There are a number of niche publishers out there – they excel in a small number of genres or areas but they have little presence in the wider market. Some of those publishers seem happy with their role. But there are others that are constantly reaching, trying to expand their operations. Our list this week is composed of the publishers who have tried to expand into new markets, but have failed.

Remember, these categories are not based on the actual size or stock value of a company. What we are most concerned with is the diversity and depth of a publisher’s portfolio, the stability of the company and its developers, and the recent growth or progress. This grouping only represents a few of the twenty-plus publishers that we’ll be analyzing over the new few weeks, so check back for our analysis of the other publishers.

1. Capcom

I wish I could give Capcom  a better placement than this, because I am a huge fan of many of their games – but this is an analysis, not a popularity vote.

Capcom is definitely the strongest publisher in this category, and the couple markets they dominate are so huge I hesitate to call them niches. But the fact remains that Capcom’s successful franchises all fall within 2-3 genres. And outside of that, their lineup reads like a shopping list of bargain-bin games.

We’ll start with the company’s strengths. It’s almost impossible to mention Capcom without thinking of Resident Evil, and for good reason. The original game was ahead of its time, and is still mentioned among the best titles of all time. Resident Evil has become more than just a game, it’s almost a market of its own. The countless spin-offs, sequels and handheld versions have kept the franchise at the top of Capcom’s revenue charts. Along with the Dead Rising series, Capcom has a firm place in the horror market.

The other juggernaut for Capcom is their fighting games. Street Fighter was dominant during the golden age of fighters, and Street Fighter IV is often credited as resurrecting the genre a few years ago. That’s no small accomplishment, but Capcom has not rested on their laurels. Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Super Street Fighter IV, and Street Fighter x Tekken are just a few of the follow-ups from the last two years. The next publisher on this list likes to boast about having the best 3D fighting games, but Capcom has nothing to prove and they know it.

Beyond those two genres, Capcom’s portfolio drops off. Which isn’t to say they don’t have other successful franchises. The Mega Man series, Devil May Cry, Monster Hunter, and Okami are just a few of the action/adventure success that Capcom can boast. The upcoming reboot for DMC should prove again that Capcom isn’t a two-trick pony.

So why is Capcom on this list? Because despite the many amazing games they publish, they also produce a LOT of junk. Almost every shooting game Capcom has ever made could be in that category. I’ve liked a few of them, and reviews are mixed for some, but there always seems to be something missing, something glaring mistakes holding them back from blockbuster level. They haven’t found the sweet spot like they have with fighters and horror, and it shows in the sales numbers.

Dark Void, the Bionic Commando Reboot, Lost Planet 2, and the recent release Operation Raccoon City could all fall under that category. Lost Planet has found a bit of success, but factor in the production costs and the marketing campaigns for these shooters, and Capcom is still losing. The company seems desperate to break into the shooter market, but no matter how many times they try and how much money they throw at it, they haven’t been able to succeed.

And it’s that desperation to grow that stands out most prominently when ranking this publisher. Add the fact that Capcom has little-to-no presence in most genres (RPG, racing, sports, strategy, etc.) and we see the limitations of Capcom’s portfolio. They are probably the greatest “niche” market publisher to exist, but niche they remain until they can find success in some other genres.

• Strengths – The #1 fighting game publisher, corner on the horror market with Resident Evil and Dead Rising, Mega Man franchise, strong action titles like Devil May Cry

• Weaknesses – Embarrassing list of shooters despite their best efforts, lack of presence beyond 3-4 genres

2. Namco

Namco was a very tough publisher to place. On the one hand, the company seems quite comfortable and has not shown signs of failure like many other Japanese publishers. Namco is a very old company with a lot of classic and recognizable titles. But on the other hand… their portfolio is not very diverse, and their attempts to succeed with new IP have been largely unsuccessful. Which gives off the impression that the company is stagnating, unable to truly evolve or expand.

