Dragon Age: Origins was a beloved throwback to classic PC RPGs, and fans rallied around it. Dragon Age 2, not so much. Many fans felt the game had changed too much. So as BioWare prepares for Dragon Age 3, it’s soliciting feedback from its vocal audience.
A post on the BioWare Blog says the team is going to be asking a series of questions about what fans would like to see from the series. “Consider this a conversation between fans, the community team, and the developers,” it reads. “Everyone at BioWare is incredibly excited about the future of the franchise but we’re interested in what you have to say.” Questions will be posted monthly, and fans will have a week to reply. The post states this feedback will be used for the universe as a whole, so that could include things like novels or animated features.
The first question, which starts today, is very lore-based: “What kinds of things would you like to discover and learn about the Dragon Age world?”
“However, it’s worth reminding that we’re not making promises, we’re talking about ideas,” the blog states. “We won’t guarantee that things we discuss will materialize and weâre not showing anything until we’re ready.”
We don’t know much about a potential Dragon Age 3, but BioWare did cancel a Dragon Age 2 expansion to explore “other opportunities.” At PAX East 2012, BioWare hinted at more open spaces (without repeated assets) and bringing back full equipment options for party members.
The final downloadable content packs for Final Fantasy XIII-2 have hit Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network today, just in case you’re on-board for more. These final pieces include episodes starring popular character Lightning, and significantly less popular character Snow, along with various costumes.
Lightning’s episode (”Requiem of the Goddess”) shows the full battle between Lightning and Caius that took place during XIII-2. You should finish the game before playing the Lightning DLC, since it includes spoilers — but the announcement gives no indication that it will help resolve matters. And seeing as this is explicitly called the final DLC, another game seems likely.
The Snow episode (”Perpetual Battlefield”) features Snow fighting in the Coliseum, including a fight with the “Arbiter of Time” who has been watching the events of the game and apparently doing nothing about them. What a lazy time god, right? At any rate, finishing it will unlock Snow as a playable character.
Joining them are two new outfits (White Mage for Serah and Black Mage for Noel), and a “Wondrous Wardrobe” pack with 16 outfits for Mog. Lightning’s Story costs $4.99 (400 MSP), Snow’s $3.99 ($320 MSP), and the outfit packs are $3 (240 MSP) apiece.
With a few overshadowing presences hitting today, it would be easy to overlook just about any other game that releases. So just in case you prefer furries with “tude” to crippling addictions to pills or loot, Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 begins rolling out today, and will hit various other platforms through the rest of the week.
The Sega Blog outlines the release plans. Today it comes to PlayStation Network and PC via Steam, followed tomorrow on XBLA. Each of those versions will be $14.99 (1200 MSP). Plus, it will hit certain Android phones tomorrow, and the iOS App Store on Thursday. Mobile versions will cost $6.99.
As previously reported, grabbing Episode 2 on the same platform that you played Episode 1 will grant you special “Episode Metal” stages starring Metal Sonic. The game and “Episode Metal” content will come to more Android devices in June, and Windows Phones by July.
Downloading the game on two platforms will have your name featured in a video from Sega, and grabbing four versions (for some reason) will get you a mini-poster signed by the Sega of America team.
“Sonic 4 Episode II is very special because we’ve integrated community feedback into the game,” said digital senior VP Haruki Satomi, in the announcement. “We have some of the most loyal and dedicated fans and I hope they enjoy this next chapter in the Sonic 4 saga.”
Those changes include a revamped graphics and physics engine, to get rid of some of the Episode 1 foibles, plus the return of Tails. Last we heard, Sega isn’t planning a third episode.
Nintendo has been slow to embrace new technologies, but the company is finally making more serious moves into the digital era. The latest baby step is in the form of patches, like fixing a game-breaking bug in Zelda: Skyward Sword, and now a new patch to stick it to those filthy Mario Kart 7 cheaters.
The patch fixes unintended shortcuts in Wuhu Island Loop, Wuhu Mountain Loop, and Bowser’s Castle 1. Players will be prompted to quit and download a “Ver 1.1″ patch from the eShop. It’s not exactly an elegant solution, but hey, progress! This only applies to the online modes, mind you, so you can still use the exploits to run rings around AI opponents in single-player.
Nintendo’s portable system has been a leading the charge on the company’s digital initiatives, like DLC and fully downloadable games. The company even plans to offer its own first-party DLC. Maybe someday soon Nintendo will be only a few steps behind the wave of digital content, instead of a dozen.
Activision has reportedly paid former Infinity Ward employees $42 million dollars, but the payment is not considered a settlement. The payment includes 10% interest, and the attorney for the 40-member Infinity Ward Employee Group says it’s merely a “small portion” of the suit’s monetary stakes.
“I can confirm for you that it happened today,” IWEG attorney Bruce Isaacs told Polygon. “I can also tell you that although it is a meaningful payment it is only a small portion of what we are seeking in litigation. It is outrageous that they made us wait, they obviously knew they owed the money and this just shows that they breached the contract.” Isaac’s says it’s a “cynical attempt to look good before the jury trial.”
The $42 million will reportedly go towards the 40 individuals in the group, but a source says the payment is not part of the settlement. Activision CEO Bobby Kotick agreed that the evidence didn’t implicate the group, and so it paid the amount they were owed so it could focus on the accusations against Jason West and Vince Zampella at trial. But, since it’s not a settlement, IWEG can continue to sue for the remainder of the claims.
