Joystiq

Climax Studios 'tech demo' resembles Prince of Persia [Update: Climax responds]

David Hinkle — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 21:05:00 EST

Climax Studios has posted images of two games it has the works for 2013, one of which appears in the form of a "tech demo" that clearly resembles Ubisoft's Prince of Persia. Nothing beyond the aesthetic suggests this is a new Prince of Persia game, and Ubisoft has not announced anything recently beyond an upcoming mobile remake of Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame.

The other upcoming game appears to be in the horror genre. Artwork for the unannounced game depicts dark, dilapidated environments and creepy humanoid dolls.

Climax Studios previously worked of Smart As for the PS Vita, Rocket Knight for consoles and Steam, and Silent Hill: Shattered Memories on Wii and PSP.

Update: Climax CEO Simon Gardner got back to us regarding both games. "The screenshots in question are from a prototype we decided to create last year during exploratory discussions we had with Ubisoft. This never went any further," Gardner says regarding the Prince of Persia lookalike, though he never specifically mentions Ubisoft's flagship series. As for the other game, Gardner says it's "early in development" and that there is "nothing really to add at this time."

Gallery: Climax Studios character action game (2013)

Gallery: Climax Studios unannounced game (2013)

Climax Studios 'tech demo' resembles Prince of Persia [Update: Climax responds] originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 15 Apr 2013 21:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rocket Knight screens have that special Spark

Griffin McElroy — Wed, 05 May 2010 15:30:00 EST

Click to huge-ify

We're not sure what it is about this batch of screenshots for Rocket Knight that fills us with such euphoria. Perhaps it's all of the pretty colors. Perhaps they remind us of the simpler days of our youth. Perhaps we've only recently realized how preposterous the concept of an opossum strapped to a rocket really is. Seriously, think about it. Really think about it. It makes zero sense.

Check out the gallery below to see Sparkster -- the flying, furry contradiction -- in action.

Gallery: Rocket Knight (05-05-2010)

Rocket Knight screens have that special Spark originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 05 May 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on: Rocket Knight

Randy Nelson — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:00:00 EST

With everyone focused on the 2D return of a certain cerulean hedgehog, I'd like to point out that another nocturnal hero in blue is making a comeback: Sparkster, the armor-clad, jetpack-wearing opossum star of Rocket Knight. Konami has brought in UK developer Climax to resurrect the series, which hails from the 16-bit era and included two games: Rocket Knight Adventures and Sparkster.

Having played through the first couple of levels from this XBLA, PSN and Steam release, I can say that not a whole lot has changed from Sparkster's adventures of yore -- and that's a compliment. There must be something inherently difficult about capturing the feel of a 2D game using entirely polygons, since the number of remakes that have gotten it right far outnumber the successes. But, like Bionic Commando: Rearmed and even Street Fighter IV, this snappy action platformer should feel like revisiting a childhood home for retro junkies.

Gallery: Rocket Knight (Konami Gamers Night 2010)

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Hands-on: Rocket Knight originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rocket Knight blasting off May 2010

Richard Mitchell — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 13:40:00 EST

Marsupial action enthusiasts rejoice! Konami has announced that Rocket Knight will arrive on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and Steam this May. Coinciding with this announcement, the publisher has released a new trailer and screenshots of this sequel to the classic 16-bit series.

The trailer is of particular interest, especially to fans of the original games and their protagonist, Sparkster. If you've been waiting to get an extended glimpse of the awesome opossum in action, now is your chance. Check out the new trailer above and a batch of new screens in the gallery below.

Gallery: Rocket Knight (Konami Gamers Night 2010)

Rocket Knight blasting off May 2010 originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 09 Apr 2010 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Brand sparking new Rocket Knight art

Richard Mitchell — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:20:00 EST

click to rocket-size

We're going to level with you: There's not a lot of new info to be found in the latest batch of character art from Konami's upcoming reboot of Rocket Knight. The press release does mention a few of Sparkster's abilities. While most should be familiar to players -- wall ricochet jumps, etc -- one new addition is the "burst vortex," which can reflect projectiles back toward enemies. Beyond that, however, we're left only with images of Emperor Sweinhart and Sparkster's nemesis, Axel Gear, both of whom can be seen above. Konami has also released a high resolution version of Sparkster himself.

Yes, it's not much but, when it comes to Rocket Knight, we'll take what we can get.

Gallery: Rocket Knight character art

Brand sparking new Rocket Knight art originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rocket Knight trailer sparks our interest

JC Fletcher — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:40:00 EST

Two things about this trailer for the new Rocket Knight (after the break) stand out upon our first viewing:

The stylized projectile/jetpack effects
It's a Rocket Knight Adventures game

That last one may seem obvious, but we're still a bit shocked to see Konami bring the series back after so long -- to be honest, we're a bit shocked every time Konami announces a game that isn't Metal Gear.

