The International House of Mojo

Music 4 Games has published an interview with Skywalker Sound. The interview discusses the company's work on Star Wars Bounty Hunter as well as the possibility of doing more video games in the future. Here's a clip from the interview:

M4G: Skywalker Sound doing games? Why video games?

AG: At Skywalker Sound we feel that video games are at an exciting point technology wise, and as the technology improves the sound in video games will only become better. The experience of playing a video game will become more like watching a movie in the coming years, and as the world's best feature film sound facility we feel that we're in an excellent position to provide cutting edge sound for games, now and into the future.

Be sure to check out the full interview.

IGN has published another Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic interview with BioWare producer Casey Hudson. Here's a highlight from the interview concerning the game's *gasp* story:

The game is set 4000 years before the Galactic Empire. Two charismatic young Jedi have led the Republic to victory in a distant war against the Mandalorians. When they returned however, they came not as saviours, but as conquerors, at the helm of an unimaginably large fleet of Sith warships. Something had twisted them to the Dark Side, and the Republic has little hope of defending itself. Though the Republic was able to kill one of the Dark Lords, his powerful apprentice Darth Malak still survives, and is focused on his war of conquest.

Sounds promising. Read the full interview here.

Lots of LucasArts.com updates this past Friday, so let's get right to it. The RTX Red Rock page has been updated with six new screenshots, four desktop wallpaper images, and some new concept art featuring some kind of weird box office.

The Gladius page has also been updated. There, you can find a new arena map, part two of The Lost Scrolls which tells about about the story's background, and information on the battle equipment.

And finally, the Knights of the Old Republic page has posted some information about the world of Tatooine and one new screenshot.

Okay, I'm done.

LucasArts have kindly pointed out that there is an upcoming chat session with the folks behind Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic:

Come and join BioWare?s art director, Derek Watts and producers, Casey Hudson (BioWare) and Mike Gallo (LucasArts) for a Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic chat, at Stratics on Jan. 16th. [snip]

In addition, fans can post questions ahead of time, at the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic official forums forums.bioware.com, and the developers will answer these questions at the chat on Jan. 16th.

If you fancy heading along, you can fire up your favourite irc client on Thursday, Jan. 16th at 6:00 pm Pacific Time and connect to one of the following servers:

• irc.frws.com port 6667 USA - Colorado
• irc2.frws.com port 6667 USA - Colorado
• irc.glowfish.de port 6667 EU - Germany
  

#StarwarsHOC is the channel!

More information can be found here. Nice to see that they're using IRC this time instead of that wacky Java client from past chats.

Update: As pointed out by Ronda Scott from LucasArts in the comments, this chat is art-specific - focusing on the graphics and visual design of the game - as they've already done a general Knights chat.

Juztyn has sent word that his LFNetwork site, the popular SWGalaxies.net has been redesigned. And he's not lying! Although similar, the site sports a nice, clean new layout (done by Kedri) and random image captures from the upcoming game now decorate the top portion of the site. Fun!

X-Entertainment has posted a fairly interesting article talking about the mail-away type freebies and other bits you could get with the old Star Wars figures. The article talks about things such as the secret figure free with 4 toy packets and 4-6 weeks waiting, painting contests and strange letters from Luke Skywalker himself!.

Much in the same way the Bossk figure was marketed, Kenner started adding teaser ads to the toy packaging to get a figure from the upcoming third film. They chose Admiral Ackbar. As a kid, I thought the figure sucked. And I wasn't the only one - long after Star Wars ran out of gas, Admiral Ackbar figures still warmed the toy store shelves. Apparently, it takes a more adult mind to appreciate the innate regality of a grumbling mutant squid who commands mile-long starships

It's a pretty long read, but for anyone bored at work* it's a God send. Also an interesting insight into 80's marketing, may it never happen again.

*note to Boss: I am never bored at work ..

