This week is Gamescom 2010, Europe’s largest games convention, taking place in Cologne, Germany over four days. This is Europe’s E3, combining a trade fair with a massive consumer gaming experience, and it attracts all the big industry names and more besides.
It will come as no surprise to learn that there have been few traffic-stopping headlines from the show floor, as these are normally saved for the likes of E3. However, Gamescom gives us a chance to play the games that were demoed in LA, as well as some smaller, but nonetheless interesting announcements. I’ve selected the best of the news stories so far because I’m helpful like that.
Here are the stories we’re talking about in Europe (at least the ones that avoid the ongoing Sony/Microsoft bitch-fight).
Suda 51 announces latest project
Gaming auteur, Suda 51 is working on side-scrolling shooter called Sine Mora, which is Latin for without delay.
There’s not much information to go on, but the game is part of a collaboration between Suda 51’s Grasshopper Manufacture studio and Hungary’s Digital Reality. This is a real coup for Digital Reality, as it pairs up with the man behind No More Heroes and Killer 7.
Sine Mora is said to be an ‘innovative shooter with time manipulation elements,’ which is as much of a mystery to me, as it probably is to you.
More good news from Suda 51 at Gamescom: No More Heroes is coming to PS3 Move and Xbox 360 in the form of No More Heroes: Heroes’ Paradise.
Heavy Rain sales hit 1.5 million
Heavy Rain has exceeded all Sony’s sales predictions, with sales hitting 1.5 million units worldwide. Okay, so this announcement came from GDC Europe, also in Cologne, but it was yet another cherry on Sony’s Gamescom cake.
The man behind Quantic Dream, David Cage, expected Heavy Rain to sell 1.5 million in total, but has now shifted that to 2 million before the end of the year.
This is great news for gamers and proves that taking risks can pay off. The bad news for Microsoft is that Sony looks like the hotbed for nurturing creativity at the moment. Which brings us too…
Mass Effect 2 comes to PS3
PS3 owners will be celebrating this week, as BioWare takes its frankly awesome sci-fi RPG to Sony’s console. And of course, wherever ME2 goes, ME3 is sure to follow.
At E3, earlier this year, Portal 2 was announced for PS3 and news of ME2 doing the same is a double-whammy of bad news for Microsoft. However, the 360 manufacturer quickly issued a statement that tried to brush off the significance of the new Sony/BioWare deal.
Microsoft were going for the, we’re the only console with all the ME content, including DLC. In a statement to IGN, Microsoft insisted, "With both Mass Effect titles launching first on Xbox 360 combined with the wealth of available paid downloadable content on Xbox Live today, Xbox 360 remains the best place to experience the Mass Effect franchise."
Unfortunately, EA later declared that all the DLC content will be included in the PS3 version, which is released in January 2011. Although, there was no mention of ME3 being multi-platform, we can all read between the lines.
Ubisoft announces Kinect-exclusive fighter
One of the few bits of good news for Kinect, Ubisoft has announced Fighters Uncaged, a beat ’em-up developed exclusively for Microsoft’s new motion-sensing gaming venture.
The game will be released in November to coincide with the launch of Kinect. Free from a controller, players get to learn authentic martial arts moves, including Thai boxing. The Kinect controller recreates player moves in-game. There are 70 different strikes and 21 environments, including rooftops, alleys and an abandoned church.
Expect to see combos, voice-activated super strikes and unlockable skills, as well as a multiplayer feature. This is just what the Kinect needs to excite some interest, before Sony steals all the limelight.
THQ unveils new Wii drawing tablet device
Up until now, Wii stories have been thin on the ground, but THQ announced the uDraw GameTablet, set to bring Pictionary and other games to Nintendo’s console this Christmas, in the US.
The new bit of kit is a drawing tablets that uses the Wii Remote to connect to the Wii. Players use a stylus to draw images that appear onscreen. I for one love Pictionary, so can see this being a big hit for Christmas, hitting the perfect demographic, depending on the price of course.
When it comes to other games, so far we have Dood’s Big Adventure, with more promised in 2011, in time for the European launch. This is one of those simple ideas you can’t believe wasn’t invented earlier. I’m not saying it’s going to make me buy a Wii, but I can see it being a hit for families.
These are the cream of the Gamescom crop, but with two days left to go, keep an eye on our news pages, just in case any gaming faeces hits the fan.