Captivate '08 - Brand new footage and screenshots!

Today begins the Captivate '08 Press spectacular! Well, actually it occurred last week, but the embargo has been lifted, and the new screens and videos are now out there! So here's a list of everything (currently) out and about for Capcom's known upcoming titles:

1942: Joint Strike

Gametrailers: Kamikaze Gameplay HD
Team Xbox: Screenshots
XBLAH: Artwork

Bionic Commando Rearmed

Gametrailers: Fortress Gameplay HD

Wolves of the Battlefield: Commando 3

Gametrailers: Gunning Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Hedge Trimming Gameplay HD
Team Xbox: Screenshots

Plunder!
XBLAH: Screenshots, Artwork

Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix
Gamersyde: Screenshots - Dee Jay in Action

Thanks to Shard and Kay on NeoGAF for sorting out some of this!

Bionic Commando Rearmed to tie in with magazines?

In the latest episode of Top Secret: The Bionic Commando Podcast, Ben Judd discussed the impending release of Bionic Commando Rearmed.

Whether it's June or ends up being pushed back to July is unknown, it's all up to Microsoft at this point, and their XBLA summer is quite full as it is. He mentioned that it's a little difficult to get the releases set up for all 3 platforms to release at the same time, along with the in game commerce (ie; buy via demo).

A little extra quip that popped up is this nugget:

... we are going to tie-in in some other secrets into it, there are going to be some more tie-ins with magazines in the future...

What could it possible mean? Could be nothing more than a reprinting of the Bionic Commando comic book currently on the site - or perhaps there will be some secret code that unlocks some extra goodies, a code you can only get in a magazine?

All speculation of course, but it's fascinating to see that Capcom are taking great lengths to promote Bionic Commando Rearmed in many forms of media, and for a $10 download does not happen at all. Good on them.

Top Secret File 016: The Top Secret Team

The Top Secret team arrange a hastily-convened podcast, where matters such as sex in games, gaming violence, and the release date of Bionic Commando Rearmed are laid bare. Who needs guests with this level of discussion?!

Download the podcast here or join the RSS feed.

Bionic Commando Rearmed Soundtrack released!

Unfortunately, Bionic Commando Rearmed was delayed a little bit before being released. To ease the pain, Capcom have released the official Bionic Commando Rearmed Soundtrack, available via iTunes or Sumthing Digital!

Both places carry the full album for $9.99US - but if you're outside of America, you'll have to go with Sumthing Digital - as currently only the US can enjoy some BCR beats via iTunes. Sumthing Digital's ID tags seem to be screwed up though - at least, mine were.

I know that once something hits the net it can be pirated very easily but I hope you can see the amount of time and money we have put forth to make this a reality. Just so that you don't see us as the evil corporation that is rolling in money and sticking it to the end-user, let me break down some costs:

We are charging 99 cents per song of which we usually make about 60% or so. That's 60 cents. Additionally there are server management fees, the internal staff hours it took to get the contract up and running, and of course a license fee to create the initial contract. All in all, it probably costs us around 10K just to get the product up and running. We would need to sell 15,000 songs to break even and when it comes to game soundtracks that just isn't a number that you can easily hit.

So what are you waiting for? Go buy and download them here.

Source: Bionic Commando Blog - Let there be MUSIC!

Capcom interviews: Benn Judd & The Rocketmen crew

Website Deeko has a new interview with Bionic Commando Rearmed Producer Ben Judd, which you can view here.

Deeko: Is there any sort of story continuity between both games? And if there is, how are you guys handling the back story so gamers who never played the original don't feel lost?

BEN: Again, I think we've gone a great job of tying everything together. I've always felt that BC was a franchise that needed a deeper world. So we have already put a lot of surplus information on the Bionic Commando community site Bioniccommando.com and we are publishing a serial comic book that shows one of Spencer's most life-altering missions that occurs after Bionic Commando Rearmed and helps set up the tone for the 3D version. A lot of fans of the original have been pretty shocked by how the 3D Spencer looks compared to the original. And trust me, I can TOTALLY see why the fans are. He doesn't look very similar. But there is a rationale for it and there is a back story that I think people will understand once they read it.

As well as this interview, Capcom have made their own interview with A.C.R.O.N.Y.M Games creators Daniel Swadling and Jesse Joudrey about their game and the recent expansion:

How did you come up with the name “It Came From Uranus” for the Rocketmen expansion?

JY: About an hour after a spicy takeout meal, the name just came to us.

