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Tag: Epic Games

  • Check Out Gears Of War: Judgment’s Multiplayer Modes

    Check Out Gears Of War: Judgment’s Multiplayer Modes

    Gears of War has always had some excellent multiplayer. The introduction of Horde mode in Gears of War 2 introduced a cooperative angle that made the game that much sweeter. The latest game in the series – Gears of War: Judgment – will introduce new elements to multiplayer to hopefully make it even better.

    The folks at People Can Fly, the developers behind Judgment, show off some of the new weapons that will populate the Team Deathmatch mode. The weapons seem to be some of the best the series has yet seen thanks to the super creative efforts from the team behind the original Painkiller and Bulletstorm.

    Beyond Team Deathmatch, the game will also feature Free-For-All, Domination and Overrun. The usual XP bonuses and perks will be present as well.

    Gears of War: Judgment takes players back into the past on March 19 exclusively for Xbox 360.

  • Epic Shuts Down Impossible Studios After Just Six Months

    Epic Shuts Down Impossible Studios After Just Six Months

    Epic Games today announced that it is shutting down Impossible Studios. No reason was give other than “it wasn’t working out for Epic.”

    Impossible was formed only six months ago, on August 9, 2012. The employees at the company were largely from Big Huge Games, a developer that itself was shut down in the wake of the 38 Studios failure. Impossible’s studio director, Sean Dunn, was the former studio general manager at Big Huge and was once a creative director with THQ. As recently as January 29 Dunn had tweeted about how “awesome it is to be part of the Epic Games family.”

    Impossible had been working on Infinity Blade: Dungeons, a prequel to the popular Infinity Blade games for iOS. The project has now been put on hold.

    At the time it was founded, Impossible had 36 employees at its Hunt Valley, Maryland office. Tim Sweeney, the founder of Epic, has stated that Impossible employees with be given three moths of severance pay. In addition, Epic is releasing its rights to the Impossible Studios name and logo so that the developers can make a go of things on their own.

    Below is Sweeney’s statement, in full:

    We’re closing Impossible Studios.

    When former members of Big Huge Games approached Epic last year, we saw the opportunity to help a great group of people while putting them to work on a project that needed a team. It was a bold initiative and the Impossible folks made a gallant effort, but ultimately it wasn’t working out for Epic.

    In addition to providing Impossible Studios employees with 3 months of severance pay, we’ll be giving the team the opportunity to form a new company with the Impossible Studios name and the awesome Impossibear logo.

    This means that Infinity Blade: Dungeons is now on hold as we figure out the future of the project.

    -Tim Sweeney, Founder, Epic Games

  • Epic Citadel Shows What Android Can Do With Unreal Engine 3

    Epic Citadel Shows What Android Can Do With Unreal Engine 3

    Very few Android games could be classified as technical marvels. You could argue the same for iOS, but the platform has at least received a number of technically impressive titles running on Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3, including Epic Citadel. Now that very same title has made the jump to Android.

    Epic Games announced that Epic Citadel, its Unreal Engine 3 tech demo, is now available for Android devices. This new version of the title brings with its a new benchmarking mode and updated visuals. The former will be especially useful for those who want to test how Unreal Engine 3 performs on various Android devices.

    The release of Epic Citadel for Android may be hinting that Epic and Chair will be bringing Infinity Blade to Android gamers as well. The series has been tremendously popular on iOS, and it would undoubtedly be just as much appreciated on Android devices.

    You can grab Epic Citadel today from either Google Play or the Amazon Appstore. The iOS version of the game was also updated today with support for the iPhone 5, fourth-generation iPad and fifth-generation iPod Touch.

    [h/t: Droid Life]

  • Gears of War: Judgment Multiplayer Early Access Coming March 15

    Gears of War: Judgment Multiplayer Early Access Coming March 15

    Epic Games this week announced that some players who pre-order Gears of War: Judgment will get three days of early access to the game’s new “OverRun” multiplayer mode. Unfortunately, the deal only applies to gamers who order Judgment from GameStop, either online or in-store.

