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The Division shoots for realistic weapons from Tom Clancy studio
Rainbow Six studio Red Storm is helping Ubisoft's Swedish house Massive Entertainment and UK studio Ubisoft Reflections with development of The Division, the open-world Tom Clancy game due out in 2014. Mainly, Red Storm's help comes in the form of realistic weaponry. "I, personally, have been doing it for about six years now," Red Storm Lead Weapons Designer JD Cragg says in an Ubisoft blog post. "One of the guys on my team has been doing it for almost nine. This is pretty much all I do – authentic military weapons, vehicles and that sort of thing." Red Storm is focusing on the weapons artwork, and it has an in-house authenticity department and connections with the local military. The studio has "tens of thousands of photos" of broken-down firearms. "We've had manufacturers come in and literally disassemble the entire weapon all the way down to the nuts and bolts, and our guys are taking hi-res photos of those things," Red Storm Producer Tony Sturtzel says. "We probably have unparalleled access to these types of things because of our authenticity department and their focus on relationships. We're not ever gonna let the cat out of the bag on some of the relationships we have." The Division is due out in 2014 for PC, PS4 and Xbox One, though that release window is reported to be "laughable," according to a Massive Entertainment team member. [Image: Ubisoft]
Tom Clancy passes away at 66
Best-selling author Tom Clancy passed away last night in a Baltimore hospital at age 66, The New York Times confirmed via Twitter. No cause of death has been reported at this time. Clancy penned many military-themed novels, several adapted to video games including the popular Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon and Splinter Cell series. He co-founded Red Storm Entertainment in 1996, which was later purchased by Ubisoft in August 2000. The latest game to feature the author's name is Tom Clancy's: The Division, which is slated to launch in late 2014.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier 'Arctic Strike' Map Pack DLC hits July 17
The first wave of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier DLC, the "Arctic Strike" Map Pack, will put the freeze on Xboxen and PS3s come July 17. For your hard-earned 800 MS Points (or $9.99, respectively), your futuristic soldiering experience will be augmented by three new multiplayer maps, a new multiplayer mode called "Stockade," a new guerilla co-op map, six new weapons and an increased level cap.Arctic Strike was meant to launch 14 days sooner on July 3, but was delayed due to polish concerns -- not to be confused with pole-ish concerns, which anyone travelling to the arctic circle would undoubtedly have.%Gallery-160185%
Ubisoft addresses lack of split-screen co-op in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier
Living-room soldiers looking to team up with a real-life buddy for some Ghost Recon: Future Soldier couch co-op may be sorely disappointed once they discover that split-screen multiplayer doesn't exist for the game's campaign mode, despite various online retailers (including Ubisoft's own UbiShop) purporting the game's support of that very feature."We've been made aware of the presence of outdated information on UbiShop and several retailer sites stating split screen, cooperative play is available in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's campaign," Ubisoft forum manager EvilPixieGrr said in an update on the publisher's forums. "We have ensured the information has been updated on the sites affected by this."Luckily for Ubisoft, Future Soldier's actual retail box art does not sing the praises of local campaign co-op. [Thanks, Keith!]
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier review: More than just a soldier
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is a game that, at first glance, may seem like an advertisement for 'murica's armed forces circa 20XX. "Sign up. You can rock Pantera in the barracks, blow up helicopters and assassinate evil warlords every day," I imagined the end credits might read.But between every clichéd cutscene, showing the four members of Ghost squad swilling beer and talking car engines while they wait for their next mission, are a bounty of excellent gameplay scenarios: VIPs to rescue, things to blow up and stealth missions that require diligent adherence to caution and calculation rather than simply making sure you move slowly and stay out of sight. No two missions in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier are the same, and the diversity in locales and armaments means there's always something new to see – and shoot.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier trailer: Bloody tattoo guy edition
The latest trailer for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is a bit more ominous than ones we've seen in the past, in primarily due to the fact that it predominantly features a very bloody, very tattooed Russian interrogation subject, menacing laughter, as well as unusually werewolfian undertones.
Latest Ghost Recon: Future Soldier dev diary details Guerrilla Mode
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's multiplayer Guerrilla Mode combines the now-classic "Horde mode" style of wave-endurance gameplay with infiltration and stealth, as players must capture and secure the location from which they'll defend themselves during the ensuing waves of baddies.
Mega 64 walks through Ghost Recon's co-op
Mega 64's classic bit of recreating video-game circumstances in real life has been pretty hilarious in the past, but reenacting Ghost Recon: Future Soldier would probably get them thrown in federal prison for the rest of their lives. So, instead, they played some co-op.
