British developer Eurocom has closed its doors after being in the video game industry for close-to 25 years.
Over its lifetime Eurocom was known as the primary developer of the James Bond video games.
In a statement issued to website Eurogamer, the developer said it was unable to secure a new contract or pay outstanding wages.
“The Administrator and the company's directors have been negotiating with customers surrounding new contracts to develop console games, however these contracts could not be secured in time and due to insufficient funds to pay outstanding wages, Eurocom today entered Administration.”
The Directors of Eurocom also released a message thanking staff for their hard work over the years.
"The Directors of Eurocom would like to offer their heartfelt thanks to all their staff that have been made redundant at this difficult time, and show their appreciation of all of their hard work in consistently delivering exceptional games."
Eurocom was founded in 1988 to develop games for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) and was responsible for seven James Bond video games over its lifetime.
James Bond Jr. (NES & SNES, 1991), The World Is Not Enough (N64, 2004), James Bond 007: Nightfire (GCN, PS2, XBOX, 2002), Quantum of Solace (PS2, 2008), GoldenEye 007 (Wii, 2010), GoldenEye 007: Reloaded (XBOX 360, PS3, 2011) and 007 Legends (XBOX 360, PS3, PC, Wii U 2012).
Their most recent release 007 Legends was poorly received by critics and failed to gain sales momentum.
007 Gamer wishes all the people at Eurocom the very best.
Free Skyfall DLC is now available for 007 Legends on the PS3. Head over to the PSN store now to download it. Xbox 360 and PC gamers will have to wait until the 20th of November.
As expected, the DLC allows players to experience Skyfall on a whole new level.
The DLC is completely free to all owners of 007 Legends.
After a considerably long wait, James Bond is back. Daniel Craig returns as 007 for the 23rd Bond film, Skyfall.
Skyfall also marks the 50th anniversary of James Bond.
To the people behind Bond and his latest outing on the big screen, 007 Gamer would like to say congratulations.
Skyfall is out today in the UK and will be released in other locations worldwide over the coming months. For a full list of worldwide dates, visit the official Skyfall release page here.
If you missed out on the worldwide premiere of Skyfall then head over to the 007 Gamer on Twitter and have a read of what went on.
I’ve also gathered some footage of the event along with the official YouTube recording of the premiere. So if you missed out on the whole thing, no worries – watch the entire event right now just below!
Bérénice Marlohe looking incredibly stunning
Daniel Craig starring in his third outing as James Bond
Judi Dench as M
Ralph Fiennes alongside Daniel and Bérénice Marlohe
Ben Whishaw as the new MI6 quartermaster
Scaramanga (Christopher Lee) reliving the good old days on the red carpet
Prince Charles - the highlight of the night for many
YouTube will be covering tonight’s worldwide premiere of the 23rd Bond film, Skyfall. Make sure to keep an eye on the countdown timer over the next few hours to guarantee you don’t miss it.
007 Gamer will be living tweeting the event from the official 007_Gamer Twitter account. This will be followed by a post summarising the event with photos and video footage.
It has been confirmed Daniel Craig will be returning as James Bond for the 24th and 25th outing in the longest-running film series of all time.
The current James Bond has signed to star in at least two more Eon Productions films with Sony Pictures also on board to co-finance the both of them.
This news comes as an exciting announcement leading up to the release of the Sam Mendes-directed Skyfall (2012) as well as the celebration of the 50th anniversary of James Bond.
Taking the 24th and 25th film into consideration, this will make Daniel Craig the third longest-serving Bond. One film behind Sean Connery, and one film ahead of Pierce Brosnan.
Eon Productions has produced 22 James Bond films with an average of one every two years.
The series has grossed just over $5 billion, making it the second-highest-grossing film series of all time next to Harry Potter, as well as the single most successful adjusted for inflation.
Activision has announced 007 Legends for the Wii U. This means the title will now be released on a total of four platforms (XBOX 360, PlayStation 3, PC, and Wii U).
The title is part of the Wii U launch window, meaning it is expected to be released any time between November 18 – March 2013. It will be released on other systems this year, October 16.
Besides the actual announcement, little is known about the Wii U version of 007 Legends. If it was anything like GoldenEye 007 on the Wii though, then it’s sure to be a hit with Nintendo gamers out there. As for how Activision will make use of the Wii U GamePad is another thing.
