• News

    SCEE: We're Dedicated To Our First Party Studios, No Problems Here

    Following a rumor this morning that Heavenly Sword 2 had gotten the ax at Sony Cambridge, and that Ninja Theory might be primed for a break away from Sony Europe, Kotaku checked in with SCEE to see if the studio could be undergoing a change of strategy - or whether it might be facing some issues. After all, if what our inside source said about HS 2 is true, then it'd be the third project to get the kibosh recently, after Eight Days and Getaway 3.

    "I think it is fair to say that we do not comment on rumour and speculation, especially about games that have never been announced," said SCEE corporate PR manager Nick Caplin.

    Caplin did tell us, though, some detail behind why Eight Days and Getaway 3 were scrapped, and why we oughtn't worry about SCEE: More »

    11:40 AM on Tue Jun 17 2008
    By Leigh Alexander
    10,075 views, 79 comments

    Latest by excaliburps: @Nullzero: I think it's relative to say if it's a triple A game. For Sony it is. And for people more »

  • rumor

    Heavenly Sword 2 Axed, Ninja Theory Moving

    Chalk this up as pure rumor for now.

    An inside UK source tells us that Heavenly Sword 2 has been canned by Sony Computer Entertainment of Europe. The game was axed after months in development because it is no longer seen as commercially viable, our source tells us.

    The news came during an emergency meeting set up for the Sony Cambridge team which was working on the game.

    On a side note, Ninja Theory, who have already said they weren't working on the sequel to their Playstation 3 exclusive, have grown increasingly bitter about their treatment at Sony's hands, our source tells us. I'm told that the development studio, which once had offices in the same building as Sony Cambridge, have started packing up to move to a new location.

    I guess when they said they wanted to move away from Sony and get into multi-platform development they weren't kidding.

    If true, this marks the third major project, counting Eight Days and Getaway 3, that has been canned by SCEE. Is the Europe arm of Sony in trouble? No clue, but we've asked for comment.

    8:02 AM on Tue Jun 17 2008
    By Brian Crecente
    20,710 views, 184 comments

  • angelina jolie

    Ninja Theory Thinks It Could Make Beowulf Cheaper, Way Cheaper

    Film Beowulf was sure expensive to make! The CG-laden flick was budgeted around US$150 million — not exactly chump change. Heavenly Sword developer Ninja Theory thinks it could have done the flick cheaper. Twenty percent of the cost, actually! Oh ho ho ho. Let's hear what Ninja Theory's Tameem Antoniades has to say:

    We see an entirely different area of progress: a form of independent production based on real-time game engine technology. We reckon you could do something like Beowulf for 15-20 per cent of the cost... If you are already creating hi-res assets for a game, then sharing these can bring that cost down even further... We have a lot of experience in performance capture, animation, rendering and so on. We can compete in the same way that indie films can live alongside blockbusters.

    20 percent of the cost is dandy and all, Ninja Theory, but would your film have Angelina Jolie? Well.

    Make Beowulf [Games Industry]

    4:00 AM on Wed Jun 11 2008
    By Brian Ashcraft
    3,951 views, 42 comments

    Latest by freespeech: ugh, who cares?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!????????????? more »

  • heavenly sword

    Ninja Theory Working on Multi-Plat Game, Life's Not Brutal

    Being an independent developer is brutal. Just ask independent developer and Heavenly Sword dev Ninja Theory, and it'll tell you that being an independent developer is brutal. Says co-founder and chief developer Nina Kristensen:

    It's a brutal environment out there for an independent, particularly considering the size of the games that we're developing... But we've now signed up the new game and the future looks pretty rosy for us... our new game is going to be PS3 and Xbox 360.

    Lesson learned: Being an independent developer is brutal for every independent developer except for Ninja Theory.
    Ninja Theory Hard At Work [GamesIndustry]

    6:00 AM on Tue Apr 22 2008
    By Brian Ashcraft
    1,693 views, 31 comments

    Latest by zanzibarlegend: after this multiplatform title, NT should deliver a proper sequel to HS, a more complete experience. more »

  • ninja theory

    Heavenly Sword Dev Goes Multi-platform, Plans For Movie Development

    The creators of PlayStation 3 exclusive Heavenly Sword won't be working on a sequel anytime soon, according to a report from GamesIndustry.biz. The UK dev has moved on, focusing on an original "triple-A blockbuster"concept that it plans to ship for both the PS3 and the Xbox 360. Since Sony owns the Heavenly Sword IP, they could hand it off to someone else, but Ninja Theory's going platform agnostic. But that's not all it's working on.

