New Screenshots

Trion World Network has released new details, screenshots, and a trailer for "Heroes of Telara", the upcoming MMORPG.

"Heroes of Telara will immerse players in an extraordinary, evolving world on the brink of disaster. Amidst an era of devastating conflict, Telara calls for heroes to battle the hordes of chaos, conquer wild territories, and bring hope to a struggling civilization.

“With Heroes of Telara™, Trion proudly presents the first in a series of revolutionary video games on the Trion platform,” said Lars Buttler, CEO of Trion. “Trion is showcasing what server-based gaming can really give us: fun, beautiful, fully dynamic, massively social, ‘live’ video games.”

With server based gaming, Heroes of Telara™ can trigger extraordinary events challenging the player to overcome obstacles and embrace the role of hero. Using a unique class system that allows the players to play every character class in the game and choose a class specialty, or “subclass”, the hero will be well equipped to overcome these challenges. Combining this with an easy-to-learn combat system, players will be prepared to stand against the most powerful foes and hordes of enemies.

“We’ve built a spectacular world that’s completely alive and designed everything around the concept of players becoming heroes,” said Russ Brown, vice president, Channel One, Trion. “The ‘right hero for the right time’ is what this game is all about. And with our server-based Trion platform, we can launch massive events and epic encounters at will to challenge the player to step up and become the hero the world needs. It is our promise and mission to deliver awesome kick-ass gameplay in Heroes of Telara™.”

Heroes of Telara™ will also allow large populations of users to play together to truly deliver massively social online gaming. Heroes of Telara™ has been crafted from its inception to allow players to take full advantage of their adventuring time with friends and to make new alliances with other players. Heroes of Telara™ removes many of the technical and design barriers common in MMORPGs, allowing players to more easily share their adventures in the game with anyone, regardless of rank or skill level.

“What we’re showing at E3 will genuinely demonstrate our vision for the future of MMO gaming,” said Brown. “We’re creating beautiful, sweeping landscapes with epic conflict that deliver fun in a new way, every day.”

Heroes of Telara™ will be the first massively social MMORPG that will challenge the player to choose their strategy, master their fate and become the right hero at the right time."

       
       
       

New screenshots from "Trine" have been released, giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming side-scroller action game by Frozenbyte.

"Trine is a fantasy action game where the player can create and use physics-based objects to beat hazardous puzzles and threatening enemies. Set in a world of great castles and strange machinery, three heroes are bound to a mysterious device called the Trine in a quest to save the kingdom from evil…

The gameplay is based on fully interactive physics – each character’s different abilities helps the player battle an army of un-dead and defeat hazardous contraptions. The player can at any time freely choose whoever is best suited for the upcoming challenge or puzzle: The Wizard is able to summon objects to help solve puzzles and create new ways to overcome obstacles, the Thief uses her agility and dead-on accuracy to swiftly surprise the monsters, and the Warrior unleashes mayhem and physical destruction wherever he goes."

       
       

IDEA Games and Bohemia Interactive have released full details for "ArmA II" along with new screenshots, and word that the game is now going to be released a week earlier than expected, to June 19th.

Details:

"ARMA II, the ultimate military simulator, powered by the 3rd generation of the original Real Virtuality engine is the true sequel to the award winning and genre defining game which made the sandbox military conflict fantasies come true for millions of gamers!

Players will find themselves thrown into the very heart of modern conflict, facing the ultimate realistic gaming experience directly from the best: Bohemia Interactive, creators of the famous and award winning Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis and ArmA: Combat Operations. Below is a look at the full details of ARMA II as they gear up for its launch this summer.

Storyline:

The 27th U.S. Marine Expeditionary Unit has been deployed to the former soviet republic of Chernarus: a small country chained to the threat of an upcoming civil war. Force Reconnaissance Team "Razor" is among the first to fight. This elite five-man team is about to fall down the rabbit hole, trapped in a war not only for control of the country, but also the hearts and minds of its people. With the might of the USMC offshore and Russia anxiously watching from the north, the stakes couldn’t be higher. The fate of Chernarus is balanced on a razor’s edge…

Key features:

• Player-driven story: Players will have the opportunity to command members of Force Recon Team Razor through a branching campaign full of twists and surprises. ARMA II integrates a combination of preset conversations with dynamic queries about the game environment: the revolutionary "dynamic conversation system" which brings to the player a unique gaming experience in a movie-like style. Players can talk to soldiers in the field and civilians caught up during fights to gather the Intel they need to further advance in the game. As a pure military simulator, there are linguistic difficulties while speaking to native citizens if you don’t know their native tongue. Chernarussian’s NPC’s speak Czech, US NPC’s speak English and Russian NPC’s speak Russian, etc.
• Reality check: Bohemia Interactive’s standard 225 square kilometers of highly detailed sandbox landscape, modeled with stunning detail and precision and using real-world geographical data, covered by 235 megapixel of accurate aerial map (15.3602 pixels) and more than 1 million objects.  This game is a true environment master piece, never seen before in first person shooter type games with 81 weapons and 136 vehicle models created to an exacting real-world schematics with extreme precision, including 350 kilometers of roads, 50 cities and villages full of life.
• Authentic military simulation: ARMA II simulates various aspects of combat and environment effects form  bullet ballistics and deflection to material penetration, tracers, varying ammunition types and stopping power, to supersonic bullet crack and weather conditions. ARMA II benefits from the 3rd generation Real Virtuality engine featuring advanced and semi-autonomous AI. Players will compete with the ultimate next-gen AI: no scripts, no predefined pathways, and no repetitive gameplay. All units react to actual game situations and use the open environment to their advantage. Soldiers shout and use hand gestures based on real world military doctrine, actively seeking and using cover and also taking advantage of suppressive fire techniques. The ARMA II system is so complex and effective that the same simulation technology is used to train real soldiers in numerous countries around the world.
• Live war:  the campaign missions can be experienced in cooperative mode, or players can join for duty in the massive multiplayer battles with up to 50 players. Among standard MP modes is Warfare, introduced in ArmA: Armed Assault, a unique combination of RTS and tactical FPS which allows players to choose whether to control the combat with detailed base management or instead to operate guerilla hit-and-run tactics focusing on attack rather than defense.
• Unlimited Creativity: An intuitive and easy-to-use built in mission editor, together with powerful modding tools, infinitely extends the gameplay of ARMA II and moves it far above the standard gaming experience. More than 200 character models, 81 weapons, 136 vehicles are ready to be used in an enormous 225 square kilometers sandbox map. Players can use default models or create completely new models and mods can be shared with other players all around the world.

For more information on ARMA II visit www.arma2.com."

   

Codemasters has released a new trailer and screenshots for "Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising", the upcoming realistic FPS sequel.

"The island of Skira is a stunningly detailed and beautifully recreated oil-rich island. Fictionally located off the eastern coast of Russia just north of Japan, its rich geological terrain will provide a challenging tactical environment that includes valleys, mountains, coastlines, beaches, villages, industrial complexes and a huge extinct volcano.

Its natural resources and location powers a strong story that opens as an airborne division of the People’s Liberation Army of China (PLA) lands to claim the island as the sovereign possession of the People’s Republic. The patrolling amphibious assault ship, USS Iwo Jima, responds by sending a battalion of US Marines and the island becomes a flashpoint where the combined combat assets of two military super powers face off in an epic engagement.

“Skira makes for an immense and, with the latest visual pass, a magnificent battlefield; we’re exceptionally proud of the build so far,” said Sion Lenton, Executive Producer, Codemasters. “Creating this vast island, populated by unscripted AI military forces, is no trivial matter and so, to get this absolutely right, we’re now investing additional development time. We’ll be working right through the summer to deliver all formats this autumn and create the best possible experience that people will want to enjoy again and again.”

Operation Flashpoint: Dragon Rising is the complete antitheses of the on-rails, run-and gun action shooter. Players are empowered with the freedom to handle military crisis situations on their own initiative, deploying the weaponry, vehicles and equipment of a contemporary fighting force. Objectives are set, it’s then up to the player to decide how they are achieved are in exhilarating, unscripted missions. Armed with cutting-edge military hardware, players will need to balance brute force with intelligent use of tactics.

No game will ever play out the same way twice thanks to advanced and reactive AI that uses real world military strategies. In battle, the brutal effects of modern weapon systems are brought alive with huge explosions and persistent building damage as players fight a unique path through this unmistakable, unrivalled battlefield."

Capcom released new screenshots and a trailer for "Dark Void" from Captivate 09.

