22 Jul 2014

Battlefield: Hardline delayed to Q1 2015

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Battlefield-Hardline.jpg

I didn’t find the Battlefield: Hardline PS4 beta very entertaining and it looks like Electronic Arts and DICE have heard folks like me loud and clear.

Here are a few of the things the new timing will allow us to accomplish:

1. Multiplayer Innovation: Coming out of our E3 beta, internal focus tests, and work with our community, we have received a lot of great Multiplayer thinking. We’re going to be adding some new feature ideas direct from the community that will evolve the cops and criminals fantasy into a truly unique Battlefield Multiplayer experience.

2. Single Player Story Depth: In order to ensure our Single Player experience delivers on player expectations, we’re spending more time polishing our core features, as well as adding a few new ones that will support a deeper “crime revenge” story experience.

3. Stability: This has been a focus for our team since day one and we’re going to be using the extra time to continue to optimize the game for a stable launch. We have learned a lot from Battlefield 4, are continuing to learn from our Community Test Environment and will learn more from another Hardline beta. More time allows us to surface issues that the team can attempt to fix prior to launch.

 

The delay into Q1 2015 is welcomed and they’re saying all the right things but unless they’re putting out another beta/demo and demonstrate all the changes they’ve made, I will be keeping funds in my wallet.

I suspect this will be a March 2015 release which makes me wonder how much they could do to differentiate itself from Battlefield 4’s multiplayer. They’re not going to deviate from the vision of a smaller scale but more densely packed multiplayer game, are they?

I wish this was an expansion pack like Battlefield: Bad Company 2: Vietnam. They could have sold it for $30 CAD for current Battlefield 4 owners and I may have purchased it because it’s more than just maps. For a retail and digital store presence, they could repackage Battlefield 4 to include Hardline and sell it for $69.99. Then they could up-sell Battlefield 4 Premium and/or Hardline Premium.

I’m giving away free ideas, EA. Take them.

4 Jun 2014

Everything is in 2015?

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With Batman: Arkham Knight joining the likes of The Order: 1886, Halo 5, Quantum Break and The Witcher 3, I’m left wondering what is left for 2014.

We know Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare will stay the course and I’m pretty sure Electronic Arts will ensure Battlefield: Hardline makes its autumn launch window. Then there’s Destiny which (at this moment) is the last man standing as far as I’m concerned. But I will not be shocked if it misses its launch date either.

This will leave a huge void to fill. By the end of the Xbox 360’s first year, we had the launch of Gears of War. And by the end of the PlayStation 3’s first year, there was Uncharted and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

With all these cancellations, I’m left wondering where the next big original IPs will be from both first party and third party developers.

10 Mar 2014

DriveClub went “back to the drawing board”

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PlayStation’s Scott Rohde told IGN, DriveClub went “back to the drawing board” to make it a “great game”.

“So, I think that at PlayStation, perhaps more than at other places, we’re willing to kinda eat that [cost],” Rohde continued, “and go back to the drawing board and make sure the game is great before we ship it. And that’s what’s going on right now with that game.”

Normally that wouldn’t be anything to bat an eye at but with The Last Guardian’s long development, the axing of Studio Liverpool, the departure of Amy Hennig from Naughty Dog and the scrapping Santa Monica Studio’s new IP, I can’t help but wonder what’s going with Sony’s internal studios.

“So, I think that at PlayStation, perhaps more than at other places, we’re willing to kinda eat that [cost],”

Sony wasn’t even able to commit to a 2014 release which makes me wonder if the idea of “eating additional development” cost is worth it. How much of a delay is Sony willing to stomach? I doubt they’re allowing DriveClub to bake for another 5 years or so. At one point, it’s better to just release something, gather feedback and build a superior sequel.

16 Jan 2014

About that Dark Souls II

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Dark Souls II will debut on March 11, 2014 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. I will be staying clear of that release because I’m afraid. I am afraid of single digit framerates and the deaths that my result because of it. Because of that fear, I will wait for the PC release which still doesn’t have a solid release date. It may even be delayed.

I hope the mechanics are more consistent and I won’t be killed by clipping swords or spells. I love the exploration and unforgiving nature of From Software’s worlds, I just hope it isn’t compromised by technical issues again.

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