Survival horror

Electronic Arts did a ton to promote their 2008 sci-fi survival horror game Dead Space. In addition to the game they released two prequel products in the form of a comic book mini-series and a direct-to-DVD animated film. In the end the game was both a critical and financial success so a sequel would seem inevitable.

Now a new Reuters story on the popularity of horror-themed games claims that EA has its sights on releasing Dead Space 2 sometime in 2010. This sounds pretty resonable to us. However G4TV reports that EA has called the Reuters article "speculative". Not a denial per se; just a way of saying, "We have made any official announcements yet."

Just in time for the release of Saw VI in movie theaters today comes the long delayed release of the Saw survival horror game for the PC. The title from developer Zombie Studios and publisher Konami, is now available for download via Steam and Direct2Drive. As Big Download reported earlier this month, the PC version of Saw will be a digital download product only and won't be sold in stores in the US, although it now looks like Steam won't be the only digital download site the game will be made available, as we were originally told.

The Saw game, which features many of the types of traps and torture devices that the movies have, was first announced a couple of years ago by the now defunct Brash Entertainment. When that publishing company went belly up, Konami picked up the rights to the game. Now you can grab the game and see if the wait was worth it . . . kind of like that Droid phone that all the kids are talking about.

Earlier this month Konami released Saw, the horror-action game based on the long running movie series, for the PS3 and Xbox 360. However Konami also announced plans for a PC port of the game. Now the Steam web site is showing that the PC version will be coming to Valve's download service sometime later this month.

The game was developed by Zombie Studios and Big Download has learned that Steam will be the only place North American PC gamers will be able to purchase the Saw port as it will not be made available in retail stores. Konami did the same thing last year when it released the PC version of Silent Hill: Homecoming as a Steam download exclusive.

In a bit of a last minute San Diego Comic Con related announcement, Variety is reporting that a director has been signed for the upcoming adaptation of Dead Space, the recent sci-fi survival horror game from Electronic Arts. That director is D.J. Caruso who previously directed the movies Disturbia and Eagle Eye.

EA is still looking for a scriptwriter for the movie adaptation but once it selects a writer and script they are happy with they will begin pitching a Dead Space movie directly to the major film studios. EA already has a number of their game properties in some kind of film production including Mass Effect. In an odd aside, the article also claims that EA is "working on the second and third installments" of the game series.

We've mentioned that next week's San Diego Comic-Con will have more game-related exhibitors and programming than ever before. This is certainly evident in Capcom's presense at the show. The publisher will hold several panels during the four day event and their booth will show a number of upcoming titles.

They include the PC port of Resident Evil 5 and Dark Void (Lost Planet 2, almost certain to have a PC port, will be there as well). Look for special signing events at the booth (including Dark Void and Battlestar Galactica music composer Bear McCready), giveaways and special Comic-Con only versions of Street Fighter IV game pads and a Dark Void statue.

Macintosh owners and folks who use the Linux OS haven't been able to check out the Penumbra series of first person horror adventure games as one large title. But that's changing on Friday. Developer Frictional Games has announced that it will release The Penumbra Collection for Mac and Linux users on that day. The collection (Penumbra: Overture, Penumbra: Black Plague and the Penumbra: Requiem expansion) will be made available as one download rather than the original's "three downloads with three serials" version.

Beginning with the release on Friday and ending on Sunday you can download the Penumbra Collection for Mac and Linux for a mere $5. The price goes back up to its normal $20 on Monday.

Capcom's latest survival horror game now has a release date for our platform. Resident Evil 5 will have its PC port ship to stores on September 15 in the US (Europeans will have to wait until September 18 to get the port). The PC version will have some new content compared to the console versions including "new costumes and a new and improved mercenaries mode with three times as many enemies."

For those of you who have the equipment, the PC port will also contain support for Nvidia's GeForce 3D Vision glasses. According to Capcom the game will also be the first PC game to include support for "Stereoscopic 3D in all of its cut scenes." If you have the 3D Vision glasses, the right Nvidia graphics card and the supported monitors you can download a Resident Evil 5 3D benchmark utility right here. Be sure you meet all the requirements at Nvidia's Nzone web site and get a pack of 3D Vision supported screenshots from there too. If you are going to the San Diego Comic-Con next week, Capcom will be showing the PC port of Resident Evil 5 with the 3D effects to the public for the first time at their booth.

