Resume Update Reveals New BioWare Handheld Game

[Logan Westbrook]

Resume Update Reveals New BioWare Handheld Game

Apparently BioWare didn't think it had enough to do, because as well as Dragon Age 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic, the studio is apparently also working on a RPG that fits in your pocket.

Resumes don't normally make for exciting reading, but a recent update to BioWare QA lead Mitchell Fujino's LinkedIn profile [http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/mitchell-fujino/4/5b6/505] has revealed the existence of an unannounced handheld game, presumably being developed at the Edmonton office where Fujino is based.

BioWare doesn't have a particularly long history with handheld games, having only ever made the Sonic the Hedgehog RPG Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood for the DS. This project could be a sequel to it, and BioWare did say that it had started writing one after the first game was released in 2008, but it's unclear whether the studio is still working on the project now that it's part of EA.

It's also possible that it's a spin-off title from one of BioWare's existing IPs - and a portable Mass Effect or Dragon Age game could be really fun - or it could even be something completely new. All of this is just speculation of course, but now that the cat is out of the bag, hopefully we'll find out more information soon.

Source: Play.TM [http://play.tm/news/31800/rumour-bioware-is-working-on-unannounced-handheld-title/]




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[tomtom94]

Although this is MASSIVE pinch of salt territory...
Sonic Chronicles 2 or a Mass Effect spin-off would be my guess.

 

[HK_01]

Apparently BioWare didn't think it had enough to do, because as well as Dragon Age 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic, the studio is apparently also working on a RPG that fits in your pocket.

You forgot Mass Effect 3...

OT: Not too thrilled to hear that, but as long as their "real" games don't suffer from it it's fine.

 

[are.you.the.god.its.me.vader]

Hopefully it's something new and completely different....OR a real KOTOR game

 

[Uber Waddles]

Apparently BioWare didn't think it had enough to do, because as well as Dragon Age 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic, the studio is apparently also working on a RPG that fits in your pocket.

You forgot Mass Effect 3...

OT: Not too thrilled to hear that, but as long as their "real" games don't suffer from it it's fine.

*sigh*

No offense, but I can't stand people who say things like that. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but it still makes me wonder why handheld games are judged the way they are.

Incase you weren't being snide, the general thought towards portable games is they aren't "real games"; and more like childrens play things.

While that is true with a large number of portable games (as they are cheap to make, often turn a profit, and are almost always assured to sell as long as you point it at a demographic and say 'go'), in this generation I have found portable games to be far superior to console and PC counterparts.

While some developers (Activision and EA) treat portables as a way of milking audiences with low cost/high profit games, lots of developers take advantage of the lower production costs required to make a game. As long as you're not an idiot about what you buy (you wont get a long game out of a CoD MW2 Portable port, for example), you can usually buy decent, fairly long lasting games. Not to mention, RPG's that have compelling stories (something BioWare could try out maybe? I wish...). Because the massive cost of graphics loom over console games, handhelds (as well as digital download games) have been pretty much the only "worth the money" games Ive bought recently, and amongst the only games to actually TRY something new (and no Copy-Paste last years game/Mass effect with Elves, etc.)

My rant is done, OT:

In case you didn't read my little tiff, I like handheld games. If they're not doing a Sonic RPG (cause, frankly, it was just trying to milk a dead horse with a baseball bat) or a port of one of their other games, Ill be looking forward to it. BioWare is probably one of my least favorite developers, but Im always ready for a company to pop out and suprise me.

 

[AndyFromMonday]

You forgot to say they're working on Mass Effect 3. They ARE working on ME3, right? RIGHT?!

OT: Their last handheld game didn't fare to well. Hopefully this will do better.

 

[HK_01]

snip

Alright, let me rephrase that:

I love Bioware for their great, deep, massive RPGs. That is what Bioware excels at, but it's just pretty much impossible to make games like that for a portable.

That said, I immensly enjoy some games for portable devices, such as the Pokemon games, which are most definitely real games. I just don't think a Bioware game can translate very well to the DS or PSP.

 

[War Pony]

Color me intrigued. I think all I can do is at the moment is hope that it isn't a sequel to Elite Beat Sonic, but it's good to know they're trying out new ground again.

 

[hazabaza1]

Handheld Dragon Age in some way would make me have happy times.
Very happy times. So long as it's on the DS. Sorry, Nioware, I love ya, but not enough yo buy a PSP to play just one of your games.

 

[Westaway]

I want a good rpg that I can play over and over again, with some choices, chrarcter specialization and a least a little world to explore. It can be done on the ds, and I should think absolutly on the 3ds which it will no doubt be released on.

 

[JediMB]

I love Bioware for their great, deep, massive RPGs. That is what Bioware excels at, but it's just pretty much impossible to make games like that for a portable.

False.

Making games like that was quite possible 10 years ago, so there's no reason why making handheld games like that today should be any more difficult.

As always, it's all about using both the potential and the limitations of the platform to your advantage, and to treat the project like a triple-A game despite that it's not on the high-end machines.

 

[PhunkyPhazon]

Maybe I'm one of the few people on this site saying this, I don't know. But pleeeeeease be Sonic Chronicles 2!

 

[Nimzar]

Sonic Chronicles may be one of the worst Bioware RPGs... but it is still a really good game IMO. So a sequel would be well received.

 

[ghostmpx]

Handheld Dragon Age would be epic.

 

[darthzew]

Every time I see "BioWare" I immediately think about Mass Effect. My mind is programmed to search for every last glimmer of hope for an announcement.

I'm actually a little disappointed in this development. I don't have a handheld anything. And it's fricking Bioware. Whatever they make will be awesome, I'm sure.

 

[hyperdrachen]

Dark Chronicles 2... obviously

 

[Knight Templar]

I love Bioware for their great, deep, massive RPGs. That is what Bioware excels at, but it's just pretty much impossible to make games like that for a portable.

Why?

I see no reason that the games that they cannot make deep, good games for handheld. Of course it's length might be reduced but you don't need something to be drawn out to be good.

 

[Crimsane]

People still care about Sonic? I haven't even considered buying a Sonic game in ages.

 

[Zyst]

I'm all for it. Love Bioware, for the later titles and KOTOR, so I'm willing to buy the handheld =] Unless it's really bad.