Activision moving away from licensed games focus

Activision has revealed it will release fewer licensed games in 2013.

After the disappointment of 007 Legends this announcement comes as no surprise.

The publisher has released a statement in regards to their new direction:

“In 2013, we expect to release fewer games based on license properties and as a result are realigning our structure to better reflect the market opportunities and our slate.”

Activision also confirmed 30 full-time employees had been impacted globally by the publisher’s change of direction.

“Approximately, 30 full-time employees have been impacted globally, which represents approximately one half of one percent of Activision Blizzard's employee population.”

The question is where does this leave the 007 license?

Will Activision hold onto it, or will another publisher pick it up?

Activision is yet to announce if they have future plans for the 007 license from 2013 onwards.

(Update) James Bond games pulled from Activision and Valve’s online stores

Update via MI6-HQ 04 Jan 2013  - The 007 titles have been removed from Sony's online PlayStation Store and are no longer available to purchase and download.

The Xbox 360 Games on Demand service has also removed "007 Legends".

Original Post 02 Jan 2013 - 007 Legends, Blood Stone and Quantum of Solace have been unexpectedly removed from Activision and Valve’s online stores today.

The three titles were developed by Eurocom, Bizarre Creations and Treyarch, and published by Activision.

The removal of certain titles from online stores is often linked to license expiry. Incidents similar to this have occurred in the past with series such as OutRun.

Published by Sega and developed by Sumo Digital, the OutRun series made use of the Ferrari license brand. Once Sega’s rights to the license expired, OutRun 2006: Coast to Coast was pulled from several online stores (including Steam) in 2010.

Following this, Sega announced the removal of Outrun Online Arcade from the PlayStation Network in 2010 and Xbox Live in 2011 due to their contract expiry with Ferrari.

OutRun 2006: Coast to Coast and OutRun Online Arcade are still able to be downloaded by gamers who bought the titles before they were pulled.

The same is likely to apply to 007 Legends, Blood Stone and Quantum of Solace across the platforms they have been removed from.

Eurocom shuts down

 

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.

Eurocom faces tough times

007 Legends developer Eurocom has suffered a major blow recently announcing a number of redundancies within the company as part of restructuring efforts.

Director Hugh Binns said Eurocom had fought to save as many jobs as possible, but the decline in console game popularity resulted in a number of projects falling through and leaving them with no other options.

“Eurocom has retained a core staff of just under 50 employees and will be focusing mainly on mobile opportunities moving forward,” he said.

Beforehand Eurocom was known to have more than 200 employees.

The developer’s next release is 007 Legends on the Wii U.

Free Skyfall DLC available for PS3 version of 007 Legends

 

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.

007 Legends now available!

007 Legends is now available in North America on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. These versions of the game will go on sale throughout Europe on the 19th of October and be followed by the Australian release on the 31st of October.

The title will be released on Valve’s Steam platform on the 1st of November (North America) and follow up with a retail PC release on the 2nd (Europe).

The Wii U version of 007 Legends is currently slated for release on the 30th of November in North America and the 11th of December thoughout Europe.

Full release schedule:

PlayStation 3 & Xbox 360

North America: 16 October 2012
Europe: 19 October 2012
Australia: 31 October 2012

Microsoft Windows & Steam:

North America: 1 November 2012 (Steam)
Europe: 2 November 2012 (Retail)

Wii U

Europe: 30 November 2012
North American: 11 December 2012

The RRP for 007 Legends will vary based on region and platform of choice.

007 Legends opening credits revealed

Activision has just revealed the opening credits of 007 Legends.

The sequence incorporates the various levels and themes included in the game and is backed by a heavily remixed version of the original Goldfinger theme song.

Unlike GoldenEye 007 for the Wii and even GoldenEye 007: Reloaded for the Xbox 360 and PS3, this opening does not include a vocal overlay.

View the full opening credits for 007 Legends below:

Screenshots, achievements and the final mission in 007 Legends

Over the past number of days more and more information regarding 007 Legends has come to light.

Xbox360Achivements.org has posted the full list of achievements for the Xbox 360 version of 007 Legends.

The missions, campaign awards and multiplayer challenges are all on display, helping to provide an insight into the title’s offerings.

Adding to this is the release of content focused on the final mission in the game. Activision has provided some stunning imagery which is directly based on the classic movie - Goldfinger.

The trailer below brings the images to life:

 

View more images of 007 Legends final mission here. 

007 Legends announced for Wii U

 

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.  

007 Legends: OHMSS Round-Up

Thought the Moonraker mission in 007 Legends was looking good? The mission based on the 1969 film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is looking even better:

I honestly had to watch these trailers a few times over I was that impressed with the ski segments. The last time I witnessed such a scene in a Bond video game was way back in 2002 with the wonderful 007 Nightfire (for the XBOX, PlayStation 2, GameCube and PC). The attention to detail with the character Tracy (Bond’s only wife, and played by the Diana Rigg in the film) is lovely as well. 

If things keep going the way they are, us Bond fans are in for one hell of a ride from start to finish with 007 Legends.

Keep checking back for more 007 Legend mission updates.

007 Gamer Is 1 Year Old Today

Can you believe it's been a year already? I can’t!

I would love to say 007 Gamer has come a long way within this time, but really, it hasn’t. All I’ve done is a small site upgrade (within the boundaries of Blogger, of course) and a lot of posts about/related to 007’s video game adventures.

Celebrations aside, I thought I would use this post, or at least the remainder of it, to discuss the future of 007 Gamer.

The current form of 007 Gamer is a starting point for my James Bond dream. I would eventually like to see 007 Gamer operating on a much larger scale. At this stage of the game though (mind the pun), Blogger is fine. I’m still formulating the writing style, and as you would have seen in another recent post, I’ve decided to take a more subjective approach to this site from now on - offering opinions on the latest James Bond video game news, rather than just regular coverage of it. 

Looking towards the future once more, if all goes to plan, this time next year 007 Gamer will be functioning under a proper web address and site. That’s pretty much it for now. At the very least though, by next year I hope to have come up with an official logo for the site. It needs to be timeless and incorporate James Bond and video games somehow as you probably guessed. It’s a tough one if you actually start thinking about it.

Anyway, I’ll leave it at that for now and continue on with E3 007 Legends news posts. Thanks to everyone so far who has taken the time to read an article or two on 007 Gamer.

JD

Just a little bit clueless - 007 Gamer

Eurocom Screenwriter Interviewed At E3 2012

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:

  

Source: YouTube

A Stealthy Appearance From 007 Legends At E3 2012

007 what?

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.

Moonraker Mission Unveiled In 007 Legends

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.

Source: 007 Legends YouTube

Activision Announces 007 Legends For Xbox 360 And PlayStation 3

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.

007 Legends and related James Bond trademarks © 1962 — 2011 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. 007™ and related James Bond trademarks are trademarks of Danjaq, LLC and licensed by EON. ACTIVISION is a registered trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. "PlayStation" is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox LIVE are either registered trademarks or trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.
SOURCE Activision Publishing, Inc.

News Provided by Acquire Media

Source: Activision PR

The New 007 Gamer Is Now Live!

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.

JD