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 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Zynga CEO: company building cross-platform cloud compatibility]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/23/zynga-ceo-company-building-cross-platform-cloud-compatibility/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/23/zynga-ceo-company-building-cross-platform-cloud-compatibility/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/23/zynga-ceo-company-building-cross-platform-cloud-compatibility/#comments We've already heard from Zynga how the company plans expand its scope a little bit from its very popular Facebook-only titles. Zynga founder Mark Pincus says in an interview with Om Malik that its policy extends to current tech being built to share saves across the cloud. "In other words, you can play a game on a computer and call it up on Xbox," Pincus says as an example, "and you resume from the point you left off, except the game play will now be customized for the Xbox controller." Game information will be shared, but the experience will be different.

That's already the case for Zynga's games on iOS -- they have a very different feel when played on mobile devices, and have even found different audiences. "Words for Friends doesn't do as well on Facebook as it does on the iPhone," for instance, "because they are a mobile first experience. Our poker game does well on the mobile as well."

This doesn't mean that Pincus is saying Zynga's working on Xbox ports of its titles. Instead, the company is building out the tech right now to extend these games out in various forms to even more platforms in the future.

JoystiqZynga CEO: company building cross-platform cloud compatibility originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 23 Mar 2012 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>compatibilitycontrollercross-platformfarmvillegameplayinterviewmark-pincusmicrosoftom-malikpcxboxxbox-liveFri, 23 Mar 2012 06:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Mists of Pandaria tries to breathe new life into an old World of Warcraft]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/19/mists-of-pandaria-tries-to-breath-new-life-into-an-old-world-of/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/19/mists-of-pandaria-tries-to-breath-new-life-into-an-old-world-of/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/03/19/mists-of-pandaria-tries-to-breath-new-life-into-an-old-world-of/#comments Video games these days have a shorter shelf life than ever before. Titles fall out of the top ten within days or weeks (if they ever get there at all), there are awesome new releases arriving every month or so, and even the biggest games are on a yearly (if that) sequel schedule at this point. And yet World of Warcraft has remained a constant. Blizzard's MMO has held millions of players in sway for over half a decade, and those players have killed countless boars, cleared out endless quests, dungeons, and raids, and have vanquished not one but three world-threatening expansion bosses, in the forms of Illidan Stormrage, Arthas the Lich King, and Deathwing and his Cataclysm.

So Blizzard is perhaps taking on its hardest task ever with the upcoming Mists of Pandaria expansion. There's no question in the halls of the (recently quieter) Blizzard campus in Irvine, California that the game is at a crossroads of sorts. Blizzard's formula for WoW expansions (define a baddie, and lead a player to gear and level up to the final fight) has worked so far, but it's almost as if the company realizes that the old tricks are getting old.

Blizzard needs, then, to take World of Warcraft, one of history's most-played, most-traversed, and most-conquered games, and make it feel new. "This is definitely different fare from any expansion we've tried so far," VP of Creative Development Chris Metzen said in a presentation to assembled press. He then talked about the game on a much longer scale than a few weeks, a few months, or even a Call of Duty-length year. "The big global threat that's coming, to define the next couple years of WoW's gameplay, is really war itself."

Gallery: World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria (3/18/12)

Continue reading Mists of Pandaria tries to breathe new life into an old World of Warcraft

JoystiqMists of Pandaria tries to breathe new life into an old World of Warcraft originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 19 Mar 2012 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blizzardblizzard-entertainmentchris-metzenexpansionghostcrawlergreg-streetinterviewj-allen-brackpandapandarenpcscott-mercertalentsupdatewarwarcraftworld-of-warcraftworld-of-warcraft-mists-of-pandariaMon, 19 Mar 2012 03:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Jaffe outlines plans post-Eat Sleep Play; no Twisted Metal DLC or sequel planned]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/09/jaffe-outlines-plans-post-eat-sleep-play-no-twisted-metal-dlc-o/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/09/jaffe-outlines-plans-post-eat-sleep-play-no-twisted-metal-dlc-o/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/09/jaffe-outlines-plans-post-eat-sleep-play-no-twisted-metal-dlc-o/#comments As we learned earlier this week, Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe will be leaving Eat Sleep Play sometime after the series relaunch of Twisted Metal hits store shelves. Jaffe sat down with our own Alexander Sliwinski during this week's DICE summit for a segment on The Joystiq Show, during which he elaborated on his waning presence at Eat Sleep Play and his plans for creating a new studio based out of San Diego.

"I will be with Eat Sleep Play until we finish what's called the 'maintenance contract' we have and have been working on with Sony. That will allow us, post-launch, to stay and address issues that there's no way we can know of. Cleaning things up in terms of balance, bugs, tuning, tweaks." This maintenance contract expires at the end of March, at which point Jaffe plans on cultivating new ideas, as well as a new team, for his fledgling studio.

"There's no corporate filings, there's no official company name yet; 99 percent of my day is Twisted Metal right now. There's four games I would love to do, the one I do really depends on the team I can put together and the money that I can find to make it." His ideas for new titles include both console and browser-based offerings, with a "guerilla-style" survival-horror thrown in for good measure: "There's a survival-horror genre in there, a real low-budget survival horror, kinda guerilla film making style. Not in terms of the look, but in terms of that kind of financing and that kind of production."

Jaffe recently told Game Informer that there are no sequel or DLC plans for Twisted Metal, although that doesn't mean he's left the series for good. "You never know what the future holds, I'd love to make another Twisted down the road with these guys one day, if that opportunity presents itself." For now, though, Jaffe's focus is on building new experiences with new IPs.

JoystiqJaffe outlines plans post-Eat Sleep Play; no Twisted Metal DLC or sequel planned originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>david-jaffedicedice-2012eat-sleep-playinterviewnew-studiotwisted-metaltwisted-metal-2011twisted-metal-2012Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Sid Meier: modern graphics have lowered the barriers of entry to gaming]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/01/sid-meier-modern-graphics-have-lowered-the-barriers-of-entry-to/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/01/sid-meier-modern-graphics-have-lowered-the-barriers-of-entry-to/http://www.joystiq.com/2012/02/01/sid-meier-modern-graphics-have-lowered-the-barriers-of-entry-to/#comments In this interview with Game Informer, legendary developer Sid Meier says even he has succumbed to the lure of modern graphics. "I used to love to try and challenge the players' imagination," he says, "to show them a few pixels in 16 colors and try and convince them that they're ruling an empire to stand the test of time. But I think today's player is not really willing to make that investment, so we're able to bring the worlds to life in 3D."

But he also believes that beefing up the graphics has brought in a much bigger audience than games could have picked up 20 years ago. "You had to kind of suspend your disbelief and be willing to step into that world," says Meier. "Today we make it a lot easier," and as a result, players who want more than a few pixels on screen can also get their fix.

Meier's currently the creative director of game development at Firaxis, and though he's not participating directly on XCOM it doesn't mean he's not working. Every morning, he says, he comes out of the shower with "about 10 ideas," and is constantly iterating with his team on different prototypes. "Most of them," he says, "just go back into the trash heap." In other words, anyone who wants to make an awesome game should probably go root around in the garbage cans near Sparks Glencoe, Maryland.

