hologames

GSC Game World reveals true sequel to esteemed 2007 postapocalyptic survival shooter will feature all-new game engine.

After numerous delays, GSC Game World released the original S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl in 2007 and has since put out two follow-ups to capitalize on that game’s critical success. The first, S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, arrived in 2008 and operated as a prequel to the events in the original game, while this year’s Call of Pripyat served as an extension to the end of Shadow of Chernobyl.

Chernobyl’s long winter has not yet ended.

Now, GSC Game World is gearing up to deliver a sequel proper to Shadow of Chernobyl, announcing today that S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 will arrive in 2012. In announcing the game’s development, GSC Game World also noted that the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. franchise has now sold more than 4 million units worldwide.

The studio did not provide much by way of gameplay details for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. However, GSC Game World did say that the game would benefit from an all-new multiplatform game engine that’s being built in house. CEO Sergiy Grygorovych also characterized the game as “the next chapter” in the series.

The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. universe takes place in an alternate reality set in the infamous city of Chernobyl, which suffered a nuclear reactor meltdown in 1986. In the game, the town is subjected to a second dose of nuclear fallout, spawning a rash of hideously mutated monsters that now occupy the postapocalyptic town.

For more on the series, check out GameSpot’s review on the latest installment, Call of Pripyat.

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Metal Gear Solid creator teases “big announcement” over Twitter; dismisses Zone of Enders 3 rumours.

Hideo Kojima has become quite adept at teasing his fans. The celebrated game designer has been dropping plenty of hints lately about his seemingly never-ending ideas for new projects, which may or may not include Metal Gear Solid 5, a Metal Gear Solid: Rising series, a title dealing with a certain type of taboo, an entirely new adventure game, or even Zone of Enders 3. Unfortunately, Kojima has yet to confirm or deny any or all of these projects, leaving fans with a lot of guesswork and speculation.

Kojima: what’s he up to now?

This could all be about to change, according to a message posted by Kojima on his official Twitter account yesterday. As translated by Japanese news site Andria Sang, Kojima said he will be making a significant announcement in the next few days, posting the following message:

“Typhoon 4. It looks like it won’t have an effect on the weekend. Thank goodness! However, my health is bad. Prior to TGS, we’ll have a big announcement on Saturday or Sunday, so I must recover.”

A follow-up message revealed the news would not involve the widely speculated Zone of Enders 3, with Kojima saying:

“ZOE3 and so forth–it’s not that big an announcement. However, I think you will be happy.”

Stay tuned to GameSpot for updated news on Kojima’s announcement.

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Naughty Dog continues support for PS3-exclusive award-winner with Sidekick Skins Pack, dynamic theme available August 17.

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Atari to push back online racer release date; extra time to be used polishing console multiplayer; new beta date to be announced.

After a four-year hiatus, Atari made the surprise announcement in March that it would finally be delivering the long-awaited sequel to 2006’s open world racer Test Drive Unlimited by September this year.

You’ll have to wait a bit longer before you can take this baby for a spin.

Now, the publisher has revealed it will be delaying the release of the racer to Q1 2011 in order to provide developer Eden Games more time to enhance and polish the game’s connected console multiplayer experience.

Eden Games senior producer Nour Polloni said the extra time will also allow his team to take into account consumer feedback. The game’s beta has also been pushed back to coincide with the new release schedule, and will be confirmed by Atari in the coming weeks.

As consolation, the publisher announced it will reward gamers already signed up to the beta with an as-yet-unannounced exclusive in-game item.

Test Drive Unlimited 2 will see players racing in locations including the Spanish party hotspot Ibiza and the paradise island of Oahu from the original title. In addition to new vehicles, race types, and a revamped single-player mode that can be played online or off, the game will also give players the chance to build and grow in-game clubs comprised of friend networks.

Test Drive Unlimited 2 will be available on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC.

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Neversoft welcomes Neil Young, Arch Enemy, Tesla, Anberlin, Queensryche, others to the music game family.

In the time since the original Guitar Hero exploded onto the video game scene almost five years ago, the music-game has welcomed hundreds of artists to its virtual library. However, when Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock hits shelves September 28, it’ll come with 11 artists who have never appeared in any of the franchise’s many installments.

These artists (and the songs they’re contributing to Warriors of Rock) are:

Unfortunately, there’s still no sign of Led Zeppelin.

Anberlin-”The Feel Good Drag”
Arch Enemy-”Nemesis”
The Dillinger Escape Plan-”Setting Fire To Sleeping Giants”
John 5-”Black Widow Of La Porte”
Neil Young-”Rockin’ In The Free World”
Orianthi-”Suffocated”
Queensrÿche-”Jet City Woman”
Red Rider-”Lunatic Fringe”
RX Bandits-”It’s Only Another Parsecÿ”
Snot-”Deadfall”
Tesla-”Modern Day Cowboy”

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock boasts more than 90 on-disc tracks as well as more than 500 songs for gamers to download from the Guitar Hero music store. Recently, an enthusiast gaming and music message forum got its hands on Warriors of Rock’s alleged 93-song, complete tracklist.

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock is due out September 28 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii. For more on the game, check out GameSpot’s most recent impressions.

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PlayStation Store Update: 8-bit movie tie-in hits Sony’s virtual storefront; PSOne Classics welcome Crash Team Racing; Mafia II, Valkyria Chronicles II get demoed.

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Following slipping 2010 sales of MMA fighter, publisher says new franchise installments could come every 15-21 months.

THQ had a bona fide hit on its hands last year with UFC Undisputed 2009, its first foray into the nascent mixed martial arts genre. The in-the-Octagon brawler delivered a one-two combo of solid reviews and sales that exceeded 3.5 million units. Into 2010, UFC already appeared to be sagging, and THQ said yesterday as part of its anemic April-June earnings report that this year’s installment shipped–not sold–a markedly lower 2.7 million units.

UFC 2010 apparently needed more than just an ice pack to keep fighting.

To get its fighter back on track, it appears as if THQ will be taking the classic approach of simply spending more time training. As part of the company’s postearnings conference call with analysts and investors yesterday, THQ chairman and president Brian Farrell said that the studio in part attributed UFC 2010’s sales decline to the length of time between franchise installments. And while he reiterated that a new UFC title will be available next year, a 12-month release cycle may not be in the cards going forward.

“Yes, we will have a UFC title in fiscal ‘12,” he said. “The question is timing, as I said. Could it be 15, 18, 21 months. That depends on both the scope of the game, the window, and how we want to release that game. So as I said in my prepared remarks, we thought maybe a 12 month cycle might be a little quick but it will be somewhere around 18 months, give or take a few months.”

Currently, THQ plans to launch two more UFC-branded titles in the near future. The first will be a scaled-down version of UFC 2010 for the PSP, which is slated to arrive on September 7. Ushering in the New Year on January 1, the publisher plans to wade into the fitness genre with UFC Trainer, which will be compatible with Kinect for the Xbox 360, Move for the PlayStation 3, and the Wii.

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MMORPG publisher prepping all-new, alternate history installment in long-running fantasy universe; Fan Faire 2010 highlights offer first concept art.

Over the weekend, Sony Online Entertainment held its annual Fan Faire, a meet-and-greet for those interested in finding out everything that’s going on with EverQuest, EverQuest II, DC Universe Online, The Agency, and more. However, that’s not all that SOE had in store, as the massively multiplayer online role-playing game company also took the opportunity to announce its latest evolution of the EverQuest franchise, tentatively titled “EverQuest Next.”

Kelethin appears to be in for a facelift.

As detailed in a panel posted to SOE’s official Facebook page, EverQuest Next will be an all-new MMORPG effort from the storied developer. However, unlike 2004’s EverQuest II, the new title will not be a continuation of the events that began in the 12-year-old original. Instead, the studio is positioning EverQuest Next as a “reimagining of the EverQuest universe,” one that will have “familiar faces, races, and places” but operate as an alternate dimension and with a “clean slate.”

Those statements were supported by a batch of concept art that accompanied SOE’s EverQuest Next panel. The shots showed a variety of familiar environments, including the human town of Freeport and the elven forest of Faydark. Other shots showed detailed images of familiar races and monsters, including dark elves, ogres, and ghouls.

The design panel also noted that the next EQ will include a range of classes more in line with the original rather than the more specialized slate available in EQ2.

“We wanted to make the next EverQuest be something that still keeps the flavor the original and the lore and core tenants of it, but we wanted to make something that is truly next generation,” said SOE president John Smedley of the game’s direction. Smedley also said that SOE plans to provide a wide range of scalability for the game, noting that EverQuest Next will accommodate cutting-edge tech right down to minimalist laptops.

EverQuest Next remains in the early development phase, and SOE did not offer an expected release window or platforms.

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Ubisoft announces $100 top-tier edition of upcoming stealth action game for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3; incentives include Harlequin jack-in-the-box collectible figure.

Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood–possibly the only franchise installment gamers will see until 2012–is due out during the holiday rush this November. Today, the French publisher took time to announce a $100 collector’s edition of the game, set to debut alongside the standard fare on November 16 for Xbox 360 and PS3 only.

Jack-in-the-box just earned a new meaning.

In addition to the game, those who pick up the collector’s edition at GameStop will walk away with a Harlequin Jack-In-The-Box collectible figure (pictured). At all other participating retailers, gamers will receive a different collectible, the Doctor Jack-In-The-Box.

The CE also includes two exclusive single-player maps (Aqueduct and Trajan Market), as well as a physical map of Rome, and the obligatory art book. Additionally, the premium package will include a disc that houses a “making of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood” video, as well as the game’s official soundtrack, trailers, and a first look at the upcoming Assassin’s Creed comic book.

Those who preorder the title at GameStop for the PlayStation 3 can hop into a multiplayer beta beginning September 13.

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood is the third installment in Ubisoft’s stealth action series. It follows main character Ezio’s vengeful adventures through Rome, and is the first in the franchise to include a multiplayer component.

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Star Wars studio confirms former Ubisoft Montreal creative director has joined its staff to work on an unannounced project.

Earlier this summer, word surfaced that Ubisoft Montreal creative director Clint Hocking had left the employ of the French publisher. Within the development community, speculation ran rife about where one of the primary architects of Far Cry 2 and the Splinter Cell series would wind up.

Clint Hocking will be feeling the Force at LucasArts.

Today, that question was answered. Following Twitter posts by a Ubisoft community developer, LucasArts has confirmed to GameSpot that Hocking is now in its employ. “We are pleased to announce that Clint Hocking has joined LucasArts as creative director on an unannounced project,” a LucasArts rep said.

What exactly that unannounced project is remains a mystery. One possibility is the unnamed Star Wars game Microsoft showed off at the Electronic Entertainment Expo to promote its Kinect motion-sensing system. The San Francisco-based game arm of the LucasArts empire is also currently hard at work on Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II, the sequel to the septuple-platinum 2008 action game that launches October 26. The publisher is also collaborating with BioWare on the massively multiplayer online-role playing game Star Wars: The Old Republic, due out early next year.

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