Not long after stating that Too Human was exceeding all expectations, Silicon Knights chief Denis Dyack surprised the gaming community by filing a lawsuit against Epic Games. Claiming they've been subjected to numerous breaches of contract ever since they licensed the Unreal Engine 3, Silicon Knights was left with no choice but to go to court to sue Epic Games for Fraud, Misrepresentation, Unfair Competition, and Breach of Contract just to name a few.

Silicon Knights claims that instead of getting the support promised to them when they bought their license to the Unreal Engine, Epic Games was "sabotaging efforts by Silicon Knights and others to develop their own video games" by using "fees from those licenses to launch its own game to widespread commercial success" instead of developing the engine for their licensees.

Citing Too Human's E3 '06 demo as an example, Dyack states that the game's negative feedback was a direct result of Epic's sabotage to make their own titles look good. "Epic apparently was able to achieve a very useable version of the Engine for the Xbox 360 – the version that it kept to itself, for use only on its Gears of War game," Dyack said. As a result, Too Human had poor game impressions while Gears of War went on to win "best of show".

Silicon Knights has since decided to scrap the use of Epic Game's Unreal Engine 3, and develop an independent engine on their own.

Mark Rein responded by stating that Epic Games is innocent and that "the claims against us (Epic Games) are unfounded and without merit, and we intend to fully defend against them."

So does this mean another delay? Most probably. Comments from both companies seem to indicate that this case may stay in the courts for a while. And just when we thought things were going so well, things had to hit the fan. For more information on what the lawsuit entails, you can check out the read link below.

Hiromichi Tanaka, lead developer for Final Fantasy XI, is set to be the international keynote speaker in this year's Austin Game Developer's Conference (GDC), joining speakers such as Blizzard president Mike Morhaime, and Habbo Hotel's lead designer Sulka Haro. In his keynote address, Tanaka will talk about the challenges and triumphs of designing a massively multiplayer online game across platforms.

Scheduled for September 5-7 at the Austin Convention Center in Texas, the Austin GDC will focus on advancing game development with lectures, panels, and round table discussions on the latest issues facing the industry, such as online programming, future trends, the most up-to-date production techniques, and how-to's in creating new games. Jane Pinckard, content manager for the event, states that "Tanaka's presence at our conference is indicative of the event's global appeal."

The Austin GDC will host discussion tracks on online gaming, game audio, creative writing for games, and will introduce a new People's Choice Track, where community members can vote on what topics will be discussed in the conference. Stay with us as we keep you updated on further developments.

E3 has come and gone and we've seen good videos, heard great news, and slobbered over great demos. But among the video games missing in the event was Too Human. Where did it go, and why wasn't it shown? Developer Silicon Knights' president Denis Dyack had a perfectly good explanation: they were just too busy.

Ever since it got horrible feedback at last year's E3, the developers at Silicon Knights have been hard at work taking the game up a few notches in quality. "We made the decision not to show Too Human at the press conference some time ago," Dyack said. "Not attending the show and setting appointments was due to Silicon Knights being extremely busy finalizing the game and we simply could not spare the time," he added.

But why skip the E3? Dyack claims that Too Human would have its own event in the future, one that would be "more appropriate". Pretty snazzy. The only thing that really made it to the E3 was a trailer which, thankfully, received better comments.

Does this mean we can expect even more from the title? Dyack did mention that the development to the game has surpassed all the team's expectations, and that the negative remarks they had received were a thing of the past. Well, if they're working as hard as they say they are, our expectations of the game have risen a bit in anticipation.

Microsoft announced that it will not be holding its annual European X0 show for 2007. This event usually showcases the latest hardware, software, and service offerings for the Xbox and is held in a diverse list of key European cities. This will be the second time that Microsoft will not be holding an X0 show (the other being X04) since its first run in 2001.

Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft's group product manager for the Xbox 360 and the Xbox Live confirmed that there won't be an X0 show for 2007 and that Microsoft was exploring other avenues to talk about the future. In a podcast interview with Squad XP, he stated that, "There is not a real X07 this year but I think that we will figure out some way to talk about 2008 some time at a different event or a different type of programme." Microsoft has not announced any definite plan for future events though.

Announced not long after Peter Moore's resignation, the cancellation of the event leads us to wonder what the future holds for Microsoft and the Xbox 360. Will there still be X0 shows in the coming years? Only time can tell, and we'll keep you posted on what Microsoft decides to do about it.

With Peter Moore's move from Microsoft to EA Sports, people would naturally wonder how other gaming companies would react. Would all things be cool, or would stuff hit the fan? Sony's stand: Good luck, Peter Moore!