JoystiqSid Meier: modern graphics have lowered the barriers of entry to gaming originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 01 Feb 2012 03:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>civilizationfiraxis-gamesgame-designgraphicsinterviewmarylandpcsid-meierstrategyWed, 01 Feb 2012 03:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Hideo Kojima gets his Revengeance with Metal Gear Rising]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/12/13/hideo-kojima-gets-his-revengeance-with-metal-gear-rising/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/12/13/hideo-kojima-gets-his-revengeance-with-metal-gear-rising/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/12/13/hideo-kojima-gets-his-revengeance-with-metal-gear-rising/#comments Metal Gear Solid creator Hideo Kojima and Platinum Games producer Atsushi Inaba took the stage at Konami's offices here in Los Angeles earlier this week for a mea culpa of sorts: Kojima now admits that Metal Gear Solid Rising, though it may have looked nice in the trailer back at E3 2010, just wasn't working.

"In the summer of 2010, the team made a presentation for me," he recounted through a translator, "and I realized the game design still wasn't there yet." The team's vision was split between stealth and action, the idea of "cut everything" worked technically but made for gameplay that was too open-ended, and the game just wasn't fun, says Kojima. "As the young staff said to me, they wanted a good game that just felt good moving around, and we would never get that, so I decided to cancel the project."

"But still, we had a lot of things" that could still be used, says Kojima. "Motion capture, a lot of good story, the view of the world inside the game, and I wanted to use that somehow. I wanted Rising to be born again, so that's when I decided to contact Platinum Games."

Gallery: Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (PS3/ Xbox 360)

Continue reading Hideo Kojima gets his Revengeance with Metal Gear Rising

JoystiqHideo Kojima gets his Revengeance with Metal Gear Rising originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 13 Dec 2011 20:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>atsushi-inabahideo-kojimainterviewkojima-productionsmetal-gear-rising-revengeancemetal-gear-solid-risingplatinum-gamesplaystationps3qATue, 13 Dec 2011 20:31:00 EST<![CDATA[Diablo 3 being polished up, no release date yet]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/diablo-3-being-polished-up-no-release-date-yet/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/diablo-3-being-polished-up-no-release-date-yet/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/25/diablo-3-being-polished-up-no-release-date-yet/#comments The build of Diablo 3 being shown at BlizzCon 2011 last week did have a few polish updates, but generally it was the same content previously available in the beta, which we've covered thoroughly so far. Diablo 3's Technical Director Wyatt Chang agreed while chatting with me last week that the game is basically content complete, but the polish phase is far from over. "Content complete for us usually means things like voice recording, art, assets are in place, but it doesn't mean that things like the tuning, balance, and game systems are in place."

The team is still working hard on some of the core concepts, however -- one issue that's come up lately is whether players can switch skills on the fly or not. In the beta, says Cheng, "you can play with your skill window open, and you can switch skills in the middle of the fight, which has some upsides and it's very cool in one regard, but on the whole, I think it's sort of a more negative experience, and a lot of people in the community have agreed." Just recently, the team was dealing with things like "how many Pages of Training you can have in one stack," so they are starting to dive into the nitty gritty of how the game will work.

Gallery: Diablo 3 (10/21/11)

Continue reading Diablo 3 being polished up, no release date yet

JoystiqDiablo 3 being polished up, no release date yet originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>betablizzcon-2011designDiablo-3interviewpcpolishingskillswyatt-chengTue, 25 Oct 2011 16:16:00 EST<![CDATA[IndieCade 2011: Tom Sennett cares about Deepak Fights Robots]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/10/indiecade-2011-tom-sennett-cares-about-deepak-fights-robots/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/10/indiecade-2011-tom-sennett-cares-about-deepak-fights-robots/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/10/indiecade-2011-tom-sennett-cares-about-deepak-fights-robots/#comments
When Tom Sennett stepped on stage to pick up the Game Design award at this year's IndieCade, his entire speech suggested strongly that he doesn't, um, really care. But here's his secret: He actually does. "I take the work very seriously," he said. When it comes to Deepak Fights Robots (currently available on Mac, Windows and Linux), Sennett actually cares very much.

Sure, the graphics look like they were created with free software and a mouse (they were), the action ranges from surreal to nonsensical, and the game's funky soundtrack and aesthetic (that extended even to the signs around Sennett's IndieCade display, as seen above) might make you think Deepak Fights Robots is just a joke. It is funny, but once you dive into the game mechanics at play here, there's a surprising amount of depth and insight built on just a few standard platformer-style tropes.

Continue reading IndieCade 2011: Tom Sennett cares about Deepak Fights Robots

JoystiqIndieCade 2011: Tom Sennett cares about Deepak Fights Robots originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 Oct 2011 23:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>deepak-fights-robotsdevelopersindiecadeindiecade-2011interviewpcMon, 10 Oct 2011 23:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Hideo Kojima talks life, influences at USC presentation]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/06/hideo-kojima-talks-life-influences-at-usc-presentation/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/06/hideo-kojima-talks-life-influences-at-usc-presentation/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/10/06/hideo-kojima-talks-life-influences-at-usc-presentation/#comments Hideo Kojima (and young Kojima) in a presentation at USC. Legendary game developer Hideo Kojima took the stage at the University of Southern California last night to talk about his life as a game developer, and give a few thoughts on the current state of gaming and game development. During an interview moderated by Geoff Keighley, the creator of Metal Gear Solid spoke honestly about his past as the son of two pharmaceutical executives, his current work/life balance, and what he thinks the future of gaming looks like.

Kojima told a few cute stories from his past -- he said that he started writing as a young man, and early on wrote a long story called "Survival Battle" that had everyone in its world fight at the age of 14, earning extra time in their lifespan for each victory. He said that in college, he was an economics major, and thus the "only oddball in my class that wanted to make movies or novels." His economics thesis even included a short story "to surprise my professor, and he was very surprised," said Kojima through a translator, "but it didn't help my grade much."

Kojima also talked about his gaming influences, starting with the original Famicom, and mentioned titles like Super Mario Brothers, Xevious, and the Japanese text adventure Portopia Renzoku Satsujin Jiken as early influences on his work. "I felt great potential in the medium," Kojima said about discovering video games, adding that the interactivity was what really drew him in early on.

Continue reading Hideo Kojima talks life, influences at USC presentation

JoystiqHideo Kojima talks life, influences at USC presentation originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 06 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>biofox-enginegeoff-keighleyhideo-kojimainfluencesinterviewkojima-productionslifeplaystationpresentationps3pspsonyuniversity-of-southern-californiaThu, 06 Oct 2011 08:00:00 EST<![CDATA[BioWare 'figuring out the right way' to continue Mass Effect after ME3]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/mass-effect-continuation-after-me3/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/mass-effect-continuation-after-me3/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/27/mass-effect-continuation-after-me3/#comments Speaking with business giant Forbes, BioWare founders/doctors Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka spoke on the possibility of life after Mass Effect 3, saying that ME3's universe of diverse alien races and planets has struck a chord with the series' audience. While their priorities and resources are currently focused on "nailing it" with ME3, the doctors maintain that possibilities in the future are wide open.

"We do have a desire to continue the Mass Effect franchise," said Muzyka, "and we're working on the details, figuring out what the fans want, figuring out the right way." Given the amount of codex text the series has generated over the years, we don't doubt that there are still stories left to tell in the ME universe.

JoystiqBioWare 'figuring out the right way' to continue Mass Effect after ME3 originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 27 Jun 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>biowareelectronic-artsgreg-zeschukinterviewmass-effectmass-effect-3microsoftpcplaystationps3ray-muzykaxboxMon, 27 Jun 2011 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Prototype 2 preview: To Heller and back]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/05/prototype-2-preview/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/05/prototype-2-preview/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/06/05/prototype-2-preview/#comments We're just going to throw this out there, harsh as it may be: Does Prototype, 2009's open world New York-based superhero fantasy title, really need a sequel? Sure, there was some fun to be had in Alex Mercer's shoes, pulling off some over-the-top (and often just overwhelming) proto-moves, navigating a New York under alien and military siege. But by the end of the first game, we'd taken out tank after tank after tank, gutted Supreme Hunter after Supreme Hunter, and learned everything we needed to know about Blackwatch and the Blacklight virus, didn't we? There was a lot of game in Prototype -- repeated, some might say, more than even its fans wanted.

