Tag: Gears of War

  • Microsoft Purchases Gears Of War Licence From Epic

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    And the remnants of Cliffy B. have left the building.

    Epic Games have sold the rights to the Gears of War property in its entirety to Microsoft Studios, meaning that the future tales of humans and Locusts will remain an Xbox exclusive. Let’s get the official bit out of the way first.

    “Today we’re excited to announce that Microsoft Studios has acquired the rights to the “Gears of War” franchise from Epic Games, including rights to all existing and future games, entertainment experiences and merchandise. In addition, we are excited to announce that Black Tusk Studios in Vancouver, BC will take over development of the “Gears of War” franchise and that Rod Fergusson, former Director of Production at Epic Games on the “Gears of War” franchise, will join Microsoft and play a key studio leadership role at Black Tusk on the development of the franchise going forward.” 

    This sale solves two problems at once: I assume Epic did not want to make any more Gears games and Microsoft wants more because the machine runs on money.

    This tells me that the next game in the Gears universe will most likely be a sequel unlike the, (Toy Story 2 was) OK, Judgement.

    Microsoft must think a lot of unproven developer, Black Tusk, to give them the reigns to Gears of War. This paid off once before when 343 Industries took on Halo 4 and knocked it out of the park. Hopefully with a lot of new brains working together we will get some new gameplay ideas that will reinvigorate the series. I am sure Microsoft will take the Halo approach and write a blank check to Black Tusk for development.

    No timetable was given on when to expect a new Gears of War game. I would expect some sort of teaser trailer at E3 this year to begin with. Don’t expect the game until at least 2015 or 2016.

  • Gears Of War Movie Finds New Life

    Photo courtesy pcadvisor.co.uk
    Photo courtesy pcadvisor.co.uk

    We may still get a cinematic trip to Sera as Variety is reporting that the [amazon_link id=”B002I0H79C” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War[/amazon_link] movie is back on track. Producer Scott Stuber (Battleship, Ted) has signed onto the project and Epic has agreed to work alongside Stuber’s Bluegrass Studios to get a script going and finance the film. After that, they can shop it around to the studios with Universal having first rights to option it.

    Director Len Wiseman was last attached to Gears of War a few years back before things fell apart again for what seemed like the tenth time. If nothing can come of it this time, maybe it is time do be smart like Ken Levine with Bioshock and let the Gears movie ride off into the sunset.

     

  • Infiltrator Is The Unreal Engine 4 Tech Demo That Will Make You Weep For The Future

    Photo courtesy zing.cz
    Photo courtesy zing.cz

    And by weep, I mean big, ugly man tears of joy. Like when your girlfriend says she wished you showed more emotion and then when you finally do tear up and cry (like at the end of Armageddon) she looks at you like you are a complete moron.

    This week at GDC, Epic Games have been showing off a new tech demo for the Unreal Engine 4 called Infiltrator and now it is online for all of our eye holes. Prepare your retinas for an assault of next-gen awesomeness. It is unknown if this is simply a tech demo or if this could possibly become a game years from now as Gears of War was after the debut of Unreal Engine 3.

    If you like futuristic settings and beautiful graphics having sex with your eyes then get ready.

  • Meet Kilo Squad In The New Gears Of War: Judgment Trailer

    We are only days away from a return to Sera in Gears of War: Judgment. The prequel is set 14 years before the events in Gears of War and stars the returning Damon Baird, Augustus Cole and the rest of Kilo Squad.

    Who is the rest of Kilo Squad you might ask? Well that is just what the video released today answers for you. Kilo Squad is made up of Baird, Cole, Paduk and Sofia so go watch the new video and get a quick look at your new teammates.

    [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link] releases on March 19th.

  • Why Is Baird The Lead In Gears Of War: Judgment?

    Photo courtesy softpedia.com
    Photo courtesy softpedia.com

    Let’s face it, chicks dig the Baird. That is the reason there is a freaking shirt dedicated to that saying floating around. For folks such as myself, I am wholly prepared for a full game filled with Baird’s unique….OK he is a smart ass, but that is his appeal to me. I can see how he could rub some people the wrong way and some people may not want to play [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link] because of that.

