midway
Latest
Bury the Shovelware: Myst
Ports are tricky. Indeed, the DS's big brother gets a lot of flak for hosting PS2 ports with tacked-on waggle. Yet, if the original game is good and a reasonable amount of bonus content is added, we generally give the game a pass. But things get even trickier when discussing the retro-port. I touched on this at the end of the Petz Dogz Fashion post, but it's worth restating: would you pay full retail price for an exact copy of your favorite retro game? As the Super Mario Advance series proved: yes, you will. Apparently, identical or near-identical copies of older games at standard market prices can still sell extremely well. It'll be interesting to see how successful the Chrono Trigger port will be (my prediction: very). It'd be especially nice if we could determine how many of those purchasing the game have never played it before (my second prediction: not very many). Information such as this would allow us to determine what effect -- if any -- retro-ports have on the current state of gaming. Examining Myst for the DS has been on my queue for quite some time. The reason for the delay was simply because I was unsure if it was fair to put it under the spotlight since I never played the original. But upon deliberating the sentiments above, I realized the DS port of the 1993 graphic adventure would be the perfect opportunity to put the question to a litmus test.
Midway: Xbox 360 is 'lagging behind' in Europe
Midway, being the first to offer constructive criticism (or just plain old criticism), expressed some concerns regarding Microsoft's Xbox 360 performance in Europe, saying that the feel the console is "lagging behind" its competitors. In an interview during the Leipzig Games Convention, Midway Vice President Martin Spiess talked with GamesIndustry.biz about Midway's performance in Europe and attributes some of their slow growth due to Microsoft's sluggish performance. "Sony has become very strong, Nintendo has become very strong, but the Microsoft market in certain territories is concerning" Spiess admitted, saying that "Microsoft is lagging behind." Ouch! Someone better revoke Spiess' Xbox 360 Cool Kids Club membership ASAP. The first rule of Xbox 360 Cool Kids Club is that we don't blame our company's problems on the 360. Shame!
Midway: Wheelman devs still behind the wheel
Just days after a new trailer and screens were released for the delayed Vin Diesel ... vehicle, Wheelman, some rumors evidently surfaced (emphasis on the "evidently" since this is the first we'd heard of it) that Midway was planning on shuttering the very studio behind its development. Not so, says Midway CEO Matt Booty (who should really call Ratchet, who recently embarked on a quest for him)."Newcastle is a very important studio for us" Booty told GamesIndustry, adding, "We just brought in a new studio head, Craig Duncan, formerly with Codemasters, so I think those two things are an indication that we've got a very strong commitment to that studio." Booty (it's fun to say!) also went as far as to call Wheelman "a front line important game for [Midway] in the first half of 2009."Booty then abruptly bolted out of the building, hopped into a running car driven by none other than Diesel himself, and quickly sped away. At least that's how we would have liked to see the interview wrap up. [Via Big Download]
Watch the Joker's MK vs. DC fatality
So what's the problem with the Joker's Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe fatality (seen at about 3:40 into the video after the break)? Well, nothing per se, it's a perfectly silly, violent way for the criminal mastermind to finish off his foes, and is actually surprisingly brutal for the game's Teen rating.No, the only real problem is what the attack isn't. As fans of The Dark Knight know, the Joker's real fatality is blindingly obvious. Because, honestly, who doesn't love a good magic trick?
GC 2008: This is new video of This is Vegas
Much like the real Vegas, you go into this Games Convention 2008 trailer thinking that you're going to come out a winner, but, when all is said and done, you're none the richer for it. It's more or less a sweep through the game's copyright-skirting lineup of faux casinos with a hint of driving and a logo to assure viewers that, yes, This is Vegas.Though the game / "lifestyle sim" has been delayed until next year, Midway nevertheless had it on display at E3 so we could proclaim: This is our Hands-on with This is Vegas. Two new screens head up the gallery below. Meanwhile, we anxiously await the inevitable sequels: This is Lodi, This is Jasper, and This is Hoboken.%Gallery-15441%
GC 2008: New trailer, screens for The Wheelman (not The Assassin!)
That's right! As Vin Diesel so eloquently points out, he's a wheelman, not an assassin. Of course, this dramatic scene takes place just after he's mowed down countless bad guys and destroyed half the city in a dramatic and collision-filled car chase. It's all a bit frantic, frankly, but at least we have The Wheelman's lead mission designer, Mark Thompson, to guide us through the broken glass and mangled metal. Don't forget to check out fresh screenshots in the gallery below!%Gallery-30183%
GC 2008: Joker, Green Lantern duke it out in new MK vs. DC screens
Let's put a smile on that face by checking out Midway's latest batch of Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe screenshots, rife with cross-dimensional brawling and enough continuity issues to drive fanboys round the bend. While you enjoy the sight of The Joker blasting Scorpion right out of the Batcave or the Green Lantern putting the squeeze on Shang Tsung, we'll frantically attempt to figure out how Ed Boon managed to steal all our closeted fan fictions. If these guys don't pummel your fancy, Midway has also informed us that series stalwarts Raiden and Kano will join the game's kombatants, along with the DC universe's Wonder Woman and Deathstoke.%Gallery-30030%
Variety: Tony Scott attached to canceled Midway game
It's the hottest thing for Hollywood fat cats to do: In-between making things explode and vacationing, they'll attach their name to a video game so, as long as the young people of the universe are spending more and more time away from the movieplex, at least they're spending time with your (brand) name. Peter Jackson; Steven Spielberg; John Woo; Jerry Bruckheimer; Vin Diesel – you get the idea. Variety is reporting that Tony "Top Gun" Scott was similarly attached to Midway's recently canceled – albeit never announced – Austin project, Career Criminal. Of course, Midway won't confirm the information since, well, it never announced that the game existed in the first place, remember? The silver lining: Scott's free to work on our long-dreamed-of video game adaptation of The Last Boy Scout. Think about it: Bruce Willis' likeness and voice, that's the stuff hits are made of.
Midway Austin facing 90 layoffs, 'Criminal' canceled [update]
Midway Austin is expected to lay off as many as 90 200 employees within the next 30 days and has canceled development of "Criminal," a source told Joystiq today. The significant downsizing would follow last week's departure of three high-ranking Midway execs in the wake of another dismal financial quarter. Gamasutra partially corroborates today's news, reporting that its sources have confirmed that some layoffs occurred late last week at the Austin office. Additional information about the status of Criminal (or even what is was!) has yet to be detailed. The mysterious IP was first reported to be in development two years ago.We have reached out to Midway for further clarification on the status of the Austin studio and its projects, and will update as soon as we obtain a statement.Update: Midway has issued a press release detailing the layoffs and game cancellation (note: emphasis ours): "Midway Games Inc. today announced that it has canceled an as-yet-unannounced project in production in its Austin, TX, facility, and as a result Midway will have a reduction in force of a portion of the affected development team. The studio will remain open and will continue to operate both the Company's Central Outsourcing Group as well as two teams that are working on unnamed prototype projects intended to expand Midway's portfolio of new intellectual property ... The workforce reduction will affect approximately 90 of the 130 people currently employed in the studio." [Thanks, dvnt]
More Midway departures including Chicago studio head
Just a day after learning of another blood-red quarter at Midway, with $34.8m lost in its second quarter, Kotaku brings word of a trio of high-level departures from the beleaguered publisher including Mike Bilder, head of Midway's internal Chicago studio, currently tasked with bringing Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe and Blitz: The League II to market.Also gone: Mona Hamilton, veep of marketing, and Reilly Brennan, director of media relations. Midway confirmed all three departures, and said that Bilder accepted a senior management position with another Chicagoland dev (any ideas, Joystiqland?). There are two additional rumored departures, but Midway's apparently not ready to talk about them yet. That's fine. For now we'll just add these three to the list we've already got going, right there next to these two guys and the company's CEO.
Listen to Quentin Sands in this Blitz: The League II video
Just a warning: there's some foul language in this video, so listen at an acceptable volume! Football is an American past-time, but we don't really get to hear the voices behind the masks -- especially when it comes to video game characters of their likeness. So that's why we found this Blitz: The League II video so interesting -- it offers a perspective we don't get to see in these styles of games that often. Here you get to listen to Lawrence Taylor, voicing the character of Quentin Sands in the game. He gives you some insight into the character, how he approached the voice, and how the story will be much larger than the first. Cool stuff.
Midway bleeds another $34.8 million in Q2
It's not getting any prettier at Midway Games, as the publisher has announced it lost $34.8 million this quarter -- over double its losses the same quarter last year. This also follows Q1 losses of $34 million for the company, bringing this red-soaked mess of a year to almost $69 million in losses.Matt Booty, Midway's interim president and CEO, believes that Midway's lineup later this year, consisting of Blitz: The League II and Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, will "expand the audience beyond their core fan bases." We know it's sweet to try and make quotes from the Nintendo playbook, but we just don't have the heart to tell him that Midway isn't Nintendo. The financial rivers will continue to flow red as Midway expects another multi-million loss during Q3.
Edge: Nintendo tops industry's best publishers
The online edition of UK gaming magazine Edge, formerly Next Gen, has come forward with what the proprietors feel exemplifies the top 20 game publishers the industry has to offer. Based on what we're sure represents a complicated formula of revenue, momentum, catalog, and review scores, the magazine found Nintendo to be the absolute crème of the crop, though we imagine it'll be difficult to make out the company's acceptance speech from beneath all that money.Other notables include Actilizzard and EA, which took home the silver and bronze medals, respectively, while Midway managed to break out of Arkham Asylum just in time to claim the list's 20th -- and final -- spot.
See tons of MK vs. DC Universe gameplay
We don't know how you feel about Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe but we've gone from absolute bewilderment to an almost embarrassing desire for the full version. If you're still on the doubters' side of the fence, we'd like to humbly suggest only that you watch the above video, a boatload of gameplay narrated by your friend and ours, Ed Boon.It all looks sort of cool, but we have a hard time getting past the part where Superman runs Scorpion through seven walls without picking up the phone to pre-order the game. We can't even watch it anymore because after call number 9, the guy at Gamestop was starting to get downright rude. What say you on it?
Toasty! Midway announces Mortal Kombat: Kollection for PS2
Midway plans to eviscerate PlayStation 2 owners this September, bundling together the previous three Mortal Kombat titles as a single $30 box set. The compilation, dubbed the Mortal Kombat: Kollection, will include 3D fighters Mortal Kombat: Deception and Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, as well as the under appreciated action game, Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks. According to Midway, the set is designed to let players "refine their skills" prior to getting to clobber the Man of Steel this holiday. However, considering that Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe plays more like Mortal Kombat 3 than any of the more recent 3D fighters, we're not exactly sure how many of those skills will actually make the transfer.
Wheelman pumps brakes, delayed until Q1 2009
Midway recently announced that their Vin Diesel-infused Driver-esque title Wheelman has hit some traffic whilst traveling down the release date turnpike, pushing its initial release window of Fall 2008 to the first quarter of 2009. While we're sure that there will be a number of Vinthusiasts out there who will be disappointed by this announcement, we fully understand the postponement -- based on our brief time with the game, we could tell it needed quite a bit of polish. Judging by the waxy sheen of the beefy actor's rippling head, we assume Diesel has plenty of polish that Midway could borrow, should they muster up the courage to ask.
Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe adds a killing Joker
Siliconera brings word from San Diego Comic-Con that more karacters have been added to the roster of Midway's crossover fighter, Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe. Specifically, the site confirms Jax and Kitana from the MK games are set to appear, along with DC Comics characters Green Lantern and the clown prince of crime himself, Joker. The site speculates that, since villains in MK vs. DC will be able to perform fatalities, Joker could conceivably kill Superman. We're not sure how happy DC would be about that, so don't get too excited.
Wheelman wheels its way to a Q1 2009 release
In other game delay news, Midway just announced that Wheelman, a game based on the Vin Diesel movie by the same name, will not make its originally planned Fall release and will instead be pushed back into the first quarter of 2009. Still plenty of time for the 2009 release of the flick and still plenty of time to make the game fun and enjoyable. Oh yeah, we went there ...%Gallery-28532%
MK vs. DC to have 20+ characters, download support
Even cynics like us have to admit at least a passing curiosity with the nerd orgasm that is Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe and its cross-universe roster. Earlier today we approached the game's production coordinator, Hector Sanchez, and while he would not let us in on the game's complete lineup, he admitted that the team is looking to feature between 20 to 25 characters, "split up evenly half and half, and then split up again between heroes and villains."Additionally, while talking about possible alternate costumes or other unlockables, Sanchez told us that the team is "planning to support downloadable content," before stopping short and saying he "was going to say something" but couldn't. Downloadable characters seems the obvious source of his pursed lips, making us continue wondering what comic book icons will be further ground beneath the heel of Midway's floundering franchise.
Midway at E3: Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe
Scorpion vs. Batman. Catwoman vs. Subzero. These aren't exactly matchups players have always dreamed of, but Midway is going to do their best to cram two disparate universes into one with Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe, the very first Mortal Kombat game on the next-gen systems. Here at E3, Joystiq got to sit down with Brian Lebaron, senior designer for the game, and we talked about why it's OK to set the Flash on fire, why Bizarro probably won't be in the game, and what Midway is doing to Toasty uppercut the fighting genre. After the break, find our hands on with the game, as well as details from our chat with Lebaron. When MK vs. DC comes out, you'll finally be able to find out whether Liu Kang's kicks can catch the Flash in the jaw.
