Video Games News

In earth-shattering news, Zenimax Media - the parent group of Bethesda - today confirmed that it has acquired id Software.  Forming a development super house that is virtually unrivalled, the Zenimax group now controls legendary franchises such as Doom, Quake, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Wolfenstein and RAGE.  id Software will continue business as normal, with John Carmack assuming control of the studio.

Todd Hollenshead, CEO of id Software, commented on the transaction: "This was a unique opportunity to team with a smart, sophisticated publisher like Bethesda Softworks where the interests of the studio and the publisher will be fully aligned in the development and marketing of our titles. In addition, we will now have financial and business resources to support the future growth of id Software, a huge advantage which will result in more and even better games for our fans."

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Emphasising the realism of the Gran Turismo series, Citroen showcased its concept car driving around the (real) streets of London in scenes that strangely mirror the virtual world of Gran Turismo 5.  It seems the Gran Turismo series has always strived for realism, but now the real world is beginning to mimic the video game series.

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Ordinarily we wouldn't bother with an article about screenshots, but we'll make an exception because they're from Max Payne 3 and we all love a bit of Max Payne.

As you can see for yourselves, Payne is definitely looking older, balder, and definitely more slob-like then ever before. 

We're slightly concerned by the lack of a film noire feel to the game; certainly it seems Rockstar Vancouver are heading in a completely different direction with the third title, sun-drenched skies replacing the dark skylines of New York City.

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A survey has appeared indicating that Command & Conquer 4 is currently in development.  Although the questions begin fairly generic, later issues specialise on Command & Conquer, leading to suggestions that EA is carrying out research towards future games in the series.

More specifically, Command & Conquer 4, is mentioned with further questions suggesting the title could be a concluding chapter in the 15-year Tiberium conflict. 

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Move over Lionel Messi, Liverpool's golden boy, Fernando Torres, is set for equal billing on the PES 2010 box art.  But more important then that is the release of new details, as Konami attempts to wrestle back its crown from last year's resurgent FIFA.

Promising enhanced realism that focuses on the "triangulation" of passes and off-the-ball movement, Konami promises an end to "soft goals" with players needing to work the flanks and use the precision play of great players to make the difference.

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It seems the success, or lack thereof, of Rockstar Games' GTA: Chinatown Wars on the Nintendo DS has prompted a rethink, with confirmation that the latest handheld GTA outing will be making an appearance on the PSP later in the year.

Rockstar Games ahs confirmed the PSP version will appear on UMD and as a digital download, boasting enhanced widescreen visuals, improved lighting and animation, along with additional story missions.

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Although uncertainty continues to surround the future of Midway, Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon has begun to set the wheels in motion surrounding the next Mortal Kombat title.

Following last year's super-hero outing, Ed Boon confirms that the next Mortal Kombat title will return to its roots, gunning for a 'Mature' rating instead of the 'T for Teen' granted to Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe.

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Following a lengthy delay that would rival the protracted transfer shenanigans of Cristiano Ronaldo, Eidos today announced a specific date for the next Championship Manager title along with a name change to represent its new release date.

Previously dubbed Championship Manager 2009, the newly christened Championship Manager 2010 will launch in September 2009 - narrowly missing out on the big August 15th kick-off when normality will finally resume after a summer without the beautiful game Americans like to call soccer.

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Although they'll admit otherwise, the simple fact is that Sony is struggling to match its dominance with this generation.  Although 2009 is marked as the year that the PS3 would emerge as the superior platform, we've yet to see any tangible proof to such claims.

More troubling for Sony is the fact that its under-performance could begin to affect its relationships with third-party publishers; a concern that the world's biggest publisher today expressed in an interview with The Times.

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Microsoft's Chief Executive Officer, Steve Ballmer appears to have let news slip of a new Xbox system that will launch alongside Project Natal in 2010.

During a speech on the recession at the Executives Club in Chicago yesterday, Ballmer spoke of a new Xbox 360 that will be released with a built-in camera when Project Natal launches in 2010.

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The latest update to The Creative Assembly's Empire: Total War is set to provide a significant boost for those with multi-core processors.  Update 1.3 will integrate multi-threading support, providing a significant performance boost for multi-core processors.

Those with lowly single-core processors however shouldn't feel too left out, as the update will allegedly "greatly" improve performance on such specifications.

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Following his role as supervisor and consultant on Crystal Dynamics' Tomb Raider titles, the man who originally gave us Lara Croft is heading a new title for the US studio.