FS: Actually, it was forced on us by the evil people at Capcom marketing, who thought the name would appeal to juvenile boys (our largest target demographic)

JJ: We wanted to call it something serious. But that just wouldn’t be acceptable.

You can check out that interview here.

Source: Deeko.com, Capcom USA Blog

Podwatch - BC Podcast - A slight delay for rearmed!

The latest version of the Bionic Commando Podcast has been released, with Lars Bond - the next-gen games lead animator.

Top Secret File 015: Lars Bonde, Lead Animator

We talk animation and Danish bacon with Lars Bonde, the lead animator at Grin. Find out what turns a mass of polygons into a living character and how cut scenes get made - and in a special update, we'll tell you when you can expect to be playing BCR.

Download the podcast here or join the RSS feed.

That little bit at the end is what you're probably most interested in right now. Here's the deal.

Bionic Commando Rearmed has been delayed a little bit - roughly a month. Ben Judd takes all responsibility for this, claiming he "Did not schedule correctly" as it does take longer for a game to be completely tested and given the okay by all the different territories around the world.

I think it's safe to say that despite his humbled reasonings - we can all blame Sony Europe on being slack - as you may know with Puzzle Fighter HD still not released on the PS3 in Europe. No actual evidence of that, but they seem to cause many problems for developers. They're shooting for June, lets hope it comes out asap! Just let Braid shine a little too, okay?

Also, apparently making themes sucks because each console has different specs and you can't show a gun in a theme available in Germany! Sheesh! Just have one of the blades be the exploding head, I'm sure that's fine!

Source: Bionic Commando Podcast

The latest EGM Live podcast they expand upon their Magazine's Retro Revival cover story - which discusses the upcoming XBLA titles Bionic Commando Rearmed, Commando 3 and 1942: Joint Strike.

The podcast has a little bit of discussion about each game - more Rearmed than the rest - but a good listen.

05/12/2008 | EGM LIVE* - Podcast

We begin this week's show by recounting our weekend tales of GTA IV multiplayer, then move on to a Retronauts/EGM Live crossover special discussing the Retro Revival feature in the current issue of the magazine, featuring Bionic Commando, Street Fighter IV, Golden Axe and Space Invaders Extreme.

Download the podcast here or join the RSS feed.

[Now now Shane, Quackshot is an awesome game, SOR2 & 3 are better than 1, and Alex Kidd in High Tech World is not nearly as great as Miracle World and Shinobi World!]

GO BIONIC GO: More Multiplayer, Q&A, and Player One Podcast

Capcom have released more videos of the Bionic Commando: Rearmed Multiplayer, now with video of the players - chaps from IGN, Destructoid and other sites battling it out, complete with text commentary.

The commentary also mentioned which weapons were picked up, and statistics for characters. There are three videos - the one above, as well as here and here.

As well as the new videos, Computer & Videogames have had an interview with GRIN creative director Simon Viklund about the game.

CVG: What was the hardest decision you had to make on the project?

Viklund: That was to determine what was really bad in the original and how these things should be amended.

Well, the truth is it wasn't really that hard to determine - because I always had a very clear idea of what I thought was good and bad about the original game - but it was hard to take the ultimate decision to cut or replace these elements because I didn't know how the Bionic Commando fans out there would react.

It was kind of nerve-wrecking to release that announcement trailer back in January and wait for people's responses. I'm glad that the decisions I made seem to have been well received.

He goes on to discuss the rating of BC: Rearmed, Wiiware, discussing how developing on 3 platforms has been and more. He also would like to remake the NES classic Blaster Master.

(It's Sunsoft who owns that license Viklund, though they're not releasing games anymore, they've released a few games on the Virtual Console. Hey, if Metro 3D somehow got the ability to remake Aero the Acro-Bat for the GBA, you damn well sure can get the Blaster Master License!)

You can read the whole Q&A here!

And finally, this weeks episode of the Player One Podcast is all about the original NES Bionic Commando, as they play the game for their Game Club. Ben Judd also makes a call to their voice mail and discuss their own first time playing Bionic Commando!

For the ninth installment in our Game Club series we set our electromechanical limbs on one of the NES era's greatest action games: Capcom's Bionic Commando. Join us in the second (well, third really) segment where we talk all about it. Also: GTA IV, Mario Kart, and a very special audio unboxing. It's powerful enough to make your head explode!

Download the podcast here or join the RSS feed!

Source: Bionic Commando Website, Computer & Video Games

"Three days of the Commando" begins - 4 Player deathmatch announced!

