bioware posts

Mandalorians smack down the Jedi in SWTOR's new timeline update

by Kyle Horner Jul 3rd 2009 at 5:00PM

Filed under: Lore, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

One of the most common questions asked regarding Star Wars: The Old Republic and the easily accessible Jedi is, "Who's going to take on an army of Jedi?" We've long since had the answer tucked away here at Massively, but now BioWare has been kind enough to illustrate it for us in their latest timeline update, which features the fearsome Mandalorians.

The nomadic Mandalorians are strikingly unique and much like the Jedi and Sith in that sense they're not an actual species; yet war is their singular goal in life. Their mantra is that strength is not merely good, it is great, it brings honor through battle. Thus, it's no surprise that Mandalorians are generally opposed to the Jedi and get along better with the power hungry Sith. At this point, the Republic Trooper's coutnerpart is pretty obvious. That powerful Jedi army doesn't seem so intimidating against legions of Sith, Bounty Hunters and bred-for-war Mandies, now does it?

We highly recommend you check out the timeline video. It's not only informative, but quite entertaining if you've got even the slightest amount of interest in Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Tags: bioware, ea, electronic-arts, jedi, lore, lucasarts, mandalorian, mandalorians, mandies, republic, sith, sith-empire, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, timeline

Muzyka thinks new Mythic/BioWare group is a collaboration opportunity

by Brooke Pilley Jun 29th 2009 at 6:30PM

Filed under: Interviews, News items

Gamasutra and BioWare co-founder Ray Muzyka sat down to chat about EA's first genre-focused group, aptly named the RPG/MMO Group. The original announcement was kind of vague, which really got people speculating over what it meant. ("RPG" before "MMO" in the group title? That must be a sign! Of what, who knows.)

In the interview, Muzyka finally explains just what exactly the new Group entails: "It's a collaboration opportunity. Each of the groups continues to make the same thing in their [own locations]. But it's fuelling and enabling more communication, collaboration, best practice sharing, encouraging each other to play each others' games -- but no formal change per se in what anybody's doing."

There do not appear to be any plans for co-development or tech-sharing between Mythic and BioWare just yet, but it is something the group is looking at. "We're all part of the same company at the end of the day. We're studios within the same organization, which is a group now within the EA Games label."

Tech-sharing could really be to Mythic's benefit right now as they're still grappling with server stability and client performance issues nearly a year after release. It has gotten to the point where they are even considering stripping fortresses, the primary culprit for such issues, from Warhammer Online.

Source

Tags: biowaaagh, bioware, ea, gamasutra, mythic-entertainment, ray-muzyka, rpgmmo-group

SWTOR's Comic-Con agenda

by William Dobson Jun 28th 2009 at 6:30PM

Filed under: Sci-fi, Events, real-world, Star Wars: The Old Republic

Those attending Comic-Con 2009 will have a chance to get up close and personal with some of the developers of the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic, and the team has now filled in the details of their visit:

Their panel will be called "Behind the Scenes: The making of Star Wars: The Old Republic", taking place in room 7AB on Friday the 24th of July, from 1:00PM to 2:00PM. This will feature the most SWTOR devs of the show.
Signed "Threat of Peace" comics will be given away from Thursday through Saturday at the Lucasfilm booth (booth #2913) and Dark Horse Comics (booth 2615).
The "Deceived" cinematic trailer will be shown at the Lucasfilm booth (booth #2913) on Saturday and Sunday, at 11am, 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm.
The Star Wars Spectacular special event, hosted by Olivia Munn and Kevin Pereira from G4, will happen on Friday the 24th of July at 5:15PM to 6:15PM in Hall H. The show is about everything Star Wars, so it won't be entirely SWTOR, but it will definitely be included.

Comic-Con International goes from the 23rd of July through to the 26th. Although the show is currently sold out (and no passes will be sold at the door), you can find more information about the event at the official website.

