Rage has been the game that has been turning heads in the game industry. The moment the first demo was shown and it was all real time it was like killzone 2 all over again when it came to the graphical hype train. Rage is beautiful in every way but the shocker was having all that beauty run on the Xbox360. DVD storage has always been the problem that consumers thought would keep them from having top of the line quality games but this isn’t the case and now seeing RAGE and knowing that it runs on the Xbox, then regardless of DVD space Microsoft really created a powerhouse console.

Rage has also been in the light of controversy considering that John Carmack himself said that the Playstation 3 version will be the better version simply cause of the blu-ray benefit and the raw calculating power of the Cell processor but, it will be harder to develop on. The industry goes into shock again considering what we’ve witnessed this generation when it comes down to multi-platform games, we’re all use to seeing the Playstation 3 get the short end of the stick but finally especially for fanboys out there the Cell finally wins over the competition.

Now Mr. Carmack says that the Xbox360 runs at 60fps (frames per second) while the Playstation 3 is pushing 30fps but the question is this, will that be the result or is it just the situation at this point in time with development. Sony’s machine is harder to work with this is a fact but, PC and Xbox360 is easier so for the sake of the developers let’s kill two birds with one stone but how? since the Xbox is easier let’s get some of the development process out the way a little earlier and then come back to the Playstation 3 with a better more focused development cycle to get the most out of the machine makes sense.

For a company to consistently say that without a third disk on Microsofts platform they are going to have less quality textures, then instead of building the game up like they were going to originally they make certain changes to allow the 360 version to be more on par instead of left out in the loop in terms of cross platform quality. The situation here is that John Carmack clearly stated multiple times that the Playstation 3 is a more complex yet more powerful machine and that alone goes to show that if the games end up exactly the same knowing that the Playstation 3 version could’ve been the better version then yes Sony once again will get shafted and the power it has won’t be shown in it’s full glory for the sake of the Xbox360. This may not be fair but it’s not Microsofts fault it’s the developers choosing not to use the most out of one system just so both can be the same.

The problem with this method is that Sony’s marketing appears fake why? Sony says they have the most powerful console on the market and regardless if the exclusives they have demonstrates this power the multi-plats should as well and when developers refuse to go the extra mile for the sake of making another rival competitor happy then it’s a disservice to the R&D (research and development) of the Playstation 3 if the power is only going to be used exclusively instead of organically across all companies.

John Carmack Quotes Below

“The 360 was easier to certainly to get to where we are now. More sweat equity had to be put into the PS3.”

Noticing a pattern here and this is it. John Carmack feels that the Xbox360 is easier to develop on but at the same time the PS3 development is coming along very well. PS3 provides more raw power and with 1 blu-ray they can make the game better as opposed to 2 DVD’s, especially with the open world nature of RAGE. Rage was developed with the console in mind and considering the xbox360 is easier it’s not a surprise that it’s further along in development. The Truth, The Hype And The PR in this situation is that even though Xbox360 is easier the PS3 can perform better with more work hours put into it but, why work harder when you can settle for what’s easy and then spread the love across the board including the PC version as well.

That’s The Conclusion.

NEWS:

Bethesda Software is becoming A premiere third party publisher with the pick up of ID Software. The new games that’s coming out such as Brink is going to be huge but now the company is bigger considering Rage, Doom, Wolfenstein and more too come that ID can’t even produce games at the moment specifically for Bethesda.

Look at the quotes below and you’ll understand even more how much of a powerhouse this team has become this year

“id has plenty of their own IP to keep themselves busy,” said Pete Hines, global VP of marketing for the company. “It was their desire to build to three teams and bring the development of their IP in-house. So we’ll help them build up to the three full teams a little faster, now that they have additional resources, and they’ll work on Rage and Doom 4 and whatever else it is they’d like to do.”

“But with Quake, Doom, Wolfenstein, and Rage, they already have more IP than they have teams to work on them. So right now creating new IP or having them work on our Bethesda IP isn’t even being considered.”

“It gives us an internal studio with that kind expertise. And not just any studio, but id. These are the guys that invented first-person shooters, and are continuing to push the boundaries with their tech and ideas. You want people like that working with you and a part of your internal development capacity.”

EA and Activision better watch out because Bethesda is about to go on a hot streak for a very long time with this combination.