And, to our delight, what we see here is true Rocket Knight: Sparkster has his sword and his jetpack, the latter of which is used basically to bounce all over the screen. It's here that the 3D remake actually benefits the game: with the wider area and the smaller Sparkster, he seems to have a lot more freedom to fly around. Even the shooter stages have returned, with some interesting dynamic camera work.

If you never paid attention to this series because of mid-90s animal mascot platformer overload, you should start getting familiar with it now. Forget Gex, Aero the Acro-Bat, Punky Skunk, Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel, Awesome Possum, and Socket. This one's actually good.

Continue reading Rocket Knight trailer sparks our interest

Rocket Knight trailer sparks our interest originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rocket Knight returns to XBLA, PSN and Steam in early 2010

Ludwig Kietzmann — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:05:00 EST

We wish for a million dollars!

...

Well, after the return of classic adventure games -- and now Sparkster -- our magical roll of granted wishes was bound to come to an end. 1UP and Konami have revealed a brand new game for the powerfully propelled opossum, set to debut on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network and Steam in early 2010. The 2.5D sequel (not a remake!) comes 15 years after the last game, which is a period more wasteful than the gap between the original Star Trek TV series and the first feature film.

Sorry, our nerd analogies flare up when we get excited.

Rocket Knight (as the game is tentatively dubbed) is being developed by Climax, which previously worked with Konami producer Tomm Hulett on Silent Hill: Origins. The team is currently finishing up the promising Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.

Gallery: Rocket Knight

Continue reading Rocket Knight returns to XBLA, PSN and Steam in early 2010

Rocket Knight returns to XBLA, PSN and Steam in early 2010 originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Overlord: Dark Legend producer says game 'looks like the 360 version'

Xav de Matos — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:08:00 EST

Overlord: Dark Legend Associate Producer Dean Scott admits it may be a "lame cliche," but he believes the dark master's Wii incarnation "looks like the 360 version." Speaking with Videogamer.com, Scott could hardly keep his composure as he detailed how confident he was in the visuals for the upcoming action-adventure game, exclaiming it "blows away just about everything else" on the Wii.

Scott may be biased, considering he is the producer of the game, but Wii owners may want to take notice if for no other reason than to help fill the dark Pikmin-sized void in their hearts. Overlord: Dark Legend lands on the Wii this summer; a companion DS version, Overlord: Minions, will release later this year.

Overlord: Dark Legend producer says game 'looks like the 360 version' originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Overlord footage features minions, bosses, pumpkin armor

Chris Greenhough — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 22:14:00 EST

Filed under: Video

The first video of Overlord: Dark Legend might be off-screen and a bit blurry, but we don't require high-resolution, direct-feed footage to tell us that the game will keep all the charm and personality of the original Xbox 360 title.

Producer Dean Scott can be heard commentating throughout both this and the video after the jump, enthusing about how nicely the Wii's controls suit Overlord, and discussing how Climax want to avoid fashioning a Morrowind-esque grey and brown fantasy world. So far, it's working; this looks visually closer to Fable. We'll be keen to see how many minions we'll be able to gather at once in Dark Legend -- the first game on the 360 allowed players to assemble around forty or fifty at some points, and a similar number would be welcome here. Also worth noting: Scott currently thinks this will be ready in time for June or July next year.

To see a boss battle in action, arm yourself with a pumpkin and charge past the break.

Continue reading Overlord footage features minions, bosses, pumpkin armor

Overlord footage features minions, bosses, pumpkin armor originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 25 Aug 2008 22:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Overlord moving his minions over to Wii

David Hinkle — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 08:58:00 EST

Filed under: News

Click to see more screens

Remember that PS3 and Xbox 360 game Overlord? No? Well, you aren't alone (it was kind of like Pikmin, only less good), but Codemasters has decided to bring the IP over to Wii anyway. Thankfully, though, they're building a new title from the ground up.

Development for the new game, titled Overlord: Dark Legend, will be handled by Climax Studios. They're aiming for a 2009 release, and the producer of the game, Dean Scott, assures that this is "an all new game, designed especially for Wii," with a "new story, new characters," and "new gameplay." Based on his brief chat with IGN, it sounds like a majority of the game will be a pointer-based affair, with gamers using the Wiimote's IR sensor to direct their horde of minions. And what about those minions?

"It's the same four minion types, but we've given them new abilities," said Scott. "Some of these may be themed around bodily functions that childish folk like us find hilarious."

Be sure to check out first screens from the upcoming game in our gallery below!

Overlord moving his minions over to Wii originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 14 Aug 2008 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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