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EA To Publish New IP Title From Epic
Posted by Kotaku US Edition at 8:20 AM on August 15, 2008
Electronic Arts has signed a deal with Epic Games to publish an as-yet untitled action game.
The game will be released for PC, PS3 & Xbox 360 and be developed by Epic's People Can Fly studio, based in Poland. For those of you wondering, People Can Fly were the folks behind Painkiller.
"Epic is excited to work with EA Partners to launch our next big IP on the global stage," said Mark Rein, vice president, Epic Games. "EA Partners gives independent developers like Epic the muscle of a global publisher like EA, along with the focus and flexibility of a smaller team committed to working with our individual needs."
Full details after the jump
EA SIGNS PUBLISHING DEAL WITH EPIC GAMES
EA Partners Team up with the Creators of the award-winning Gears of War and Unreal series
to Publish an All-New IP
Redwood City, Calif. - August 14, 2008 - Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Epic Games, Inc. today announced that they have signed a publishing agreement for an all-new action title for the PC, Xbox 360® video game system and PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system. The new intellectual property is currently in development by Epic's People Can Fly studio in Poland.
"Epic is excited to work with EA Partners to launch our next big IP on the global stage," said Mark Rein, vice president, Epic Games. "EA Partners gives independent developers like Epic the muscle of a global publisher like EA, along with the focus and flexibility of a smaller team committed to working with our individual needs."
"In the last year, EAP has become a powerhouse player in the publishing world with the best of breed developers signing on to leverage EA's studio-focused philosophy, global scale and publishing leadership," said Frank Gibeau, President of the EA Games Label. "Epic brings first class talent and technology to the development of this new title. We are very proud to have Epic join the growing roster of EA Partners."
"Epic is a legendary studio that is synonymous with quality and EA Partners jumped at the chance to team up with them on the launch of their next blockbuster IP," said David DeMartini, senior vice president and general manager, EA Partners. "EA Partners is committed to giving the world's best independent developers access to EA's global publishing resources, letting them focus on what they do best - making great games."
For more information about Epic Games, please visit www.epicgames.com
For more information about EA, please visit our press Web site at http://info.ea.com
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
Shak_0
Posted 8:54 AM 15/8/08
I've always wanted to see more stuff from People Can Fly. Although the Gears port had installation problems, the extra PC exclusive chapter (done by them) was top-notch.
Shak_0
baxterpunch
Posted 8:49 AM 15/8/08
@Brian Crecente: Thanks for not making me a liar!
baxterpunch
Brian Crecente
Posted 8:46 AM 15/8/08
@canchegundam: [kotaku.com]
Brian Crecente
MetalGearMax
Posted 8:45 AM 15/8/08
These the guys who did Gears for the PC? I heard they screwed that up pretty bad.
MetalGearMax
liquid_kore
Posted 8:42 AM 15/8/08
@Pattypie: Damn that sucks. Thanks for pointing that out though, I never read the press releases because they usually have nothing but paragraph after paragraph saying how awesome the companies are.
liquid_kore
Posted 8:37 AM 15/8/08
I never did get the Gears of War PC (ported by people can Fly)version to "fly" without runtime errors.
Solid_hedgehog
Posted 8:37 AM 15/8/08
I hate EA because they don't put their games on Steam. It's weird that EA publishes Valve games why can't Valve publish EA games?
Solid_hedgehog
Posted 8:35 AM 15/8/08
Ooooohhh, new IP. I like the sound of that.
PC+Mac Coexist
Posted 8:33 AM 15/8/08
EA (sports games) + Epic (Gears of War) = Thrashball?
PC+Mac Coexist
parasiteartist
Posted 8:31 AM 15/8/08
Great news! Can't wait for more information
parasiteartist
baxterpunch
Posted 8:30 AM 15/8/08
@canchegundam: I think this all came from the same press conference? I'm sure they'll do a post about it in a second. Or five minutes.
baxterpunch
Posted 8:28 AM 15/8/08
I wonder if it will use UE3....
mcpeepants
Posted 8:27 AM 15/8/08
Can't blame em, all their other past publishers sans MS have been hit prettty hard...
mcpeepants
Posted 8:26 AM 15/8/08
"synonymous with quality"
*cough*Unreal Tournament 3*cough*
canchegundam
Posted 8:25 AM 15/8/08
Check it out EA is also publishing a game with Suda51 and Grasshopper.
[www.businesswire.com]
canchegundam
Posted 8:24 AM 15/8/08
My PS3 and I are interested in learning more about this game.
Pattypie
Posted 8:24 AM 15/8/08
@liquid_kore: Sorry mang but it says they're going to make a new IP.
Pattypie
liquid_kore
Posted 8:23 AM 15/8/08
It better be a Painkiller sequel!
liquid_kore
Posted 9:34 AM 15/8/08
Epic bought People Can Fly? Hope whatever game they're working on now is either a Painkiller sequel, or something equally awesome!
