We haven't heard of this Siren in the Maelstorm. What the heck is it? "Silicon Knights is busy working on several exciting projects," a spokesperson told game site Eurogamer. "Unfortunately, it is too early to disclose any details."

Then, we shall wait.

Besides Too Human, Silicon Knights has also developed Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Eternal Darkness and now "several exciting projects".

Silicon Knights quiet on Siren name News [Eurogamer]

According to DePetris, "I’m just looking for something different." What exactly that is, DePetris does not yet know, adding, That’s something I am going to worry about in the new year,” he said. “But I am going to stay involved in the community, and I am not planning on leaving."

The exec was instrumental in collaborating with the Ontario government on various game initiatives that helped fuel the company. DePetris is not severing ties as he will continue to work "closely" with SK president Denis Dyack (pictured), Silicon Knights stated.

Silicon Knights exec calls it quits [St. Catherine Standard via ENDSIGHTS]

Wired's writers came up with a list of ten and I'm not surprised to see any of them on this list, even Dead Space, which I touted relentlessly in the run-up to its release. Truth is, I never heard anything to make me overcome my fear of it. Naturally, the write-up beats on Too Human some more, and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed should have been number one on this list, in my opinion. What was? What else should have been? Check the link, and continue the argument over here.

The 10 Most Disappointing Games of 2008 [Wired]

The soundtrack, which was originally scored by Steve Henifin and performed by the FILMharmonic Orchestra and Choir Prague, is selling for $10 to $17 through Amazon.com, Best Buy, iTunes and CD label's Sumthing Distribution's website.

I can dig listening to a bit of Too Human when relaxing, maybe as ambient sound. But the write for the soundtrack's release totally lost me.

The music ranges by location and scenario. There are moments of long beds of orchestral music, followed by electronic/metal sounding tracks that put the listener into a different space altogether. There are also vast ambient tracks that are made of layers upon layers of sample-based sounds and evolving electronic sounding textures as well.

OK, I've got you so far...

So while the music and audio is Norse in its presentation, it is not exclusively Norse in its sound. It branches out quite a bit, but still stays in the realm of an ancient lost world of technology. It also has its moments using a more aggressive contemporary sound. In places, the Silicon Knights audio team brought in layers of electronic elements, but in a more subtle way. The cyber elements are more elegant and organic in style. In some cases the song style was influenced by the style of the instrument itself, whether that be a Balaban, Bone flute, Frame Drum, Bagpipe or something else, making the phrasing and general feel of a song constructed around the characteristic of that one instrument.

Annnnnnd, I'm lost.

Silicon Knights was reported to be working on a "third-person action/psychological thriller" and enjoying a long term relationship with Sega. It is also not ruling out revisiting Eternal Darkness.

We were told by Sega reps back in June to expect the unveiling of the Silicon Knights project "in the coming months" after a video, incorrectly identified to be that project, was leaked from market research firm Intellisponse.

We've contacted Sega reps to get confirmation on the rumored change in plans.

An anonymous reader contacted us this afternoon to let us know the Canadian-based developer behind Too Human has let us know that about 10:30 a .m. today 25 to 30 employees were brought into the lecture theater inside the office and told they were being laid off.

"It seemed as though most of those laid off were people who had been hired to work for the company within the last year or so, however many had been heavily involved in the production of Too Human."

Reached for comment Monday Silicon Knights officials had this to say:

After any big game ships, there is often some attrition. Teams are lean and mean in the beginning, grow toward the end of the project, and then whittle down once the project is finished. To that end, Silicon Knights temporarily laid-off 26 employees today while they ramp up on other projects. All the company’s directors and leads are still at Silicon Knights and working on its next projects.

The slight cutback comes after four years of unprecedented growth for the St. Catharines’, Ontario (Canada) company, during which its headcount had expanded to more than 180 employees.

Denis Dyack, President and founder of the company, stated, “Silicon Knights is currently working on several new and exciting games that will be announced to the public in the coming months. In addition to those projects, Silicon Knights continues to develop and promote other new and original ideas, which will become the innovative games of tomorrow. These 26 individuals are hard-working and valued team members that we hope to bring back as we ramp up on our future projects.”

