The Lord of the Rings Online Launch Heralds First Update

The one MMORPG to rule them all has finally been unleashed this week, marking the debut of one of the most anticipated massively-multiplayer titles in 2007 - or even the most anticipated, assuming Age of Conan gets delayed again, and not counting World of Warcraft's expansion, The Burning Crusade. After over four years of development (and even more years of speculations stirred by Sierra Online before that), Turbine's latest online offering was released simultaneously in North America by Midway Games, and in Europe by Codemasters Online Gaming.

The momentous occasion was celebrated with "Midnight Madness" launch events across the United States yesterday night, though without any extravagant prizes: just some puny signed posters, pre-paid game cards and t-shirts (not even the actual full game). So no wonder some of them turned into total disaster. Let's just hope the game itself - which is more than promising - won't have the same fate.

The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar is of course the first MMO game based on the books of J.R.R. Tolkien, and as such it "delivers an interactive experience brimming with life and filled with the familiar people, places and monsters from the most beloved fantasy adventure of all time. From the quaint surroundings of the Shire to Angmar, the vile kingdom of the Witch-king, players will experience the world of Middle-earth as never before."

More importantly, though, Midway's communique was also accompanied by the announcement of the first - free - update to LotR Online, called the Shores of Evendim, and scheduled for release this June. It will include "an entirely new landscape region, over 60 additional quests, the Battle for Helegrod raid, nine new monsters and major enhancements to monster play and the music system".

Curiously, the press release issued by Codemasters bears no mention about Shores of Evendim, so we can only assume it will go online around that same time in Europe as well.

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One of the gaming industry's golden rules is about to be broken! A rule that has stood the test of time for over a decade. And although we never really knew "why", we got used to the proven fact that Nintendo never attended the Tokyo Game Show with a booth of their own. They always used to host a show of their own, be it Space World, or Nintendo World, or whatever. And, quite frankly, we didn't really expect things to change anytime soon. But, according to Kotaku, they just might...

"Nintendo will be a major participant in this year's Tokyo Game Show, Kotaku has learned. This will be the first time since the show's inception in 1996 that Nintendo will participate with a booth at the show. (...) A big booth at that. Multiple, highly placed insiders confirm that the company will be in attendance, which is one of the reasons why TGS is four days this year instead of three."

The change of schedule was announced back in February, and as a result TGS 2007 will take place between September 20-23. The first two days will be set aside as "Business Days" (instead of just one), while the last two days, as usual, will be open to the public.

If Kotaku's info is right, the main reason behind Nintendo's change of plans is... tadaaa... Square Enix' Dragon Quest IX - the game announced last December, most surprisingly, for the Nintendo DS. They argue that "every time a Dragon Quest game has been shown at TGS, the event belongs to DQ. With Nintendo landing a major coup and getting DQIX on the DS (and it's gonna sell a gazillion copies), the company has decided to put in face time."

Well, in that case, we might just throw a much bigger coverage of TGS this year. With E3 out of the way and everything...

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There may not be any footy management game from Sports Interactive this year - or at least none that we know of - something that only ever happened once (back in '98), over the studio's 15 years of history. But boy, do they have a great reason for it! Instead of presenting their fans with a regular iteration of their acclaimed Football / Worldwide Soccer Manager series, SI Games are taking a big leap forward, by entering the MMO league. Their next project will be Football Manager Live, and they describe it as a massively-multiplayer football management game, using the Football Manager match engine.

The newly announced Football Manager Live is planned to go online in March 2008, but you can already see the first screenshots in our gallery, and - best of all - the game will enter public beta testing in mid May. Sadly, only about 1,000 people will be allowed to take part in this first beta phase, so fans would do well to keep a keen eye on the official website for updates.

