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Want to see the first 15 minutes of Dead Space Extraction?
Well, we don't. And we imagine the odds are that you don't either. We don't really understand these special people that want to see 15 minutes of a game they're not playing and spoil the experience for themselves, but if that's how you want to be introduced to Dead Space Extraction then allow us (well, Vooks) to be your vessel. ... Well, how was it? How about that dirt? Is it washing off? No, we didn't think so. [Via GoNintendo]
Here are the victims of Dead Space Extraction
It sucks to be in the Dead Space universe. If you're not turned into a horribly mutated zombie, then you're being ripped apart by aforementioned zombies. The upcoming Dead Space Extraction for Wii certainly places its characters between a rock and a really horrible, bloody place. The latest dev diary for the rail shooter reveals the characters of the game, and talks about how each character has their own unique motivations. They are united by one thing though: the incredible desire not to meet a bloody, guts-splattering death.One key thing to note about Extraction is that it's far more story-driven than the first game, offering five times the dialogue as the original. Considering you're traveling with a group of people, instead of exploring solo, that makes a lot of sense. It'll be interesting to see how the Wii audience responds to yet another third-party M-rated game.
This Week on the Nintendo Channel: Behind the scribble with Scribblenauts
Sure, the Nintendo Channel may have received quite the facelift today, adding a host of new features and tossing a much needed fresh coat of paint on top of it all, but the best and brightest of the new content on offer is undoubtedly the behind the scenes look at Scribblenauts. We say this because, well, everything Scribblenauts wins. Sorry, interesting and informative Dead Space Extraction video! You picked the wrong week to be new. Anywho, if you've got a Wii, check out the Nintendo Channel for a bunch of new content. Or, if you're lazy and want to know what's there before booting up the system, head past the break where we've got you covered, baby!
Get greedy with this lengthy Dante's Inferno trailer
If you're looking for a trailer comprised of nothing but gameplay, then you're getting into the spirit of this Dante's Inferno trailer. You're being greedy and your greedy nature will not be rewarded -- that is, unless you're willing to work for that greed. You'll roll up your sleeves and sift through the trailer, extracting all of the juicy portions of gameplay one by one. Sure, you'll have to put up with producers and designers chatting up their version of the fourth circle of Hell, but thankfully all of that hard work is worth it, because there are some genuinely impressive environments and enemies to behold. Enemies and environments you've never seen in any other game ever. Seriously.
BioShock maestro making Dante's Inferno sound like Hell
We did a little background check on Garry Schyman, the guy EA has picked to write the score for Dante's Inferno. Yes, as the publisher brags, he did the music for BioShock. But it may be his earlier material that caught the eye ear of Visceral Games. We are, of course, referring to his work on the late-'80s sing-a-long sitcom Rags to Riches. Check it out and you'll know why he was tapped to create a soundtrack for Hell. Schyman, whose Inferno score has already been recorded at London's famous Abbey Road Studios, was also the composer for the likes of Destroy All Humans! and -- most recently -- Resistance: Retribution. You'll be able to buy (but not copy!) his latest soundtrack in January.
EA marketers send Joystiq a $200 check and we save their souls
click to check out the gallery EA's been slowly ticking off the levels of Hell by way of marketing stunts for the upcoming God-of-War-em-up Dante's Inferno. The first circle of Hell is "Limbo" ... and though we're not sure, the E3 "staged protest" was an early Dante's Inferno marketing stunt, so maybe limbo? Next is circle two: "Lust." Cue the controversial Comic-Con "Sin to Win" stunt wherein one "lucky" winner received "a night with the hottest girl at Comic-Con." Yeah, that didn't go over so well. Next up is "Gluttony." To celebrate the third circle of Hell, they mailed our own Randy Nelson a severed limb cake. We didn't reward them with a post for that one. However, the latest stunt is a little more creative. They've mailed this editor, and presumably the editors at several other media outlets, a check for $200. The packaging says that "by cashing this check you succumb to avarice by hoarding filthy lucre but by not cashing it, you waste it, and thereby surrender to prodigality." If your SAT dictionary isn't at arm's length, that last one means wastefulness. So, we either cash it and "succumb to avarice" or burn it and be wasteful. What's an ethical gaming blog to do ... ... how about this? How about we cash it, and donate all $200 to The White House Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization "that aims to advance women's leadership in all communities and sectors – up to the U.S. presidency – by filling the leadership pipeline with a richly diverse, critical mass of women"? Of course, we'll make the donation in EA's name. It won't make up for Sin to Win, but the road to redemption's got to start somewhere, right?
