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War For Cybertron. It has to be one of the most talked about events this year concerning Transformers. When you've got figures such as Bumblebee, Optimus Prime and Megatron, it's hard to remember that War For Cybertron is actually a video game, and that the toys are based off of it. We've seen 'the trailer', and now thanks the the fine folks at Spike TV's GTTV - Game Trailers Television, we'll be getting a trailer featuring War For Cybertron's gameplay. This comes from Geoff Keighley's twitter, who is the host of GTTV. Check back here later this week for the trailer and much more!
Seibertron.com - The Ultimate Transformers Resource!
Diablien wrote:For years now, Hasbro has been breaking from the mold and creating their own private viewing event corresponding with the date for the official Toy Fair Expo held in New York City. This tradition continued in 2010 with a presentation covering Marvel, Transformers, GI Joe, and Star Wars that was an invitation-only event geared towards media outlets for each of brand. Of course Seibertron.com was on-hand to bring a plethora of coverage through videos, photos, and up-to-the-minute update messages. However, coverage of one particular aspect of the presentation was left out - Activision's exclusive look at their upcoming title "Transformers: War for Cybertron."
The entire event was allowed coverage except for Activision's segment, which still contained some proprietary elements that were now allowed to be recorded or photographed. In lieu of any visual coverage, we will attempt to relay what was shown in as much detail as possible.
To start off, this game may be the Transformers' reaction to GI Joe's "Resolute" cartoons series that is aimed a bit more towards a mature crowd. The themes expected to be covered in "War for Cybertron" will be quite serious. In the live game play demo we were shown, death and destruction are at the forefront of the story. For example, Zeta Prime, who is assumed to be the previous leader of the Autobots, has died and Optimus has taken up command for the first time. Apparently, Zeta Prime will be the video game equivalent of the recent comic book fiction's Sentinel Prime. Regardless, the old leader is dead and Optimus is, like always, willing and ready to take up command.
The opening scene consists of Optimus, Ratchet, and Bumblebee traveling down an elevator and discussing the current situation. Megatron is making a major advance and Decepticon warships have surrounded the city. Bumblebee wants to get out there and "show Megatron a thing or two" but Optimus explains that Megatron will not risk decimating the Autobot's capital city of Iacon with a full-on assault, since he wishes to conquer and use it for himself. This appears to allude to Megatron's motivation in the game, which has been promised to be explained by Activision's reps. The biggest surprise during this opening scene was when Optimus hails Jetfire on the halo communicator. Not only is he mentioned by name, but Jetfire actually appears on the Halo screen! Jetfire explains that he needs cover fire. Prime, Ratchet and Bumblebee leave Autobot HQ to reactive the city's anti-air guns amidst the Decepticon onslaught. This is when the game play begins. As a giant warship crash lands at the Autobot's doorstep, Decepticons begin pouring out and pummeling the Autobots with heavy fire.
As the game play began, one of the first things that became apparent was the massive amount of detail given to the environment. Cybertron is alive with activity. The world is dark, cold and metallic, at least the parts that aren't currently on fire seemed that way! There are plenty of obstacles to hide behind to evade fire and the environment appears to have tons of destroyable materials. Optimus was transforming with ease and ramming Decepticons. It was also demonstrated that projectiles could be fired from the front of the vehicle. Although it was not completely clear, there seemed to be some sort of overheat gauge for being in vehicle mode, so there may be some sort of limit on the amount of time a player may stay transformed.
On to level two for the Autobots, which revealed even more unexpected characters - Aerialbots Air Raid and Silverbolt! Them, along with Jetfire are in orbit around Cybertron amidst hordes of planetary debris. Something has definitely gone wrong because this level made the asteroid field in "Empire Strikes Back" look like a snow flurry. In jet mode, the characters were dodging and destroying debris and could even transform to run across some of the larger sections of debris. It was explained by Activision that each level has 3 characters that will be playable specific to the mission at hand. This opens the amount of characters up to wild speculation. We already know that we will be seeing Soundwave, Starscream, Megatron, Ratchet, Bumblebee, Ironhide, Optimus, Jetfire, Air Raid, Shockwave, and Silverbolt, but just how many others? The next level reveals a surprise guest…
The last level that was previewed to the crowd at the presentation was a Decepticon boss battle. Megatron has the Autobots close to their darkest hour and that leads them to activate their last line of defense. You guessed it - Omega Supreme! Fighting against Omega were Megatron, Soundwave, and surprise guest, Decepticon Breakdown! Breakdown's head looked to be the spitting image of his G1 self. This level was only shown for about a minute but from what we saw, we will be having a lot of great moments in this video game. This Omega Supreme seemed much more G1 than the fully rendered trailer version, but I may be mistaken. Omega appears to be in a pit in the middle of a large room that the Decepticons can run around to take shots at him. Omega fires volleys of missiles at the Decepticons while Megatron barks orders at Breakdown to "stop whining and start firing." Omega's personality is G1 all the way and the voice is about as close to his 80's cartoon version as one could ask.
