Let’s do the Release Date Shuffle: ‘Brink’ edition

Bethesda Softworks announced yesterday that Splash Damage’s new FPS Brink will actually be releasing one week earlier than scheduled. This moves its release date to May 10 for North America, and May 13 for Europe. Nice. “Production wrapped on Brink earlier than we planned and we didn’t see any reason to keep gamers from getting their hands on this highly anticipated game as soon as it was ready,” said Pete Hines, VP of PR and Marketing for Bethesda Softworks. “It’s apparent from the tremendous reaction so far that people are eager to jump online and play, and if we can make that happen earlier – we’re going to.” I’m pretty eager to play, yes, but it seems more like they’re moving out of L.A. Noire‘s way. Which…well, I can’t blame them. (Look what happened to Alan Wake‘s sales when it released on the same day as Red Dead Redemption, after

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Bethesda announces ‘Prey 2′ for 2012

Bethesda Softworks announced today that a sequel to 2006′s Prey will be available for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC sometime in 2012. Prey 2 is being developed by Human Head Studios – the same studio responsible for the original – using the id tech engine. “We are thrilled to be working with Bethesda on Prey 2,” said Chris Rhinehart, project lead. “Prey 2 will provide gamers the opportunity to explore a new facet of the Prey universe, one that offers fast-paced action in an open, alien world. We’re excited to show gamers the title we have been working on and hope they will be as excited by this title as we are.” Further details on the title will be in the May editions of  OXM and PlayStation: The Official Magazine, as well as the game’s Facebook page.

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Lucy Lawless lends her voice to “Hunted: The Demon’s Forge”

Xena’s coming to games. Bethesda’s Hunted: The Demon’s Forge will feature actress Lucy Lawless, the company announced today. Lawless will portray the temptress Seraphine, who appears as a spirit guide to lure the game’s protagonists into an adventure. “Hunted is an incredibly dark, intense game and I’m delighted to have the opportunity to work on such a thrilling project,” said Lucy Lawless.  “After playing the heroine for so long it’s refreshing to portray such a villainous, seductive temptress!” Hunted: The Demon’s Forge will be released on June 1 in North America and June 3 in Europe for PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

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Musings of the Video Game Industry: WRPGs and JRPGs, Part 1

Musings of the Video Game Industry: Volume I Part 1: The Rock ‘em Sock ‘Em Robots of Cyrodiil – Why have the Gallians retreated to the PSP? For me, the PlayStation One era was the golden age of RPGs. Yes, I know that sentiment made you SNES loyalists gasp in horror. I’m well aware that PSX era RPGs are the byproduct of games like Final Fantasy IV, VI, Chrono Trigger or Secret of Mana. But the peak for me personally are the countless middle school memories I have; whether it’s fighting back tears over Aeris’ death, messing up Additions in Legend of Dragoon, replaying Chrono Cross til I got every last star, party member and niche ending, or just ruing the difficulty of Vagrant Story. RPGs were easily the premiere genre games that were selling PlayStations, and I enjoyed every little gem Japan, and predominantly Squaresoft sent our way. And

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“Hunted: The Demon’s Forge” apparently features a giant, flying eye

It’s time for a Hunted: The Demon’s Forge trailer! Yay! (No, really, I’ve been wanting to see more.) This time, we get to see some gameplay – which, so far, is actually pretty action-packed – as well as a little bit of story. Excellent. The trailer also touts a unique co-op experience, and I hope we get to learn a little bit more about that in the near future. Oh, and there’s also a flying eye. Yeah. Hunted (for PC, 360 and PS3) is on store shelves June 1. Watch the gameplay trailer below.

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Quakecon announces dates for 2011

QuakeCon, a yearly video game festival that is completely open to the public (with free attendance, to boot), announced dates for this year’s event this afternoon. Where do you need to be and when? First, head to Dallas’ Hilton Anatole Hotel. Well, actually, you’ll need to wait until August 4-7, and THEN go to Dallas. You’ll want to bring your computer for North America’s largest LAN party, or, if you’re not so into that, it’s cool – Bethesda Softworks is showing off their upcoming titles. Other companies will also be demonstrating what they’ve got in the pipeline, and there will be panels and entertainment all over the place. Visit www.quakecon.org to learn more.

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Bethesda announces release dates for “Brink,” “Hunted” and more

Bethesda has four AAA games scheduled for 2011, and they confirmed release dates for those today. (All of them will be available on 360, PS3 and PC.) Brink, a first-person shooter that “blend[s] single-player, co-op and multiplayer action into one seamless experience,” will be available in North America on May 17 and Europe on May 20. (Are there any FPSes that don’t have single-player, co-op and multiplayer these days?) Hunted, a fantasy action title which was announced early last year, has a release date of June 1 for North America and June 3 for Europe. RAGE, from id Software, will be released September 13 (North America) and September 16 (Europe). The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, formally announced via a trailer at the VGAs, is the latest chapter in the Elder Scrolls series (as indicated by the Roman numeral V) and is due out November 11, or, as you’ll see on

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Find treasure from a different Sierra Madre in “Fallout: New Vegas: Dead Money”

“If one of you dies, you all die.” That’s just a tiny taste of the plot for Fallout: New Vegas’ first downloadable content, “Dead Money.” You get captured, along with three other wastelanders, and you’ve all got to work together. What for? The treasure of the Sierra Madre. No, wait, not that one. The Sierra Madre Casino. That might be a little less glamorous. Along the way, you’ll face new creatures, explore new areas and make more choices. This trailer gives you your first look. Video Games | Fallout: New Vegas: Dead Money | Debut Trailer XBox 360 | Playstation 3 | Nintendo Wii

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“Resident Evil” creator moves to Bethesda parent company

Tango Gameworks, headed by Shinji Mikami, creator of the Resident Evil series, has been snapped up by ZeniMax Media, which you might know better as the parent company of Bethesda Softworks. (In other news, they apparently like studios that use “-works” in their name.) “It’s refreshing to find a publisher who understands, trusts, and supports the development of blockbuster games and works to make it a collaborative effort,” said Mikami. “The library of AAA franchise titles ZeniMax owns speaks for itself. We are very excited to be joining ZeniMax and working with a company that is dedicated to creating the best games ever made.” Tango is dedicated to AAA game development and is staffed with talent from across Japan, including developers with experience from creating games in series like Devil May Cry and Final Fantasy. Mikami will continue to run the show over there, and he will also be the

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Bug fixes coming to New Vegas

Not only is the Mojave Wasteland full of bugs to fight, the entirety of Fallout: New Vegas is, as well. In this post over at Techland, Bethesda Softworks producer Jason Bergman talks about a few bugs that supposedly didn’t make it to release. Except…well, a few of them did. Players have already encountered the first bug listed, which causes Doc Mitchell’s head to turn around and around, à la The Exorcism. Bethesda has responded to a few of these issues by saying that a patch is, in fact, coming very soon. I personally had a two-minute freeze in the first five minutes of play, which is pretty disappointing, but not very funny, like a spinning head would be. At least if it was the “Heat Vision” bug (where activating VATS with incendiary rounds, then leaving the mode without shooting causes the target to burst into flame), it would be awesome.

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