NEWS - Tuesday, December 14, 2004
BioWare Rumors
During a recent visit to BioWare’s offices in Edmonton, Canada, we came across a few juicy tidbits regarding the company’s future projects. BioWare did not announce nor confirm any of the following rumors, however, each was hinted at quite heavily. Jade Empire on PC: Several times during our stay, Joint-CEOs Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk noted that Jade Empire was exclusive to Xbox "for now," suggesting that the martial arts RPG would have a second home following the release of Jade on Xbox next March. Because Greg and Ray have stated on numerous occasions that Xbox was the only console capable of running the games they want to make, the only logical assumption is that Jade Empire will be ported over to the PC in either the summer or fall of 2005. Considering BioWare did the same thing for Knights of the Old Republic and has always supported the PC, this one seems like a no-brainer. Jade 2: Though Jade Empire isn’t even completed yet, numerous members of the Jade team suggested they would love to do a sequel. In fact, Greg, Ray, Producer Jim Bishop and Art Director Matt Goldman each suggested that Jade 2, while not officially announced, was pretty much a certainty. During multiple interviews, each was asked if certain elements were in Jade Empire. The response was often the same, "No, but that’s something we definitely would want in the sequel... which hasn’t been announced yet." This news coupled with a visit to the casino inside the West Edmonton Mall, made for one hell of a nice trip. FPS RPG: In September, BioWare announced it had licensed Epic’s Unreal 3 engine for use in its next RPG. At that time, everyone began speculating about the possibility of a first-person shooter RPG from one of the most respected developers in North America. During a briefing before the Jade Empire demo, BioWare fueled the flames of that speculation. When asked if BioWare would ever consider making a first-person shooter RPG, the response was, "It’s inevitable." BioWare also noted the game was in development for PC and an unspecified next-gen console. While there’s no guarantee BioWare’s first next-gen RPG will be for Xbox 2, we’d say it’s a solid bet. BioWare is not one to keep secrets for too long. The Canadian company often announced projects more than a year ahead of release and is eager to show off upcoming titles as much as possible. While we may have to wait until next year for more details, once BioWare lets the cat out of the bag, expect to hear plenty about its new original IP right up until the day of release.Source: http://xbox.ign.com
