gdc-europe-2012
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Spec Ops dev working on a big project, probably isn't another Spec Ops
Yager, the developer of Spec Ops: The Line, has a large project in the works, design lead Jorg Friedrich told us at GDC Europe. Friedrich wouldn't say what the project was or whether Spec Ops: The Line publisher 2K Games would be involved, but he gave a hint as to the company's future in terms of game sales.Without divulging official numbers for Spec Ops: The Line, Friedrich said, "To be honest, it doesn't look too great."Friedrich hosted a discussion on the emotional impact of player decisions within interactive narratives, differentiating the writing in games from other forms of media, such as film. Having a player make decisions based on deep, moral values can hold more impact than passively watching a cast of characters do the same thing, he argued.In a few instances Friedrich wanted to have Spec Ops: The Line players make difficult decisions without receiving any in-game rewards or punishments, keeping the focus solely on the moral implications. Unfortunately, the game had achievements, effectively negating any purely emotional impact each choice could have. That was a mistake and a failure, Friedrich said."I really regret that we had achievements on moral choices," he said.
Battlefield 4 sticking to modern warfare
Battlefield 4 will be set in modern times, DICE general manager Karl Magnus Troedsson revealed at GDC Europe today. The game, which was announced with no pomp last month, will have a beta sometime next year, but little else has been revealed. However, with a lag time of six years between Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 3, why did the studio go with Battlefield 4 so quickly instead of heading back to Bad Company?"There's a lot of things inspiring us as to how the franchise will move on. Everything from fans' feedback, to market research and, of course, what we want to build ourselves. It's not just one single thing," said Troedsson, continuing with a hint of sarcasm. "And, yes, I know Battlefield 4 is probably the most creative name we ever could come up with. I can't comment any more on that game because it's all secret."However, he did go on to say, "We still want to stay in this genre, the modern day as it is. We feel this is a place we can be and continue with the series. Battlefield 4 can live in this space and be very successful."Hinting, in conclusion, "That doesn't mean there might not be a Bad Company game again in the future."
Epic Games now wholly owns Gears of War: Judgment dev People Can Fly
When Epic Games subsidiary People Can Fly lost three senior employees this past week, Epic Games apparently purchased the rest of the Poland-based development studio. "One of the things that got missed with that story was that we bought the rest of People Can Fly that we didn't own. We didn't announce that, so that was also part of it," Epic Games VP Mark Rein told us this afternoon at GDC Europe."But now we own it all. We had a controlling stake, but the owner still owned a fairly large piece of it," he said. As it turns out, those owners were the folks who left to do something different – despite being in the middle of developing the next Gears of War game, Judgment. "They left, they're gonna do their own thing. They have something cool they're gonna do, and we'll be very supportive of it," Rein added.It's unknown how much Epic Games paid for the rest of its stake in People Can Fly.
MotorStorm rolls out, over 6 million copies
The MotorStorm franchise, which includes five games across PS2, PS3, PSP and Vita, has sold more than 6 million units, Sony XDev Studio Europe's Pete Smith said at GDC Europe on August 13. Smith gave a talk discussing tips of pitching to publishers, citing MotorStorm's Evolution Studios as an example of a team with a clear focus and solid marketing technique.The latest MotorStorm installment, MotorStorm RC, launched on PS3 and Vita in March.
How Mirror's Edge gave legs (and more) to Battlefield 3
The dextrous legs of Mirror's Edge heroine Faith helped to shape the movement of characters in Battlefield 3, EA DICE general manager Karl Magnus Troedsson said in a speech today during GDC Europe. No, you don't spend too much time parkouring around the war torn arenas of Battlefield 3, but various animations – Faith vaulting over obstacles, for instance – directly shaped the way BF3's soldiers interacted with their environment."Not just the legs, but the actual movement," Troedsson told us in a followup. "So in BF3, when you jump over something, you can see the vaulting, etc. So the whole animation setup has actually changed quite a bit." Beyond just the animation, he said, it changed how first-person perspective was designed in Battlefield games. "Before in our games – before Mirror's Edge and before BF3 – the camera was actually just something that was floating. Now it actually sits on the animation rig that we have, which is a big difference."When we pressed for more news on Mirror's Edge within DICE and the potential for a sequel, Troedsson was predictably coy. "How many people want it? We'll see. You have to wait and see," he said. "As I mentioned, we want to do other things in Battlefield, so of course making a sequel to a game like that could be an option moving forward." And hey, it if it helps DICE's "core franchise," it could be worthwhile even without the level of financial support Battlefield sees from fans. At least that's what we're hoping.
Battlefield series celebrates 10 year anniversary: over 50 million served
DICE general manager Karl Magnus Troedsson took to GDC Europe today to celebrate his company's 20-year anniversary and the 10-year anniversary of its "core franchise," Battlefield. He revealed that the series has "served" more than 50 million players, and added that DICE is "still in love."Battlefield's latest franchise entry, Battlefield 3, shipped over 12 million copies as of last November. Battlefield 4 is up next, expected in holiday 2013.
The Daily Grind: Do you expect big news from this week's confluence of conventions?
GDC Europe, GenCon Indy, and Gamescom all happening at the same time? It'd be completely unbelievable if it weren't happening right now. This week sees three major gaming conventions all taking place, and while all three are focusing on different areas of the gaming world, you can't focus on one while ignoring the others. That means that next week is going to be full of coverage of all three events, and if you've been following the convention calendar, you're no doubt eagerly anticipating this. But will there be any major news? After all, sometimes these events don't produce news so much as a few interesting footnotes. With so much gaming concentrated in a single week, it would almost make more sense to wait until the ruckus has died down to make any big announcements. So do you expect big news from this week's convention extravaganza? Or do you expect a whole lot of noise and not a lot of signal? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