"Dark Void is a new sci-fi action-adventure game that combines an adrenaline-fuelled blend of aerial and on-foot combat set in a parallel universe called "The Void". Players will take on the role of Will; a pilot dropped into incredible circumstances while on a routine air cargo flight crashes in the Bermuda triangle leading him to be trapped in the Void. This unlikely hero soon finds himself swept into a desperate struggle for survival at the head of a group called The Survivors. Trapped in the Void, these resistance fighters are battling to hold off a mysterious alien race that plans to threaten Earth."

A Shacknews "Fallout 3 Broken Steel" preview reveals that the game is now scheduled to be released on May 5th. The DLC was originally set to be released in March. On the other hand, new screenshots from Broken Steel have been released.

"In this DLC pack, the player will join the ranks of the Brotherhood of Steel and rid the Capital Wasteland of the Enclave remnants once and for all. It is confirmed that the player character will still be the Lone Wanderer, even if the "sacrifice" option was taken at the end of Take it Back!. The original storyline will also get some new options for the player to choose, which will give the player somewhat more variety."

       

New screenshots from "Sherlock Holmes vs Jack the Ripper" have been released, giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming next installment in the adventure series by Frogwares.

"While the serial killer continues to taunt the authorities, Sherlock continues his investigation to uncover and stop the terrible murderer who has been dubbed – "Jack the Ripper."

Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper allows you to play as the greatest detective of all in the London of 1888. A series of particularly horrible murders creates a real psychosis throughout the country. Atrociously mutilated prostitutes’ bodies are found by the police without them being able to find a serious lead. Sherlock Holmes starts looking for clues in the dark and sinister alleys of Whitechapel in order to follow the macabre trail of the one the press now calls Jack the Ripper. During an adventure full of twists, Sherlock Holmes will try to bring out the true identity and the motives of the one who hides behind this scary alias.

The Sherlock Holmes series is known as one of the best franchises in adventure games and is very popular with around 1.5 million copies sold worldwide. Now, Sherlock Holmes is back with a game that will give a new dimension to the series. Indeed, Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper will offer players two different views that are accessible at any time: a third person view in the purest style used in point & click adventure games, as well as a first person view. The player will be free to play in one or the other modes or even combine them for greater immersion into this terrifying adventure. Another novelty: the player will also find an original crime scene reconstitution system that will allow him to test his theories during his progress in the investigation to follow the bloody trail of the terrifying serial killer.

Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper will be released for DVD ROM PC in May of 2009 and at the end of the year on Xbox360."

     

Already revealed "Six Days in Fallujah" has already caused some controversy. Today, Konami officially announced the title.

"Developed by Atomic Games, Six Days in Fallujah is a new third person shooter experience that puts the player in the center of the largest urban military operation in four decades. Six Days in Fallujah combines the action of a military shooter with the realism of a documentary film to create a new kind of experience that is both historical and engaging. Partnering with over three dozen US Marines to help develop the game along with unprecedented access to battle plans, after action reports, photos, videos and satellite maps makes this game the most authentic military shooter to date. Coupled with missions, objectives and scenarios grounded in factual events, Six Days in Fallujah will create an authentic 3rd person shooter unlike any ever developed.

“Six Days in Fallujah creates a very compelling interactive experience,” said Brian Christian, Vice President of Product Development for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. “We are creating a 3rd person shooter unlike any other by combining a brand new game engine, authentic weaponry, missions and combat set against the gripping story of the US Marines on the ground.”

Six Days in Fallujah lets players experience the historic battle of Fallujah as a US Marine fire-team leader and places them in the heat of the action against the insurgency. Players are able to physically shape the battlefield just as US Marines did during the battle in Fallujah. Create new lines of attack by kicking in doors, blowing up walls, eliminating enemy cover and destroying the environment around them. To make the battle even more authentic, heavy emphasis has been put into the environments using real world satellite maps, weapons from US Marines and vehicles used in the conflict to fully immerse players in this epic confrontation and experience what it was like to be a Marine on the ground. In addition, Six Days in Fallujah will include multiplayer functionality – allowing players to team up with other fire team members in co-op and online modes.

Six Days in Fallujah is scheduled to be released in 2010 on Xbox 360, PLAYSTATION®3 system and Windows PC."

New screenshots of "Warrior Epic" were released at the Game Developer’s Conference, giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming MMORPG by Possibility Space.

