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Epic is taking over a dozen games offline, including Rock Band and Unreal titles
Epic Games is shutting down "out-of-date online services" and servers for several of its older games starting today. Most affected titles will still be available offline, but others will no longer work.
The Epic Games Store adds 'Warframe' to its lineup of free titles
The Unreal Tournament Weapon Bundle is only available on the Epic Store.
Games of a Lifetime: Sinan's picks
After more than ten years devoted to video games and the people who make them, Joystiq is closing its doors. We won't be reporting on the best games of 2015, so join us for one last hurrah as the Joystiq family reveals their Games of a Lifetime. Repton Can you imagine the "Teens React to BBC Micro" video? With its properly floppy disks and its DOS-like start screen, that big beige box of the '80s was how my gaming life began. I could pick so many games I played on that machine, most of which no-one's heard of, but they'd all be inferior to Repton. The pseudo top-down, pseudo side-scrolling puzzler had its own space-time rules, According to Repton, a reptile in a yellow t-shirt can walk through the same square of dust that can support a whopping great boulder, or dozens of whopping great boulders at that. It didn't really make sense, but the cleverness of its puzzling design was undoubted. The very best levels required a chess-like effort of planning ahead, shifting specific boulders, clearing dust and freeing spirit sprites in the right order so you could grab every last one of the golden diamond jewels. I absolutely loved Repton and its inventive sequels; Repton 2 was an interconnected world of sub-levels, while other games even explored the future and Wild West. Without the BBC Micro and Repton in particular, I just wouldn't be where I am today.
Watch bodies turn to gibs in the next Unreal Tournament
Ostensibly a developer's diary, this two and a half-minute vignette is more notable for being your first public opportunity to see team deathmatch play out in Epic Games' upcoming Unreal Tournament. So far, things look appropriately explosive. [Image: Epic Games]
Epic debuts concept footage from next Unreal Tournament
In a lengthy, official video preview, members of the Epic Games development team have unveiled the first look at the upcoming Unreal Tournament sequel. Jump to the 1:30 mark in the above video for a brief tour. Keep in mind, the above video includes very early, work-in-progress footage taken from within the engine that will power the upcoming Unreal Tournament. There are no guarantees that the final game will look this good, though at this early stage of development it's entirely possible that the final product will look even better than what Epic has shown us here. While the final version of Unreal Tournament is still a ways off - Epic has yet to announce a release date, or even a vague release window - the developer is still seeking input from fans on how best to craft this latest entry in the long-dormant series. If you're interested, register an account on the official Unreal Engine forums and give the developer a piece of your mind. [Image: Epic Games]
Epic plays the new Unreal Tournament (and you can, too)
Epic Games has shown off the first playthrough of its upcoming Unreal Tournament reboot/sequel/thing-we-haven't-had-since-2009, and the results are ... well, it's got a ways to go. But that's okay, because as you may have heard, Epic wants you to help shape the game as it's developed. And now, you can. According to a post on the Epic Games community site, those who subscribe to Unreal Engine 4 can download the prototype on display above, while intrepid coders can even create their own prototypes. Not a fan of the weapons available, or think the character models move just a hair too slow or fast? Build your own version and submit it for the community to test. While calling what's on display and available to download a fully-fledged game would be generous to say the least - the devs in the video seem genuinely surprised when the build keeps track of score and recognizes a winner - it is still, nonetheless, the bones of what will one day form a complete skeleton. A skeleton which will subsequently develop meaty, bloody bits that will presumably be blown away by Flak Cannons. [Image: Epic Games]
Original Unreal Tournament composers interested in return to series
Fans may not be the only ones who get a say in developing the next Unreal Tournament game. Michiel Van Den Bos and Alexander Bradon, composers for the original Unreal Tournament, expressed interest in returning to the franchise on the Unreal forums, as did Kevin Riepl, composer for Unreal Tournament 2003 and Unreal Tournament 2004. While this doesn't necessarily mean that these composers will return to Unreal Tournament, their interest has caught the attention of the team. Unreal project lead Steven Polge responded to all of the composers, saying he would be "thrilled" to have them contribute to the upcoming game. [Image: Epic Games]
Epic wants your help building the next Unreal Tournament