    Ninja Theory co-founder Nina Kristensen says her company may also have a movie in the works, a totally CGI affair "using the game engine alongside the game itself." Sounds interesting. At least more interesting than, say, Final Fantasy: Spirits Within.

    Ninja Theory considers CGI movie alongside new multiformat title [GamesIndustry.biz]

    2:40 PM on Wed Mar 19 2008
    By Michael McWhertor
    3,664 views, 77 comments

    Latest by wazup14: !!!!!!!! more »

  • crafts

    Heavenly Swords Need No Metal

    While flipping through the internet this morning, we came across this pretty decent fan-made Heavenly Sword sword. We were a little surprised to find that it was made an a school's shop class, though.

    Instead of making some stupid cabinet or a DVD shelf like the rest of the class, I decided to make something a little more original...Ironical, I was the first one to get cut by my sword. I let a kid hold it and he got a little power hungry, started swinging it around and cut my in the arm. For a wooden sword, it sure cuts well.
    Don't tell his teacher. Here's a bonus shot: More »

    4:00 PM on Thu Mar 6 2008
    By Mark Wilson
    10,472 views, 50 comments

    Latest by freespeech: he probably still got a F because it was a weapon and not any weapon but a weapon from a more »

  • rumor

    Rumblings About Heavenly Sword 2

    Yes, we're sure there will be a Heavenly Sword 2. It's already written! Heck, developer Ninja Theory would like to make it into a trilogy. But first, it needs the opinions of regular folks. According to one Kotaku tipster, that's exactly what Ninja Theory is doing. Last night, a focus group was apparently held by these people in Chicago. Writes the tipster:


    They initially asked for video game background, then they had a follow-up phone call asking which games I had played or owned, focusing heavily on Heavenly Sword. There were 3 surveys done on Monday, groups of 6 for the first 2, 4 for the last group (my group). Predominantly males, asking about our impressions on Prince of Persia, God of War, Ninja Gaiden and, of course, Heavenly Sword. Some questions were asked about why Heavenly Sword didn't sell so well, what our impressions were on the gameplay, how the cutscenes were done, combat mechanics.

    That's sorta interesting. The really interesting part is what was hinted at regarding Heavenly Sword 2. That, after the jump:
    More »

    1:00 AM on Wed Mar 5 2008
    By Brian Ashcraft
    19,808 views, 130 comments

    Latest by BoothMarten: to be fair, i fort heavenly sword was a mint game, still is. I loved the story line n the more »

  • heavenly sword

    Early Look at New Ninja Theory Game

    Guess what? When game developers finish games, they start on new games! And now that Heavenly Sword is already out the door, developer Ninja Theory is, that's right, working on another game. The developer's site has concept background images of its next title. We're not sure if it's another Heavenly Sword title or something else entirely. From the Ninja Theory site:


    Right now we're working on an exciting new concept that has got everyone we talk to buzzing. We can't say a lot except that it's going to be great to work on and should be even better to play! It'll take all the things we loved about Heavenly Sword and make them bigger and better than ever before.

    The images look nice. Then again, concept art usually does!

    New Ninja Theory Art [NeoGAF via Destructoid]

    1:00 AM on Wed Feb 20 2008
    By Brian Ashcraft
    2,587 views, 40 comments

    Latest by PSN: Lp47: Looks kind og futuristic, which would be cool. We know Nija Theory has no problem pumping out gorgeous graphics on more »

  • ps3

    Heavenly Sword Dev Dishes on Upcoming Games

    This post has a spoiler. Thus, we're putting it behind the jump. Here is a picture of a giraffe.
    More »

    7:00 AM on Tue Dec 11 2007
    By Brian Ashcraft
    16,916 views, 96 comments

  • roundup

    Frankenreview, Heavenly Sword (PS3)

    Lair took a really bad beating last week, breaking the hearts of PS3 fanboys around the world. But it would be OK because there was another Chosen One that Sony had been flaunting for months: Ninja Theory's Heavenly Sword. We nicknamed it Goddess of War during E306, but even with the its chainsword-driven action, the game seems to have blossomed into its own entity at this point—for the good or the bad.

    So hit the jump for our Frankenreview: the one review that will dictate whether or not the PS3 is good for something other than big screen porn. That is, if you don't consider a beautiful redhead kicking royal ass in skimpy clothing to be some logical extension of pornography. More »

    12:00 PM on Thu Sep 13 2007
    By Mark Wilson
    21,013 views, 195 comments

    Latest by Thomaticus: I've been saying this everywhere I go... but if the HS is short is primarily due to the fact that more »