Mass Effect 2 Teaser Trailer

[Felch]

The sequel was obvious from the sales figures is Asher's point.

[snoopy369]

I suppose.

[DrSpike]

Yeah, it was announced a while back. I hope it's not a shameless cash-in.

[snoopy369]

It's EA, right?

[DarkCloud]

I worry about Bioshock 2; it's produced by a different studio as well.

I look forward, however, to the movie. I hope they don't mess that up The setting is so rich.

[DrSpike]

I wouldn't hold out much hope for the movie in any case.

[flash9286]

BioWare and EA have formally announced Mass Effect 2 for Xbox 360 and PC, both versions set to come in early 2010. With the announcement, we've also received the first bit of details on what the story will be for the sequel. According to the press release, the second chapter will be dark and, "Saren's evil army of Geth soldiers has just been defeated, and humans, who are still struggling to make their mark on the galactic stage, are now faced with an even greater peril..."

Ray Muzyka, General Manager and CEO of BioWare delivered this quote regarding the announcement, "We're going to surpass the extraordinary gaming experience we brought our fans in Mass Effect by delivering intensified combat and expanded weapon options as well as increased depth of planet exploration, all while delivering a powerful, emotionally engaging story. Mass Effect 2 is shaping up to be an unforgettable RPG-shooter experience, taking players on a non-stop roller-coaster ride filled with stunning plot twists and no-holds-barred action."

http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/963/963385p1.html

No PS3 version announced.

[flash9286]

Actually, Bioware(or I guess EA now) owns the Mass Effect IP. Microsoft probably has an exclusive licensing deal with them though.

[flash9286]

No, Bioware has always owned the Mass Effect IP.

http://masseffect.bioware.com/forums/viewtopic.html?topic=453683&forum=104

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3163640

MS probably has a K with Bioware, stating that the series is exclusive to the 360 and PC. Of course EA can always throw a bag of money at MS to give up exclusivity. Making the games for PS3 is probably worth more to EA than the exclusivity is worth to MS.

[flash9286]

I'm not sure what you're smoking.

PS3 games sell like ****. Mass Effect runs on Unreal Engine which runs like **** on the PS3, and in fact Epic has been sued by PS3 developers for how ****ty it runs on the PS3. You're saying EA (who is losing lots of money) would pay Microsoft (who doesn't need money) lots of money so they could publish Mass Effect 2 on an expensive and hard-to-develop-for console which has no built-in userbase (as the original was not released on the PS3)?

If they expect to make a profit (taking into account the money they would have to pay MS to release their exclusivity) off porting Mass Effect to the PS3, sure why wouldn't they. I would think there is some demand for ME on the PS3 even if the first game wasn't ported to the PS3. Especially if they do a combo ME1+ME2 deal.

I don't think it will happen but it is possible. I'm sure EA would love to make Mass Effect multiplatform.

[DrSpike]

MS owns the IP for Mass Effects 1-3

From the links Flash posted it doesn't appear that is the case.

[snoopy369]

Since Bioshock got mentioned in here earlier, might as well mention this:

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/03/20/2k-to-release-bioshock-2-simultaneously-on-xbox-360-ps3-and-pc/

The link says it all No release date, though it may be 10/5.

[DrSpike]

I don't disagree with either point, but you are slipperily dodging. Whatever exclusivity deals might be in place (and how they are structured) you claimed that MS owned the IP, and Flash said he thought Bioware did. I don't know who is right but it appears from what has been posted so far that he is.

[DrSpike]

I don't know the answer here - but look at the stuff Flash posted. From the second article:

"BioWare, and in effect EA, owns the Mass Effect IP, not Microsoft"

The other one has the same finding. Your very first post on this subject (23) was "MS owns the IP". So either the articles are wrong, or you are wrong.

I think it's the latter, and that you are trying to obfuscate the issue.

[flash9286]

Exclusivity deal does not equal owning the IP of Mass Effect.

http://au.gamespot.com/news/6180866.html?part=rss&tag=gs_news&subj=6180866

http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/14791/Microsoft-Provides-Update-on-Mass-Effect/

Microsoft has not yet announced specifics regarding sequels to “Mass Effect” but we’ll be talking to EA and BioWare in the weeks to come. “Mass Effect” is the most anticipated role-playing game of the season, on any platform, and we are committed to the franchise’s long term success.

When we asked about the ownership of the intellectual property, Microsoft confirmed that--unlike the Halo and Project Gotham Racing IPs, which are owned by Microsoft and not the respective developers--BioWare Corp. owns the Mass Effect IP.

GS: People are now wondering what is happening with some of your properties, specifically Mass Effect, which is due out next month. That's a wholly owned BioWare property, correct?

GZ[Greg Zeschuk]: Yes, it is, and it's almost done. Ray and I have both played it! There's other stuff too, there's Dragon Age, there's the Sonic RPG we're making with Sega, there's what we're doing down in Austin, and some other secret stuff as well.