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THQ considering Linux and other platforms after Humble Bundle success
After the THQ bundle recently brought in over $5 million (split between THQ, charity donations, and "tips" to the bundle's organizers), the company's president Jason Rubin admits that he's looking at possible markets differently lately. Rubin's Twitter account says he "got the Linux message loud and clear" from the bundle, and he later told Polygon that "the message I took away from a large number of tweets and comments around the THQ Humble Bundle sale is that there are vibrant communities of gamers using other operating systems besides the dominant ones, and a company like THQ should not overlook them."In other words, there's opportunity for THQ in selling computer games outside of the standard Windows ecosystem. Rubin has no plans yet, but he says the analysis has started, and the company is "committed to look at anything that makes sense" in terms of releasing titles on platforms other than simply Windows. In the past, THQ has released Mac versions of its Company of Heroes series through a third-party publisher, but it sounds like Rubin is considering a more widespread solution for cross-platform releases after this feedback. He says THQ should have more to announce soon.
Mike Schramm12.18.2012
Braving the elements in Company of Heroes 2
There's a panicked struggle at the heart of every engagement in Company of Heroes 2's multiplayer mode. While a lot of real-time strategy games will emphasize squad matchups as a primary means of success in force, Company of Heroes 2 has a much more dynamic environment constantly providing interesting variables to every skirmish.Much of my own success was ensuring my squads were pressed up against a wall or moving from building to building – staying out of the open. Most real-time strategy enthusiasts and really anyone who's seen a war movie in their life will tell you that's basic stuff, but what makes it feel so special in Company of Heroes 2 is just how rewarding it is to see it impact gameplay. A squad with good cover can take on several adversaries and still live to tell the tale.%Gallery-173116%
David Hinkle12.13.2012
Humble THQ Bundle ends, earns $5 million from 885,000 bundles
The Humble Indie Bundle's first decidedly non-indie bundle, the THQ Bundle, has come to its anticipated end. All told, says the organization, the bundle raised $5 million, split as buyers chose between THQ, charity donations, and the Humble Bundle group itself.The whole project seems to have been a rousing success: 885,251 bundles went out the door, and THQ added a few big games into the pack during the sale. The average price for all titles sold was $5.76, and the top contributor to the cause was THQ's president Jason Rubin, who at the end had contributed a total of $10,000 to the proceedings.In fact, considering THQ's financial battles lately, this might be one of the company's biggest successes this year. Wonder what else they've got over there to bundle up and sell out the door?
Mike Schramm12.12.2012
Darksiders 2 statue brings Death and Despair into your living space
State of the Art Toys is preparing to let loose Death and his steed Despair on the collectibles world. A $249.99 statue of both Darksiders 2 characters is available for pre-order right now, with the first shipments expected to go out in mid-February.High intensity LEDs are built into Despair, lighting up his mane, hooves and tail. Death rides atop Despair with his scythes in hand, ready to reap the souls of all your other collectibles should they get out of line. What? That movie Toy Story was a documentary, you guys – your toys are alive and move when you're not looking.%Gallery-173141%
David Hinkle12.11.2012
Metro: Last Light's Genesis trailer is sad, cheer up with free 2033
Metro: Last Light's title is slightly misleading, since there's really nothing "light" about the game at all, at least according to the latest grim, Bible-quoting trailer. Hey, we never liked being happy anyway.Along with that uplifting video, THQ is offering a free Steam key for Last Light's predecessor, Metro: 2033, to each person who "likes" the Metro Facebook page from December 11 - 16, while supplies last. There's only so much room in the THQ digital vault, after all.
Jessica Conditt12.11.2012
THQ Humble Bundle adds Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War
The kind of ridiculous THQ Humble Bundle has added yet another game, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Game of the Year Edition. The space marine-filled RTS joins eight other THQ PC games including Saints Row The Third, Red Faction: Armageddon, Metro 2033, Darksiders, Titan Quest and Company of Heroes and its two standalone expansions.Dawn of War is now included for those who pay above the average bundle price, as are Saints Row The Third and Titan Quest. With said price hovering just under $6 as of this writing, that's a lot of games for not a lot of scratch.
