Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com Joystiq http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gif Joystiq http://www.joystiq.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[The Drowning headed to iOS for free next year]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/12/08/the-drowning-headed-to-ios-for-free-next-year/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/12/08/the-drowning-headed-to-ios-for-free-next-year/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/12/08/the-drowning-headed-to-ios-for-free-next-year/#comments
Scattered Entertainment is bringing free-to-play game The Drowning to iOS in early 2013. The "console quality" FPS is set ten years in the future, and draws inspiration from real life events in Beebe, Arkansas circa 2012, when thousands of black birds fell from the sky. The Drowning's story appears to only get more grim, as players control a character that is "one of the few survivors of a mysterious global catastrophe."

Former ngmoco GM Ben Cousins is now GM of Scattered Entertainment, a DeNA studio located in Stockholm, Sweden.

Gallery: The Drowning (iOS)

Continue reading The Drowning headed to iOS for free next year

JoystiqThe Drowning headed to iOS for free next year originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 08 Dec 2012 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>beebe arkansasBeebeArkansasben-cousinsblack-birdsDenaiosipadiphonemobilescattered-entertainmentthe-drowningtrailerSat, 08 Dec 2012 13:30:00 EST<![CDATA[ngmoco's Cousins expects free-to-play equivalent of Skyrim in a few years]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/29/ngmocos-cousins-expects-free-to-play-equivalent-of-skyrim-in-a/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/29/ngmocos-cousins-expects-free-to-play-equivalent-of-skyrim-in-a/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/29/ngmocos-cousins-expects-free-to-play-equivalent-of-skyrim-in-a/#comments Ben Cousins, who spearheaded Battlefield Heroes and Battlefield Play4Free for EA before being snatched up by ngmoco to head up its offices in Sweden, envisions an industry landscape where big-budget free-to-play titles dominate.

Cousins spoke of several different tiers of freemium games at the Free-2-Play Summit in London, as reported by GI.biz. The highest he predicts as a "monetization super-highway," with no limit to what players can spend and rewards that are more interesting and complex. "I believe that single-player will be the next to be cracked in terms of freemium monetisation," he said. "And I'm talking about traditional, story-based, scripted, linear and non-linear single-player that we see on consoles.

"I am totally 100 percent confident -- I will bet large amounts of money -- that we will have, in the next few years, a free-to-play equivalent of Skyrim," Cousins said. "A game like Skyrim, where you accrue skills and equipment over time, that you can play for hundreds of hours, is actually one of the easiest games to develop for a free-to-play model. That would be a big hit."

In this future, Cousins said the average user would have no problem dropping $60 over the course of playing the game. "In the future I believe free-to-play will be the way that nearly everyone plays games, it will be nearly every genre, and it will be nearly every platform."

[Image credit: OfficialGDC]

Joystiqngmoco's Cousins expects free-to-play equivalent of Skyrim in a few years originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 29 Mar 2012 04:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ben-cousinselder-scrolls-5free-2-playfree-2-play-summitfree-to-playfreemiumngmocoskyrimthe-elder-scrolls-v-skyrimThu, 29 Mar 2012 04:30:00 EST<![CDATA[More DICE employees jump ship to Ngmoco's Swedish studio]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/06/more-dice-employees-jump-ship-to-ngmocos-swedish-studio/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/06/more-dice-employees-jump-ship-to-ngmocos-swedish-studio/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/06/more-dice-employees-jump-ship-to-ngmocos-swedish-studio/#comments After former DICE / EA Easy dev Benjamin Cousins left his former role, we were pretty sure he was on his way to a world bicycling championship. As it turns out, he's keeping his bicycling hobby on the side and running the Swedish branch of Ngmoco instead -- and he's bringing along some friends from his former employer.

Senior artist Wille Wintertidh and senior programmers Torbjørn Lædre and Malte Hildigsson, all from DICE, have joined the team, and we don't expect they'll be the last. Cousins announced the hires via Twitter, where he characterized the trio as "fabulous new employees." We're hoping he also threw confetti in the air as he remarked as much.

