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September 6th, 2010NewsJust two days after revealing its stewardship of the Duke Nukem Forever title at PAX, Gearbox Software just revealed that it has actually purchased the Duke Nukem brand. Gearbox president Randy Pitchford told an audience at PAX this afternoon that they're not just making sure Duke Nukem Forever makes it to store shelves, but they've actually purchased the entire Duke Nukem IP. "We actually bought the brand," Pitchford told fans. "We bought Duke Nukem."
A press release timed to go out with the announcement has some more information. Here's the big picture quote: "Gearbox Software announced today that it has acquired the full intellectual property rights of the 'Duke Nukem' brand including Duke Nukem Forever and all future projects in a cooperative deal made with 3D Realms." Even more interesting: "The first product to be available under the Duke Nukem brand will be the long awaited Duke Nukem Forever." Naturally, if they're buying the brand you can imagine DNF won't be the last game to feature the Duke.
Pitchford made a point to say that Alan Blum, the creator of the Duke Nukem franchise, is now with Gearbox. "He's on the 10th floor with his team," he said. He also wanted to explain that this franchise couldn't simply have been purchased by anyone. "I didn't buy it from [3D Realms]," Pitchford said. "They sold it to me." In the press release, 3D Realms' Scott Miller said, "Gearbox was handpicked as the new home for Duke Nukem because of their continued passion, commitment and long-time heritage with the brand and 3D Realms."
So, Duke Begins then?Continue reading 'We bought Duke Nukem.' Franchise rights transferred from 3D Realms to Gearbox
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'We bought Duke Nukem.' Franchise rights transferred from 3D Realms to Gearbox originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 05 Sep 2010 19:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 6th, 2010NewsWe've got bad news and good news. First, the bad news: The new Borderlands DLC pack - that's Claptrap's New Robot Revolution - won't include the two most requested features. Those would be a new level cap and a rebalancing of the main game to accomodate the new level cap. And neither of those will be included with the latest DLC.
Now the good news: They are being included in a free update for the game across all three platforms, Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford told a live PAX audience that his studio resisted making it a part of a DLC pack since, if they included those features, "you'd have to buy every previous DLC" to get access to said features. So, instead, Pitchford said they were going to release a "free update to Borderlands that will both rebalance the original game around the level cap and increase the level cap for everyone."
But Pitchford said the studio still struggled with how high to raise it. On the one hand, Gearbox didn't want to match the 11-point upgrade that many people paid for with the "General Knox" DLC, but on the other the devs didn't want it to be too low, like 5-points. Instead, they came up with another number. "With the current level cap at 61," Pitchford teased, "we realized if we added 8 levels ... "
The audience groans.
So the new level cap is 69 and it will be released sometime around the October 12th Borderlands Game of the Year Edition release.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsFree Borderlands update will raise level cap, rebalance main game originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 05 Sep 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsA new, bug-free version of Crackdown 2's "Toy Box" DLC pack was released yesterday morning on Xbox Live Marketplace, according to Ruffian Games. Unfortunately, rather than a patch, the DLC has been re-issued, meaning that folks who downloaded the content will need to delete it and redownload. The new version fixes issues ranging from "crash on loading" to issues with the narrator's voice and Achievement problems, which we reported on earlier this week.
Ruffian says that the glitches were "caused by problems mastering the DLC package," thus the reissue rather than a patch. The developer assures players that "all will be fine" after the download, which was available publicly as of yesterday morning. We've yet to hear of any issues with the re-release, but feel free to let us know if you find any.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsCrackdown 2 'Toy Box' DLC crashing issues resolved by reissue originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 05 Sep 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsHothead revealed Swarm for the first time back at E3. Then, we didn't know much about the game -- it's actually still in pre-Alpha, despite a launch window of "early 2011." We were given a demo of the game at PAX and finally came to understand what we were dealing with.
It's hard to see the game and not compare it to Lemmings. Both games have a seemingly dull-witted cast who have found themselves inexplicably stuck in an incredibly dangerous environment. And both have the same means to persevere: teamwork.