The Bionic Commando Crew over at Capcom have recently hosted a little get together of Game Journalists to have a go at a complete (or near complete) version of Bionic Commando Rearmed. In the first of 3 updates over the weekend, Capcom has announced the final mode for Rearmed - a 4 player Multiplayer mode!

In this mode players can choose 4 different characters - the main character RAD Spencer, the Captured POW Super Joe, the main protagonist Commander Kilt, and.. some dude called Groeder.

In Deathmatch you can play in a free-for-all or play on teams while you collect 7 different weapons and shoot the crap out of your enemies, or pick up shields and health to become even more dangerous.

There are 10 stages with all sorts of traps and hazards, all seem to be based on certain areas of the game - we can already see the first level as well as the construction level. Unfortunately still not online - but this looks like a whole lot of fun to play with friends on Local play.

The videos can be viewed below from Gamevideos:

Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearmed 'Grenade'
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearmed 'Machine Gun'
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearmed 'Rocket' gameplay
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearmed ' FFA' gameplay
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearmed 'Team Deathmatch'
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando Rearm. 'Multiplayer Trailer'

Along with these brand new videos, the large gamer sites have posted new previews of the game:

1UP.com - Previews: Bionic Commando
IGN.com - Multiplayer Hands-on
Gamespot - New Features Hands-On

To add onto this, IGN have a new Q&A with Producer Ben Judd about Rearmed. It's a fantastic read since Ben makes it his mission to be as honest as possible to his audience. I liked this bit:

Q: If you succeed, what are some of the next titles that are in the back of your mind?

Judd: Let's just say that I'm a huge Capcom fan. I like Ghost and Goblins, the Mega Man series, Strider, D&D... I like a lot of the games. Let's just say that if this works out, there's a very good chance that there may be another similar title in the future. We'll see.

Q: We're hoping for Strider.

Judd: Strider was a good game. Anytime you fight a gigantic robotic ape and then a bunch of senators that turn into a worm, that's kinda cool.

But, to be honest, none of our 2.5D games have worked out. None. Mega Man Powered Up -- nope. Ultimate Ghosts & Goblins -- nope. Again, I'm probably fighting a fool's task here. For something that cheap, something that already has failed three times, and in a genre, 2.5D, that has never been successful. But that's what I like about Capcom. They're willing to give a crazy foreigner like me the chance to try.

You can read the entire Q&A here.

Last but not least, Judd has added a new post on the IGN Bionic Commando blog, discussing the new easy and hard difficulty modes available in the new version:

When updating the game for Rearmed we didn't want to go with the standard, "lazy" approach to difficulty tweaking -- i.e., we didn't want to make the game artificially more difficult by just giving the enemies a longer life bar and the ability to do more damage.

Additionally, rather than making the game harder, we needed to find a way to make it easier without totally redesigning the classic level design that fans would demand.

Fortunately, the BCR team has got some really creative people on board and they developed the concept of "Assist Blocks" for Easy mode. For example, look at the screenshot to the right. Fans of the original might recognize this location as being underneath the first "big swing" of the game from building to building. In the original, if you missed when trying to hook on to the spotlight, it usually meant you fell to your death.

Read the entire blog post here.

This is only day one of the "Three days of the Commando" - though admittedly the next two are most likely about the next-generation version coming soon. Keep looking at XBLAH for the latest info!

[That sure was long!]

Source: Bionic Commando Blog - Three Days of the Commando - Day 1

Bionic Commando gets its M rating (of sorts)

Ben Judd has got what he thought for Bionic Commando Rearmed - an M rating.

However it's only been rated on the Australian Classification website, and in Australia we have a different rating system - No T rating at all, instead we have an M (Recommended for 15+) or MA (Restricted for 15+). So Rearmed has settled itself between Super Contra and Metal Slug 3, and not the MA15+ rating games like Marathon and DOOM despite - in todays world - having some pretty pissy gore by todays standards.

Ratings differ all the time. Take Street Fighter for example - All recent Street Figher II's have been rated PG, yet all previous SFII, IIIs and more were rated M. Heck, the Plug & Play SFII was rated G!

Source: OFLC

Final Fight XBLA? "We've discussed it, it's in the maybe column."

In the latest Bionic Commando Podcast Christian Svensson, VP of Strategic Planning & Business Development over at Capcom USA, was invited. In the podcast they discussed Okami for the Wii, as well as some of the Backbone XBLA projects. Here is a small excerpt from the conversation:

"Final Fight? On XBLA / PSN?"

