medalofhonorairborne posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Electronic Arts likes what it has seen from Unreal Engine 3, so much so that the company has extended its relationship with Epic, giving EA the rights to incorporate the popular middleware solution into more than five upcoming titles.

As to what games this impacts EA won't say, only noting that each of the games are currently in development. The company first inked an agreement with Epic in 2006 to use the technology, which has since made its way into such recent titles as Medal of Honor Airborne and last month's fist-pounding Army of Two, proving once and for all that even great technology doesn't make the game.

After last week's glut of new games, the offerings have slimmed down once again. Last week was short on shooters though, so we're sure action fans will be pleased with this week's lineup. This week we (finally) get a crack at Stranglehold and Medal of Honor: Airborne. So, which will it be: John Woo Hong Kong action or World War II paratrooping combat action. Of course, there is the possibility of an even bolder choice: none of the above. But where's the fun in that?

If you need help deciding, don't forget that demos are available for both titles on Xbox Live Marketplace.

[Via Joystiq]

Next Friday, Xbox Live and Medal of Honor: Airborne are teaming up for a weekend full of giveaways, tournaments and Xbox Live gaming. Starting September 7th through the 9th Operation Live Jump will be in full effect kicking off on Friday with Xbox Live playtime with the Airborne development team and a weekend long Play & Win giveaway. Speaking of which, you should sign up for the Airborne Play & Win here, because they're giving away a prize package every hour for the entire weekend. So, do yourself a favor and sign up for that. Anyway, Saturday continues the festivities when the PMS clan hops online to play some Airborne later in the evening. Then, Operation Live Jump ends on Sunday with a day long leaderboard tournament where the winner will pick up a Xbox 360 gaming rig and some MoH: Airborne goodies. Key in your watches and prepare for battle kids, Operation Live Jump is go next Friday even if the game ends up being an icky mess.

[Via Major Nelson]

Typically, new demos don't drop on Xbox Live over the weekend and here's the reason why. You've now missed out on two days of playing the Medal of Honor Airborne demo, because we were too busy with our action-PAXed weekend to tell you about it. Or, worse yet, you noticed the demo and thought that Joystiq didn't know about it! You thought that we were ... out of touch.

That's not the case though, fair reader. It's just that we have a sacred trust with the game industry: They don't do anything interesting over the weekend, and we get to play games and not keep to close an eye on the internet. So feel free to enjoy the new demo, just be aware that you're playing the product of a sacred trust violation, and if your soul is irreversibly tainted don't come crying to us.

Not only can they not get their demo out on time, but now they're jumping the gun on the second release date. Sheesh! EA just placed the on again, off again Medal of Honor: Airborne demo onto the XBLM that was supposed to make an appearance on the 23rd only to get pushed back to the 27th, but it is here now on the 25th. Release date ignored, the demo is available to all Xbox Live regions, weighs in at a satisfying 972MBs and features campaign gameplay from the Operation Husky objective. Next time EA better be punctual with these demo release dates ... we're an angry bunch when we don't get what we were promised on time. Happy parachuting!

We were promised a Medal of Honor: Airborne demo today, but lo and behold the XBLM shows no such thing. Word on the street is that the PC demo is available, but the Xbox 360 version has been held up in Microsoft certification and will not make a release until sometime next week. We have yet to hear an official announcement from either Microsoft or EA regarding the MoH: Airborne demo, but we're sure they'll spill their guts soon enough. Until then we advise practicing your parachuting skills outside.

Update 1: Xbox.com now says August 27th is MoH: Airborne demo day ... fingers crossed.

This is more just a public service message, since we already informed you that this was on the way, but the Medal of Honor Airborne demo is now available to download on your PC. Apparently, this is a pretty solid entry in the series, so it may just be worth your time.

Where you can't play the demo is on the 360, at the moment. An EA community manager posted yesterday on an MoH:A fan forum that (are you ready for this?) it's still being cleared by Microsoft. Can you imagine? The staffer said that the demo will be on Live early next week. You'll forgive us if we keep your M1 Garands crossed.

Over at Xbox 360 Achievements, there are a slew of new Achievements listed for retail and arcade games alike. They have Two Worlds, Skate, which came straight from EA, Fatal Inertia, NHL 08, & Medal of Honor: Airborne. On the XBLA side of things, there is the cheaper of the two Arcade games that came out today, Space Giraffe, Fatal Fury Special and we're especially happy to see Sonic 2 make it there as well. A cool little reveal about Sonic 2 is that it will have online multiplayer, derived from the splitscreen multiplayer found in the Genesis version. So, those are plenty of lists for you to examine for your next target of 1000 or 200 Gamerscore.

