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Joystiq hands-on: Bad Company 2 (multiplayer)
by Kevin Kelly { May 22nd 2009 at 11:00AM } 
It took 45 minutes to peel myself out of the chair, ears ringing, and come back into the space where EA was hosting a recent preview event in Los Angeles. I'd finally pried myself away from an intense Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer session where I'd joined three other attendees and eight remote EA staffers in a characteristically chaotic, 12-on-12 battle. It was the most fun I'd had playing an online, multiplayer FPS in a long while.
The destructible environments, of course, are the returning gameplay gimmick, but it's still just as satisfying as in the first game to pulverize the foundation of a enemy's refuge, bringing the building down and a pesky sniper with it. I turned every building in site into piles of sheet rock and debris. It's not as much fun when your opponents aren't hiding inside, but I really didn't need much of an excuse to launch another mortar shell from inside my tank. No structure was safe.
The destructible environments, of course, are the returning gameplay gimmick, but it's still just as satisfying as in the first game to pulverize the foundation of a enemy's refuge, bringing the building down and a pesky sniper with it. I turned every building in site into piles of sheet rock and debris. It's not as much fun when your opponents aren't hiding inside, but I really didn't need much of an excuse to launch another mortar shell from inside my tank. No structure was safe.
Gallery: Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Mirror's Edge vs. Age of Conan at Nordic Awards
We can't speak to the ... ahem ... games we've never heard of running against Mirror's Edge and Age of Conan, but retro remake Bionic Commando: Rearmed is also competing for the Best Nordic Game award, while Watchmen: The End is Nigh takes on the two for Artistic Achievement. The awards are set to be a veritable smörgåsbord of gaming, if you will. (Those are Swedish, right?)
[Via Edge]
Two new Battlefield: Bad Company 2 screens (yes, two)
by Randy Nelson { Mar 31st 2009 at 3:00AM }
click to enlarge
EA isn't big on showing what the game actually looks like. The new screens -- all two of them -- the publisher has released are ... well, they could be from practically any military FPS. But hey, at least they offer a glimpse of gameplay from the DICE-developed title, unlike the "all style, no substance" first trailer.
First Bad Company 2 trailer light on gameplay, heavy on death
Showcasing the cycle of "smoke a cigarette, kill a dude, get killed yourself" in a MadWorld-esque aesthetic, we can't help but wish for actual gameplay footage from the game -- the first Bad Company 2 screen was madness! We'll expect to hear more from publisher EA and developer DICE as we near E3 2009 in June. More on murder, that is.
GDC09: Battlefield 1943 rolls onto Iwo Jima
by Randy Nelson { Mar 27th 2009 at 3:30PM }
click to Great War size
Many of our GDC demos, Battlefield 1943 included, have been of the incredibly brief variety. (Is the industry saving up its really good stuff for E3 or what?) In the case of DICE's return to its classic multiplayer-only, WWII-era FPS franchise, what we saw and played at an event that shouted, "Hey, you! Yeah, you! C'mere! You've never seen this before!" was ... exactly what we'd played before. This time, however, it was on on a new map -- the island of Iwo Jima.
Gallery: Battlefield 1943 (Iwo Jima Map)
Mirror's Edge launch trailer stengthens our 'Faith' in final game
In its early moments, the trailer shows us what the game might have looked like if EA DICE went with a third-person perspective, rather than presenting the action through the eyes of Faith. We'd be quite surprised if the final game doesn't include a third-person cheat of some sort.
Catch this Mirror's Edge 'Runner' trailer
Want to be a better Runner in the Mirror's Edge demo's time trial mode? Check out this excellent, player-made, annotated video run-through of the Edge "course." We've managed to shave several seconds off our previous best time thanks to it.
Download in HD (102MB)
Mirror's Edge demo hits PSN Oct. 30, XBL Oct. 31
We hope you didn't have anything planned for the next few days, because EA just announced that the Mirror's Edge demo is going live on PlayStation Network tomorrow, Oct. 30, and Xbox Live Marketplace the following day, Oct. 31. If this slice of the game is anything like we've previously played, it won't be very long – but you'll want to keep playing it over and over again.
This will be the case even more so if you've pre-ordered the game from Best Buy and received the retailer's exclusive time trial mode unlock code. DICE has set up special demo leaderboards so you can spend between now and the game's release on Nov. 11 vying for the coveted top spot. Remember to look before you leap.
This will be the case even more so if you've pre-ordered the game from Best Buy and received the retailer's exclusive time trial mode unlock code. DICE has set up special demo leaderboards so you can spend between now and the game's release on Nov. 11 vying for the coveted top spot. Remember to look before you leap.
Faith gets schooled in Mirror's Edge 'training' trailer
Previously on Mirror's Edge – or, at least, the animated trailer – we got a look at the downfall of the city in which the game takes place. This week: the rise of its protagonist, Faith, as a "runner" begins ... with a training montage (sadly minus frenetic '80s background music).
Given that EA already has designs on Mirror's Edge as a trilogy and has partnered with Starz on a Dead Space animated flick, we're frankly surprised we haven't heard anything on a similar treatment for DICE's free-running action title. Wait – did you hear that? That was the sound of an EA exec's pen clicking to action, no doubt signing off on such a deal as we speak.
Bonus: Cop the HD version from Big Download.
Given that EA already has designs on Mirror's Edge as a trilogy and has partnered with Starz on a Dead Space animated flick, we're frankly surprised we haven't heard anything on a similar treatment for DICE's free-running action title. Wait – did you hear that? That was the sound of an EA exec's pen clicking to action, no doubt signing off on such a deal as we speak.
Bonus: Cop the HD version from Big Download.
Mirror's Edge cel-shaded story trailer
Download to PSP
Faith, our favorite skyscraper-hopping protagonist from Mirror's Edge, narrates her background story in this stylish trailer. The narrative feels a bit like the O-Ren Ishii anime sequence in Kill Bill while the visual style is a cross between cel-shading and what you see on Samurai Jack. Tell us what you guys think after you take a look. The game will be out November 11th and you can check out our hands-on impressions here.
[Via Joystiq]
[Via Joystiq]
Faith-based: 2D Mirror's Edge trailer shows origin story
It's no secret that we're a fan of these trailers; in fact, the only thing we can really take umbrage with here is this: they're making us pine for a "cel-shading" option in Mirror's Edge. C'mon, DICE – how hard could it be? Just click that "cel-shading" box on your game-making tool. Done!
Download in HD (98MB)
$130 Mirror's Edge comes with Timbuk2 messenger bag
$130 bags you the Xbox 360 release of the game along with a ME-themed Timbuk2 messenger bag (read: much nicer than GameStop's preorder bag), complete with Faith's face on the inside flap – just the sort of conversation starter we all want sewn directly into our baggage.
Gallery: Mirror's Edge messenger bag
Mirror's Edge dev projects 3m units sold worldwide
There's another game from last year that immediately comes to mind: Assassin's Creed had an immediately recognizable look, was an unproven IP, had mixed reviews, and was released into an unusually busy holiday game season, yet still went on to sell over six million units. So, can EA spark the same interest in this unusually colorful parkour playpen, being released into a similarly frenzied gaming season?
Mirror's Edge out Nov. 11, demo to hit PSN before launch
But wait, that's not all. EA has also confirmed that a Mirror's Edge demo will hit the PSN sometime before the game launches. Also, for those who pre-order the title, they'll be given an exclusive code that unlocks Time Trial mode in the demo. Code giveaways for pre-orderers will be handed out starting on September 26.
[via press release]
