206w ago - BioWare, the developer of Mass Effect and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, is excited to be working on the PS3 with the upcoming multiplatform fantasy RPG Dragon Age: Origins.

The game is BioWare's first for Sony's console. Last generation, the EA-owned developer made only a single PS2 game: third-person shooter MDK2.

Speaking to VideoGamer.com (linked above), vice president of entertainment and miscellaneous at BioWare, and vice president of Electronic Arts, Greg Zeschuk, said that the team's found developing on the PS3 "exciting", and even has its advantages.

To quote: "It's been interesting," he said. "It's actually been quite good. We discovered a couple of things we did were pretty beneficial. We have multiple threads going for the game and it looks really great on the PS3. You can just throw them on all different processors, for example."

"It's new. Because we already had experience on 360, that kind of got ahead a little bit, but now we pretty much caught up. Actually it was very exciting. People on the team were really pumped to work on it. They were like, wow. We have a lot of people that like doing new stuff and trying new things, and they were like, wow another platform, can't wait! It's been good."

Zeschuk added that BioWare's...

209w ago - Speaking to CNBC, the president and CEO of SCEA Jack Tretton promised that the PS3 motion controller (and its games library) will be far more flexible and diverse than what one would find on Nintendo's machine.

To quote: "Personally, it's very difficult for me to perceive God of War 3 being played with the Wii controller," he said.

"It's a different experience that doesn't lend itself to certain types of games. [But] I think our [motion] controller can be used with every game that's on the system now - and every game we're working on."

In fact, Tretton goes so far as to say compatibility with current PS3 games is "absolutely conceivable."

Without being able to go hands-on with the device, it's hard to judge. Are there sufficient buttons and sticks to make a 1:1 translation between DualShock and the motion controllers? Time will tell...

215w ago - Game engine work on both the PS3 and XBox 360 versions of this hotly anticipated JRPG Final Fantasy XIII is being conducted simultaneously, Square Enix has revealed.

To quote: Speaking to VideoGamer.com (linked above) at a recent press event in London, Final Fantasy XIII producer and series legend Yoshinori Kitase said that regarding the "basic engine", work on both the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the game will be kept on the go "simultaneously".

Final Fantasy XIII runs on the Crystal Tools game engine, an engine built by Square Enix to be used across the PS3, Xbox 360, Wii and PC. It was created during development of Final Fantasy XIII as a means of stepping up from the PS2, home of the last "main series" Final Fantasy game.

The Xbox 360 version of the game was spectacularly announced during Microsoft's media briefing at E3 last year. Square Enix has said that the game will be released in Japan on the PS3 only, then released in the US and Europe simultaneously on the PS3 and Xbox 360 at a later date.

In a video shown to press late last year, Final Fantasy XIII director Motomu Toriyama said: "We're making the PS3 version first, and then porting to the 360 later."

Some gamers have expressed concern over the prospect of the Western release...

223w ago - The current issue of Play features an interview with BioWare CEO Dr Ray Muzyka, in which he talks about Mass Effect, Dragon Age and how much he loves the PS3.

We couldn't fit it all into the mag, so here are some 'extras' from the interview:

Play: How are you finding it being part of EA? How has the acquisition changed BioWare?

Ray: We've evolved every year we've been in business and I think we're at a good place. It's great to be part of a large stable company.

Another benefit is also that we're now a developer, but also a publisher. Obviously development is still a big focus for us, but it's great to be a publisher at the same time so we can get to combine everything and make sure you're doing all things right.

We have to adapt. We're part of a larger company now. We have a whole bunch of products of our own, but EA's a very big company overall.

Play: Your older games on the PC are known for their depth and detail. Is it difficult to maintain those qualities when making a game that has to be accessible to console gamers?

Ray: We have an obligation always to make our games as accessible as possible, and yet you don't have to lose the depth and richness of the tactics, the systems,...

234w ago - Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced further details on a restructuring plan which will include consolidating facilities and reducing the work force.

Press Release: REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Dec 19, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) - EA expects the restructuring plan will result in annual cost savings of approximately $120 million and restructuring charges of approximately $55-65 million over the next several quarters.

The plan is intended to reduce EA's worldwide work force by approximately 10 percent or 1,000 people. The majority of these actions will be completed by March 31, 2009. This represents a four percent increase from the six percent reduction EA announced on October 30, 2008.

The restructuring also calls for consolidation or closure of at least nine studio and publishing locations. Among the facilities to be consolidated is the Black Box Studio facility in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Black Box development teams and associated game franchises will move to the nearby EA studio location in Burnaby, British Columbia.

EA is implementing a plan to narrow its product portfolio to focus on hit games with higher margin opportunities. The company remains committed to taking creative risks, investing in new games, leading the industry in the growing mobile and online businesses,...