Videogames Lead to Behavioral Addiction Mike Tyson’s Paparazzi Punch-Out!! Video GameStop Buys Majority Stake in Video Game Digital Distributor Jolt Miyamoto: 3D Isn’t Everything Are You A Video Game Junkie With Mad Writing Skills? Write For Ripten NFL Super Bowl Champion Steelers Connect with Soldiers in Iraq for Guitar Hero Competition

The rumor which surfaced just over an hour ago regarding the possible shut down of Pandemic Studios has just been confirmed via an internal Electronic Arts memo snagged by Kotaku. It seems that the individuals EA deems as the Pandemic “core” team will be merged into the EA Los Angeles office, while the roughly 200 other employees will be left jobless. Read more…

According to sources who leaked the information to Kotaku, Pandemic Studios, creators of Full Spectrum Warrior, Star Wars: Battlefront, and most recently Mercenaries 2: World In Flames, will be have nearly their entire Los Angles base staff (roughly 200 employees) laid off today. The announcement is reportedly going to take place one hour from now at 11am PST.

Pandemic’s started in 1998 with a good deal of successful game releases and was eventually gobbled up by EA in 2007. A few under-performing sequels and one Dark Knight game that never saw the light seems to have sealed the studios fate. It is believed that a portion of the staff will merge into other various EA teams and their remaining collection of IP’s will be handed off to EA Montreal.

No official statement on the part of EA has been made yet, so file this under rumor for the time being. If true, it will likely go down as a very sad day for our own Jon Zungre, who openly shared his love for Pandemic explosions with the world.

You may never get to be President of the United States, but if Senator Obama wins this year’s election, you can play one in a video game. That’s right people, the rumor regarding Barack Obama and everyone’s favorite punching bag, Sarah Palin, coming to Mercenaries 2: World in Flames is most certainly true.

Hit the jump for an in-game video, Pandemic’s comments, and my closing thoughts. Read more…

EA and Pandemic Studios announced today, that from 6am this morning til whenever “the pumps run dry”, they will fit the bill to pump your car full of gas — if you can make it to 8489 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles CA before the deal goes up in flames.

Seriously, who thought mixing flames, gas, and mean looking dudes covered in tattoos together for a real life promotion would be a good idea? Because it is fucking brilliant. Give that person a raise.

A word of caution. If you are one of those people who never tips the full serve gas guy, you may want to bend the rules a bit this time. I’m guessing this is more of side job for the guys shown above, as their full time gig probably involves crushing people’s skulls with their bare hands. Just a suggestion.

Full press release with details as well as a live feed of the event after the jump. Read more…

Perhaps you’re thinking we’ve had enough Lord of the Rings games, since we were inundated while the movies were being released and now there’s even an MMO. However, Pandemic Studios, the guys who brought us the Star Wars Battlefront games, thought they’d try their hand at one, and from the way Conquest is shaping up, we may be glad they did.

The major hook is the approved–and yes, that means Tolkien Estate approved–new story material that goes beyond the original trilogy to ask what would happen if Frodo royally screwed up and didn’t manage to destroy the ring. The books occasionally hint at the evil that would ensue if such a catastrophe occurred, but Pandemic is fleshing it out into something we’ve never seen before. Read more…

I saw the Dark Knight movie a few days ago, and yes, everything you hear (and read) about it is true. It’s an amazing film, and Heath Ledger’s performance is one for the ages. However, as Harvey Dent (Two Face) would tell you himself, there is a flip side to everything, and the flip side here is that few movie based games ever amount to much.

Having had several chats with developer friends of mine who have worked on these types of projects, it is easy to understand why they are often considered failures in the gaming circle — lack of time for proper production. The two are worked on in tandem for the most part, and there’s almost always a rush to get the game out before the movie.

With the Dark Knight movie already in theaters, and no game in sight just yet, we may actually be in store for a “dynamic duo” deserving of the Batman brand.

So how do we know that a movie based game is in the works? It was recently leaked by Gary Oldman, the actor who plays Commissioner Gordon in the film, that a game adaptation is well underway. In his interview with G4TV (shown below) Oldman states:

The video game — I saw a tiny little piece of it. They’re trying to get it, so that when he’s gliding — that it’s a sort of — there’s a feeling in it that you’ve never really felt before. That the game doesn’t stop and start. They’re trying to build it in — to the system. Almost like watching the fim. That it’s a continuous thing.

But, I mean I’m on the roof top. I mean my figure just stands there with the back light. I don’t do anything. I’m really boring. I go “Batman we got to get over there” you know? And he goes “woosh” and dives off the building. I’m Jim Gordon, boring Jim Gordon on the roof.

Well now, “boring Jim Gordon” is not so boring if you put a beautiful dark haired female interviewer in front of him now is he? See for yourself, and read the notes from my call with Pandemic Studios after the jump. Read more…

“Fiscal 2008 can kiss my ass — I’m going home to play Rock Band”

If you had been holding on to hope that Pandemic Studio’s much anticipated Mercenaries 2: World in Flames would be lighting up your television set soon, you can officially forget it. Read more…

For every one that breaks free, two more get sucked in. As Microsoft’s cleaning crews entered the empty offices once held by the employees of Bungie Studios, another industry giant, Electronic Arts, was finalizing a deal to purchase VG Holding Corp, owners of both Bioware Corp (Mass Effect) and Pandemic Studios (Mercenaries 2: World in Flames & Saboteur).

“These are two of the most respected studios in the industry and I’m glad to be working with them again. They’ll make a strong contribution to our strategic growth initiatives on quality, online gaming and developing new intellectual properties,” said John Riccitiello, EA’s Chief Executive Officer. “We also expect this will drive long-term value for our shareholders.”

Price tag for all this? In the ballpark of $785 million — $620 million in cash to the companies stockholders, and an additional $155 million in equity to “certain employees” of the VG Holding Corp. We are going to go out on a limb and say that the janitor and kitchen crew won’t be seeing any of that dough. Have at the press release after the jump. Read more…