Carman Dix, Art director of Too Human:
Underneath, Denis is still that boy that genuinely loves video games with a passion.

Henry Sterchi, Director of design of Too Human:
Denis is sincerely passionate about the quality of everything Silicon Knights does, and with that passion comes some of his outspokenness and desire to interact with the community.

Steve Henifin, Audio director of Too Human:
One of the things I like about Denis is that he is a tenacious person and he takes risks. I respect him for that, because I’m the same way.

That's nice and all... What do you really think?

‘Too Human’ Developers Share Impressions Of Denis Dyack [Multiplayer] [Pic]

X3F Presents: Silicon Knights studio tour [X3F]

Too Human set out to be epic and it delivered on at least one level: Denis Dyack's painfully personal reaction to the previews and reviews made for a soap opera drama of epic proportions on gaming forums and websites international. But what about the game, did it deliver on the same epic level as Dyack's wounded ego?

Loved:
May I Have This Fray?: Too Human is a button masher free of button mashing. That's one of the things the action title does so well. Initially, playing with very few button pushes is strange, even unnerving. But as you master the art of double thumbstick combat, the rolling dungeon brawls become more about spacing, tactics, timing, then they do about tapping A over and over again. Combat becomes almost terpsichorean as you slip from attacker to attacker, unloading powerful blows that some times launch them through the air.

Bountiful Armor and Weapons : Too Human is packed to the gills with different weapons and armor, hundreds of thousands of them. While the Too Human naming convention can result in some pretty goofy titles, the sheer volume is a role-playing gamers fantasy. Throw into the mix that each looks quite unique, that you can collect sets, and the fact that you can augment almost everything with Runes and you turn equipping almost into a mini-game.

Unique World: Silicon Knights' blending of Norse mythology with cyberspace initially comes off as a bit hackneyed (especially when you're introduced to a seemingly random taste of Beowulf), but it grows on you. The concepts are all solid, and some are even sublime, like the body snatching Valkyries and robot goblins, trolls and dark elves. It's a peculiar take on a familiar world that doesn't try to take center stage to the game but still manages to slightly bewilder you in its delivery.

Diverse Skills and Alignment Trees:Running there right along side that mammoth, almost never-ending selection of weapons, armor and runes, are the ever branching skill and alignment trees. Each of the five classes in the game have more than a dozen skills to choose from and build up, running along different paths. Players are also asked to choose an alignment a bit into the game, giving them another nine skills to work on. It's all lends itself to a high level of customization in the way you want to play the game and plenty of tweaking, almost reminiscent of a pen and paper RPG.

Hated:
I'm a God Not A...:Mountain climber, or hiker, or guy who likes to walk anywhere that isn't strictly defined in the game. Come on! Baldur is a God, why can't he walk the less traveled path? It's down right annoying that I can't make my way though a collection of shrubs in the middle of a map, but that each of this god's mighty leaps results in the sound of rolling thunder.

Graphic Glitches: When I played through the preview of Too Human I was struck by how beautiful the game can look at times, but I was more struck by how many graphic glitches and annoying little visual and audio bugs there were in the game. Then when I received the review code I saw much of the same issues, so I waited for the retail code. Guess what? Still there.

CyberWTF: I get what Silicon Knights is going for and in many ways I like it. The modernization of an ancient mythology is very tantalizing and gives gamers a lot of meat to chew on. But the element of cyberspace, however good it might look on paper, feels like a time-fluffing waste. Instead of opening a door I have to go to a well, walk twenty steps, push a button, walk back, leave the well and open a door. I'm sure the developers will better explore this concept in future games, but that's no reason to punish gamers now.

Epic Confusion: Too Human sets itself out to be an epic tale, one so vast it needs to be told in three games. I buy that and actually can't wait to dive into the second game. But the first felt like a plunge into the middle of a story that I wasn't even sure I wanted to care about yet. This sort of starting in the middle approach might work for some, but Silicon Knights just doesn't have the chops to pull it off. The result is a storyline so convoluted that a gamer's initial pass is likely to leave them more confused than caring.

Character Development: If you want to sell a game with its story you have to make characters people care about. In Too Human the main characters are so flat, so underdeveloped that it's hard to feel anything when they start dropping like flies. The same can be said for game lead Baldur, who with a complex back story and conflicting motives should be someone you easily empathize with. But that connection never seems to happen.