Keep checking back for the latest news regarding 007 Legends.
Charlie Higson, writer of the Young Bond spy novel series, has spoken out about the reading ability of children within the UK following a National Literacy Trust survey.
The survey found reading levels amongst children are at an all time low, with one in six admitting they were embarrassed to read in fear of being labeled a “geek”.
Higson said he was taking the findings with a pinch of salt, as “surveys are surveys” and advised parents not to worry if their children appear to spend more time online or playing video games.
“When I was a kid, if you wanted to entertain yourself you went out and played or watched TV on the three channels available. If you wanted real excitement, you’d have to go to books to get it. But now you’ve got computer games and I think they’re brilliant,” he said.
Higson continued by mentioning how kids are reading a lot more than they ever did before, it’s just not always in the form of a book now.
“If you play computer games, there is a lot of reading involved; if you’re talking to people on Facebook, there is a lot of reading and writing. Twitter’s the same.
“Yes, there’s a different way of communicating through screens which is probably less lengthy, but they’re still communicating to each other. There is no such thing as ‘the English language’ - it changes every day,” he said.
The author of the Young Bond series believes the key to recapturing children’s love of books is to take things slow when introducing them, and also to utilise technology to promote them.
Higson’s latest book, The Sacrifice, uses an online trailer to appeal to younger readers and to have a presence on the internet.
“Kids spend so long on computers that if they’ve got something they can click on and look at, that’s not too long, you can grab their attention,” he said.
If you haven’t already heard, version 4.2 of GoldenEye: Source is now available. To be perfectly honest though, it’s been available for a month or so now.
Just after the announcement of its delay towards the end of July, I decided to hold off on any news posts about it. Rather than add fuel to the fire and emphasise the delay of the long-awaited update, I made the decision to quietly cover the unfortunate mishap through the 007_Gamer Twitter account waiting until everything was sorted out (mainly the Steam Server Browser technical difficulties) and then cover its release later on with a news post on 007 Gamer.
I intended on posting the news of version 4.2 going live much sooner, but as with all things in life, stuff happened, and certain things got in the way. This lead me to delaying the post, and so here I am now announcing the release of GoldenEye: Source version 4.2. Better late than never, right?
Moving along, GoldenEye: Source version 4.2 is finally available. Yes, you can actually go and download it right now from here. The most notable aspect of this update is probably the addition of bots. For me, it actually rivals the same excitement of the announcement of simulants in the classic Nintendo 64 title, Perfect Dark (which was also made by the team behind GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64). It also nails my lifelong question “what would GoldenEye 007 be like with bots?” on the head. Previously the closest and most satisfying answer I had were the bots featured in Perfect Dark.
Back on track, bots aren’t the only thing players can now enjoy in GoldenEye: Source. There are now also 50 music tracks from 3 talented artists, a number of improvements to team-based gameplay, and much polish to load menus, character selection screens and weaponset selections.
The full list of improvements in version 4.2 of GoldenEye: Source are listed below:
• BOTS – full featured running on Python AI • Team radar colors and standardized blip colors • Loading screen images with tips • Overhead Team icons • Full-screen help display for advanced scenarios • Brand new character selection screen • Recoded Capture The Key focusing on teamplay • New Ourumov model • Gamemode customizable weaponset selections • Create server menu for easier LAN and single play • Python enhanced for custom scripting • Over 50 music tracks from 3 talented artists • Overhauled Runway, Caverns, Facility, Backzone and classic maps
The GE:S team has also released a nice trailer of the action players can expect in version 4.2.
I’ve been playing 4.2 since it was released and intend on doing a review, or at least an opinion piece in the coming weeks. Admittedly I have very little experience with the technical side of GE:S, so I will mainly be analysing the introduction of bots and how they perform, along with worthiness of new gameplay elements such as team icons, and refined menus, load screens and character selection.
Until then, look forward to regular gaming, and also non-gaming related, James Bond posts. And also make sure you download GoldenEye: Source v4.2 if you haven't given it a go yet.
Outside the cinema release of Skyfall, this is the moment we’ve all been waiting for - the release of the official Skyfall trailer!
If you’ve been having any doubts about the upcoming 007 movie this international trailer should put your mind at ease. In comparison to the teaser trailer it really takes it up a notch. Daniel Craig is looking in fine form for his third outing as James Bond.