In the end, it’s those half-hearted attempts that feature most prominently in my mind. I think they are most telling of where Namco is trying to go, and failing.

But first, let’s look at what the company has going for it. Started in 1955, Namco has been around since before video games existed, and before most of us were born. They started by operating children’s rides on the roof of a department store, and expanded into amusement parks and then arcade games. In the 70s, Namco bought part of Atari Games and got further into the game industry. Namco eventually started making games of its own, hitting it big in the early 80s with titles like Galaga and Pac-Man. Many of these titles are still around, and form the stable of classics that the modern-day Namco tries to leverage. As a side-note, Namco still runs amusement parks and rides to this day.

Namco’s triple-A portfolio was born in the mid-90s, with titles like Ridge Racer (93), Tekken (94) and Soul Edge (95). The two fighting series (now Soul Calibur and Tekken) are among the strongest franchises owned by Namco. The resurrection of the fighting genre over the last 2-3 years has made those franchises more valuable, so that Namco’s fighters are now a cornerstone of the game company.

The third pillar of Namco seems to be its abundance of license games, most based on popular Japanese anime series. The most recognizable of these would be the Naruto games, Gundam games, and Dragon Ball titles. Though none of these have reached blockbuster level in the states, they are a consistent, annual source of success and revenue for the company. They also give Namco its most credible entries in the Action genre.

So with those three successful pillars (classics, fighting games, anime titles), what’s wrong with Namco? Pretty much everything else. Beyond the afore-mentioned titles, Namco’s portfolio is very limited and weak. Ridge Racer is a shoe-in launch title for most platforms, but financially it’s not making any waves. The “Tales of” series of RPG games have been decent, but again, don’t really give Namco a strong presence in that genre. There’s really nothing to speak of in the sports, strategy, or survival horror genres.

The recent attempts by Namco to change this, and expand their portfolio, have not worked. The attempted reboot of Splatterhouse was not a success. Their other forays into the action genre, like Enslaved and Afro Samurai, were likewise disappointing (though the reviews were better than the sales). The only successful “new” IP Namco can brag about is Dark Souls, but then again, we all knew the sequel to Demon’s Souls would do well.

So in the end, Namco is just another one of those niche publishers trying to be more.

• Strengths – Fighting series Soul Calibur and Tekken, leads the market in anime-based games, huge portfolio of classic titles like Pac-Man & Galaga

• Weaknesses – Beyond the 3 niche categories they lead, almost  no presence in all other genres, attempts at finding new IP or rebooting old franchises have failed

3. Disney

Disney was a much easier publisher to place than Namco or Capcom. And frankly, there is a lot less to say about this one, since Disney has been licensing out its IP to other companies for years. But Disney Interactive Studios is composed of about six developers at the moment.

The most noteworthy of those is Junction Point, the home of industry luminary Warren Spector. Many assumed that Spector’s involvement with Disney would bring forth some original (and possibly M-rated) IP from Disney Interactive. When Epic Mickey was unveiled, hopes were high that the game, while not a new IP, would still raise the bar on Disney games. Reception was mixed, and while I won’t offer my own opinion on the game, the fact remains that it was not the publisher-defining title that Disney hoped for.

Two other developers with Disney were working on games for a more “core gamer” audience, Propaganda Games and Black Rock Studios. Propaganda made the 2008 version of Turok, the 2010 Tron title, and was working on a sweet-looking Pirates of the Caribbean game. Black Rock made Pure and the arcade racer Split/Second, which was received fairly well (and is a blast to play).

Unfortunately, both of those companies have now been closed, and the Armada of the Damned (the Pirates title) has been cancelled. Between those closures, and Warren Spector’s continuing work on a Mickey Mouse game, Disney has made it clear that they don’t care much about branching out. The company is focusing on their licensed titles, and that is about it.

