Bionic Commando: Rearmed Not Dated For Japan [Updated]

Bionic Commando: Rearmed has been dated for Japan. The game was hit the PSN on July 31st, and on Xbox Live Arcade on July 30th. Hey, that's this month! But as reader TeeT points out, now the PSN and XBLA game has been pushed back, and the release date is now undecided. Pictured is BCR producer Ben Judd. In shorts.

プレイステーション3、Xbox 360版ともに配信日は未定 [Famitsu Thanks, Josef!] [Pic]

Bionic Commando Rearmed's PS3-Only Features (Remote Play Is Go)

Bionic Commando Rearmed might be coming to both Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network, but that's not to say both versions are identical. Capcom's Ben Judd has teased that they have a "VERY cool surprise for those of you who purchase the PSN version". So not cool, then, but VERY cool. Guess that'll be revealed next week. Something revealed today, however, is the fact the game will also support Remote Play via your PSP, which really, is as VERY cool a surprise as we need.

Bionic Commando: Rearmed, PSN Features: Revealed [PlayStation.Blog]

You Can Buy The Bionic Commando Rearmed Soundtrack

Even though Bionic Commando: Rearmed has been delayed, the soundtrack hasn't! The music is available for purchase on places like iTunes and Sumthing Digital. Money-hating Bionic Commando producer Ben Judd, who allowed gamers to chose a cheaper price point for BCR, once again explains why he hates money:

Bionic Commando Rearmed Misses May Launch

This is MA-1. Sir, we know you've been waiting to get your hands on the finished Bionic Commando Rearmed, but it appears we've run into a few problems in the closing stages. I regret to inform you that we have received confirmation that the game won't be making its scheduled May release.

How To Bring The West to Japan

Fact: There are differences between Western and Japanese games. Intrinsic differences that sometimes make it hard to bring Western games to Japan. The words, the phrases, the idioms — they're familiar to you. It's English, and chances are if you are reading this, the language is either your mother tongue or a second tongue or neither and you've happened on this page by accident. But for a segment of Japanese gamers, Western games are just not playable no thanks to the language barrier. But some of those differences arise from the background of developers.

The vast majority of Japanese devs have an arcade background, and if an arcade game is going to be a hit, it needs to work, it needs to be tight and snap. If you put in a coin in a buggy game that locks up or freaks out, you'll complain to the arcade manager, who will then complain to his boss, who will then complain to his boss, who will complain to that game's publisher. Shit's gotta work. While the arcade scene is very much alive in Japan, it's not in the States, and most developers are coming in with a strong PC gaming background. If shit's broken, patch, patch, patch! "Japanese games have very few collision problems — hands, arms going through walls, etc," says Capcom producer and former localization head Ben Judd. "When western gamers see in-game collision issues, they don't care as long as they're having a good time. That's just not acceptable for the Japanese." Things like A.I. and programming is where Western devs really shine, while Japan picks up the slack on things like textures.

Other things that separate Western and Japanese games, points out Judd, include such seemingly small things like "Japanese player typically don't like controlling two thumbsticks are once — they get sick" and "Japanese players like a strong tutorial." Japanese players, says Judd, prefer that characters are skewed slightly younger and have more anime-style qualities, while Western gamers favor 30 year-old bald men. "RPGs are popular," says Judd. "Players don't typically like the first person point of view and want to see their character. It makes it easier for them to support that character." No wonder Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto has found a welcome audience in Japan.

Where Bionic Commando And Nintendo Stand

Hot Bionic Commando On Bionic Commando Multiplayer Action

They say ignorance is bliss, whoever "they" are, and the new batch of multiplayer focused media for Capcom's Bionic Commando Rearmed proves it. To me, anyway, as I was blissfully ignorant of the fact that Rearmed had such a strong multiplayer component, with team deathmatch, free-for-all and more in the features department. Now, I'm experiencing multiplayer knowledge bliss! I suppose I'll have to reeducate myself on the XBLA and PSN remake to see what else I've been missing. Hey! A swinging mechanical arm! Neat!

Hey kids! Better get a parent's permission before purchasing Capcom's Bionic Commando: Rearmed for Xbox Live Arcade or PlayStation 3! Various ratings organizations have made the call, and the game has gotten mature ratings all around, due to violence and such. The announcement is being made via the Bionic Commando website in the form of a cute little faux in-game communique, which makes references to other Capcom titles like Lost Planet and Dead Rising. Just remember kids, if your parents give you any grief, the game is all about making Hitler's head explode, and if they don't support that sort of thing they are goose-stepping, tiny-mustache wearing Nazi supporters.

