BonusXP bringing Stranger Things 3: The Game to Switch!
BonusXP have recently announced their follow up to the hugely successful Stranger Things: The Game with the next game in the series, Stranger Things 3: The Game. BonusXP are once again working with Netflix on this iconic and extremely popular TV series which is returning to screens this Summer. This next game in the series is set to land on a number of new platforms and a first for BonusXP, now includes Nintendo Switch!
The game will once again follow the events of the main series. A small teaser trailer can be viewed below and from this we can see Hopper, Lucas and Billy fending off various enemies. Co-op play will be available and there will be at least 12 playable characters. The release date is set to land on the same date as the TV series, on July 4th 2019. Check out the teaser trailer below.
Trailer
No doubt the team at BonusXP are very excited to bring ST3 to the masses. Netflix are once again recognizing the talent at BonusXP to bring this new game to life for their prized TV series. A testament to the great staff, both Ex-Ensembler’s and BonusXP’ers working at the studio and outstanding accomplishment and we look forward to seeing it land this July on basically all platforms near you!
Introducing C Prompt Games and Heretic Operative
As we close out 2018 we bring news that there is a new kid on the block of studios formed from ex Ensemble staff members. We can now introduce C Prompt Games, a small studio set up by Ian Fischer (Mother) and Rob Fermier (Xemu). Fans will no doubt recognise these names as long time standing members of Ensemble Studios and then more recently at Robot Entertainment. Their new studio C Prompt Games is setting out on an adventure to deliver all new original games.
In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz Ian Fischer clarified:
“We built this mostly because Rob and I had been in companies for a long time, and we got to work on some great games, but we had other games we wanted to make”
C Prompt has recently announced its first title will be “Heretic Operative” a Strategy RPG game inspired by board games like Arkham Horror and Pandemic. This is definitely not an Age of Empires “spiritual successor” or anything like that, but a whole new different idea that has been brewing in the minds of these creatives.
- Control a secret society dedicated to using magic for the benefit of the world, at a time when all mages are considered “heretics” to be hunted by the Templars.
- Master over 50 different spells to overcome challenges in and out of combat. But be wary of the Corruption that accompanies magic. The more powerful you become, the greater the risk of losing control.
- Fight enemy cultists, zealous templars, and ravenous monsters through a unique dice-based combat system. Employ mercenaries, devastating spells, and powerful artifacts to prevail.
Screenshots
Register your interest
This certainly seems like an interesting and unique new game from our trusty Ensemble veterans. The game is now coming soon on Steam and can be found on the link below. Be sure to add it to your wishlist and follow the game for up to date news on its development. The release date is currently TBC.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/958740/Heretic_Operative/
Also be sure to check out the article on GamesIndustry.biz to hear more from Ian and Rob talking about the new venture:
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-12-12-a-cursory-look-at-c-prompt
Restructuring at Robot Entertainment
Announced earlier this week on the Robot Entertainment blog, there is unfortunate news to share about the studio. Following studio growth in the ramp up to launch Orcs Must Die! Unchained and the recent launch of Hero Academy 2, the studio has been hard at work on two new original IP games. Recently the decision has been made that the studio needs to focus its efforts on shipping just one game and as a result, regretfully the studio has had to let go numerous staff to suit the economies of scale to deliver one game rather than two.
Over 30 staff are affected by this news across all disciples of the production process including art, design, infrastructure, marketing, programming, and others. This is a large number of staff which is no doubt very upsetting for all. Robot Entertainment as a mid-size developer has grown from its inception and as well as shipping multiple award winning games, it has been home to a number of long-standing developers, many of whom calling back to the days of Ensemble Studios. It goes without saying a mid-size developer is about friendship and values with many colleagues having worked together for 10 to 15 years or more.
We would like to express our heartfelt sympathies to all those affected by this transition. With a great track record of games shipped we know that Robot is full of many talented people all of whom whose skills will no doubt be valuable to many companies. Lay-offs are a dark side of the nature of the gaming industry, but many companies band together to help their industry colleagues and I am sure many companies will be reaching out to Robot Entertainment talent. The studio is also supporting staff in these transitions. Unfortunately there are many challenges for a studio like Robot to manage a number of in-flight, full production projects at once.