Multiplayer: When is multiplayer co-op not multiplayer co-op? When it's delivered in bite-sized chunks that strip out the cut-scenes and plot. Multiplayer gaming is supposed to be about the act of mutual discovery, experiencing something together. But the fact that characters of any level, no matter how disparate, can make their way through the game in any order they want turns the experience into more of a treasure hunt than voyage.

The most exciting part of Too Human is its ending. That's not meant to be a back-handed compliment. I'm not saying I relished not playing the game anymore. I'm talking about that final cut scene, one that delivers more hope, more possibility than almost all of Too Human managed to muster in its relatively short play through. The fact that it excited me, though, also means that over the course of the game I guess I grew to like Too Human and become a bit fond of its idiosyncrasies. I'd hate to suggest a game based on what it's sequel might deliver, but that's what I'm doing.

The absurdly diverse reaction Too Human is more a product of expectation than any major flaw in game design. Sure it could have used some more polish and this first game in a trilogy, perhaps, should have kicked off at a more interesting point in the overarching story, but it wasn't a bad game.

Too Human, developed by Silicon Knights, published by Microsoft Game Studio and released Aug. 19 for the Xbox 360. Retails for $59.99. Played through single-player campaign using review code once and final, boxed retail code once. Played through more than two chapters in multplayer matches.

Confused by our reviews? Read our review FAQ.

[2chan]

Microsoft Game Studios and Silicon Knights are committed to finishing the first instalment, but Too Human is an overarching epic with a rich and vast game universe that cannot be told in one instalment.

This game will begin the saga of the god Baldur in the narrative tradition of classic trilogies, such as Star Wars and Lord Of The Rings. We will talk about the full trilogy and we are very excited about its potential.

Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Too Human? All in the same Microsoft breath.

Too Human trilogy ‘very exciting’, says Microsoft [MCVUK]

Hit the jump for our Epic Frankenreview.

The Guardian
The Guardian did not provide a score or grade.
I've tried to love Too Human, I really have. For a start action role playing games - think Diablo 2 etc - are rarely found on the consoles. And those that are tend to emphasise the hack and slash action over the deeper character development stuff. Too Human has skill trees, levelling, looting, big guns, co-op - heck, this should be great, right? Sadly not. Repetitive action, bland graphics, iffy controls, technical glitches - for a game that has been in development for years this is unforgivable. Or maybe the protracted birth explains the game's flaws? The clumsy inventory and general lack of interface polish are possibly symptomatic of an overly inward looking development process. Or maybe I've been spoilt by the likes of WoW? But with the amount of inventory management that Too Human requires you'll wish there was a more elegant solution.

NZ Gamer
Presented in-engine, the cinematics are horrible. They are poorly scripted, poorly animated (for the most part) and just downright painful to watch. Much ado was made about the cinematic capabilities of Too Human, with Denis Dyack (the head cheese at Sillicon Knights, the studio behind Too Human) talking about how this was the next step in story telling and would really blow people away. One can only assume that the good stuff got left on the cutting room floor because what shipped in the title really is quite poor - garishly so compared to the likes of Heavenly Sword, but even old PS2 games like Tomb Raider would have beaten this presentation hands down. It's unfortunate but it's hardly a show stopper - you don't even see them at all in multiplayer, which is where most hardcore players will spend most of their time.

GamePro
Baldur maybe a little bland and walks around like he's got something pointy in his boots but put a crowd of enemies in front of him and he suddenly turns into an Olympic speed-skater. With simple rotations of the analog sticks, you can send Baldur flying across the screen like an angry hornet, doling out punishment with bright sparks and the satisfying clank of metal on metal. The combat system is pretty slick, letting you launch guys into the air and then juggle them with gunfire to rack up combo points for devastating "ruiner" attacks, or leap up to get out of the fray and bash them silly. I personally loved every minute of it. The targeting system is less helpful when using guns because it stubbornly "sticks" to one particular enemy when you're frantically trying to target another, but the action is intense and enjoyable nonetheless.