    Those who do pre-order with GameStop will be able to start playing “OverRun” at 3 am EST Saturday, March 16. The early access will run until the launch of the game on March 19. During that time, players can earn XP that will carry over to the full game. The pre-order also comes with a “Young Marcus” character skin and a Lambent weapon skin.

    For those who don’t want to order from GameStop, or aren’t sure if they want to buy another Gears title, a demo for the “OverRun” mode will be available through Xbox LIVE on March 19 when Judgment launches. “OverRun” is a new class-based multiplayer mode that pits COG players (soldiers, medics, engineers, and scouts) against Locust players who can take on the role of wretches, tickers, grenadiers, ragers, kantus, giant serapedes, and maulers.

  • Gears of War: Judgment Will Come With a Free Copy of Gears of War

    Gears of War: Judgment Will Come With a Free Copy of Gears of War

    Though it seems as if Gears of War 3 was just released, we’re now less than two months away from the March 19 launch of Gears of War: Judgment.

    Today, Epic announced that launch copies of the upcoming prequel will include Games on Demand “tokens” for the original Gears of War. Epic claims that half of the people who played Gears of War 3 had never played the original game.

    Accompanying the announcement is a new trailer for Judgment. Though previous videos have focused on what’s new in Gears multiplayer (some interesting stuff, it turns out), this one explains in detail what gamers can expect from the campaign.

    So, what does the Judgment campaign hold in store for Gears fans? More Gears action, of course. Sure, there are some new weapons, enemies, and a new dynamic enemy spawn system, but the action and settings are undeniably familiar. The most notable thing the trailer does is remind gamers that, for better or worse, Baird’s voice will be heard prominently throughout the game.

  • Epic Opens an Online Store Just in Time For Christmas

    Epic Opens an Online Store Just in Time For Christmas

    Epic Games, the creators of the Gears of War series and the Unreal game engine, today launched an online store to sell merchandise related to its games and brands. The items being sold in the Epic store are exclusive, and can’t be found in other stores.

    We’re excited to launch Epic’s official store and provide our loyal fans apparel and merchandise that they can’t find anywhere else,” said Kendall Boyd, Epic’s director of marketing for worldwide studios. “Our hope is to grow our brand via channels such as the Epic Store and celebrate all of our terrific intellectual properties with the community.”

    Unfortunately, the Epic store is rather sparse at this point. Most of the merchandise is Gears of War-related, though there are a couple of Infinity Blade t-shirts, a Bulletstorm t-shirt, and an “Ultrakill” Unreal Tournament t-shirt. There is also a Jazz Jackrabbit t-shirt for old-school gamers or hipsters, and an Impossible Studios t-shirt for those who are excited by Epic’s newly-created development studio, crafted from the remnants of Big Huge Games.

    In a statement today, Epic promised its new store will be “continually upgraded and expanded” and that they have “surprises planned for fans in the coming weeks or months.” Here’s hoping those surprises include Shadow Complex pint glasses, or Unreal Tournament LEGO sets.

  • Gears of War: Judgment Multiplayer Gameplay Revealed

    Gears of War: Judgment Multiplayer Gameplay Revealed

    Epic Games released several new previews of its upcoming Gears of War: Judgment this week, each featuring unvarnished gameplay from the title. It’s a refreshing break from game trailers that feature dubstep and have nothing to do with gameplay.

    While the single player campaign previews are short and show a game that is very similar to last year’s Gears of War III, the multiplayer trailers show a faster, more fluid style of battle. Judging by their combined 30-minute length, they also demonstrate how proud Epic is of its updated multiplayer modes. The combined length of the single player campaign previews is just over two minutes.