Continue reading Swarm preview: strength in numbers
Permalink | Email this | CommentsSwarm preview: strength in numbers originally appeared on Joystiq on Sun, 05 Sep 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsNext month's Game Informer cover isn't revealing a new game - unlike last month's Batman: Arkham City cover - but it's still got plenty to offer. Behold! Three separate BioShock Infinite covers, crafted by Irrational artist Rob Waters, that ape the old-timey, Norman Rockwell aesthetic of "The Saturday Evening Post." Unveiled during a PAX panel titled "From Concept to Cover: The Game Informer Selection Process," GI Editor-in-Chief Andy McNamara shared not only the final three covers, but the many revisions that went into each one. We've got some galleries below of each cover and its various revisions, including some commentary from both Game Informer and Irrational.
Continue reading Here's the BioShock Infinite Game Informer cover(s)
Permalink | Email this | CommentsHere's the BioShock Infinite Game Informer cover(s) originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 22:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsBungie revealed an interesting tidbit about the creation of Noble, the protagonist Spartan squad engulfed in the conflict on the titular planet in Halo: Reach. There were initially more members of the team, though two were eventually cut in favor of the five in the final Noble team we know today (excluding Noble Six, the player character in Halo: Reach).
"Back in the early days, we talked a lot about The Magnificent Seven and The Seven Samurai," Lee Wilson, story and cinematics lead, said. "And yes, originally, there were seven Spartans. Here's a little bit of trivia for you guys: Rosetta and Tom, yes, were two of the Spartans we had to cut, unfortunately."
Wilson described Rosetta as being "sassy," while Tom was "a cowboy." If you need us, we'll be pouring one out for the first casualties in the Fall of Reach.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsHalo: Reach's Spartans who didn't make the cut originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsNot at PAX? Want to live vicariously through the power of the internet? We can think of no better solution to your dilemma than to recommend you watch our video of Matt "Chainsaw" Chaney's ukelele performance of "Donuts, Go Nuts!" from the Twisted Pixel booth this afternoon. And look on the bright side: You can go flip on your Xbox and play Splosion Man (again!) while all these suckers at PAX are left napping on beanbag chairs.
Continue reading Video: Watch Splosion Man's 'Donuts, Go Nuts!' song performed live at PAX
Permalink | Email this | CommentsVideo: Watch Splosion Man's 'Donuts, Go Nuts!' song performed live at PAX originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 5th, 2010NewsJust because you aren't at PAX Prime this weekend doesn't mean you can't experience at least some of the joys and wonders that the show floor has to offer. For instance, the 10 straight minutes of Portal 2 co-op gameplay that we've dropped after the break, courtesy of GameTrailers -- hearing the "oohs" and "aahs" of the crowd on all sides, you'll feel just like you're there! And sure, you might not get a free Portal 2 shirt like this session's attendees did, but you can experience a heartwarming robot hug. And isn't that more than enough?
Continue reading Portal 2's PAX co-op gameplay footage introduces robot hugs
Permalink | Email this | CommentsPortal 2's PAX co-op gameplay footage introduces robot hugs originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 4th, 2010NewsDuring development of the original Halo: Combat Evolved, Bungie actually created a working boat. One map in particular was discussed during today's Bungie panel at PAX 2010 -- an area with several islands where the player would have to navigate from one to the other via watercraft. Bungie showed a video of an early rendering of the craft in use, which very much looked like a futuristic version of a cigarette boat.
In the end, it was cut from the game -- not because it didn't handle well, but because "it wasn't fun." Personally, we would've liked to try our hand at aquatic Haloing, but then again we're huge fans of Miami Vice.
Permalink | Email this | CommentsHalo: Combat Evolved and the battle for boats originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds. -
September 4th, 2010NewsIf you need proof that the upswing of independent game development is having an impact on more mainstream devs, look no further than Outland, the upcoming XBLA and PSN release just revealed by Ubisoft during PAX 2010.
Just tell me this doesn't seem like one of those way-out-there ideas, the product of one-man coding in his spare time: It's a beautifully rendered animated platformer that draws aesthetic inspiration from classics like Out of this World ... oh, and it's sort of based on Ikaruga.
Crazy, yes, but also very real and, as I can attest after one of the levels and a boss battle, very beautiful.Continue reading Outland preview: When shmups grow legs
Permalink | Email this | CommentsOutland preview: When shmups grow legs originally appeared on Joystiq on Sat, 04 Sep 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
