activision-blizzard posts

Blizzard has said that they are still targeting the release of their sci-fi RTS game StarCraft II for the end of 2009. However Gamasutra is reporting that one analyst believes there are signs that the game could be pushed back to 2010.

Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey is basing those thoughts on a comment over at Kotaku where StarCraft II's lead designer Dustin Browder stated that the beta for the game will last "four to six months" Since the beta has yet to begin that time table will make a fall/holiday 2009 release for the full game very close indeed for publisher Activision Blizzard. Because of this, Hickey claims, "We find it increasingly probably that the game will be released in [Activision's] fiscal '10 period."

Hickey even sees weakness in Blizzard's huge MMO hit World of Warcraft, saying, "We view looming competition in the West from new MMORPGs as a greater threat to WoW's future."

While we wait for more info on Modern Warfare 2, Activision is still supporting their hit WWII shooter Call of Duty World at War. The 2008 released game is set to get a new patch for the PC version, according to a new message board post on the game's forums.

The patch does not yet have a release date but the post has some details on what will be fixed including some Zombie pathing issues, better dog spawing in multiplayer and more. As far as the second map pack, which is already out for the console versions of the game, the word is " . . . we are continuing to work on support for Map Pack 2 on the PC. I have no specific information to provide on this yet, but I will update the community when there are more details."

There's no doubt that the release of Modern Warfare 2 on November 11 will be one of the biggest game releases of 2009 in terms of sales. However publisher Activision is aiming for the Infinity Ward-developed first person shooter to have the "biggest entertainment launch of all time" according to a new Advertising Age article.

To that end the publisher has hired LA-based agency TBWA/Chiat/Day to handle the ad campaign for the game but as the article itself states there may not been much need for a massive campaign since Modern Warfare 2 already is seen as the big multiplatform game release of 2009. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare has sold over 13 million copies since its November 2007 release. By contrast one analyst is predicting that Modern Warfare 2 could sell as many as 11 million copies in its first two months of release.

A lot of major game releases are coming out in Collector's Edition nowadays and it appears that Modern Warfare 2 is no exception. The present day themed shooter from developer Infinity Ward and publisher Activison now has a new listing on the Gamestop web site that shows a Collector's Edition of the game for a whopping $79.99.

There's no word yet on what the collector's edition will contain at this point but we would be willing to bet there will be stuff like a behind-the-scenes DVD, a art book and other goodies. Meanwhile people who pre-order the game at a Gamestop store can get a Modern Warfare 2 poster for free.

Just like last week there's only one major PC game that's due to be release in this coming week but it's one we have been waiting to play for some time:

Prototype: One of the few Vivendi Universal games taken in by the Activision Blizzard merger, this open world action game from developer Radical Entertainment has you playing the role of a man who can't remember who he is. He certainly can't remember why he can jump really high and far, has super-strength, why he can absorb other people and then shape-shift to look like them and turn his body into a living weapon. Oh and there's the matter of the military in New York City and a pack of monsters that are going after him. Yep, it's a day . . .

Blizzard has been pretty coy about release dates for StarCraft II but in a new investor webcast made for E3 2009 by the Activision Blizzard mothership has indeed confirmed that Blizzard is expecting the sci-fi RTS game sequel to be released by the end of this year.

Blizzard head man Mike Morhaime stated during the webcast, "We're targeting an end of year release-this year-for StarCraft 2, but as always, we won't release it until it meets our standards and the expectations of our players." That obviously leaves Morhaime an out if Blizzard does indeed delay is release. However with StarCraft II's multiplayer beta test scheduled to begin this summer it looks like fans of the franchise will have a very merry holiday.

If some of you need proof that booth babes will be back at E3 2009 consider this new blog entry over at IGN for the upcoming first person shooter Wolfenstein. Kevin Long, the head artist at the game's developer Raven Software, talks about designing the look of the game's Elite Guard, the sexy female enemies that first appeared in the game series' previous entry Return to Castle Wolfenstein.

So what, you may ask? So this. It's also mentioned in the blog entry, "If you are interested in seeing real-world versions of these femme fatales, they will be at our booth at E3." Oh yes, we are very much interested in seeing them . . . maybe too interested.

Ok, forget we wrote that . . .we are just a little tired from packing to go to LA to cover E3 2009. Back to your regular programming.

Usually with any game that has id Software involvement, the release date is "when it's done" However that may not be the case with Wolfenstein, the latest game based on the WWII-supernatural shooter series. The game's publisher Activision squeezed in a release date for the game today while promoting their E3 2009 game line-up.

In their mention of Wolfenstein, Activision states the game is "scheduled to be on store shelves on August 4, 2009." Which means we only have a little more than two months to take control once again of BJ Blazkowicz as he takes out the Nazis who have more plans that just winning World War II. The game, primarily developed by Raven Software, was first announced way back in 2005 but details didn't surface until last July.

Are you ready for some action? developer Infinity Ward and publisher Activision hope that you are. With the Memorial Day weekend holiday in full swing they are also hoping you are checking out the launch of the full Modernwarefare2.com web site this evening. The site has only shown the previously released teaser trailer for the upcoming FPS but now the game's first true gameplay trailer is up, showing nearly two minutes of footage from the highly anticipated game.

As one might expect there's lots of shooting and lots of explosions shown in the footage. Indeed the trailer looks a bit like a James Bond film with the snowmobile chases and the assault on a castle in the final sequence. The site also has the first three official Internet screenshots from the game which we have put into our newly established Modern Warfare 2 gallery. We've also taken our own screenshots from the trailer and added them to the gallery as well.

Download HD Modern Warfare 2 'Reveal' Trailer (118 MB)