Source: Fark

IGN has posted the fifth designer diary for Knights of the Old Republic written by BioWare designer Lukas Kristjanson. Here's a quote from the diary concerning the fact that the game takes place 4,000 years before Episode I:

First off, we tend to think of futuristic settings as being relatively new, and that perhaps only a few years ago there were no starships. Does this mean that the only equipment with a respectable provenance will be primitive, like the same old swords and bows? Not so in Star Wars. At the time of the movies, the galaxy has had faster than light travel for over 25,000 years. The Old Republic, the venerable organization of thousands of worlds, was built around the discovery of hyperdrive systems. Civilizations have come and gone in this age of discovery, and many technologies have been lost to the ages.

Read the full diary here.

Games Domain has published a list of games they are most looking forward to in 2003. Along with Zelda, Doom III, and Halo 2, you'll find such LucasArts games as Galaxies, Knights of the Old Republic, and Full Throttle 2. Here's a quote from the list concerning the sequel to Full Throttle:

Details are still scant, but the game will feature the same lead as the original, Ben, leader of a motorcycle gang called the Polecats. It also promises a similar mix of action and puzzles.

The comedy adventure genre has been severely neglected in recent years, so it's good to see probably the most acclaimed publisher of adventure games getting back to its roots. We'll be waiting eagerly to see what they come up with.

You can check out the full list here.

Source: JediNet.com

The Official Star Wars Galaxies website now has a variety of high-quality wallpaper images that relate to the game. The various images feature such familiar characters as Darth Vader, Boba Fett, stormtroopers, and one fierce lookin' wookiee. Check them out.

Happy 2003! To celebrate the new year, we've done something very special. Well maybe not, but still, it's something worth looking at. Our own Andrew "telarium" Langley reviews Star Wars Bounty Hunter to find out if it's just another soulless cash-in on the Star Wars franchise, or if it's actually a quality product. Find out here!

Anyone out there who's vaguely, even remotely interested in the upcoming massivly-multiplayer online game Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided should check out SW Galaxies' latest feature. It's a weekly newsletter, put together for those of us who might not be motivated enough to keep up with SWG-related news or the daily goings on in the SWG community scene. This newsletter, which will appear every Saturday, will roll up the latest game/community news into one big helping, so be sure to check it out over 'ere.

Is Adventure Gamers' Top 20 Adventure Games of All-Time list making you nostalgic for the old LucasArts titles? Well, close your copy of Kazaa and stop annoying the people in the #monkey-island chat room, because now you can buy many of those games at super low prices.

For those of you living in the US, Micro Center is offering many LucasArts games for only $4.99 each. This price applies to titles like The Curse of Monkey Island, Escape From Monkey Island, Grim Fandango, Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine, and many more. Check 'em out!

Source: TheForce.net

LucasArts was kind enough to send the Mixnmojo staff a very nice Christmas card via postal mail with the art from the official website. We've gone ahead and scanned the card at a high resolution (874 x 600 px) for your enjoyment. So... enjoy!

Other holiday greetings definitely worth checking out around the network include this Christmas wallpaper featuring many of your favorite LEC characters, courtesy World of MI drawn by the venerable Paco Vink. Also, the Mixnmojo Christmas card, with a santa hat drawn by Dan Lee and some bad humor from Jake.

LucasArts.com has whipped up this online Christmas card for the holiday season. The image features Max, R2D2, EZ Wheeler, Jango Fett, Ursula, Ben, and others riding a motorcycle through a winter wonderland. The image is pretty well, done, so be sure to took a look!

Edge, alledgedly the UK's leading games magazine, has a few Lucas based articles this month, starting with a review of Bounty hunter which I think may be a little too harsh, but has some good points. The game is given 2/10

Technically it's a mess, forcing Edge to dig out Shadows of the Empire for N64 to confirm that Bounty Hunter's horribly bland textures and level architecture are only marginally superior to those of a six-year-old title.

They rip on the game for a further few paragraphs.
Star Wars Galaxies gets a warmer welcome however in the prescreen section

With the last batch of utterly awful LucasArts games out of the way, could it be that the 'Star Wars' licence is about to strike back?

There are some screenshots that we have probably all seen before, but that quote stuck in my mind.