    Jim Brown, lead level designer at People Can Fly has explained in a recent interview exactly why we are getting a whole bunch of Baird.

    “He was an interesting character. He’s actually kind of divisive. Most players really, really like him, but there were a couple that were like, ‘Man that’s guy’s just an asshole’. But to me that means he’s interesting. That means that there’s a real story there to tell.”

    Gears fans should not have a problem at all with the choice. I mean we are getting more Gears. Suck it complainers.

    Gears of War: Judgment releases on March 19th.

  • Gears Of War: Judgment Aftermath Trailer

    Photo courtesy ew.com
    Photo courtesy ew.com

    A pleasant surprise happened last night during the new Gears of War: Judgment reveal on Xbox Live. A new single-player unlock called Aftermath was announced which puts players into the story of Cole and Baird during the events of Gears of War 3. During Gears 3, when Marcus and Anya head forward to Azura, they send Cole and Baird to go and find reinforcements. This is where Aftermath kicks in and will have about an hour new story that will also connect back to what you are playing in Judgment.

    Watch the video below and see a bit of Aftermath as well as the developers talking about the new “smart spawn” system and what they hope to achieve with the game.

    [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link] releases on March 19th.

  • Gears Of War: Judgment Season Pass Available For $19.99

    Photo courtesy gearsofwar.com
    Photo courtesy gearsofwar.com

    When [amazon_link id=”B002I0H79C” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War 3[/amazon_link] launched it offered up a Season Pass for $29.99 that included four DLC packs that mixed single and multiplayer content. Now Gears of War: Judgment will be receiving a season pass of its own, but with no single player DLC.

    The “VIP Season Pass’ will cost $19.99 and will give the buyer a 30% discount over buying the content separately. Here is what you will get when you purchase the Season Pass:

    -Permanent double-XP for all multiplayer

    -Six new multiplayer maps

    -Two new game modes

    -Five weapon skins

    -Four armor skins

    -Early access to multiplayer maps and more

    Gears of War: Judgment releases on March 19th.

     

  • New Gears Of War: Judgment Video Shows Off Multiplayer

    Photo courtesy g4tv.com
    Photo courtesy g4tv.com

    Damon Baird is back to give you the rundown on all the new goodies to the multiplayer in [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link]. The new character classes are explained as well as how multiplayer maps will have more verticality to them.

    I am more excited about this Gears multiplayer experience than I was for Gears 3 because it seems that the guys over at People Can Fly are addressing a lot of the issues that fans have wanted changed in past entries. I love the new class system and the addition of new grenades like the beacon grenades that give off a sort of sonar effect allowing you see through walls and the stim grenade which heals anyone near where it goes off. And finally, the ability to quick toss grenades!!! Thank you!!!

    You also get a look at the Overrun mode which is like Horde on crack and free for all which I will spend many, many hours on. I am more of a screw teams, let’s just kill each other group.

    Gears of War: Judgment releases on March 19th.

  • Gears Of War: Judgment Achievement List

     

    Photo courtesy Kotaku
    Photo courtesy Kotaku

    Baird, Cole and the rest of Kilo Squad are on a mission to clear their names in the prequel [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link] which releases on March 19th. Now the list of achievements have been revealed to show all of you (us) achievements whores what we will have to endure for our 1,000 points.

