New Screenshots

Bohemia Interactive today announced some 2012 plans for ArmA 3, which include exhibits at E3 and Gamescom in addition to a community alpha. Six new screenshots were also released today.

“Arma 3 will be exhibited at E3 (June 5-7) and Gamescom Cologne (August 16-19). For many this will be the first opportunity to experience what has been accomplished so far and to get a sense of what is to come. However, that is not all. For the first time ever in the Arma series, Bohemia Interactive is planning a ‘Community Alpha’. This will let people try out an early playable build of Arma 3 and help the team with development.

Dan Musil on the Community Alpha:
“Following E3, we plan to open up the game to our players. This process starts with the release of a playable build of Arma 3. We call it the ‘Community Alpha’. It’s intended to enable people who’d like to try the game early on in development help us to shape it up – and make Arma 3 the greatest release of the series. Ours is a large and complex game – being developed by a relatively small team – so we really appreciate your opinions, thoughts and feedback.

The Community Alpha will be quite limited in terms of the assets it includes, with the goal of providing enough content to experiment with the brand new bits of gameplay and technology. It also enables our passionate community to prepare their mods for the very latest version of the Real Virtuality engine. Then, later on in the year, we’d like to open up our game up even further with a more extensive beta program. The exact details, however, we intend to set out closer to their launch.”

Musil also mentioned the development team’s strong focus on backward compatibility, meaning that people should be able to get older assets into Arma 3. As a final note he unveiled the team’s plans for a series of blog posts to keep Arma enthusiasts informed on development: “We’re in the process of putting together a couple of developer’s blog posts starting with sound recordings and our field trip to Limnos.”

The entire blog post on this year’s plans for Arma 3 can be found here.”

New screenshots from Max Payne 3 were released today, giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming shooter sequel.

"The award-winning Max Payne franchise put players in the role of Max Payne, a hard-boiled New York City detective with a penchant for violence, out to avenge the death of his family. The latest installment delivers more of the classic elements and hyper-intense action that fans have come to love, while moving the story of Max in a new direction."

Four new screenshots for Max Payne 3 were released today, giving viewers a look at a few of the weapons in the upcoming sequel.

"The award-winning Max Payne franchise put players in the role of Max Payne, a hard-boiled New York City detective with a penchant for violence, out to avenge the death of his family. The latest installment delivers more of the classic elements and hyper-intense action that fans have come to love, while moving the story of Max in a new direction."

Ten new screenshots for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim were released today, giving viewers more of a look at the anticipated sequel.

"The next chapter in the highly anticipated  Elder Scrolls saga arrives from the makers of the 2006 and 2008 Games of the Year, Bethesda Game Studios. Skyrim reimagines and revolutionizes the open-world fantasy epic, bringing to life a complete virtual world open for you to explore any way you choose."

Electronic Arts and Starbreeze Studios today announced a new Syndicate franchise, which will be a "reinvention" of the 1990s series by Bullfrog Productions. The new series will be an action adventure/shooter game, has been in development for two years, and is scheduled to be released in 2012.

"Set in 2069, Syndicate takes players into a dark, Machiavellian world run without government oversight with many syndicates vying for total dominance of their local market place. With no one to question their intentions or actions, three mega corporations – Eurocorp, Cayman Global, and Aspari – are at the forefront of this brutal war for control of the pivotal American market. In the world of Syndicate, everything is digitally connected, including the people. Players aren’t limited to the weapons in their hands. Through DART 6 bio-chip technology implanted in their head, players can slow down time and breach the digital world around them to take down their foes using a variety of upgradable hacking mechanics. Syndicate’s blend of fast-paced, futuristic, action shooter settings and story combined with innovative chip breach gameplay instantly immerses players in a unique digital world.

“Our goal with Syndicate is to provide a challenging action shooter for today’s gamers as well as fans of the original. I’m sure they will enjoy and recognize the legacy that made it such a classic,” says Jeff Gamon, EA Partners Executive Producer. “Fans of the franchise will recognize many weapons and environments in the game, but in a whole new way. The game also provides a separate and deep 4-player co-op mode featuring missions from the original cult classic, which adds another layer of depth to the overall experience.”

Syndicate will be available in early 2012 for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system and the PC. For more information on Syndicate, please visit www.syndicate.ea.com."

Kim Swift, one of the Narbacular Drop creators from Digipen hired by Valve to work on Portal, left Valve for Airtight Games in 2009 to work on a new project. That project, Quantum Conundrum, was officially announced today by Square Enix. The game is scheduled to be released in early 2012 for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.

"In Quantum Conundrum, players take on the role of a young kid dropped off on his uncle’s doorstep for the weekend; his uncle just so happens to be the brilliant, eccentric inventor, Professor Fitz Quadwrangle. Upon entering the Professor’s vast manor home retrofitted with crazy technology to test his latest hypotheses, players quickly realize their uncle has gone missing. Fortunately, players soon gain access to Professor Quadwrangle’s latest invention, the Inter-Dimensional Shift Device, which, at the press of a button, will shift the world around them to an entirely new dimension. In order to find him, players must use the newly found IDS Device to dynamically change the world to and from a variety of different dimensions to progress through the complicated Quadwrangle Manor. While on the journey, becoming adept at utilizing the various dimensions will help them trek from one bizarre and challenging room to the next. It might sound easy enough, but it is a tall order for a kid in a giant puzzle of a manor!

“We wanted to create a fun, quirky puzzle game that anyone would want to play, regardless of age or gaming experience,” said Kim Swift, Creative Director at Airtight Games. "I've been working with an amazing and collaborative team on this project and look forward to coming into the office every day to hear new ideas, see what everyone has created, and dive in on my own pieces of the game. We've created something that we're all extremely proud of and hope that people will enjoy playing it as much as we are making it."

Penny Arcade Expo (PAX Prime) attendees will be the first to see Square Enix and Airtight Games globally reveal Quantum Conundrum through their exclusive panel. Meet the developers, including Creative Director Kim Swift (PORTAL, Left 4 Dead®, Left 4 Dead 2) and discipline representatives from the Quantum Conundrum team, and hear their explanation of how they are bringing an incredibly fascinating and unconventional game to life. The panel will be held on Saturday, August 27 at 7:00 p.m. in the Pegasus Room.

For more information about Quantum Conundrum, please visit the official website: www.quantumconundrum.com."

Valve today released new screenshots and a trailer for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the recently revealed follow-up in the hugely popular multiplayer series.

"CS: GO features new maps, characters, and weapons and delivers updated versions of the classic CS content (de_dust, etc.). In addition, CS: GO will introduce new gameplay modes, matchmaking, leader boards, and more."

Paradox Interactive and Fatshark today announced War of the Roses, an upcoming team-based multiplayer melee combat game set in 15th century England. The game was previously codenamed Project Postman.

"War of the Roses will pull players into a team-based multiplayer melee combat experience, putting their band of knights right in the thick of chaotic battles against opposing hordes armed with swords, battleaxes, longbows and other iconic medieval classics.

Featuring top-notch graphics portraying the fighting from an up-close-and-personal third-person perspective, War of the Roses features both online multiplayer and a deep single-player campaign. Players will get the chance to lead their knight through a progression system, gaining upgrades and unlocking new content on their path from filthy peasant to unstoppable armored killing machine.

Gamers should be ready to pick up their lances in 2012."

Electronic Arts today announced FIFA Manager 12, the next installment in the sports management series in development at Bright Future.

"The 11th edition of the football management simulation will include features inspired and determined by the community, in addition to a full feature set and game modes with more than 700 improvements, when the game launches this autumn.

Through the online “Your Feature!” campaign, thousands of fans participated in a community call-to-action to directly influence the game’s content for this season. Fans proposed features they wanted in the game, and then community voting determined the ones that mattered most. Features created by the community include, “Speeches Before The Match”, “European Cup Final Match”, “Open Trials for New Players”, new tutorial “Manager Challenges,” and an extension of the last 24 hours of the transfer market.

FIFA Manager 12 features improvements to virtually all areas of the game, including major enhancements to the 3D mode, finances, transfers and the calendar. Changes to the 3D mode create a more realistic experience, and include new logic, new player artificial intelligence, and marked improvements to tactics, substitutions and the conduct of opposing managers. In addition, a new intuitive user interface makes it possible for players to retrieve all the data relevant to the game within seconds and to issue precise tactical instructions to their teams.

The financial mode is now more authentic with on-the-pitch success impacting revenue, and realistic differences in revenue generated through jersey sponsors between clubs. In the transfer section, managers can now field players in trial training and in real matches. Managers can also commission a detailed analysis of the squad so the team's weak points can be specifically eliminated.  A whole range of new options will be available in the calendar, from the charity gala to direct friendly match queries, and training can once again be planned and implemented on a daily basis.

FIFA Manager 12 also contains a host of improvements to the online mode, all premium features from previous years are now included and available to all players. Online improvements include an extensive avatar editor, the option of creating fantasy leagues, and a large number of new statistics."

More info: http://www.fifa-manager.com/

More screenshots

Five new RAGE screenshots were released today, giving viewers more of a look at the anticipated new IP by id Software.

"Rage is a groundbreaking first-person shooter set in the not-too-distant future after an asteroid impacts Earth, leaving a ravaged world behind. You emerge into this vast wasteland to discover humanity working to rebuild itself against such forces as raider gangs, mutants, and the Authority — an oppressive government regime that has a special interest in you in particular."

Kalypso Media today announced Port Royale 3, a new installment in the series started by Ascaron Entertainment. The new sequel is scheduled to be released in Q2 of 2012 and is in development at Kalypso's internal studio Gaming Minds Studios. A playable version of the game will be featured at this year's Gamescom.

"In Port Royale 3, players will embark upon an epic adventure through the Caribbean during the turbulent 17th century where the naval powers of Spain, England, France and the Netherlands all fight for supremacy in the colonies. Players take on the role of a young captain trying to build his fortune and reputation in the new world colonies. The campaign consists of two different paths for the young protagonist to follow: adventurer and trader.

Following the path of the adventurer will lead the player on a naval conquest where they must gain notoriety through raids, piracy, bounty hunting, plundering and conquering cities as they strive to build their new Caribbean empire.

The route of the trader sees the player using their economic know-how to become the most powerful trading tycoon in the New World by setting up trade routes, building production facilities and developing cites.

In free-play mode, the player crafts a combination of the two paths, creating a unique and challenging scenario on the path to increase wealth and power.

In addition to the single-player campaign there will be robust multiplayer modes where players can go head-to-head using commercial, economic and conquest simulations to allow for fast-paced gameplay."

Focus Home Interactive today announced "Cities XL 2012", a new installment in the city building simulation series.

"Cities XL 2012 allows players to become real urban planners, balancing economic & energy developments of their cities while managing transportation, housing, social services and recreational activities. Content is key to the new game, as Cities XL 2012 offers a staggering number of unique structures with over 1,000 in total.

The 60 huge 3D maps are entirely constructible and sport incredible detail. Cities XL 2012 offers more variety than any other city building game. At the request of its fast-growing community, Cities XL 2012 is now open to modding and even features a special guide within the game to get players started. With these new tools, dedicated players can build and share their creations to their hearts’ content!

We invite you to discover the very first images of Cities XL 2012 that show off some of the new environments and construction features. A lost oasis in the middle of the harsh desert, the Cayman Islands, Lake Powell and many others are some of the stunning new playgrounds where you’ll build increasingly gigantic cities. Your cities are now visually richer than ever, with typical buildings from mountain townships or seaside resorts, but also a much bigger variety among all the building types of the game!

Cities XL 2012 will be available in October 2011 as a standalone game. It will be fully compatible with the 2011 version, so Cities XL 2011 owners can upgrade their game by downloading a special version at a discount price."

For more information visit: http://www2.citiesxl.com/

Wargaming.net sent over their E3 screenshots and a new Clan Wars trailer for "World of Tanks", the MMORTS tank battle game.

"Clan Wars concept revolves around the Global Map divided into a number of provinces each providing a particular revenue stream, with hundreds of clans fighting for gaining control over them. Comprehensive diplomatic and economic systems will provide a wide array of options to wage war for global domination not only on tank battlefields but at bargaining tables as well. "

There are several more new screenshots in the game's gallery.

Warner Bros. released new E3 screenshots for "Batman: Arkham City" giving viewers more of a look at the anticipated sequel.

"Batman: Arkham City builds upon the intense, atmospheric foundation of Batman: Arkham Asylum, sending players soaring into Arkham City – five times larger than the game world in Batman: Arkham Asylum – and the new maximum security “home” for all of Gotham City’s thugs, gangsters and insane criminal masterminds. "

Irrational Games released an E3 gameplay trailer and screenshots for "BioShock Infinite", giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming sequel that is set in a floating city instead of underwater.

"Originally conceived as a floating symbol of American ideals at a time when the United States was emerging as a world power, Columbia is dispatched to distant shores with great fanfare by a captivated public. What begins as a brand new endeavor of hope turns drastically wrong as the city soon disappears into the clouds to whereabouts unknown."