"We've discussed it, it's in the maybe column. It's is something that we (Capcom USA) own, but it's coming in the shadow of Final Fight Streetwise, so it may need to rest a little longer before we do that."

"But those Beat-em-ups like Ninja Turtles did really well!"

"Yes those and a few others did really well, we're giving some thought to it. Not that I don't think the content isn't appropriate - I think it's very appropriate, we're being very cautious with our bets, and we're trying to see where we can add value."

"We listen very very carefully to discussions on our forums, so maybe post on Capcom-Unity's forums and show your support [...] in the coming months you'll be some pretty radical - I think Industry leading approaches to how we're creating our community. I can't say anything yet, but look for it in the coming months. Any more and my PR masters will get mad at me!"

You heard the man, go to the Capcom Unity Forums and voice your opinion!

They also discuss the rating for the upcoming Bionic Commando Rearmed - it's looking likely that it'll get an M!

"Master D's Head HAS to explode, it's not 8-bit pixels anymore. Therefore, yes, for 10 seconds of the game there is one over-the-top violent scene, and that's giving us an M rating!"

Download the podcast here or join the RSS Feed

Podcast wrapup - Capcom Gamers Day, Bionic Commando and Fable 2 Arcade titles

Bionic Commando Podcast chats about the new videos that were released this week of the top down view and the official Bionic Commando Rearmed price (which is $10US). They also announce that.. there will be another announcement NEXT week about yet another new mode in Bionic Commando Rearmed!

Top Secret File 011: Kris Zimmerman, Voice Director, & Chip Beaman, Voiceover Manager: Top Secret goes on location at the voice recording session of Bionic Commando in Hollywood, California, as we talk to Soundelux VO manager Chip Beaman, and the Voice Director of Bionic Commando, Kris Zimmerman. We find out what it takes to make a game sound great, and explore the mixed past of Capcom voiceovers.

Download the episode here or join the RSS feed.

EGM Live discusses the Capcom Digital Day from last week, with some small previews of each game:

We're all over the map this week: opening the reader mailbag, announcing the winners of the EGM Smash Bros. cover contest, reporting on Capcom's upcoming batch of download games, and enjoying the first week of Smash Brawl.

Download the episode here or join the RSS feed.

Major Nelson has Peter Molyneux on his podcast, in which he discusses the upcoming Fable 2 XBLA games - which have all been named now. Besides the previously announced Keystone, there is Wizard's Tower and Mage Dice. Thanks for Xbox360fanboy for poinint this out.. There is only so much Molyneux you can take at a time.

Show #272: Battlefield: Bad Company, Rainbow Six Vegas 2 and Peter Molyneux

Co-host : e
Interview: Karl-Magnus, Battlefield: Bad Company (15:47–27:54)
Interview: Philippe Therien, Rainbow Six Vegas (27:55–42:54)
Interview: Peter Molyneux, Fable 2 (42:56–1:21:55)
Name the game
and more...

Download the episode here or join the RSS feed.

Game | Life Show - A Digital Day with Capcom

The new Game|Life show has some.. well, awkward footage of people from the Capcom Digital Day! Commando 3, 1942, Bionic Commando, Plunder and 1942 are all represented, go have a look!

Source: Game|Life The Video, #6: Capcom's Digital Day

Capcom Digital Day '08 - All the god damn videos you could possibly want.

Capcom's has opened the gates for the Capcom Digital Day media - and so every single site's on the case. This is a giant list of.. everything. Direct Feed, Off Camera, Interviews, the lot!

Above is a giant 17 minute interview with the Street Fighter II HD producers. Make sure you look at everything else too - all from Gamevideos, Gametrailers and IGN.

Commando 3

Gamevideos: Commando 3 'Blasting' gameplay
Gamevideos: Commando 3 'Co-op' gameplay
Commando 3 XB360 'Digital Day 08' trailer HD
Commando 3 'Generation' trailer HD
Commando 3 PS3 'Digital Day 08' trailer HD
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Island Fever Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Raft'n'Destroy Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Storming The Beach Gameplay
Xbox360 @ IGN: Three Of A Kind (HD)
Xbox360 @ IGN: Big Boss (HD)

Bionic Commando: Rearmed

Gamevideos: Bionic Commando: Rearmed 'Top-Down' HD
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando: Rearmed 'Sewer' HD
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando: Rearmed 'Evolution'
Gamevideos: Bionic Commando: Rearmed 'Mt. Base' HD
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Top-Down Trailer