The HD Room
Is Too Human a dismissible "hack and slash" best eternally shelved with the likes of Kingdom Under Fire as reported from E3 2006? At times in the thick of battle it sure feels like it. But even when staleness creeps into combat and urges to "save and quit" grow, there’s the enticing payoff of leveling up one more time in the quest to reach level 50 or trigger the next extensive cut-scene unraveling a story on-par with, or better than, most of what airs on the Sci-Fi Channel. Diablo may continue to skirt around ever appearing on Xbox 360 or Playstation 3, but Too Human is finally here and has a legitimate shot at successfully picking up some of the big production action/RPG-on-consoles slack.

GameSpot
Too Human drops a juicy plot development at the most inopportune time: its very end. It's the obvious manner of setting up a sequel, the infamous "to be continued..." we've come to expect from television shows and, yes, even some modern video games. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it exemplifies the core experience of this action/role-playing hybrid. Too Human is a game of false starts and unrealized potential that infiltrate almost every aspect of the game, from story, to combat, to balance. Its elements feel stitched together, making for a patchwork quilt of a game that's fraying at the seams.

Our review won't run until later this week because we've decided not to review the review code which was sent out early but with several notes that it didn't represent the final and completely polished product. Instead I'm just finishing up the final, boxed retail code (my second full time through the game) and will be posting our review later this week.

Too Human isn't just a science fiction reinterpretation of Norse mythology, nor is it just a philosophical look at humanity's growing reliance on technology, nor is it just a cautionary tale about the nature of war, nor is it just an action game. Definitely don't judge it as just an action game. No, Too Human is, among all of these other things, a chance at salvation for an entire city in Ontario, Canada. Or thus spake Dyack in a recent interview with his home town paper.

"If Too Human does what we expect it will (in the marketplace), then it can change the world for St. Catharines and Niagara," Dyack said Friday from his office at One St. Paul Street.

...

There is a great deal riding on the success of Too Human for Silicon Knights, which employs 160 people. If the game is a hit, it will not only allow the company to grow, but will fuel Dyack's larger agenda for the city and region.

"I've said this before. I want to see a campus here in Niagara dedicated to interactive information technology," he said.

Dyack sees Niagara as suffering from a kind of inferiority complex that keeps it from reaching its full potential. The problem is compounded by the steady decline of the manufacturing sector. Video-game development and its associated industries might help build a new knowledge-based economy for the region, Dyack said.

So not only will you make Dyack cry if you don't buy Too Human, you'll kill a town. See if you can sleep with yourself then!

Long-awaited offering by Silicon Knights may represent the future of city's economy [The Standard]

Hit the jump for the full press release with pre-order info:

Now is the Time to Become a god Amongst Men; Xbox 360 Exclusive Too Human has Gone Gold

Xbox LIVE Marketplace demo downloads surpass 900,000

Microsoft Game Studios and Silicon Knights announced today that the blockbuster action RPG “Too Human” has gone gold and will be shipping to retailers throughout North America on August 19. In anticipation of the title’s release, gamers can jump into the first level of “Too Human” with a demo now available on Xbox LIVE. The Too Human demo has already been downloaded more than any other action demo on Xbox LIVE Marketplace in its first week of availability and has been one of the top played titles on Xbox LIVE overall. In addition, gamers that pre-order will get access to five exclusive armor sets, one for each class in the game.

A modern take on classical Norse mythology, the Xbox 360 exclusive “Too Human” chronicles the epic story of cybernetic god, Baldur, and his quest to save humanity at the potential price of sacrificing his own humanity. By combining elements of both action and RPG genres – along with the ability to fully customize Baldur’s weaponry, armor, and combat techniques – Too Human creates a truly unique gameplay experience. Players can also invite a friend to join the explosive combat via advanced, online two-player co-op gameplay on Xbox LIVE *.

“Too Human” will have an estimated retail price of $59.99 and is rated “T” for Teen. For more information, visit www.xbox.com/toohuman.

*Online co-op play requires Xbox LIVE Gold Membership.

Too Human Gold [Gamerscore Blog]

You're not still reading, obviously, but keep an eye peeled for our similar line of interviews coming soon. They'll feature myself and Mike Fahey in Craftmatic adjustable beds interviewing industry luminaries in our PJs. As soon as someone agrees, we'll start filming. Any day now...

