Today's wrap-up includes more agreements for the agreement-happy Infinium, some senior appointments for the comeback kids at Midway, and a particularly gruesome, unlikely controller courtesy of the guys at NubyTech and Capcom.
- Infinium Labs and digital delivery network provider Limelight Networks have announced that the two have formed an alliance covering the upcoming Phantom Game Service. The deal will see Infinium making use of Limelight's back-end technology, as well as its ContentEdge delivery platform for the running of the service. The latest deal covering the back-end technology behind the Phantom, the deal will also have Limelight, who also manages services for MusicMatch, Akimbo and Virgin Digital, managing traffic spikes across the Phantom Game Service to prevent service interruptions, as well as other managed services. The Phantom Game Service, consisting of a Phantom hardware box and mandatory monthly subscription services, is still scheduled for launch during 2005.
- Midway Games has announced a number of appointments to help bolster the company's development talent. The company announced that former Electronic Arts and Microsoft veteran, Scot Bayless, will be heading up Midway’s Chicago studio. While at Electronic Arts, Scot Bayless produced some of the more recent games in the
James Bond 007 series. Meanwhile, former EA and Eidos veteran Denise Fulton, who managed the
Deux Ex: Invisible War and
Thief: Deadly Shadows teams at Eidos, will be heading up the new Midway Studios Austin, following the company's
acquisition of Inevitable Entertainment. In addition Midway announced that artist Stephan Martiniere [recently the subject of a
Gamasutra art gallery] has taken on the role of visual design director at Midway’s Chicago studio.
- Peripheral manufacturer NubyTech have announced plans to team up with Capcom to release a special
Resident Evil 4 Chainsaw Controller for GameCube here in North America. One of the more unique items to make its way to North America, the aptly named controller features the usual GameCube buttons, mounted on a yellow chainsaw base, with a bloody, plastic sawblade protruding from the left side of the controller. The
Resident Evil 4 Chainsaw controller is expected to be released in both North America and Japan alongside the GameCube SKU of
Resident Evil 4 itself, on January 11th, 2005.
