Self-described as a narrative paramedic, Rhianna Pratchett is most known for her work on the Overlord series with additional credits in Mirror’s Edge, Heavenly Sword, and Viking: Battle for Asgard. I had the opportunity to interview Rhianna about her creative approach to writing, general thoughts on videogame development, and emotive storytelling.
We here at Dark Diamond (I say that like we have a central office) know that times are tough. With home foreclosures on the rise, stocks hitting an all-time low, companies conducting massive layoffs and soaring gas prices, which are finally receding after reaching an all-time high (averaging over $4.00 a gallon), one would be foolish not to see these as tumultuous times. And now that the holidays are upon us, shoppers must think wisely and spend frugally when shopping for gifts for the perfect gifts their family, friends and loved ones. But fear not consumer, for we are here to help you save some time and some green with Dark Diamond’s Holiday Gift Guide – 2008 Edition.
Now before you hit the jump get comfortable: grab a cup of Egg Nog or hot apple cider, put on Christmas With the Rat Pack and let the 1080P Virtual Fireplace blaze away.
Well, this is the second instance where I find myself extremely jealous of you PLAYSTATION®3 owners out there (the first being Little Big Planet). In a quasi-Halloween surprise EA announced that a “special” Mirror’s Edge demo will be jumping onto the PlayStation® Store October 30th (that’s today kiddies), and landing on the Xbox LIVE™ Marketplace on October 31st.
, DICE , EA , Electronic-Arts , Faith , Mirror's Edge , PlayStation , PS3 , PSN , Videogames , XBL
EXT. SKYSCRAPER ROOFTOP – DUSK
DAVID
You know, Faith, from this height… you could really hock a loogie on someone. (V.O)
FAITH
… [Rolls eyes and shakes head]
If from 39 floors above ground looking down at the scattered groups of pedestrians sends chills down your spine then imagine bounding from rooftop to rooftop without the luxury of harnesses, wires or a safety net and having bullets whizz by your head. You’re running because it is your duty, your job; you are a Runner, and this is Mirror’s Edge.
, action-adventure , DICE , EA , Faith , first-person , hands on , Mirror's Edge , Preview , time trials
Another two weeks, another episode of the Dark Diamond Podcast. In this episode David ‘KidKobun’ Bruno joins us for the first time and we discuss anime and games, which I’m guessing you might like. Listen now and hit the jump for the full show outline.
This video was taken at Campus Party 2008 in Valencia, which is an event I’ve never heard of, but there is a lot of cool stuff in here. For those of us that didn’t get to try out Mirror’s Edge at E3 or Comic-Con, this lengthy clip still captures much of the play experience.
While of course the play isn’t as smooth-looking as in the trailers, things still seem to flow fairly naturally, and the levels look a bit like Prince of Persia meets Half-Life 2 (a very good thing!) in terms of pacing, object manipulation and platform placement. Speaking of levels, there’s a shot of the level select screen (which lets you start from checkpoints) that shows tons of discrete levels scattered throughout the city.
Some other prime footage shows Faith using a sniper rifle and engaging in some melée combat. Another detail: it appears that Faith will take damage if she falls even a moderate distance without rolling. In terms of music, things also follow a Half-Life 2 approach, dynamically adjusting to battles. All in all I am thoroughly impressed; the game seems to deliver on all the promises it made in its trailers and then some.
The world of Mirror’s Edge is already highly stylized, colorful, and pulsing with energy, so it seems only natural that EA would think to create a comic cook adaptation of the game. EA has signed a deal with DC to produce the comic, and Rhianna Pratchett, who’s writing the dialogue for the game, will be the writer for this as well.
As you might have expected, the story of this series is a prequel to the events of the game, explaining Faith’s backstory. The reader will “learn more about the events that shaped both her and the city,” says DICE’s Owen O’Brien. It’s debuting this winter.
The conference started a few minutes behind schedule, and then got off to a slow start, giving us a history lesson about the PlayStation Brand’s success, then talking about PSN, PSP, and finally the PS3 lineup. Here are the big announcements you need to know.
Honestly I am really looking forward to Infamous, and the Store/download stuff sounds cool. IMO, it was the best conference of the hardware camps; Sony delivered a few new games, price cuts, and new online functionality. Their goal of highlighting the increasing value of the PS3 seems to have been achieved.
Full details after the cut.
What’s so special about this messenger bag? Well, if you recognize the logo, you’d realize that it belongs to the much-anticipated game Mirror’s Edge. Supposedly it’s modeled after the bag that protagonist Faith carries in the actual game (or was her bag modeled after the product? Hmm).
You can get it if you pre-order the game from GameStop. It has seven compartments and “fits your PS3, Xbox, 360, or laptop for gaming on the run.” This, along with the Pokémon151, exemplifies the kind of game-related merchandise I think we’d all like to see. It’s simple, elegant, stylish, and doesn’t scream “I’M A NERD” quite so boldly as say, a Zelda shirt from HotTopic.
[Joystiq]
It is certainly nice to see something that’s not battlefield come out of the fine production studio that is DICE. It is also really nice to actually see some stuff from Mirror’s Edge, a game that looks amazing for such little hype. From what we know, in the utopian future, all electronic communications are monitored for the 1984-esque government, so for a truly secure document to be transmitted, it must be delivered by hand. So, we get all these crazy Asians running on the tops of buildings like madmen. Sign me up!
, Adventure , DICE , FPS , free running , Mirror's Edge , parkour , PC , platformer , PS3 , Videogames
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Abraham 'Velcor' Duarte
David 'KidKobun' Bruno
I unlocked "Cook" in "Zombie Pizza"! http://bit.ly/5GeceQ #
Ivan 'Nahu' Lozano
I gots the flu （´_ゝ`） #
Random J
Sol
Went searching thru 8 home today. Whew. #