After a nearly seven year hiatus, Epic has announced plans to create a new entry in its beloved Unreal Tournament franchise. Even better: The game is going to be released at no cost, and Epic wants fan input on its design. Epic made this announcement earlier today, saying that from "the very first line of code, the very first art created and design decision made, development will happen in the open, as a collaboration between Epic, UT fans and UE4 developers." This will involve frequent forum updates and ongoing discussion as well as regular Twitch streams showing exactly where development stands. Further, all code created during the development of this new Unreal Tournament will be available to Unreal Engine 4 developers via GitHub. Though obviously this design process will take quite some time, Epic has revealed that the game will appear on PC, Mac and Linux platforms at the very attractive price of "free." Not "free to play," but actually free. Borrowing a page from the Team Fortress 2 playbook, Epic plans to recoup its development costs with an in-game marketplace where modders can sell their creations to players, earning funds which are then split between the modder and Epic itself. Those interested in joining Unreal Tournament's extended development team should pay a visit to the Unreal Engine forums, where registering a free account is all that's required to offer input on the game's creation. [Image: Epic Games]
GOG puts daily sale to a vote, discounts The Witcher games
GOG.com started its "Battle of the Games" promotion today, in which players can vote on which games they'd rather purchase at a cheaper rate. The sale offers two sets of three games every morning at 7:00 a.m. ET, accumulating votes throughout the day to determine which set receives a 75 percent discount and which is 60 percent off the next day. Currently, the digital retailer is pitting the trio of Red Faction and Red Faction 2 as well as Chaser against Unreal Gold, Unreal Tournament and Unreal 2: The Awakening. To get the sale started, GOG.com is also offering discounts on six games for the day: The first three games in the Heroes of Might and Magic series for $2.49 each, Blackguards Special Edition ($22.49) and the enhanced editions of The Witcher ($1.99) and The Witcher 2 ($3.99). The Battle of the Games sale ends April 21. [Image: CD Projekt Red]
Cliff Bleszinski quits Epic Games, leaves us with an Unreal feeling
Fall must be the season for sea changes in the game industry. Just weeks after BioWare's founders retired, key Epic Games veteran and Design Director Cliff Bleszinski (known to many as just CliffyB) is hanging up his hat. He simply describes it as taking a "much needed break," which makes sense when you see his development experience: he joined Epic's crew with Dare to Dream Volume One in 1993 and has nurtured virtually every major (and often minor) game franchise at the company since, including the Jazz Jackrabbit platformers, untold numbers of games in the Unreal line and most recently the Gears of War series. Bleszinski hasn't said where he's headed next, although it's hard to imagine him switching professions like the two BioWare doctors -- for many, he's synonymous with certain eras of first- and third-person shooters. Wherever he goes, we wish him the best of success.
Epic Games gives away soundtrack retrospective for 20th anniversary
Epic Games has turned 20 years old, and to celebrate the company is giving away a free album of tunes from its games over the past two decades. You can pick up the tracks from the official blog right now. The set includes everything from the Main Theme of Unreal and the Menu Song of Jazz Jackrabbit, all the way up to tracks from Infinity Blade 2 and Gears of War 3.And what, you might ask, did they include as a bonus track? Perhaps the pinnacle of Epic Games' musical gifts to the world at large? It's the Cole Train Rap from the first Gears of War, of course. Woo baby! Bring it on sucka! Etc.
The many hats of Demiurge Studios
Shoot Many Robots is Boston-based Demiurge Studios' first original game, and my hands-on with it at GDC was the first time that anyone at the developer ever gave a press demo. Studio head Albert Reed was, unsurprisingly, excited to delve into the studio's origins. "We got our start doing mods for Unreal Tournament. It was me and two other college buddies doing mods in the frickin' computer cluster at Carnegie Mellon. I'm not kidding!" Reed told me before showing off Shoot Many Robots last week. "Then one thing lead to another and those companies that were licensing Unreal Engine started hiring us," Reed added humbly. It turns out that the folks hiring Demiurge were developers like Gearbox Software, Irrational Games, BioWare, and Harmonix. "We did some work on the first level -- the lighthouse and that sort of descent into Rapture," Reed told me, casually explaining that his studio clandestinely assisted with one of gaming's most iconic openings: the beginning of BioShock.
GOG.com offers good ol' deal on Unreal titles
Believe it or not, there was a time before Unreal Tournament III when the series was (gasp!) not purely about multiplayer. It had ... a story. This story is about how the purveyors of good ol' games at GOG.com remember these less competitive times, and want their patrons to, as well. So, from now through next Monday, August 31, the site is offering the plot-driven Unreal and Unreal II: The Awakening for $8.49 a pop.Of course, if you're still keen to revisit the transition into a tournament-play franchise, the first Unreal Tournament and still-quite-excellent Unreal Tournament 2004 are also being sold at the same low prices, through Monday. Us? We'll be playing other games, but are still glad we managed to make it through this post without referring to GOG.com's sale as an "unreal deal." (Wait, did that count?)