Ken Rossman, the studio head at Radical Entertainment, obviously believes we do. He and his studio are hard at work on Prototype 2, and when we spoke with him at a pre-E3 event a little while ago, he made his case as to why we want to return to this world. The main problem with Prototype, he told us, was that "it had two volumes: 1 and 11. And really there was nothing in that middle range, so either you were in disguise and the world ignored you, sometimes, or all of a sudden you kicked the hornet's nest and the world's on fire. So that was something that we acknowledged and we were like, 'That's something that we need to figure out in a better way.'"

Gallery: Prototype 2 (6/5/2011)

Continue reading Prototype 2 preview: To Heller and back

JoystiqPrototype 2 preview: To Heller and back originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionalex-mercere3e3-2011interviewjames-hellermicrosoftopen-worldpcplaystationprototypeprototype-2ps3radical-entertainmentxboxSun, 05 Jun 2011 20:20:00 EST<![CDATA[Stardock's Brad Wardell talks about selling Impulse to GameStop]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/stardocks-brad-wardell-talks-about-selling-impulse-to-gamestop/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/stardocks-brad-wardell-talks-about-selling-impulse-to-gamestop/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/03/31/stardocks-brad-wardell-talks-about-selling-impulse-to-gamestop/#comments "Not everyone's goal in life is to run a thousand person company," said Stardock founder Brad Wardell, who just today announced that he's sold the growing digital distribution arm of his company, Impulse, to GameStop for an undisclosed sum. "Certainly the path of least resistance would have been to just grow with Impulse and become a digital retailer, but that's not what I signed up for."

Impulse was originally started as a way for Stardock to distribute its own games and software digitally, and was opened up three years ago to other developers. Since then, it's grown to compete with the big player in digital distribution, Steam. Wardell, speaking with Joystiq in an interview today, said that the growth in revenue actually became a cause for concern. "When Impulse became our number one source of revenue," said Wardell, "I realized it was time for us to look at our options there."

Continue reading Stardock's Brad Wardell talks about selling Impulse to GameStop

JoystiqStardock's Brad Wardell talks about selling Impulse to GameStop originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 31 Mar 2011 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>brad-wardelldigital-distributiongamestopimpulseinterviewpcpc-gamingsalestardockThu, 31 Mar 2011 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Notch suggests Minecraft achievements, console ports in the future]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/25/notch-suggests-minecraft-achievements-console-ports-in-the-futu/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/25/notch-suggests-minecraft-achievements-console-ports-in-the-futu/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/25/notch-suggests-minecraft-achievements-console-ports-in-the-futu/#comments Minecraft has already cemented its place as one of the best sandbox games of all time, but sometimes you need a little narrative with your creative impulses. Don't worry -- there's a solution for you: achievements. In an interview with Gamasutra, Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson says that achievements are one way he could add a little narrative structure to the title, by rewarding players for doing certain things in the game in a certain order (starting by chopping down a tree, for example, and moving on to "killing a dragon or something").

Notch also says he's still surprised by all the interest in the game, both his own and that of players, who've actually turned up in greater numbers after he recently decided to raise the price. Also, while he does agree that Minecraft could be ported to other platforms at some point and "become a franchise," he warns that, "if we make an Xbox version there should be a point to it being on Xbox."

Sounds reasonable enough. Hopefully if he does go with the achievement model, we'll get a nice big reward for "Burning Down the House."

JoystiqNotch suggests Minecraft achievements, console ports in the future originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>achievementsinterviewMinecraftMojang-SpecificationsnarrativenotchpcportxboxFri, 25 Feb 2011 21:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Mario Sports Mix 'press conference' reveals Mario's dreams and aspirations]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/07/mario-sports-mix-press-conference-reveals-marios-dreams-and-a/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/07/mario-sports-mix-press-conference-reveals-marios-dreams-and-a/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/02/07/mario-sports-mix-press-conference-reveals-marios-dreams-and-a/#comments Mario can be quite the stoic character. So, this 10 minute interview with the Italian plumber to promote Mario Sports Mix is a bit ... jarring. In fact, the iconic Nintendo mascot sometimes comes across as a jerk.

Continue reading Mario Sports Mix 'press conference' reveals Mario's dreams and aspirations

JoystiqMario Sports Mix 'press conference' reveals Mario's dreams and aspirations originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 07 Feb 2011 23:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>charles-martinetinterviewmariomario-sports-mixnintendowiiMon, 07 Feb 2011 23:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Riccitiello: Digital downloads won't kill physical media just yet]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/13/riccitiello-digital-downloads-wont-kill-physical-media-just-ye/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/13/riccitiello-digital-downloads-wont-kill-physical-media-just-ye/http://www.joystiq.com/2011/01/13/riccitiello-digital-downloads-wont-kill-physical-media-just-ye/#comments EA CEO John Riccitiello said recently that 2011 would see digital sales overtaking retail sales, but before you start trashing all of those $60 discs and plastic cases you bought, not so fast. Riccitiello also says that game discs aren't going away "any time soon." Sometimes it's just easier to plug in a disc or buy a box than receive a huge download over a relatively slow connection, he says, and what the industry will end up doing is choosing certain cases out of all of the options for various uses. "I think it'd pretty silly for us to stream Scrabble to you," he says. "Why would you want to pay for bandwidth for us to redraw a Scrabble board sixty times a second? That's just sort of bad math, if nothing else."

Not to mention that "the disc can actually be a great starting point for a digital business, like an MMO, World of Warcraft, for instance." While digital and streaming services will almost certainly see growth this year, it's far too early for game makers and retailers alike to completely abandon physical media. The consumer, says Riccitiello, "doesn't care what the technology is, what lives behind the veiled curtain; they just want it to work." Amen.

JoystiqRiccitiello: Digital downloads won't kill physical media just yet originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 13 Jan 2011 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>digitaleaea-ceointerviewjohn-riccitiellophysical-mediasalesThu, 13 Jan 2011 00:00:00 EST<![CDATA[From the VGAs Red Carpet: Treyarch's Mark Lamia]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-treyarchs-mark-lamia/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-treyarchs-mark-lamia/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-treyarchs-mark-lamia/#comments With Infinity Ward's studio heads on the outs with Activision, it was up to Treyarch to take over the Call of Duty series, and according to fan reception, it did exactly that. "The response that I've gotten," Treyarch head Mark Lamia tells us, "is that people are happy with the game." But he says during VGA's red carpet event that it was never about competition among Activision's studios. "We've just got to stay focused on what we want, what we're making and our own creative, and that's really the best way to do your best work."

Now that it's become the Call of Duty heir apparent, what's next for Treyarch? "First thing we're doing," says Lamia, " is we're still working on Black Ops." Lamia promises Treyarch is listening to the community and will be responsive in tuning the game and providing new content. "So everyone who bought and is investing their time in Black Ops, they can expect that that's just how we work." Lamia says Treyarch is in fact "a Call of Duty studio as far as anyone is concerned."