Toby Gard's LinkiedIn profile confirms he's currently at work on an unannounced title for Crystal Dynamics under the new role of Lead Designer, a position he's held since the start of the year.

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Unsurprisingly, Halo 3: ODST generated the most amount of pre-order hype following E3 according to a report from ratings firm Nielsen.

Quick to latch on to this, Microsoft has today confirmed that anybody who pre-orders Halo 3: ODST ahead of its September 22nd release will receive a token to unlock Sgt. Johnson as a playable character in the game's Firefight mode.

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Following yesterday's news that Activision was gauging interest in MMO styled subscriptions for future Call of Duty titles, Infinity Ward today moved to distance itself from the speculation.

In a post on the official forums, Infinity Ward's community manager claimed:

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A number of former Factor 5 employees have issued a lawsuit against the bankrupt developer, alleging that the company fraudulently transferred assets and intellectual property to another company before filing for bankruptcy to avoid paying wages and its debtors.

The Marin Independent Journal suggests that Factor 5 had between $50,000 and $100,000 in assets, along with $1 million to $10 million in debts including a $4 million loan from LucasArts issued back in 2003.  The bankruptcy filing further includes 69 claims for unpaid wages totalling more than $900,000. 

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Following the government's decision yesterday to scrap the use of BBFC game ratings in the UK and utilise the PEGI system exclusively, the Interactive Software Federation of Europe (ISFE) has now launched a new set of PEGI symbols.

These new symbols are graded across 3, 7, 12, 16, and 18 age ratings that are colour coded from green to red. However, the new designs differ slightly in appearance from ELSPA's redesign plans that were launched last year.

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The hardware specifications for BioWare's upcoming RPG, Dragon Age: Origins have been revealed and you'll be glad to hear that they're nothing too strenuous (on the minimal end of the scale at least):

Windows XP Minimum Specifications

• OS: Windows XP with SP3
• CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) running at 1.4Ghz or greater
• AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 1.8Ghz or greater
• RAM: 1GB or more
• Video: ATI Radeon X850 128MB or greater
• NVIDIA GeForce 6600 GT 128MB or greater
• DVD ROM (Physical copy)
• 20 GB HD space

Windows Vista Minimum Specifications

• OS: Windows Vista with SP1
• CPU: Intel Core 2 (or equivalent) running at 1.6Ghz or greater
• AMD X2 (or equivalent) running at 2.2GHZ or greater
• RAM: 1.5 GB or more
• Video: ATI Radeon X1550 256MB or greater
• NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT 256MB or greater
• DVD ROM (Physical copy)
• 20 GB HD space

Recommended Specifications

• CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad 2.4Ghz Processor or equivalent
• RAM: 4 GB (Vista) or 2 GB (XP)
• Video: ATI 3850 512 MB or greater
• NVIDIA 8800GTS 512 MB or greater
• DVD ROM (Physical copy)
• 20 GB HD space

While you're waiting for the game's release, you might want to clean away some space on your hard drive for that 20GB install.

Via Kotaku.

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An online survey, currently being circulated across the web, seems to suggest that Activision is considering an MMO style subscription service for upcoming Call of Duty titles.

The survey (spotted by Destructoid), lists a number of additional services for the game that players could purchase via subscription based models (monthly, quarterly, and annually) or as bundled content with a copy of the game at an added cost.

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Harold Ramis, who co-wrote and starred in the Ghostbusters movies, has been talking about some of the challenges that game writers face when they're trying to pen a funny script.

Ramis explained that because game scripts are so long, the challenge of writing enough comic alternatives to make the dialogue funny is like producing three hit movie scripts.

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As part of its Digital Britain report this afternoon, the government has decided to abolish BBFC ratings and reposition PEGI age ratings as the sole game classification system in the UK.

The new ruling will see the PEGI system being implemented by the Video Standards Council (VSC) for all games that are released in the region. Both the VSC and the Netherlands Institute for the Classification of Audiovisual Media (which administers the PEGI system) have been working together on game ratings for a number of years already.
 
"Protecting children and giving parents a clear and robust new system has always been our starting point," said Creative Industries Minister Siôn Simon (reports gi.biz). "The new system of classification follows the essential criteria set out by Professor Tanya Byron, who recommended a trustworthy, uniform and clear set of symbols that is flexible and future proof."

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