Richard Mitchell12.10.2012
South Park: The Stick of Truth trailer features crossdressing and wizard crap
If the actual game proves as funny as its trailers, then Obsidian's South Park: The Stick of Truth will be doing very well. Our favorite parts from this video are Cartman on Kenny's enthusiasm for the Princess role, and a Mickey-taking cameo from Mr. Hankey.
Sinan Kubba12.10.2012
Humble THQ Bundle receives 'Titan Quest' addition, Red Faction DLC
The Humble THQ Bundle received a couple little bonus additions today, in the form of Titan Quest and the Red Faction: Armageddon downloadable content "Path of War." Titan Quest was a Diablo-esque RPG created by the now shuttered Iron Lore studios. Red Faction: Armageddon's "Path of War" DLC was released shortly after THQ announced it would abandon the franchise.The Humble THQ Bundle, which includes a cornucopia of the publisher's games, earned over $2 million in 24 hours. With six days to go on the pay-what-you-want bundle, it's currently pulled in $3.7 million, with the average purchase of the eight-game bundle a mere $5.58. That's about four and half shares of THQ stock.Update: Little bit of confusion about whether those who previously purchased the bundle receive the new items. Yes, you do. Follow the link you received in your purchase confirmation email.
Alexander Sliwinski12.06.2012
Company of Heroes movie trailer traps soldiers behind enemy lines
The last time THQ got involved in the movie business, things didn't turn out so well for the associated game. But we have faith all will be good in the adaptation of real-time strategy series Company of Heroes. This first trailer has it all: Nazis, explosions and Tom Sizemore squinting at stuff.
David Hinkle12.05.2012
Darksiders 2 'The Demon Lord Belial' DLC revealed, available tomorrow
Darksiders 2 will suddenly summon "The Demon Lord Belial" as downloadable content this week. Death seeks out the last remnants of humanity and faces off against the Demon Lord Belial in this DLC, which is included for those with a "Darksiders 2: Season Pass."The Demon Lord Belial is $9.99 (800 Microsoft Points) and rides onto PS3, Xbox 360 and PC tomorrow, December 4. It'll cross the pond December 6 for Europeans with PS3s. Speaking of THQ, remember that you can currently pay what you want for a whole mess of games from the publisher in the Humble THQ Bundle.
Alexander Sliwinski12.03.2012
Metro: Last Light live-action trailer has a distant past
This trailer for Metro: Last Light features real actors coping with their loss of identity in the series' post-apocalyptic version of Moscow. The game is expected to arrive in March 2013 for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Mike Suszek12.01.2012
Company of Heroes 2 debuts gameplay on ice
In Soviet Russia, ice breaks you... especially when one tries to drive across it in a multi-ton vehicle that's being bombarded by mortars. Here's some gameplay footage from the upcoming Company of Heroes 2. Grab the series up to now for whatever price you want in the Humble THQ Bundle.
Alexander Sliwinski11.30.2012Humble THQ Bundle well over $2 million, THQ president is top contributor
In just over 24 hours, the Humble THQ Bundle has brought in $2,386,749.04 (and rapidly counting), proving that any misgivings that some might have had over a non-DRM-free, Windows-only, less indie than usual Humble Bundle were trumped by the desire for cheap games – and charity, of course.The top contributor as of writing is THQ president Jason Rubin, who paid $1,050 for games he certainly could have gotten for free. In third place is Turtle Rock Studios, whose $1024 contribution may just help keep THQ going long enough for Turtle Rock to finish its game.