Hot off the E3 hype train we’ve got an Inside Gaming interview with Eurocom screenwriter Rob Matthews about the upcoming title 007 Legends.
Interviewer Chris Lockey gets the run down on the next James Bond game in three minutes.
When Matthews was asked how Eurocom managed to unify 007 Legends his response was a simple one.
"We’ve framed it as a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Bond on film," he said.
Further on in the interview, the Eurocom screenwriter detailed what to expect from Legends.
"[The] Smart phone has a lot of new features, we’ve... got Bond’s pen [too]" and also mentioned how there was a "great xp system... built into the single player experience” allowing players to upgrade weapons, gadgets and Bond’s physical abilities.
To finish, Rob Matthews reconfirmed 007 Legends would be released "fall 2012" (October 16) on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.
Watch the full Machinima Inside Gaming interview below:
That pretty much sums up the coverage of 007 Legends at this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo.
You know, it’s just a little depressing considering the fact it’s the 50th anniversary of the Bond franchise this year and not even Sony or Microsoft could be stuffed covering Legends during their own lengthy press conferences. Sony was wrapped up in first-party affairs and Microsoft was too busy showing the world the new Call of Duty game.
Seriously though, who should we really be blaming for this? Activision, of course!
They were pretty much a no show at this year’s E3. They didn’t hold a conference like the other big players in the industry and when they did speak up it was mainly about the new COD or Skylanders.
Activision, and the video game media in general, have let us Bond fans down this year. The coverage of 007 Legends was basically little to none. I personally followed all of the big conferences and not once did I hear a mention of the new Bond video game. I also managed to keep up with the media’s coverage and not once was there a mention of "Daniel Craig" or "James Bond".
A few weeks on and I’ve managed to dig up a bit of stuff about 007 Legends at this year’s E3. I’ve found an interview, some game play footage and some new screenshots and trailers. Keep an eye on 007 Gamer as the page slowly floods with catch-up coverage of 007 Legends at E3 2012.
You want a new Bond game? Yes... no... not really sure? Activision thinks you do. That’s why they’ve released this new trailer for the recently announced 007 Legends showing off the first mission and kind of just justifying why you’ll want this game in your life so much.
This first mission is based on the 1979 Roger Moore film Moonraker and includes iconic characters such as Holly Goodhead, Jaws and Hugo Drax. What I’m liking about it so much at this stage is the fact there doesn’t seem to be much ‘reimagining’ going on like the previous Bond games, GoldenEye 007 (Wii) and GoldenEye 007: Reloaded (360 & PS3).
The level design in the first mission appears to play it safe with classic Moonraker styling and well-known characters and weapons to support it. As a whole, it’s all looking pretty slick at the moment. If the other six levels turn out to be as impressive as this one then I'm confident it'll turn out to be a reasonably good game.
Check out the trailer below and let me know what you think via Twitter or the comments box.
As you’ve probably all heard by now, Activision has announced a new 007 game to coincide with the release of Skyfall.
The press release states how Activision is pleased to celebrate the 50th anniversary of James Bond with the launch of 007 Legends for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
007 Legends will take players on the James Bond ride of their life, allowing them to ‘relive a selection of Bond’s most iconic and intense undercover missions’ from many of the movies.
Legends will include an original and overarching storyline tying together 6 scenes from classic Bond movies, and will wrap up with a scene from this year’s 007 movie, Skyfall.
The usual Bond gadgets and weapons will be making an appearence including Bond’s old pal, the Walther PPK. Vehicles will also show up throughout the game so hopefully we’ll get to see at least one car from the Roger Moore era.
When you’re not busy taking down notorious Bond villains and mingling with gorgeous Bond women, you’ll be able to test your skills with the Mi6 Ops mode. A side game first included in GoldenEye 007: Reloaded which will be returning to 007 Legends.
To add to this, there’ll also be local four-player split-screen and regular online competitive game play which includes all new maps, weapons and characters from the 50 year legacy of Bond.
After all that, I’m excited! Question is, are you excited? GoldenEye 007: Reloaded wasn’t much of a success on the 360 and PS3 so here’s hoping 007 Legends can revive the popularity of Bond video games much like GoldenEye 007 for the Nintendo Wii did, and of course GoldenEye 007 for the Nintendo 64.
007 Legends will be released on Xbox 360 and PS3 on the 16th of October, 2012. Very close to the UK release date of Skyfall (October 26, 2012).
