Apr 12, 2010
Jason West and Vince Zampella, former heads of Infinity Ward creators of the insanely popular Call of Duty franchise and the minds behind Modern Warfare, have taken their recent termination from Activision and turned it into a new studio at Electronic Arts called “Respawn Entertainment”. The duo who had been fired from Activision for so called “insubordination” had been rumored to have been speaking to the higher ups at EA before the termination.
“Respawn Entertainment marks a fresh start for Jason and me,” said Vince Zampella, now General Manager of Respawn. “For the past decade we led a great development team and poured our hearts into creating an epic game franchise. We’re very proud of what we built – and proud that so many millions of fans enjoyed those games. Today we hope to do it all over again – open a new studio, hire a great team, and create brand new games with a new partner, EA.”
“We’re excited,” added Respawn President, Jason West. “Now that the team is in control of the games and brands, we can ensure that the fans are treated as well as they deserve.”
While no details of what kind of game is expected from this new studio, it should be noted that for nearly a decade the two have worked almost exclusively on war based first person shooters.
The duo are also still currently in the middle of a lawsuit against Activision over unpaid royalties and other things.
I kinda like the poetic theme in their new studio's name: Respawn Entertainment. Lovely sense of humor.
Though it IS kinda ironic - didn't they leave EA after Medal of Honor on bad terms to form Infinity Ward? Now they are back again?
I suppose when you move as many units as they have, you don't want to go work with Majesco or anything.
EA is a different kind of company now than it was then, right
I've heard that they are, but I won't make any real declarative statements to be certain since all I have is what I've heard from others.
What I'm reading is that this isn't an EA-owned studio, but an independent company started by the ex-infinity ward heads. Apparently this is an autonomous company which will retain all of their own IP while working with EA as their publishing partner (EA also having footed their startup costs to the tune of several millions of dollars)
from the press release:
Also: infinity ward was formed by twenty some odd former employees of 2015, which itself was/is an independent developer, similar to the new Respawn and unlike Infinity Ward. They only made a single medal of honor game (allied assault) and also had games published by activision and (most recently) vivendi. I can't figure out what they're even doing anymore, but their website says they're hiring "iphone developers" and etc.
oh, and apparently their "big hollywood agent" is seamus blackley
I had no idea Seamus Blackley was a Hollywood agent now.
Respawn Entertainment. That's fitting.
Anyway, with Dice and and now this, that's a pretty big monopoly on the biggest FPS developers out there, if you're willing to call Respawn Entertainment a FPS developer that is (who knows, maybe they'll make cat simulators or something).
Man, Cat Simulator 2010 is so freaken' awesome! I'm stuck at figuring out how to manipulate the human into giving me more items though. Rubbing against their leg just.... doesn't seem to work anymore. I have tried attacking the leg but that just annoys them....
Things I also didn't know: his background is actually in high energy physics.
How about that.
Anyway, with Dice and and now this, that's a pretty big monopoly on the biggest FPS developers out there, if you're willing to call Respawn Entertainment a FPS developer that is (who knows, maybe they'll make cat simulators or something).
People forgot about Halo Combat Evolved a looooooooong time ago. :P
But yeah no one cares about Halo sheesh I think you should be BANNED for saying such WRONG things
halo aint no marathon
halo games are still the best fps shooters ever to grace consoles. no amount of modern warfare can change that.
though ODST was a yawner for me. played like an hour and moved on with my life.
ODST had us cracking up at how ridiculous that one "lady" looked (kind of like joan rivers), and at a couple other things that weren't intended to be funny.
I feel like firefight is a little too brutal to have as much staying power as it otherwise could have. With horde mode you could progress to a particular wave then come back later on, but with firefight it basically just goes from hard to ridiculous and then you die and start over.
Still had some good times with it, like the time both dustin and mav died and I somehow became rambo, running around and killing the rest of the wave on my own, all jumping in the air and smashing dudes with a gravity hammer etc. (I might add that I am REALLY bad at firefight, which is why moments like that stand out.)
I feel like firefight is a little too brutal to have as much staying power as it otherwise could have. With horde mode you could progress to a particular wave then come back later on, but with firefight it basically just goes from hard to ridiculous and then you die and start over.
Still had some good times with it, like the time both dustin and mav died and I somehow became rambo, running around and killing the rest of the wave on my own, all jumping in the air and smashing dudes with a gravity hammer etc. (I might add that I am REALLY bad at firefight, which is why moments like that stand out.)
