18 Oct 2008

Overhanging on the cliff of booze... Syndicate, Spectraball and Sickness

Right now I feel too sick to move, having consumed my weight in cocktails last night. It seems I've fallen prey to that 'binge-drinking' bug that's going around the British press at the moment. Hopefully it'll pass and I'll emerge a beautiful butterfly. Better still, I might actually be able to focus on the monitor in front of me. Ugh...

Anyway, I couldn't not post about this story as soon as I read it on CVG. The news: Syndicate is to get a remake!

According to the site, 'EA is set to reveal a brand new entry in Bullfrog's cult classic Syndicate series' and that's about it. There are very few details confirmed at the moment, but that's enough of a sentence to get internet forums a-thrumming with loose-lipped speculation. The one question it really does beg, however, is whether the gaming industry is swaying towards the regurgitation tactics that we so often observe movie-land exploiting. Tomb Raider: Anniversary is a fine example of what developers are willing to scrounge from tried and tested IPs. Syndicate may be over ten years old and much less well known amongst today's gaming youth, but I guess EA have seen enough of a place in the market to remake it. And no one can argue that bringing back decade-old games hasn't worked out well for Bethesda...

As sceptical as I'd like to be about this project, it turns out that the developers currently working on the new game are those of Chronicles of Riddick fame, Starbreeze Studios. Knocking a developer who managed to bring out the only (extremely) decent movie-game conversion I can ever recall playing would be a rash move. Judgement therefore is officially reserved.

In other news, Flashcube Studios have been kind enough to pass on a preview copy of their new game, Spectraball, set to be released on Steam on the October 20th, so expect a full review later this evening.

Now, please excuse me whilst I vomit...

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