    The first trailer seen below previews a new multiplayer mode called OverRun. It’s a class-based mode where COG soldiers fight off Locust, who are controlled by enemy players. COG classes include soldier, medic, engineers who can plant turrets, and scouts (snipers). Locust players can take on the role of wretches, tickers, grenadiers, ragers, kantus (healers), giant serapedes, and even maulers. The second trailer shows some classic free-for-all gameplay.

  • Gears of War: Judgment Campaign Gameplay Previews Released

    Gears of War: Judgment Campaign Gameplay Previews Released

    Too often, trailers and previews for games are so carefully curated that they give a false impression of how a game will play. Sometimes game trailers barely even relate to the game in question.

    Epic Games is the type of developer that is superbly confident in its product, though. It knows it has developed one of the best modern game engines around, and is always happy to show off what it can do. Today, the developer has released several new videos depicting pure Gears of War: Judgment gameplay.

    The single player trailers, seen below, make the game appear to be very polished. That’s a good sign for Gears fans, since the game still has another few months of development left before its March 15, 2013 release date. The multiplayer gameplay trailers also feature a complete-looking title.

    Another thing to note is that the gameplay appears to have not changed significantly since last year’s Gears of War 3. That’s great news for fans of the Gears-style gameplay, but it could also feel like “more of the same” for gamers who need an extra reason to pick up a prequel to the original Gears trilogy.

  • Gears of War: Judgement Villain Revealed in New Trailer

    Gears of War: Judgement Villain Revealed in New Trailer

    This year’s Spike Video Game Awards turned out to be a trailer release party. As part of the festivities, Epic Games premiered the first real story trailer for the upcoming Gears of War: Judgment.

    As a prequel in a series steeped in expanded universe back-story, most of the details about Judgment are already known. However, Epic managed to keep the Big Bad a secret until now. The enemy players will be going up against in the Judgment campaign is a Locust commander named Karn, the “villain of Emergence Day.” Players will take on the role of Baird, Cole, and other Gears as they deal with political and strategic considerations in the immediate aftermath of E-Day.

    Gears of War: Judgment is scheduled to launch on March 19, and some of the pre-order bonuses for the title have already been announced.

  • Epic Games President Steps Down to Advisory Role

    Epic Games President Steps Down to Advisory Role

    Mike Capps, president of Epic Games, announced this week that he will be leaving his position and stepping down to an advisory role within the company. He will also remain on Epic’s board of directors.

    This announcement comes just two months after design director Cliff Bleszinski announced that he would be leaving Epic. While the reason for Bleszinski’s departure was vague, Capps has a perfectly solid reason for handin off his presidential duties. From Capps’ announcement at the Inside Epic blog:

    “If you haven’t heard, I have a baby boy on the way. I’m fortunate that with Epic’s success and generosity, I can be a stay at home dad for a while. My wife Julianne and I are very happy in Raleigh, and other than cleaning up baby barf, I don’t have much planned. I might do some teaching, spend more time on creative writing, and maybe get more active with a few charities.”

    Capps revealed through his Twitter account that he will be celebrating his 10 years at epic with a suitably fancy wine:

    Capps emphasized that he isn’t just walking away from Epic, and will be available “as a resource to Epic, to provide context or advice where I can.” He also expressed his confidence that the remaining executives can handle the transition and business of running one of the most prestigious game studios in existance. From the blog:

    Whatever I can do to help in Epic’s success, I’m in! I’ve got great confidence in our executive team – VP of Development Paul Meegan is new to our Raleigh HQ, but we’ve worked with him for years, and I can only contemplate this retirement knowing that he and VP of Operations John Farnsworth can manage development better than I ever did.

  • Court Orders Silicon Knights to Destroy Copies of Too Human, X-Men: Destiny

    Court Orders Silicon Knights to Destroy Copies of Too Human, X-Men: Destiny

    A U.S. District Court has ordered Silicon Knights to stop using Epic Games‘ Unreal Engine and destroy all of its works containing licensed Epic Games technology, including unsold copies of Too Human, X-Men: Destiny, and other unreleased titles. The destruction will have to happen no later than December 10, 2012. The court also increased the amount of money awarded to Epic Games in May of this year from $4.45 million to $9.1 million.