Lay-offs are never a good thing and we know that everything possible would have been done to avoid this scenario. Robot’s mid-sized position makes things very difficult, especially in the earlier production phases of new IP.
Continuing onwards
The studio however is pressing on with this so far unannounced upcoming new game. Although a smaller team now, the studios ambition to make great games continues. Hero Academy 2 and Orcs Must Die! Unchained will continue to operate, the servers are not going anywhere. Hero Academy 2 will also be receiving updates and patches, having just recently received the Ketsali faction update.
While there is no news about the upcoming new game yet, keep your eyes peeled for news in the coming months.
Halo Wars web services to be decommissioned
It has been a long time since the release of Halo Wars back in 2009 and since then we have seen a new Definitive Edition re-make of Halo Wars on Xbox One and PC. The original Halo Wars on Xbox 360 has been going strong, available on backwards compatibility and still playable to this day. Microsoft have however released some news about some Halo Wars functionality which will be shortly decommissioned for the original release.
The Halo Wars web services which sit behind the scenes on HaloWars.com and in-game multiplayer are being switched off come the end of March. While this does NOT mean that multiplayer will be discontinued, it does mean that there are some changes to certain additional services. Most notably, HaloWars.com will be switched off completely from March 30th, this means there will be no access to stat tracking, leaderboards and such like. It will also mean the multiplayer buckets will show as “Low Population” in game (and possibly that there are zero players online). Unfortunately this functionality was not carried forward to the Definitive Edition (somewhat, contrary to its name).
Multiplayer games will still be playable on the original Xbox 360 version (and of course, on the Definitive edition). Microsoft commented:
The web services that run behind the original Halo Wars are being deactivated in light of aging hardware issues and evolving customer privacy & security requirements across Microsoft. After spending time to assess and investigate, the decision was made to phase out these services as the game was built in a different era using outdated hardware, systems, and code that doesn’t scale to meet the requirements of the future. Again, there will be no impact to gameplay and your ability to play Halo Wars on Xbox 360 solo or with friends.
The Halo Wars developer blogs have been archived on this website and we will soon undertake the archiving of homepage posts and other content.
BonusXP and Robot Entertainment join forces for Hero Academy 2
Hero Academy 2, the follow up to the 2011 hit original tactics game has gone live on Android, iOS and early access on PC and Mac. The sequel to the award winning 2011 original has been developed by BonusXP working with Robot Entertainment- a collaboration of two studios from an Ensemble Studios background! As one can no doubt imagine, the game looks great and is currently receiving great reviews on the Android and iOS stores.
For BonusXP this is yet another release of a new game in a short space of time having rcently released the critcally aclaimed Stranger Things mobile game a few months earlier. Dave Pottinger, Founder of BonusXP writes on the studios blog:
Robot has been a fantastic partner along the way; the trust they showed us every single day was impressive and humbling. Bonus didn’t set out to really do licensed games, but between Hero Academy 2 and Stranger Things: The Game (a little game that we released 3.5 months ago with 7.5M downloads and has a 4.8+ rating on both app stores), I guess we’ve figured out how to do a good job with other studios’ IP.
What’s new
The original, award winning Hero Academy was a great formula and the sequel is set to take this to the next level. The most notable change is that Hero Academy 2 will be using real-time matches. This means there will be no more long waits for players to make their moves. Instead players will be making moves there and then, this should greatly speed up the pace of games. There is also a brand new deck builder. Players collect cards of each faction to build up their own unique deck – there are hundreds of combinations! There is both single player campaigns, challenges as well of course, real-time multiplayer available.
Download
All the download links can be found at HeroAcademy2.com. The game is free to download and play on all platforms. Go check it out, ready your card deck and play today!
Screenshots
BonusXP launches ‘Stranger Things: The Game’
BonusXP have launched a brand new game earlier this week, and its a big one! We had hints from Bruce Shelley last month that BonusXP was working on a Zelda like game, but who knew it would turn out to be Stranger Things! That’s right, BonusXP has been working with Netflix to release a classic adventure game of the very popular TV series. The game feels and plays just like 1984 from the classic graphics, gameplay and best of all, no ads or microtransations – its 100% free!