Star Wars Galaxies may help rejuvenate the sluggish PC market, according to an article published in USA Today. The story recognizes both The Sims Online and Galaxies as being highly anticipated products that may be a shot in the arm the neglected PC market needs to get back on track. Here's a quote:

Still, The Sims Online ($49.95 for the software; $9.99 a month for Net play), along with Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided, due this spring, "have been deemed the great hope for PC gaming," says Rob Smith of PC Gamer magazine. "The hope is that The Sims Online will introduce an audience that's been unaware of or uninterested in other PC games to the rest of the market."

Ah, the PC game market... we hardly knew ye.

Source: TheForce.net

LucasArts issued a press release today concerning the recently launched LucasFiles, which is run by the LFNetwork. The press release summarizes the purpose of LucasFiles and quotes LucasArts President Simon Jeffery on how much he loves us all. God bless us, every one. Click below to read the full press release.<:MORENEWS:>

NEW WEB SITE FOR POSTING OF LUCASARTS INSPIRED GAME MODS LAUNCHED BY LFNETWORK.COM FAN SITE

Officially Sanctioned Site, www.lucasfiles.com, Offers Fans Location to Create and Post Modifications of LucasArts Titles

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. -- December 11, 2002 -- Fans who create game modifications (mods) based upon characters and elements in titles by LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC can now post their works on the Internet at LucasFiles, which can be found at www.lucasfiles.com. The new site, created by Lucas Fan Network (LFN), www.lfnetwork.com, an independent collection of web sites dedicated to LucasArts and its games, is an exclusive and sanctioned online location offering a variety of mods inspired by LucasArts titles. The LucasFiles database also hosts unique fan produced content, levels, and an array of other media.

"LucasArts is grateful to the Lucas Fan Network, whose enthusiastic and very dedicated members have created a distinctive online destination for fans of our games to showcase and share their creations with others," says Simon Jeffery, president of LucasArts. "The fan community is incredibly important to LucasArts and this site will provide them with a variety of ways to continue to celebrate their passion for the company and its games." LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC is a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software worldwide.

Based in San Rafael, Calif., as well as on the Internet at www.lucasarts.com, LucasArts is one of five companies in the Lucas group which include Lucasfilm Ltd., Lucas Digital Ltd. LLC, Lucas Licensing Ltd., and Lucas Online. Lucasfilm is one of the leading film and entertainment companies in the world. Lucasfilm's businesses include George Lucas' film and television production and distribution activities. Lucas Digital, which consists of Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) and Skywalker Sound, provides visual effects and audio post-production services to the entertainment industry. Lucas Licensing is responsible for the merchandising of all Lucasfilm's film and television properties. Lucas Online is a digital destination for entertainment, education, reference and e-commerce for Lucasfilm's intellectual properties and business units.

Ralgath has pointed out that a LucasArts 20th Anniversary Character Montage Longsleeve shirt is now for sale at the official LEC store.

The shirt features images of such characters as Elaine Marley, Manny Calavera, Ben from Full Throttle, the angel from Afterlife, Purple Tentacle, Indy, and more.

Check it out here, but of course, the shirt seems to only be available for those of you living in the US and Canada.

Our last poll has ended concerning what method you like to use for running old LucasArts adventure games. Running the games without any utilities came in at 37%, ScummVM took 33%, LEC Quick & Easy had 21%, and 9% of you didn't seem to know who we are.

A new poll has now been opened, asking this question: Which game being released in the near future are you most interested in? Go vote! It's your civic duty.

IGN has posted a transcript from the last chat session with Bioware and LucasArts concerning Knights of the Old Republic. Here's a highlight:

How is the inventory handled? Can your characters carry only a few large objects each or can they hide an entire warehouse of stuff in their coat ? la Guybrush Threepwood?
JamesOhlen You can carry an entire warehouse.
JamesOhlen However, we're adding several containers on the Ebon Hawk where you'll be able to stash your loot.
JamesOhlen I don't know how useful these containers will be (with an unlimited inventory and all), but for those who want them, they'll be there.

Okay, so maybe that quote isn't very interesting, but we're legally obligated to write about anything that mentions Guybrush Threepwood. Be sure to read the full transcript for actual interesting info, though. This looks like it may be a really cool game.