World at War's Zombies mode had a successful life on the iPhone, and we asked if Treyarch was considering trying to replicate that success with Black Ops. Lamia says he trusts developers Ideaworks to do a good job on a sequel if that's what they choose to do, but "it's not a question of can we do it or is it good to do it, it's really about focus. Right now we are just focused on the PC and console skus that were just launched. There's millions of people playing every day, and we're focused on supporting that."

JoystiqFrom the VGAs Red Carpet: Treyarch's Mark Lamia originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 12 Dec 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisioncall-of-dutyCall-of-Duty-Black-Opsinterviewmark-lamiamicrosoftpcplaystationps3red-carpettreyarchvga-2010xboxSun, 12 Dec 2010 17:30:00 EST<![CDATA[From the VGAs Red Carpet: Guillermo del Toro and THQ's Danny Bilson]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-guillermo-del-toro-and-thqs-danny-bil/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-guillermo-del-toro-and-thqs-danny-bil/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/12/12/from-the-vgas-red-carpet-guillermo-del-toro-and-thqs-danny-bil/#comments THQ Executive VP of Core Games Danny Bilson stopped by our red carpet post at the VGAs this weekend with director Guillermo del Toro in tow, and Bilson talked with us about all of THQ's upcoming properties, including the quickly ensuing Red Faction movie on SyFy. "They're prepping right now," he promised, "And there's another one coming that we're going to announce soon." Would that be the elusive Saints Row 3? "I can't talk about it or they'll cut my head off," he said. "But we're going to be talking about it at some point in the future in a big way."

For his part, Guillermo del Toro decided to work with THQ on the newly revealed inSane because he believes that gaming "is one of the most immersive mediums for storytelling right now." We asked him to tick off a few specifics, and he dutifully did. "Left 4 Dead has passages that are incredibly scary. Silent Hill is great, and Shadow of the Colossus was incredibly moving. There are Call of Duty moments that are better than any war movie."

Bilson interrupted at that one. "Wait until they ride the bus in the first level of Homefront!" As for del Toro's inSane, Bilson says, "we're only focusing on the game right now, and whatever happens later happens later. But we're building an incredible world together that we will be talking about more later on." We'll look forward to it.

JoystiqFrom the VGAs Red Carpet: Guillermo del Toro and THQ's Danny Bilson originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 12 Dec 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>danny-bilsonguillermo-del-torohomefrontinsaneinterviewred-carpetsaints-row-3thqvga-2010Sun, 12 Dec 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Inafune talks about Capcom split, wants to be 'driving force' in game development]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/01/inafune-talks-about-capcom-split-wants-to-be-driving-force-in/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/01/inafune-talks-about-capcom-split-wants-to-be-driving-force-in/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/11/01/inafune-talks-about-capcom-split-wants-to-be-driving-force-in/#comments
Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune has blasted the Japanese gaming industry in an interview conducted by 4Gamer.net right after his recent exit from Capcom, and translated by a NeoGAF forum user. In it, Inafune says that Japanese publishers are "making developers into salarymen" and that he could no longer be the designer he wanted to be at Capcom. Inafune also revealed that he would have liked to have worked alongside his former employer after the split, perhaps as an outside contractor, but was told, "That won't be necessary."

Inafune is quite honest in the interview, commenting that Capcom won't survive using its current employment structure, and that the company will have to pare down its internal workforce and commission Western developers to help make its games in the future. Western developers, says Inafune, are "far and away more passionate" than Capcom's internal teams -- and technically superior, as well.

As for what's next, it sounds like Inafune is planning to start his own company. He says he wants to "do business" and be a "further driving force" in the Japanese games industry. It's a pretty epic interview; you can read it in its entirety at the via link.

JoystiqInafune talks about Capcom split, wants to be 'driving force' in game development originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 01 Nov 2010 21:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>dead-rising-2gamingindustryinterviewjapankeiji-inafuneMon, 01 Nov 2010 21:35:00 EST<![CDATA[StarCraft 2's designer stands by tradition, promises updates 'soon']]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/09/22/starcraft-2s-designer-stands-by-tradition-promises-updates-so/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/09/22/starcraft-2s-designer-stands-by-tradition-promises-updates-so/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/09/22/starcraft-2s-designer-stands-by-tradition-promises-updates-so/#commentsFiled under: , ,

To hear Starcraft 2 designer Dustin Browder tell it, creating games at Blizzard takes years of fighting and yelling rather than coding or creating art -- every little decision is a "a three-week or longer holy war." Browder says that the controversial decision to release the RTS as three titles was made to get the game out faster -- after all that arguing, Blizzard figured that it needed to release something, and if that had been the whole game, we'd have been waiting even longer. As it was, he says, "we wanted to get a product into consumers' hands sometime before the end of the decade. Even that we didn't quite make, I guess, but it was still sooner!"

Browder answers fans' concerns about how closely the second game resembles the first by suggesting that adapting RTS competitors' innovations wouldn't have made the game more successful. "I haven't really seen another gameplay experience that's attracted millions of players with hundreds of thousands playing online," he says. "I have not seen someone else be successful by removing economy. I have not seen other RTSes be successful by removing micro."

And finally, he says to look for future updates coming to the game, both in the form of patches to Battle.net, and in the other versions. There's no timeline set yet for the paid user maps program, but Blizzard is working on more art for modders, and updates "for our fans to get more value out of Battle.net." As for what updates will be in the second retail title, Heart of the Swarm, Browder seems to hint that Blizzard just hasn't decided yet. They must still be throwing things and yelling down in Irvine.

JoystiqStarCraft 2's designer stands by tradition, promises updates 'soon' originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 22 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battle-netblizzard-entertainmentdustin-browdergame-informerinterviewpatchespcrtsStarcraft-2starcraft-2-heart-of-the-swarmupdatesWed, 22 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Preview: The Behemoth's Battleblock Theater (Comic-Con build)]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/preview-the-behemoths-battleblock-theater-comic-con-build/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/preview-the-behemoths-battleblock-theater-comic-con-build/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/28/preview-the-behemoths-battleblock-theater-comic-con-build/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Indie gaming studio The Behemoth was an unexpected surprise among the video game booths at Comic-Con 2010 in San Diego. We haven't heard much about its upcoming Battleblock Theater since it was announced, making the brand new build on the show floor all the more enticing.

Like the previous version we played, gameplay revolved around little blockheads battling it out in a deathmatch ... put on for the entertainment of large cats.

Continue reading Preview: The Behemoth's Battleblock Theater (Comic-Con build)

JoystiqPreview: The Behemoth's Battleblock Theater (Comic-Con build) originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 28 Jul 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battleblock-theatercomic-con-2010gameplayindieinterviewmicrosoftthe-behemothtom-fulpxblaxboxWed, 28 Jul 2010 18:00:00 EST<![CDATA[38 Studios on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/26/38-studios-on-kingdoms-of-amalur-reckoning/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/26/38-studios-on-kingdoms-of-amalur-reckoning/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/26/38-studios-on-kingdoms-of-amalur-reckoning/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Curt Schilling's 38 Studios has finally announced the title of its first game at Comic-Con, and while details on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning are still sparse, you can't argue that the game's already got potential. Fantasy author R.A. Salvatore has been working on the game's world and story, comic artist Todd McFarlane is designing the art, and Big Huge Games has teamed up with Elder Scrolls veteran Ken Rolston to put the title together.

That's Schilling's gamble -- as an experienced gamer himself ("I've got five 70-plus" characters in World of Warcraft, he says), he's trying to make something that thrills him. On Thursday, the team held a Comic-Con panel and teased a mix of "deep quest narrative" and "combat that keeps you doing combat." Todd McFarlane jumped up on his chair to show off how big his characters' motions were and promised that "we will kill some people better in this game than anybody kills anybody."