Available on Android and iOS the game is available to download right now and you can begin to explore Hawkins, Indiana as you play as town sheriff Hopper and the kids from the series to solve mysterious goings on around Hawkins. Not only can the player explore the areas from the TV series like Mirkwood Forest and Hawkins Lab, but the game adds new exciting areas to explore for the first time.
Each character has their own unique abilities and these are used to help solve various puzzles players encounter throughout their journey. Like many classic games of this type back in the day, there are plenty of things to collect too, including heart pieces for health (think, Zelda), gnomes, eggos, video tapes and more. Collecting all the video tapes unlocks a special preview scene for Stranger Things 2.
The game is a blast to play, for those who played similar games back in the day it is a great trip down memory lane. The game features two difficulty modes, “Normal” and “Classic”. The classic mode really does bring back that old school feel in terms of difficulty level – brace yourself! On the Google Play store at time of writing the game is rated an awesome 4.9/5 and on the App Store, 4.5/5 stars. It is clearly a big hit amongst Stranger Things fans! Check out the trailer for the game below:
Working on a title like Netfix’s Stranger Things is a great accomplishment for the studio. Not only is it extremely exciting but it is a privilege that Neflix entrusted BonusXP with their franchise. Speaking on the BonusXP blog, founder Dave Pottinger writes:
Today is a big day. We’ve just released our latest game, Stranger Things: The Game. Yes, it’s a game about Stranger Things by Netflix. Holy $#@%, right? Sometimes, I’m lucky and my job is just flat-out cool. I hope everyone enjoys playing STTG as much as we enjoyed making it.
With the high calibre of folks at BonusXP, many of whom are from Ensemble Studios, and an impressive lineup of existing hit games like Monster Crew, Cavemania and The Incorruptibles, it really is no wonder BonusXP was chosen for this excellent opportunity. Judging by the reviews on the stores it seems BonusXP have nailed it once again with a great game, no doubt exciting fans even more for the upcoming Stranger Things 2 release on Netflix later this year.
Quite rightly the studio celebrated the launch with Stranger Things cake!
Be sure to check out Stranger Things: The Game right now on your Android or iOS device by visiting the Google Play or App Store! You won’t be dissapointed!
GameInformer interviews Bruce Shelley
Following on from the recent History of Age of Empires video, there is another video released this week which Age and Ensemble fans should check out and it is from GameInformer who have recently interviewed legendary designer Bruce Shelley. The informative video talks in some more detail about his early gaming years, the start of Ensemble Studios, Age of Empires (of course) and some detail about what lead to the closure of Ensemble. Certainly this is an interview no Age or Ensemble fan will want to miss.
The video interview also discusses some of the secret games which were in the works at Ensemble, which unfortunately never saw the light of day, including an underwater strategy game. Check out the video interview below!
Where’s Bruce these days?
Bruce is currently working with BonusXP, a studio formed of many Ensemble employees. The studio is currently working on Robot Entertainment’s Hero Academy 2. Its good to see the partnership between Robot and BonusXP holding strong and as Bruce says in the video interview, everyone is good friends. It is not just Hero Academy which has Bruce’s interest at the moment, BonusXP also have a super secret project under-wraps codenamed “Legend“. Talking to GameInformer Bruce hinted that the studio is using games like the Legend of Zelda as a base reference for thier upcoming, super secret action adventure game. It will sure be interesting to see what Bruce and BonusXP come up with and appears to be an interesting departure from RTS!
Keep your ears to the ground for more Bruce and BonusXP news over the coming months!
Age of Empires IV announced, plus remasters of Age II and III
The legacy of Ensemble Studios continues as this week we learn that Microsoft has announced a brand new Age of Empires game – Age of Empires IV, a continuation of the main series unlike some of the other games released in recent times. Relic Entertainment are set to carry the torch as developers on this new game. The Sega owned studio is similar to Creative Assembly, another Sega studio who worked on Halo Wars 2. There is no release date set for Age 4 just yet, there is however, a very awesome new teaser trailer!
The trailer takes us through the ages of the previous games and it looks like Age IV is set to be in a whole new Age.
History of Age of Empires
Microsoft Studios in celebration of the new Age 4 announcement has sat down with some folks from Ensemble Studios to talk about the history of the Age of Empires franchise from the very beginning to where it is today. The video features key Ensemble staffers such as Ensemble Founders – Tony Goodman and John Boog-Scott alongside producers and designers such as Dave Pottinger, Rick Goodman, Paul Bettner, Tim Deen, Matt Pritchard and of course the legendary Bruce Shelley. The video features some interesting look backs at the origin of Ensemble and the very early beginnings of Age of Empires. Who knew that one of the very first tech demos just allowed you to chop trees. However from these early demos Microsoft quickly saw the light and soon signed up Ensemble to produce what would become Age of Empires.
The history video is a real treat for Age and Ensemble fans, it brings all the teams together from the Ensemble veterans to the new teams at Skybox and Forgotten Empires who have been keeping the franchise moving with HD releases of Age of Empires 2 and Mythology and Age of Empires 1 definitive edition being just round the corner. Check out the excellent video below:
Age of Empires 2 and 3 Definitive Editions on route
If a definitive edition of the original Age of Empires was not enough the team at Forgotten Empires and Skybox are also set to release new 4K editions of Age of Empires 2 and 3. These classic Ensemble games really are standing the test of time, entertaining millions and millions many years after original release. I have no doubt the original Ensembles staffers must be so proud of just how many people their games have entertained year after year. These definitive editions join the already announced Age 1 Definitive Edition and already released Age of Mythology Extended Edition and Halo Wars Definitive Edition. This means that every title Ensemble Studios has ever released will have had its own remaster! Truly an outstanding accomplishment!
Age of Empires 1 to get definitive edition re-release
Ah, now this is a blast from the past! Age of Empires 1, the very first Age of Empires game and first title shipped by Ensemble Studios is set to be re-released in HD (4K even) on PC later this year. This follows in similar HD re-releases of Age of Empires 2, Age of Mythology and Halo Wars. Essentially almost all of the Ensemble Studios catalog has recently been re-released. Certainly a testament to Ensemble’s outstanding legacy.
The Age of Empires Definitive Edition is being produced by the Forgotten Empires team, the same team behind the Age of Empires 2 expansions of recent – such as Rise of Rajas. The Forgotten Empires team have recently taken on new staffers from Ensemble Studios including Matt Pritchard who was one of the first engineers at Ensemble back in 1992, and Rich Geildrich who joined Ensemble in 2004, working on graphics for Age of Empires 3 and Halo Wars. You can find out more about the Forgotten Empires on their website.
Age of Empires Definitive Edition takes players back to the original game and includes the expansion pack content from Rise of Rome. The Genie engine has been vastly improved upon by the Forgotten Empires team to provide far more enhanced visuals and (a first for the Genie engine) – zoom levels! The Age of Empires website has some examples of the art improvements to some of the buildings. Not only is there improved visuals but the soundtrack is also be re-worked with new orchestral soundtrack which can also be previewed on the website. The game will also be sporting a classic mode to re-live the original visuals and sounds.
Trailer
Beta
Sign ups are taking place now on the AgeOfEmpires.com website for the beta program to get an early look at the game and provide feedback. Jump back in time and re-live Ensemble’s original game which started it all!
Screenshots
PeopleFun launch ‘Wordscapes’ on mobile
PeopleFun have launched a new mobile word game. Joining the ranks of the highly successful Word Chums and Spell Blitz, now comes “Wordscapes”. This new game brings together word-search and crosswords to mobile devices with some pleasant landscapes. So put down the old fashioned paper and relax with Wordscapes! As with all PeopleFun games, it is highly addictive so be prepared!
There are over 800 challenges in Wordscapes, starting easy and increasing in difficulty as you progress. Each time you complete a level you are rewarded with “brilliance” points which can be redeemed for in game hints. The mechanics of which are very similar to one of PeopleFun’s previous games, MixTwo.
Speaking of MixTwo, if you liked that game and you enjoy word games, Wordscapes will be a great game for you. The game is free to play on the iOS and Google Play store. Just search for “Wordscapes”.