The whole idea for the game came from Oliver Collyer, co-founder of Sports Interactive, who left the studio a few years ago to go travelling, only to return with "a creative itch". "Imagine a cross between Football Manager, fantasy sports and an auction room and you'll get the basic idea", director Miles Jacobson tells us. He goes on to elabore different aspects of Football Manager Live in a Q&A published on the SI forums, revealing that FML will be spread accross many gameworlds (i.e. servers), with each gameworld supporting up to 1,000 would-be-managers.

"You don't play as a set real-world team; you make your own team and pick a squad, much like a fantasy sports game", Jacobson explains. "All players in the database have wage demands and you have a set wage budget at the start, so you pick your players according to that budget. The whole FML database is available to you when you start the game, although once a player joins a team in a gameworld they are no longer available to everyone else. In that way we can stop multiple teams having the same players."

I'm sure this introduction alone already raises plenty of questions, some of which are answered in said Q&A, while others... well, let's just say they're still keeping some details for themselves. One thing that's apparent by now, however, is that FML will be a subscription-based game, as they hint that "it is likely to cost the price of a few pints per month to play". Too bad we don't know what kind of beer they have in mind...

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PlayStation Portable Price Down To €170 In Europe

As you may recall from earlier this month, Sony cut the price of the PlayStation Portable console over in the US by $30, from $199.99 down to $169.99, amidst heated speculation - and hope - for a cheaper PlayStation 3. That price cut is still nothing but a rumour, to this day, but at least Europeans can also rejoice at the thought of a cheaper PSP... soon enough. Starting from May 4, Sony's portable console will sell for £129.99 in the UK, and €169.99 in the rest of Europe.

The currently recommended retail price of the PlayStation Portable is £149.99 / €199.99, so the price cut of €30 will be similar to the one applied in the US. Even so, however, the PSP will remain considerably more expensive than the Nintendo DS, which currently sells for £99 in the UK.

On the other hand, the console itself is not the only one getting a price cut. As reported today by GI.biz, Sony will also drop the price of several Platinum PSP games to £14.99 - starting with Ridge Racer 2, Tekken: Dark Resurrection, Killzone: Liberation, LocoRoco and Moto GP.

And speaking of games, Sony's American division recently announced the most prominent titles lined-up for release in Q2 2007, on the PS2, PSP and PS3. You can find the full list over on Gamasutra, but for the sake of relevance, we'll only be copy-pasting the PlayStation Portable games below:

- Alien Syndrome (Sega)

- Crazy Taxi: Fare Wars (Sega)

- Crush (Sega)

- Dungeon Maker: Hunting Ground (XSEED)

- Final Fantasy (Square Enix)

- Final Fantasy II (Square Enix)

- Harvest Moon Boy & Girl (Natsume)

- Ridge Racer 2 (Namco)

- Test Drive Unlimited (Atari)

- Tom Clancy's Ranbow Six: Vegas (Ubisoft)

- Valhalla Knights (XSEED)

To tell you the truth, I'm a bit confused about that list, seeing how Test Drive Unlimited and Valhalla Knights have already been released in the US. And of course Ridge Racer 2 is among the games getting a price cut over in Europe, where it's been available since last year.

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Paving the way for the upcoming Mod SDK that will let you create - and play - entire single-player scenarios (and campaigns, we assume), Electronic Arts have released the Worldbuilder for Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars over the weekend. This is basically a map editor that you can use to create skirmish / multiplayer maps, and it's now available for download on the game's official website. The tiny 7.7 MB package also includes an instruction manual of over 100 pages, and EA urges any new mappers to read the first section of the manual, and get the basics for building a multiplayer map.

Word is the Worldbuilder for Command & Conquer 3 Tiberium Wars is actually the same toolset that the game's designers used to create all of the single-player missions and multiplayer maps, and it references all the artwork and other assets already built into Command & Conquer 3. To get the modding community started, EA promised that over the coming weeks they would review the best fan-made maps and release them right on the official website.