    They Called Him Karn (10 points) – Completed Museum Of Military Glory
    Open Arms (10 points) – Completed Halvo Bay Military Academy
    The Real Thing (10 points) – Completed Seahorse Hills
    Take Back This City (10 points) – Completed Onyx Point
    I Told You (10 points) – Completed Downtown Halvo Bay
    This One’s Not Over (10 points) – Completed Courthouse
    Friends (10 points) – Completed Aftermath
    Determined (10 points) – Completed all Campaign Chapters on at least Casual difficulty
    Steel Nerves (10 points) – Completed all Campaign Chapters on at least Normal difficult
    Iron Fist (25 points) – Completed all Campaign Chapters on at least Hardcore difficulty
    Lion Heart (50 points) – Completed all Campaign Chapters on Insane difficulty
    Party People (10 points) – Played any section in 4 player Co-Op
    Blood Brothers (50 points) – Completed all Campaign Chapters in Co-op
    Challenge Accepted (5 points) – Completed your first Declassified mission
    Never Give Up (10 points) – Completed at least 20 Declassified missions
    Quality Soldiering (50 points) – Completed all Declassified missions
    A Peek into the Future (10 points) – Watched Aftermath teaser
    The Aftermath (20 points) – Unlocked Aftermath
    Rising Star (10 points) – Attained 50 Stars on at least Casual Difficulty
    Shooting Star (20 points) – Attained 75 Stars on at least Normal Difficulty
    Star Struck (50 points) – Attained 100 Stars on at least Hardcore Difficulty
    Superstar (50 points) – Attained all Stars on Insane Difficulty
    Never Forgotten (10 points) – Recovered 10 COG Tags during the Campaign
    Veteran Remembrance (10 points) – Recovered 25 COG Tags during the Campaign
    Respect for the Fallen (20 points) – Recovered all 48 COG Tags during the Campaign
    Ribbon Master (10 points) – Earned 3 unique Ribbons in any section
    Proud Wearer (5 points) – Equipped your first Medal
    Ready for War (20 points) – Earned at least one Onyx medal
    Sybarite (50 points) – Earned the Onyx “War Supporter” medal
    Seriously Judgmental (75 points) – Completed all Declassified Missions on Insane difficulty
    Level 5 (5 points) – Reached level 5
    Level 10 (10 points) – Reached level 10
    Level 20 (10 points) – Reached level 20
    Level 30 (15 points)- Reached level 30
    Level 40 (25 points) – Reached level 40
    Level 50 (25 points) – Reached level 50
    Let’s Do This (50 points) – Achieved level 50 and chose to re-up for another tour of duty
    Fearless (50 points) – Achieved level 50 a second time and chose to re-up for another tour
    Unstoppable (50 points) – Achieved level 50 a third time and chose to re-up for another tour
    Death to Locust (10 points) – Killed with all classes of COG in Overrun or Survival
    Death to the COG (10 points) – Killed with all classes of Locust in Overrun
    Survivor (10 points) – Completed wave 10 on all maps in Survival mode
    Globe Trotter (10 points) – Won a match on every map in all Versus modes
    Jack of All Trades (10 points) – Won 10 matches of Overrun
    Team Leader (10 points) – Won 10 rounds of Team Deathmatch
    All Rounder (10 points) – Won one match in Free For All, Team Deathmatch, and Domination
    Roaming Free (10 points) – Won one match on every map in Free For All
    Team On Tour (10 points) – Won one match on every map in Team Deathmatch
    Overran (10 points) – Won one match on every map in Overrun
    Dominator (10 points) – Won one match on every map in Domination

  • Challenge Accepted: Four For February

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    2013 is going to hit gamers like a punch in the gut very soon. Between March and May there are no less than five triple-A games set to hit consoles. [amazon_link id=”B004FS8LYK” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Tomb Raider[/amazon_link], [amazon_link id=”B007FTE2VW” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Sim City[/amazon_link], God of War: Ascension, [amazon_link id=”B002I0H2AG” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Gears of War: Judgment[/amazon_link] and [amazon_link id=”B007CM0K86″ target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Last of Us[/amazon_link] will cerainly occupy a lot of your free time. Then you have the new consoles to look forward to.

    If you are like me, you probably have a stack of games that have been started and put aside for a later date. Well that is what February is for! An idea was given on a gaming group I am a part of on Facebook (taken from a story on Kotaku) called “Four for February” in which we pick four games that we decide to finish in the 28 days of the month to catch up on the “Pile of Shame” we collect as gamers.

    I will be attempting to do this beginning next month and encourage all of you who are besieged by unfinished games crying out for your time to do the same. Let us know what games you would want to attempt to finish in February. Here are my four:

    [amazon_link id=”B0076ZPYPI” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Sleeping Dogs[/amazon_link]

    [amazon_link id=”B0050SYLRK” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Assassin’s Creed 3[/amazon_link]

    [amazon_link id=”B005THAX5Q” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Aliens: Colonial Marines[/amazon_link]

    [amazon_link id=”B0050SWTAQ” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Need For Speed: Most Wanted[/amazon_link]

    Will you accept the challenge? Or let your games remain to look sad on your shelf?