The keynotes for E3 are all over but that doesn’t mean there isn’t anymore huge announcements. Just announced today at E3 is the newest chapter in the StarWars Knights of the Old Republic series but this time it’s in the way everybody has been begging for. StarWars Knights of the Old Republic 3 will officially be an MMORPG.
EA has just finished their keynote at E3 today and one of their big announcements is that they will now be publishing games for id software. id software has had Activision publish their games for close or over ten years and that has all changed today.
An ‘inside source’ has told Kotaku that the 360 may be receiving a 3D Dashboard makeover later this year that will implement the functions of the rumored motion controller. It’s just a rumor for now, but I would be surprised if it isn’t true. The dashboard is a cluttered mess and severely needs a makeover. I guess we’ll find out in a couple of weeks at E3.
Want Sony’s new PS3 Dual Shock controller but don’t have sixty bucks to shed? Then you’re luck because GoGamer.com is currently offering the controller for $42. That’s 25% off the original price. Make your purchase now while supplies last.
Australia and New Zealand have both received a price cut in all versions of the Xbox 360 hardware. The 20 GB model has dropped to $399 whilst the Arcade version is now only $349, making it the cheapest next-gen system in the territory.
Today, for our celebration of the ten year anniversary of the Banjo-Kazooie franchise, Rare-Elite introduces to you an exclusive and original video from the creative mind of Mario ‘Lupaie’ Paiano (the designer of Rare-Elite), Banjo-Kazooie: Mumbo’s Wand!!
Earlier this year after Rare-Elite’s relaunch, Tyrant and myself were discussing a variety of options as to what we could do in celebration of this special event. We wanted something big…something special…and something unlike anything else that is out there. It was at this time that Lupaie offered to create a special video of the Banjo games told from the perspective of a special character: Mumbo’s Wand.
The video began development in late March and took over 120 hours to complete. Lupaie designed the video completely from the ground up while his friend Smouvy handled most of the audio. A few others contributed some recorded footage and text (acknowledged in the video’s credits) of the Banjo games and even Rare’s George Kelion provided the sound samples of the exact dialogue of Mumbo that can be heard in the games.
So ladies and gentlemen, we present to you the world wide reveal and Rare-Elite exclusive video, Banjo-Kazooie: Mumbo’s Wand!!
Visit our sister site, Rare-Elite.com for more details.
Portion of an interview with Computer and Video Games below…
What did you think of the reception to you last game, CoD 3?
Heller: I’d say that one of the things that it’s hard for a player to understand is that CoD 3 was in development for about eight months. It’s very hard to make a great new game [in that time]. CoD 3 is a very good game, and it sold well. But it’s not the game that this team could have made if they had the time to polish it. Even so, with two years on this game for the first time ever, we’re going to pull it from Rich’s cold fingers when it’s time to put this game into the box.
That’s the real difference between this game and CoD: 3 - we have the time to iterate and to make things feel right.
Official press release below…
London June 19th 2008: The biggest title of 2007, and key members of its award winning creative team of Ken Levine, Christopher Kline, Nate Wells and Bill Gardner, have signed up to set the pace of Develop Conference in Brighton with a keynote session that examines the secrets of the huge success of BioShock during the opening session on Wednesday 30th July.
Widely recognised as masters of narrative-driven gaming, these developers led the team that made BioShock. The game achieved numerous 10/10 scores and was hailed as one of the top 3 games of all time by PC Gamer.
Levine, named Person of the Year 2007 by the One Up Network, is the founder and Creative Director of 2k Boston. He led the creation of the multi-million selling 2007 game-of-the-year, BioShock, and was named Developer of the Year 2007 by Next-Gen.Biz.
“We are obviously delighted to be welcoming Ken and the team to Develop in Brighton. Their passion and experience are genuinely inspirational and this session will be a fantastic start to a packed two days of knowledge building sessions. So, would you kindly take your seats, it’s going to be a brilliant few days by the sea with many of the biggest and brightest names in the development world speaking, participating and partying,” commented Andy Lane, Event Director of the Develop Conference at Tandem Events.