Source

Tags: bioware, comic-con-2009, comic-con-international, dark-horse-comics, deceived, kevin-pereira, lucasfilm, olivia-munn, star-wars, star-wars-spectacular, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, threat-of-peace

Mark Jacobs on his departure from Mythic and EA

by William Dobson Jun 26th 2009 at 8:30AM

Filed under: Dark Age of Camelot, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, News items

We've had comments and opinions flying in from all over the internet regarding Mark Jacobs' departure from Mythic and EA, but finally we get to hear from the man himself, in a new post with the heading "All Things Must Come to an End" on his personal blog. Much of this post is devoted to thanking and farewelling his former co-workers, and he mentioned that there will be more thanks to come -- there's no doubt he would have built a great many relationships throughout his journey with Mythic and EA.

As for Jacobs' comments on the reasons for him leaving, we don't find it out too much, but he did have have this to say:

Early in May, Electronic Arts let me know that they wanted to make some changes within the Games Label and as a result of those changes I have been out of the office (and out of touch with the team, game, etc.) since that day.

and:

However, if you are looking or expecting me to damn EA or anyone there, you will be sorely disappointed. Over my 23 years of making games professionally I have refrained from attacking the competition, former and/or current partners, other game developers, etc. except on a few very rare instances. I have no intention of breaking with tradition at the present time and I hope my track record in this regard remains unchanged for the rest of my career.

We will be keeping an eye on Jacobs' blog for the additional posts he has promised.

Source

Tags: bioware, breaking, daoc, dark-age-of-camelot, ea, electronic-arts, mark-jacobs, mythic-entertainment, war, warhammer-online

More reactions to BioWAAAGH!

by Brooke Pilley Jun 25th 2009 at 12:30PM

Filed under: MMO industry, Warhammer Online, Opinion

We've been keeping our eyes on various blogs and forums discussing yesterday's big news that Mythic and BioWare are being restructured under EA's new MMO/RPG gaming division and that Mark Jacobs is no longer working for EA. Here's a summary of what we've found so far.

Many people are under the false impression that Mythic and BioWare have merged. One of Mythic's developers made this clarification: "We're still Mythic Entertainment, an Electronic Arts Studio, as we have been. I've posted this elsewhere, but we're not 'merging.' We are still a completely separate entity within EA, just as Bioware is, simply now grouped under the same MMO/RPG grouping and reporting to one person, collectively."

Tags: biowaaagh, bioware, blizzard, brad-mcquaid, featured, jeff-hickman, joystiqfeatures, keen, mark-jacobs, mythic-entertainment, richard-garriott, rob-denton, swtor, warhammer-online, world-of-warcraft

Mythic employees shocked at Mark Jacobs' departure

by Tracey John Jun 24th 2009 at 3:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Interviews, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, Massively Interviews

Mythic employees were surprised by their boss' departure, sources told me today.

I spoke with a former employee, who asked to remain anonymous, about what they and their old co-workers thought regarding today's announcement that Mark Jacobs, the vice president and general manager of EA Mythic, will be leaving the company due to a new partnership with BioWare.

"People are shocked and in disbelief about Mark leaving," said the former staffer. "But they're also excited to be working with BioWare. I can't even fathom Mark leaving a company he loved so much, it was his life. Personally, I can't see that this is voluntary in any shape or form."

Tags: bioware, electronic-arts, featured, mark-jacobs, mythic-entertainment

Mythic's Mark Jacobs leaves EA

by Lesley Smith Jun 24th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Events, real-world, MMO industry, Warhammer Online, News items

Mark Jacobs, the former General Manager of Mythic Entertainment and Lead Designer of Warhammer Online, has left EA on 23rd June, the company announced today. This comes as part of restructuring plans within EA which includes both Mythic and BioWare and have culminated in the formation of a new, as-yet-unnamed, studio which will focus on RPGs and MMOs.

The new studio will be led by BioWare co-founder and General Manager Ray Muzyka, who will become Group General Manager. BioWare's other co-founder Greg Zeschuk will become Group Creative Officer while Rob Denton will succeed Jacobs as General Manager.

You can certainly expect more from us as this story develops.

