I'm not sure how an assistant producer of a game involving homoerotic vampires and mooing biomachines can lose creative excitement over a straightforward character like Master Chief. What do you think?
News Blips:
Halo 4 Creative Director Ryan Payton leaves 343 Industries. "I had a great run at Microsoft," Payton told Kotaku. "I don't regret one day of it. But after a few years, there came a point where I wasn't creatively excited about the project anymore…The Halo I wanted to build was fundamentally different, and I don't think I had built enough credibility to see such a crazy endeavor through." Payton's new development studio, Camouflaj, already has two projects underway with hopefully unmangled titles.
Wedbush Morgan analyst and industry prophet Michael Pachter portends a bright future for Call of Duty Elite. In a note to investors, Pachter estimated that the upcoming social and stat-tracking tool suite for the Call of Duty community will amass "at least 1 million" subscribers by the end of 2011, increasing to 2 million by the first full year. [GameSpot]
Developer Techland may have inadvertantly released the debug version of Dead Island to the public. Those who purchased the PC version of the open-world zombie RPG found their island experience marred by heaps of bugs, hilariously clunky third-person animations, and the ability to no-clip with a single press of the keyboard. Techland posted on Facebook saying a patch is forthcoming, but for now, enjoy the fantastic derpage.
Ubisoft didn't escape the derpidity either when it forgot the Uplay Passport codes for the Xbox 360 version of Driver: San Francisco. Joystiq reports that the provided code only unlocks DLC content, skipping over multiplayer modes entirely. Ubisoft sent out a statement earlier today with an apology, bestowing a free Passport to all players affected by the issue. Full instructions below:
When you begin Driver: San Francisco, you are prompted with the Uplay Passport menu. The menu has 4 options: "Purchase Uplay Passport," "Activate my Uplay Passport," "Start my 2-Day Free Trial," or "Remind Me Later." There are two ways to access these online features:
1. Select Start My 2-Day Free Trial, which will not expire, OR
2. Select Purchase Uplay Passport, which will be provided at no charge.
Either option will unlock the 11 multiplayer modes and the Film Director feature on console titles with Uplay Passport.
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