Download Resident Evil 5 Nvidia 3D Stereo Benchmark Utility (581 MB)

[Via email press release]

Gallery: Resident Evil 5 PC

Games sometimes venture into contraversial territory but the upcoming downloadable title Eden could test the limits of what themes games can tackle. MTV's Multiplayer site has posted up some info on the game which is based on Antichrist, a movie that has "extremely sexual and violent imagery"

The article has some quotes from the game's director Morten Iversen who used to work at Io Interactive. Iverson stated that Antichrist's director, Lars Von Trier, "been extremely fond of video games for ages." However even Iversen admits that making a game based on the subject matter of Antichrist will be hard, saying, "It will be a very controversial game, and it'll be a game that doesn't really compare with anything else.""

While Eden is still in its early stages (it's not scheduled for release until 2010) one interesting aspect of the game is that it will ask you what your phobias are and depending on your answer "certain themes will be loaded into the game to challenge you on those phobias." Our big phobia is about sexy bikini models; they scare us a lot.

Valve's Steam service has announced its regular weekend sale, cutting the prices on a couple of acclaimed horror themed action-adventure titles. All of the Penumbra games from developer Frictional Games have been cut 75 percent for this weekend only.

You can choose to buy Penumbra Black Plague Gold Edition (with the original game and the expansion Penumbra Requiem) or Penumbra Overture separately for $3.75 and $2.50, respectively. Or you can get both games in the Penumbra collectors pack for just $5. Either way it's a massive bargain. Frictional Games are currently working on their next horror themed game Unknown for release sometime in 2010.

While there have been lots of hints and rumors about a PC release of Resident Evil 5, publisher Capcom has kept saying the survival horror game was only announced for the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles. Until today, that is. In a new press release, Capcom has finally admitted that a PC port of their best selling game is in the works after all.

While Capcom is still keeping specific release dates on the down low, saying only it's coming " later in the year" they did say there will be online co-op support in the PC version. It will also support Nvidia's GeForce 3D Vision glasses giving gamers who want that sort of thing a way to play the game with 3D effects.

This is the full playable demo for Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason, a survival-horror action game.

Download HD Cryostasis: Sleep of Reason Demo (1.04 GB)
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Electronic Arts' alien evolution sim game Spore continues to stay in the top 10 best selling PC games list, showing that even a title that didn't live up to its considerable hype can still be a consistent seller. EA is prepping it's first major expansion to the game in Spore Galactic Adventures and this week the publisher did something a little . . .different to promote its upcoming release.

In short they have gotten together to make new panoramic screenshots from the game (Flash required). Simply take your mouse cursor over the shots and then click and drag to get the full 360 degree effect. We have one shot above and you can see another after the jump. By the way, Spore Galactic Adventures is due out on June 23.

A couple of months ago Variety posted up rumors that Konami was going to take over as the publisher of the game based on the Saw horror films. Today Variety has now confirmed those rumors, saying that the publisher will release the Zombie Studios-developed game for the PC and other platforms this fall, around the time Saw IV is released to theaters by Lionsgate.

The Variety article also has the first actual screenshots from the game (reproduced here) The game itseld will have an original story and not an adaptation of any of the films. The game has your character trying to solve the nasty torture puzzles put in place by the movie's villain Jigsaw. The game was one of the many titles under the now defunct Brash Entertainment which went under in a rather spectacular fashion lasf fall.

After releasing a number of games in its Penumbra series of horror-themed action adventure games, developer Frictional Games has now offered up some early gameplay footage from their next title. The survival horror game, which was formally announced back in September, now has a title, Unknown.

There's still not a lot of info on the game itself but the footage, posted up by the developer on YouTube, does show off some of the new physics and lighting effect Frictional Games are putting into their in-house game engine. In fact the developer plans to release the game's editing tools for mod makers to create their own content when Unknown is released. We will have to wait a little while, however. Unknown is slated for release in the spring quarter of 2010.

This cinematic trailer for the upcoming survival horror game, Dante's Inferno, provides some early glimpses or what players can expect. Based (very) loosely on the epic poem "The Divine Comedy" by Dante Alighieri, players will have to traverse through the nine rings of hell and confront the horrible sins they represent. Of course, it's probably safe to say players will see much more demon and soul slaying action in the game than in the poem.

Download HD Dante's Inferno Cinematic Trailer (115 MB)
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