Speaking with Videogamer247, Gears of War 2 lead designer Cliff Bleszinski said that the additions to the upcoming shooter are so substantial that it has moved the title beyond being a game and into a "platform."
"It's no longer a game: it's a platform," Bleszinski said reiterating that the title was designed for replayability. "Basically you can play through the campaign and then Horde, as well as the many multiplayer modes."
Cliff rounded out the comment by stating again that the title is jam packed with enough content to be enjoyed for "months, if not years, to come." Something tells us he's a fan. Oh yeah, it was Cliff when we spoke to him about Gears of War 2 at X'08 in Toronto.
During a London event where Gears of War 2 was predominantly featured, lead designer Cliff Bleszinski attempted to clarify a point made by fellow Epic employee Rod Fergusson regarding the power of the Xbox 360. Fergusson, senior producer for Gears 2, was quoted as saying the Xbox 360 was reaching its graphical limit but Bleszinski says people took the remark the wrong way.
"[Rod Fergusson's] quote that was taken out of context," Bleszinski told Videogaming247. "I think we're pushing the 360, but the system's not going to get any more RAM, it's not going to get a faster processor, but at the same time that puts the impetus on our programmers and artists to be smarter with what they work with."
Bleszinski went on to compare the Xbox 360 life cycle to that of the Super Nintendo console; graphics gradually increased in quality and just as it seems to reach its limit someone uses "ninja code tricks" to push more out of the system. "It's amazing what programmers can do. I wouldn't count our guys out yet," Cliff added.
Gears of War 2 hits retail this November 7 exclusively on the Xbox 360.
In a recent X08 interview with Cliff Bleszinski, our Joystiq compadres learned some information regarding Gears of War 2's planned downloadable content. Most importantly, that it's currently in the works and will ship "very soon within' the [Gears of War 2] launch timeframe."
Mr. Bleszinski confirmed that the Gears 2 DLC will be "multiplayer map focused" and will make its release within the magical Gears 2 release window timeframe. As far as pricing goes, Epic isn't saying much, which is totally understandable seeing the controversy surrounding the original Gears DLC was probably a giant headache to deal with. Gears 2 DLC is being worked on and confirmed for release within the launch timeframe. Huzzah!
Posted Jul 23rd 2008 3:30PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News
We already touched on the upcoming Comic-Con 2008 festivities, but yesterday Microsoft released an officially official press release detailing all the Gears of War 2 love they'll be showing for Comic-Con attendees. And already, we're jealous we can't attend.
Microsoft will have a booth setup on the floor where everyone can get a chance to play Too Human and Ninja Gaiden II, where also on Saturday, July 26th from 2:00-2:45PM the Cliff Bleszinski and GoW2 lead writer Joshua Ortega will be signing Gears posters. Later on Saturday, from 3:30-4:30PM, team Epic will be holding a "Gears of War" Showcase Panel where Bleszinski, Ortega and Karen Traviss will discuss all things Gears and give an exclusive preview of the vehicles and weapons that'll grace Gears 2 come this Fall. NECA will also be on hand selling an exclusive Carmine figure, previewing the General RAAM figure and there will be other Gears comic and novel goodness all over.
2008 is the year Gears of War 2 takes over Comic-Con and, depressingly, we can't attend. Though, MS does promise to "Bring it Home" via Xbox Live, so that should help our Gears 2 needs. Hopefully it'll be enough.
Gears of War 2 is arguably the biggest and most anticipated release on any platform for Holiday 2008. Solidifying itself as a force to be reckoned with, Gears 2 was the poster child at Microsoft's E3 press conference. Showcasing a new single-player level, design director Cliff Bleszinski walked attendees through the new Gears experience. Intricate and beautiful environments, large sweeping battles and a horizontally moving elevator? Epic win. Pun is completely intended. If you happened to miss it, or require a place for multiple viewings, we present to you the entire Gears of War 2 on-stage demo from E3 2008.
