Pandemic’s sandbox destruction plaything Mercenaries 2 is apparently getting an additional installment (and then some), according to John Riccitiello. The announcement reared its expected head during a post-earnings conference call, in which Riccitiello said:

There will be a Mercenaries 3 and, if I have anything to do with it, there will be a Mercenaries 10.

A bold statement for an otherwise completely unsurprising business strategy, as EA had announced sequels for Dead Space, Battlefield: Bad Company, and Army of Two only four days earlier. Read more…

A press release issued today by EA announces the release of a “Total Payback” update to Mercs 2. The update will be making its way on to XBL October 13th and PSN just a few days later on October 20th.

Included in said update will be the ability to enter in cheat codes to unlock weapons and other types of goodies, as well as six new playable characters, and cross regional multiplayer support.

And just in case you didn’t hear the sound of Pandemic pulling out their big guns, the studio added that they will be releasing a DLC for the game sometime in November.

Full press release available after the jump. Read more…

Devs have been talking a big game about destructible environments from Dig Dug to Red Faction’s “Geo-Mod” technology, but how many of them would take the mentality of blow-everythang-up this far? In Pandemic’s latest “playground of destruction,” Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, you’ll be able to blow up forestry, oil tankers, everything - even the in-game ads. Biting the hand that feeds, Pandemic? Not really, if you ask their sponsors. Jay Sampson, vice president of game advertising firm Missive, had this to say:

There were no thoughts otherwise [on having the ads non-destructible]; it would seem very alien to the gamer. If you left an entire level charred with nothing but the billboard standing out like a sore thumb, I think you’d try to shoot them more and more, or you’d get on a blog and type, ‘Hey did you notice this?’

If it’s okay with you, it’s okay with me. Next time I see a Coke billboard during a Mercs 2 session, I’m calling a nuclear strike on it. Read more…

Do you cheer when you see things blow up? Well, grab your pom poms because the killers over at the E3 Mercenaries 2 booth showed me the biggest in-game explosion I’ve ever seen. It’s the tactical nuke, and it may make you smile with awesome. Click the link for the boom. Read more…

I know we are all excited that E3 is next week, but there are still already announced games coming out real soon that are worth getting excited about. Take the oft-delayed Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, for example– a game where everything is destructible (so we’ve been told), and anything is possible.

What? Don’t believe me? Then take a gander at the newest trailer and judge for yourself. August 31st can’t come soon enough. Read more…