Dead Space: Extraction guest stars in recent episode of True Blood
HBO's True Blood houses an all-star cast, one of which consistently tops the sales charts throughout the gaming world -- of course, we're referring to the Nintendo Wii. The home console has made multiple appearances in the show, from the main character showcasing his golf skills to its most recent cameo -- showing off the upcoming shooter, Dead Space: Extraction.In last night's week's season 2 episode, "New World In My View," Hoyt Fortenberry's aggressive mother waggles her way through a slew of Extraction enemies. While the game won't hit store shelves until September 29, the popular adult drama looks like as good a place as any to get the game's marketing machine rolling. Check out the clip after the break. Warning: The language is NSFW.[Via Video Games Blogger]
Dante's Inferno trailer throws epic in your face
Dante's Inferno is epic, got it? And the latest Dante's Inferno trailer crams that fact right down your gullet like Steve Ballmer horks down invisible hoagies. Filled with demonic monstrosities and accompanied by a horrifically loud orchestral soundtrack, the trailer spews sin right into your eyeholes, injects sonic evil directly into your ears and yanks your jaw down to the floor. It then promptly tells you to "Go to Hell." Watch the trailer, dangerously embedded above, if you've got the grapes.
Dante's Inferno escapes hell development in February
EA's jaunt into the underworld finally has a firm release date: February 9 in North America and February 12 in Europe. Dante's Inferno is set to release simultaneously on the PS3, PSP and Xbox 360, with an animated feature launching alongside the game and a comic arriving in December. If you're wondering what you should do with the months leading up to the game's release, might we suggest reading Divine Comedy to observe all of the differences between the game and the original work? We don't mean to nitpick, but we've already noticed a few here and there.
Dead Space: Extraction trailer takes a look at the story
In this latest trailer for Visceral Games' Dead Space: Extraction, we're given our first glimpse at the initial outbreak of the infection and how it spread across the colony. Shortly after, our team of protagonists find themselves commandeering a shuttle and setting a course for the USG Ishimura. It's quite a content-heavy look at the game, so check it out if you want to learn more about what's going on or, like us, just feel like watching Necromorphs meet the business end of a Plasma Cutter.
That's a wrap: Comic-Con 2009
Last week's San Diego Comic-Con was one crazy ride. The Joystiq representatives in attendance were trained in advanced interrogation tactics and managed to extract information on a variety of subjects. We've got an update from Peter Jackson himself on the Halo happenings, first footage of South Park Let's Go Tower Defense Play! and a new game mode for Uncharted 2! Friend, you missed one heck of a week.But, that's okay! You can get caught up right here, right now. Simply head past the break for a complete summary of all the headlines. [image] %Gallery-68768%
Dante's Inferno 'King Minos' bossfight looks more familiar than ever
We've seen a decent amount of Dante's Inferno gameplay over the last nine months we've known of the game's existence -- and heard a lot of comparisons to God of War in the process -- but we didn't realize how spot on that was until we saw the video of Dante battling King Minos (found after the break). Judging souls in the second circle of Hell can be a tough job (don't we know it!), so Dante has apparently stopped by to relieve Minos of his duties. Rather than thanking him though, the grumpy old curmudgeon attacks Dante and all hell breaks loose! (Get it! 'Cause they're in Hell!)All joking aside, the game looks to be more than competently cloning that other game where you spend time in The Netherworld, albeit with a multiplatform release. Now when's this thing coming out, EA? Hmmm?%Gallery-45836%
Dante's Inferno team apologizes for 'Sin to Win' booth babe contest
A lot of folks were understandably upset by EA and Visceral Games' San Diego Comic Con contest promoting Dante's Inferno. It probably had something to do with the fact that it objectified women in a brutish, almost caveman-esque manner. Your protests were heard -- the game's creators recently published a clarification of the contest rules, and apologized for "any confusion and offense that resulted from our choice of wording."It's nice that they responded to the negative sentiment this stupid, stupid promotional stunt created, but this kind of undercuts their whole "Circles of Hell" marketing campaign, doesn't it? Apologies just aren't very hellish. We can't imagine Beelzebub begs pardon from those he makes swim through a sea of fire and brimstone for all eternity. "Oh, man. That looks like it hurts. I'm like, really sorry about this, guys. Do you want some aloe?"[Via Kotaku]
Visceral execs wooed away from EA by Activision [update]
