E3 10: Here's Some Gameplay and a Release Date for Fallout: New Vegas

This is going to be short because E3 blogging and other work is busy.

I don't like Fallout. So, I don't care about Fallout: New Vegas. But other people might, so here is a new E3 trailer showing off some gameplay.

Also, the Bethesda has revealed that the game will hit PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3 on October 19, 2010 in North America, and on October 22, 2010 in Europe.

[Destructoid]

Alpha Protocol Delayed Yet Again

Obsidian Entertainment is a developer that I have a hard time really associating a strong identity with. For a long time they've really been in BioWare's shadow, picking up where they left off on already established IPs.

Alpha Protocol - a modern day spy RPG - was to be their first true original title (even if the comparisons to Mass Effect diluted that claim to fame), and many fans in 2009 were eager to see what Obsidian is capable of with (mostly) their own ideas.

Well, 2009 has come and gone with neither head nor tail of the fabled 'better than Mass Effect' RPG, and now ME2 is already out. What's a developer to do?

Delay the game again, of course!

According to publisher Sega, the delay(s) have been to "polish the game up" and "position it better." The extra year plus has apparently been spent on "tweaking" in things like lighting and inventory management, but I personally have a hard time believing any such things require as much time as it has taken.

Fear of the competition is probably a more honest reason, but what company in their right mind would say that, right?

Either way, the game is now apparently scheduled for 'Summer 2010' on PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. We shall see.

[Destructoid]

Fallout: New Vegas gets an Ambiguous Trailer, Ambiguous Release Date

If you are like most Western gamers, you probably really liked Fallout 3. It had a lot of things in it that Western gamers like: guns, nuclear bombs, a post-apocolyptic setting, open world exploration, moral choices, endless dialogue trees, and a heavily brown and grey colour palette.

Bethesda Softwork's first self-published title, it is also probably their biggest, and no money-respecting company would be foolish enough to ignore big franchises. Thus, we were teased last year that developer Obsidian was working on a new Fallout title, set on the other side of the once-was USA, in a city called New Vegas.

No other details were given at the time, but Bethesda has raised the curtain on a new CG trailer that really sheds no light on the subject at all. It also came with an incredibly vague 'Fall 2010' release date announcement, for whatever it's worth.

I personally never could get in to Fallout 3, and so you'll have to excuse me if I'm not falling all over myself over a short, pointless trailer like the rest of the internet seems to be. But at least they're consistent with the style of the series.

Planned for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3, we are sure to hear more details sooner than later with a 'Fall 2010' release scheduled.

...Speaking of Obsidian, are they ever planning on finishing Alpha Protocol or what?

[Bethesda Softworks]

A Small Pile of Release Dates

Several games received official release dates this week, and instead of giving each one its own post, I thought I'd save myself some time by compiling them all into one. Sweet!

Check out what's getting released when below.

Alpha Protocol
Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC
Obsidian, Sega
October 6, 2009 (North America)

Infinite Space
Nintendo DS
Platinum Games, Sega
Spring 2010 (North America)

Risen
Xbox 360, PC
Piranha Bytes, Deep Silver
October 2, 2009 (North America)

Summon Night X: Tears Crown
Nintendo DS
Flight Plan, Namco Bandai
November 5, 2009 (Japan)

Hm, only 4? It seems like there was at least one more somewhere... Oh well.

Any of these titles on your radar? I'm personally waiting for a solid Venetica release date.

Pre-E3 Trailers to Get Your Feet Wet

E3, for all intents and purposes, starts Monday morning with Microsoft's press conference. But everyone's all excited this week, showing off new stuff, releasing info and trailers, the whole bit. Who are we to stop them?

So if you just can't wait until all the new stuff, here are a bunch of new trailers for a bunch of upcoming games. Hopefully all of this is just a shadow of things to come, as I certainly hope we don't spend next week just talking about these trailers...

Alpha Protocol
PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
Obsidian, Sega
Q3 2009 (North America)



Dragon Age: Origins
PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
BioWare, EA
October 20, 2009 (North America)



Mass Effect 2
Xbox 360, PC
BioWare, EA
TBA



White Knight Chronicles
PlayStation 3
Level 5, Sony
TBA



None of the above are very long or show off much in terms of gameplay, and are clearly 100% focused on hype. That said, anyone have a favourite? :P

Bethesda Announces Fallout: New Vegas

In a press conference yesterday, RPG developer and publisher Bethesda Softworks announced a new entry into the Fallout series, titled Fallout: New Vegas.

The new title, due out sometime next year, will be developed by Obsidian Entertainment, a studio notable for their work on Neverwinter Nights 2, KOTOR 2, and Sega's upcoming spy RPG, Alpha Protocol.

New Vegas will reportedly take place in the same universe as last year's Fallout 3, but will not be a direct sequel. Other than that, details are scarce, but we are told that it is being developed for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.

While I thought Fallout 3's scale was impressive, the game generally failed to live up to its hype for me, so I can't honestly say that this news really excites me. But I know a lot of people swear by Fallout 3, so some of you are bound to be getting all hot and bothered by this news.

What's your take? More Fallout? Is it alright with you to let Obsidian handle this one?

[Kotaku]
[Bethesda Official Blog]

New Alpha Protocol Trailer Still Fails to Look Like an RPG

Sega just dropped a new trailer for their upcoming(?) spy RPG, Alpha Protocol, developed by Obsidian (KOTOR2, Neverwinter Nights 2).

I have some rhetoric to dispense on the subject of this game, but I will wait until you watch the trailer to do so. Go ahead.



How was it? Okay, let me just say that I don't see anything that resembles an RPG in any of the footage I've seen of this game to date.

There are a few RPGs that don't really "feel" like RPGs, if that makes any sense. Notable examples are Mass Effect and Fallout 3. Don't get me wrong, they're fun games, but they just don't scream "RPG!" to me. More like "shooter marketed to RPG fans!" Maybe I'm way off base here?

So far, Alpha Protocol appears to be hanging out in the same crowd. "Hey," it says, "I look and play like a shooter, but I'm really an RPG in my heart."

I suppose this brings up that sticky age-old debate of "what is an RPG anyway?" that I don't really feel like exploring here. I'm just saying that Sega shouldn't slap "RPG" right in the trailer and not show me any RPGing. Just a personal request.

Alpha Protocol will be available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC someday.

What's your take on this one?