JoystiqMore DICE employees jump ship to Ngmoco's Swedish studio originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 06 Jan 2012 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ben-cousinsbenjamin-cousinsdiceeaea-diceea-easyelectronic-artsMalte-Hildigssonngmocongmoco-swedenswedenTorbjørn-Lædretorbjorn-laedreWille-WintertidhFri, 06 Jan 2012 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[ngmoco to launch Swedish branch with former EA Easy boss Ben Cousins]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/21/ngmoco-to-launch-swedish-branch-with-former-ea-easy-boss-ben-cou/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/21/ngmoco-to-launch-swedish-branch-with-former-ea-easy-boss-ben-cou/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/21/ngmoco-to-launch-swedish-branch-with-former-ea-easy-boss-ben-cou/#comments When Ben Cousins left EA Easy as head of the studio earlier this year, he didn't leave a forwarding address. Cousins and his new employer revealed today his position as head of newly formed ngmoco Sweden, where he'll be leading the studio in the development of "freemium games for mobile platforms like iOS/Android" (according to Cousins' Twitter feed). His last major project with EA was Battlefield Play 4 Free.

The official PR from ngmoco puts the Swedish branch in a position of support for parent company DeNA's "Mobage" social gaming platforms. And the new studios puts Cousins in a position to hire up colleagues in a part of the world ripe for the picking -- Sweden. Don't be surprised if you see some high profile ex-DICE staffers showing up at ngmoco's new Swedish office over the next few months, as we totally warned you.

[Image credit: OfficialGDC]

Joystiqngmoco to launch Swedish branch with former EA Easy boss Ben Cousins originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 21 Jun 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>androidbattlefield-heroesbattlefield-play-4-freeben-cousinsDeNAea-diceea-easyelectronic-artsmacmobagemobilengmocongmoco-swedenpcswedenTue, 21 Jun 2011 11:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Benjamin Cousins leaves EA ahead of Play4Free launch]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/benjamin-cousins-leaves-ea-ahead-of-play4free-launch/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/benjamin-cousins-leaves-ea-ahead-of-play4free-launch/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/benjamin-cousins-leaves-ea-ahead-of-play4free-launch/#comments Today marks the beginning of the closed beta testing process for Battlefield Play4Free (with an open beta set to kick off April 4) -- making the announcement of EA Easy boss Ben Cousins' departure all the more perplexing. Cousins recently announced his exit from the developer on Twitter, saying he's "very proud of what I've achieved in the last 4 years." He didn't say what his next job opportunity is, only teasing, "soon as I can, I let everyone know."

Cousins was instrumental in the development of EA's recent salvo of free-to-play titles like Battlefield Heroes, Lord of Ultima and BattleForge, which actually made the transition from a retail release to an F2P title. We wish Cousins the best of luck at whatever his new home may be, and hope that he continues to make things cost zero money. You're doing the Lord's work, Ben.

JoystiqBenjamin Cousins leaves EA ahead of Play4Free launch originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battlefield-heroesbattlefield-play4freebattleforgeben-cousinsdepartureea-easylord-of-ultimapcThu, 31 Mar 2011 10:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Battlefield Heroes is far from 'practically ruined,' GM Ben Cousins says]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/03/battlefield-heroes-is-far-from-practically-ruined-gm-ben-cous/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/03/battlefield-heroes-is-far-from-practically-ruined-gm-ben-cous/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/03/battlefield-heroes-is-far-from-practically-ruined-gm-ben-cous/#comments Today's GDC panel on Battlefield Heroes had general manager Ben Cousins rectifying the misconceptions about his studio's first free-to-play Battlefield game being "practically ruined." Cousins' talk centered around the allegations made by press (originating with his game's own forumgoers) that paid weapons were introduced that allegedly unbalanced the game in favor of players willing to shell out cash.

Rather than panicking and reacting directly to the loudest voices -- and perhaps some overly reactionary press -- Easy Studio instead applied math. The develoeprs noticed that, despite all the negative attention, user numbers weren't dropping. Furthermore, they took the information of their forum members and discovered that, while the average BFH player would spend around 25 cents per month, forum members were spending -- on average -- about $22 (dollars!) per month.

Moreover, the actively complaining population only made up about 2 percent of the overall player base. What Cousins' team discovered as a result is that most folks playing the game really didn't care about the introduction of the paid weapons. Cousins likened it to fancy sports equipment -- while it might impart a slight advantage to folks willing to pay, the disparity was made up for by the game's mechanics. User numbers remained consistent and, eventually, the complaints subsided.

Having established what he considers to be this working business model in Heroes, Cousins is confident in East Studio's next effort, Battlefield Play4Free.

