No more Electronic Arts

Dec 16, 2009 21:11 GMT  ·  By

ZeniMax Media Inc., the media conglomerate that owns developer id Software, has announced that the company's upcoming RAGE shooter will not be published by Electronic Arts through its Partners program, as was previously unveiled. Bethesda Software, another company owned by ZeniMax, is set to take over as publisher and will supervise the remainder of the development process while also handling marketing for the title.

RAGE does not yet have a release date but the game is confirmed as coming to the PlayStation 3 from Sony, the Xbox 360 from Microsoft and the PC. The title is set to blend a first person shooter experience with a lot of driving elements, all in a post apocalyptic world where humanity is fighting for its very existence against some pretty horrendous foes. id Software is saying that the experience will also have a strong narrative in addition to some satisfying gun play and Mad Max-influenced vehicles that can be used to roam around.

The move makes a lot of sense considering that id Software was acquired by ZeniMax Media to act as a second development studio for gaming properties alongside Bethesda Game Studios. RAGE had been in development before the acquisition went through but it's obviously easier for Bethesda to collaborate with id than for the developer to work with Electronic Arts while being owned by ZeniMax.

Fallout 3, the role playing action experience released by Bethesda in 2008, was one of the most successful titles of the year, impressing critics and players alike and receiving no less than five pieces of downloadable content, which extended the experience and attracted quite a lot of players in 2009. It remains to be seen whether RAGE has the same quality and receives the same marketing support when it arrives at some point in 2010.