But can this talented lineup pull it off? I sat down to chat with Schilling, Salvatore, and Big Huge Games' lead designer, Mark Nelson, to see if they could share anything beyond what the short trailer and the screenshots revealed.

Gallery: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning (screenshots)

Continue reading 38 Studios on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Joystiq38 Studios on Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 26 Jul 2010 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>38-studioscomic-con-2010curt-schillingeainterviewkingdoms-of-amalur-reckoningmark-nelsonmicrosoftpcplaystationps3ra-salvatorexboxMon, 26 Jul 2010 11:50:00 EST<![CDATA[Gears of War 3 producer wants Carmine dead]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/23/gears-of-war-3-producer-wants-carmine-dead/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/23/gears-of-war-3-producer-wants-carmine-dead/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/07/23/gears-of-war-3-producer-wants-carmine-dead/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Rod Fergusson is the executive producer of Gears of War 3, and he wants Clayton Carmine to die. He wore a "Carmine Must Die" t-shirt at Microsoft's Comic-Con party last night, casting his vote for the fate of the third Carmine brother, but he's willing to leave the decision up to the fans: "They kept saying, 'How can you be so mean,' and 'What about Mrs. Carmine,' and 'What's that like [losing her sons]' -- all this stuff," he told us at the event. "And so we're like, let's just question them and see what they want."

Fergusson also shared a few development updates, relaying the most difficult part about designing the new Beast Mode: getting all of the playable beasts to control as solidly as Gears and Locust characters. "Just making sure the camera works from a Ticker to a Serapede to a Berserker," he explained, "just refining the technical ways of making people feel like they have control and that they're grounded in the character." It's not so much about balancing the beasts, though -- Epic wants these creatures to feel powerful, so "even if it's overbalanced a little towards the monsters, that's cool. We want to make players feel successful."

Thankfully, some development components have gone down smooth. "Ice-T is kicking it as Griffin," Fergusson reconfirmed. "We recorded it this week remote from New York ... Ice is doing a great, great job -- we wanted him to be him somewhat, but he's just bringing that character to life for us. It's really fun working with him on that stuff."

JoystiqGears of War 3 producer wants Carmine dead originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>carmineclayton-carminecomic-con-2010epic-gamesgears-of-war-3ice-tinterviewmicrosoftrod-fergussonxboxFri, 23 Jul 2010 15:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Warren Spector]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/17/interview-warren-spector/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/17/interview-warren-spector/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/17/interview-warren-spector/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Warren Spector is here at E3 this week showing off his Disney Epic Mickey project for the first time, and we got to sit down with the creator of System Shock and Deus Ex to talk about his new gig with the House of Mouse.

After the jump below, Spector answers our questions about why he decided to do a Disney game in the time and place that he did, his favorite Disney properties, and how hard it is to make a platformer game. Read on for more.

Continue reading Interview: Warren Spector

JoystiqInterview: Warren Spector originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>disney-epic-mickeye3-2010Epic-Mickeyinterviewmickey-mousenintendowarren-spectorwiiThu, 17 Jun 2010 11:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions impressions and interview with producer Meghan Morgan]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/08/spider-man-shattered-dimensions-impressions-and-interview-with/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/08/spider-man-shattered-dimensions-impressions-and-interview-with/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/06/08/spider-man-shattered-dimensions-impressions-and-interview-with/#comments At a pre-E3 event a few weeks ago, Activision finally took the wraps off of the third of four universes that Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions will travel through, and Peter David geeks everywhere cheered: the game is going nearly a century in the future to the Spider-Man of 2099. We got an early look at gameplay in the new universe, and it's hyperkinetic, with vast future cityscapes full of flying cars and neon setting the backdrop to the skull-emblazoned dark blue figure of the future Spider-man flipping and kicking in dizzying aerial fights.

The future setting wasn't the only new footage we saw -- Activision also showed off another Noir level, set in a carnival atmosphere, where stealthy Spidey was pitted up against that universe's Norman Osbourne, a.k.a. Goblin, a crime boss. That level was much slower than other parts of the game we've seen -- until Spider-man got spotted, at which point the music spurred into action ... and Activision moved on to the 2099 reveal.

Gallery: Spider-man: Shattered Dimensions E3 2010

Continue reading Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions impressions and interview with producer Meghan Morgan

JoystiqSpider-Man: Shattered Dimensions impressions and interview with producer Meghan Morgan originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 08 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionbeenoxe3-2010interviewmeghan-morganmicrosoftmiguel-oharanintendoplaystationps3spider-man-2099spider-man-shattered-dimensionswiixboxXbox-360Tue, 08 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Hunting orbs with Crackdown 2's Billy Tomson and James Cope]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/27/interview-hunting-orbs-with-crackdown-2s-billy-tomson-and-jame/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/27/interview-hunting-orbs-with-crackdown-2s-billy-tomson-and-jame/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/27/interview-hunting-orbs-with-crackdown-2s-billy-tomson-and-jame/#comments
Though the Crackdown franchise has a new development team in Ruffian Games, the upcoming sequel hopes to retain the best qualities found in the original Xbox hit. You'd think the task is made easier when former Realtime Worlds employees form part of the developer, but creative director Billy Tomson and producer James Cope believe there is still room for improvement.

In an interview with Joystiq, the pair discussed Crackdown 2's vision and its attempt to perfect the open-world formula. Read on to learn more about the limitations of the original engine, memory complications, the omission of female playable characters, and plans for future content.

Gallery: Crackdown 2 (X10)


Continue reading Interview: Hunting orbs with Crackdown 2's Billy Tomson and James Cope

JoystiqInterview: Hunting orbs with Crackdown 2's Billy Tomson and James Cope originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 27 May 2010 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>billy-tomsoncrackdown-2interviewjames-copeMicrosoftruffian-gamesXbox-360Thu, 27 May 2010 12:20:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Insomniac Games' Ted Price on going multiplatform, EA Partners]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/25/interview-insomniac-games-ted-price-on-going-multiplatform-ea/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/25/interview-insomniac-games-ted-price-on-going-multiplatform-ea/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/25/interview-insomniac-games-ted-price-on-going-multiplatform-ea/#commentsInsomniac Games logo
After announcing a new Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 project with EA Partners, Insomniac Games faces a bombardment of questions from fans and press. We fired off some of our own earlier today in an interview with Insomniac CEO Ted Price and EA Partners' Global Marketing VP, Craig Rechenmacher, and while the prolific developer remains tight-lipped when it comes to discussing the details of the new project, we learned more about the partnership's motivation and scope.

Joystiq: This announcement, is this for a single game? Or is this for the entire franchise?
Ted Price: This is for a single game.

Why not a franchise? Why start with a single game deal?
Ted: At Insomniac we actually tend to do game to game deals. We do one deal at a time and our goal is, though, to have a longterm relationship with anybody we work with. As you know we worked with Sony for 14 years and it has been great, and we're looking forward to a long and fruitful relationship with EAP as well.

Craig Rechenmacher (EAP): Yeah, from our standpoint, we're announcing a one-game deal, but our job is to make this first product a massive success. And if we do that, this is gonna be a long-term relationship.

With this announcement, is Insomniac creating more games or spending more individual time on each game it ships?

