High poly-count renders and in-game meshes from the third Star Wars: Battlefront were leaked by one of Free Radical's former animators, revealing a partial look at who's in the game and what they look like.

Appearances from Star Wars regulars like Han Solo, Chancellor Palpatine and the Jawas look to join newcomers like Shara the Bounty Hunter and the Kimanoans, the forgettable long-necked alien species from the similarly forgettable Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones.

The renders, via SWBF3.de and the artist's various web sites, are dated from the end of 2007, so much could have changed during that time period. Whether Star Wars: Battlefront III will change even further at its rumored new home at Rebellion, remains to be seen.

The word last week had Free Radical founder Steve Ellis setting up shop at a new studio, called Pumpkin Beach, taking with him some of his former company's coders. There was some question as to whether Free Radical was being shuttered, or simply in administration, and also how many others lost their jobs.

It is in fact in administration, which means the company and its assets are for sale. Presumably that would include IP like TimeSplitters, and presumably it means someone could buy it without buying the developer outright, although severe cost-cutting makes the latter more reasonable. As for jobs, 140 people are being let go at the beginning of the year. Forty remain.

Free Radical Put Up for Sale as Jobs Cut [Play.tm]

We have no inclination if Free Radical plans to take your input seriously, or if it's looking for helpful formulas for disc replication — or if it's just toying with your emotions. Whatever the case, should you be emotionally invested in the TimeSplitters series, we'd recommend voicing your concerns.

The Wii is currently leading the poll, as of press time, by a very large margin.

I Want To Play TimeSplitters 4 on... [Free Radical - thanks, ]

Speaking with Free Radical script writer Rob Yescombe earlier today, he reiterated that Free Radical is indeed hard at work on Timesplitters 4.

"In the past Timesplitters has been very satirical at the expense of movies, this time it will be satirical at the expense of video games," Yescombe said.

The game is in the very early stages of development, Yescombe said. When I asked him what systems they were developing it for Yescombe said "unsigned at the moment."

Talking with Free Radical Design's Rob Yescombe and Derek Littlewood today, I asked them if they had seen the reaction Shigeru Miyamoto had to Haze. Both the video of his viewing the game and the reaction others felt he had to the game's use of drugs.

Both said they had. Yescombe said he thinks that perhaps Miyamoto misunderstood the deeper meaning in the game and in particular how it uses the drug Nectar to make a point, a very anti-drug point.

"The game is pretty disturbing and to be fair that's our intention," he said. "Drugs in the game was something that we wanted to be very careful about.The over-arching message is that Nectar is an enormous mistake."

"We didn't come up with the idea of including the drug first, we had the story and the distinction in gameplay ideas first and Nectar became a tool to get those points across."

While on the topic of Nintendo, I asked the two what the thought of the Wii in general and if they'd ever make a game for it.

"Let's just say there is a Wii in the office," Yescombe said laughing.

Littlewood said on a personal level he is intrigued with the new form of control the Wii offer to both gamers and developers.

"Personally, as a gamer, I think it has definite potential (as a first-person shooter controller)," he said. "It can be done, you can get really great FPS controls with the Wii. I think it has huge potential there."