EA announces Alice and more at CA Showcase - first Alice trailer included

News by Patrick Garratt Founder & Publisher (Former)

Published on July 20, 2010

EA used its Summer Showcase to debut the next Alice title from American McGee, a first trailer for 38 Studios' Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and more this evening, but fell short of a proper megaton.

Get all the news, press releases and media after the break.

Madden NFL 11

The next Madden was announced on iPad and 3DS. Amazing scenes. EA Sports Active: NFL Training Camp was shown, heart-rate monitor and all. Patrick Willis from the 49ers commented on the training. The monitor was attached to the dude's leg.

Fight Night Champion

The next Fight Night was properly announced after being selectively previewed earlier today. EA Sports said it wants to make the franchise look more like the underground in boxing - gritty, like Fight Club. It's out next year, and there are first images below.

MMA

MMA's Career mode was shown for the first time. The devs talked authenticity, the global nature of the sport, putting your likeness as the head of your future champ and more.

The game will feature gyms from all over the world. Fighter Bas Rutten turned up and talked gibberish. It was amazing.

There was a date: it's out on October 19.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

38 Studios boss and sports legend Curt Schilling showed Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning for the first time, although no one was allowed to film the trailer.

Todd McFarlane's done the art for the fantasy title, so keep your eyes well open for this. Some in-game shots were seen, and it all looked pretty much like a fantasy game.

Shank

Shank's releasing on August 24 on PSN and August 25 on XBLA.

Crysis 2

EA said Crysis 2's multiplayer will be aired at gamescom in August.

Alice

American McGee is on stage now showing off Alice: Madness Returns. It's for PC, 360 and PS3 in 2011. First shots and trailer below.

The original sold 1.5 million units, he said. Here's the press release:

EA and Spicy Horse Games Send Gamers Down the Rabbit Hole in Alice: Madness Returns

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jul 20, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Gaming visionary American McGee returns to Wonderland as Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) and Spicy Horse Games announce Alice: Madness Returns(TM), the dark and deranged sequel to the year 2000 PC hit, American McGee's Alice(TM). Designed with the same dark style of the original, but now featuring entirely new visuals, story and game design, Alice: Madness Returns is a fun and addictive action adventure set to release on PC, the PlayStation(R)3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360(R) video game and entertainment system. The game follows Alice on a journey through a wildly corrupted and shattered Wonderland to uncover the truth behind her haunted past and tortured psyche. In this journey, players will romp through highly-detailed elaborate worlds, encounter a cast of off-beat characters and engage in epic battles with deadly weapons and sinister villains.

"Alice is a classic fiction, infinitely rich with memorable characters, places and experiences. Our approach to Alice: Madness Returns takes this colorful world and reinvents it with psychotic personalities and pervasive insanity," said American McGee, Spicy Horse Games Co-Founder and Senior Creative Director. "We can't wait to share our vision with Alice in Wonderland fans and gamers around the world."

Alice: Madness Returns takes place 10 years after the conclusion of the original game, with Alice struggling to recover from the emotional trauma of losing her entire family in a fatal fire. After spending a decade institutionalized in an insane asylum, she is finally released to the care of a psychiatrist who just may be able to help her conquer the nightmarish hallucinations that still haunt her. Alice embarks on a mission to root out the true cause of her family's mysterious death, jumping from a gloomy and stark London to a rich and provocative Wonderland.

"In 2000, we launched a cult hit on the PC with American McGee's Alice. Ten years later, I'm pleased to announce American is back on board leading the top-rate talent at Spicy Horse Games to create this sequel," said David DeMartini, Senior Vice President and General Manager of EA Partners. "The Alice in Wonderland fiction continues to be a fan favorite all over the world. We can't wait for them to experience the next chapter with Alice: Madness Returns."

Alice: Madness Returns will be available in 2011 for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

For more information on Alice: Madness Returns, please visit http://AliceMadnessReturns.com.

Dead Space: Ignition

The downloadable Dead Space 2 prequel was seen in a trailer. The game features four paths and four different endings. Players will have to go through three types of mini-games: Hardware Crack, System Override and Trace Route.

Trace Route was shown playable on 360. "Mini-game" was about right. It was simply running a spot through a 2D landscape. It's out this fall for 360 and PS3.

Darkspore

Darkspore, an action RPG based in the Spore universe, was announced at the event.

The game is about "loot," said the game's producer and will feature character upgrades, online play, character creation, weapons and heroes. It's a "co-op game at its heart," said Maxis.

The game was shown playable. The demo said replay would play a major part of the game.

Shots and teaser trailer at the bottom. Here's the press release:

EA REVEALS DARKSPORE, A NEW SCI-FI ACTION ROLE-PLAYING GAME IN DEVELOPMENT FROM MAXIS STUDIO
Darkspore to Introduce Innovative Character Customization, Gameplay Mechanics and Online Play to Genre
Guildford, UK – July 20, 2010 – MaxisTM, an Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) studio, today announced the next project in its award-winning portfolio of PC games: DarksporeTM, an online, science-fiction action role-playing game, is currently in development for an early 2011 launch. Darkspore is rich in action and fiction, and is being written and developed by some of the most talented minds in the video game industry.

“Darkspore is inspired in part by the award-winning creature editor tech of Spore, but also in large part from the team’s own passion for gaming and prior experience,” said Lucy Bradshaw, General Manager of Maxis Studio. "The team has combined these inspirations to produce a unique take on the action RPG genre.”

Darkspore will feature dynamic, fast-paced action as players battle across alien worlds to save the galaxy from the mutated forces of Darkspore in a four-player co-operative and full single-player campaign, as well as intense multiplayer battles. In order to defeat the malicious Darkspore, players will need to collect an arsenal of living weapons - genetic heroes with different combat abilities - and upgrade them with tens of thousands of collectible body parts and armor.

Darkspore will feature three unique classes of five different genetic hero types, with a limitless number of upgrades and customizations available through the parts players collect on each planet level. As players progress, Darkspore builds in intensity, with new planets and enemy forces requiring players to strategically select the right squad and ability combinations to succeed in their missions.

EA is scheduled to launch Darkspore in early 2011.

Sims 3

Before Darkspore, Sims boss Rod Humble showing off Sims 3 for consoles as an opening game.

Humble showed Sims 3: Late Night for the first time. Late Night has just been announced for a fall release alongside Sims 3 itself.