[Via The Examiner]

Source

Tags: bioware, bioware-mmo, breaking, breaking-news, breakingnews, electronic-arts, greg-zeschuk, mark-jacobs, mergers, mythic-entertainment, ray-muzyka, rob-denton

SWTOR's Threat of Peace concludes its first chapter

by Kyle Horner Jun 20th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Lore, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

This weekend begets the final chapter for Star Wars: The Old Republic's ongoing Threat of Peace free online webcomic. If you haven't seen many -- or any -- now would be the perfect time to read through the entire series, as the story should feel much more cohesive without being cut off every four pages.

We'd just like to mention that it would be very cool if the Sith Empire droid Espee continues to make regular appearances in forthcoming issues. We love Espee, almost solely because he's a quirky and strangely well meaning Sith Empire droid.

With the end of chapter one, we're curious to see whether future chapters continue with the same schedule and page count. It's also possible that the comic's creator seats could rotate, much like traditional comic books. Nothing has been announced or clairified yet, of course, so this is pure pie-in-the-sky pondering on our part. Still, it'd be nice if BioWare kept things fresh and experimented a little to find out what works best.

Source

Tags: bioware, droid, ea, electronic-arts, lucas-arts, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, threat-of-peace

2009 online game revenue could reach $11b

by Kyle Horner Jun 16th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Business models, MMO industry, News items

Analysts really do like to live up to their job titles, because Colin Sebastian went all out at this year's E3 event. But his biggest prediction? This year online games will rake in $11 billion dollars in revenue, out of a global $44 billion in the videogame market. That's a whole heaping ton of cash, and a sizable chunk of the pie, too.

With Free Realms hitting three million players in only two months, it's safe to say that online games are indeed becoming a force to be reckoned. We're kind of in amazement when considering the potential numbers of Star Wars: The Old Republic's first few months after launch.

The next few years are certainly going to be interesting for online games. Hopefully by the end of it all, we'll still be able to walk outside without immediately hissing and burning alive from the sunlight.

Tags: bioware, colin-sebastian, ea, electronic-arts, gamasutra, lucas-arts, soe, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor

The Digital Continuum: Reign of the shooters

by Kyle Horner Jun 15th 2009 at 1:00PM

Filed under: Opinion, The Digital Continuum, Crime, MMOFPS

This year, a bleating signal is ringing out from all corners of the MMO industry. It calls to our attention a new order on the horizon: the order of shooter MMOs.

Can it be coincidence that everywhere you look at this year's E3, most of the exciting upcoming MMOs are shooters in one way or another? I'm looking forward to Final Fantasy XIV as much as the next fan, but there's only one or two traditional looking concepts that have my interest.

Moving through my mental list of must-play MMOs reveals a very obvious pattern. Jumpgate Evolution, All Points Bulletin, CrimeCraft and even aspects of Star Wars: The Old Republic are looking shooter-like. I mean, come on, cover mechanics for the Smuggler class? Now you're just teasing me into a squelching geek heat, BioWare.

Tags: all-points-bulletin, apb, bioware, crimecraft, featured, ffxiv, final-fantasy-xiv, fps, frogster, jge, jumpgate-evolution, mag, netdevil, realtime-worlds, shooter, square-enix, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-digital-continuum

Star Wars: The Old Republic has hundreds of voice actors

by Kyle Horner Jun 9th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Interviews, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

Giant Bomb has been pumping out some great videos from E3 2009, but we of course took immediate notice of this interview with two Star Wars: The Old Republic developers from BioWare. Most of the conversation revolves around information we already know, until one of the devs reveals, "we have literally thousands of roles which are voiced in our game, which are done by many, many hundreds of voice actors." We knew there was going to be a lot of people, but, okay we didn't expect that many!

Hundreds.

Much of the Massively crew agreed that Star Wars: The Old Republic's classes would be limited to four or five on each side, due to the fully-voiced announcement. Now we're thinking differently with thousands of roles filled by many hundreds of voice actors. Suddenly, six or seven per side doesn't seem like a far away fever dream.

If you'd like to see how it ends when you ask a BioWare dev about SWTOR's release date, check out the full video after the break.

