EA Combines Bioware and Mythic

Thanks to Electronic Arts, the RPG development teams from Bioware (Mass Effect) and Mythic (Warhammer) have been combined into one big happy RPG team. EA has completely restructured the design team and has placed co-founder and general manager of Bioware, Ray Muzyka, in charge. Current Mythic General Manager Marc Jacobs has officially left the company as of yesterday.

In a statement from the company regarding Jacobs, they had this to say, “We thank Marc for his contributions at Mythic and we wish him the very best going forward. Marc played a major part in the success of Mythic with his contribution as General Manager and Lead Designer of WAR.”

Ray Muzyka is now the group’s creative officer. Co-founder of Mythic Rob Denton has taken the position of general manager previously held by Jacobs. It has not been exactly said why the two teams are being pushed together but it is clear that EA has named Bioware as their internal RPG and MMO-related projects leader. This combo could be a result of resources or could be the advantage of shared knowledge, due to the fact that Warhammer continues to grow in the MMO category.

By: Zack Duncan

BioShock 2 Multiplayer News

BioShock was one of the most innovative and original games back when it debuted in 2007. It brought something different to the first-person shooter genre and quickly became one of the best games of the year winning numerous Best of Show and Game of the Year awards.

One thing that was so different about it was how the developers created it. Most games these days have a good story mode and then a really good online multiplayer mode(i.e. Gears of War, Halo). However, BioShock had absolutely no multiplayer at all. The reason for this was that the developers wanted to focus all their attention and effort on making a game with an incredible single player experience. They figured that if the campaign was good enough, people wouldn’t need a multiplayer mode, and they were right.

Like all great games typically do, BioShock is spawning a sequel and, despite some people’s interjections, will contain multiplayer. There has been some debates over whether or not BioShock 2 needed multiplayer or not. Most people loved the exclusive single player of the first game and don’t want the developers to take away anything from the campaign in their efforts to create multiplayer. But some new details have arisen about the new multiplayer mode, and they might just turn some of you skeptics around.

One of the most incredible things about the multiplayer mode is that is takes place in the time when rapture was collapsing. This means it takes place before the first BioShock game. The interesting part is that the actual game takes place 10 years after the first game! “Would you kindly” pick me up off of the floor, I just fainted. Your multiplayer character is one of the plasmid test subjects so you get to assist in the mayhem that besought Rapture. But if playing a crazy, plasmid-injected psycho isn’t your cup of tea, then you will be happy to know that you can also play as a normal citizen of Rapture trying your hardest to protect rapture from complete destruction. Considering the fact that the multiplayer is a prequel, it gives you the awesome chance to explore Rapture before it became destroyed and decayed like you saw it in the first BioShock. allowing for a greater appreciation of the architecture of Rapture. One reason the multiplayer is going to be like a completely different experience is because it is being developed by a different company than the single player campaign. Digital Extremes is handling the development of the multiplayer, aside from 2K Marine who is doing the single player campaign.

No word has been released as of yet on how many players the multiplayer will support. There is also no word on the number of maps or what modes there will be. I can only assume that whatever maps they do have will be just as vast as the levels in the single player mode. What has been revealed is that players will be able to unlock new weapons, plasmids and tonics by using experience points they receive from combat. It is still unclear whether or not these items will be strictly multiplayer or not but developers do promise hundreds of different combinations which means very different forms of combat depending on the player. One rumor about the multiplayer is that you will be able to put on a Big Daddy suit, but that is just speculation.

From just these few details it seems that developers are going to great lengths to make a truly incredible multiplayer experience. If these details don’t get some of you skeptics watering at the mouth, then you are a lost cause. I know for a fact that I have just become that much more excited and eager for this game to come out. BioShock 2 is set to release on September 30 for the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360.

written By: Zack Duncan

Whats New In Left 4 Dead 2

Valve has already announced a sequel to the zombie killin’ action game Left 4 Dead at E3. Left 4 Dead 2 will be a lot more than just added campaigns. Valve has already announced that their will be five whole campains that will all be playable in Co-Op, Survival, Versus, and a new mode that they have yet to announce. Their will also be new characters, new weapons, items, and infected.

Their is also a lot more changes to the game that we will get into. First off the biggest change is the fact that Left 4 Dead 2 is in daylight. No longer will you be able to easily sneak by witches and infected.  Also new is the general location has been changed to the south, with you ending up in New Orleans in the end. The campains are all going to now be linked together instead of being all completely seperate stories. The greatest change I am looking forward too is the addition of melee weapons. So far we have seen a firemans ax, a chainsaw and the all satisfying frying pan. Hitting a zombie in the face with a frying pan will reward you with a very loud thump and a zombie flying dead in the opposite direction. (Too bad they obviously stole this from Dead Rising, I wonder if we will be able to heat it up on a stove like in dead rising) The only new item that was on display at E3 was the incendiary round, which acts much like a molitov when it hits a target. One new special infected was on display: the Charger. He is a really big guy that runs at a very fast speed and can knock down multiple team mates. The main purpose of the charger is for multiplayer to stop the survivors from packing themselves into a tight corner.

