Frontlines Map Pack Released

Fans of Frontlines: Fuel of War may want to log onto Xbox Live Marketplace today to download the new Frontlines 4 Map Pack. This downloadable content, which sells for 800 MS Points, will get what is being billed as “some of the largest, most wide-open multiplayer levels your Xbox 360 has ever seen.” We’ll take Microsoft and THQ at their word on this one.. The four new multiplayer maps were created by Kaos Studios and offer Wide Awake (intense armor engagements), and include Hindsight (air combat), Infiltration (some close quarters combat action), and Sundry (vertical infantry combat).

Log on to Xbox Live Marketplace for more details.

What’s New on Xbox Live Marketplace

Microsoft’’s Xbox 360 will get a number of new demos and extras this week including Xbox Originals releases, new demos and videos. The Xbox Originals for this week include the excellent Sid Meier’s Pirates, Ninja Gaiden Black and Black. This week’’s demos include a Frontlines: Fuel of War multiplayer demo and a single-player demo, giving payers a taste of THQ’’s upcoming modern warfare action game. There are also a number of Frontlines: Fuel of War videos worth checking out. Visiti www.xbox.com>www.xbox.com.

THQ Conference Call Notes

A lot of interesting news came out of this week’’s THQ conference call besides just the usual facts and figures. THQ president Brian Farrell revealed some of the games the company plans to release in the next quarter and beyond, with a couple of interesting surprises.

One that everyone already knew about was Saint’s Row 2, but THQ talked a little bit about the game’’s focus in the second chapter of this gang-themed third-person action game, promising a more refined game. The most important thing to note is that Saint’’s Row 2 is going to avoid directly competing with Rockstar’’s Grand Theft Auto IV, which is probably a wise decision on THQ’’s part. The company said that the game for the PS3 and Xbox 360 is being built using existing technology at Volition and that it will hit outside of GTA IV‘’s release window (late April).

Farrell also revealed that developer 5th Cell’s popular DS game, Drawn to Life, is being developed for the Wii. The game has sold 700,000 copies worldwide on the DS. Farrell hopes to duplicate or improve on that success with the new game.

Red Faction, the latest in Volition’’s shooter franchise, was also revealed, with Farrell promising more action revolving around the concept of highly destructible environments. That game is being developed for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. More details on the game will be released within the next couple of weeks.

THQ is also putting a lot of faith into de Blob for the Wii and DS, which is one of its many original titles. The company delayed the game once, to give it more time for polish, say Farrell.

Farrell said that Frontlines: Fuel of War will prove to be a promising title for the company because of its keen focus on multiplayer. The game promises 32-player online games for the Xbox 360, with more on the PC. Finally, Farrell said that the PS3 version was canceled for a number of reasons but then went on to point the finger at Epic’’s Unreal engine as a major roadblock. According to Farrell, Unreal engine is not optimized for open-world development. Sticking with the development of the PS3 game would have put its release date 60 to 90 days behind the other games. A playable demo will be released sometime next week on Xbox Live Marketplace.

Here are some other small but interesting tidbits from THQ:

- First details on the new UFC title will be revealed on Memorial Day weekend in conjunction with a live event. The game is being scheduled for a release in March 2009 — prior to the launch of its regular WWE game season. Farrell says that the game has one year of development under its belt and another year to go.

- THQ expects Disney Pixar’’s Wall.E to outperform the previously licensed Disney Pixar title Ratatouille (which was kind of a bust).

- A new Tak game is coming, along with other licensed Nickelodeon titles.

- Company of Heroes Online will launch soon in China and is the first of many planned free-to-play online titles.

- THQ Wireless will be creating mobile phone titles based on LucasFilms” Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises.

- There are currently 1,700 developers working in THQ’’s various studio systems and each is working on three skus or less.

- Stuntman failed because it did not translate well to next-generation platforms.

- Juiced failed because it was way too ambitious and the developers were overburdened (they were working on a whopping six sku’’s!).

- Farrell said that he was pleasantly surprised with Warhammer 40K Online‘’s progress but cautioned that development is still the early stages. So far, so good, he said.