Do note, however, that the current version of Command & Conquer 3 is not yet compatible with user-created single-player campaign content, so for the time being you can only play multiplayer or skirmish maps created with the Worldbuilder toolset. For the full deal, players will have to wait for a separate Mod SDK release, which should be released soon.

And speaking of waiting, those of you looking forward to the game's Xbox 360 version will be glad to know the C&C 3 demo conquered the Xbox Live Marketplace over the weekend. The massive 1 GB download supposedly includes two single-player missions, a tutorial, and Xbox Live multiplayer support. If that still ain't enough, go back to waiting for the full version, scheduled to ship on May 10.

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Last time we mentioned it, back in March, Mass Effect was still one of the big huge Xbox 360 titles (alongside Halo 3 and PGR 4) whose final release date had yet to be confirmed by Microsoft. And despite BioWare's comments from GDC 2007, leading us to hope for a June / July release, today's headline rumour is that the next-gen role-playing game is being delayed all the way to September 2007.

This morning, CVG reported that Microsoft had just made the disapointing announcement at a press event, making it sound pretty official as far as we're concerned. SPOnG, however, took the time to contact a Microsoft rep (Andy Irving, Xbox UK PR manager), who told them that "As yet we don't have a confirmed release date".

"Microsoft seems keen to avoid jumping the gun", the report continues, "with Irving also saying, "BioWare just want to make the best game they can." To SPOnG's ears that sounds suspiciously like we should be prepared for Mass Effect to ship even later than September."

Delaying the launch to September would also mean that Mass Effect would be shipping during the same timeframe as another anticipated Xbox 360 RPG, namely Blue Dragon. This may be a relatively wise decision for Microsoft, who will thus avoid the infamous Summer drought. But any way we look at it, it's nothing but bad news for us.

P.S. If you missed them earlier this month, our Mass Effect gallery has some new screenshots on display.

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I thought this would be the end of Codies' press assault for the day, but the Brits have unleashed another wave of media for their upcoming games, after the recent Code '07 event. You can see the new images now, in our screenshots section (browse until you get to April 19, if needed), or you can do yourself a favor and finish reading this story first. Which, as the title implies, is about the sequel to Operation Flashpoint, Bohemia Interactive's outstanding military simulation game from 2001.

Operation Flashpoint 2 was of course known to be in (pre-)production for a couple of years already, without any more input from the series' Czech developers. The team currently in charge of the sequel is the largest one ever assembled by Codemasters Studios, and as today's communique reveals, Operation Flashpoint 2 is being built using a modified, "FPS variant" of their proprietary Neon technology - also employed in Colin McRae: DIRT and the freshly announced Race Driver One.

Codemasters is still keeping a pretty tight lip about it, revealing only that Operation Flashpoint 2 is coming in 2008, for the PC and "major consoles" (PS3, Xbox 360?). They promise to offer more details this summer (you can sign up for updates on the official website), but until then we'll have to settle for the following brief description:

"Building on the original game's heritage, Operation Flashpoint 2 will see the most realistic modelling of conflict scenarios in a new contemporary theatre of war. By offering a multitude of military disciplines, gameplay will deliver warfare more realistic and intense then ever before, while an extensive multiplayer component will create battles on an incredible scale."

And to whet your appetite, behold this single new Operation Flashpoint 2 screenshot! Umm... I think it's a screenshot, anyway. Looking too good to be true?

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Codies Shift Into Next-Gen Gear With Race Driver One

Moving on with today's trio of news from Codemasters, we have Race Driver One - the next iteration in their Race Driver series. As in the next-gen iteration, not the portable Create & Race game revealed yesterday. This new one doesn't seem to include a track editor, like we were hoping for, however it does promise to go beyond the ultimate racing simulation, and give us the ultimate racing stimulation. The way Codemasters Studios plan to do that is by using their proprietary Neon engine, that is already driving Colin McRae: DIRT in incredible detail.