"Warrior Epic is an online, action role-playing game set in an original fantasy universe. In the game, players will assume command of a Warrior Hall from which they manage their characters’ adventures. They can recruit from a wide array of Warrior Classes, each with its own style of play. The Classes and the Hall itself can be upgraded visually as well as functionally. Players adventure together in multiplayer campaigns, adventure mode, solo quests and PVP."

       
       

Austrian developer Infinion has announed "Louisiana: Mystery Cases", an upcoming adventure game based in New Orleans in 1902.

"Louisiana: Mystery Cases is a modern full 3D adventure game with a stylish environment and catchy storyline. The year is 1902, and you will find yourself at a New Orleans’ suburb. The lazy summer sun is slowly penetrating the gloom of the local marshes, and yet the city is being overcast by a heavy creeping cloud of doubts and anxiety. There have always been a lot of murders in this neighborhood. Now, however, the situation is different. These killings are so brutal, lacking any apparent motive and too complicated to have been committed by a raging insane maniac. Before long they catch the attention of the Federal Bureau of Investigation who is now sending their best special agent…"

THQ released new screenshots from "Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor", giving viewers more of a look at the anticipated upcoming real-time strategy sequel by Remedy.

"Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor is the next standalone chapter in the award-winning Company of Heroes franchise, featuring all-new content, including three single-player campaigns, new multiplayer modes, additional maps and units. Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor also introduces a new "direct-fire" feature that allows players more tactical control of their units and more strategic options in-game. Developed by internal studio Relic Entertainment and powered by Relic’s proprietary Essence Engine™, Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor is fully compatible with Company of Heroes and Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts, allowing players who own the entire series complete access to the epic battles of World War II."

Paradox Interactive has released new screenshots for "Elven Legacy", giving viewers more of a look at the upcoming turn-based strategy game by Ino-Co.

"Elven Legacy is a fantasy strategy game that sends players on an epic quest to restore the former glory of the Elven race. The game has multiple thrilling endings and tools that allow players to create their own missions and campaigns and share them in multiplayer mode.

Elven Legacy is scheduled for release in April 2009 and will be published worldwide by Paradox Interactive. It will be available for digital download at GamersGate for a suggested retail price of $29.99 / €29.99."

       
       

True Games Interactive released new screenshots from "Warrior Epic", giving viewers a look at the upcoming MMORPG by Possibility Space.

"The new screen shots depict three of Warrior Epic’s six classes in different, stunning environments.  The Devotress can be seen in gleaming armor doing battle deep in the mines of Welkin Warrens with a robotic adversary. A Pit Fighter has found safe haven in a Providian camp nestled in the treacherous jungles of Aberas, while an Illusionist fights against all odds in the mysterious Faustus Estate. For more information on Warrior Epic, and to register for the upcoming beta visit www.warriorepic.com."

       
     

Electronic Arts today released new screenshots and a trailer for "Dante’s Inerno", the upcoming action adventure game by EA Redwood Shores.

"Written in the 14th Century, The Divine Comedy was published and read aloud in Italian (unlike the Bible), thereby making the poem accessible to the mass public. The poem delivers a striking and allegorical vision of the Christian afterlife and the punishments of hell. In part one, known as Dante’s Inferno, Dante traverses all nine circles of hell; limbo, lust, gluttony, greed, wrath, heresy, violence, fraud and treachery."

     

Atari today announced the release dates for "The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena", the upcoming FPS expansion, which will be April 7th for North America and April 24th for Europe.

Featuring the brand new full-length ‘Assault on Dark Athena’ campaign, an HD remake of the classic ‘Escape from Butcher Bay’ and multiplayer options including the unique Pitch Black mode all on one disk, The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena will deliver an incredibly rich experience to gamers following its worldwide release this coming April.

Renowned developer Starbreeze Studios has effectively combined stealth, vicious hand-to-hand combat and ferocious gunplay in The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena, creating an irresistible game with something for all fans of action gaming.  With playable demos coming in March to both Xbox Live® and PLAYSTATION® Network, fans won’t have to wait long to take their first steps as the galaxy’s most notorious bad-ass, Riddick.

For more information visit the game’s official website at https://atari.com/riddick/ with localized French, German, Italian and Spanish websites coming soon.

New Screenshots: