Manhunt 2 News | Ben Feder Comments on Manhunt 2 Controversy
Eurogamer
have published an interview with the CEO of Take-Two Interactive, Ben Feder,
they tackle such subject as console exclusivity, Agent and what the company
learned from releasing Manhunt 2.
Eurogamer: What lessons have you learned from the Manhunt 2 controversy?
Has it made you more cautious about publishing games with violent content?
Ben Feder: Absolutely not. We firmly believe that games are art. A), we have
the right to produce art. B), the consumer should have the right to make their
own choices, providing the labelling on the package is clear about the content
of the game.
Apart from that, I don't think it's the role of governments to determine
what you or any of your readers can, or should, buy. They should be able to
make their own choices. Government has no role in that at all.
We encourage our developers to be as expressive as they want to be in their
games. Our position has not changed one bit with respect to how we develop
games and how we market games and what role we think government should have.
Great to see they still stand by Manhunt 2. Now where are the 360, PC and PS3 versions?
For those interested, the first digital screenshots of Max Payne 3 have been
added to the official
Max Payne 3 website.
Rockstar
has announced that it will be bringing Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
to the PlayStation Portable this fall. As before the game is being developed
by Rockstar Leeds in conjunction with Rockstar North. The game will be available
at retail on UMD disk and as a digital download for the PSP Go!.
Press release
New York, NY – June 22, 2009 – Rockstar Games, the world-renowned
publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), is
pleased to announce that one of the highest-rated handheld games of all time,
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, will be making its way to the PSP® (PlayStation®Portable)
handheld entertainment system. Developed by the award-winning studio Rockstar
Leeds, in conjunction with series creator Rockstar North, Grand Theft Auto:
Chinatown Wars will be available at retail on UMD® and digitally from
the PlayStation®Network in North America and Europe this fall.
"We're proud to extend this truly unique handheld Grand Theft Auto experience
to PSP and offer a downloadable version of Chinatown Wars for PSP®go,"
said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "Rockstar Leeds has shown
incredible talent in creating games that raise the bar in terms of depth and
innovation on portables, and with Chinatown Wars we have a rich, fast-paced,
and incredibly addictive entry into the series."
"Rockstar's work with the GTA series has been an enormous part of the
success of PlayStation platforms," said Jack Tretton, President and CEO
of Sony Computer Entertainment America. "We're excited to welcome the
critically acclaimed Chinatown Wars to the outstanding line-up of great games
headed to the PSP platform this fall."
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars follows the story of Huang Lee, a young
Triad who travels to Liberty City after the mysterious death of his father.
Within the game, players will navigate their way through the streets as they
uncover the truth behind an epic tale of crime and corruption within the Triad
crime syndicate, delivering the unprecedented amount of depth that has become
a true trademark of the franchise. Specifically built for the PSP platform
with upscaled widescreen graphics, enhanced lighting and animation; and including
all-new story missions; this version of Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars will
take full advantage of the power of the PSP system.
This is without a doubt good news for PlayStation Portable owners, however,
I do wonder how it will translate onto the PSP, all things considered much of
what made Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars such a compelling experience on the
Nintendo DS was due to the unique capabilities of that system.
Agent News | Rockstar PlayStation 3 Exclusive Announced
Sony has finally unveiled the first details regarding the forthcoming Rockstar produced PlayStation 3 exclusive franchise.
The game is titled Agent and will take players “across the globe” during the 1970s amidst the shadowy world of assassins and espionage.
Surprisingly the game is being developed by Scotland based Rockstar North, the core team behind the Grand Theft Auto franchise and the original Manhunt. No release date was given but I wouldn't imagine it would see release until at least the fall of 2010. I think it may very well be worth the wait though, given that this particular team has never made a sub great title since its inception.
Press release:
Rockstar Games, a publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), is proud to announce Agent. Developed by the people behind Grand Theft Auto, Rockstar North, Agent will be available exclusively for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system.
"We have always enjoyed making action games, and with Agent we are making what we believe will be the ultimate action game," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "Agent is a game we have wanted to make for a long time. The team in Edinburgh is doing an amazing job combining intense action, atmosphere and story in a great period setting to create something that feels quite unique. We cannot wait for people to experience this game."
Agent takes players on a paranoid journey into the world of counter-intelligence, espionage and political assassinations during the height of the Cold War at the end of the 1970s.
While on stage Jack Tretton name dropped some Rockstar franchises that started their life on the PlayStation format and mentioned Manhunt, nothing else was said in regard to the series but it is nice hearing it mentioned again, especially in high regard.
Red Dead News | Eyes-On Red Dead Redemption Previews Online
A plethora of websites have now posted their eyes-on preview of Red Dead Redemption.
Most of the information within them has been relayed by IGN previously but you
may still be interested in what the others have to say about the game based
on what they were shown.
There are also a bunch of new screenshots to accompany the write-ups, so be
sure to check out their respective image galleries.
GTA News | GTA IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony Announced
Rockstar
Games have finally announced details regarding the second episode of Grand Theft Auto IV DLC, titled “The Ballad of Gay Tony”. As was heavily
rumoured, players will get to experience Liberty City through the actions of
Luis Lopez.
"Liberty City is the most vibrant game world we've created yet. The
episodic structure has allowed us to interweave stories, gameplay and atmosphere
in a whole new way," said Sam Houser, Founder of Rockstar Games. "The
team at Rockstar North have yet again surpassed themselves, and made something that is both epic and very innovative. This episode's focus on high-end night life contrasts with the biker gangs portrayed in The Lost and Damned, whilst giving us a lot of new gameplay possibilities."
Grand Theft Auto IV's second downloadable episode, The Ballad of Gay Tony injects Liberty City with an overdose of guns, glitz, and grime. As Luis Lopez, part-time hoodlum and full-time assistant to legendary nightclub impresario Tony Prince (aka "Gay Tony"), players will struggle with the competing loyalties of family and friends, and with the uncertainty about who is real and who is fake in a world in which everyone has a price.
This fall will also see the release of Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City which combines both episodes of DLC, “The Lost and Damned”
and “The Ballad of Gay Tony” on the same disk for the price of $40,
both episodes will be playable without requiring a copy of the Grand Theft Auto
IV. Unfortunately for PlayStation 3 and PC owners this is also scheduled to
be an Xbox 360 exclusive.
Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City delivers two games on one disc - the all-new episode The Ballad of Gay Tony and the first episode, The Lost and Damned - together on disc for the first time - for Xbox 360 for $39.99
and will not require a copy of the original Grand Theft Auto IV to play. The
Ballad of Gay Tony will release on Xbox LIVE this fall for $19.99 or 1600
MS points and requires players to have Grand Theft Auto IV for Xbox 360 and
Xbox LIVE membership to download.
Additionally Take-Two have announced that Red Dead Redemption has been delayed
beyond the vaguely placed fall 2009 timeframe that was initially allotted to
the title. Instead it should see release sometime between the 1st of November
2009 and April 30th 2010, in other words the same timeslot that Grand Theft
Auto IV seen release in 2008. There is no word on any possible delay of Max
Payne 3, which is slated for release sometime this winter.
Rockstar News | Rockstar Join Twitter and Facebook
The socialites over at Rockstar Games have set up official accounts on both Twitter and Facebook and even threaten that there are “exclusive apps coming soon”.
Their latest tweet (what?) teases the following:
Details on 2nd episode of GTAIV downloadable content coming soon.
If it looks rather suspect to you, then you’re not alone, I thought so too but I ran it by the Rockstar Games Webmaster and it is 100% legit - so get subscribing.
Before you do that though head over to Game
Trailers and vote for Grand Theft Auto IV to win at Spike’s
2009 Guys Choice Awards. Grand Theft Auto IV is up for favourite new character (Niko) and favourite music awards.
Red Dead News | Red Dead Redemption Debut Trailer Released
As promised last week Rockstar have released the debut trailer for Red Dead Redemption. You can view the trailer by heading over to the games official website.
Or if that is too much like hard work you can watch the trailer on YouTube right now:
Additionally Rockstar have formed a partnership with IGN, whereby the entertainment media giant has five days of exclusive coverage of the title. Their coverage breaks down as follows:
We will be sure to update this post to reflect IGN’s coverage throughout
the week.
Print coverage of the highly anticipated Rockstar San Diego title has also
started to surface with the Official PlayStation Magazine - UK (OPM UK) running
a Red Dead Redemption feature in its latest issue.
Edit:
Details revealed from the IGN preview:
- Rockstar North and Rockstar Leeds are lending a hand in development.
- As expected it runs on Rockstar's propriety RAGE engine and uses a combination
of - Europhia and proprietary physics technology, similar to GTA IV.
- One of the largest game spaces Rockstar has ever made, missions are structured
similar to GTA and includes onscreen radar.
- Dynamic weather system with a day/night cycle with pedestrians acting acordingly
to the time and environment.
- Deadeye (slow motion) is back from the original game and can be used while
on horseback.
- Duelling will also be back but IGN never got to see it in action.
- This time around the player has regenerating health and a cover system
that allows for blind fire.
- Weapons won't be completely accurate to reflect realism. You can wield
pistols, rifles, shotguns, a kerosene lamp and a lasso.
- Online multiplayer is confirmed but not yet shown.