Changes to the normal infected include an addition of zombie that weres a haz-mat suit making him immune to fire. Also zombies will be more challenging to kill. Shooting off an arm will no longer cause them to fall down. They’ll keep coming, also with the addition of daylight they will be more easily aggitated.

So far that is all that has been announced at E3, expect many more announcements to come before the game is finally released on november 11th this year.  Also make sure to watch the 5 minute gameplay footage to see the game in action.

Star Wars: The Old Republic

The newest project from LucasArts and BioWare, much to my chagrin, is not the Knights of the Old Republic 3 RPG that I, along with thousands of others, was hoping for. Star Wars: The Old Republic is an MMO RPG set in a time period thousands of years before the birth of the infamous Darth Vader. And this game is an MMO in every way possible. According to developers, you will be able to join different guilds, craft different items, go on raids, harvest resources, have multiple classes, the whole nine yards. And if you can do half of the things in the game that they show in the trailer, then this game is going to be worth playing.

The game follows the playing style of most RPGs. There is a circular conversation system much like the one used in Bioware’s other hugely popular title Mass Effect. To control your character, you use either the “A” “S” “W” and “D” keys or the arrow keys like you do in most games. To initiate an attack or command you use the number keys. Each number key corresponds to number icons on the bottom of the screen. Each character class has different benefits from attacking or handling things in different ways. For example, if you play as a Sith, you build up action points for each melee attack. Once you gain enough action points you can unleash a special attack. One example is after landing enough hits on enemies, you can unleash a stun attack, which stuns all surrounding enemies. Another special attack is the infamous choke attack as seen by Darth Vader in Episode IV: A New Hope. But this is a special attack so you can’t go around force choking everybody you see. Another feat of note is a leaping attack that resembles the one seen in the newest Wolverine game. If you are far enough away from an enemy then you can hit the corresponding key and leap across the room and attack him. One of the key points the developers made at their E3 press release for the game was that Star Wars: The Old Republic is going to be the first ever fully voiced MMO RPG. This means that ever individual class and character will have their own unique voice.

Just like in KOTOR, you do not automatically start off as either a good guy or a bad guy. You choose a faction in the beginning, either Sith or Republic, and you go on from there. Your character is essentially in the gray spectrum, moving either towards the good side or the evil side of the of the line. The story takes place 300 years after the events of the first KOTOR game. So here’s the story: 2 Jedi got exiled from the order. They then went into deep space and ran into the Sith. Bad stuff happened and the two Jedi were sent back to the Republic as Sith Emissaries. The Sith then beat the crap out of the republic and then pulled back almost immediately. The Sith demanded a bunch of random planets for their control in exchange for calling it even with the Republic. The Republic said “deal” and now there are these two powerhouses sitting uneasily in the galaxy, waiting to take the other one over. Your job is to choose a side, and help lead them on to victory.

The last Star Wars MMO RPG , Star Wars: Galaxies wasn’t that big of a hit with gamers. If this new one does really well, then we could see Galaxies phased out with LucasArts focusing all of their attention and resources on The Old Republic. Being made by BioWare, who knows how to make an RPG, I think we can hold The Old Republic with high hopes. Being a major fan of the KOTOR games, and being extremely pissed and disappointed to see this game instead of a KOTOR 3, I was totally against this game. But I am slowly being turned to the other side, especially after the games great E3 production.

By: Zack Duncan

Logitech Flight System G940

This week at E3 Logitech has just announced its brand new Logitech Flight System G940. The Flight System Controller features three main parts: the petals, the throttle, and the joystick. The Logitech Flight System G940 is the best flight system out and will be more than capable of turning your computer room into a virtual cockpit.

Some main features of the G940 Flight System is the large amount of controls and buttons it comes with. With up to 250 individual commands the G940 makes it possible to never have to even use a keyboard. The G940 is also known to be one of the most realistic flight systems to date. Every piece of the G940 was carefully crafted with realism in mind.

It also looks very durable and it can be mounted very easy so you will not have to worry about it slipping when you are playing your favorite flight simulator. It also comes with a dual throttle so you are able to control both engines independently.

Also here is a list of game that are supported by the Logitech Flight System G940:
Works with PC flight simulators including Microsoft® Flight Simulator X, IL-2 Sturmovik™: 1946, Falcon: Allied Force, Lock On: Modern Air Combat X-Plane 9, Enemy Engaged 2, and DCS: Black Shark

The Logitech Flight system G940 is currently not available for purchase, but expect it to be out in the next week or so at the price of $300. Also for a more in depth overview of the G940 make sure to check out Logitech’s Overview Video here.