To be clear, licensed games does not just mean the fun Disney-movie kid games, like Toy Story 3, Wall-E and Cars. It also means a landslide of poorly done TV-show titles, like The Cheetah Girls, Phineas and Ferb, Hannah Montana and High School Musical. Games that I doubt many self-respecting readers on GIO have ever even considered.

Which isn’t to say that those games don’t sell. Disney has their niche market, they don’t care about the core gamers, and the core gamers probably don’t care about them.

• Strengths – Lots of great IP to use in kid’s games and licensed titles, Warrren Spector with Junction Point

• Weaknesses – Closure of Black Rock Studios & Propaganda Games, retreat from the core gaming market

- – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – -

Thanks for reading Part 2 of our feature, Evaluating the Publishers! Keep in mind that, while these publishers are ranked near the bottom,we are by no means judging them as bad publishers. Quite the contrary, all of them have a strategy, and they have been working to a degree. But the fact remains that their portfolios are not as impressive as those of their peers. And they seem to have (or had) a problem with that comparison, and are trying to address it. If they were succeeding at that expansion, they would have landed on another list.

Next week, we’ll look at the other half of the publishers that could be considered “niche.” That group seems less perturbed by their ranking, in fact, they seem comfortable ruling over their tiny slice of the gaming market. Check back to see which publishers were given that label. We’d love to hear your feedback below, including your thoughts on whether the “niche” publishers detailed above will be able to break out of their limited roles.

But hey! Maybe there’s a reason that I’m just not involved enough to see. Maybe Capcom games do better on the 3DS and the PS3 than other consoles? Or something? The latest issue of Famitsu has the information on the game, called EX Trooper, and is apparently anime-styled and scored by a Japanese pop star. It’s also set in an academy, with you being a new dude who really wants to go kill some Akrid, and the producer of the game described it as “a beginner action shooter”. We don’t have any other information about it, but I’m going to go ahead and assume, with no basis for this, that the academy setting and anime style mean one thing: DATING SIM! Give flowers to the ice monsters until they go out with you!

Apparently this is part of Capcom’s plan, set out a few years ago, to use their IPs for multiple things, which we also like to call “shamelessly whoring out”.  It looks like part of a media blitz they might be starting with Lost Planet, so if things go like they did with Resident Evil, expect some CG movies, soundtracks, iOS games, and even a Pachinko machine for the game (especially since Pachinko is just soooo big outside of Japan!). So whether you like the franchise or not, it sounds like it’s time to get used to seeing it everywhere!

Activision has announced that they will be releasing Tony Hawk 3 levels as the first paid DLC for Tony Hawk HD.  The HD collection will only have levels from the first two games at launch, but it is good to hear that some of the fantastic levels from the first game will be featuring a return.  It is unknown which levels will make the cut, but Activision is asking for suggestions on the Tony Hawk HD Facebook page, though Tony Hawk will have the final say.  Currently Tony Hawk HD is set for release this July.

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A second trailer for Naughty Dog’s upcoming The Last Of Us has hit the internet, and whilst we annoyingly don’t get any gameplay footage, we do learn that protagonists Joel and Ellie aren’t quite the very last of us alive in this I Am Legend-reminiscent survival title. Catch the trailer whilst it’s hot up above!

As infuriating it is that we haven’t got any gameplay for a game that’s been given a 2012 release date yet, have a little patience. With E3 just around the corner, it seems incredibly likely that this is simply a teaser to remind everybody that the game is still alive and kicking  in time for further reveals next month.

We don’t get to see any more of the gruesome-looking mushroom zombies from the first trailer but, as with all post-apocalyptic pieces of fiction, one of the biggest danger to surviving humans is humanity itself. Little more can be garnered from this cinematic trailer, but with half a decade of current generation titles to influence Naughty Dog we can take educated guesses. Will there be a Dead Rising style mixture of hostile and friendly allies, or will it take the approach of I Am Alive in making it very clear that it’s you against the world? Have a look at the trailer and guess for yourself!

