Resistance developer Insomniac Games is working on a new intellectual property to be published on Microsoft's Xbox 360 platform - the first time the studio has worked on a non-Sony platform in its sixteen year history.

The new franchise, to be published by EA Partners, will be for both the PS3 and the Xbox 360, and will take place in a "brand new universe", although further specifics on the project are being kept strictly under wraps.

"Working with EA Partners allows us to extend the reach of our games to a multiplatform audience while retaining ownership of the intellectual property," said Ted Price, founder and CEO of Insomniac Games.

"We are excited and eager to introduce Insomniac to a new group of gamers while reinforcing to our loyal fans what makes our games special."

Insomniac's Spyro the Dragon, Ratchet & Clank and Resistance franchises have combined to sell more than 35 million units worldwide on Sony platforms.

EA Partners has announced a string of high-profile deals over the last 12 months, including publishing duties for Crytek's first move onto console with Crysis 2, the ambitious release of Realtime Worlds' APB and last month's partnership to partly bank-roll Respawn Entertainment, the new team from ex-Call of Duty leads Jason West and Vince Zampella.

"This is an exciting day for all of us at EA Partners and for gamers everywhere," offered David DeMartini, senior vice president of EA Partners.

"Insomniac is renowned for their commitment to quality and their ability to create unique, exciting worlds for gamers to explore. We look forward to help them bring their next blockbuster franchise to the millions of diehard Insomniac fans on PlayStation and the soon to be millions of diehard Insomniac fans on Xbox 360."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/insomniac-goes-multiformat-with-new-ea-deal

Following rumours of a significant restructuring to Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices Division, an internal memo from CEO Steve Ballmer has confirmed the retirement of EDD president Robbie Bach and, as rumoured, the departure of J Allard.
Bach leaves after 22 years at the company, though Allard – himself a 15-year Microsoft veteran – is to remain as an official advisor.
Effective from July 1st both interactive entertainment boss Don Mattrick and mobile chief Andy Lees will report directly to Balmer.

http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/37257/Microsoft-shakes-up-Entertainment-and-Devices-Divison

It’s not Wednesday, but Japan woke up to a new Xbox Live Arcade game. Without any warning, Doom II appeared on the Xbox Live Marketplace, but only in Japan. Gamerbytes caught the surprise addition and promptly posted the news. Microsoft have not taken the game offline yet.

 You can download Doom II now and play it before the rest of the world if you have a spare 800 Microsoft Points ($10) linked to a Japanese account. Or just settle for the free demo. Don’t expect much, though. Doom II for Xbox Live Arcade is simply Doom II.

http://www.siliconera.com/2010/05/24/doom-ii-leaked-on-japans-xbox-live-marketplace/

In Gears of War 3 you'll be able to perform flying-kick take-downs directly from cover, and there'll be a new Arcade mode with a HUD that tracks score, multipliers and your teammate's location.

There'll even be Unreal-inspired mutators available for co-op games that might swell heads to ridiculous levels or add another variable to the formula, according to GamesRadar's latest preview.

Gears of War 3 takes place 18 months after Gears of War 2, and begins on a huge naval carrier called Raven's Nest that has turned to a refuge for remaining dregs of humanity.

Hero Marcus Fenix moves through the decks looking for old friend Dom Santiago, who he finds watering his plants. Reunited, the pair soon run into Gears of War 3's new enemy, the Lambent, as gigantic stalks burst out of the water and spew Polyp onto Raven's Nest.

Polyp are fast, scuttling creatures that will be hard to hit. But they'll be the least of your worries; the Lambent Drudges are much tougher. These apparently look a bit like Locust Drones, only with glowing limbs. And they mutate.

One mutation has them grow in height and gob chunks of emulsion; another has their arms stretch and flail; another turns their legs into trunks to spawn Polyp; and yet another has their head detach and write on the floor breathing fire.

Thankfully, Gears of War 3 introduces co-op for four people during the campaign. Baird, Cole and Anya will be playable, as will newcomer Jayson Stratton. They'll need to work together to open doors, hold back fencing and even fire super weapons.

And they'll have a beefed up arsenal. That double-barrelled shotgun we mentioned earlier this month is the sawn-off Gnasher shotgun. This has an incredibly wide blast at close range but reloads slowly. A Gnasher execution involves neck snapping while reloading.

There's a new rifle called the Pendulum Airlancer that has a bayonet. This is strong up close but packs an incredible kick, making it tricky to stay on target. A Pendulum Airlancer execution involves a bayonet-stab to the side and a throat slash.

There's a beefed-up sniper rifle called the One Shot that fires bullets as big as forearms that can rip through even a Boomer's shield. There's no mention of an execution move, presumably because finished enemies will be at range.

But even the Mortar will execute: Marcus staves enemies heads in while feet spasm.

The biggest new weapon is the Silverback exo-skeleton. Not only does this have a minigun and a rocketlauncher, but players can also Roadie Run and Curb Stomp while using it. The suit overheats if overused and has a weak, unprotected rear. In defensive mode, the Silverback turns into an immovable lump of metal team-mates can use for cover.

Gears of War 3 will of course have multiplayer, although the modes are being kept under wraps for now. Maps include Overpass, a place where several earthquakes will happen during play and sink the city; Cracking Up, a map that turns from sunny to stormy to hurricane to volcano; Thrash Bash, a thrashball stadium with active scoreboard; and Barney Rubble.

Gears of War 3 will be released for Xbox 360 on 8th April 2011.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/gears-3-has-flying-kicks-from-cover