Warp Zoned Presents
Author: Mike Gutierrez
Heavy Rain movie announced
David Milch, creator and producer of shows like “NYPD Blue” and “Deadwood”, has signed on to adapt Heavy Rain into a film. Bob Shay and Michael Lynne, who purchased the film rights last May, are set to produce under their Unique Features company, through a deal with Warner Bros. Shay commented “David Milch’s incredible ability to transform intense and complex storylines into gripping, popular drama makes him the perfect partner for us to have on Heavy Rain.” Milch will begin writing the script soon after his team finishes up working on the first season of “Luck,” a new HBO series.
Heavy Rain was notable last year for telling a more mature story than most games are used to, without relying on gratuitous elements like killing 1,000 henchmen over the course of ten hours. From the beginning, creator David Cage stated his aim was to make the rest of the entertainment world take games more seriously. Having big names on the project for the film version, you could argue Cage did just that. Unfortunately, Prince of Persia also had great talent attached to it and was still poorly received. Heavy Rain was one of the most experimental big-budget games over the last few years, so let’s hope this one doesn’t get messed up.
Posted in Etcetera, News, PS3
Tagged Heavy Rain
Bethesda outlines and dates 2011 lineup: Brink, Hunted, Rage, Skyrim
Today Bethesda announced its biggest games for 2011, and it’s looking like a pretty solid lineup. Brink, the highly smooth First Person Shooter from Splash Damage blending single player, co-op, and multiplayer will be coming May 17th in the U.S. and May 20th in Europe; the fantasy action game Hunted will release June 1st in the U.S. and June 3rd in Europe; id Software’s highly anticipated Rage will finally land September 13th in the U.S. and September 16th in Europe; and finally, Bethesda Game Studios’ very own The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will be launching worldwide on the convenient 11/11/11. All of these titles will be releasing for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3, with RAGE still coming to the Mac as well.
I’ve never been a fan of the publisher, but this is definitely a strong year for them. I’ve been following Rage for a long time, and Doom-meets-MotorStorm is something I simply can’t pass up.
Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged Brink, Hunted: The Demon's Forge, Rage, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
PS3 firmware update 3.56 is now live
Sony released what they call a small security patch tonight, presumably to deal with the recent hacking of the console, particularly affecting Modern Warfare 2. Unfortunately, PlayStationLifeStyle.net claims hackers have already decrypted the new security keys and are working to continue homebrew. Don’t expect the download to be a quickie; it took me a few minutes just now to get it on my PS3.
Breach out on Xbox Live Arcade today
At PAX East last year, there was a game so ill, so hot that the young fellow pictured to the left just had to steal it. Apparently, he just plugged his laptop into Atomic Games’ machine, and when the developers came over to ask what he was doing he replied “stealing your game.” What could possibly be in a game that is so mind-blowing to induce a young man to go to any depth to get it? You’ll get a chance to find out today as Breach, Atomic Games’ latest military shooter, arrives on XBLA and PC today. Using the engine built for the controversial Six Days in Fallujah, the game will run you 1200 Microsoft Points ($15) or a suggested retail price of $19.99 or less on PC.
MotoGP 10/11 launching 3/15, PSN demo coming in February
Capcom announced today the official release date for its motorcycle racing game MotoGP 10/11, and the game will be on store shelves March 15, 2011. This entry boasts completely new racing simulation physics, hoping to make this the most realistic entry in the series to date. Players will be able to take on the persona of GP heroes Danny Pedrosa or Andrea Davizioso on the Mugello circuit or try to best their own records in Time Trial. New player assist features allow users to customize their bikes and control setups. A PSN demo will be coming in February, but no firm date was given.
Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360
Tagged MotoGP 10/11
My childhood taking over Facebook on 2/2/2011 via Oregon Trail and Carmen Sandiego
Darius Kazemi of Blue Fang Games recently announced on his blog that he is working on Facebook ports of Oregon Trail and Where in the World is Carmen Sandego?
These Edutainment classics from back in the day are being published by The Learning Company and are set to be released on February 2nd (Oregon Trail) and February 9th (Carmen Sandiego). These two titles were very formative games for an entire generation of gamers I’m proud to say I’m a part of, appearing on computers in public schools and libraries all across the country. Hit the jump for the official trailers of the games. (more…)
Posted in News, PC
Tagged Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
The G-Spot: Looking Back at MAG, One Year Later
When MAG was first announced at E3 2008, it immediately became one of my most-watched games. I was delighted at PAX Prime 2009 to play it with some of the guys at Zipper Interactive at a PlayStation Blog meetup, and redeemed the beta vouchers from the expo as soon as I could. Participating in nearly all of the betas, I was extremely excited to take it home launch day and sink my teeth into everything the final product had to offer. A year later I only touch the game every now and then, and this is as much the community’s fault as it is Zipper’s. MAG was an incredibly ambitious project which really nailed all the key areas it needed to hit, but in many ways that same ambition led to the problems responsible for its diminished player base. The game is an interesting example of innovation as well as the shortcomings of a good idea, and we’re looking back at these issues in the inaugural edition of The G-Spot. (more…)
Mad Catz returning to Gears of War accessory line
Before Gears of War became the sensation it is today, our favorite third party accessory manufacturer Mad Catz teamed up with Epic Games to release a series of faceplates, controller skins, and other goodies to celebrate its launch. This partnership continued on with Gears of War 2 and today Mad Catz announced a similar deal for the third game in the franchise, Gears of War 3. Due out this fall, the game will launch with a line of specially branded controllers (not just skins), headphones and other peripherals to celebrate the game. Darren Richardson of Mad Catz said: “Our Gears of War agreement is consistent with our strategies to align Mad Catz with the industry’s most popular and anticipated game titles and to develop and globally distribute high-value products that enhance the gaming experience. Gears of War is a marquee relationship for Mad Catz and helps us further grow and diversify our industry-leading portfolio of branded videogame accessories.”
Mad Catz has previously partnered with Activision to deliver a set of Call of Duty accessories which have been pretty decent. Here’s hoping they rock it with Gears 3 as well.
Note: Mad Catz has not, unfortunately, announced shooters or tumblers as pictured above as accessories, but it would be awesome if they did.
Posted in News, Xbox 360
Tagged Gears of War 3