medal-of-honor-2010
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DICE vows continued support for Battlefield 3 in light of Battlefield 4 announcement
EA officially revealed Battlefield 4 today as a project being developed at the company's Sweden-based DICE studio. Beyond that, however, no one's saying a peep about the game. Lest you forget, three more DLC packs are planned for DICE's last game, Battlefield 3, and that apparently means DICE isn't ready to talk Battlefield 4 just yet."There is no further Battlefield 4 news at this point," reads a post from DICE on the Battlefield 4 subpage. "With the Back to Karkand and Close Quarters expansion packs already out, Armored Kill around the corner, and End Game and Aftermath still on the horizon, we're looking forward to many more hours of gameplay with you, and can't wait to see the stories you will tell through Battlelog and player created videos."With Medal of Honor's 2010 reboot, EA set out to match its competition's annual shooter, Call of Duty. EA's Los Angeles-based Danger Close studio is in charge of EA's Medal of Honor franchise, apparently trading off years with DICE and the Battlefield franchise. The two franchises currently share DICE's Frostbite 2.0 game engine, and Danger Close's next MoH employs DICE's Battlelog system as well. Thus far, EA has yet to best Activision's Call of Duty powerhouse (in terms of sales and critical reception) with its two shooter franchises.
Battlefield, Medal of Honor series discounted on Steam today
Today's edition of Steam's EA Week sales doesn't focus on one of the company's franchises, but two: Battlefield and Medal of Honor. Check out the many one-day discounts on Bad Company 2, Bad Company 2: Vietnam, Battlefield 2: Complete Collection, and plain ol' Medal of Honor below!
Steam has Ubisoft hits on sale this weekend; Impulse has Medal of Honor
Whether you're in the mood for shooting or shooting, Steam and Impulse have your back this weekend. Active now, Steam's offering Assassin's Creed, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood, Far Cry 2 and Rainbow Six Vegas 2 in a bargain $3 bundle; while Impulse has Medal of Honor for $15.
Medal of Honor soundtracks getting reprinted in eight-disc collection
Are you looking for a metric ton of musical accompaniment for ... well, any event that would require you to get super, super pumped up beforehand? La-La Land Records and Electronic Arts have teamed up to create the most potent bundle of inspirational tunes you've ever heard: An eight-disc, ten-hour-long compilation of all the original scores from the Medal of Honor series. In addition to the almost-half-day of music from composers Michael Giacchino, Christopher Lennertz and Ramin Djawadi, the bundle includes a 40-page book with information on each game and soundtrack, complete with a foreword from the series' creator, Stephen Spielberg. The collection will be available through La-La Land Records on March 1, though a price wasn't included in the announcement. Really, though, can you put a price on inspiration?
EA earnings from digital distribution up in fiscal Q3, retail not so much
EA sent out its earnings for fiscal Q3 2011, which ended December 31 of last year, and it was a good quarter for EA ... 's digital distribution initiatives. Net digital revenue is up $62 million year over year, hitting $195 million, while net "packaged goods" publishing revenue dropped $78 million to $91 million in the quarter. Along with a drop in revenue from games distributed by EA, the publisher's year-over-year take dropped $190 million. Touting its digital domination, EA claimed to be the "#1 publisher in the Apple App Store for both iPhone and iPad and #1 on Microsoft Windows Phone 7" in the West during the quarter. It also touted large shipments of two of its Q3 retail releases, Medal of Honor and Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, both of which have passed five million units shipped to date.
Amazon deals: Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, GTA IV: Complete, more
Generosity is a wonderful, uniquely human impulse, but no matter what television and every Christmas song would have you believe, it's also a finite resource. Haven't you already done enough for others this season? Haven't you earned a little something for Big Poppa? Isn't it time you stopped referring to yourself as "Big Poppa" unironically? Why not treat yourself to some Amazon Lightning Deals today? You can already find Gold Box deal Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood for $38 or Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete for $26, and more (find Thrifty Nerd's best guesses after the jump) are being teased for later in the day. Go on ... you've earned it.