Ah, the good ol' days

I think we’ve all been waiting for THQ’s fiscal reports to crop up finally, and today’s the day. Unfortunately, because of Diablo III, I don’t think anyone’s really paying attention, but man, THQ’s news sure isn’t doing much to make their future seem brighter.

First of all come delays. Of course, we all know about the Darksiders II delay, and that sounds like the official date for it is going to be August 14th now. Their new South Park RPG, being developed by Obsidian, has also been pushed back to Q4, so it seems like we’ll be waiting for a good while for that. At least it might be cold when the game comes out, meaning that we’ll be able to get into the mood better (which is called “me pretending to find a bright side”).

This is a man who does not want his game to be delayed

The company also announced that it went ahead and dropped Tomunobu Itagaki’s new game, Devil’s Third, because it was getting a little too expensive for them. Specifically, the company making the engine for Valhalla Games went under, so they had to have THQ step in and help fund a new one. So now that game’s out there for anyone to pick up, and hopefully it finds a good home. I believe THQ actually still has it but it just looking to sell it off, so more on that when we hear it.

The company did have some good news about its sales, though. The WWE franchise was able to do very well, selling 20% more in the US than the last one did, though that could have something to do with the fact that annual franchises tend to have swings like that. They also credit the rebranding of the game to WWE 12 for helping drum up some extra interest.

one look at this picture, and you can understand why saints row the third sold so well

Meanwhile, the Saints Row series has been good to the company, with the franchise doing over 11 million copies since launch, and Saints Row the Third doing 4 million of that by itself. It’s also been the highest earning game for digital sales in the company’s history, and the Enter the Dominatrix expansion is well on its way for a September release. It is standalone, if you were wondering, so you can play it if you do or don’t own the original game.

And yet…

Despite strong sales, the company’s finances are still suffering. They lost $239 million last fiscal year, which was $100 million more than the year before that. Of course, a lot of it does go to blame the comically atrocious sales of uDraw, but they have been able to sell most of their unclaimed tablets so far. I did see that they still have 1.1 million tablets left over, though, which is CRAZY, and one wonders if it would be cheaper to round them up and hit them with a sledgehammer. It would certainly be stress relief.

The company also credits a chunk of their losses to expects falloff from their shift away from children’s games. It was surely a profitable field for them (as kids love buying garbage if it has…uh… Kimpossible on it), so this does make some sense, and hopefully they’ll be able to rein in their losses and stem the bleeding. I didn’t see anything about their stock prices, but it almost feels like a good E3 showing might be the best thing to help them continue to survive.

Darkstation’s own Scott Kieffer was helpful enough to write up an evaluation of THQ’s performances and strengths and weaknesses, so go check that out here. THQ still looks like it has a bit of a fight ahead of them, but from what it sounds like, they’re not going away soon, they’re just going to keep looking for  the right size and output that really fits and adds to the company.

Tera is a strange game. Despite being released in North American and European territories earlier this month, the game is actually a year old localization of a Korean MMO called The Exiled Realm of Arborea (T.E.R.A., get it??). The game almost didn’t see a release as NCSoft sought to convict its former employees, who make up Bluehole, for theft of trade secrets. Fortunately for Tera, Bluehole escaped prosecution and launched the online roleplaying game without further reproach. A good thing too, because Tera offers something genuinely new to the genre: action combat. World of Warcraft made hotbar-oriented, cooldown-based “just stand there and take it” combat the norm for MMOs and while other games have tried to mask that through various hooks (such as The Old Republic’s strong narrative), there just isn’t getting around the tried, true and tired combat mechanics. Tera offers the player a true action experience, putting combat efficiency and success where it belongs: on the player. The problem with the game, however, is that despite this innovation Tera gets dull rather quickly and it’s not long before you find yourself settling into a long, repetitive grind.

