We thought it was important to comb through Spike TV's E3 coverage plans, if only so we could plan our walking paths to put us in front of the cameras as much as humanly possible. But imagine our surprise when we actually found news hiding within our ticket to stardom. Check this listing:

"Geoff Keighley is on the E3 show floor to give Spike viewers the inside scoop on the sights and sounds of the show. Also, tune in for more world exclusive surprises including something special from id Software and Raven Software. -- Tuesday, July 15 and Wednesday, July 16 (11:59 PM - Midnight, ET/PT)"

Something special from id and Raven, huh? Could it be the 2-and-1/2-years-in-development Wolfenstein follow up that's supposed to arrive this year? Yeah, we think that's a pretty safe bet. Here's hoping we get to hear more about another return to the castle next week.

"A Tale of Two (different) Ports" has reached its (anti-) climactic conclusion, as Enemy Territory: Quake Wars was released for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 this week. Development of the console ports was fractured between two different studios, and when we checked in on the games six weeks ago, Underground Development's PS3 version was lagging behind -- yet refused to be delayed. And so, broken and stuttering, the port pushed on, crossing the finish line (into the retail market) hand in hand with its Xbox 360 counterpart. A tie then? Clearly not:

GamePolitics has confirmed through an id Software representative that the Doom and Rage developer is no longer a member of the Entertainment Software Association. The departure comes after several other companies, including LucasArts, Activision and Vivendi, waved goodbye to the organization. It's unclear what prompted id's decision, but the ESA will be in trouble if these exits turn into an exodus.

The ESA may release a full statement, acknowledging the latest departure, later today.

Turns out those blood-thirsty demons just won't stay dead. Id Software has announced that Doom 4 has begun production as of today. According to the press release, the studio is now hiring for the project. Said CEO Todd Hollenshead, "Doom is part of the id Software DNA and demands the greatest talent and brightest minds in the industry to bring the next installment of our flagship franchise to Earth."

No other details were given, but we're guessing it'll run off of id Tech 5 (or perhaps something greater). Given the ending of the Doom 3 expansion Resurrection was pretty conclusive, we don't know where the team will take the Doom story next. Our guess? Probably send a space marine to Hell to fight demons. Perhaps this time he (or she) will pack a better flashlight.

Id Software is a prolific partner of Activision, who published Doom 3, Quake 4 and Quake Wars. Check out Activision's Family Album to learn more about the company's internal studios.

Last week laid the groundwork for what promises to be at the very least a confusing E3, with a number of familiar faces jumping ship in favor of the uncertain waters below. However, the news of who would and would not be attending the show this July got a bit hazy with regards to talk of developer id Software, with conflicting reports painting the Doom masterminds as both planning to attend and turning their backs on the annual event.

Rather than seek the wisdom of the office Magic 8-Ball, we turned to id co-owner and CEO Todd Hollenshead, who conceded uncertainty with regards to the company's E3 plans. Admitted the exec in an email: "Actually, we haven't determined in what capacity we'll be attending E3 (if any), so everyone is wrong." Interestingly, his response echoed that of our own prognosticating orb, which replied simply "Reply hazy, try again."

The E3 2008 confusion continues. Following the soon-to-be merged Activison and Vivendi Games' departure from the Entertainment Software Association and its E3 press event, we got to wondering who else might not be showing up for the annual game industry showing. The list of attendees on the (password-protected) E3 site leaves out some pretty big names, including MMO-publisher NCsoft who tells Joystiq that, though it's been an ESA member since last year, it will not be attending E3 this year because the timing of the event didn't work out for their upcoming releases. Gamespot reports that Foundation 9 won't be attending, stating, "We just didn't feel like we got enough out of the investment last year in order to justify the expense this year." Atlus also confirmed to Joystiq that, despite attending last year's summit, it too would be skipping out on E3 2008.

Gamespot confirms that other names missing from the list – Bethesda, id Software, Majesco, and D3Publisher – still plan on attending. Kotaku claims that id Software is not attending despite Gamespot's story to the contrary. We've contacted id for clarification. They also assert that Her Interactive (best known for their popular Nancy Drew games) won't be attending, though the publisher didn't attend E3 last year either. We reached out to peripheral manufacturer Nyko who said that, though they aren't listed on the official site, they will nevertheless be attending.

As for a specific reason for the absences, outside of timing and exposure, Kotaku cites several unnamed sources who pin the blame straight on current ESA pres Michael Gallagher's well-tailored lapel. Is Gallagher out of touch with the video game industry?