We think this blog's title pretty much says it all folks. We actually got a chance to stick the Cliff Bleszinski with an X3F sticker during the Gears of War 2 reception and he was kind enough to pose for a photo with his most obsessive uber fanboy, me, Dustin. I can now safely say that my blogging dreams have been fulfilled. Joy! Though, we'll admit, Cliff was a bit apprehensive about the stickering thing, but once our noble X3F intentions were made clear and his worries about being ninja-stuck were settled, he played along. Slapping a sticky sticker to his forehead and embracing his most obsessive Gears fan (yes, it was a full embrace ... honest!) we snapped the photo and the rest is history. Cliff got X3F'ed ... can you believe it guys? W00t times like 20!
Oh, and be sure to keep your eyes peeled on our E308 X3F Sticker gallery, because we'll be adding a whole bunch of new and totally "epic" photos soon'ish. Stay tuned!
You'd think that since the Microsoft Press Conference was over we'd all curl up and think about the awesomeness. Naw! We still got a ton of stuff to show and tell you! So grab a cup of coffee for another content explosion.
This update is all about Gears of War 2. Microsoft released a handful of news screens and concept art for the anticipated sequel today as well as a shot at the retail box art for the game. Word around the Twitter campfire is Cliff Bleszinski's original motto of "bigger, better and more badass" for Gears 2 has been replaced by "epic and intimate." This box art screams it.
Coming straight from last night's airing of GameTrailer TV's pre-E3 episode of exclusiveness comes a truckload of new Gears of War 2 information. The two biggest announcements are the revel of a new multiplayer map called Day-One and confirmation that Gears 2 multiplayer will in fact support multiplayer bots. Oh yeah.
The Day-One map takes place on the city streets where a ginormous emerge hole has opened up smack dab in the middle of the map where an angry Seeder will pop out. And when he does, watch it, because it causes mini-earthquake. Also, Cliff confirmed with Geoff Keighley that Gears 2 will in fact support AI controlled bots in multiplayer, very similar to bots that are oh so prevalent in the Unreal Tournament series.
Take a look at your Xbox 360 controller and think of one object you could compare its looks to. Seriously, what do you think it looks like? If you said a martian aircraft due the amount of buttons it has, then congrats, you think just like Cliff Bleszinski.
Talking with CVG, Bleszinski discussed the 360's controller, admitting that "if you look at a controller right now it looks like an alien spaceship." Cliff hopes that next gen, Microsoft creates an Xbox input device that has "fewer buttons on the controller" and recommends doing something more "with a built-in camera or a little motion sensitivity." "You look at the Wii controller with less buttons - they added functionality by doing waggle" Bleszinski explained, "there are other ways of providing interactivity without having every single finger doing something at once on a friggin' controller."
And as much as it pains us to admit this, sorry Cliff, we don't totally agree with you on this one. The Wii is the Wii and the 360 is the 360, try playing a FPS on the Wii or using motion detecting cameras and tell us how competitive or fun it ends up being.
Posted Jun 19th 2008 10:45AM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News
In an exclusive interview with Gamepro, the one and only Cliff Bleszinski confirmed that for Gears of War 2 they've fixed one of our (and most everyone's) major gripes with the original Gears' multiplayer. The way too annoying and totally unfair shotgun host advantage. When asked about multiplayer feedback Epic received from Gears of War, Cliff responded by saying that "people loved it [multiplayer] but they didn't like the host advantage. They got tired of the shotgun inconsistencies. We're fixing all of that. They didn't like the randomness of the chainsaw, so we put the chainsaw duel in -- may the best man win!" Indeed, may the best man win and may we be the first to say yippy-skippy perfect day! Thank you Epic. That's the news we wanted to hear.
Make the jump to read Gamepro's complete Cliff Bleszinski interview where he not only talks about axing shotgun host advantage (double yippy skippy!), but also discusses the Unreal Engine, new multiplayer game modes, the option to use an Uncharted inspired control scheme as well as ... Bloom Blox? Yup, he talks Bloom Blox.
The July issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly has an extensive 13-page blowout of Gears of War 2 multiplayer details. Earlier last week, some information leaked from and article in X360 Magazine, but the EGM cover-story by outgoing editorial director Dan Hsu includes a world of new information ripe for the picking.