The initial premise of Tera involves the sudden appearance of a mystical island from the bottom of the sea. Filled with a sense of adventure, the peoples of Tera head out to explore and seek adventure from the Island of Dawn, only to find that a malevolent force of mechanical creatures called the Argons want the island’s secrets for itself and are more than willing to destroy anyone in their way. The game’s introduction is unique: initially, you play as a level 20 version of your character who finds themselves part of an advance scouting party only to be defeated by powerful Argon forces. The game proper begins some time after that battle and sees you returning to the island to seek out a missing hero before setting off into the larger world.

Gameplay

Let’s get the familiar stuff out of the way: game progression involves seeking out NPCs (marked by a yellow exclamation points) who present you with quests that either progress the game’s primary storyline, explain certain gameplay elements or have you perform non-critical odds and ends. Completing quests – all of which are presented in text boxes ripped from World of Warcraft – and fighting monsters yields experience, cash and loot that can be used to make your characters strong enough to take on BAMs – “big ass monsters.” When not questing or farming for experience, different types of materials can be harvested in order to craft new and powerful objects for yourself or other players (for a price!). Like minded individuals can form parties or join guilds in order to tackle BAMs, dungeons and quests, There are hints of a player-led political system within Tera, but I have yet to see anything of the sort just yet.

There are a host of different races to play as, from the elegant High Elves to the slightly uncomfortable Elin. You can customize the appearance of your chosen hero by selecting from a number of different faces, hairstyles and clothing options. Tera gains points for beating World of Warcraft to the punch by introducing the Popori, a diminutive, animal race that can take on the appearance of pandas depending on how you customize them. The character classes are divided by familiar archetypes: the Mystic heals, Archers provide ranged attacks, Lancers tank, so on and so forth. Honestly, if you’ve played at least one MMO then you’ll find Tera to be an awfully familiar experience.

However, what sets Tera apart from other massively multiplayer games is the combat. Instead of running up to a creature and trading blows while forced to endure their attacks, Tera plays more like a third person action game, putting the effectiveness of your powers and abilities firmly in your control. Present at all times is a crosshair that must be lined up with a monster in order to land a hit – if you miss, it’s your fault. Likewise, if you fail to dodge an incoming attack (every creature has a visual “tell”), well, that’s probably your fault too. You still have access to a hotbar containing all of your learned abilities, but you won’t spend a whole lot of time hovering over icons while waiting for them to cool down. Should you choose to play the game with a controller, you’ll find combat to be a much more comfortable experience and you can assign skills to the gamepad’s face buttons. To make combat even more engaging, different attacks can be chained together to unleash deadly, critical hits. Initially, your chains will only be made up of two actions, but as your character grows these combos will grow.

Graphics

Tera is one of the most beautiful MMOs you can find. Typically, the genre utilizes graphics that would look good on old and new systems (in order to maximize subscriptions), but Tera thumbs its nose at that trend and delivers a breathtaking feast for the eyes. Textures are detailed and complex and whether you’re battling monsters in a lush, green valley or exploring the nooks and crannies of cities, the game looks great. This deep level of detail extends to the avatars, as the characters show a meticulous level of detail in their faces and outfits (you’d be forgiven if you felt the art style was reminiscent of a Final Fantasy-type game). Many of the outfits are really designed well and tend to show off an alarmingly amount of skin. This isn’t so much of an issue unless you choose to play as the Elins and then things get really awkward. See the Elin are a child-like race…and, well, that race is gender locked, meaning you can only play as a young girl and, uh…I think you know where I’m going with this.

Fun Factor

Despite creating a unique open ended combat scheme, Tera is a slog to play through. This is largely attributed to a boring, grind-centric quest system that ripped off an earlier version of World of Warcraft before Blizzard had a chance to implement new mission types outside of the standard kill and fetch variant. No matter how the game tries to dress up the presentation of each quest (you’ll often sit through pre-rendered cutscenes that explain what needs to be done), the reality is that if you’re not on a kill X of Y quest, you’ll be on a fetch X of Y quests. There’s a story to be told through primary quests and while they do a good job of moving you from one area to the next, you’ll eventually learn to stop caring about the world around you as there is no real sense of adventure or urgency. Say what you want about The Old Republic, but you can’t deny it did a fantastic job with giving weight to quests through well written and directed cutscenes. With Tera, every time I initiate a conversation with NPCs, I immediately click the Accept Quest button.