Bionic Commando Comminucator [Official Site via Videogaming247]

Bionic Commando Rearmed, Shipping Soonish

Good news! XBLA and PSN title Bionic Commando Rearmed seems like it's getting one step closer to digital shipping. On developer GRIN's official site, the game's Creative Director Simon Viklund blogs:

The final date for completing Bionic Commando Rearmed is closing in - we're stabilizing the game and polishing all the details now, and soon this product of almost a year of late nights and hard work will ship to a digital distribution channel near you!

...Within weeks we will see with sad eyes how it leaves to enter the approval process, and I'm sure that just days after things have calmed down here at the office and our schedules say "wait and see", the team and I will already start longing to get back to the backbreaking work we've gotten used to during the project.

[there were a] huge number of user comments that we received, where a majority were suggesting they would pay $15 or even $20 for the game.

Bionic Commando Producer Chimes In About XBLA Limits

Microsoft's willing to bend the rules! As we posted earlier, the 150 MB file limit that's standard for Xbox LIVE Arcade titles has been ditched for Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix and Bionic Commando Rearmed. This ensures that Xbox 360 owners and PS3 owners don't get vastly different games. Does this mean Microsoft is setting a new policy? That the 150 MB limit is a thing of the past? For now, probably not. Though, Bionic Commando producer Ben Judd does think it's important for Microsoft to look at each Arcade title individually, and apparently Microsoft is doing just that. Says Judd:

It would be nice if they would adapt a policy of determining what the size limit would be based on the concepts submissions they are getting in. With BCR it features 20 different levels, 20 enemies, multiple attacks, next-gen shadows, scripting, 50 challenge stages, lots of sound effects, hi-res art from CJ's best artist, etc, etc. If you put that much in you just need more space if you are shooting for HD quality graphics as well. On the other hand, I don't think a game like Tetris (even if it is HD) would require as must space as say an MGS game due to it's huge amount of voice.

I think standards are good for maintaining consistancy across a brand image. Sony, Nintendo, and MS all have policies concerning naming, icons, and features but still you need to be able to take a case by case approach on occasion if you see a title that you think really needs to bend the rules a bit.

Bionic Commando Not Gimped On XBLA, Either

Capcom has a solid relationship with both Sony and Microsoft, as evidenced by the amount of titles we have released for the two systems, both at retail and digitally. Given the huge amount of content going into Bionic Commando Rearmed and Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix (turns out, hand-drawn art takes up a lot of space at 1080p!), Microsoft has allowed Capcom to work with a larger file size limit for both games.

We already checked out Bionic Commando Rearmed at GDC and since the Capcom Digital Day build was the same and they really weren't giving out any new details (besides the $10 price tag) so until some new info arrives you can occupy yourself by perusing these screens.

Choose Your Own Adventure, Bionic Commando Style!

Capcom has unveiled a brand new contest for all you Bionic Commando fans out there. They've issued a challenge for players to design their own "challenge level" for Bionic Commando Rearmed. They're not too picky about how you enter, either. From carefully crafting your masterpiece in painstaking detail in Illustrator, to scrawling your dream level in blood on the back of a napkin, they'll take it all (although I can't imagine that last one is recommended). The challenge levels are described on the Capcom blog as "timed obstacle courses for you to flex your swinging skills," and the BCR team will choose one winning level to be included in the game, along with your name in the credits and all the internet fame one could possibly want.

Full details are available at the Capcom blog, including contest rules, deadlines, sample challenge levels, and which pieces you need to use in order to create your perfect level (as shown in the pic). The contest started yesterday and will end Wednesday, March 12, at 11:59 PM PST. So get doodling!

Contest: Design a Challenge Room for Bionic Commando Rearmed + Get in the Game! [Capcom Community Blog, via IGN]

XBLA Bionic Commando Gimped Due To Size Restrictions

So, Which Bionic Commando Are You Jazzed About?

Ten or Fifteen Bucks, How Much Will You Pay?

...the team and I fell in love with the game and ended up putting a lot more time, effort, and money into the project than initially planned. Personally, since the goal is to make this game for the fans and to get the world to see what makes Bionic Commando so special, I want to sell it for about US$10.

Let's Learn About Bionic Commando Rearmed