Epic: No more retail Unreal Tournament releases 'for several years'
Epic Games CEO and founder, Tim Sweeney, recently chatted with G4 about the upcoming Dark Corners content for Gears of War 2. Yeah, been there, done that. Sweeney did, however, mention something interesting regarding the future of our favorite fragfest, Unreal Tournament."Unreal Tournament is certainly a major long-term priority but we're planning not to release a major retail game in the series for several years," Sweeney said. He commented that this move was to aid the company in focusing on "a few other initiatives." We're placing our bets on some kind of downloadable release (a smart move since the interest in downloadable FPS games is certainly there), especially since Sweeney took care to only mention retail.[Via Big Download]
Rebellion games hit GOG.com, we give them to you (just like that) [update]
Before teaming up with Sega recently for a new iteration of Aliens vs Predator, UK development house Rebellion made a handful of classic PC titles (yes, we know, including the original Aliens vs Predator). Starting today and continuing over the course of the next few weeks, GOG.com will be offering the company's titles through its site (DRM-free, XP and Vista compatible game, priced to move), starting with Ground Control (Dark Conspiracy expansion included) and Evil Genius. Lords of Magic, Empire Earth, "and more" are in the pipeline for the next few weeks.To celebrate the release, the fine folks at Good Old Games were nice enough to hand us a few codes -- seven in all, just to keep you on your toes -- for not just the games released today but, well, anything on the site you'd like. That's right, folks, you can use the codes on anything from Elixir's Evil Genius to Ubisoft's Beyond Good & Evil to Epic's Unreal Tournament (and everything in between, in case you were wondering). All you have to do is keep your eye on the Joystiq Twitter page over the course of the day to try and win one of them. Hit the break for an exhilarating explanation of how to redeem a code.Update: All codes have been redeemed! Thanks to everyone who participated and to GOG.com for providing us with the codes.
Mods: Unreal Tournament meets Sonic the Hedgehog
In the past, we've seen a number of cool Unreal Tournament mods -- including that fascinating LEGO creation from a year ago -- but we've never seen anything quite like the Sonic the Hedgehog mod (posted after the break). The concept takes the gun-slinging action of Unreal Tournament to Sonic's Green Hill Zone. The mod looks just like the original level from the first Sonic game; it even sounds like it (listen to the bumper sound effects), though it's missing the original's catchy background music. Just don't go showing this off to Sega. We don't want the company getting any bright ideas ... you know, like: "Sonic Shooters." Sonic and the Black Knight was just about all the innovation that we can handle.
Trophies: Unreal Tournament III
Epic Games is patching their PS3 online FPS game, Unreal Tournament III, with Trophies and new features. View Trophy List | Visit Trophy Portal
Unreal Tournament 3 Titan Pack delayed on PS3
We've got some good news and some bad news. We'll start with the negative stuff first. The previously announced PS3 version of the Titan Pack for Unreal Tournament III has been delayed two weeks (the PC version is still out today). According to Epic's Steve Polge, it's been pushed back to March 19 due to a snag in the certification process.It's not a total loss. The good news is that the PS3 version has been patched today to include Trophies and split-screen multiplayer -- both were originally slated to release alongside the Titan Pack. Hopefully, Trophy hunting and split-screen gameplay will keep you preoccupied for the two-week wait.[Via CVG]
Epic Games China reforms as Titan Studios, developing MMO
When most of us hear talk of the company "Epic Games", the first thing that comes to mind is Gears of War or the Unreal series of titles. While Epic Games had a Shanghai games studio for outsourcing purposes, it's now evolved into Titan Studios, a wholly owned subsidiary based in Seattle. Through Titan Studios, it seems Epic Games is turning their attention to MMOGs, following up their work on the PS3 title Fat Princess.As to what's going on within the Titan Studios walls, GameSpot's Tom Magrino reports that "an undefined number of unannounced projects are in the works at the studio, one of which is a massively multiplayer online game." Needless to say, that bit of information has piqued our interest, and we'll keep our eyes open at Massively for more about the Titan Studios MMO project in the future.
Unreal Tournament III to get expansion
While nowhere as successful as Gears of War, Epic Games is working on an expansion to their multiplayer shooter, Unreal Tournament III. "We're working together on a major expansion that we expect will excite and grow our UT3 customer base," Epic Games' VP Mark Reins told Gamespot.No other specifics were provided, such as release date or format (DLC? Expansion pack disc?). Considering the game debuted on the PS3, we're going to keep our eyes peeled for any more info.[Via Joystiq]