The Activision press release of 007 Legends is below:
Activision
Experience James Bond's Most Iconic and Intense Missions as the World's Top Undercover Agent in 007™ Legends
SANTA MONICA, Calif., April 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- To celebrate the James Bond franchise's 50th anniversary, Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI), will launch gamers back through time to relive a selection of Bond's most iconic and intense undercover missions from the popular Bond film franchise with 007™ Legends.
A first-of-its-kind Bond video game, 007 Legends features an original, overarching storyline tying together six classic Bond movies, concluding with this year's highly-anticipated 23rd installment — SKYFALL — to offer the most diverse Bond gaming experience yet! As with the feature films, 007 Legends equips players with state-of-the-art spy gadgets, an arsenal of weapons, including Bond's signature Walther PPK, and sleek vehicles as they jet off to exotic locations and utilize Bond's quick wits, class and style to take down notorious villains and their brutal henchmen, perform impressive stunts, and of course...mingle with gorgeous Bond women.
"To honor 50 years of the world's top secret agent, 007 Legends offers a collection of his most famed moments in the smartest and most treacherous Bond game yet," said David Oxford, Executive Vice President at Activision Publishing, Inc. "Creating a video game storyline that ties together six popular, yet very different, Bond movie narratives can be challenging, but together with EON Productions, our developer Eurocom, has pulled it off to create an homage that we think will be a unique and highly entertaining Bond video game."
In addition to 007 Legends' main story, the game will feature the return of fan-favorite single-player Mi6 Ops Missions, which debuted in GoldenEye 007: Reloaded and challenges players to complete extra missions ranging from all-out action to stealth and gadget-based gameplay and compete for the highest online leader board scores. For the first time ever, players will be able to participate as one of Bond's cohorts or villainous foes, reliving the missions through their eyes, as well as 007's. The robust James Bond multiplayer experience includes local four-player split-screen game modes and online competitive gameplay with new maps, weapons and characters derived from Bond's 50 year legacy. With more gadgets, deeper stealth and spy investigation gameplay, gamers will have every opportunity to truly feel like the world's favorite spy.
Planned to launch this fall, 007 Legends is being developed by Eurocom, under license from EON Productions Ltd. and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. (MGM) for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system. Stay tuned for more information on the game's official Web site and Facebook page. About Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc . Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., through its operating subsidiaries, is actively engaged in the worldwide production and distribution of motion pictures, television programming, home video, interactive media, music and licensed merchandise. The company owns the world's largest library of modern films, comprising around 4,100 titles. Operating units include Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc., United Artists Films Inc., Ventanazul, MGM Television Entertainment Inc., MGM Networks Inc., MGM Domestic Networks LLC, MGM Distribution Co, MGM International Television Distribution In, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment LLC, MGM ON STAGE, MGM Music, MGM Worldwide Digital Media, MGM Consumer Products and MGM Interactive. In addition, MGM has ownership interests in international TV channels reaching nearly 120 countries. MGM ownership is as follows: Providence Equity Partners (29%), TPG (21%), Sony Corporation of America (20%), Comcast (20%), DLJ Merchant Banking Partners (7%) and Quadrangle Group (3%). For more information, visit www.mgm.com.
About EON Productions/Danjaq, LLC
EON Productions Limited and Danjaq LLC are wholly owned and controlled by the Broccoli/Wilson family. Danjaq is the US based company that co-owns, with MGM, the copyright in the existing James Bond films and controls the right to produce future James Bond films as well as all worldwide merchandising. EON Productions, an affiliate of Danjaq, is the UK based production company which makes the James Bond films. The 007 franchise is the longest running in film history with twenty-two films produced since 1962. Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli succeeded Albert R 'Cubby' Broccoli in 1995 and have produced some of the most successful Bond films ever including CASINO ROYALE and QUANTUM OF SOLACE. They are currently producing the 23rd film, SKYFALL.
About Activision Publishing, Inc.
Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products. Activision maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future, including statements about the expected release date of 007 LEGENDS, are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as "outlook," "will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans," "believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate," future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain," "scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
I now present to you the very first teaser trailer of the new James Bond movie - Skyfall. I’ll save my impressions for a separate post, so for now pull up a comfy chair, increase your YouTube video settings to full screen 1080p HD, and sit back and enjoy... for exactly 1 minute and 24 seconds.