I feel like firefight is a little too brutal to have as much staying power as it otherwise could have. With horde mode you could progress to a particular wave then come back later on, but with firefight it basically just goes from hard to ridiculous and then you die and start over.
Still had some good times with it, like the time both dustin and mav died and I somehow became rambo, running around and killing the rest of the wave on my own, all jumping in the air and smashing dudes with a gravity hammer etc. (I might add that I am REALLY bad at firefight, which is why moments like that stand out.)
Well I am something of a dab hand at puzzle fights, but yeah as far as halo goes that was probably a banner round for me.
(I mean, I think going into that night I actually asked dustin "how do you sticky?" because I had never actually done it, then all of a sudden I'm just killing dudes left and right)
Also, strictly from a cooperative gameplay perspective, Halo 3 and ODST >>> Modern Warfare 2.
Spec Ops is fun as hell and D and I are working our way through the whole thing and it's a blast, but it's no four player Legendary with team scoring.
I prefer sci-fi games to real life games, so you all could probably guess where I stand on this debate.
Though I will say I find the scripted events in CoD (at least the last two) to be better than most that appear in any of the Halo games.
Also, Halo Reach is gonna destroy everything
Spec Ops is fun as hell and D and I are working our way through the whole thing and it's a blast, but it's no four player Legendary with team scoring.
My love for COD4 and MW2 only goes so far as the multiplayer. Halo 3 with co-op is blast compared to both MW campaigns and spec-ops.
Does COD have rocket race?
there's your answer
Spec Ops is fun as hell and D and I are working our way through the whole thing and it's a blast, but it's no four player Legendary with team scoring.
If a friend came over and it was decided we were going to play 360, I'd sooner play Halo 3 or Gears 2 before Spec Ops - which while a great deal of fun, is more of an extra, a side dish to the two main dishes - that being the single and multiplayer.
The fact that MW and MW2 are not coop is a huge benefit as it allows for more scripting and a blisteringly intense experience. If I'm ever sitting by myself and wanted to play through a campaign, I'd be going for MW or MW2 every time.
I think the more direct comparisons are with the multiplayer, and there are some things that Bungie do in the multiplayer space that Infinity Ward really should have taken from. Of course there's the matchmaking straight out of Halo 2, but Bungie included an insane level of stat tracking through their website. I absolutely love that stuff, knowing what weapon I'm best with, what map suits me, how many headshots I got etc etc etc. The replay feature was something I was really hoping for in MW2 but alas, it was not to be.
I can tell you this game was on 10.08.2007, that my score was 28 kills for 0 deaths, that I played with danmp 18... I mean that's one of my favourite gaming memories ever, and the fact that I can look over game stats, even saved gameplay from something three years ago is awesome.
I've had a great time with MW2 online but I'm still not prepared to pay $15 for five maps, two of which rehashes. That's more a reflection on Activision, but it doesn't matter because either way I haven't played a game of MW2 in over a month.
ha ha I just linked my live id to bungie.net and have been poking around and apparently my number one weapon in ODST is the gravity hammer
I've also apparently had zero deaths from it, which is weird because I thought I'd lost a hammer duel or two
that's for points
for number of kills it's number six. number five is apparently from punching
yes apparently I've gotten the sixth most kills from punching (one and two are the mag and the other standard gun, three and four are the machine gun turret and warthog turret)
man they've even got records of the 9 games I played of Halo 2 with my old gamertag.
Man it shows all my stats still ( Mind Blown )
I dunno it kind of brings back old memories. Part of me wants to get the rest of the maps and fire up some Halo 3 for fun. It also says I spent half of my time playing ranked matches on there. But man it still shows my XP penalities and that last one cost me from going to Skill Level 20. That was a sad day indeed.
I wouldn't be upset but the match ended with me winning and then it disconnected leaving me with a penalty. Its funny because I remember the match and it has it on my stats that I was first, but the info for the game is unreliable ( I got robbed )
All well still a great game. Hmm how much are those other map packs now, lol
We should get a Halo 3 night going... Ryan stop playing Halo 2.
My problem with the last couple halo 3 nights we did was I didn't know half the maps we played on or understand any of the weird custom modes we played. Couple that with the fact that I was never very good at halo 3 to begin with and it just wasn't any fun.
Anyone doing anything tonight? Say around 8pm Central? I think most of us have the Halo 3 ODST map disc. We should all just get together tonight and have some fun!
And I may even have a couple 72 hour gold cards laying around for you silver members.
I know its short notice and all - but if we do this we should really just jump at it!
I'd be a little late, but I could swing that.