    This case stems from 2007, when Silicon Knights sued Epic Games, claiming that Epic’s Unreal Engine 3 wasn’t “working,” that Epic was holding back some mythical improved version of the Engine, and that these troubles had cost Silicon Knights millions of dollars. Epic successfully defended itself and countersued, winning a jury trial at the end of May. Today’s decision presents even more of a blow to Silicon Knights. From the decision:

    Not later than December 10, 2012, Silicon Knights shall destroy all versions of the Licensed Technology in its possession, including (but not limited to) the video game engine code for Too Human, The Box/Ritualyst, The Sandman, X-Men: Destiny, and Siren in the Maelstrom, all other game code that was created using the Licensed Technology, all versions of the Unreal Engine 3, and all copies of any information obtained from the licensee restricted portions of the Unreal Developer network.

    In addition, Silicon Knights will have to recall any of its games that use Epic’s code and destroy them. The developer will also have to permanently stop using Epic’s engine, and remove any of Epic’s licensed technology from its own game engine, under the supervision of Epic.

    It appears Silicon Knights could be done as a game developer if this decision stands. With its last two (poorly reviewed) games not even on store shelves and a white screen sitting where the code for its future games should be, it’s hard to imagine a publisher investing in a new title with the company.

    (via Joystiq)

  • Epic, Square Enix Sign Long-Term Unreal Engine Deal

    Epic, Square Enix Sign Long-Term Unreal Engine Deal

    Epic Games and Square Enix today announced an agreement that will allow Square Enix to develop “multiple games” using Epic’s Unreal Engine 3 and Unreal Engine 4 technology.

    “Epic has a strong relationship with Square Enix, and it’s an honor to provide their creative and technical talent with the best game technology available for licensing,” said Taka Kawasaki, territory manager for Epic Games Japan. “We look forward to supporting their developers with world-class tools for years to come.”

    Epic Games Japan worked directly with Square Enix on the licensing deal. Epic stated that the agreement will “supplement Square Enix’s proprietary software and ensure the studio is armed with the most powerful game development tools and technologies available across all major platforms.”

    This deal makes it unclear what the future of Square Enix’s own Luminous Studio engine might be. Luminous Studio was previewed earlier this year at E3, where it debuted with a beautiful Final Fantasy-inspired tech demo.

    The deal also makes it perfectly clear, however, that Unreal Engine 4 will continue the Unreal Engine’s legacy of being the backbone of many high-profile games. Unreal Engine 4 was also shown off at this year’s E3, including a demonstration of the advanced features the engine has for developers. Last month, Epic announced a new Seattle studio that will focus on developing Unreal Engine 4.

    Unreal Engine 3, which will power upcoming games such as Gears of War: Judgment and Lost Planet 3, won’t be retired anytime soon, though. The engine is now being used to develop mobile games for smartphones and tablets. A demo released in August showed an Unreal Engine 3 tech demo running on a Windows 8 RT tablet.

  • Cliff Bleszinski Leaves Epic Games

    Cliff Bleszinski Leaves Epic Games

    Epic Games today announced that Cliff Bleszinski, design director for the game development studio, has left his position with Epic. Bleszinski has been a part of Epic for over two decades, and has been the public face of the company for years. During his time at Epic, Bleszinski was a part of games such as the Unreal franchise and the Gears of War franchise.

    “In 20 wonderful years with Epic, Cliff Bleszinski has grown into a true design luminary, and his contributions to the ‘Unreal’ and ‘Gears’ series have helped shape the game industry into what it is today,” said Time Sweeny, Epic founder and CEO. “Cliff leaves Epic with our gratitude for his many contributions, and our wishes for continued success in the next chapter of his life!”

