saber-interactive posts

Last week the head of EA's free-to-play game division, Ben Cousins, was quoted as saying that the cost of $60 games was "exploitative". Now another game developer has come out with similar claims. Matthew Karch, the CEO of Saber Interactive, wrote an editorial for Computer and Video Games today stating, "I mean, you pay a few hundred dollars for a console (or more for a good PC) then $60 for a game - how many games can you afford in that price range?"

Karch's company recently released the game adaptation of the movie Battle: Los Angeles, a downloadable only first person shooter that costs just $10. He states, "There is going to be a move towards higher-end games that are smaller. There has to be, because even among the "hardcore" audience, only a small percentage of games are profitable, so making smaller games with lower budgets makes good sense."

Karch said that the Battle Los Angeles game took only six months to make and was entirely self-funded. He claims that "on a commercial level it seems to be working out thus far" although sales figures have not been revealed.

Released just in time to help promote the movie, Steam now has the first person shooter Battle Los Angeles available to purchase and download for just $9.99. Ironically the price of the game is not much more compared to buying a ticket to see the alien invasion-themed movie that debuted in theaters today.

The game from developer Saber Interactive and publisher Konami puts the player in the role of a soldier who fights alongside the move characters against the aliens. Battle Los Angeles' movie reviews (which unfortunately have not been very favorable for the most part) have often remarked on how it looks and feels like a modern first person shooter game.

Officially confirming what was first revealed in February, Konami has now announced it will indeed publish a downloadable first person shooter game based on the upcoming movie Battle Los Angeles. While the film is due in theaters on March 11, gamers will have to wait until sometime in April to get the game which will be made available via Steam and other download services.

Developed by Saber Interactive, the game has you taking the role of US Marine Corporal Lee Imlay as he meets up with characters from the movie and fight off an alien invasion. The game will also feature destrutable enviroments such as "scaffolding structures, vehicles and overpasses."

Battle Los Angeles as a game still hasn't been officially announced but it seems that the adaptation of the upcoming alien invasion feature film is all but confirmed. The Russian language web site of the publisher 1C Company has a listing for the game, complete with screenshots.

The page says the game will be released on March 11, the same day the film is due in theaters, and also confirms earlier reports that Saber Interactive is developing the title. According to the handy dandy Babel Fish translation of the page, "player will carry out a number of dangerous missions on the front line, which lies along the streets of the half-wrecked megapolis" Hopefully we will learn something about the game's English version sometime soon.

[With thanks to "russian-boy-who-reads-big-download]

Battle Los Angeles would seem to be a perfect movie for a PC action game adaptation. The film, which depicts a grim and gritty look at an alien invasion of LA, is due in theaters March 11. Now the Australian game ratings board has listed a "Battle Los Angeles" game in its web site data base.

The game is listed as a multiplatform title published by Konami and developed by Saber Interactive who previously created the first person shooters Will Rock and Timeshift. Since neither company has officially announced this title we are listing it as a rumor for now. It's possible that this game will be released via digital download only and not via retail stores.

[Via Gamerbytes]

It's been a while since we have heard anything from Saber Interactive. The game developer has been pretty quiet since the 2007 release of their temporal-themed sci-fi shooter Timeshift (shown above) for the now defunct Vivendi Games. However it appears that the company is still around thanks to a new press release today.

Intel-owned game physics software maker Havok have announced that Saber Interactive plans to use their software for a future game. Specifically, the unanounced games will use the Havok Destruction tool which will be used "to punch holes in walls, buckle scaffolding, shatter windows, and even bend metal to create a truly dynamic and evolving cityscape." No other details on the game were announced.