Activision told us that multi-player support for the game is going to be a very important factor. The 3 available characters for each mission allow for additional players to jump in and out at will. Although not specified, campaign may be playable via online. Other features that were observed from game play were that Optimus appeared to be able to jump and use a boost that could propel him in a variety of directions. There also seemed to be some sort of "power-up mode" but it was not obvious how this mode was activated whether by damage, or item collection. Optimus was glowing pink and it could be surmised that his attack power is increased during this mode.
Characterization of each character is incredibly detailed. The voice acting appears to be top-notch and we can expect this game to be the new gritty origin of The Transformers. Ratchet appears to be a bit of his movie persona, perhaps even the same voice actor. Bumblebee is a much spunkier version of the character. He seems to be arrogant and fool-hardy and Optimus Prime seemed to have to keep his head in the right place. Jetfire is a very bulky white and red bot. He seems very reminiscent of the Classics mold. Unfortunately, the Aerialbots were difficult to make out other than their faces, which each appeared reminiscent of their G1 counterparts. Soundwave has acting as the voice of authority on what to do next, such as pinpointing where Omega Supreme's weak points were. His voice had a very successful vocoder effect that should make Soundwave fans very happy. Megatron's voice may seem new to fan of the series, but his new authoritative demeanor will be very easy to get used to. As an added touch, when other characters speak or call out story-telling voice clips, a drawing of the characters' face plus name appear in the bottom right of the screen.
When the lights turned on and the game left the screen, applause filled the hall. "War for Cybertron" marks a progressive move for Hasbro's marketing for the brand. After having utilized cartoons and movie avenues of promotion, the next logical step to reinforce the Transformers lore is to target the video game crowd. Today's youth spends a lot of time immersing themselves in their games, very similarly to how a fan may watch their favorite movie over and over again. With each new piece of material revealed about the game, the fever surrounding it increases. "War for Cybertron" may be more than the next greatest Transformers video game, it may in fact become one of the best games of the year and is there a better way to move Transformers into a new decade?
80sGeek was so kind as to let us know about new decodings at the Transformer War for Cybertron website.
Here's what he has to say:
New "transmission decoder" on the site. The concept is to decode transmissions with an inner and outer dial to gain access to videos and screen shots/concept art. You rotate the outer blue dial until you gain a blue circle, then rotate the inner yellow to focus the cube image until you get a yellow circle.
Following gives 100% total recovered data:
Default trailer transmission code (given when you hit ?): blue-351, yellow-327
Note: The art transmissions are brief (and I mean BRIEF- 2 seconds max) glimpses.
It has taken some time, but you will not be disappointed by the quality, amount and variety of images that Seibertron has taken at this year's Toy Fair 2010! This comprehensive set of galleries covers everything from the much talked-about Leader Class Starscream, all the way down to the tiny RPMs and Weebles. Please take your time to look though all the galleries posted HERE!
Seibertron.com was in attendace for Hasbro's Transformers panel at Toy Fair 2010 and was taking frantic notes during the presentation. What was revealed and discussed? We have everything from War for Cybertron to Revenge of the Fallen to the new line name: Generations!
Hasbro's Plans in General
--Almost all of Activision's War for Cybertron line is proprietary, which means that Activision owns most, if not all, the products
--Spring 2010 - Hasbro will continue to market the ROTF line into the summer
--Fall 2010 - Hasbro will be taking a step back in the interim between ROTF and Transformers 3. They will focus on Transformers in general, and not a specific line such as Animated, ROTF or Universe. Expect fewer Transformers during this time.