Some information between the X360 and EGM article is slightly different. Most notably, some of the buttons involved in getting rid of a downed enemy are strangely different. However, since we don't talk about Gears 2 enough around here, we have all the info you need here.
From new weapon stats, the possibility of bots and the ability to blow you and your enemies up with a diabolical grenade--here is the newest info from EGM's fantastic July cover story. The issue also includes an extensive interview with Cliff Bleszinski, so any Gears fan should check it out.
All the info we got from EGM's cover story, after the jump!
After a solid year for the Xbox 360 in 2007 many thought the system could never showcase the same amount of quality exclusives in a single year.
In the 2008 Microsoft Game Studios Yearbook, we've compiled a list of this year's graduating class with a detailed account of each title's current status and the stories surrounding them.
From heartbreaking cancellations, surprise feature announcements and expected sequels, the 2008 MGS Yearbook is filled with fun facts and information on your soon-to-be favorite titles. Also included in the yearbook are special joke awards given to each title that releases in 2008 that poke fun at the details most commonly argued about in the comments.
From Ninja Gaiden II to Alan Wake, the 2008 Microsoft Game Studios Yearbook will have something for everyone.
Epic's Cliff Bleszinski recently sat down with GameDaily for a feature called 10 Questions, where an esteemed member of the gaming industry is asked ten fan submitted questions. Cliff was thrown Q's from everything related to breaking into the industry, why he ditched a Dodge Viper and how to make it in today's gaming world.
Of course Gears of War 2 was a hot topic and fans asked how it will stand-up to it's Game of the Year winning predecessor. "With the sequel, we're able to significantly streamline the online experience with a far more robust package that enables players to kick more ass online with their friends," Cliff answered.
Without giving away too much information on the single-player experience, Cliff said the game must throw more interesting scenarios at players in between combat situations to stay fresh, "In Gears 2, we've got dozens of surprises in every level that will keep people talking for months to come."
With changes to Epic's premier gaming engine fans wondered how updates to Unreal Engine 3 will change the Gears experience. While Cliff was tight-lipped, he assured gamers the environments would add to the experience with a wider capacity for damage. "Players will really feel like they're in a sci-fi multiplayer version of Black Hawk Down."
Gears of War 2 hits Xbox 360 this Novemeber.
Today marks a sad day for gaming journalists as we're forced to learn the proper spelling of Gears of War 2 lead designer Cliff Blezinski, um, Kowalski, crap, Bleszinski, there we go. Speaking with MTV Multiplayer blogger Steven Totilo, Cliff confirmed that he would be dropping his CliffyB moniker, which he's used since the 90's.
It's "time to grow up a bit," Cliff wrote in a note stating the nickname doesn't suit his 30-something lifestyle and that he's more focused on working to perfect Gears of War 2 and doesn't have time for silly nicknames. At least nicknames he'll publicly endorse.
Pour one out for CliffyB folks, it was a wild ride.
During the Game Developers Conference, 1UP.com was able to record interviews with developers in the guise of their weekly 1UP Yours podcast, one such episode was with outspoken Silicon Knights boss Dennis Dyack. In the episode on February 21, Dyack outlined his worries for the future of GDC based on the marketing spin put on the, "once sacred," developer gathering.
"I worry about GDC [because] how many talks are you learning something versus when somebody is trying to sell you a product?" Dyack asked the crew made up of editors Garnett Lee, Shane Bettenhausen, Bryan Intihar and former 1UPer Mark MacDonald. "Are we calling this the Game Developers Conference [or] are we calling it the Game Demo Convention?"
Speaking with Videogamer247, Gears of War 2 lead designer Cliff Bleszinski said that the additions to the upcoming shooter are so substantial that it has moved the title beyond being a game and into a "platform."
In a recent X08 interview with Cliff Bleszinski, our Joystiq compadres learned some information regarding 
Take a look at your Xbox 360 controller and think of one object you could compare its looks to. Seriously, what do you think it looks like? If you said a martian aircraft due the amount of buttons it has, then congrats, you think just like Cliff Bleszinski.
The July issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly has an extensive 13-page blowout of 
Epic's 