Going 'Guerrilla' in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier
Teamwork and synchronization is essential in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. The entire campaign hinges on an understanding that you can't go this alone. Since communication and stealth are king, what happens when one person doesn't subscribe to the team-oriented playbook?The whole house of cards falls down.%Gallery-149219%
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier dev diary demos cover system, invisible dudes
I ain't scared of no ghost, but I am completely terrified by the idea of invisible soldiers. There could be one beside me right now and I wouldn't even know it, at least not until his translucent knife perforated my windpipe with extreme prejudice. This first entry in Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's "Inside Recon" developer diary series elaborates on the animation and motion capturing techniques used to create the game, as well as the major role that cover plays during a firefight.While you guys watch that, I'm going to go spread legos all over the floor of my apartment as an anti-ghost-soldier countermeasure. Those things smart when you step on 'em barefoot.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier screens reconnoitered
The futuristic apparitions of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier can indeed be photographed. Ubi shared a fresh batch of assets this morning, and we'll have a full preview of the game for you later this week.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier marches to retail on March 6, 2012 [Update: Ubisoft confirms!]
Just about every retailer on the planet agrees: the future is a lot closer than you may think! And here we were waiting for 30 Helens to agree this whole time ... Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is apparently slated for launch on March 6, according to listings on Gamefly, Amazon, Target, GameStop, Wal-Mart and Best Buy. While we'd never consider a retailer listing as fact (most of the time they're placeholders), the proliferation of identical is pretty compelling. And as of right now, all we really know is it'll launch at least after the planned January 2012 beta. We've reached out to Ubisoft for comment and will let you know what we hear back. Update: We were able to confirm the launch date with Ubisoft. Look for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier on March 6, 2012!
Former Kaos Studios boss becomes senior creative director at Ubisoft Red Storm
Following the recent closure of Kaos Studios, it seems that the former studio's creative lead won't be making the jump to THQ Montreal alongside his colleagues. Homefront creative lead David Votypka is now officially senior creative director at Ubisoft's North Carolina-based Red Storm studio. His LinkedIn profile confirms the move. The studio is known for its work on Tom Clancy games, having most recently worked on Ghost Recon: Future Soldier and now rumored to be involved with an unannounced Rainbow Six title. It's unclear what Votypka's next project will be, but we've reached out to Ubisoft for more information. And as he's just moved from New York City to Cary, North Carolina, it's highly likely he will miss Shake Shack, but fully embrace delicious North Carolina BBQ. (That's unconfirmed, of course.)
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier beta deploys January 2012
Aspiring future soldiers will get their first taste of playing as "F-16s on legs" in Ubisoft's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier when the game's beta rolls out in January. " We know you have been asking about the beta," the publisher wrote in a tweet Monday, before saying, " We're excited to announce that the MP beta will be launching in January 2012." Ubisoft had previously said a beta would launch this summer, but any hope of that happening was pretty much dashed when the game itself was delayed into 2012 aka the future.
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier assaults E3 with new media
Ubisoft finally gave us a considerable glimpse at Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, taking us to the apparently very dangerous Nigeria in this trailer shown during Ubisoft's E3 2011 press conference. All future soldiers come equipped with time-freezing technology, apparently. And ... boomboxes? Along with the new footage, we've also got a side mission for you, soldier: check out these new screens in our gallery below. If not for us, do it for your country. But also do it for us. %Gallery-125561%
Ghost Recon: Future Soldier scheduled for Q1 2012
During an investors call today, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot said that Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is now scheduled to be released in the first quarter of 2012 (the company's 2011–12 fiscal Q4). This places it at the tail end of the fiscal year, which was the previously given (and rather large) release window. "We want first to assure the best quality possible," Guillemot explained in a moment of déjà vu, "as well as to avoid the very crowded Christmas landscape in the shooter genre." It was as if he was still reading last year's script. On May 18, 2010, Guillemot had offered those exact same reasons about Future Soldier's readiness then, saying, "Due to a very competitive environment, we decided to move the game out of the Christmas [2010] quarter, and into the March [2011] quarter." He added, "It will also provide additional time to our development teams to realize their vision." At this rate, Ubisoft is going to have to change the title to "Ghost Recon: Soldier." Wait a minute -- we already used that one ... These delays are getting old.
Ghost Recon dev's 'authenticity program' explained
Have you ever noticed how firearms in Red Storm's Ghost Recon games don't look and sound like tiny little baby cap guns? There's a reason for that -- the team has its own "authenticity program," which is the subject of this recent University of North Carolina news report.
Ubisoft lets 38 go from Red Storm
Kotaku reports that Ubisoft has handed walking papers to 38 individuals at Red Storm Entertainment, the studio mostly responsible for handling the Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon games. The studio made a name for itself with the Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six series, starting in the late '90s. An Ubisoft representative told Kotaku that "these team members have the opportunity to consider positions in other Ubisoft studios," citing the layoffs were a result of "a realignment of production priorities." Red Storm is currently working on the multiplayer component of Ghost Recon: Future Soldier. An Ubisoft rep noted the layoffs were "part of a plan to allow the studio to focus on its core expertise: developing innovative multiplayer experiences."