Race Driver One is being heralded as the third generation in Codies' 8-million+ selling motorsport series, following the TOCA (DTM/V8) Touring Car games (1997–2000) and the TOCA (DTM/V8) Race Driver series (2002-2006). The evolution will be felt only visually, but also content-wise, as Race Driver One boasts the most extensive range of events in the series. The game will combine official circuit-based championships with road races and urban street competitions, in beautifully realised racing locations through Europe, the U.S., Japan and beyond.

Gavin Raeburn, Executive Producer at Codemasters Studios, adds:

"Combining our racing heritage with the Neon engine, Race Driver One will create a world that goes far beyond the traditional boundaries of motorsport gaming, taking players from the most prestigious race circuits to road and street events around the globe. A completely fresh career structure will engage players in an unprecedented range of racing styles as they build a team capable of becoming number one. The Neon engine will be expanded to deliver a new level of visual detail, physics and an astonishing car damage system."

Race Driver One should be out in 2008, on the PC and - again - "leading console platforms". Probably meaning both PS3 and Xbox 360.

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Rise of the Argonauts Action-RPG Announced For 2008

Now that we got the petty news out of the way, it's time to move on to today's breaking trio of announcements made by Codemasters. Little did we know yesterday, when they revealed the first Race Driver game for the Nintendo DS, that they still had a few more surprises up their corporate sleeves. We'll start, in no particular order, with a new Action-RPG coming from the makers of Battle Realms, LotR: War of the Ring and the D&D RTS Dragonshard... oh and Desperate Housewives (which doesn't really count). If you haven't guessed it yet, we're talking about Liquid Entertainment.

Their latest project is called Rise of the Argonauts, most obviously being set in ancient Greece, where we'll fight alongside iconic warriors like Jason, Hercules and Atalanta, for an epic scale mythological purpose that has actually yet to be revealed. What little Codemasters had to say about the game can be read below:

"Rise of the Argonauts will immerse gamers in a gladiatorial adventure, set in wondrously imagined vision of ancient Greece. With deep exploration and epic quests, players will live a life of brutal combat as they lead a team of iconic warriors - including Jason, Hercules and Atalanta - through a world ruled by mythological gods."

Barry Jafrato, Codies' Senior VP of Brand, also said that "Rise of the Argonauts is a further key property in our 2008 portfolio", clearly implying that the game will not see the neon light of retail this year. The Brits also retained from naming the exact platforms on which Rise of the Argonauts will be released, simply stating that they are targeting the PC and "leading console platforms". Feel free to hope for either (or both) of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 - as is the case with other upcoming Codemasters games.

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Released less than a month ago for the PC by Atari (in the US) and Deep Silver (in Europe), Silverfall turned out to be a rather mediocre role-playing game. But despite its modest review scores, yet another publisher today announced plans to bring Silverfall to the PlayStation Portable, hopefully in a more enjoyable manner. The company in question is the recently shook up Take-Two Interactive, and the release is currently planned for June 2007... in Europe, at least.

"We are thrilled to be working with [developer] Monte Cristo Games to bring this title to European consumers", said James Ellingford, International Managing Director of Take-Two. "Silverfall is another great game for the PSP system and we're confident players will find this pure action RPG adventure highly rewarding."

Set in an "amazing fantasy world", they say, Silverfall features "expansive worlds filled with different creatures" (ed. - different creatures, wow, you don't say!). Players must take sides between the two great powers in a world where forces of nature and technology collide. Throughout the adventure, the player makes choices that directly affect his or her destiny.

Assuming that the gameplay features contained in today's press release hold true for Silverfall's portable version, players can expect both competitive and cooperative multiplayer modes, for four and two players, respectively. The game also promises total freedom of character evolution, as well as a tactical approach to combat - with more than 80 character attributes allowing for a high level of customisation, as you fight your way through 35 creatures and seven bosses, each with specific strengths and Achilles' heels.

For some reason, though, the excitedness still eludes me...

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