JC Fletcher11.30.2012
It 'seems' like Guillermo del Toro's Insane may live on after THQ
Even though THQ's reconfiguration earlier this year presumably spelled deAth for inSane, Guilermo del Toro still tried to shop it around. He's hopeful that the game is back on track to production now, going on to say "it seems like we're going to be developing it after the first meeting we had." "I can't disclose where it was, but we went to a great developer on the first meeting and it seems that they're picking it up because they love the package." He says that a year and a half has been spent working on the game already, with potentially two years' work ahead before the game can be released. "We put a good year and a half into it and we have the universe quite figured out, but we are now going to take that and start doing all the leg work with coding it, creating the engine, and starting to test it. It's going to take a good two years of modeling and rendering and creating the environments and all of that. The basic tenants of the game is that it's created, but now we're going to need to start actually making it."As for the original plans of creating a trilogy, that idea is not so set in stone any more. "I think we're going to concentrate on making it a great game and then we'll see. Obviously, among the assets was that idea, so I think there's a possibility. But we are not exploring it."
David Hinkle11.29.2012
Humble Bundle teams with THQ for Darksiders, Metro 2033, Saints Row: The Third on the cheap
THQ may not be an "indie" or tied to Android, but the ailing game publisher is teaming with the much beloved Humble Bundle folks to offer a flexibly priced batch of great THQ games. Zelda-alike Darksiders, spooky shooter Metro 2033, destruction sandbox Red Faction: Armageddon, and the entire Company of Heroes pack highlight the bundle's standards, while 2011's greatest Kanye simulator, Saints Row: The Third, comes with the rest should you choose to spend over the average payment price (currently around $5). You'll have to drop at least $1 for Steam keys to the main titles, but that'll also net you soundtracks to those main titles as well -- sadly, the offer is only available on PC. You've got two weeks to make your decision, though we'd call this a no brainer.
Ben Gilbert11.29.2012
Humble THQ Bundle has Saints Row, Darksiders, Metro 2033, more
The Humble Indie Bundle has taken a turn for the mainstream, today offering the Humble THQ Bundle, which includes six THQ games for whatever price you think they're worth, available for two weeks. Saints Row: The Third is the bundle's locked game, freed up only if you pay more than the average.The six games up for grabs are Company of Heroes, CoH: Tales of Valor, CoH: Opposing Fronts, Red Faction: Armageddon, Metro 2033 and Darksiders. Each purchase comes with the soundtracks for Saints Row: The Third, Darksiders and Red Faction: Armageddon, and two Company of Heroes compilations.As always, the Humble Bundle includes the option to distribute your money as you wish, between charity, THQ or Humble Bundle itself. If you're looking for a monetary serving suggestion, maybe look up THQ's current stock price and follow along with us as it navigates a path of financial turmoil.
Jessica Conditt11.29.2012
Darksiders 2 Wii U review: Scythe quest
For Wii U re-releases of existing games, we're republishing our original reviews with added evaluation of the new material. Keep track of all of Joystiq's Wii U launch coverage on the Wii U hub page! Death may be deficient when it comes to charisma and skin tone, but he boasts one of the biggest adventures of the year in Darksiders 2. The Wii U version of the grim reaper's star vehicle is as roomy as a hearse and comes packing nearly all of the game's DLC right out of its new blue box.The Wii U revision isn't too ambitious in utilizing Nintendo's new hardware, though this also spares us from obnoxious mechanisms that don't do justice to the game's original design. Pairing different weapons, powers and protective outerwear with Death's taut physique is a simple time saver on the Wii U's GamePad, and it's a great deal faster than the sluggish menu that shipped with the other versions. You can, of course, keep the original menu and play exclusively on the TV or your handheld screen.There's some graphical tearing on the smaller screen, but otherwise Darksiders 2 comes close to technical parity with the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. There appears to be more shadow pop-in within the larger areas, but the framerate holds up just as well (which is to say, it doesn't always hold up when fighting gets frantic). Attacks feel responsive through the game pad – the light click of the right shoulder button works especially well for Death's graceful dodge – and they all work through the Pro controller if you prefer. The