Jack Tretton, Sony Computer Entertainment America's (SCEA) top man, gave a statement saying "We wish Peter the best of luck in his new role at Electronic Arts and look forward to working with him." This was made not long after Microsoft's announcement about Moore's resignation. He will be replaced by Don Mattrick as Microsoft's corporate VP for entertainment.

EA Sports titles have enjoyed successful sales on Sony platforms throughout the years, and both companies look forward to continued good relations with each other. With Tretton in high spirits and looking forward to great things, one can't help but be a bit excited as well.

The developers at Pandemic Studios showed off some of the new titles from Electronic Arts' line-up during the E3 Media and Business Summit 2007. What was shown to players about Mercenaries 2: World in Flames (PS3, PC, Xbox360) was a sandbox world full of destructible structures, flammable forests, realistic vehicles, and uber fun gameplay. The devs showed off the fact that players were free to do what they wanted, so long as they got the mission done in time.

Through the demo, we saw a lot of improvements over its predecessor. For instance, trees will not become an obstacle to the player any more, water won't drown the mercenaries, and anything in the world can be destroyed. The dev took us from flying a scout chopper, to tearing down a bridge, blowing up an oil rig, hijacking an APC, and calling in an air strike on a base, all the while trampling over cars, towing semis, and unloading a whole lot of ammo on the environment.

With NO loading screen between zones, beautiful graphics, and a lot (and we do mean a LOT) of things to turn to rubble, this game looks really sweet.

Check out the videos to bring out that free wheelin' mercenary in you.

 

Parts two and three of the dev walkthrough await at the Full Article!

The GC Developers Conference (GCDC) added a few more names to its confirmed speakers list. With an already impressive line-up of speakers and a call for more, Frank Sliwka, Director of the GCDC states that with the addition of more top development, programming, business, and scientific lectures and panels, this year's GCDC in Leipzig (August 20 to 22) is one that shouldn't be missed. With big names coming from some of the most successful companies in the industry, he may very well be telling the truth.

Added to the roster are the following speakers:

• Michael Capps, President Epic Games
• Mark Rein, Vice-President Epic Games
• Mark Morris, Introversion Software
• Ken Ralston, Big Huge Games
• Cathy Campos, Panache
• Doug Whatley, Break Away
• John Smedley, Sony Online Entertainment
• Ute Palmer-Horn, Koch Media
• George Bain

More speakers will be announced in the coming weeks. With a growing exhibition base and speaker line-up, we'll keep you updated as the names come.

Kylotonn Studios recently announced the development of Crusaders: Invasion of Constantinople, their latest title, in a recent press conference held in Paris. Branded as an Action/Adventure game, Crusaders: Invasion of Constantinople will be available for the PC and next-gen consoles.

Set in near the end of the 12th century, players get to choose between three knights of the Fourth crusade. Fighting against the Byzantine Empire, players get to choose from a list of over a hundred weapons, attain new skills by becoming the apprentice of various fencing masters, and lead a squadron of 4 mercenaries as you strive to achieve your goals. With around 20 distinct medieval settings, battle your way through the era's richest city, Constantinople, in full 3D.

Kylotonn Studio Creative Director Yann Tambellini promises a dazzling experience "which will transport gamers beyond traditional RPG Dungeons". With their work on games like Ironstorm, Bet on Soldier, and Speedball 2, the independent Parisian studio has had strong experience in the action games genre.

 

Lucas Arts turned up the heat during this year's E3 by unleashing the latest trailer of the next highly anticipated Force-using, butt-whooping, lightsaber wielding game in the Star Wars franchise. Star Wars: The Force Unleashed is, by the looks of it, going to be the most epic title released in that line to date.

Set in the time between Episodes III and IV, players take control of Darth Vader's secret apprentice and are let loose on the universe to wreak havoc with the force. Utilizing the Digital Molecular Matter (DMM) developed by Pixelux Entertainment and NaturalMotion Ltd.'s euphoria technology, this game promises some of the most realistic physics and biological responses found within a game.

With beautifully rendered and intricately detailed animations, an epic storyline approved by George Lucas himself, and some of the most realistic environmental details this side of Naboo, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed will surely bring out the Sith in you. Watch the trailers and give in to the call of the dark side.

 

Capcom brought a lot of titles to the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) this year, showing off a few new games in the process. From pirate adventures to undead zombie blasting all the way to supernatural gothic settings, Capcom is aiming to push the envelop in their drive to bring us the most innovative games. Click on the "Full Article" link below to see for yourself just what Capcom had to showcase this E3.

The full article awaits after the jump!