All Articles: GDC 2013

Metanet announces N++

nplusplus-header

Metanet’s last game, N+, ninjaed it’s way onto the Xbox Live Arcade, DS, and PSP back in 2008. Since then, the developer of the quintessential “ninjas versus lasers” game (that’s a genre, right?) has been relatively quiet. But during last week’s Game Developers Conference, the developer revealed they’re coming back in a big way and they’re bringing N the Ninja with them.

At GDC, Metanet announced N++, the “absolutely final iteration of N.” The new game will include “new levels, new graphics, new sound, [and] new game modes,” but when it’ll be released or what platforms it’ll be available for is still a mystery.

What’s not a mystery is the game’s official site, which Metanet promises to pack with exciting N++ updates soon.

Posted in News | Tagged ,

Journey collects six statues at 2013 GDC Awards including Game of the Year

journey-header

The people behind the 2013 Game Developers Choice Awards like Journey. They really, really like Journey. Of the 11 awards handed out last night, the thatgamecompany-developed title was named the winner of six of them: Best Audio, Best Game Design, Best Visual Arts, Best Downloadable Game, the Innovation Award, and Game of the Year.

“This year we saw some amazing titles developed in the indie and downloadable game space, and the critical acclaim that titles like Journey, FTL: Faster Than Light, The Walking Dead, and The Room received could not have been more deserved,” said Meggan Scavio, General Manager of the Game Developers Conference.

While the GDC Awards committee loved Journey, the first-ever Audience Choice Award went to Arkane Studios’ Dishonored. The people have spoken and they really, really like assassinating bad dudes in a steampunk setting!

A complete list of winners can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged , ,

The Final Word: Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain will be “distributed differently”

konami-header

A Konami PR representative shot down Hideo Kojima’s claim that Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is a single game that would encompass “Ground Zeroes” and “The Phantom Pain” in a statement last night. This morning, a different Konami representative, speaking to CVG, has clarified further.

According to this representative, “Metal Gear Solid V” is a concept represented by two games: The Phantom Pain and Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. As previously stated, Ground Zeroes is the prologue to the game’s main narrative, which will be told in The Phantom Pain. But as a prologue, it’ll be “distributed differently” from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, which is being developed as a disc-based game for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Ground Zeroes is also in development for the PS3 and Xbox 360, but what form it will take when it’s finally released… digital download, separate disc, or some combination of the two… wasn’t made clear.

This jives nicely with Kojima’s desire to create “pilot episodes” to get players interested and engaged in his future games.

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged , ,

Wait! The Phantom Pain and Ground Zeroes might be two separate games after all

konami-header

OK, this is getting ridiculous. Siliconera has contacted Konami to get to the bottom of the Metal Gear Solid 5/The Phantom Pain/Ground Zeroes mess and to figure out how many new Metal Gear Solid games are actually in development. The answer they got may surprise you.

Jay Boor, Konami’s Director of Public Relations, said: “Ground Zeroes and The Phantom Pain are two separate games. GZ will be a prologue to The Phantom Pain.”

That seems to contradict what Hideo Kojima said earlier this morning when he stated that “Ground Zeroes” is the tutorial that leads to the nine-year time skip before “The Phantom Pain” in Metal Gear Solid V.

I take it back, this whole situation isn’t almost as absurd as the plot of your average Metal Gear Solid game, it’s worse.

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged , ,

Phantom Pain, Ground Zeroes combined to form Metal Gear Solid V! Watch the trailer now!

Konami has released the full trailer for Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain that Hideo Kojima unveiled this morning at the Game Developers Conference. Set to the strains of Garbage’s “Not Your Kind of People,” the trailer confirms that Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes isn’t a separate game. Instead, that game appears to have been combined with The Phantom Pain to form Metal Gear Solid V.

So we started with two games (Ground Zeroes and Metal Gear Solid 5). Then we added a third game that seemed to share some similarities with the Metal Gear series, but which was said to be an original game (The Phantom Pain). Then comes the big twist where it was revealed that all three were the same game all along. That’s almost as topsy-turvy as the plot to your average Metal Gear Solid game.

Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is in development for the PS3 and Xbox 360. It doesn’t currently have a release date, but who knows what will happen next.

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged , ,

The Phantom Pain officially announced as Metal Gear Solid 5

hideokojimaWell, that was anti-climactic.

Hideo Kojima is on stage for his presentation, “Photorealism Through the Eyes of a Fox: The Core of Metal Gear Solid Ground Zeroes,” at this year’s Game Developers Conference. In a shock to absolutely no one (OK, my 93-year old grandma was probably surprised), the developer opened with the news that “The Phantom Pain” is indeed the fifth Metal Gear Solid game.

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain was first announced at the 2012 Spike TV Video Game Awards, credited to Moby Dick Studio. The Metal Gear touches in the trailer were pretty obvious and Kojima Productions was able to keep the Metal Gear Solid 5/Phantom Pain connection a secret for about an hour before the Internet cracked their code.

What this means for the now fictional Moby Dick Studio and their bandaged CEO, Joakim Mogren, remains to be seen.

[Source: VG247]

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged , ,

Battlefield 4 revealed with 17 intense minutes of gameplay

DICE is no stranger to splashy reveals and trailers that show the horrors of war up close and personal. Last night’s Battlefield 4 debut at the 2013 Game Developers Conference offered a little bit of both. The game will be available this Fall for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360. Polygon‘s Brian Crecente spoke with an Electronic Arts official after the reveal and confirmed that Battlefield 4 will be available for the PS4 as well. The game runs on Frostbite 3, the latest version of DICE’s powerful engine platform. For proof of just how powerful it is, check out the 17-minute gameplay trailer above.

The demo begins as the player – Recker – opens his eyes to discover that he is trapped in a rapidly sinking car with three of his squad mates. Shooting the window is the only way out. Panic and fear are pushed aside as Recker makes a difficult decision – take the shot and recover the intel but risk that not everyone will survive. The emotional demo features a cast of characters unrivaled in interactive entertainment. Players will learn how to work together in both the Campaign and Multiplayer, issuing squad orders and comparing achievements in both experiences. Adventure and Competition will unfold through a series of beautifully crafted locations constructed with some of the best art and sound design in modern shooters.

A pre-order campaign has also launched today and EA has confirmed that all early purchasers will receive access to the Premium expansion pack.

Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 | Tagged ,

Grimm Bros. plans to bring a darker mentality to PC/tablet RPGs

grimmbros-header

Grimm Bros. is on a mission. They want to bring the darker notions of Grimm, Chaucer, Tolkien, Stoker, and many others to the world of PC/tablet RPGs. The studio, which plans to showcase their first title at next week’s Game Developers Conference, was started earlier this year by Ash Monif, the former COO of Human Head, and artist Randis Albion.

Speaking to the Cogswell Polytechnical College blog, Monif said, “I have always been a fan of complex subject matter. I grew up reading the classics Grimm, Chaucer, Tolkien – and I feel that today’s games gloss over a lot of the richness that can be found within these great works. Our goal is to build a community of core and mid-core gamers who are seeking out a redefined RPG experience.”

The Cogswell blogger pitched the team’s sensibilities as “Evil Dead meets Monty Python.” You hear that? That’s the sound of a gaggle of geeks just shrieking in joy.

Shrieks of joy (and terror) will also be produced when you view the Albion-created concept art (which may or may not be representative of Grimm’s first project) based on Little Red Riding Hood, Dracula, The Golem, and others after the break. (more…)

Posted in Mobile, News, PC | Tagged ,