The group is still planning to pursue further legal action. The IWEG group is claiming a number in the range of $75-125 million.
4mm Games, the studio behind Def Jam Rapstar, is on the verge of closing. Studio head Jamie King says the company is “rather starved for money,” and stretching itself thin as it tries to resolve a Rapstar legal dispute while tending to its own staff as well.
“We have not got any new funding and obviously we need to resolve everything with Rapstar,” King told GamesIndustry.biz. “And we’ve also got to eat. I get very annoyed at times, I would like there to be a way out of it but I don’t know if that’s going to happen.”
Def Jam Rapstar ballooned to a larger scope, but was met with sluggish sales. King calls the launch “disappointing.” 4mm’s other games, a project with UK developer Jagex, a National Dog Show game, and an Alliance of Action Sports browser game, haven’t been met with success. The dog show game had no money for marketing, and the other two have been shelved — despite the action sports title being nearly done.
Now 4mm’s legal problems with EMI over song authorization in Rapstar prevents it from getting more funding. King is hoping to get more projects in the mobile and tablet space to stay afloat. He’s still optimistic about the future and plans to stay in the business, but it’s looking increasingly doubtful that business will be with 4mm.
38 Studios, the owner of developer Big Huge Games (Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning) may be facing financial difficulties, and has turned to the Rhode Island government to stay solvent. State officials have been meeting with the game studio, though specific measures aren’t being discussed yet.
“We’re always working to keep Rhode Island companies solvent, and that’s what we’re doing with 38 Studios,” Governor Lincoln Chafee told local TV station NBC 10. “We’re working with 38 Studios on different issues. That’s all I can report right now.”
The company was originally formed in Massachusetts, but Rhode Island offered a $75 million loan guarantee in 2010. This was to bring jobs and tax revenue into the state, but the loan was a contentious topic during the recent election season. When Reckoning was released, studio founder Curt Schilling reassured the state that, “the only way taxpayers lose is if the company failed.”
The NPD reports that Reckoning has sold 410,000 copies across all platforms since release.
Two downloadable 3DS Pokemon applications recently announced in Japan are making the trek to North America, Nintendo has announced. The Pokemon Dream Radar and Pokedex 3D Pro, announced in Japan as the Pokemon AR Searcher and Pokemon Zengoku Zukan Pro, are coming this fall to the 3DS.
The Pokemon Dream Radar takes advantage of the 3DS motion control and camera for augmented reality Pokemon catching. Players aim with the camera and catch critters with a beam. These Pokemon can then be transferred into the upcoming Pokemon Black and White 2. Nintendo teases that some of the monsters in Dream Radar will be among the hard-to-find ones, so it could be an easier way to catch ‘em all.
Pokedex 3D Pro is a more full-featured version of the free app that released last year. It includes all 600 Pokemon, unlocked from the start, with sorting, comparison, and ranking tools, and details on abilities and evolution traits. Players can also snap photos of the Pokemon against actual backdrops with the 3DS camera. It sounds more-or-less like a fancy distillation of a Pokemon wiki.
Nintendo didn’t announce pricing for the applications, but the Japanese announcement pegged Dream Radar at 300 yen (approximately $3.50) and the Pokedex at 1,500 yen (approximately $18). The latter seems a bit steep, so we’ll have to see if Nintendo chooses to use those prices when these downloads hit the US.
US District Judge Claudia Wilken has refused to dismiss a class action suit that alleges EA conspired to use the likenesses of NCAA student athletes without compensation. The suit claims that the publisher and NCAA colluded in the decision to have players sign away their rights. While some of the other claims in the civil suit have been thrown out, this one is being allowed to go forward.
Gamasutra reports that the students allege they were required to sign a form as part of their deal to play NCAA sports. That form gave EA permission to use the students’ likenesses as they were playing, and even after they had left the NCAA organization.
“The agreement does not distinguish between former and current student-athletes, even though, in the next sentence, it acknowledges that both may be encompassed within the word ‘athlete,’” Judge Wilken wrote in her ruling, via Courthouse News Service. “In the context of antitrust plaintiffs’ other allegations, on a motion for judgment on the pleadings, these terms can fairly be read to evidence a ‘meeting of the minds’ between EA and the other defendants not to compensate former student-athletes, where such a contract would interfere with the student-athletes’ existing agreements with the NCAA.”
That means at least a piece of the trial will go to court where EA will have to defend its case, unless it settles first. One estimate placed the cost of paying the athletes at $1 billion, though that was a worst-case scenario and EA shrugged off the claims. This civil class action suit is separate from the one filed by former Rutger’s quarterback Ryan Hart, which EA won.
The Doctor Who game has set its dates for the PlayStation 3 and Vita, and the wait won’t be long. Supermassive’s Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock will come to PlayStation 3 on May 23, and then the Vita on June 13. Those of you who would rather play the PC version will have to wait until “shortly after.”
The game’s Twitter account dropped the release news. The UK will have to wait an extra two days for the PS3 version, because apparently being the home of Doctor Who doesn’t earn them dibs on the game tie-in.
As previously reported, the game features voices of both the Matt Smith (the Doctor) and Alex Kingston (River Song), as they navigate through puzzles and deal with the series’ iconic aliens and assorted baddies. Supermassive promises multiple story possibilities based on your choices, and a story written by the BBC Wales team.