Denis Dyack Explains Too Human To Our Penthouse Pets, Part 1 [Das Gamer]

Dyack recognizes this dichotomy, and says that cut scenes in themselves are not a problem, but rather his fellow designers have implemented them poorly:

Over the last five to ten years, so many games have been released where cut scenes are absolutely meaningless. They don’t contribute to the content and don’t contribute to the characters. They’re almost like some kind of reward for completing the level, and that makes absolutely no sense.

As game designers we have to go beyond that. Cut scenes have to contribute to the game. That’s a really good rule for people to follow. And it shows you that the classics, well, we still have a lot to learn from the classics.

So what will he do about cut scenes in his Too Human?

Too Human will have cut scenes, but I think that we've managed to blur the line between what people would consider a cut scene and what people consider in-game. See, part of the reason we as designers want to use cut scenes is because it allows us to be cinematographers, and that's fine. But in-game, Too Human will use a dynamic, intelligent camera system that presents the in-game in a more cinematic light, at the same time being conducive to good gameplay.

Seems to me that's the logical goal, given both the advantages and disadvantages of cut scenes. And I'd guess that most of the games we've got these days that use cut scenes badly were actually an attempt to do them well. Easy to say, hard to do?

Denis Dyack Writes for Edge [Edge Online]

The demo was unveiled on Xbox Live last week — were you too caught up in E3 craziness, or did you catch it? We had a lengthy discussion on it here at Kotaku last week, in case you missed it. What do you think, Europe? Looking forward?

And on the off chance you have no idea what we're even talking about, Microsoft has helpfully offered full details in the announcement after the jump.

The Epic World of Too Human is Available Across Europe this August, exclusively on Xbox 360

Microsoft today announced the European release date of “Too Human”, the epic third person action game from renowned Canadian developer Silicon Knights. Exclusive to Xbox 360™,“Too Human” will be available across Europe from 29th August 2008.

In this modern take on classical Norse mythology, players are thrust into the midst of an apocalyptic battle that threatens the very existence of mankind. Playing as the divine cybernetic son of Odin, Baldur, you are one of the Aesir, humanity’s protectors charged with defending mankind from the onslaught of ancient machine armies.

As“Too Human” chronicles this epic story, the game breaks the genre barrier by combining elements of both the action and RPG genres. Players are treated to a non-stop barrage of action, powered by the seamless integration of melee and firearms combat, with the deep role-playing game elements fuelled by breathtaking visuals. Battles unfold on awesome scale as players engage with vast numbers of enemies, and gamers can also take this to the next level playing cooperatively on Xbox LIVE.

“Too Human” is produced by Canadian-based Silicon Knights, bringing a wealth of knowledge, story-based design and gameplay expertise to the next generation of video gaming, and committed to elevating games to the prime form of entertainment.

For more information, please visit the official Too Human website at www.xbox.com/toohuman.

Rumor has it that Molyneux is currently working on Denis Dyack II, which is said to feature more realistic gameplay, and possibly a dog.

Hold on a moment...I just actually read the full article instead of skimming it, and it turns out that Molyneux simply feels sorry for the flack that Denis Dyack is catching over Too Human.

"I feel sorry for Denis Dyack because you know, I think a few things were said wrong, there was that really unfortunate showing at E3 a few years ago. Everyone got on the bandwagon of saying things about Too Human. Now I've played it and, you know, it's a good game. It doesn't deserve a lot of that harsh criticism.

It all makes sense now! Molyneux of course caught a lot of flack himself when he released Fable on the original Xbox, a game that decidedly did not live up to his creative vision. You can see where I could get confused.

I kind of apologised at the end of Fable 1 about actually saying things that didn't end up in the game. I've tried to be really really careful about what I show and I think everything I've talked about in Fable 2 you can now play in there, so that was really important. But what I realise over time is that talking about a game before it's released is a dangerous game.

Sort of like writing out a news post before fully reading and understanding the source article, which I would never, ever do.

Peter Molyneux: 'I feel sorry for Denis Dyack' [Videogamer.Com]

Looks like some of you have already weighed in with your opinion in the comments of the original post, but for those who've spent a bit more time with part one of the planned epic adventure, tell us (dammit) what you think of the Too Human demo.