[Update 4:58pm: Added Atlus and Nyko details.]


Read – Activision/Vivendi leave ESA, skip E3
Read – Five Publishers Drop Out of E3 This Year, Some Blame ESA President
Read – NCsoft, Foundation 9 bypass E3 '08

Huh. Well, this is surprising. Instead of pushing for platform parity in their upcoming console ports of Enemy Territory: Quake Wars – like several other recent multi-platform releases have strived for – id Software has created two relatively unique versions. The practice of using two different developers to handle the ports – Nerve for the Xbox 360 port and Activision's Underground Development (formerly Z-Axis) on the PS3 port – accounts for some of the disparity, but certainly other dual-developed ports have been relatively similar, at least in feature-set if not quality (take Orange Box, for example).

In this case, as revealed to MTV Multiplayer, the Xbox 360 version of Quake Wars has a robust Achievement system that actually includes an entirely separate single-player campaign mode, as well as a training mode and all the Xbox Live integration you would expect from a team-based shooter. Meanwhile, Underground Development "was focusing in on other things like ... making the game look as good as it could on the PS3" and "creating systems that do what Xbox Live [already] does like matchmaking [and] server migration." Unfortunately, as relayed by PlayStation fansite PSU, the "near complete" PS3 port suffers from a hefty 4.1GB mandatory installation and "falls short of expectations, showcasing the same broke visuals we have become accustomed to in deprived PS3 ports, delivering an unpolished experience."

With the title's May 27 release rapidly approaching, it's unlikely the PS3 release will look radically different than it does now. And to think, we thought the era of gimped PS3 ports was at an end.

Joining the ranks of Electronic Arts in game development for the iPhone, Gameloft and id Software have announced their commitment to Apple's portable. According to its press release, Gameloft intends to develop over 15 titles.

In a post on Slashdot, id's programming wizard John Carmack lauded Apple's 70% royalty deal and distribution deal. As for the SDK, Carmack said, "Just based on the blurbs, it looks very good -- a simulator plus debugging on the native device is the best of both worlds." Id also noted it had to put in an application for development like everyone else. Can we get an official version of Doom now?

[Via Engadget]

Read - John Carmack on iPhone SDK
Read - Gameloft Confirms Plans to Develop For iPhone With Over 15 Titles in 2008

First off, kudos to the GDC organizers for putting such different-minded people together for "The Future of Story" panel, which ended up being an insightful and vitriolic debate. The panel, hosted by indie writer Deborah Todd, included Saber 3D's Matthew Karch and Michael Hall (Time Shift), Silicon Knights' Denis Dyack (Too Human), Eidos Montreal's Mary DeMarie (previously: Myst III, IV and Dungeon Siege), Matt Costello (7th Guest) and Director of id Software Tim Willits.

A focus of the panel was the the dichotomy of story and gameplay, with both Dyack and Karch taking opposing viewponts and everyone else scattered somewhat in the middle. Early on, Karch asserted his view that some genres don't need to value story as much, citing Call of Duty 4 as a game where no one cared about the story. Later, he summed his viewpoint up best saying, "My whole argument is, it doesn't need to be a story written by Steinbeck, it needs to be someone who just keeps the game moving on."

Said Dyack, "In five to ten years, there will not be a shoter genre. It's gonna be more literative -- horror, science fiction, etc." When Karch asked if Bruckheimer would go away (referencing the "high-octane" film producer), Dyack retorted that "He's McDonald's, thats what he is. and people love McD's." The back and forth continued, culminating in the following exchange:

Dyack: "We should still aspire to this. you could have bubble gum like, Transformers [the film] for example, but in the end its what entertains."

Karch: "I'll take bubble gum."

It's been a while since we've heard anything about Quake Zero, id Software's free-to-play variation of Quake 3. For starters, it's not going by that old name anymore. From now on, you can call it Quake Live. Secondly, gone are any doubts about the financial efficacy of their business model: in-game advertising acronym addicts IGA Worldwide has announced a partnership with id Software to convert your roaming gaze into cold, hard cash.

Quake Live will be available, cleverly enough, at www.quakelive.com, along with an assortment of features like stats, matchmaking, and of course, the game itself. And no, we still don't know when it (or the XBLA version) is scheduled to be release. Regardless, coupled with EA's free-to-play Battlefield Heroes, our trend-sensors are ringing off the charts.

[Via GameDaily BIZ]