Update: An EA spokesperson confirmed to IndustryGamers that the two have indeed flown the coop. There's no word on replacements for them as of yet, but we'll be sure to keep you posted.Original post: EA's Visceral Games (formerly EA Redwood Shores) may have lost two key personnel, if a rumor originating at GameSpot is to be believed. General manager Glen Schofield and COO Michael Condrey supposedly jumped ship to rival Activision, with a memo circulating at Visceral apparently describing the departure of the execs. Schofield is best known as the guy behind Dead Space, whereas Condrey got his start by directing this Levi's commercial. This news comes following some job listings (via superannuation) for a San Mateo-based studio with Activision. The company currently has nothing in the area, so this lends credence to the rumor that Activision is looking to start up something around the Bay. Add what Schofield and Condrey bring to the table and you have the makings of a fine studio.Inside sources close to GameSpot said the departure follows weeks of rumors circulating about Activision aggressively pursuing Visceral talent. We've put in word to EA and Activision for comment and will be sure to get back to you if we hear anything.[Via Big Download]
Dante's Inferno spawns DC comic
EA announced today that it's collaborating with DC Comics and Wildstorm to create a comic mini-series based on its upcoming demon slay-'em-up, Dante's Inferno. The comic is to be written by Christos Gage, who has worked on X-Men, Spider-Man and ... Teenage Caveman. It will be illustrated by Diego Latorre, known for his work on The Incredible Hulk. The series is to span six issues with the first going on sale this December. A preview issue of the comic will be distributed at the San Diego Comic-Con this week at the EA and DC booths. Also to be revealed at the Comic-Con: the first trailer for the Dante's Inferno animated feature.With both a comic series and an animated feature on the way, Dante's Inferno is becoming quite the franchise. Frankly, we can't wait for the novelization.
Dante's Inferno won't be burning on PCs
For those of you hoping that upcoming Visceral Games hack-n-slash Dante's Inferno would be heading to your PC, prepare to be disappointed. Joystiq sister site Big Download received confirmation earlier today from EA that currently there are "no plans" for a PC release. In fact, the representative at EA went one step further, not only confirming the game's console exclusivity but saying, "When Dante's Inferno was originally announced in December, we attached no platforms to the project ... when we came out with a first look for press in February we announced 360/PS3 and then in April we announced PSP ... We never announced a PC SKU nor are there plans for any." Sorry, PC gamers! Look at it this way: At least you can't "go to Hell" now! (Hey-o!)%Gallery-45836%
Second dev diary for Dante's Inferno is lustful
EA has passed on another Dante's Inferno developer diary, with this latest video containing four minutes of juicy game footage and commentary from the folks behind the title. It focuses on the Lust circle of Hell, which looks to be comprised of walls and walls of bodies, as well as freaky contortions of what once passed for human beings. If you're eating or drinking anything, we suggest you set it aside for a few minutes and collect yourself before watching this. This has a spit out your Coke factor of about eight.
Three million people played Dead Space
The sobering second half of that sentence? Only 1.5 million people bought it new. Speaking on the official EA podcast, Glen Schofield, EA studio manager for the Dead Space team, said that while the team had discussed adding co-op, he didn't believe the lack of that feature is what sent the game tape flying back to GameStop after players had solved it.Schofield explained, "We were up against Fallout, which was a 50-hour game to begin with. So, we didn't look at it and say we have to have online. What we said we've got to be bang for the buck."So, would you have held on to Dead Space longer if you could have gotten the pee scared out of you with a friend?[Via Kotaku]
Dante's Inferno trailer features hellish gameplay footage
You're probably getting sick of our frequent comparisons between the God of War series and EA's upcoming poem-to-game conversion of Dante's Inferno. Well, GameTrailers recently got its hands on the first Infern-al gameplay footage to hit the internets, so now we invite you to make your own judgment on the two franchise's similarities. The video's posted after the break -- go ahead and watch it, we'll wait....See? We know! Crazy, right? %Gallery-64908%
Visceral explains the controls of Dead Space Extraction
"Working on the Nintendo Wii was a pretty exciting thing for us. We were excited about the unique controls and what they brought to the gamer," explains Steve Papoutsis in this new dev diary. Extraction, the Wii-exclusive prequel to Dead Space, as with many Wii games, takes advantage of multiple control modes, depending on whether you use the Wii Remote or Zapper. Either way, the game utilizes some clever Wii-specific tricks, like switching to alt-fire by simply turning the controller on its side.The footage showcased in the latest dev diary highlights some of the best visuals we've seen on Wii so far. One of the co-op segments highlighted in the video combines puzzle-solving and monster-blasting in a rather smartly designed (and terrifying) way. Even worse, the two players will have to switch off during the puzzle as enemies continue to jump in. With so many clever ideas being thrown about, Extraction may have a shot at making us all scream in terror.
