Syndicate: leaked screens

Update (12.09.11) – EA has formally announced that it will publish Syndicate for 360, PS3 and PC in early 2012.

Original Story – If you were mortified by 2K’s decision to resurrect XCOM as a first person shooter, prepare to be outraged all over again. Thanks to an (alleged) leak published on NeoGAF by forum member faulty_fork, you can now assume that Bullfrog’s action strategy classic Syndicate is going down a very similar path.

The antiquated, though much loved, third person isometric view of the 1993 original has been shown the door. In its place, you’ll have what publisher EA describes as a “visceral” (aren’t they all?) “FPS experience”. Development duties have apparently been farmed out to Starbreeze Studios, the acclaimed Swedish outfit responsible for titles inspired by The Chronicles of Riddick and The Darkness.

Like its predecessor, the new Syndicate will take place in a world dominated by ruthless corporations. You’ll take on the role of Miles Kilo, a company agent with the ability to “slow down time, see through walls” and “interface directly with the Dataverse”. The game is said to feature a “four player online co-op experience like no other.”

There has been no word as yet regarding target platforms or release dates. In fact, EA is yet to confirm that the game is actually in production, so for the time being, it’s best to take all of this with a grain of salt.

Presented in glorious alphabetical order, New Media: Retail Roundup is your indispensible checklist of the home console and handheld titles arriving in stores this week. What will you be playing?

MICROSOFT Xbox 360 El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron * NHL 12

NINTENDO Wii The Penguins of Madagascar: Dr. Blowhole Returns Again! 3DS DualPenSports * StarFox 64 3D DS The Penguins of Madagascar: Dr. Blowhole Returns Again!

SONY PS3 El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron * God of War Collection Volume 2 * NHL 12 PSP Nothing

VARIOUS PC Nothing

New Media: Downloadable Digest is your handy reminder of the new downloadable titles released during the past week.

MICROSOFT XBLA Bloodrayne: Betrayal * Crimson Alliance * Leedmees * SkyDrift

NINTENDO WiiWare Nothing eShop Nothing DSiWare Nothing

SONY PSN Bloodrayne: Betrayal * Red Johnson’s Chronicles * SkyDrift Minis Guerrilla War * Hal 21 * The Impossible Game

VALVE Steam Call of Juarez: The Cartel * Dead Island * Men of War: Vietnam * Rock of Ages * Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine

Recent instalments of New Media: 04.09.11 l 28.08.11 l 21.08.11 l 14.08.11 l 07.08.11

Welcome to The Black List, your one stop shop for the stories published on the site this week.

MONDAY JUST ANNOUNCED The Haunted: Hells Reach > The winner of Epic Games’ Make Something Unreal Contest is to receive a commercial release. Created by an international team headed by Michael Hegemann, The Haunted: Hells Reach will be published by THQ budget division ValuSoft (which apparently reduced overheads by dropping the ‘e’ from its name). READ MORE

TUESDAY NEW TRAILER Dead Island > Interest in Techland’s Dead Island was initially generated from its first cinematic trailer. The pre-rendered offering was unusual in that it tapped into the viewers’ emotions to remind them of the true underlying horror of a zombie outbreak. While this recent trailer is comprised of footage captured in-game, it continues with its efforts to navigate the same emotional undertone. READ MORE

WEDNESDAY NEWS nanoBITES 56 > The first wave of DLC has been announced for multiplatform cyberpunk sequel Deus Ex: Human Revolution. According to publisher Square Enix, The Missing Link will see protagonist Adam Jensen uncover “another layer to the conspiracy”. Look for it in October. This is just one of the stories in this week’s edition of nanoBITES, our ongoing feature devoted to small but important news items. READ MORE

THURSDAY NEWS A second circle pad for your 3DS > The addition of a circle pad certainly makes the 3DS feel like a step up from its immediate predecessor. However, for an entire generation of gamers, only dual thumb controllers are seen to provide the full range of movement required. Cognisant of this, Nintendo has found a way to bring just such a feature to its nascent handheld. READ MORE

FRIDAY FEATURE Developer Playlist: John Halloran > In the first of a series on developers and the games that inspire them, PopCap’s John Halloran tells The Black Panel about the influence of classic titles Super Mario Kart, Tetris and Civilization on his career. READ MORE

Recent instalments of The Black List: 03.09.11 l 27.08.11 l 20.08.11 l 13.08.11 l 06.08.11

Developer Playlist is The Black Panel’s occasional column devoted to industry figures and the games that inspire them. Each instalment features a ‘playlist’ of influential titles hand-picked by a talented creator.

PopCap Games has reminded us again and again that casual titles can be just as compelling (and twice as addictive) as the latest blockbuster releases. As an engineering manager with PopCap’s Dublin Studio, John Halloran has contributed to the ongoing success of the Peggle, Bejeweled and Bookworm franchises. “I have focused mainly on creating mobile games from the old brick-sized barely-colour phones through to the latest smart phones,” he says. “More recently I have started working on social games and I am loving it.”

—– John Halloran’s Playlist —–

Halloran describes his playlist as “a mixed bunch”, and though they have little in common in terms of platform or genre, each game is of a similar vintage.

Released for the SNES in 1992, frantic mascot racer SUPER MARIO KART is among the most imitated multiplayer games of its era. Instead of copying the most obvious trappings of Nintendo’s hit, Halloran looks deeper for inspiration. “Nintendo managed to make a great game that is very difficult to master while still making it possibly the most accessible racing game ever,” he says. “Being easy to get into but difficult to master is a quality that we bring to every game here at PopCap.” Super Mario Kart is available for download from the Wii’s Virtual Console.

Alexey Pajitnov’s TETRIS may have been doing the rounds since the mid 1980s, but the 1989 Game Boy version is widely considered to be definitive. Halloran recalls always keeping the classic puzzler “within arm’s reach” during his high school and college years, a practice he now regards as excellent grounding for his work at PopCap. “It has instant pickup and play appeal that all our games have,” he says. “When you need a break it is the sort of game that you can jump into and play to take your mind off things, just like Bejeweled is.” At the time of writing, the only way to play the Game Boy version of Tetris is to track down a second hand copy.

Our guest rounds off his list with a landmark MicroProse title from 1991. A turned based strategy game of hitherto unparalleled scope, SID MEIER’S CIVILIZATION took players from the dawn of humanity to the space race. “It is very different to every game I have worked on,” Halloran says, “but as game design goes it is the one I am most in awe of.” He credits the PC classic with inspiring him to “make games for a living” and hopes to “one day have a go at making something as big and as deep as Civilization.” The game was re-released, along with several of its sequels, in the 2006 anthology Sid Meier’s Civilization Chronicles.

What’s next for John Halloran?

Though sworn to secrecy regarding his upcoming projects, Halloran allows that he and his colleagues are “working on some pretty exciting stuff for mobile and platforms” and encourages everyone to “watch those spaces”.

The Black Panel would like to thank John Halloran and PopCap for participating in Developer Playlist.

Image Credits: Nintendo Life, Moby Games