That might work for me even, I don't have anything on tomorrow. I've spotted Zzombie on my google talk, maybe he'd like to join us.
I made plans with some SW2 guys to mess around in Little Big Planet, maybe work on creating a level or just co oping around, so for me it'll have to be another night.
I got tired, no way will I make it another two hours and then another two.
well it's three hours until 8pm central
if anyone is playing at midnight (central) and I can actually find my disc I might play a few rounds
Maybe not tonight then. We could do some this weekend though. Or next week. Monday night works for me, anyone else?
Actually what I really want to do more of is Firefight.
yeah yeah
Otherwise...
Heroic - Free
Legendary - 600MSP
Cold Storage - Free
Mythic - 800MSP
Mythic II - 800MSP
Though it looks like Mythic II came out in February, which means you'd have to buy that anyhow.
Otherwise...
Heroic - Free
Legendary - 600MSP
Cold Storage - Free
Mythic - 800MSP
Mythic II - 800MSP
Though it looks like Mythic II came out in February, which means you'd have to buy that anyhow.
But yeah I hear what faits is saying, Last time I played Halo 3 after getting the free maps I played with mmd and was n00bing it up big time. Although it was pretty godly watching him rip us apart in Juggernaut.
Also playing Duck Hunt was a blast. lol
But yeah I hear what faits is saying, Last time I played Halo 3 after getting the free maps I played with mmd and was n00bing it up big time. Although it was pretty godly watching him rip us apart in Juggernaut.
Also playing Duck Hunt was a blast. lol
Well I guess I'm glad I didn't miss anything last night, I felt bad saying I was gonna be here, but when I got home I had a tremendous migraine and went straight to bed til morning.
But yeah I hear what faits is saying, Last time I played Halo 3 after getting the free maps I played with mmd and was n00bing it up big time. Although it was pretty godly watching him rip us apart in Juggernaut.
Also playing Duck Hunt was a blast. lol
And you can probably find it cheap used at Gamestop or something.
ODST does have a pretty good campaign, I'd like to play through it coop at some point but I've never had the chance.
I thought the ODST campaign was pretty lacking, and I've already said my problems with firefight. I think one of the most annoying things about the campaign is I'd finally get a weapons loadout I liked and it would change perspective on you again (which was something I expected to have a problem with, and was disappointed that it ended up actually being a thing)
And you can probably find it cheap used at Gamestop or something.
Oh well I think i can survive playing some Social matches if I feel up to it.
It's probably worth picking up ODST for the beta and Halo 3 disc.
And I've just realised that my ODST is not around, that it's at my brothers now ex-girlfriend's house where he was living and it's going to be tricky to get it back. I've given my brother until the weekend, else I'm calling his ex. "look you stroppy tart, you got my games"
Missed the conversation but I'm definitely up for some Halo. I STILL haven't played Firefight yet, am always up for some co-op (never completed the Halo 3 campaign in co-op, only did the first half on Heroic with a few people here over two years ago), and standard MP is fine too. Whatever. Man, now I want to play Halo.
Apparently they added more matches available for those of use without all the maps since the last time I played.
I was able to get in some team slayer and squad battles only to find out I suck. It's the only reason that can explain what happens when I shoot at people who jump around I die and when I'm being shot at and jump around I die.
In other words when I see someone on my screen I die. 3 matches is all it took for me to miss the claymores and their anti run and gun usage. lol
I decided to put my experience in meme form.
I was able to get in some team slayer and squad battles only to find out I suck. It's the only reason that can explain what happens when I shoot at people who jump around I die and when I'm being shot at and jump around I die.
In other words when I see someone on my screen I die. 3 matches is all it took for me to miss the claymores and their anti run and gun usage. lol
I haven't played halo3 multiplayer all that much (and never in ranked) but it did seem like people were constantly jumping everywhere
At least I used to be. When I played Halo online multiplayer the other night before Halo 2 went bye bye forever, I realized not playing Halo online for 3 years pretty much has taken its toll.
I am decidedly average these days
At least I used to be. When I played Halo online multiplayer the other night before Halo 2 went bye bye forever, I realized not playing Halo online for 3 years pretty much has taken its toll.
I am decidedly average these days
I find myself bringing habits from one game to a completely different one effects my gameplay. I can take long breaks from CoD and not lose a step, but for Halo I have get into the zone.
I can't remember what that zone was, but it was pretty sweet when I tapped into it. lol
Switching games sucks. I was meleeing in Uncharted 2 tonight when I was trying to reload.
Anyway I should be around Sunday, Monday, whatever.