<![CDATA[Kotaku: Lair]]> http://cache.kotaku.com/assets/base/img/thumbs140x140/kotaku.com.png <![CDATA[Kotaku: Lair]]> http://kotaku.com/tag/lair http://kotaku.com/tag/lair <![CDATA[A Reporter's Memories Of Factor 5]]> The closing of Factor 5 today is sure to affect many developers and gamers. With the studio shuttered, I'd like to share my experiences with it as a gamer and reporter. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5254220&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Factor 5 Officially Shuttered]]> There were layoffs and rumors of studio closings, but now it's finally confirmed. According to the company website, the San Rafael-based Factor 5 studio has officially closed its doors. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5253800&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[What Factor 5's Superman Once Looked Like...]]> Lair and Rogue Squadron developer Factor 5 was hard at work on a Superman video game before it contracted a near-fatal case of Brash Entertainment Publishing Agreement Syndrome. This is what that game looked like. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5167143&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Rumor: Factor 5 Sacks Half Its Staff]]> Lair developer Factor 5 was hit with layoffs today, cutting its staff in half after letting go a reported thirty-seven employees. Edge cites a "well placed source" who confirms the developer's recently publicized money woes. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5110872&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Rumor: Lair Dev Out Of Funding, Can't Pay Employees]]> Lair developer Factor 5 may be the latest to face harsh economic realities, according to a blog from one of its employees. Citing insufficient funding, Factor 5 allegedly had to put one unannounced project on hold. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=5104609&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Wises Up, Gets Analogue Controls]]> Poor Lair. Looked gorgeous, but, yeah. You know. Controls. Sucky. Well, the rumour that was so good it turned up twice in February has been confirmed by Sony, with a Lair patch due in Japan on April 17 adding the option of analogue controls for the much-maligned shooter. I know what you're going to say next. "Who gives a rat's arse? It's too late". And sure, on one hand, you may be right. On the other, though...this might bump the game from a C to a B- on your ratings scale. Which would mean picking it up on the cheap (and pretty soon, it's gonna be cheap) wouldn't be the stupidest thing you did this year. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=378601&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Analog Patch Confirmed?]]> Often rumored and much desired, Doug Allen from the IGN Blogs has reportedly gotten his hands on the analog controls for Factor 5's much-maligned PlayStation 3 game Lair, and claims they are the bomb - quite possibly the bomb diggity.
I played it and Holy shit; Greg needs to give them a new score. It was kind of clear that Factor 5 put in the extra effort a little begrudgingly, but the results were amazing. This might push me over the edge into the "must buy PS3" territory. I also mentioned Greg Miller's name, and the Factor 5 guys burned a hole through my skull with their looks of hatred. I think they'll be alright once the patch is out for a while though.
Sounds good to me, though since this is just a guy in a blog post we're going to have to chalk this up as a rumor right now. Why no official confirmation yet? With all the new stuff to look at, who is going to drop by the Lair kiosk? More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=359619&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Score Wins IFMCA Award]]> The International Film Music Critics Association have announced their 2007 award winners, and this year sees the debut of their Best Original Score for a Video Game or Interactive Media award, which recognizes the increasing importance of music in gaming and gaming as an entertainment medium. This year's winner is John Debney for the wonderful score to Lair for the PlayStation 3. While I didn't spend much time with the game myself, the music did indeed stand out, to the point where I thought it was a bit wasted on the game. If you'd like to hear this award-winning music without having to shell out $59.99 for a game hardly worth $59.99, then hit up iTunes, where the whole shebang can be yours for $9.99. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=358331&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Factor 5 To Tweak Lair Controls?]]> In between trying to convince IGN that the only people who found Lair's controls to be woeful were "hardcore" gamers, Factor 5 boss Julian Eggebrecht raises the possibility that those same controls might be tweaked in a future update for the title:
If we find a chance in the future that would bring Lair to the audience which didn't get any access, that would be fantastic. I can't say anything quite yet, but there might be something in the works there. We might have a chance yet to bring those back to the table and hopefully, if that should happen, they would give the game a second chance.
