Tag: Lucasarts

Retro Achievement List: Star Wars: Shadows Of The Empire

Photo courtesy gametrailers.com

Previously on Retro Achievement List:

We here at Nerd Rating love achievements and trophies. We are admitted whores for them, but when you think about it, the practice of gamerscores is only seven years old with the introduction of the Xbox 360. We have 30 years of backlogged video games that need to be updated! So that is what we are venturing to do. Our new feature called Retro Achievement List will look back at games of the past and give them a set of achievements to strive for even if they may not seem serious.

With the news that Disney is shutting down LucasArts as a game developer it has made us look back at the great games the developer gave us over the past 20 years. I have picked Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire because of the sheer amount of time I spent in this game. You see kids, way back in the ancient year of 1996, games for the just released Nintendo 64 were hard to find. I had already collected all 120 stars two times over on Super Mario 64 and shot rockets at every mountainside in Pilotwings 64, so when Shadows hit the system 3 months after the N64 launch, I was clamoring for it like Casey Anthony for another kid. And it was glorious! I mean if you go back and play it today it looks and plays like absolute shit, but back then….my mind was blown. Ship combat and a FPS with a game that bridged Episode 4 and 5, sign me up! But there are no achievements for the game….until now.

Achievement Unlocked:

*Achievement #1

After taking down your first AT-AT with a tow cable, go change your pants because you shit them.

*Achievement #2

Spend more than thirty minutes floating up and down the same hallway after figuring out the skating trick on Hoth.

*Achievement #3

Wait for every enemy to get near a cliff so you can watch them fall off after shooting them.

*Achievement #4

Have no regrets when your friends are out having fun and you are trying to shoot every red asteroid for challenge points.

*Achievement #5

Ask your mother what she is doing as she walks in front of you with a laundry basket making you fall off the train in Ord Mantell. Not like she is taking care of you or anything, dickhead (I am speaking to my past self here).

*Achievement #6

Say “how long is this level” ten times while playing through Gall Spaceport. (Hint: It’s fucking long.)

*Achievement #7

Mention how awesome the prequels to Star Wars are going to be to your friends on a daily basis while you play.

*Achievement #8

Kick out anyone in your house that questions how you got $70 to pay for your game because you have a job and their mother is a welfare whore.

*Achievement #9

Uncontrollably laugh at how funny the name Xixor is as you play with a good amount of pot.

*Achievement #10

Buy game again six years later as your girlfriend wonders why you are paying $25 for a game without a box and covered with cigarette burns and a old Jolly Rancher wrapper.

We want to hear from all of you also! What achievements would you add to Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire? Leave us a comment below or tweet us your responses on Twitter (@nerdrating) and use the hashtag #RetroAchievement

April 5, 2013
Raven Software Releases Source Code For Jedi Knight To Fans

Photo courtesy razorianfly.com

In the wake of Disney shutting down LucasArts, Raven Software has gone and done the fans a solid by releasing the source code for both Star Wars: Jedi Knight games, Jedi Academy and Jedi Outcast. In the hands of the internet community I am excited to see what will come from so many people having access to this code. This is not to be confused with the Jake Gyllenhaal movie on a train.

Raven released an official statement about this via Kotaku:

“Raven is sad to hear about the closing of LucasArts today, we respected them and enjoyed working with them over the years. We wish the best for all the talented people who were let go and hope they find good work in studios in the industry.

We loved and appreciated the experience of getting to make Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy for LucasArts. As a gift to the persistently loyal fanbase for our Jedi games and in memory of LucasArts, we are releasing the source code for both games for people to enjoy and play with.”

April 4, 2013
Disney Lays Off 150 LucasArts Employees. Changes To A Licensing Model.

Well it appears the honeymoon is over for Lucas and Disney. Shit got business real today when Disney laid off 150 employees at LucasArts and said that it would become a “licensing model” and stop internal development and publishing. Effectively this means that Disney just killed LucasArts, makers of games like Rebel Assault, Rogue Squadron, Jedi Knight, Shadows of the Empire and Battlefront.