October NPD: NBA 2K11 tops charts, Xbox 360 'best selling console in 2010'
Here is the second edition of the revised (and less informative) monthly NPD report. With the market research group no longer sharing specific hardware figures, it's noteworthy to point out that only Microsoft has (as of writing) released concrete sales numbers. Major Nelson tweeted that Microsoft sold 325K Xbox 360s in October. Although the figure represents a 32-percent drop from the previous month, it was enough to secure Microsoft's spot as best-selling console of the month. Major Nelson also added that the Xbox 360 "is the best selling console in 2010 [with] 3.5 million" sold so far. Sony's response doesn't offer console sales numbers, but Patrick Seybold commented on increased momentum for the company's PlayStation Move motion controller. "The PS3 Move Bundle had a 15-percent increase in sales since launch last month, and we're working hard to keep the inventory up across the country to meet strong consumer demand." In addition, Seybold reminded us of the impending launch of Sony's big holiday game: "With next week's launch of the industry's most anticipated title, Gran Turismo 5, we're sure to carry the momentum through the holidays." Nintendo, as of the time of publishing, had not offered comment. Software sales jumped 6 percent year-over-year for the month to $605 million. The multiplatform release of NBA 2K11 helped propel it to the top of the charts, undoubtedly aided by EA Sports' cancellation of NBA Elite 11. Fallout, Medal of Honor and Fable all made strong debuts -- but Rock Band 3's 15th-place position in sales has us concerned. NPD analyst Anita Frazier did make a special note in the report, assuring us that "this game has the potential to perform well over the holidays." The top-ten software breakdown is posted after the break.
DICE: Medal of Honor Taliban controversy affected reviews
We're not firm believers in the "any press is good press" maxim. Just ask the Xbox 360 and its Red Ring of Death which garnered many a headline -- headlines that reminded would-be consumers why they should hold off on purchasing the console. It would appear EA DICE, the developer behind the multiplayer component of Medal of Honor – the Afghanistan-based shooter in which the Taliban murders American troops – has now too learned this lesson. "The controversy did affect some reviews," DICE's Patrick Liu told Eurogamer. "It stirs a lot of feelings, just the setting. And that does affect people's judgment." While it may have affected some people's judgment, it didn't stop the reboot from moving two million units in just two weeks; not quite Call of Duty numbers, but a healthy start. But back to those reviews: "The game is better than today's reviews are indicating," EA' s Patrick Soderlund previously told Eurogamer. "We're also competing with ourselves," Liu continued, referring to DICE's own Battlefield series. "Obviously we're competing with Call of Duty. It's a very tricky situation to be squeezed in between those giants." He added that competing against Battlefield "can feel awkward sometimes" and, while plans aren't set for an MOH sequel, he replied both "yes and no" when asked if he'd want to work on one. "It would be cool to continue to develop the franchise. At the same time we have a lot of exciting stuff going on in DICE as well that we have been working on in parallel." We're guessing that would be: Battlefield 3, another installment in the Battlefield: Bad Company series, and Mirror's Edge 2. You are working on Mirror's Edge 2, right, DICE?
Medal of Honor discounted on Amazon today, as we enter the Hot Zone
Though the recently released Medal of Honor "Hot Zone" DLC doesn't come free with your EA Online Pass (the add-on is $10), saving $20 on a new copy of the game might help ameliorate your hesitancy to really heat things up. As its Video Game Deal of the Day, Amazon has dropped the price of Medal of Honor by a cool third to $40. Additionally, EA has released the Hot Zone trailer -- embedded after the break. Apparently, the "Hot Zone" moniker is related to the DLC's new multiplayer mode, and not the possibility of the Tier 1 gang returning home, shaving their beards and hitting the town in crisp party shirts. Fooled again!
EA: Medal of Honor sells two million in first two weeks
According to EA's latest earnings report, "Medal of Honor is off to a strong start, selling-through 2 million units in just two weeks in October." Translation: EA sold 2 million of copies of Medal of Honor last month, following its October 12 launch. Two million is a pretty impressive feat for the reboot of a franchise that was all but sunk -- not to mention marred in a bit of controversy leading up to launch. It just goes to show you that overcoming any obstacle is as simple as shooting it with a gigantic gun. Growing a beard probably doesn't hurt, either.
Medal of Honor paid DLC also out November 2
Previously, EA revealed that it would release free Medal of Honor DLC to "Online Pass" holders on November 2. Today, the company announced that it will also issue a second DLC pack -- this one, the kind you pay for -- on the same day. The $10 add-on will include a new multiplayer mode, "Hot Zone" (a.k.a. "King of the Hill"). This Hot Zone DLC will also include two new maps, Hindukush Valley and Korengal Outpost, as well as redesigned versions of the Shahikot Valley and Helmand Valley maps. That's right -- even more venues for your totally fictional fight for a hill against the Opposing Force.
