and crew will have a longer tail than Namco expects.
Report: Namco Bandai laying off 90 in States
VentureBeat reports that Namco Bandai of America is letting 90 employees go. The layoffs are allegedly due to the recent reorganization of the company's mobile and online divisions, in which it squished the two into one. The company is also shifting, according to VentureBeat, a "considerable amount" of game development from San Jose, California, back to Japan. Namco Bandai's VP of marketing, Carlson Choi, states that the details about the future of game development at the company are being "sorted out now," and that the publisher is "partnering with external development studios." Its goal is to move into "digital games" -- an unintuitive term that means digitally distributed games instead of $60 boxed products.
Enslaved DLC trailer explores Pigsy's motives
If it wasn't clear why everyone says Enslaved: Odyssey to the West has great voice acting, the latest trailer for its upcoming DLC, starring the game's playable sidekick Pigsy, shows it off at its best. Head past the break to see for yourself.
Enslaved DLC adds 3D, has Pigsy looking for love
The critically well-received action adventure Enslaved's first piece of premium DLC will include "Pigsy's Perfect 10," a playable side-story, and add TriOviz 3D support to the game. Namco Bandai announced today that the $10 (800 Microsoft Points) DLC will be available "later this year" on PlayStation Network and Xbox 360. Pigsy, the zaftig companion of svelte Enslaved characters Monkey and Trip, will encounter an adventure focused on "stealth and sharp-shooting." As long as there are no long stairways or narrow columns, we figure he'll be just fine. The quest will involve Pigsy assembling parts to create the "perfect woman." The DLC will add 3D to both the new side story and the original game. So, be sure to save up your dirty clothes, because once Monkey's in 3D you'll be able to do your laundry on those washboard abs.
Enslaved PS3 title update adding 5.1 surround sound for optical output
Shortly after Enslaved's launch we were informed that the game was only outputting stereo for those using optical audio output for surround sound on PS3. We were told by Namco today that it is currently working on a title update to support 5.1 sound output. A Namco rep tells Joystiq, "[The update] will be ready around the same time as the paid DLC, which will be available within the next couple of months. Details on that DLC will be announced soon." So, good news: patch incoming. Bad news: gonna take a while to fix. The game does currently support 5.1 surround via HDMI (provided you have the appropriate receiver).
Amazon offering a thrifty robopocalypse, selling Enslaved for $50
If you're part of the growing sect of gamers who don't buy new titles at launch because you know they'll get marked down by $10 on Amazon within a few weeks -- well, your patience has been rewarded. The online retailer's now selling Enslaved: Odyssey to the West for $50 on PS3 and 360. Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (PS3 and 360) -- $49.99, down from $59.99 Update: As some of you have pointed out, this offer won't last long -- it's currently being extended as Amazon's current Deal of the Day. Act fast, if you plan to act at all! [Thanks, MarkHawk!]
Enslaved launch trailer Monkeys around
In case our sterling review of Enslaved: Odyssey to the West wasn't visually stimulating enough for you, please take some time to enjoy the launch trailer. With its beautiful landscapes, interesting characters and cavalcade of menacing robots, we believe you'll be glad you did.
Ninja Theory hasn't planned Enslaved sequel, but 'would like something to happen'
Following the completion of Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (and its release this week), Ninja Theory has turned to the next project on its plate, DmC: Devil May Cry. However, studio head Tameem Antoniades tells Eurogamer that an Enslaved sequel isn't entirely off the table. In fact, Antoniades says the studio has the "capacity to do two games." "The thinking from the beginning was not to assume there would be a sequel -- just to put everything into this game. It's a new IP, so let's not plan for a sequel because the chances are we'll only disappoint ourselves. So we mentally prepared for that -- we've not planned for a sequel. But if it gains some traction, I'd like to see something happen." Before there's any sequel talk, people will have to buy the game, of course. And Enslaved is going up against some stiff competition as the fall season ramps up; beginning this week with Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. But, hey, even if a sequel's ruled out, at least there will be DLC.