Ted: Well, it's easy for me to answer the last question -- we are definitely spending more time on games these days than we used to. As you may remember, back in the PlayStation One and PlayStation 2 days, we had one team and we were releasing a game a year. And that was a pretty brutal pace for us. However, as the year stretched on, we began to increase the size of the teams and lengthen our production time to add more polish to the game and have more time to tune them. And now we're continuing to do that, making sure the games we release are the absolute best they can be. Having multiple teams also gives us the luxury of sort of leapfrogging -- having staggered releases -- so that we can have a consistent stream of releases over the years. However, as we've moved into the PlayStation 3, we have lengthened our development times.

Continue reading Interview: Insomniac Games' Ted Price on going multiplatform, EA Partners

JoystiqInterview: Insomniac Games' Ted Price on going multiplatform, EA Partners originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 25 May 2010 15:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>EA-PartnersInsomniac-GamesinterviewMicrosoftTed-PriceXbox-360Tue, 25 May 2010 15:14:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Karl Stewart on Lara Croft and the new Crystal Dynamics]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/20/interview-karl-stewart-on-lara-croft-and-the-new-crystal-dynami/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/20/interview-karl-stewart-on-lara-croft-and-the-new-crystal-dynami/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/20/interview-karl-stewart-on-lara-croft-and-the-new-crystal-dynami/#comments At Square Enix's pre-E3 event yesterday, we got a chance to talk with Karl Stewart, global brand director for Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics. We asked him about the reorganization inside the developer (which lead directly to the development of the already impressive Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light), its new approach to managing the Tomb Raider brand and how its new focus is affecting the way other Eidos studios work. We also got a taste of just how outside-the-box its new "experimental team" can go.

Joystiq: This reorganization all happened after the Square Enix acquisition?

Karl Stewart: We had actually been going through the shakeup at the studio prior to it, and really we had already presented that we knew we needed to make a drastic change for the studio and that continuing down the same path wasn't really going to cut it any longer. So Darrell Gallagher had taken over the studio at that time and he had some great ideas about how to sort of retool the studio, and it was around then that Square Enix came aboard, purchased us, so we presented our vision for it and they thought it was the right way to go. And as a result, we continued down that path.

This was after the release of Underworld?

Yeah, this was. Underworld had shipped, the DLC for 360 had already shipped and we just realized that when we started looking at our next game we knew that we needed to take a step back and build the next big title and it wasn't going to come year after year. That's been one of our frustrations: seeing the titles come out year after year after year, so we decided that was the end of that.

Continue reading Interview: Karl Stewart on Lara Croft and the new Crystal Dynamics

JoystiqInterview: Karl Stewart on Lara Croft and the new Crystal Dynamics originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 20 May 2010 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Crystal-DynamicsEidosinterviewKarl-StewartLara-Croft-and-the-Guardian-of-LightMicrosoftPSNSquare-EnixSquare-Enix-EuropeTomb-RaiderXBLAXbox-360Thu, 20 May 2010 09:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Call of Duty: Black Ops to feature dedicated PC servers]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/15/call-of-duty-black-ops-to-feature-dedicated-pc-servers/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/15/call-of-duty-black-ops-to-feature-dedicated-pc-servers/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/15/call-of-duty-black-ops-to-feature-dedicated-pc-servers/#comments In a recent interview with UK gaming mag PC Zone, Treyarch head Mark Lamia announced that Call of Duty: Black Ops -- unlike the last Call of Duty game on PC -- will feature dedicated servers for PC players. "I think dedicated servers are excellent. I don't see any reason not to see them unless ... well, I just don't see any reason not to," Lamia responded when asked about Black Ops' PC iteration, reports CVG.

Covering his bases (and likely not trying to insult Infinity Ward's reasoning behind not supporting dedicated servers), Lamia added, "We do work very hard to reconcile the desire to manipulate and modify those dedicated servers with offering them the persistent experience and benefits that the console system provides ... so people can run dedicated servers and also participate in the communal experience the console players get to have, given they're all on first-party servers."

And with that, it would seem that Treyarch will give us a chance to officially leap through the air while raining an unlimited supply of explosives on the ground below us when the game arrives this November. Hooray?

JoystiqCall of Duty: Black Ops to feature dedicated PC servers originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 15 May 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionblack-opscall-of-dutycall-of-duty-black-opsdedicated-serverinfinity-wardinterviewmark-lamiamodern-warfare-2treyarchSat, 15 May 2010 19:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Skate 3 producer Chris Parry]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/14/interview-skate-3-producer-chris-parry/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/14/interview-skate-3-producer-chris-parry/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/14/interview-skate-3-producer-chris-parry/#comments It was a motley crew at the Venice Beach, CA skate park on Wednesday, as EA held a public launch party for Skate 3. Skater kids were running everywhere, checking out the game, taking full advantage of the free food and giveaways, and of course skating, grinding and jumping on the various rails and bowls available to them.

In among all of the skaters was one Chris "Cuz" Parry -- even as he gave out free copies of the game and limited edition skateboards to raffle winners, he would see a 12-year-old pull some air and respond directly over the PA: "Did you see that little ripper go? That was sick!"

After he finished the giveaways, we pulled the producer of all three Skate games to the side and asked him about what EA's Black Box studio has planned post-release.

Gallery: Skate 3 at Venice Beach Skate Park

Continue reading Interview: Skate 3 producer Chris Parry

JoystiqInterview: Skate 3 producer Chris Parry originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 14 May 2010 09:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>black-boxdlceaElectronic-Artsinterviewskate-2skate-3Fri, 14 May 2010 09:05:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Brian Fargo on Hunted: The Demon's Forge]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-brian-fargo-on-hunted-the-demons-forge/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-brian-fargo-on-hunted-the-demons-forge/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-brian-fargo-on-hunted-the-demons-forge/#comments
Brian Fargo is no stranger to the world of video game development, having originally founded Interplay back in 1984. He's worked on titles like the original Bard's Tale and Wasteland, and Interplay developed everything from Battle Chess to Fallout to Baldur's Gate. When Interplay was acquired by Titus in 2002, Fargo left and founded InXile Entertainment, which later released an updated Bard's Tale for PS2, Xbox, and PC. Now both Fargo and InXile are moving onto next-generation consoles with the swords and scorcery co-op title Hunted: The Demon's Forge.

We recently spoke to Fargo about the game, which you can find just after the break. But be warned! Just prepare yourself for the sheer about of verbiage manages to foist upon us when we asked what the initial genesis for the game was. It's quite an answer! Read on to see what he has to say about the upcoming title, including why they limited to two characters, the depth of the puzzles in the game, and boob jiggle. Yes, boob jiggle.

Gallery: Hunted: The Demon's Forge (05/04/10)

Continue reading Interview: Brian Fargo on Hunted: The Demon's Forge

JoystiqInterview: Brian Fargo on Hunted: The Demon's Forge originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 May 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BethesdaBethesda-SoftworksBrian-Fargoco-opHuntedhunted-the-demons-forgeinterviewinxileinxile-entertainmentMicrosoftXbox-360Mon, 10 May 2010 20:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Jason Kim talks RAGE]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-jason-kim-talks-rage/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-jason-kim-talks-rage/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/interview-jason-kim-talks-rage/#comments What does a video game producer do? Well, the brutally honest Jason Kim from id's RAGE summed it up for us. "I'm just a producer; I don't make anything that actually shows up in the game." So there you have it! Okay, we're kidding (slightly). It's a producer's task on a game to make sure everything is running smoothly, that schedules are being met, budgets being adhered to, all so that one day the game can end up on your system of choice. That's no small task.

Kim has been working on RAGE at id for the past several years, and has seen the project move from EA, to being an internally developed project at id, and now on to Bethesda. He's definitely enthusiastic about the project (and the word megatexture), and you can read on beyond the break for the full interview with him were he talks about the game, and why a lot of developers seem to be using the post-apocalyptic realm as a backdrop.

Gallery: Rage (05/04/10)

Continue reading Interview: Jason Kim talks RAGE

JoystiqInterview: Jason Kim talks RAGE originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 May 2010 17:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BethesdaBethesda-SoftworksEAElectronic-ArtsFPSidid-tech-5InterviewJason-KimMicrosoftpost-apocalypticRAGEXbox-360Mon, 10 May 2010 17:28:00 EST<![CDATA[Halfbrick shares Fruit Ninja sales numbers, how to succeed on the App store]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/halfbrick-shares-fruit-ninja-sales-numbers-how-to-succeed-on-th/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/halfbrick-shares-fruit-ninja-sales-numbers-how-to-succeed-on-th/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/10/halfbrick-shares-fruit-ninja-sales-numbers-how-to-succeed-on-th/#comments iPhone and iPod Touch gamers have likely already heard of Fruit Ninja, a game where you coldly murder different offerings from nature's bounty -- by tapping and slicing across the screen, you cut down watermelons and the like. It's a pretty simple game and at only $.99, it's quickly climbed the charts of the most popular Apps in the US, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Denmark and Sweden. So we decided to grill Halbrick's creator and lead designer of Fruit Ninja, Luke Muscat, on all things iPhone.

Joystiq: You sent out a press release before the weekend claiming 140,000 copies sold of your iPhone/iPod Touch game, Fruit Ninja. What's the current total at?

Luke Muscat: Over 200,000 now. That's a pretty big milestone for us, we are very happy to have achieved such great success in a market that can be pretty unpredictable. If you're reading this and have purchased the game - you rule the App store!

Continue reading Halfbrick shares Fruit Ninja sales numbers, how to succeed on the App store

JoystiqHalfbrick shares Fruit Ninja sales numbers, how to succeed on the App store originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 10 May 2010 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>Applefruit-ninjahalfbrickhalfbrick-studiosinterviewInterviewsiphoneipodMon, 10 May 2010 16:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Might&Delight's Jakob Tuchten]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/07/interview-mightanddelights-jakob-tuchten/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/07/interview-mightanddelights-jakob-tuchten/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/07/interview-mightanddelights-jakob-tuchten/#comments With little more than a cursory announcement a few weeks back of Might&Delight's existence, the ex-GRIN staffers making up M&D's numbers haven't been vocal about what they're working on next. And according to art director Jakob Tuchten, that's (at least partially) because the future is still somewhat unknown for the fledgling studio. "We have had some really nervous and positive meetings with publishers, and we´re sketching up some promising ideas."

M&D has said, however, that it aims to "continue doing what we started with [Bionic Commando] Rearmed ... small, fresh games with strong old school flavor." So when we asked about working on more licensed properties, it wasn't surprising that Tuchten teased, "We have a tasty list with publishers and their old titles that we would love to remake." That said, he added that M&D probably won't head in that direction. Hit the break to find out more about the studio's plans for the future, as well as everything else that Tuchten had to tell us.

Continue reading Interview: Might&Delight's Jakob Tuchten

JoystiqInterview: Might&Delight's Jakob Tuchten originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 07 May 2010 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bionic-commandobionic-commando-rearmedbionic-commando-rearmed-2capcomdevelopmentgrininterviewjakob-tuchtenmight-and-delightFri, 07 May 2010 14:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Josh Sawyer on Fallout: New Vegas]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-josh-sawyer-on-fallout-new-vegas/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-josh-sawyer-on-fallout-new-vegas/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-josh-sawyer-on-fallout-new-vegas/#comments
Imagine going to work on "Van Buren," the original Fallout 3, as a designer for Black Isle Studios, only to see the title canceled due to parent company Interplay's financial problems. Then, imagine Bethesda buying the Fallout 3 license and developing an entirely different game, which goes on to win multiple awards and accolades. Now, imagine you're brought back into the franchise, as a designer for Obsidian Entertainment, to create a sequel to Bethesda's popular title. Preposterous, you say?

Josh Sawyer is the lead designer on Fallout: New Vegas and, after having the rug yanked from under him on the original Fallout 3, he's happy to be working on the latest new Fallout project -- one that will be released later this year. Read on for our conversation with Sawyer.

Joystiq: What's your history with the Fallout franchise?

Josh Sawyer: I worked on what's called "Van Buren," which was the codename when Black Isle started to work on what would have been Fallout 3, and we had worked on it for maybe half a year, and then it was canceled because Interplay had a lot of financial problems.

Continue reading Interview: Josh Sawyer on Fallout: New Vegas

JoystiqInterview: Josh Sawyer on Fallout: New Vegas originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 05 May 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BethesdaBethesda-Game-StudiosBethesda-Softworksblack-isle-studiosfalloutfallout-3fallout-new-vegasinterplayinterviewjosh-sawyerMicrosoftobsidianobsidian-entertainmentRPGvan-burenXbox-360Wed, 05 May 2010 20:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Matt Tieger of High Moon Studios on Transformers: War for Cybertron]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-matt-tieger-of-high-moon-studios-on-transformers/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-matt-tieger-of-high-moon-studios-on-transformers/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/05/interview-matt-tieger-of-high-moon-studios-on-transformers/#comments High Moon Studios' Matt Tieger, director of Transformers: War for Cybertron, says his game is influenced by the movies -- but not just those directed by Michael Bay and starring CGI robots. Instead, Tieger pointed to Sam Raimi and a certain webslinger as big influences for his upcoming release, as he spoke to a group of press during a recent preview of the game at the studio's offices in Carlsbad, Calif.

Tieger says that even though his team is creating a licensed Transformers game, he wants it to be like the first Spiderman film in that it appeals to three audiences: folks who just want a good action ride; brand fans, who want to be reminded of what they liked about the universe as kids; and hardcore fans, who will get every single reference and inside joke -- he wants to "smash you in the face with nostalgia."

Following his presentation and a hands-on preview of the game, I chatted with Tieger about War for Cybertron and what game he would "love, love, love" to make next:

Joystiq: So what was the pitch behind this game? What was the impetus behind a game like this?

Matt Tieger: Well, we knew that Activision came to us and said, "We think you guys are a good fit for a Transformers game." Based on our sensibilities for some things that we had done before, we had done some prototypes, and they thought we were a good match. And we had lots of Unreal Engine experience. And they wanted to make a non-movie based Transformers game. So they asked, "What do you want to do," basically, within the confines of that. And we came up with a plan, and redesigned a bunch of characters and then started talking to Hasbro.

Continue reading Interview: Matt Tieger of High Moon Studios on Transformers: War for Cybertron

JoystiqInterview: Matt Tieger of High Moon Studios on Transformers: War for Cybertron originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 05 May 2010 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>activisionhigh-moon-studiosinterviewmatt-tiegerMicrosofttransformerstransformers-war-for-cybertronXbox-360Wed, 05 May 2010 15:02:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Bethesda's Pete Hines]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/04/interview-bethesdas-pete-hines/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/04/interview-bethesdas-pete-hines/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/04/interview-bethesdas-pete-hines/#comments
Two years ago, our discussions with Bethesda were dominated by Fallout 3. Now, the publisher has four new titles in the pipeline: Fallout: New Vegas, Brink, Hunted: The Demon's Forge, and RAGE. Oh, and it also recently announced plans to dominate the world.