    Epic stated that Bleszinski is moving on to the “next stage of his career,” though what that stage is isn’t mentioned. Responding on Twitter, Bleszinski was also vague about his future plans:

    Epic also released a portion of a personal note Bleszinski sent to his coworkers, which provide some insight into why the man would leave a position so many people would consider a dream job:

    I’ve been doing this since I was a teenager, and outside of my sabbatical last year, I have been going non-stop. I literally grew up in this business, as Mike likes to say. And now that I’m grown up, it’s time for a much needed break.

    I will miss the projects, the playtests, the debates, and most importantly, the people. Epic only hires the best of the best, and it has been a joy working with each and every one of you on a daily basis, whether you were hired weeks ago or decades ago. I have been fortunate enough to collaborate with a variety of disciplines, from code to art to marketing and PR – it’s been one big, rewarding learning experience. I’m confident that each project that is being built, whether at Epic, Chair, PCF, or Impossible will be top notch and will please gamers and critics alike.

  • Epic Games Launches New Studio For Unreal Engine 4

    Epic Games Launches New Studio For Unreal Engine 4

    Epic Games today announced that it has created a new Seattle development studio that will focus on its Unreal Engine 4. The company has begun hiring developers to fill the studio, including programmers and support staff.

    “The proximity to key partners, the density of world-class talent and all the factors that make Seattle an attractive place to live convinced us that it is the perfect locale for Epic’s West Coast operation,” said Michael Capps, Epic Games president. “We are looking to hire even more of the best engineers around to contribute to Unreal Engine 4, which we believe is set to change the way we all make games.”

    Epic unveiled its Unreal Engine 4 at this year’s E3, and garnered tons of praise for it from the gaming press. And while Square Enix also demoed its Luminous Studio engine at E3 with a beautiful Final Fantasy-inspired trailer, Epic’s demonstration of Unreal Engine 4’s development tools shows why it is confident its new engine will be the framework for many next-generation games. Epic’s demo revealed that developers using the Unreal Engine 4 software will be able to customize the editor interface with dock-able, resizable toolbars and compile code on-the-fly, allowing for fast modification and iteration while testing a game.

    Meanwhile, Epic isn’t ditching the Unreal Engine 3. The company demonstrated last week that its current-generation engine can work quite well on upcoming Windows 8 RT tablets.

    A list of Seattle programming positions Epic is hiring for can be seen on Epic’s website.

  • Unreal Engine 3 Demoed on a Windows 8 Tablet

    Unreal Engine 3 Demoed on a Windows 8 Tablet

    If you’ve been following the news leading up to the IFA conference this week in Berlin, you might think the trade show was meant as a venue for Sony and Samsung product announcements.

    As much as Windows 8 has been bashed as a desktop operating system, it’s widely acknowledged that the platform is an excellent interface for tablet devices. And though Windows 8 desktop gaming might end up being a catastrophe, the mobile and tablet gaming experiences are beginning to look very nice. Even Windows 8 Phone gaming might be a blast, as just last week it was announced that the Unity engine will be supported on that platform.

    Today Nvidia and Epic Games debuted a demonstration of Epic’s Unreal Engine 3 running on a Windows RT tablet. Windows RT is a version of Windows 8 that will run on ARM devices, such as tablets.

    The demonstration seen below shows a short Unreal Engine 3 demo that is running on an Asus Vivo Tab RT, which has a Tegra 3 quad-core processor. The Nvidia labs handler states that the demo is running 30 to 40 frames per second. He also states that the full PC implementation of Unreal Engine 3 is running, meaning that developers should be able to import their games relatively easily.

    “The Unreal Engine 3-powered ‘Epic Citadel’ demonstration for Windows RT tablets implements our full DirectX 9 pipeline, with shaders and materials, all running beautifully on Tegra 3,” said Mark Rein, vice president of Epic Games. “By porting the full engine as opposed to a modified mobile version, Nvidia and Epic have made it easy for UE3 developers around the world to bring their best content to Windows RT, Windows 8, and Nvidia’s Tegra 3 processor. Windows RT code is available to licensees from Epic now and we’re excited to see the great games they develop with it.”