Even the thrill of open ended combat wears a bit thin after awhile. I appreciate not having to spend all my game time staring at the hotbar waiting for abilities to cool down, but since I’ve found the perfect set of abilities to use against enemies, I’ve fallen back into muscle memory by using the same attack pattern repeatedly. I never really felt like the game was encouraging me to try something new or mix things up. Perhaps this is a problem inherent with the Archer class, but combat eventually gets mundane. Adding new skills to your repertoire and confronting BAMs makes things interesting, but you’ll have to go a little bit out of your way to find the challenging monsters and world bosses.

Overall

Tera will be remembered for two things: art and its implementation of a combat experience unique to the genre. But the use of familiar MMO tropes feels somewhat uninspired. From the beginning, taking down monsters and levelling up is easy and only after the player leaves the Island of Dawn do monsters pose more of a challenge, but the biggest enemy you’ll have to contend with is boredom. While Tera has a strong focus on community and PvP and the combat certainly is an innovation that I’d like to see implemented in more MMOs, I’ve had a difficult time breaking through the monotony of the non-community experience.

The current governor, who was against the loan when he was running for government, says he’s doing his best to find a way to keep the company solvent, saying he’s treating it like he would any big Rhode Island company. Still, it’s a little weird seeing 38 Studios in such trouble, but last year, apparently, Pricewaterhousecooper did a review of the company and said they had doubts as to whether the company could stay solvent.

It’s especially weird seeing them having financial issues when they haven’t even revealed the main game they’ve been working on Project Copernicus, which is an MMO that, if I’m not mistaking, is where Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning budded from. They’re set in the same universe and everything, but since we haven’t seen hide nor hair of Copernicus, it’s seeming a little unlikely that they’ll be able to put anything out or even salvage the work. Which is a huge shame, because if you’ve heard them talk about the work they’ve done in designing all the characters and systems, that’s a lot to throw down the toilet. Hopefully they’ll be able to figure something out, because around 400 jobs lie in jeopardy here, and it would be a shame for that many people to lose their positions.

The company doesn’t have any E3 plans, as far as I know, so sounds like anytime someone asks about them, they’ll just get a usual “we’re not talking about that now,” and that’s that. If we find out anything more, we’ll have a report, but for now, it’s a good luck to the developers out there!

It’s also been revealed this morning that if the company goes under, thanks to the loan made by the Rhode Island government, the taxpayers are in a position to owe $112.6 million. This seems like one of the reasons the loan was criticized in the first place- a contingency plan that lays on the general public having to pay back the loan, at a 7% interested rate. It seems like there might even come a time where keeping the studio open would cost more than just letting the taxpayers deal with it being closed, so hopefully the best decision is made for everyone involved (which is now apparently everyone in Rhode Island).

Sony Unveils Playstation Voice, by Jeremy Meyer

Today Sony announced their new addition to their console which is Playstation Voice. Playstation Voice is a new feature that is similar to the Kinect’s voice options and it allows you to navigate menus on the XMB through specific voice commands. Sony had little to say about the new feature but mentioned that it will be fully compatible with the Playstation Store and Netflix. Playstation Voice can only be used with your headset for the console and its main use is intended to be quicker access to items in the store but will also be able to jump to specific locations on your dashboard.

It seems that Sony saw how little the Move was affecting the market and decided to take a cue from Microsoft’s Kinect. This actually feels like a good move for Sony as navigating the store is always something that can be made easier. I look forward to getting the chance to try this out and I can only hope this will save me time from hitting that pesky eject button.