As the teaser trailer states, Skyfall is due out in cinemas this November.
Courtesy of CommanderBond.net, I’m able to present to you the official Skyfall teaser poster.
As you can all hopefully see, it’s a pretty traditional-looking Bond poster that most fans are either going to love or hate.
You'll either feel like you’ve seen it a million times before with all the other 007 actors plastered across the signature gun barrel sequence, or you’re now pumped more than ever for the release of Craig’s new film and his slightly different approach to Bond’s character this time round.
If you’re still feeling indifferent about Skyfall hopefully the next post will liven you up a little.
I just wanted to let everyone know that 007 Gamer is back in action. I’m extremely pleased to be making this announcement before the release of Skyfall and 007 Legends as well.
While the site was under the knife, I was busy working on a totally new writing approach, and after much consideration I’ve decided to go with a more personal take on the whole thing. That’s what blogs are for after all, right?
Anyway, with this little announcement out of the way, I’m thrilled to also reveal that I’ll now be able to engage with my readers a lot better.
So don’t be shy! Leave a comment or two on the site here, or follow me on Twitter and I’ll probably follow you back (provided you’re a JB fan, or... just a fan of my work).
Now, a bit about myself: For starters I’m a huge Bond fan and my favourite 007 adventure of them all probably has to be the 1995 film GoldenEye. This also ties in nicely with my favourite Bond video game of all time, GoldenEye 007 for the Nintendo 64. These two choices are mainly linked to a generational complex and so I stand by them even if other people did get some sort of sick enjoyment out of Never Say Never Again and the video game version of Tomorrow Never Dies.
On a more serious note, it’s great to be back! I hope you all enjoy the site’s new design and I look forward to publishing more subjective 007 movie and game content from now on.
LONDON, Nov. 3, 2011 - Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli today presented the cast of the 23rd James Bond adventure, entitled SKYFALL. The film, from Albert R. Broccoli's Eon Productions, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, and Sony Pictures Entertainment, is directed by Academy Award® winner Sam Mendes and stars Daniel Craig, who returns for his third film as James Bond 007. The screenplay is written by Neal Purvis & Robert Wade and John Logan. SKYFALL, which goes into production on Monday, November 7th, will begin its worldwide roll-out in the UK and Ireland on October 26th 2012 and in North America on November 9th 2012.
Joining Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Broccoli and Director Sam Mendes were members of the cast of SKYFALL, including: Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Dame Judi Dench, Naomie Harris and Berenice Marlohe. The filmmakers also announced Ralph Fiennes, Albert Finney and Ben Whishaw.
In SKYFALL, Bond's loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to haunt her. As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost.
"We're so delighted to have Sam Mendes direct SKYFALL and be working once again with Daniel Craig. We've a great script, an extraordinary cast and an incredibly talented creative team for this latest James Bond adventure," said Wilson and Broccoli.
The Director of Photography is Roger Deakins, a nine-time Oscar® nominee who previously shot the films Jarhead and Revolutionary Road for Mendes. The Production Designer is Oscar® winner Dennis Gassner, who previously designed Quantum of Solace and collaborated with Mendes on the films Road to Perdition and Jarhead. The Editor is Stuart Baird, A.C.E., whose many credits include Casino Royale. Jany Temime, whose many credits include the Harry Potter series, In Bruges, and Children of Men, is the Costume Designer. Action specialist Alexander Witt is the 2nd Unit Director. Gary Powell is Stunt Co-ordinator, Chris Corbould is SFX Supervisor and Steve Begg is Visual Effects Supervisor, all of whom have worked on previous Bond films.
Daniel Craig has revealed how he and his fellow cast members played Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption to prepare for the Western sci-fi Cowboys & Aliens.
The latest James Bond said how Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde and many others along with himself spent much of their time on set playing the PlayStation 3 version of Red Dead Redemption.
“The game had just come out when we were filming... so we were all playing,” he said.
“It was funny because the story is pretty good and the graphics and us riding around on set was a bit like the playing the game.”
Besides the odd game of Red Dead Redemption, Daniel Craig has been busy tying the knot with Rachel Weisz in a low-key wedding ceremony last month.
“I did it secretly — I can’t tell you how I pulled it off,” he said.
“My private life is incredibly important to me, and certainly that aspect of it is more than incredibly important to me.”