    It might not be long before gamers see tablet hardware good enough to run the slick-looking Unreal Engine 4, but, for now, the Unreal Engine 3 will certainly be setting a standard for tablet gaming.

  • Epic Games Creates Impossible Studios From the Remnants of Big Huge Games

    Epic Games Creates Impossible Studios From the Remnants of Big Huge Games

    Epic Games, the developer behind the Gears of War franchise and the Unreal Engine today announced the official opening of Impossible Studios. The studio is located in Hunt Valley, Maryland, and Epic has named Sean Dunn as studio director. Dunn is the former studio general manager at Big Huge Games and was once a creative director with THQ.

    It was announced back in June that Epic had hired most of the employees from Big Huge Games and was planning on opening a development studio in the Baltimore area called Epic Baltimore. Every employee of Big Huge Games was laid off by its parent company, 38 Studios, in May of this year when 38 Studios entered bankruptcy. Despite 38 Studios’ failure, Big Huge Games’ latest title, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, was well-reviewed.

    “Epic Games has truly embraced this stellar collection of developers who were displaced by the closing of Big Huge Games,” said studio director Sean Dunn. “They have looked after us with complete care, giving us all the tools and resources we need to make a lot of gamers happy.”

    The first development project Impossible Studios will be tackling is an action role-playing game for iOS called Infinity Blade: Dungeons. The game is a prequel to the popular Infinity Blade games for iOS.

    “We were so glad we could help keep this great team together, and we’re lucky to have them,” said Michael Capps, president of Epic Games. “At the time, I said that finding a full team of superstars was ‘impossible’ and apparently the name stuck! Pairing the imagination and experience of Impossible with Epic’s technology, IP, and resources makes for a business greater than the sum of its parts.”

  • Chinese Telco Invests in Epic Games

    Chinese Telco Invests in Epic Games

    Tencent Holdings Limited, a Chinese internet, mobile, and telecommunications provider, announced today that it has acquired a minority stake in Epic Games, Inc. Epic is the development studio behind the Unreal Engine and video game titles such as the Gears of War series. Tencent classifies the investment as a strategic one, and states that Epic will continue to operate independently. The amount of the investment was not disclosed.

    “We’ve developed a huge amount of respect for the Epic team for many years now, as dedicated players of Epic’s games and as licensees of Epic’s Unreal Engine technology,” said David Wallerstein, senior executive vice president of Tencent. “Epic’s deep commitment to quality across all of its games and technologies inspires us. They’ve been raising expectations in gaming for two decades now and they’re just getting started. We have a lot that we can learn from each other, and we look forward to supporting the Epic team as they embark on their next phase of gaming innovation across both emerging and familiar platforms.”

    Epic had two major announcements at this year’s E3. The company is helping to develop Gears of War: Judgment, a prequel to the original Gears of War game. Epic also showed off its new Unreal Engine 4 at the trade show. The updated engine features better lighting, reflection, and particle effects, as well as a modable editor interface that allows developers to compile code on-the-fly.

    “Tencent’s investment will empower Epic to help us do even more of what we do best, which is making great games and game technology,” said Epic president Michael Capps. Their expertise in the global online gaming market is second-to-none, and the opportunity to work with them to bring richer experiences to players all over the world is irresistible. Epic is excited to be full steam ahead on all of its current plans for this generation of games and the next, with the support of a fantastic partner that believes in our strategy and shares our dream.”

  • Unreal Engine 4 Detailed by Epic Artist

    Unreal Engine 4 Detailed by Epic Artist

    The big developers and console makers of E3 have exhausted their supply of surprises for the year, so the gaming community is now left to sort through the endless scraps of indie titles and small publishers for creative surprises. It is also the part of E3 when technical demos begin to appear, showing off how the next generation of computer graphics will look. The trailers for both Square Enix’s Luminous Studio engine and Epic’s Unreal Engine 4 have already been shown off extensively. Now, a GameTrailers interview featuring a walkthrough of all the features included in the updated Unreal Engine has surfaced.