Now, he might be talking about "doing a Capcom" and bringing it to the Wii, but since their Wii game is all-new, that's doubtful. No, he's probably talking about a patch or the PS3 Greatest Hits/Platinum re-release coming bundled with the option of stick controls. Or both! More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=355272&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Developer Goes To Wii]]> Factor 5's Lair wasn't exactly the most well received of PlayStation 3 games, despite its often-pretty graphics. It was generally blasted for inaccurate SIXAXIS control, unreliable SIXAXIS control and craptastic SIXAXIS control, among a few other things we don't remember. According to a report from IGN, the team has decided to give game development and motion control a go on another platform, bringing an unnamed game to the Wii. F5 boss man Julian Eggebrecht told the outlet that the team is hard at work on something that's not for the Virtual Console and not running on GameCube era Star Wars Rogue Squadron tech, with IGN believing that it's not a waggle-filled PilotWings sequel. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=344690&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[AP's Worst Games of 2007]]> The Associated Press just published their worst of 2007 list for video games. The straight forward list includes Manhunt 2, Deal or No Deal and Lair along with some biting explanation: More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=337856&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Julian Eggebrecht Defends Lair. Again.]]> Factor 5 honcho Julian Eggebrecht must be exhausted from constantly "defending" his company's poorly received PLAYSTATION 3 title Lair and its hit-or-miss SIXAXIS controls. G4 caught up with the Dragon's Lair fanboy at Tokyo Game Show to get one more justification out of Mr. Eggebrecht whose game has been retitled Rise From Lair in Japan. I respect what Factor 5 was trying to do, but trying to target gamers who aren't hardcore with a PS3 game? Simply puzzling. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=309412&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Soundtrack on iTunes (...thanks?)]]> Fans of Lair will be happy to know that the official soundtrack is available on iTunes for download. And while we understand that Lair isn't necessarily GOTY, the music has received a nomination from BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) for Best Original Score. To find the album, just search iTunes for "John Debney Lair." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=306604&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Dev Dogs WarHawk Motion Controls]]> If you were to engage in a round of word association with Julian Eggebrecht of Factor 5 and you were to mention, say, Warhawk's in-flight SIXAXIS motion controls, he might respond with "Eurgh!" Actually, that's exactly what he did when speaking to Games Radar recently, telling the pub that he sees motion control as a "complimentary, additional new step in terms of controls and where it fits you should use it and where it doesn't fit, don't force it." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=301241&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Eggebrecht: Wii Games Should Look Better]]> Factor Five's Julian Eggebrecht may have taken some knocks on the chin for Lair's gameplay, but not many were complaining about the unquestionably stellar graphics of the title. And that's pretty much enough for me to name him an unquestionable authority on every platform's individual graphical nuances (and anything else necessary for this article to be extremely important). Right now, Eggebrecht's questioning an industry that's all but given up on the Wii ever making pretty games:
If you connect you can get a lot of shader effects which would've been on the 360 or the PS3...it's got so much more power compared to the GameCube. If even with the extremely similar shader hardware, the system clockrate is so much higher, you can do so much more advanced things.
So why does he think games aren't looking better? More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=298645&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Frankenreview - Lair (PS3)]]> Factor 5's Lair got one bad review. And after that, the levies broke and the criticism came pouring in. Now, in the wake of carnage, we can step back and see where things seemingly went wrong. (Of course, not having played the final build, I stubbornly stand by my impressions.) More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=296827&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[The Lair Curse and Hot Coffee]]> Stephen Totilo has an interesting story up on Factor 5's struggle with Lair and how the developers thought it was cursed from the beginning nearly two years ago. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=296793&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[The Lair Lighter]]> The folks at SCEA sent me this spiffy Lair-themed lighter along with my copy of the Playstation 3 game. Expect to see it hit a contest on the site in the near future. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=296211&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Playing on My PSP2K]]> More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=295887&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Play Lair on Your PSP]]> The mounting buzz on the Playstation forums are true, you can play Lair on your PSP using Remote Play. Well, you can sorta play Lair on your PSP using Remote Play. Unfortunately the PSP does not have the R2 or L2 buttons, so you can't brake, but who needs to brake anyway. Sure it makes the end bosses and many of the levels a lot easier, but honestly, not that big a deal. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=295886&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[What Are You Playing This Weekend?]]> Having just returned from Germany last night, freshly ill from too little sleep, I'm most likely going to be playing a Circadian rhythm game with my mind and body. Presumably, I'll get back in the groove just in time to go to Tokyo and muck it all up again. In the digital world, I'll be playing some Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and possibly even a little Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix online. I'll be getting my ass kicked, of course, as I've never been that good at the game. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=295561&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Liveblogging Lair]]> Alright, on to Lair. I actually have to review this game for a magazine, so I thought why not let you guys come along for a bit of the ride. Hit the jump to comment along as I play through the beginning of the game. I'd love to hear what you think. I'm still on the line about the game. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=295364&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Week In Games: Gundam Corruption 08]]> This week represents a late summer perfect storm of video game release hype. With a series of massive releases hitting store shelves this week, including Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Lair, Blue Dragon and Warhawk, one can hardly believe this is August, not the middle of November. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=293899&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Sloppy Seconds - Lair]]> Click to viewContinuing my second takes from the floor of GC07 in Leipzig, I had my first hands-on with Lair (despite being within feet of a playable station on more than one occasion). After playing for about 15 minutes, here are my thoughts (I like it, btw): More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=292997&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Eggebrecht - Licensed or Little IPs Good, Big IPs Bad]]> Factor Five's Julian Eggebrecht, following what's started as a shaky response to Lair, has reassessed his position on licensing IPs. Addressing a crowd in roundtable discussion, here was his experiential advice. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=291674&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Dev Wants More Sex, Drugs, Rock 'N Roll In Games]]> Factor 5's Julian Eggebrecht opened the GC Developers Conference with a bold keynote titled "No Sex, No Drugs and Little Rock & Roll" in which he expressed his concern over the self-enforced ratings system on video games, specifically certain events surrounding "bizarre" ESRB decisions. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=291211&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[From Passion of the Christ to Lair]]> Hollywood music composer John Debney, who scored Passion of the Christ and Sin City, wrote up a little piece on his work composing the soundtrack for upcoming PS3 title Lair. He says the soundtrack can best be described as "operatic, ethnically rich, lyrical, elegant and, at the same time, tragic." More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=289338&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Delayed To September]]> Retailer Gamestop notified customers today that Factor 5's PLAYSTATION 3 game Lair wouldn't make its intended ship date of August 14th, as recently announced, and will be delayed into the first week of September. We contacted SCEA reps but received no response before press time. However, a new posting at the official PlayStation Blog confirms that Lair will make its way to store shelves on September 4th, three weeks later than originally planned. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=285027&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Done, Ships Aug. 14]]> Dragon-riding, fire-breathing, Brian-taunting PS3 title Lair has officially gone gold and is set to ship to stores on Aug. 14, the official Playstation blog reports. The game does still have to go through localization for Europe, Japan and Korea but is for the most part wrapped up. Heck, it's already been sent to manufacturing. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=282551&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Impressions]]> Ah Lair. You and I, we have quite the tempestuous relationship. When we first met your looks blew me away, but the more I got to know you the less I seemed to like you. You were confusing, needy, shallow, everything I hate in a relationship, but I couldn't stay away. Now I'm happy I didn't. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=278630&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Sony To Stream Press Conference Online]]> Your options for watching the press conferences of E3 live have just increased as Sony has announced that they'll be streaming their own presentation live online. On Wednesday July 11 at 11:30 AM PDT, a live conference feed will appear on the official PlayStation web site, giving non-E3 attendees a chance to bask in the glory of whatever the hell Sony will be showing that day. In addition, as noted earlier, new E3-related content will be added to the PlayStation Store following the conclusion of the conference. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=276535&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Another Look At Lair]]> Every time I look at Factor 5's dragon game Lair, I want to touch it—stroke it's pretty textures, gaze into its gorgeous lighting effects, write love sonnets detailing my passion for its well-crafted dragon models. But whenever I seem to get my hands on a build of the game, I walk away disappointed, heartbroken. Is it that my expectations for Lair are so high? I'm starting to think some of my reluctance to enjoy actually playing the game is in part due to its camera system, which seems to drain Lair of its expected cinematic flair. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=272990&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair's Extended Battle Trailer]]> I still have very mixed feelings about this game. On the one hand the controls and user interface still felt a bit too wonky for me the last time I played it, but on the other hand you get to ride dragons and check out this trailer. Damn, I hope they fix it up before it hits the PS3. Brian Crecente More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=270572&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Gets New Title in Japan]]> PS3 title Lair is getting a newfangled name for Japan: Rise From Lair. It's not unusual for titles to get localized for release — for example, take FolksSouls which was retitled Folk Lore for the West. No word whether the game will be retitled for the West, but geez, we hope not! Rise From Lair sounds like a poorly titled sequel to Lair. Brian Ashcraft More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=264640&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[PlayStation Store Update: Joust, Uncharted, MLB The Show]]> Today's update to the PlayStation Store? It's better than nothing! As promised by Sony Online Entertainment, Joust makes an appearance in the Downloadable Games section. Additionally seven new trailers are ready to download. Yeah! Seven! It's a regular media blitz! More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=263408&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Still Not Winning Me Over]]> Lair keeps surprising and disappointing me. And I know I'm not the only one. When I came back from playing the game this last time around, I told Mike McWhertor that it felt like a mixed bag to me and Mike said he was giving up on the game, at least for now. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=261383&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Analyst: PS3 Needs Price Cut, Good Games]]> Despite a projected year-over-year increase in software sales of 15% (like, billions!) in North America, analyst Colin Sebastian of Lazard Ltd. says that the PLAYSTATION 3 isn't going to lead the charge in software sales unless some fairly obvious things happen. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=258469&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Factor 5 Ponders New Turrican Games]]> Gamasutra is reporting that Factor 5, currently hard at work on the PLAYSTATION 3 exclusive Lair, may be revisiting the Turrican franchise. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=255043&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[Lair Dev Loves PS3, Not So Much Rumble]]> Dean Takahashi sat down with Lair dev Julian Eggebrecht to talk about his company Factor 5's upcoming PLAYSTATION 3 game. In it, Eggebrecht gives a moderately convincing argument on why Sony's SIXAXIS not having rumble isn't such a bad thing. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=252726&view=rss&microfeed=true <![CDATA[New Lair Footage... Holy Crap]]> Factor 5 and Sony had a Lair event a couple weeks ago, showing off the latest build of their PLAYSTATION 3 exclusive. I may have done my share of poo-pooing of the flying dragon game in the past, but it really does look like it's coming together. More »
]]> http://kotaku.com/index.php?op=postcommentfeed&postId=252219&view=rss&microfeed=true