Source

Tags: bioware, brad-shoemaker, e3-2009, ea, electronic-arts, giant-bomb, lucas-arts, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, voice-acting

The Digital Continuum: SWTOR turns up the heat

by Kyle Horner Jun 9th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: New titles, Opinion, The Digital Continuum, Star Wars: The Old Republic

E3 2009 has come and gone, with it came new information on Star Wars: The Old Republic -- and fresh concerns. To call BioWare ambitious would be an understatement of vast proportions. Every NPC receiving full voice acting ratcheted up my curiosity as much as it did my eyebrows. We may need a new word to describe the depths of this game's ambition.

As if the voice acting news wasn't enough, BioWare revealed a cinematic trailer that reminded me how powerful this property can truly be, in the right hands. The excitement was so immediately potent that it caused some people to cry "over-hyped!" in the few short minutes between the trailer's beginning and ending.

I think it's time to asses the current situation, and maybe ponder a few things about Star Wars and BioWare.

Tags: age-of-conan, aoc, bioware, bounty-hunter, e3-2009, ea, electronic-arts, featured, funcom, hype, jedi, lucas-arts, mythic, sith, smuggler, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, tobold, trooper, war, warhammer-online

The Digital Continuum: SWTOR turns up the heat, part 2

by Kyle Horner Jun 9th 2009 at 12:00PM

Filed under: New titles, Opinion, The Digital Continuum, Star Wars: The Old Republic

Tags: baldurs-gate, bioware, dragon-age, ea, electronic-arts, lucas-arts, mass-effect, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, the-digital-continuum

Threat of Peace issue 8 could be dropping hints

by Kyle Horner Jun 7th 2009 at 4:00PM

Filed under: Lore, New titles, News items, Star Wars: The Old Republic

Star Wars: The Old Republic's free online comic, Threat of Peace, has reached issue number eight and finally introduced one of those lovable droids. It's safe to say that so far throughout this storyline, many of the prominent characters and their prospective races featured in this comic have the potential to be in-game racial options. Humans, Twi'leks and Wookiees have all been popular thus far, and now it looks like droids may in fact be a possibility. It's positively delightful!

Of course, races that have seen the limelight in Threat of Peace aren't the only signs of things to come. Bounty Hunters and Troopers both received notable attention. Whether or not this sets any kind of reasonable precedent is something we'll leave up to you, however.

Source

Tags: bioware, bounty-hunter, droid, droids, ea, electronic-arts, human, lucas-arts, star-wars, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor, threat-of-peace, trooper, twilek, wookiee

Anti-Aliased: Final Fantasy XIV is a good, good thing

by Colin Brennan Jun 5th 2009 at 6:00PM

Filed under: Fantasy, Final Fantasy XI, Game mechanics, MMO industry, Opinion, Consoles, Anti-Aliased, Final Fantasy XIV

So, unless you've been under a rock, you probably heard Sony squeeing in happiness about Final Fantasy XIV Online, otherwise known as just FFXIV. This is indeed the next MMO that Square-Enix has been hiding from prying eyes, and unlike the indications we got from the company a year ago, this is another Final Fantasy Online.

The reception, however, is quite mixed. Some people, like myself, are really psyched up for this next release in the online series. Others, however, are questioning why make a game like FFXIV when you already have FFXI. Why not just keep on working on FFXI? Don't we all remember how bad sequels work out in the MMO market? Why tempt fate by making a sequel?

Personally, I think the creation of this game is a good idea with all things considered. Final Fantasy brings a different perspective of play to the market -- one that it desperately needs at this point in time. What am I jabbering on about? Come on, follow me, and let's talk about why FFXIV is a good, good thing.

Tags: all-points-bulletin, anti-aliased, apb, bioware, featured, ffxi, ffxiv, final-fantasy-xi, final-fantasy-xiv, game-design, graphics, joystiqfeatures, realtime-worlds, sequels, square-enix, star-wars-the-old-republic, swtor

Massively Features

Featured Games

Events Calendar

Name	Date
Fallen Earth Launch	Q2 2009
Global Agenda Closed Beta	July 2009
CrimeCraft Launch	Aug 25 2009
Champions Online Launch	Sep 1 2009
Cities XL EU Launch	Sep 3 2009
Aion Launch	Sep 22 2009
Earth Eternal Open Beta	Q3 2009