Retail:
Read: Two Worlds
Read: skate.
Read: Fatal Inertia
Read: NHL 08
Read: Medal of Honor: Airborne

XBLA:
Read: Space Giraffe
Read: Fatal Fury Special
Read: Sonic 2

EA's Medal of Honor: Airborne has been slightly under the radar as of late, with games in the similar war-shooter genre like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare demanding everyone's attention. So it's only fitting that EA release a demo for MOH: Airborne to prove to everyone that it can hold its own. And that's exactly what they're doing. On August 23rd a MOH: Airborne demo will be released on the XBLM showcasing the campaign level Operation Husky and allow gamers to decide if the latest installment of the Medal of Honor franchise can hold its own. Prepare to jump fanboys, next week we're going Airborne.

[Thanks, SRU Platinum]

As much as you might complain about advertising taking over real estate on your favorite "Internet Web Site," we must never forget all the good things about it. Yes, primary among those is that we here at Joystiq get to continue our fiendish desire for snorting crushed up Faberge eggs, but there are other uses. For example, we learn that the demo for Medal of Honor Airborne will be parachuting in on Aug. 23.

We don't learn what platform the demo is coming to, but we'd bet Xbox 360 and PC. With the PS3 version quite a ways off in the distance, we doubt there's any need to rush. Speaking of being a ways off, we had previously thought that the game was due in late August, but the ad is now touting a Sept. 6 release date.

[Via GTR]

Fancy yourself a free copy of Medal of Honor: Airborne? If so, then we've got news for you. Gamertag Radio was recently invited to EA's Medal of Honor: Airborne summit. While there, Godfree and plenty of other Xbox 360 community members got a chance to train for actual parachute drops as well as play Airborne with members of the real 82nd Airborne. Oh, and GTR also scored 10 copies of the game to give away. For video and audio of the event, as well as your shot at a free copy of Medal of Honor: Airborne, hit the "Read" link.

In an interview with Xbox.com, Medal of Honor: Airborne executive producer Patrick Gilmore talks about Airborne's innovation and what makes it different than all the other WWII games on the market. The biggest difference between Airborne and its predecessors is that players begin levels in the air and can parachute down anywhere in the battle. This creates very non-linear gameplay as any angle, objective or tactic can be accomplished any way the player chooses. Gilmore also talks up the game's weapon upgrades and artificial intelligence dubbed "Affordance A.I." which was created to accommodate such non-linear player involvement and acts realistically to attacking and defending from every angle. All of this "innovation" sounds very satisfying and different, but we'll have to check out all the parachuting fun in August before we can label MoH: Airborne teh greatness.

Electronic Arts has announced that the newest installment of the Medal of Honor series, Medal of Honor: Airborne, will ship out this August. Specifically, the game will ship August 28th. As many may have guessed from the title, Medal of Honor: Airborne focuses on paratroopers. Levels begin with a combat drop in which players can control their descent, allowing for more free form gameplay. For instance, if you land in a combat hot spot and find yourself instantly overwhelmed, you might try landing in a quieter spot next time. The question is, will the parachute mechanic be enough to lift MOH: Airborne above the bloated WWII genre? After all, it seems like WWIII is the way to go these days.

[Via press release]

Just announced Medal of Honor Vanguard looks to replace Airborne in Wii and PlayStation 2's early 2007 lineups. Rest assured, Vanguard is not a poorly disguised rehash; that's not to say it will offer much beyond WWII shooter standards -- unless you're a sucker for motion controls (on Wii, not PS2).

It appears that there will be some loose correlation between the Vanguard and Airborne plotlines, as both games focus on characters in the 82nd Airborne Division and share common mission locales, like Sicily. The "Vanguard" name implies players will be engaging in operations at the very front of the frontline (even behind enemy lines). It's unclear when EA decided to nix development of Airborne for Wii and PS2 and go for a wholly different tie-in -- perhaps it was the top-secret plan all along. In any event, it's for the best, as Wii and PS2 versions of Airborne wouldn't hold up against their Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC counterparts. Here's to hoping Vanguard gets the deserved attention it needs, earning its place as co-heir to the Medal of Honor franchise.

A trailer for Medal of Honor Airborne is now available on marketplace. I have not had the luxury of checking it out yet so, somebody get busy describing it in the comments. Why haven't I gotten it yet, you say? I was doing my patriotic duty, or jury duty to be more specific.

In other news, expect a demo of Rockstar's Table Tennis soonish. The demo is set to feature two-player but no Live play. If you haven't experienced the joy of "Pressing the green button," I hope you'll try it out.

[Thanks, X Budd]