New Hardware and Giant Enemy Crabs, by Charlie Osterlund

I’ll say this out loud: Sony is definitely announcing a new console at this year’s E3. They released their PS3 a year later than Microsoft’s Xbox 360, so naturally they are seeing this as an opportunity to compensate for that by putting the pressure on Microsoft by prepping a new console and ushering the market into a new generation.

Beyond that, I’d like to see more, preferably hardcore Move titles that doesn’t involve petting animals and making breakfast. Move showed some true potential with Killzone 3 last year, so seeing some more shooter and/or action games with Move capability could really sweeten the deal, and please do show more of Sorcery this year!

Sony Announces Sports Champions 2, by Joel Szerlip

Sony won’t altogether forget about their beloved Playstation Move this year at E3. Sure the peripheral hasn’t taken off the way they wanted when it was announced a few years ago, but Sony won’t give up on it just yet. In a move to compete with Microsoft’s strong Kinect showing and Nintendo’s push with the Wii U, Sony will once again trudge into the Sports category with a second installment in the Sports Champions franchise.

I think the second installment will be announced with a much deeper approach then the original and sports more gamers care about. It might be the last PS Move only game from Sony but my crystal ball says don’t be surprised when they announce it.

Sony Blows the Doors of Cross-Platform Play, by Adam Condra

This year, Sony is going to use the PS3 to build support for the Vita. Consumers still don’t have a good handle on the cross-platform initiative, and so Sony will be doing its best to make the Vita look like a necessary accessory to the PS3. Big exclusives like LittleBigPlanet Kart Racing, Starhawk,  and Dust 514 will each get their own Vita apps and/or multiplayer clients, and Sony will also announce a number of new PS3-to-Vita simultaneous launches: Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale, Killzone 4, and Persona 5 will all be announced for both Playstation platforms.

Vita vs Wii U by Alexander Cattell

With the reveal of the Wii U  at last years E3 and the great gameplay possibilities it could have, it wasn’t hard to make links straight away as to what could happen with the newly released Vita’s capabilities of dual screen gameplay, with the Playstation 3. It would be amazing to see new games that take advantage of both consoles powerful hardware and meld them into exciting new opportunities. Imagine playing your favorite shooter and when you want to look down the sights of your weapon, all you do is hold your PSV up to your TV and pop off a few rounds.

Sony Unleashes a New Powerhouse Console, by Mikhail Popov

New PlayStation will be announced with a new Quantic Dream (Heavy Rain dev) game to show what the PS4 is capable of, possibly related to the Kara tech demo they showed at GDC. Either Quantic Dream or Naughty Dog, actually. They may showcase the new tech that prevents used games. This new PlayStation will also have cross-game voice chat that everyone wants on the PS3 but is impossible to implement due to lack of memory.

That’s all she wrote for our Sony predictions. Let us know what you think. Check back next Monday (5/21) at Noon Pacific to check out our Nintendo predictions for E3 2012. See you then!

Adam-
Remember that tepidly received 3rd Person mode from Modern Warfare 2’s multiplayer? In a lot of ways, Ghost Recon Future Soldier feels like what that mode should have been. Ubisoft and its multiple studios have clearly taken a look at their successful “future-tactics” formula and refined it to display one thing: speed. In the beta’s “Conflict” mode, a revolving door of capture/sabotage objectives, it’s clear that goals are meant to be established and completed very quickly. Rounds are capped at 15 minutes, and it’s not uncommon to see objectives recycled five or six times over the course of a match. The more time I spent with the beta, the less it felt like classic Ghost Recon, but instead a faster, leaner beast.

This newfound sense of swiftness is best exhibited by the new cover-swap system. Nevermind that this innovative touch first appeared in Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard, Ubisoft has baldly copied it to great effect. When in cover, you can highlight any other embankment within sight and hold sprint to book it to that location. This makes it easy to watch the battlefield and make your move when appropriate. If you’re canny, it’s possible to make your way from one point on the map to another without being seen, true to the ghost moniker. However, new gadgets like sensor grenades and thermal UAVs make that pretty tricky.