Fallout: New Vegas explodes on UK charts
Fallout: New Vegas hit it big on the High Street strip, taking the top spot on the UK Charts and besting Fallout 3's premiere week sales by 29 percent. Last week's top game, Medal of Honor, lost ground and dropped 48 percent in sales to second place, while FIFA 11 also slipped one position to the third spot. Nintendo DS title Professor Layton and the Lost Future (Unwound Future across the pond) debuted in fourth place, with -- no surprise! -- Just Dance 2 showing the stamina of its predecessor by rounding out the top 5. In case you're wondering, the original Just Dance doesn't look like it's coming back to the top ten this year, but it's still sitting comfortably in the teens at the 14 spot. Higher-profile premieres that didn't make the top ten include: Vanquish at #12, EA Sports MMA at #23 and DJ Hero 2 at #25. Discover the UK top ten for 10 picarats after the break.
EA: Medal of Honor has generated $100 million
There's no doubt that EA had an uphill battle on its hands with Medal of Honor. The industry has been waiting to see just how Medal of Honor would fare against the likes of Halo: Reach and the looming release of Call of Duty: Black Ops. Now, EA has announced that the game managed to ship 1.5 million copies in its first five days. Speaking to Fox Business, EA CEO John Riccitiello noted that the game has generated $100 million for the company. Not quite as impressive as the numbers pulled in by Halo: Reach, but certainly a strong showing for an aging franchise in need of a jump start. Riccitiello also touched on Medal of Honor's disparate review scores, chalking them up to the game's polarizing real-world subject matter. Regarding the Taliban controversy surrounding the game, Riccitiello said that the issue boiled down to media outlets being unfamiliar with multiplayer games. "When you were a kid you might've said 'Cowboys and Indians.' Somebody had to be the Indian," he said. "It's not really fun if everyone's a cowboy." See the full interview after the break.
Free Medal of Honor DLC adds new multiplayer mode November 2
EA will release a free multiplayer download pack for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of Medal of Honor on November 2. Well, free for those who have the Online Pass, anyway. The DLC adds a new multiplayer mode called "Clean Sweep," in which American troops help organize a messy home "an elimination mode where players must rely on their own skill and teammates' expertise to prevail as the winning team." The DLC includes two new maps designed for the new mode, called Bagram Hangar and Khyber Caves, and new versions of the Diwagal Camp and Kabul City Ruins maps also designed for Clean Sweep.
Medal of Honor claims UK sales top spot; Just Dance 2 debuts in third
Here's the latest communique from the UK: Medal of Honor managed to premiere in the top spot of the UK sales chart, ousting FIFA 11, which had a 65 percent drop in sales and slipped to second. Although Chart-Track won't share raw intel on sales figures, it claims MoH had the fourth and fifth biggest premieres for 2010 on Xbox 360 and PS3, respectively. Just Dance 2, the sequel to the unbelievably stalwart chart topper, debuted in third place. The original Just Dance has been the best selling game on one format in the UK this year and, even with its sequel out, still managed to secure a spot at #12 last week. This is only the seventh time since hitting the Wii-exclusive dance floor that the title has been out of the top ten. Castlevania: Lords of Shadow and Enslaved both slipped four spots last week to tenth and eleventh, respectively. There's little hope that either of these quality games will hang around the top ten for more than a couple weeks, especially as the incoming competition keeps heating up. Check out the UK's top ten after the break.
Alan Wake, Epic Mickey among award-nominated video game scores
Set to be announced in advance of the Hollywood Music In Media Conference running November 18-20, 2010 in -- where else -- Hollywood, CA, the 2010 Hollywood Music In Media Awards nominees include nine video game scores under the category of Visual Media. The bombastic orchestral sounds of God of War 3 and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood are joined by the more moody fare of Alan Wake and -- a bit out of left field -- the score to Disney Epic Mickey. The winning score will be revealed on November 11, 2010, and you can find the complete list of nominees after the break. Cue dramatic end-of-post theme.
Medal of Honor insists on PS3 firmware 3.42, blocks PSJailbreak
Sony's ongoing battle with PSJailbreak seems to have reached the software side, as DigitalFoundry reports that Medal of Honor requires at least PlayStation 3 firmware 3.42 in order to run. DF notes that copies of the Medal of Honor have made it onto the net but "the game is completely unplayable with the hack as is." It seems that 3.42 includes a new decryption key, which is required to run Medal of Honor, while the firmware that PSJailbreak is based on "simply can't read the code." Presumably, this protection will be added to other future releases as well. The article adds that it's possible that existing hacks could be altered to accommodate the change, though it remains to be seen if that will happen and, if so, how long it will take the hacking community to adapt.