About Develop Conference and Expo
The third annual Develop Conference will host more than 90 speakers and 60 sessions moulded around tracks that are key to the world of games development: Audio, Art & Animation, Business, Coding, Game Design, Production and World View.
A full list of confirmed sessions can be found online at www.developconference.com. Registration is now open and delegates can apply for Super, Standard, Mobile, Audio and Expo passes for the Develop Conference and Expo online at www.developconference.com. Discounts are available on all passes purchased before 1 July 2008. The expo pass is free of charge – please register online.
Develop Online, Develop Mobile and GAMES:EDU will run alongside the Develop Conference & Expo on Tuesday 29 July. Develop Mobile is expanding to offer delegates two tracks – business and development – with sessions focused on everything from the latest 3D technologies, to case studies of successful games, proven techniques for launching a new IP, and cross-platform casual games design.
Official press release below…
BURBANK, Calif. –(Business Wire)– Jun. 19, 2008 Disney Interactive Studios announced today the November 2008 release of video games inspired by the upcoming, original feature animation film “Bolt” from Walt Disney Pictures. Bolt will be available for the Wii home game system, Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION(R)3 computer entertainment system, PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, Nintendo DS(TM) and Windows-based PC.
The latest computer animated film from Walt Disney Animation Studios, “Bolt” tells the story of a canine TV star that is inadvertently shipped from Hollywood to New York City, where he begins a cross-country adventure home and makes the surprising discovery that the super powers he thought he had don’t work in the real world. The Bolt video game, which is being developed by Avalanche Software, Disney’s Interactive Studios’ family games development studio, takes place in the world of the action-packed television show and offers the opportunity for Bolt and Penny to travel throughout five international locations, including Russia and Italy.
In the game, players take on the heroic personas of the TV star dog, Bolt, and his owner, Penny, from the high-action television series featured within the film. As Bolt, players can use his superpowers, including laser vision and his superbark, which sends out a sonic blast to devastate opponents, and as Penny, players utilize stealth, hacking skills and a wheelbar, inspired by her scooter seen in the movie, to outwit enemies.
“Bolt uses the film as a springboard, expanding upon the action and dynamic story elements, to provide a fun, challenging experience for gamers,” said Craig Relyea, senior vice president of global marketing, Disney Interactive Studios. “With Bolt, Avalanche Software looks to further its reputation as a premier developer of compelling animated games for a broad audience.”
The Nintendo DS version of the game will include competitive and co-op multiplayer, mini games as well as DGamer, Disney Interactive Studios’ innovative new technology that provides a fun, connected game community for Disney video game fans. With DGamer, players earn content, interact and chat with others on Nintendo DS through the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection or on a computer through the Disney.com website. The Nintendo DS game is being developed by Altron.
About the “Bolt” film
For super-dog Bolt (voice of John Travolta), every day is filled with adventure, danger and intrigue — at least until the cameras stop rolling. When the star of a hit TV show is accidentally shipped from his Hollywood soundstage to New York City, he begins his biggest adventure yet — a cross-country journey through the real world to get back to his owner and co-star, Penny (voice of Miley Cyrus). Armed only with the delusions that all his amazing feats and powers are real, and with the help of two unlikely traveling companions: a jaded, abandoned housecat named Mittens (voice of Susie Essman) and a TV-obsessed hamster in a plastic ball named Rhino, Bolt discovers he doesn’t need superpowers to be a hero.
“We recently announced the upcoming release of Mario Super Sluggers. Additionally, we will be announcing several new titles that core gamers will be interested in around the time of E3. The clear majority of people waiting in line outside retailers on Sunday mornings to buy their Wii consoles are core gamers. Look at the plans being made by third-party publishers. They realize that Wii is the current platform of choice in this generation, and their bottom lines depend on appealing to the largest base.” - Marc Franklin, director of public relations at Nintendo