Source

NEWS:

Fresh off the new merger Id is hard at work by announcing that a new team has been born with new games to come. The new game will be a first person shooter and it will take good use of the id tech 5 engine and supposedly it will come with upgrades even better than what we’ve seen so far with Rage. Stay tuned for more news about this unannounced title with this new development team.

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“They have a team working on RAGE, which will be published by EA next year, and they have a second team working on DOOM 4,” Bethesda VP of PR and marketing Pete Hines told TechRadar.

“They’d like to start building up a full third team and, as a result of this deal, they’ll be able to do that more quickly than they could have previously with the additional resources they have to work with now.”

On the subject of other new projects that could arise as a result of the deal, Hines replied he expected id will keep doing what they’ve always been known for – high-end first-person shooters.

Can’t wait to see what’s next to be revealed.

NEWS:

Gameplay – First of all the controls felt very solid and accessible. Going through the game was very intense and satisfying because of the new features Wolfenstein has added which is the VALE. Now the Vale adds so much to the gameplay because it enhances your strategy against the enemies and also evading situations. The Vale allows you to see things that aren’t really there and all you do is push down on the d-pad, then boom the Vale action is in place simple and effect. The weapon wheel works great with a great selection of weapons which are very useful especially when things heat up on screen. The action the variety of enemies which is key to the enjoyment of games, also the A.I. is what really makes this game a title that is on it’s way to Triple A statis. Look at the video below for extreme details and hands on impressions.

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WOLFENSTEIN ™
FACT SHEET FOR ALL VERSIONS

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:
Wolfenstein brings the Nazi’s dark obsession with the occult to life, by intertwining fast-paced, intense story-driven combat with a diverse sci-fi experience. As BJ Blazkowicz, a highly decorated member of the Office of Secret Actions (OSA), you are sent on a special mission into the heart of the Third Reich to investigate evidence that the SS hierarchy may possess a new and mysterious power.

KEY FEATURES:

• Amazing enemies: While battle-hardened Nazi soldiers fill every street and hallway, the powers of the Black Sun have been unleashed to create ferocious enemies with supernatural abilities all to stop BJ in his tracks.

• Intense combat moments: Experience movie-like, intense, action sequences as you fight to prevent the Nazis from unleashing the power of the Black Sun, a potential war-ending supernatural weapon capable of unlimited destruction. New enemies are created before your eyes as you unravel the mysterious experiments of the SS.

• Unique environments: Explore the mysteries of The Veil, a layer between our reality and the occult underworld that offers you a multitude of combat advantages but harbors supernatural threats.

• Impressive firepower: Go into battle with a diverse collection of upgradable conventional and supernatural Nazi weapons. Earn gold by selecting missions and working with the resistance fighters, purchase upgrades in the black market, and customize your personal arsenal.

• Classic Return to Castle Wolfenstein® multiplayer with an occult twist: Revisit the heart-pounding and award winning class and objective based multiplayer of Return to Castle Wolfenstein; now with cool new Veil powers to thwart your online foes.

Publisher: Activision Publishing, Inc.
Developer: Raven Software
Executive produced by id Software
Release Date: August 4, 2009
Platforms:  Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system from Microsoft
 PLAYSTATION® 3 computer entertainment system
 Windows® PC

IndustryGamers.com held an interesting phone conversation with John Carmack and Fallout 3’s success was the instrumental key in this major deal. There’s also possibilities of cross-pollination meaning that games such as Oblivion now have better access to the Id Software Engine and what this means is that better and bigger games are on the way. Next in line will be Brink , Rage, Quake Live, and the infamous DOOM 4. Check out the full interview below

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IndustryGamers: As I’m sure you know, id has a lot of passionate followers. Why don’t you start off by telling me why your fans should not freak out about this move?

John Carmack: Nothing’s changing on the software side of things. No structural changes here at id, no switching around of the top guys. We have our teams still plugging away on the Doom 4, Quake Live and Rage. Down the road, what this means is that all the future titles will have more publisher resources and we can build out a third team to work on id properties.

IG: ZeniMax, why do you see this as a home run for your company?

Robert Altman: Because it’s id software! These guys are among the best in the world, they invented the FPS genre. They have the smartest guy in the industry working at the company, which is a big plus. For our part, we’ll provide the resources to help those guys to expand and make AAA games.

