In a surprise move today, Electronic Arts announced that it is welcoming back former EA president John Riccitiello as the company’s new CEO. He will take up the role on April 2, replacing current CEO Larry Probst who will stay on as executive chairman of the board of directors.
Riccitiello had previously served as president and COO of the company before leaving in 2004 to co-found media and entertainment investment firm Elevation Partners, where he oversaw the company’s interest in the video game industry, including the purchase of majority stakes in BioWare and Pandemic in November 2005.
Commented Riccitiello: “Leading EA has always been my dream job and I am truly honored that Larry and the Board have given me this opportunity. This is an extremely well-run company driven by outstanding studio and publishing teams. They’ve also made strategic investments in new platforms and markets that will help extend EA’s industry leadership in the years ahead.”
In addition to the previously mentioned [url=http://www.snackbar-games.com/n2322.html]The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time[/url] and [url=http://www.snackbar-games.com/n2307.html]Chew Man Fu[/url], Nintendo has confirmed that Sega’s Bio-Hazard Battle joins the two games to make up today’s offering to the Wii Virtual Console gods.
Costing 800 Wii Points ($8), Bio-Hazard Battle is a one or two player side scrolling shooter with four different ships, each one having its own upgradeable attacks.
The newly resurrected and MMOG-focused Acclaim Games has announced a new partnership with former Shiny founder David Perry of Earthworm Jim fame to create a new massively multiplayer online game for the company. The catch? He needs your help.
Dubbed “Top Secret,” the project welcomes suggestions from the gamer community, some of which will make it into the final product. Some additional surprises are also in store, with the veteran developer commenting that “surprise guests” will be brought on to the project in order to “inspire and mentor the contributors.” Sounds exciting, if a bit daunting as well.
In addition, Perry will pick the best contributor, and let that person work on a new fully-funded MMOG for the PC with Perry as the executive producer. Not only that, but once the game is released, the winner will also get a cut of the game’s sales. Acclaim and Perry note that no development experience is necessary, and that Perry himself won’t even look at resumes. Those interested in taking a stab at this unique opportunity should visit the project’s [url=http://topsecret.acclaim.com/]official website[/url].
“This is the only chance I know of to jumpstart a directorship career in the video game industry,” stated Perry. “Everyone wins. They get to learn how to make professional games, and if they get anything in, they get a real professional credit on their resume…But, if they win, well then they get their life changed.”
Though the spiritual sequel to [i]Total Annihilation[/i], [i]Supreme Commander[/i] just came out two weeks ago, the developers are already working on an expansion pack. No further news has been revealed. Expect a review of [i]Supreme Commander[/i] soon.
CAG is reporting that Best Buy has lowered prices on tons of games in order to clear up some shelf space. Many games are marked down as low as $1.99. To see the full list, register over at [url=http://www.cheapassgamer.com]CAG[/url], and [url=http://www.cheapassgamer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=129052]hit this thread[/url].