JoystiqBattlefield Heroes is far from 'practically ruined,' GM Ben Cousins says originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 03 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battlefield-heroesben-cousinsdiceeaeasy-studioselectronic-artsfreemiumgdcgdc-2011pcplay-for-freeThu, 03 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EA: In-game ads not so hot, real money is in microtransactions]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/21/ea-in-game-ads-not-so-hot-real-money-is-in-microtransactions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/21/ea-in-game-ads-not-so-hot-real-money-is-in-microtransactions/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/21/ea-in-game-ads-not-so-hot-real-money-is-in-microtransactions/#comments Speaking to Edge, EA's general manager of free-to-play operations, Ben Cousins, revealed that in-game ad sales aren't bringing in substantial earnings for the company. Cousins stated that EA isn't "getting much from ad revenue at all," adding that in-game ad business "hasn't grown as fast as people expected it to." Microsotransactions, on the other hand, have grown leaps and bounds, said Cousins, pointing to the king of microtransaction operations, Zynga.

EA has seen this firsthand, as Cousins noted that its free-to-play Battlefield Heroes has seen substantially more revenue generated by microtransactions than by advertisements. Cousins still believes that advertising can work, but said is should be "more about specific deals where you can tie the content in." Cousins pointed to the recent deal EA made with Dr. Pepper, in which players could redeem codes on soda bottles for in-game content. Still, while specific campaigns like this can work, Cousins said, generic in-game ads may soon become a thing of the past.

JoystiqEA: In-game ads not so hot, real money is in microtransactions originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ben-cousinseain-game-adsin-game-advertisingmicrosoftpcplaystationps3xboxTue, 21 Dec 2010 22:00:00 EST<![CDATA[EA kind of announces 'new, unannounced' Battlefield game]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/02/ea-kind-of-announces-new-unannounced-battlefield-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/02/ea-kind-of-announces-new-unannounced-battlefield-game/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/02/ea-kind-of-announces-new-unannounced-battlefield-game/#comments According to a tweet from Ben Cousins, general manager of EA's Easy studio, Battlefield fans can start looking forward to a new entry in the franchise. Easy handles free-to-play online games for EA, such as Lord of Ultima and Battlefield Heroes, and this Friday, the studio will show its "new, unannounced" Battlefield game to London press for the first time, Cousins tweeted.

Given Easy's current projects, we're inclined to guess the new Battlefield will be another freemium entry in the online space. Of course, does it even exist? It's still "unannounced," after all -- actually, wait, wasn't that tweet kinda the announcement? We're going to need to lay down. Our brain suddenly hurts.

JoystiqEA kind of announces 'new, unannounced' Battlefield game originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 02 Nov 2010 18:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battlefieldbattlefield-play4freeben-cousinseaea-easyeasyeasy-studiosTue, 02 Nov 2010 18:20:00 EST<![CDATA[DICE: Battlefield Heroes 'already out', closed beta to expand]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/23/dice-battlefield-heroes-already-out-closed-beta-to-expand/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/23/dice-battlefield-heroes-already-out-closed-beta-to-expand/http://www.joystiq.com/2008/08/23/dice-battlefield-heroes-already-out-closed-beta-to-expand/#commentsFiled under: ,


Battlefield Heroes is a fairly unconventional game, especially when measured against other installments in the Battlefield franchise. It's an odd chimeric blend of some of our favorite shooters, with the cartoony style and sense of humor of Team Fortress 2, the character advancement of Call of Duty 4, and the free-ness of America's Army. As such, one couldn't expect the game to be released in a conventional fashion. Were the title gracing store shelves, we'd half expect the discs to come not inside a box, but rather, baked inside of a cake.

Unfortunately for pastry fans, the title will only be available via digital distribution upon its release -- though the term "release" seems to have come under scrutiny from Ben Cousins, executive producer for DICE, Battlefield Heroes' developer. According to him, the title, which is currently in closed beta, is already technically "released", and won't have the "big splash release" one expects from an Electronic Arts title.

Cousins explained that DICE simply plans to increase the size of the closed beta "to the point where every hardcore gamer in the world will probably be able to get a key if they want to," leading up to a time when the game will eventually "sneak out." We've never known a title to be well-served by a surreptitious launch, but we imagine the rules could be different when your game costs bupkis.

JoystiqDICE: Battlefield Heroes 'already out', closed beta to expand originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 23 Aug 2008 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battlefield-heroesben-cousinsclosed-betadiceeaElectronic-ArtsPCSat, 23 Aug 2008 21:00:00 EST