    Epic Games Senior Technical Artist Alan Willard shows off the engine’s lighting, reflection, and particle effects the engine can handle. The remarkable part of the presentation is made clear at around the five-minute mark, when Willard reveals that everything is taking place within the editor that game developers will use. The editor interface has gotten a makeover, allowing toolbars to be docked and resized as needed. In addition, the engine allows developers to compile code on-the-fly, making it easy to modify aspects of the game and immediately see their affects. Take a look at the demo yourself, and see what developers will soon be using to create the next generation of games:

    Obviously, this is a sales pitch to developers, but it’s a fairly impressive demonstration of Unreal Engine 4’s capabilities, one that is certain to lure plenty of developers into licensing the engine. Hopefully the changes to the engine will lead to shorter development cycles of more impressive games, which is what this software could really mean to gamers.

  • Unreal Engine 4 Trailer Shown at E3

    Unreal Engine 4 Trailer Shown at E3

    Though you might not be able to tell from the coverage of it, E3 is often more than just a show to debut games, gaming hardware, and accessories. It is also the place where companies market game development tools to the studios in attendance. This year, both Square Enix and Epic Games showed off their next generation game engines with beautiful trailers. Earlier this week Square Enix demonstrated Luminous Studio, the company’s future game engine, with a spectacular Final Fantasy-inspired trailer full of action, magic, and beautifully-rendered human forms.

    Now, Epic Games is showing off the newest version of the Unreal Engine with its own trailer. While Square Enix’s trailer seems to focus on showing off Luminous Studio’s capabilities when it comes to rendering flesh and the movement of living things, it also features quite a bit of shaky-cam, which seems odd for a tech demonstration. Epic’s trailer, while not as immediately impressive, shows off Unreal Engine 4’s modeling and lighting capabilities with lingering camera movement punctuated by quick, dynamic events that demonstrate the engine’s abilities.

    While Luminous Studio at first looks more impressive, a closer look at the Unreal Engine 4 trailer below will show that it has great variety of lighting sources and matches Luminous’ detail in some places. There is no denying, though, that Square Enix’s trailer is a lot more fun to watch. Take a look for yourself at the “Elemental” trailer for the Unreal Engine 4 and enjoy the flowing lava, crumbling rock, and variety of the landscape.

  • GDC 2012: Epic Games Shows Off New Unreal Engine 3

    GDC 2012: Epic Games Shows Off New Unreal Engine 3

    Epic Games, maker of the massively popular game development tool Unreal Engine 3, showed off a demo reel at GDC that features the changes being made to one of the industry’s most popular engines.

    First up, the video announces some interesting things in terms of platform support. It says that Unreal Engine 3 now supports Wii U, PlayStation Vita, Android and Flash on top of the other platforms it’s been seen on for a few years now.

    For those wondering about Wii U support, there’s a small clip in the video that shows Aliens: Colonial Marines running on Unreal Engine 3 presumably on the Wii U. I’m not convinced since the Wii U demo clip showed at last year’s E3 was made up of gameplay footage created on the PS3 or Xbox 360.

    PC gamers are going to love the improvements made to UE3 that take advantage of Direct X 11. The changes include hair that’s run through MSAA to provide realistic detail alongside the usual DX11 improvements – tessellation and displacement.

    The demo reel goes into the changes they’re bringing to mobile which is essentially the advanced lighting and shadows that console games have enjoyed for a few years now.

    It’s an impressive look at what is already an impressive engine. I may give UE3 a lot of flack for inspiring a kind of dull creativity in developers, but that’s not the fault of the engine. Looking at this video, it’s obvious that compelling (and colorful) experiences can be made with the engine. Heck, it even gives CryENGINE 3 a run for its money in this state.

    Check out the video and let us know what you think. Whether you’re a gamer, developer or both, there’s something here for you.