While the technology granted to these new ghosts- optical camouflage, portable UAVs, etc. -serves as the game’s selling point, it’s the guns that steal the show. For gun nuts like myself, the new Gunsmith system is as overindulgent as it is practical. Every weapon you have access to can be pulled apart and customized right down to the trigger mechanism and gas system. Accruing points and unlocking attachments contributes to each firearm’s abilities, which can be automatically optimized for things like power, range, close-quarters-combat, and accuracy. Most of the fun I’ve had with the beta has been messing around with different weapon combinations and testing them out on the gun range.

While the beta is definitely standing on solid ground at this point (matchmaking has been particularly quick for me), there are a few ugly touches lurking in the mix. Hit detection needs some work, especially as concerns the sniping and how the accuracy of high-powered rifles differs with range. There are also a number of bizarre graphical glitches like disappearing heads and skeletons. In fact, aside from some very nice volumetric smoke effects, the game doesn’t look like it’s up to 2012 standards, which is probably a symptom of its protracted development. Still, given that any beta build appearing on 360 is at least a month old, I’m optimistic that Ubisoft can sand down the rougher technical edges in time for the game’s release on May 22nd.

Ashley-
I’ll say straight off the bat that I wasn’t a fan of what I played of Future Soldier. As a multiplayer shooter, it didn’t do anything horrendously wrong. It has all the hallmarks of a good game – varied classes, cool gadgets and specialised equipment, quick matchmaking and solid shooting, but it hasn’t clicked with me yet. The biggest and most glaring issue with it I have is that it just doesn’t do enough to tempt me away from Battlefield or Call Of Duty.

That’s obviously the audience they’re trying to reach, too. The menus, HUD and general art style of the game feel like they were plucked straight out of BF3’s source files, and the combat is a messy mix of both of the FPS heavyweights. The futuristic gizmos are interesting, but they don’t play them up nearly enough and I feel like it was a slightly half-hearted attempt at what could have been a distinct identity for the series.

I also encountered a number of network and balance issues in matches. Much could be simply excused because it’s a beta, but there’s some stuff in there that could require drastic change and I’m not sure if they’ll get around to fixing it. As with the newer COD games, it’s incredibly easy to spawntrap the enemy with a minimal amount of teamwork, and it led to a frustrating experience for me. I’m slightly jaded when it comes to online shooters as it is, and Future Soldier does nothing to help that. It’s just another modern warbattles bandwagoner with average mechanics and a half-baked idea.

Jonathan-
My time with GRFS was not long. I downloaded the beta shortly after it was released but couldn’t get into a match for a while. Honestly, most of my time with the game was spent waiting/hoping to get into a match. So, yeah, it was a beta.

Once I did play the game I found something that felt less like the Ghost Recon I grew up with (I played the original on both PC and Xbox) and more like Call of Duty. Future Soldier is much faster paced than previous entries in the series with the ability to sprint freely and rush cover. While the ability to sprint seems obvious, the ability to dash from cover to cover is pretty cool and seems like the natural evolution of the cover system from Splinter Cell: Conviction. (check out this podcast to see if I was a fan of that)

Future Soldier really seems like the next step in Ubisoft’s blending of mainstream shooters with more tactical ones. It makes a lot of sense considering the Rainbow Six Vegas games were as successful as they were. So I can’t fault them, but I’m not the biggest fan of this merger. Still, I didn’t like Ghost Recon 2 when it came because it “dumbed” things down too much and I grew to love it. The verdict is still out, but I won’t hold my breath…so that hopefully I’m surprised.

Sadly, the beta did not show off Future Soldier’s Horde mode, which is my preferred mode of multiplayer. From a technical aspect, the game still seems kind of rough and there’s less than a month until release, but then, Battlefield 3 was essentially broken during its beta and came out fine.