Innes
19-05-2008, 08:08 PM
http://i31.tinypic.com/2z7g9wy.jpg
A screenshot from the forthcoming Epic Games release, 'Gears of War 2.'
The game, which is scheduled to be released in November, is the sequel to the hit, 'Gears of War,'
which sold more than 5 million copies and is one of the best-selling Xbox 360 games ever.
The title was one of those featured Tuesday at the Microsoft Game Studios Spring Showcase event in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO--If ever there was pressure, it falls on the shoulders of development teams trying to follow up a smash hit with a sequel.
That's the position that the folks at Epic Games find themselves in right now as they put the finishing touches on their forthcoming video game, Gears of War 2. And that's because the original Gears of War sold more than 5 million copies, becoming one of the most successful titles for Microsoft's next-generation video game console.
On Tuesday, Gears of War 2 was one of the featured games at the Microsoft Games Studio Spring Showcase event here. Dozens of video game journalists flocked to the shindig, as they do each year, for a series of tight controlled demos and hands-on play with a few of the titles.
I got a chance at the showcase to talk with Cliff Bleszinski, the design director for Epic Games, about what it's like trying to follow such a big hit like Gears of War and what kinds of expectations are being put on him and his team as they get ready for the expected November release of their much-anticipated game.
"There's a ton of pressure," Bleszinski told me. "But my confidence in myself and my team is exponentially high...We're nervous, but confident at the same time."
It's no small trick to sell 5 million copies of a game that costs $60. Nor should it be, given that that equates to more than $300 million in revenue for the publisher. Few titles reach those kinds of levels.
And while it's far too early to tell if Gears of War 2 will live up to its predecessor's success, there are certainly some things that augur well for it.
First, there is a huge hunger for it. Gears of War sold so many copies because it was considered a top-notch game, and Epic is very well-respected in the industry. So it's safe to say that a lot of people will buy the sequel based purely on the anticipation that built after they played the original.
Similarly, the number of potential buyers is higher simply because it's coming out a couple of years after the original, and a lot more people own Xbox 360s now than they did when Gears of War came out.
"The threshold (for sales success) is higher because there's quite" a higher Xbox 360 install base, said Bleszinski, who added that after Gears of Wars became a hit, "we got a note from (Halo franchise developer) Bungie saying, 'Thanks for raising the install base'" for Halo 3.
The same factor is true, of course, for any new Xbox game, or for titles on any platform. Still, despite more potential buyers, a game like Gears of War 2 is going to have to seriously deliver the goods in order to sell as many copies--or more--as the original did.
Another game in the same boat--and also on display Tuesday at the showcase event--is Fable 2, due out this fall from Lionhead Studios, the home base of, yes, fabled game designer Peter Molyneux.
Source (http://www.news.com/8301-13772_3-9943717-52.html?tag=nefd.top)
A screenshot from the forthcoming Epic Games release, 'Gears of War 2.'
The game, which is scheduled to be released in November, is the sequel to the hit, 'Gears of War,'
which sold more than 5 million copies and is one of the best-selling Xbox 360 games ever.
The title was one of those featured Tuesday at the Microsoft Game Studios Spring Showcase event in San Francisco.
SAN FRANCISCO--If ever there was pressure, it falls on the shoulders of development teams trying to follow up a smash hit with a sequel.
That's the position that the folks at Epic Games find themselves in right now as they put the finishing touches on their forthcoming video game, Gears of War 2. And that's because the original Gears of War sold more than 5 million copies, becoming one of the most successful titles for Microsoft's next-generation video game console.
On Tuesday, Gears of War 2 was one of the featured games at the Microsoft Games Studio Spring Showcase event here. Dozens of video game journalists flocked to the shindig, as they do each year, for a series of tight controlled demos and hands-on play with a few of the titles.
I got a chance at the showcase to talk with Cliff Bleszinski, the design director for Epic Games, about what it's like trying to follow such a big hit like Gears of War and what kinds of expectations are being put on him and his team as they get ready for the expected November release of their much-anticipated game.
"There's a ton of pressure," Bleszinski told me. "But my confidence in myself and my team is exponentially high...We're nervous, but confident at the same time."
It's no small trick to sell 5 million copies of a game that costs $60. Nor should it be, given that that equates to more than $300 million in revenue for the publisher. Few titles reach those kinds of levels.
And while it's far too early to tell if Gears of War 2 will live up to its predecessor's success, there are certainly some things that augur well for it.
First, there is a huge hunger for it. Gears of War sold so many copies because it was considered a top-notch game, and Epic is very well-respected in the industry. So it's safe to say that a lot of people will buy the sequel based purely on the anticipation that built after they played the original.
Similarly, the number of potential buyers is higher simply because it's coming out a couple of years after the original, and a lot more people own Xbox 360s now than they did when Gears of War came out.
"The threshold (for sales success) is higher because there's quite" a higher Xbox 360 install base, said Bleszinski, who added that after Gears of Wars became a hit, "we got a note from (Halo franchise developer) Bungie saying, 'Thanks for raising the install base'" for Halo 3.
The same factor is true, of course, for any new Xbox game, or for titles on any platform. Still, despite more potential buyers, a game like Gears of War 2 is going to have to seriously deliver the goods in order to sell as many copies--or more--as the original did.
Another game in the same boat--and also on display Tuesday at the showcase event--is Fable 2, due out this fall from Lionhead Studios, the home base of, yes, fabled game designer Peter Molyneux.
Source (http://www.news.com/8301-13772_3-9943717-52.html?tag=nefd.top)