IG: So were there any other players for id software, or was ZeniMax the only serious bidder?

JC: Throughout our entire history, we’ve had an endless stream of buyout offers, none of which we followed up on for a variety of reasons. We did have a long term plan for expanding out, but the ZeniMax deal came a long and we decided this is what we wanted to do to boost our plan in the short term.

We had all of these tentative steps to growth in building a third team. We were a profitably private company, but we were growing cautiously and certainly not at the rate of some of the larger studios out there. With Zenimax, we can grow out more aggressively. We have two teams now and we’ll develop out a third team in relatively short order. We think that three studios is the maximum; we can keep a handle on that number. We don’t want to potentially get four and five studios and get unmanageably large.

IG: Does Bethsoft have any interest in working with things like id Tech 5?

JC: The two teams are big and well-established, so we don’t expect there to be any serious ditching of software, but there will be cross-pollination. What we can cherry pick, we will. However, the Beth team stays the Beth team and the id team stays the id team; they will retain their own technology and there will be no company-mandated engine.

IG: Would there ever be something like a Quake RPG, or will the teams keep their IP mostly separate?

JC: We’ve got our plates pretty full right now. There might be some interesting opportunities down the road, but there’s nothing slated at the moment. We really liked Fallout 3, though, and the success of that definitely had an impact on ZeniMax’s ability to make this acquisition.

IG: John Romero seemed somewhat shocked over the news at first, but now he wishes you all the best. You still talk to John on occasion or does he just do his own thing?

JC: I get an email every now and then and will see him at conferences on occasion, but we don’t have a close working relationship. Like most of the people in this industry, I wish him the best.

IG: Final question, what can we expect from id Software in the short or medium-long term?

JC: Nothing changes for id in the short or medium-long term. Doom 4 and Quake Live are underway and rolling strong. Instead of the question of “who’s going to publish Doom 4?” we know it’ll be ZeniMax. It really should just be positive things resulting from this, and the less I have to deal with business stuff and the more I can get back to coding, the better!

IG: Guys, thank you for your time.

NEWS:

ZeniMax Media Inc., parent company of noted game publisher Bethesda Softworks, today announced it has completed the acquisition of legendary game studio, id Software, creators of world-renowned games such as DOOM, QUAKE, Wolfenstein, and its upcoming title, RAGE. The acquisition by ZeniMax Media joins together two of the finest, most respected videogame developers in the world, combining the first person shooter (FPS) expertise of id Software with acclaimed role playing game (RPG) developer Bethesda Game Studios – creators of the 2008 Game of the Year, Fallout 3, and the 2006 Game of the Year, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Bethesda Softworks will publish the titles of id Software other than upcoming releases previously committed to other publishers.

Todd Hollenshead, CEO of id Software, commented on the transaction: “This was a unique opportunity to team with a smart, sophisticated publisher like Bethesda Softworks where the interests of the studio and the publisher will be fully aligned in the development and marketing of our titles. In addition, we will now have financial and business resources to support the future growth of id Software, a huge advantage which will result in more and even better games for our fans.”

id Software will continue to operate as a studio under the direction of its founder, John Carmack. No changes will be made in the operations of id Software in the development of its games. All the principals at id Software have signed long-term employment contracts, assuring they will continue in their roles developing games at the studio.

“This puts id Software in a wonderful position going forward,” said John Carmack, who will continue to serve in his current role as Technical Director. “We will now be able to grow and extend all of our franchises under one roof, leveraging our capabilities across multiple teams while enabling forward looking research to be done in the service of all of them. We will be bigger and stronger, as we recruit the best talent to help us build the landmark games of the future. As trite as it may be for me to say that I am extremely pleased and excited about this deal, I am.”

Robert Altman, the founder, Chairman & CEO of ZeniMax Media stated, “We, along with many others, consider id Software to be among the finest game studios in the world, with extraordinary design, artistic and technical capabilities. They have demonstrated, repeatedly, that rare ability to create franchise properties that are critical and commercial successes. Our intention is to make sure id Software will continue to do what they do best – make AAA games. Our role will be to provide publisher support through Bethesda Softworks and give id Software the resources it needs to grow and expand.”