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Rumorang: Star Wars Battlefront III 'not currently' at Pandemic
Despite the rumor to the contrary, it appears that Star Wars: Battlefront III is not in development at Pandemic, the studio responsible for the first two games. Just last week an employee from Rebellion -- where Battlefront III development moved after its initial stint at Free Radical -- reportedly stated that development had shifted to Pandemic. According to Mathew Everett, community manager at Pandemic, the game "is not currently" with the studio. He added that only LucasArts would know the fate of the title at this point.Depending on your point of view, this news is either a terrible blow or a tremendous relief (unless you're just middlin', of course). Given the popularity of the most recent Star Wars title, The Force Unleashed, we imagine Battlefront III will find a home somewhere. Here's hoping Jabba is finally playable.[Via VideoGamer]
[UPDATED] Patch 3.1 PTR build 9658 Warlock changes
A new build went up on the PTRs today, and there's a little bit of good news for Warlocks. Some lingering questions are answered and some fears are put to rest. Most of the changes this patch were to Affliction, so expect more changes to the other trees in later builds. Let's have a look:AfflictionPandemic - Grants the periodic damage from your Corruption and Unstable Affliction spells the ability to critically hit for 100% increased damage.The talent was simplified to enable Corruption and Unstable Affliction to crit, but could have been interpreted as a nerf because spells normally just crit for 50% more damage. The new build should quell those apprehensions. The spell is effectively the same for one point instead of three. That, my friends, is a buff.Malediction - Increases your spell damage by 1/2/3%, and increases the periodic critical strike chance of your Corruption and Unstable Affliction spells by 3/6/9%.With the bonus to Curse of the Elements made baseline, Malediction became a vanilla spell damage increase. The build 9658 version makes it a mandatory talent that will do crazy, sexy things to Affliction DPS. Send some donuts to Irvine. Let's make sure this makes it to the live realms.Eradication - When you deal damage with Corruption, you have 6% chance to increase your spell casting speed by 6/12/20% for 10 sec.This is a reversion and an effective nerf. An earlier build redesigned the talent to increase Shadow Bolt crits, but this change nerfs the talent by forcing players to invest three points (most builds currently put only one) to get the full effect but with a lower proc rate. Hold those donuts.UPDATE: I said before in my last post about the Warlock changes on the PTR that Blizzard seemed intent on removing Immolate from Affliction's rotation by removing all incentive to cast it. I was dead on. In fact, in the current build Immolate now shares the same debuff category as Unstable Affliction. Only one or the other can be up on one target from the same Warlock. Now Affliction Warlocks can't cast Immolate even if they wanted to. Well, they could, but why would they want to? This is a nerf. Unless the damage component of Immolate is compensated through other means, this looks like a DPS drop.
Rumor: Star Wars Battlefront III goes home to Pandemic [update]
Update: According to Pandemic community manager Mathew Everett, the studio is not currently working on Star Wars Battlefront III. Star Wars Battlefront III has been jumping developers like a frog on a hotplate. First under development at Free Radical, the title was then supposedly moved to Rebellion. Now that Rebellion is hard at work on Aliens Vs. Predator, the latest rumor has the game right back at square one: Pandemic. The rumor comes from website DarkZero, which claims that it received the news directly from a Rebellion employee.It would make sense, given that Pandemic was responsible for the first two games. Considering the studio also just pushed Lord of the Rings: Conquest out the door, its Batman title was canceled and the only other project we know about is Saboteur, Pandemic doesn't exactly have a full plate.
Mirror's Edge and Mercenaries 2 fail to excite Japan
Anecdotal evidence suggests that neither Mirror's Edge nor Mercenaries 2 took off in Japan. This picture shows stacks of new copies of both games on sale for ¥1,980 ($21). Mirror's Edge was released on December 11 in Japan, and Mercenaries 2 followed one week later. Both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions are marked down, so the blame for poor sales doesn't fall solely on 360's lowly reputation in Japan. Japan has no rental services, so people tend to buy games, complete them immediately, and then sell them back to stores asap, before the prices are slashed, leading to a precipitous drop in used prices of popular games. Even that isn't the case here -- these games are new, and retailer Sofmap's website shows used copies of Mirror's Edge at ¥4,780 for PS3 and 360, while new copies are marked down to a mere ¥1,980. Would Mirror's Edge have benefited from a lead character redesigned for Asian audiences? Maybe, if that redesign had also encompassed not making the game a first-person shooter.
Rumor: Videos of Pandemic's canned 'Batman'
A 3D animator by the name of Travis Ramsdale has updated his personal blog with a couple of interesting (and sad) items. Describing himself as, "an animator who just finished up at Pandemic Studios in Brisbane," Ramsdale confirms the studio's closure, saying, simply, "So yeah ... Pandemic closed ... I'm moving to Germany."Ramsdale also posted what he says is his most recent demo reel, which contains two sequences from an "unreleased Pandemic title" (separated here). One, a rooftop chase; the other, a cinematic test. If you hadn't been following earlier rumors that Pandemic was working on a new Batman title -- which was later rumored to be canceled -- you'd think the footage was of just another action game. Put all the pieces together, though, and these videos (first spotted on Kotaku) would certainly seem to be of work done for the Caped Crusader's ill-fated video game outing, but they are in no way confirmed as such by Ramsdale or other official sources. We've posted the additional cinematic test footage after the break.
LOTR Conquest demo conjures 1 million downloads
Pandemic Studios just informed us that the Lord of the Rings Conquest demo that released to the Xbox Live Marketplace a few weeks back has been downloaded over 1 million times. That means the demo download has bested Call of Duty: World at War and its nine week run on top. Congrats to the crew over at Pandemic on their demo download success, but we have to ask; how well did those demo downloads translate into retail sales? One could argue that those sales figures are a tad bit more important.
Metareview -- Lord of the Rings: Conquest (PS3, 360)
EA got the folks who made the rather excellent Star Wars: Battlefront II to make Lord of the Rings: Battlefront Conquest, so it, too, must be rather excellent? Despite the source material, developer pedigree and the fact that you can play as the bad guys, the reviews -- which admonish its "ropey visuals" and "redundant gameplay" -- do not smile kindly on this latest video game jaunt through Tolkien's Middle Earth. Sauron's eye casts its gaze on the scores and summaries below. IGN (70/100): "Diehard fans of both online, class-based games and The Lord of the Rings might want to invest the sixty bucks, but if redundant and unimaginative gameplay are things you despise, you'll want to steer clear." GameSpot (65/100): "The Lord of the Rings: Conquest is an exciting and action-packed way to experience Middle-earth, provided that you have the patience and fortitude to shoulder a few frustrating burdens." Eurogamer (50/100): "While there is some enjoyment to be had here, it is hard-won and rarely fulfilling. The imprecision of the combat and its lightweight feel combined with the ropey visuals conspire to date the game considerably." Official Xbox Magazine (40/100): "It'd be too easy to say that Conquest will appeal only to diehard Tolkien fans; in fact, they're the ones most likely to hate it."
Rumor: Tech issues ruined Dark Knight game, pushed Pandemic AU to ruin
At this point, we don't even have confirmation that Pandemic Brisbane is gone, but according to a report from Kotaku Australia, the axe dropped after the studio couldn't finish the oft-rumored Dark Knight game in time for the film's DVD / Blu-ray release. Blame allegedly goes to the short timeframe allotted to development and a lack of technology / tools needed to make the open-world title the team had in mind.Reportedly, a second team was working on an open-world Wii title and managed to retain rights to the project after the studio closed. We're still waiting to discover the studio's fate, but in the meantime, the report is definitely worth a read. After the break, check out footage from a different -- some would say fake -- Dark Knight game.
Rumor: EA sets Pandemic Studios Australia free
Electronic Arts has bid adieu to Pandemic Studios' Brisbane office, according to a "reliable source" speaking to Kotaku. The site reports that the studio has been "set free" and tasked with finding a new publisher, as opposed to being shut down completely.EA acquired the Australian branch of Pandemic during its acquisition of BioWare last year. The studio is best known for the Destroy All Humans! series, but was rumored to have been working on other unannounced projects. We'll update if any new information arises.Update: EA's Mariam Sughayer issued the following response: "In December, EA announced a cost reduction initiative that will impact facilities and headcount. We do not expect to make any more public announcements until our earnings call in early February. Outside of our scheduled earnings call, we aren't providing any new information on the status of individual facilities."
Shipping this week: Lord of the Battlefront edition
Guess what, kids? There's actually a game releasing for the Xbox 360 this week. You'll notice that "game" is singular, as there is only one game out this week. It's appropriate enough though, as the game itself happens to be about the One Ring. Yes, this week marks the release of Lord of the Rings: Conquest. If you've played the demo, you've got a pretty good idea of what to expect. It's essentially Star Wars: Battlefront only with fewer Stormtroopers and a lot more hobbits. Conquest has something that Battlefront definitely doesn't though: You can be a Balrog. A Balrog.[Via Joystiq]
Game developers sound off on industry layoffs
It's all too easy to forget that there are real people behind the power-ups we're so fond of collecting. Gamasutra has posted a sobering look at the industry, interviewing recently out-of-work employees from such companies as Eidos and Pandemic while putting faces on the disturbing number of layoffs that have impacted the business behind the games we play. "In our industry, there's a relatively high chance that once your game is finished, the studio will make some cuts," noted David Lewis, a software test engineer at Ensemble, which will close its doors after Halo Wars (pictured) rolls out the door later this year. "But I had no reason to suspect that the whole studio would be closed." Even so, some, like recruiter T.J. Summers, believe that there is work to be had for those willing to stretch beyond their comfort zones and look for work in "new growth sectors" such as web or mobile. Still, we sympathize with those impacted, especially knowing that the drop off from developing AAA titles to Flash games has to be enough to lose your stomach.
Video: The good guys of The Lord of the Rings: Conquest
After revealing the evil minions of Sauron last month, EA has released a new trailer for Lord of the Rings: Conquest that showcases the good people of Middle Earth. Gandalf: check. Aragorn: check. Gimli and Legolas: they're there. And let's not forget the throngs of nameles archers, warriors and scouts that comprise the various classes players will spend most of their time with. The most important thing we learned from the video: We want, nay, need to play as an Ent. What's that? You say there's a demo available right now? Well then, we're off. Enjoy the video.
Sauron spies with his little eye: 'LotR: Conquest' demo on Live
Word comes from Sauron's agent, the one they call Major Nelson of the Red Mound, that the multiplayer demo for Lord of the Rings: Conquest is available now on Xbox Live. The 1.25GB demo is available globally and allows you to play as either the armies of "good" or "evil" -- although, what side those terms represent is surely up for philosophical debate.Developer Pandemic has had no qualms in saying that LotR: Conquest is Star Wars: Battlefront with a Middle-Earth setting. The game should arrive on January 13 for X360, PS3 and PC. Now, go kill some filthy Hobbitses!Update: Worth noting, the LotR: Conquest demo is also available on PSN.%Gallery-22396%
Mercs 2 Blow it Up Again DLC available for free
Releasing a day earlier than expected is new Mercenaries 2: World in Flames downloadable content. Available for 0 Microsoft points (that mean it's free), you can own your very own Blow it Up Again DLC and be the talk of town. The 377MB download adds four new missions to the mix along with some patriotic characters. The bigger question remains ... will it be grenades or TNT?
Mercenaries 2 is ready to Blow It Up Again
Because they're aware your interest in Mercenaries 2: World in Flames has probably dwindled, EA and Pandemic Studios are set to release a new bundle of Blow It Up Again content pack joy. It's destructive DLC. This expansion content is scheduled for release on Tuesday, December 16th and will be 100% FREE throughout the rest of the year. Included will be four additional game modes as well as a few "patriotic characters" to wreak havoc with. Per the Blow It Up Again teaser trailer, we're moderately impressed, because it looks so darn boom-riffic! [Via TeamXbox, Thanks Lightsout565]
Nerd out over LOTR Conquest achievements
We'll be honest, just the prospect of Lord of the Rings: Conquest has us excited. Getting a chance to take part in a massive fantasy battle out of J.R.R. Tolkien's universe is a geeky dream come true. Helping to fuel our nerdy desires are the newly discovered achievements for Conquest as provided by Xbox360Achievements.org. Most of the achievements center around completing single-player campaign levels or killing X number of enemies as class X. There are a few, however, that stand out. We're particularly fond of Flame of Anor, which is given to players for killing 100 enemies with a mage's firewall on a single life. It also might be hard to top You Shall Not Pass!, which is given for defeating the Balrog -- as Gandalf -- in the Mines of Moria. Nerdgasm complete.
Video: LOTR Conquest shows its evil side
At this point, we've all taken a few steps in Frodo's shoes. We know what it's like to swing a sword as Aragorn. We've even laid waste to hordes of orcs with Gandalf's mighty magic. Now, thanks to Lord of the Rings: Conquest from Pandemic (creators of Star Wars: Battlefront), we can finally give in to our more evil inclinations. The latest trailer for conquest shows off plenty of evil creatures doing what they do best. From Orcs to Balrogs to Fell Beasts to Lord Sauron himself, it's a veritable buffet of malificence. We particularly like the scene in which an orc takes down an Ent singlehandely. Check out the video above and dream of the day you can do it yourself (which, incidentally, will be in January 2009)
EA: 'There will be a Mercenaries 3'
EA boss John Riccitielo is the latest company bigwig talking up more sequels, just as his publishing megalith struck gold with Dead Space, one of the best original titles it's had in years. This time it's Mercenaries, which Riccitielo confirmed will see a third installment developed by series creator Pandemic. "There will be a Mercenaries 3," Riccitielo said during an investor call, adding, "and, if I have anything to do with it, there will be a Mercenaries 10." With nearly two million copies sold worldwide, a sequel to the open-world action game was a given ... but another seven beyond that? Mattias will be 'jacking other residents' wheelchairs at the mercenary retirement home by that point.
LOTR: Conquest attacks in January
The Shacknews folks are reporting that Pandemic Studios' Lord of the Rings: Conquest - a game dedicated to re-creating epic LOTR battles sans Elijah Wood - will be landing on retail shelves next January 13th. And from the factual deets we've already been given, LOTR: Conquest doesn't sound half bad ... possibly even good. We believe in you Pandemic, so do us proud!
Lord of the Rings: Conquest coming in January
If you're anything like us (and we assume you are, otherwise what are you doing here?) you sort of forgot Lord of the Rings: Conquest existed. And who could blame you? With all the Fables about DeadFalloutCry, who had time for a Star Wars Battlefront-esque take on a license that's sooo 2003? Well, hopefully you will on January 13, when the game arrives in North America on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC.The release date notice emphasized how Conquest allows you to join either the forces of good or evil. As Pandemic boss Josh Resnick said, "What The Lord of the Rings fan hasn't fantasized about joining Sauron's army to slay Hobbits?" For the record, we haven't, you sicko.