At a press event each of those four upcoming games, we spoke with company vice president Pete Hines about future plans and, of course, Fallout: New Vegas. Read on for the full interview.

Continue reading Interview: Bethesda's Pete Hines

JoystiqInterview: Bethesda's Pete Hines originally appeared on Joystiq on Tue, 04 May 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BethesdaBethesda-Game-StudiosBethesda-SoftworksBrinkFalloutFallout-3Fallout-New-VegasHuntedhunted-the-demons-forgeinterviewPete-HinesRageRPGTue, 04 May 2010 14:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Bright Falls director Phillip Van explains how to create a fictional town]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/03/bright-falls-director-phillip-van-explains-how-to-create-a-fiction/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/03/bright-falls-director-phillip-van-explains-how-to-create-a-fiction/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/05/03/bright-falls-director-phillip-van-explains-how-to-create-a-fiction/#comments Since last week's release of the first two episodes of "Bright Falls," the six-part prequel to Alan Wake, we've been feverishly wondering how a live action video game tie-in could be so ... non-abysmal. To find the cause of this phenomenon, we went straight to the source: the series' co-writer and director, Phillip Van.

Check out our interview with Van just past the jump to learn about the thematic inspirations and environmental tribulations that went into the creation of "Bright Falls."

Continue reading Bright Falls director Phillip Van explains how to create a fictional town

JoystiqBright Falls director Phillip Van explains how to create a fictional town originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 03 May 2010 15:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>alan-wakebright-fallsinterviewlive-actionmicrosoftminiseriesmysteryphillip-vanremedyremedy-entertainmenttvMon, 03 May 2010 15:15:00 EST<![CDATA[Big, huge interview: Big Huge Games head Tim Train]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/29/big-huge-interview-big-huge-games-head-tim-train/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/29/big-huge-interview-big-huge-games-head-tim-train/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/29/big-huge-interview-big-huge-games-head-tim-train/#comments When 38 Studios isn't busy hiring former Nintendo execs, Curt Schilling's Massachusetts-based MMO developer is buying up close-to-death development studios -- take, for instance, Big Huge Games. Tim Train, the studio's president, illuminated the near-death experience that Big Huge had in a talk at PAX East earlier this year (slides from said speech can be found below).

He explained how, with just a handful of days left and termination letters ready to send out, 38 Studios swept in and saved Big Huge and the vast majority of its staff. We found his story so interesting, we thought we'd follow up with Train and have him explain it once more, as well as speak about other topics. Will Big Huge ever produce another digital board game? Unfortunately, it looks like you could be waiting on that for quite some time. Hit the break for the whole thing.

Gallery: Tim Train explains the near death of his studio, Big Huge Games

Continue reading Big, huge interview: Big Huge Games head Tim Train

JoystiqBig, huge interview: Big Huge Games head Tim Train originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 29 Apr 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>38-studiosascendantbig-huge-gamescatancopernicuscopernicus-mmocurt-schillinggod-the-gameinterviewinterviewskingdoms-of-amalur-reckoningklaus-teuberproject-mercuryra-salvatoresettlers-of-catantim-traintodd-mcfarlaneThu, 29 Apr 2010 18:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Chris Metzen talks StarCraft 2]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/interview-chris-metzen-talks-starcraft-2/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/interview-chris-metzen-talks-starcraft-2/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/26/interview-chris-metzen-talks-starcraft-2/#comments
click to enlarge
Chris Metzen, Blizzard's VP of Creative Development, has a lot of things to keep in his head as the loremaster / worldbuilder / storymaster at Blizzard, and he's been busy utilizing all of those titles on the Terran-heavy StarCraft 2: Wings of Liberty and its two planned expansion packs that will focus on the Zerg and Protoss races. Ensconced in an office that overlooks the bustling Blizzard campus, Metzen's office is packed with enough action heroes, statues, and toys to open his own store, which is (for some unknown reason) a requirement in the gaming industry.

We talked with Chris about how Blizzard is spreading this story out, what the expansions packs hold in store, how he feels about offending South Korea, and more. If you're done searing your retinas with the newly released game footage, then jump on by and read the full interview just after the break.

Gallery: Starcraft 2 (04/19/2010)


Continue reading Interview: Chris Metzen talks StarCraft 2

JoystiqInterview: Chris Metzen talks StarCraft 2 originally appeared on Joystiq on Mon, 26 Apr 2010 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BlizzardChris-MetzeninterviewStarcraftStarcraft-2Mon, 26 Apr 2010 17:58:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: SOCOM 4's Travis Steiner]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/23/interview-socom-4s-travis-steiner/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/23/interview-socom-4s-travis-steiner/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/23/interview-socom-4s-travis-steiner/#comments SOCOM fans are by far some of the most vocal and opinionated people in gaming today. Having endured the rocky launch of SOCOM Confrontation, the revelation that SOCOM 4 would include support for the PlayStation Move motion controller was met with a large amount of skepticism. We spoke with Zipper Interactive about their plans to address fan concerns, and the challenges of balancing a game with two very different control inputs.

Some fans didn't take well to the announcement that SOCOM 4 would use the Move controller. How do you address concerns that motion controls will "ruin" the experience?

First and foremost, SOCOM 4 was designed with the DualShock in mind. When we started this game over three years ago, Move didn't even exist yet. I cannot emphasize this point enough: the game supports both controllers. And again, we designed SOCOM 4 with the DualShock in mind. What ended up happening is that when we found out about the Move, we decided to try it out and see if it fits with the SOCOM experience very well. And so far, the reaction of the people that have tried it is that it's actually integrated quite well. The key there is that it's an optional control mechanic, and in no way is any other part of the SOCOM game being hindered or negatively affected by Move's integration.

Continue reading Interview: SOCOM 4's Travis Steiner

JoystiqInterview: SOCOM 4's Travis Steiner originally appeared on Joystiq on Fri, 23 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>interviewmoveplaystation-movesocomsocom-4travis-steinerzipper-interactiveFri, 23 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST<![CDATA[Interview: Bungie's Lars Bakken on Halo: Reach and the franchise]]>http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/21/bungie-lars-bakken-halo-reach-multiplayer-beta-interview/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/21/bungie-lars-bakken-halo-reach-multiplayer-beta-interview/http://www.joystiq.com/2010/04/21/bungie-lars-bakken-halo-reach-multiplayer-beta-interview/#comments Following my extensive hands-on preview of the Halo: Reach multiplayer beta at Bungie's Seattle area offices last week, I spoke with Lars Bakken, lead multiplayer designer, to discuss how Reach fits into the studio's long term strategy, how community feedback affects design decisions and the future of the Halo franchise.

Joystiq: What did you learn from how you conducted the Halo 3 multiplayer beta? What are you doing differently for the Reach beta?

Lars Bakken: I think one of the things we learned from the Halo 3 beta is that we want to keep this thing focused and that might mean less playlists initially. But that's really to keep the people focused and keep them playing the same thing, so we'll be turning on things and turning off other things as the beta progresses. And that's something we really learned from Halo 3, because we wanted to make sure that we were getting all the relevant information that we needed to get -- all the data -- and make decisions and changes on the final game.

Gallery: Halo: Reach (Multiplayer Beta)

Continue reading Interview: Bungie's Lars Bakken on Halo: Reach and the franchise

JoystiqInterview: Bungie's Lars Bakken on Halo: Reach and the franchise originally appeared on Joystiq on Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>betabungiehalohalo-3halo-reachhalo-reach-betainterviewlars-bakkenMicrosoftmultiplayerXbox-360Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:30:00 EST