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BioWare to Develop Games for DS

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the lucky-portable-so-and-so dept.

VonSnouty writes "The revered RPG specialist Bioware is setting up a special handheld division in Edmonton, and it's revealed their first creation will be for the Nintendo DS. Neverwinter Nights? Mass Effect? Erm, Jade Empire? Place yer bets!" It's also possible this could tie in to their as-yet-untitled MMOG. From the article: "The new handheld group will be led by project director, Dan Tudge, former president and founder of indie studio Exile Interactive, who has previously worked for major publishers such as Nintendo, Microsoft, THQ, and Sega." Hey, I liked Jade Empire.

5 of 44 comments (clear)

  1. Neverwinter nights on handheld would rock by linzeal · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I like bioware's RPG skills and this would fill a niche in my weekday caltran 2 hour commute. With NVW2 coming out in october and an estimated 2-3 months play time, I hope they can get something out the door by christmas.

    --
    An Education is the Font of All Liberty
    1. Re:Neverwinter nights on handheld would rock by Aladrin · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Never underestimate the power of throwing huge amounts of money at a corporation.

      --
      "If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
  2. I'm hopeful they go with ... by kinglink · · Score: 2, Insightful

    a personal IP, or something very open world like DnD. The DS can really produce some great games and with Bioware working on it the result should be great. I just hope they stay far away from the Star wars license. While Kotor was good for a Star Wars license (rare in itself), Bioware is FAR better than what they showed in those games. I felt restricted quite often in the game and I'm sure the developers felt it too as they couldn't create completely new games, they had to live with a mythos. I'm hopeful for something new and unique, like NWN and Mass Effects feel.

  3. Thank god by MemoryDragon · · Score: 2, Insightful

    While the DS has overall a good games lineup, i am somehow sick of overhyped rails like japanese rpgs as only option. I would love to see something less linear on consoles generally. (Oblivion being the example) But I rather doubt we will see something like Ultima or Gothic on any japanese console in the immediate future. Something like fallout probably never.

  4. Re:Dragon Age by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Okay. But Microsoft doesn't seem to have any problem letting their subsidiary game companies, or even Microsoft Game Studios itself, make games for the DS. Why? Well, they don't offer a competitor to the DS, and making DS games is profitable. When Nintendo is in direct competition with XBox hardware - that is, on the Gamecube - then of course Microsoft is going to want to keep the brand on their home turf. But there's no reason to "keep it with the XBox brand" when there's no place in the brand for the game - to wit, when there is no Microsoft handheld. Nintendo didn't beat up Microsoft and take its lunch money in the 3rd grade or anything; the two companies work together when it seems advantageous to do so.