face-button commands are not remapped, however, leading to considerable travel time for your right thumb between jumping on B and manipulating the camera via the right stick.Other Darksiders detritus ends up on the Wiipad too: you jolt the controller to spur on your undead equine transportation (that's the thesaurus result on "zombie horse"), and you tilt it to roll around the impractical, spherical keys that tend to litter ancient temples. Neither of these are preferable to doing it the old-fashioned way, so it's just as well they're optional control methods.The best addition to Darksiders 2 on Wii U is the inclusion of post-release content, offered separately on other systems. You can start using some bonus high-level weapons and armor once you exceed level 5, while "Argul's Tomb," a bonus campaign that can be accessed from the main menu, offers extra traversal puzzles involving portals and Death's ghostly grappling hook.The overall game doesn't get the polish on Wii U that it needed on other platforms back in August, but it remains a majestic blend of melee combat, puzzle solving and exploration. And if you squint, it's the best Steven Tyler game since Revolution X!%Gallery-166856%
Ludwig Kietzmann11.27.2012
THQ in forbearance agreement with Wells Fargo, CFO resigns
THQ is on the edge of a financial cliff, with its stock currently dangling around $1.25, market capitalization at $8.5 million, and corporate heads exploring financial strategies with a private equity broker. Now, THQ's Chief Financial Officer Paul Pucino has resigned, with no one named as his successor. Pucino took over the position from Colin Slade in 2009."We would like to thank Paul for his significant contributions over the past four years and wish him well in his future endeavors," THQ CEO Brian Farrell says.THQ is now in a forbearance agreement with Wells Fargo, valid through January 15, wherein Wells Fargo will continue to distribute loans to THQ. In a forbearance agreement, the lender (Wells Fargo, in this scenario) stops enforcing current or expected defaults, and the borrower uses the time to improve its financial situation or exit the relationship. It's a lot like time out, but for a corporation."We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Wells Fargo," Farrell says. "This agreement enables us to continue focusing on bringing our games in development to market. Meanwhile, we are evaluating financial alternatives that will transition the company into its next phase."THQ has also entered negotiations with a mysterious financial sponsor, and it expects these to conclude with "significant and material dilution to shareholders."
Jessica Conditt11.20.2012
Tattoo artist sues THQ over use of original ink in UFC Undisputed 2010, UFC Undisputed 3
A tattoo artist by the name of Chris Escobedo has filed a lawsuit against THQ over its supposedly unauthorized usage of a tattoo Escobedo designed. Specifically, Escobedo owns the copyright to a tattoo present on the virtual version of MMA fighter Carlos Condit in UFC Undisputed 2010 and UFC Undisputed 3.Escobedo's argument hinges on the idea that, despite being permanently affixed to a public figure, the tattoo's design still belongs to him, as he created it originally and never signed the rights to the design away to Condit. By digitally recreating that design without permission, THQ may have violated Escobedo's copyright on the work. The lawsuit also claims that THQ's usage of Condit's likeness on its website violates Escobedo's copyright as well.The lawsuit seeks compensation for "actual damages" caused by THQ's usage of the artwork, as well as "an order directing THQ to account to Mr. Escobedo for all gains, profits and advantages derived by them by their wrongful conduct, and to disgorge all profits obtained by their wrongful conduct." Gross.
Jordan Mallory11.17.2012
Darksiders 2, Kingdoms of Amalur, EndWar all coming to PSN Nov. 20
Prepare to get your brutality, fantasy, and strategy on, as Darksiders 2, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and Tom Clancy's EndWar are all arriving on PlayStation Network November 20. This week's PlayStation Blogcast confirmed the trio of PS3 digital releases.Darksiders 2 recently got its second downloadable content pack, Abyssal Forge. Developer Vigil Games claims the DLC has some of the toughest enemies in the game. But, as the saying goes, Death laughs in the faces of a game's toughest enemies, or something. According to the podcast, the PSN version of Darksiders 2 includes a pass to the game's Crucible arena, and the official soundtrack.Eccentric shoot-em-up Sine Mora lands on PSN next week too, for PS3 and Vita. Grinding onto Vita via PSN is Jet Set Radio, free for PS Plus users until the end of the year. Clan of Champions and the fifth episode of The Walking Dead will be available online for PS3.
Sinan Kubba11.16.2012