Metareview: Medal of Honor
In our review of Medal of Honor we said the "campaign is an exceptional experience, but the total package simply doesn't beat Call of Duty." The real drag was the game's "unremarkable" multiplayer, developed by DICE, not standing up to the single-player campaign or being able to headshot Call of Duty's twitch-based multiplayer, its clear inspiration and competition. Critical opinion of Medal of Honor is definitely mixed. Eurogamer (80/100): "As a game about the Afghanistan war that does its absolute utmost to avoid being about the Afghanistan war, Medal of Honor is arguably just a shooting gallery spliced with a fairground ride and a solid multiplayer accessory which owes a lot to Bad Company 2." 1Up (B): "But while the multiplayer is very much a worthwhile experience, it lacks the scope and grandeur of Modern Warfare 2, let alone the upcoming Black Ops. By comparison, the number of play modes and customization/rank options seem quite limited, and it's hard to believe fevered Call of Duty or Bad Company 2 players will break from their current favorites to dedicate themselves to Medal of Honor." Game Informer (70/100): "All the parts for a great multiplayer experience are here – class unlocks, a variety of familiar modes, lots of guns – but they don't come together in a way that makes Medal of Honor a must-play shooter. Military buffs may enjoy the game on some level, but in such a densely packed genre, EA must try harder to stand out." IGN (60/100): "Swinging wildly between the horrors and danger of war and unrealistic action movie moments and hampered by a surplus of boring scripted sequences, not even DICE's talented multiplayer designers are able to elevate Medal of Honor to something memorable." Giant Bomb (3/5): "But all of those scripting bugs and boring unlockables quickly add up, death-of-a-thousand-cuts style. In the absolutely ruthless world of online shooters, there's little room for weakness. Medal of Honor alternates between its derivative style and its annoying technical glitches way too frequently to rise above the crowd." %Gallery-104838%
Digital Foundry examines Medal of Honor: Frontline HD
"Examines" is perhaps not specific enough a word in this context -- Digital Foundry fully dissects the "updated" Medal of Honor: Frontline that's included in a limited run of the PS3 version of Medal of Honor ... and then rips it apart. Aside from noting the "low-poly and low-fi textures", DF also claims the game's visuals have "an absolute mammoth level of screen-tear," and its frame rate "varies dramatically." When compared with the God of War Collection's HD remastering and the forthcoming Sly Cooper remix, MoH: Frontline is said to do little more than serve as "a reminder of how far the genre has progressed over the last eight years." But then, being free, it's hard to argue that the inclusion of Frontline is a ripoff -- it's just not all that "updated," is all.
Former Marine reminds us Medal of Honor is just a video game
In his Medal of Honor review, Joystiq's Andrew Yoon writes: "Recalling the terminology, remembering the technology and feeling the burden of the mission, the campaign is a true learning experience -- one that I didn't expect, but ultimately enjoyed." This statement is a testament to EA and Danger Close's ability to successfully execute the so-called "historical fiction" element that was so key to the game's design and marketing. Andrew hadn't learned to be a soldier, but he was drawn into the "perceived realism" much in the way that any celebrated war movie or book has sucked in its consumers. Certainly, games' ascent into the high art of "realism" has rasied some issues for a medium commonly associated with kids stuff. If you're concerned that war (video) games are becoming too real, especially for the kids who get their hands on them one way or another, give former U.S. Marine Corps infantry officer Benjamin Busch's editorial on NPR a read. "The game cannot train its players to be actual skilled special operations soldiers, nor is it likely to lure anyone into Islamic fundamentalism," Busch writes of Medal of Honor. "It can grant neither heroism nor martyrdom. What it does do is make modern war into participatory cinema. That is its business." Busch's problem with Medal of Honor is in its depiction of the War in Afghanistan -- a war that's obviously going on "right now." He believes that it "equates the war with the leisure of games" (perhaps distorting how best for a civilian, including those considering enlistment, to understand war), and he argues that, despite "the fully articulated violence," Medal of Honor can't possibly emulate the reality of combat. "There is a truth common to all, and that is that playing war in any medium is not combat, and for a gamer, it's not even political. It's just sedentary adventurism in need of a subject." "The power of controlling your situation, to be able to stop the war and rest, is something that our soldiers are quietly desperate for. For those who patrol the valleys of Helmand, it is a way to impose limits on the uncertainty of war and the constancy of vulnerability," Busch reminds us. "A video game can produce no wounds and take no friends away."