Quicksilver4648
Posted 9:30 AM 15/8/08
This is quite and odd union between companies. Typically Epic doesn't deal with DLC, especially paying for DLC. The Unreal Tournament series thrives on user created mods and the only reason Epic did it with Gears of War is because Microsoft forced them to charge. Also, EA is notoriously known for creating DLC almost out of nothing and charging plenty for it. Anyone remember the DLC cheats for Tiger Woods?
Quicksilver4648
canchegundam
Posted 9:28 AM 15/8/08
@Brian Crecente: @baxterpunch:
Do I get a price for my early post... ;P
canchegundam
Posted 9:25 AM 15/8/08
blah blah blah... when is he gonna get his team to fix UT3? patch 1.3 still doesn't fix those horrible menus.
Vergobret
Posted 9:20 AM 15/8/08
@: Sure, I don't doubt that this polish dev house lives as well as those in the states, it's just Epic outsourcing for cheaper talent is all... doesn't always produce the best results.
Vergobret
Posted 9:09 AM 15/8/08
Salaries are relative to your cost of living.
DigitalHero
Posted 9:07 AM 15/8/08
Dealing with the devil... =P
DigitalHero
Vergobret
Posted 9:01 AM 15/8/08
Bah... Eastern European studios... can't trust them... yes I know I'm generalizing and a few gems have come out from behind the iron curtain over the years.
It's just that it's always seemed to me like they are the China of game developers... I bet the salaries for the programmers and designers are massively lower than in the states.
Vergobret
souljacker86
Posted 8:59 AM 15/8/08
I have a feeling this will feature unfeasibly large men
souljacker86
Vergobret
Posted 9:57 AM 15/8/08
@Cell9song: I agree about the quirkiness factor... I'm just jaded because of those guys who tried to make their own version of X-Com failed so horribly.
I'm an old-school turn-based freak... I did enjoy Silent Storm (I dare anyone to tell me they have actually beaten that game!).
I've just had more bad experiences than good is all... and the bad ones are really bad.
Vergobret
Posted 9:43 AM 15/8/08
EA is doing pretty good with there partnerships. I like it better then them buying up everyone.
Cell9song
Posted 9:39 AM 15/8/08
@Vergobret:
I actually enjoy the quirkiness of eastern european games....particularly shooters.
Having said that you need to check out Painkiller. I'll put it up against the best of what iD, Epic etc have to offer in the FPS genre.
Cell9song
Suda51
Posted 10:31 AM 15/8/08
@canchegundam: I am most pleased.
Suda51
Jaid
Posted 10:20 AM 15/8/08
Gears of War Football.
Jaid
Muisee
Posted 10:45 AM 15/8/08
@PC+Mac Coexist:
Nice, that would be awesome, or terrible, hopefully awesome.
Muisee
Posted 11:23 AM 15/8/08
Tadaa game becomes flaming pile of crap!
Swift_
Posted 12:28 PM 15/8/08
Since Epic's last new IP (GoW) was a total blast, I have a lot of faith in this project! However, I do hope the PS3 doesn't get the Cliff B short end of the stick! Not that it need get the Mark Rein better deal, either. Par would be fine!
Swift_
BigDragon
Posted 12:17 PM 15/8/08
If I still used Unreal Engine sites, I could sit around and toss out a dozen "I told ya so" comments based on what I predicted last year. Epic's nosedive from the pinnacle of game development is now complete. People Can Fly in particular is almost as bad as it can get. Having level design problems caused by a sloppy port, a single sound effect crashing the game, various bugs in transitions, and so on can be forgiven. However, releasing a game like Gears on PC when it deletes its own SAVE files is absolutely unforgivable. Then making snotty remarks, banning people for asking for the fix MONTHS later after getting the run-around, and then chasing them down to fan sites to make sure they shut up is intolerable.
I have very little doubt that whatever comes of this partnership will make Crysis look like an innovative, deep, fulfilling experience by comparison...that's how far these people have fallen.
BigDragon
Toasticus
Posted 12:16 PM 15/8/08
Does this mean Dude Huge has a 40ft hard on right now?
Toasticus
Posted 4:15 PM 15/8/08
I sure love EA lately.
JakeDunn
Posted 6:58 PM 15/8/08
Painkiller sure was some enjoyable but mindless shooting fun, color me intrigued.
JakeDunn
Posted 7:58 PM 15/8/08
If it has a gun that's better than the one that shoots shuriken and lightning in Painkiller, i m sold.
DreamoftheEndless
Posted 8:24 AM 15/8/08
Epic makes well-put-together games, but they usually just borrow elements from other successful games. I wouldn't expect anything too original.
DreamoftheEndless
velvet396
Posted 3:24 AM 16/8/08
Mutant League Football.
why isn't that obvious to anyone else?
velvet396