1942: Joint Strike

Gamevideos: 1942: Joint Strike 'Digital Day 08' HD
Gamevideos: 1942: Joint Strike 'Tandem Attack'
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Mike Mika Interview
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Biplane Beatdown Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Tank Assault Gameplay
Xbox360 @ IGN: Dagmor Boss (HD)
Xbox360 @ IGN: Dagmor City (HD)
Xbox360 @ IGN: Bodan Chain Lightning (HD)
Xbox360 @ IGN: Bodan Boss (HD)

Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix

Gamevideos: Super SFII Turbo HD Remix 'Ken/Ryu'
Gamevideos: Super SFII Turbo HD Remix 'Producer Chat'
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Ultimate Feature Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Tie-Breaker Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Overview and Balancing Interview
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Rivals Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Danger Zone Gameplay
Gametrailers: Capcom Digital Day: Japan Gameplay
Xbox360 @ IGN: SFIIHD: The Tarmack (HD)
Xbox360 @ IGN: SFIIHD - The Docks (HD)

Gamevideos presents - Interview with Bionic Commando Producer

Gamevideos just added a new interview with Ben Judd - Producer of Bionic Commando and Rearmed It's pretty long so it should be a good watch.

Source: Gamevideos

New Bionic Commando Trailer, plus get your own level in the game!

The Bionic Commando Team and Capcom are letting Bionic Commando fans to get their own created level to be in the newly announced Challenge Room!

Capcom have given out the image above, along with descriptions for each block type for fans to tinker with. Using Photoshop or even MS Paint, fans can work their magic to create some crazy level! The winner will get their level in the game, as well as their name in the credits!

Admittedly not the biggest of incentives (Even a T-Shirt would be nice!) but certainly will appeal to those big fans of the original game. All the details can be seen at Capcom's blog, so get going! Competition ends March 12th!

In the meantime, watch this new official trailer for the Challenge Rooms!



Source: Bionic Commando Blog: "Get Your Level in Bionic Commando Rearmed!"

GDC '08 - The 1UP Show brings you more Dishwasher, Bionic Comando, and Indie games!

The 1UP Show is all about GDC, and XBLA / PC indie games is on the tip of everyones tongue. Bionic Commando is also shown, and a look at some currently PC only games such a Fez and OokiBlocks which would be great to see on the XBLA someday!

There's an indie explosion at this year's Game Developers Conference and everyone here at 1UP is raving about our shared experiences with all the great titles in competition at the Independent Games Festival. The 1UP Show delves into the phenomenon during our mid-GDC get-together. Don't worry, we manage to slip in a few 800 lb. gorillas just to flesh things out.

Audiosurf, Dishwasher, Fez, JellyCar, LostWinds, and Ookibloks all make brief appearances for the indie scene in our discussion while the big playas represent with Bionic Commando: Rearmed, Gears of War 2, Ninja Gaiden 2, Recoil: Retrograd, and Street Fighter IV.

Download the episode here, or watch it in the embedded video above!

GDC '08 - Giant GDC Day 1 video wrapup!

The XBLA is on the tip of everyones tongues after the first true day of GDC - and all the video sites are on top of it - XNA and XBLA alike.

Montage Footage

Gametrailers: Montage Footage
Gametrailers: How To Get your XNA downloader
Gametrailers: XNA Overview

Bionic Commando Rearmed

Gametrailers: Area 1 Boss Fight Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Explosive Weapons Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Base Infiltration Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Side Mission Challenge Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Lucky Catch Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Area 4 Gameplay HD
Gametrailers: Area 4 Gameplay HD Part 2
Gamevideos: 'Boss Battle'
Gamevideos: 'Area 5'
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 1
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 2
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 3
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 4
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 5
IGN: 6 Brand new videos (mentioned below)

JellyCar

Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 1
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 2
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 3
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 1
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 2
Gamevideos: 'Target' gameplay
IGN: 2 Gameplay videos

Proximity HD

Gametrailers: Gameplay HD
IGN: Gameplay Video

Dishwasher: Dead Samurai

Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 1
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 2
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 3
Gametrailers: Gameplay HD
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 1
Gamespot: Gameplay Movie 2
IGN: 2 Gameplay videos

Culture

Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 1
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 2
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 3
Gametrailers: Gameplay HD
IGN: 2 Gameplay videos

Little Gamers

Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 1
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 2
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 3
Gametrailers: Gameplay HD

Rocketball

Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 1
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 2
Gamersyde: Gameplay Video 3
Gametrailers: Gameplay HD

Whew!

Source: IGN, Gamespot, Gametrailers, Gamersyde, Gamevideos