Here is the official statement from Disney:

“After evaluating our position in the games market, we’ve decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company’s risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games,” LucasArts parent company LucasFilm said in a statement. “As a result of this change, we’ve had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles.”

This news especially sucks for Star Wars: 1313 and First Assault which were essentially cancelled. Since LucasArts will be used in name only for future Disney/Star Wars releases these two in house games will most likely never see the light of day.

It has been a joy ride so far between Disney, Star Wars and fans with high hopes of the new trilogy directed by J.J. Abrams, but this is not going to go over well in the already cynical nerd community. I know Disney is a business and honestly will not give two shits about how fat guys like myself feel about this, but I know that I was looking forward to 1313, more so than any Star Wars game in a very long time and have a little bitterness that it may never surface. I also feel bad for those 150 people that lost their jobs today. Hell, you would think that LucasArts would be a safe place to work after the Disney acquisition. Your job is the job of making Star Wars for a digital medium. If that is not safe, what is?

April 3, 2013
Why Is Star Wars: 1313 Not Moving Forward?

Photo courtesy attackofthefanboy.com

Way back when at E3 2012, Lucasarts showed off amazing looking footage for a brand new Star Wars game titled Star Wars: 1313. It was dark and gritty and it was beautiful. So much so that when the show was over debate began on whether this was actually our first look at a true next-gen game. Then….nothing. No developers talking up how hard they were working on it, no hints on what systems or possible releases dates. It went off the radar.

So what gives?

Seems Kotaku may have turned over the right rock and figured out where the game has been hiding. It appears that the game has been put on hold since the Disney acquisition of Lucasfilm last year to focus completely on getting J.J. Abrams’ Episode VII going into production. There is no word on if the game will be moving forward after a certain amount of time or if it will simply fall onto Disney/Lucas’ immense back burner.

I do hope that the higher ups at Disney do not just think of one avenue of media to make money off of Star Wars. The Lucasarts game history is a checkered one, yes, but also one that is filled with classic games and I hope that Star Wars 1313 is given a chance to be fully realized and see the light of day.

March 1, 2013
Angry Birds Star Wars Gameplay Trailer

I’m All Out Of Bird Jokes.

November 8th will see the release of Angry Birds Star Wars which somehow manages to actually look like genuine fun. The new gameplay trailer shows how each character will have special abilities and levels that are catered for Angry Birds Space users (being Star Wars and all). Luke can use his lightsaber, Han has his blaster and Chewie looks like the brute of the group bashing through walls.

Will any of you be downloading the game when it is released or has Angry Birds “jumped the shark” for you?

Angry Birds Star Wars will be available on iOS, Android and Windows Phone.

November 5, 2012
Disney Buys Lucasfilm For $4 Billion Dollars. New Star Wars In 2015.

So this bit of insanity just happened.

It is being reported that Disney has bought Lucasfilm lock, stock and barrel from George Lucas for the cool sum of 4.05 billion dollars. And that is not the biggest news.

Disney has announced that a brand new Star Wars movie is in development.

Yeah stew on that for a second.

Star Wars: Episode 7 will be looking to release during the summer of 2015. Which with The Avengers 2 and Justice League may officially make it the biggest summer movie season in history.

Here is the press release in case the reality of this has not set in yet.

Continuing its strategy of delivering exceptional creative content to audiences around the world, The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS) has agreed to acquire Lucasfilm Ltd. in a stock and cash transaction. Lucasfilm is 100% owned by Lucasfilm Chairman and Founder, George Lucas.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney stock on October 26, 2012, the transaction value is $4.05 billion, with Disney paying approximately half of the consideration in cash and issuing approximately 40 million shares at closing. The final consideration will be subject to customary post-closing balance sheet adjustments.

