Electronic Arts

Mirror’s Edge hurdles forward with such breakneck speed that when it comes time to slow and gasp for air, the sharp edges and sleek lines are unravelled by the in-betweens. Skimming the rooftops of an eerily pristine cityscape is proof of developer DICE’s concept, without a shadow of a doubt. Always propelling the experience forward, the swift sense of speed and flow of first-person platforming relies on the possibility of freedom within linear environments. But that forward thrust has to break pace eventually, and that’s precisely where this game of velocity proves winded. Continue »

The derelict, skeletal structure of an immense craft hums with eerie silence. With their own blood, crew members have written their goodbyes on the metallic walls, crying solitarily in the dark depths of space. As a lonely descent into the madness of the aftermath, Dead Space runs the gamut of sci-fi horror inspiration. But through immaculate vision, developer EA Redwood Shores twists a glut of conventions in its favour, spawning something entirely novel. Continue »

Within its first five minutes, Mercenaries 2: World in Flames plateaus. After delivering a massive payload of ordnance on unsuspecting enemies, ploughing through a shanty town atop a massive tank and soaking up a subhuman amount of lead, the game ostensibly hits a high point. Developer Pandemic has a winning formula on its hands here; one that is sure to please anyone with an edge for the anarchic. But through banking it all on spectacle, these mercs quickly lose their novelty, giving way to a world in stagnation. Continue »

Well, this never happens. EA’s fresh survival horror IP, Dead Space, has been bumped up to October 14th for the Xbox 360 and PS3. First announced to ship day and date on Halloween, then pushed forward to the 21st, and now this; the release plans have been strange to say the least.

Development teams are almost always hitting a massive crunch before a looming date, but maybe Dead Space is all but done at this point. It seems like a possibility. And EA has put a lot of confidence — perhaps too presumptuously — in its broad sci-fi universe; with animated comics and even a feature length animated film. In this industry good release news is odd, especially when a new IP is being treated so well. Let’s have more of it.

As you may have already heard, Gary Oldman just can’t keep a secret. Last month he spilled the beans regarding Electronic Arts’ rendition of The Dark Knight in videogame form, bringing into question why we haven’t heard an official word on the troubled game. Further details on the project were recently revealed by Kotaku, and the general outlook was that of an open-world Gotham of meandering mediocrity. And then we have Lego Batman, which is, well… another Lego game. Continue »

It has been a long time coming, but Mercenaries 2: World in Flames is reaching the development finish line and we’re only two months away from its release. Will it live up to its name and set the gaming world on fire? Judging by these screenshots, maybe not. But it will no doubt piss off the Venezuelan government once again.