“Lucasfilm reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and storytelling of its founder, George Lucas,” said Robert A. Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company. “This transaction combines a world-class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the greatest family entertainment franchises of all time, with Disney’s unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained growth and drive significant long-term value.”

“For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next,” said George Lucas, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lucasfilm. “It’s now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers. I’ve always believed that Star Wars could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime. I’m confident that with Lucasfilm under the leadership of Kathleen Kennedy, and having a new home within the Disney organization, Star Wars will certainly live on and flourish for many generations to come. Disney’s reach and experience give Lucasfilm the opportunity to blaze new trails in film, television, interactive media, theme parks, live entertainment, and consumer products.”

Under the deal, Disney will acquire ownership of Lucasfilm, a leader in entertainment, innovation and technology, including its massively popular and “evergreen” Star Wars franchise and its operating businesses in live action film production, consumer products, animation, visual effects, and audio post production. Disney will also acquire the substantial portfolio of cutting-edge entertainment technologies that have kept audiences enthralled for many years. Lucasfilm, headquartered in San Francisco, operates under the names Lucasfilm Ltd., LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic, and Skywalker Sound, and the present intent is for Lucasfilm employees to remain in their current locations.

Kathleen Kennedy, current Co-Chairman of Lucasfilm, will become President of Lucasfilm, reporting to Walt Disney Studios Chairman Alan Horn. Additionally she will serve as the brand manager for Star Wars, working directly with Disney’s global lines of business to build, further integrate, and maximize the value of this global franchise. Ms. Kennedy will serve as executive producer on new Star Wars feature films, with George Lucas serving as creative consultant. Star Wars Episode 7 is targeted for release in 2015, with more feature films expected to continue the Star Wars saga and grow the franchise well into the future.

The acquisition combines two highly compatible family entertainment brands, and strengthens the long-standing beneficial relationship between them that already includes successful integration of Star Wars content into Disney theme parks in Anaheim, Orlando, Paris and Tokyo.

Driven by a tremendously talented creative team, Lucasfilm’s legendary Star Wars franchise has flourished for more than 35 years, and offers a virtually limitless universe of characters and stories to drive continued feature film releases and franchise growth over the long term. Star Wars resonates with consumers around the world and creates extensive opportunities for Disney to deliver the content across its diverse portfolio of businesses including movies, television, consumer products, games and theme parks. Star Wars feature films have earned a total of $4.4 billion in global box to date, and continued global demand has made Star Wars one of the world’s top product brands, and Lucasfilm a leading product licensor in the United States in 2011. The franchise provides a sustainable source of high quality, branded content with global appeal and is well suited for new business models including digital platforms, putting the acquisition in strong alignment with Disney’s strategic priorities for continued long-term growth.

The Lucasfilm acquisition follows Disney’s very successful acquisitions of Pixar and Marvel, which demonstrated the company’s unique ability to fully develop and expand the financial potential of high quality creative content with compelling characters and storytelling through the application of innovative technology and multiplatform distribution on a truly global basis to create maximum value. Adding Lucasfilm to Disney’s portfolio of world class brands significantly enhances the company’s ability to serve consumers with a broad variety of the world’s highest-quality content and to create additional long-term value for our shareholders.

The Boards of Directors of Disney and Lucasfilm have approved the transaction, which is subject to clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, certain non-United States merger control regulations, and other customary closing conditions. The agreement has been approved by the sole shareholder of Lucasfilm

October 30, 2012
Star Wars 1313 Developers Want To Take You To Hell

One of the games that really blew me away at E3 this year was Star Wars 1313. It is at least trying something new for a Star Wars game. Focusing on the life of a bounty hunter in a M-rated Star Wars universe, you descend to the lower levels of the capital city of Coruscant and blast your way through your fair share of scum and villainy.

This web documentary gives the developers a chance to show off some of the amazing E3 game footage as well as concept art while they explain what they are attempting to accomplish with this risky entry into the Star Wars universe. Take a look and see what you think.

August 29, 2012