-- There will be a video game on Transformers.com to mark the 'Transformers - Hunt for the Decepticons' brand. There will be specially marked packages with codes that will let you go in the mainframe and detect where a Decepticon is coming from. New codes let you battle new Decepticons, joining the Autobot alliance. All assortments will have codes, come in gold package with 'Hunt for Decepticons'
Revenge of the Fallen Scout class
Hubcap - Looks like Micromaster Greaser in alt mode, but red
Brimstone - Turns into a 1950's road hog motorcycle
Crackstart - a black version of Dune Runner
Backfire - A white repaint of Reverb
Insecticon - As seen in ROTF
Breacher - Blue assault APC, will attach to Voyager Sea Spray
Revenge of the Fallen Deluxe class
Ironhide - Comes with drone that can snap out to bed in truck mode
Battle Blade Bumblebee - An entirely new mold with a flip down visor
Jetblade - White and light blue repaint of Dirge
Sea Attack Ravage - Grey-blue repaint of Ravage
Sidearm Sideswipe - New mold with 2 pistols that can store in vehicle mode
Hailstorm - Wave 2 preview
Elita-1 - The long-awaited 3rd bike has arrived! This is a repaint of Chromia that will combine with the other bike sisters
Revenge of the Fallen Voyager class
Sea Spray - Plays up an aquatic theme that Hasbro wishes it could do more with. Has flip-out flippers on feet, has scuba tanks. Scout class Breacher attaches to Sea Spray.
Night Ops Ratchet - (redeco)
Payload - Yellow repaint of Long Haul
Battle Blades Optimus Prime - New Voyager class w/ the Matrix of Leadership, has snap out swords, and tank canisters that pop off for weapons.
Transformers Generations
Autobot Drift - As seen in the leaked red car prototype. Has swords and many points of articulation.
Thrust - Redeco of Takara's Gentei Thrust, without the chrome or lightning bolts.
Darkmount - Triplechanger homage to Straxus. Changes from tank to artillery base and has his signature pick weapon.
Power Core Combiners
Bruticus, now officially called Bombshock. Main figure is scout-sized with 4 legends-sized unique limbs. 5 figures combine, the spring-loaded vehicles automatically convert to form the limbs. The Aerialbots version is called Skyburst.
Any scout-class figure from this line can combine with the limbs. Each scout has 2 different heads; the combiner head and regular head.
2-Packs contain one commander figure and one mini-con figure.
Scout class figures can combine with any Powercore mini-con.
Huffer w/ Caliburst
Smolder w/ Chopster
Searchlight w/ Backwind
Icepick w/Chainclaw
Leadfooter w/Pinpoint
Rallybots lead by Double Clutch
Destructicons lead by Mudslinger
Store Exclusives
Masterpiece Grimlock with crown will be at Toys R Us in very different packaging
Autobot Blaster with Sleeljaw, Ramjorn, and Eject Will be seen at SDCC 2010 along with a new Mighty Muggs
Transformers: War for Cybertron
Jason and Brad were present from Activision
This summer there will be a hard cover novel by Alex Irving about the great war of Cybertron
Game from Activision, great story telling device which Hasbro may pursue further if this proves successful.
The Story takes place during the Civil War.
Seibertron is at ToyFair 2010! While he is formatting all the images, which we'll be seeing in a couple short hours, Seibertron has uploaded a couple short youtube clips of his time in the gallery room.
The first clip is of the two War for Cybertron figures which were present: Bumblebee and Optimus Prime. This is the first time non-subscribers to the Collector's Club magazine can see Bumblebee's compact cybertronian speeder mode!
UPDATE: Seibertron has uploaded the images and is proud to showcase these two along with many more images that can be seen here!
Joystiq reports that during a conference call, Activision CEO Mike Griffith mentioned new information regarding the release of Transformers War for Cybertron. Reportedly, the game would be released sometime in May of this year, earlier than the June 22nd date we had once thought. To view the source, click here.
Gamestop.com has posted an image of War for Cybertron Shockwave, who is only available as a player character if you preorder the game from them. Check out the image below and make sure to preorder the game if you want to be able to play the cold-hearted, logic driven evil Decepticon.
Thanks to seibertron.com member Symbiote Spiderman14 we now know that the anticipated game Transformers:War for Cybertron is going to include everybody's favourite emotionless Decepticon, old "one eye" Shockwave himself.
Shockwave will be only playable in online multiplayer mode and will be a GameStop pre-order exclusive.
Just click here to visit GameStop's pre-order page.
Reserve Transformers: War for Cybertron and gain access to the GameStop Exclusive multiplayer character SHOCKWAVE. Serving as the Decepticon’s military operations commander, SHOCKWAVE is 2nd in power only to MEGATRON, and is playable only in Escalation mode in Multiplayer mode. Available online and in-store while supplies last.
As of yet it is unknown how or if non US players will be able to get Shockwave but stay tuned to seibertron.com as we keep you updated!
Stay tuned to seibertron.com for all your Transformers related news!
The Official Seibertron.com RPG is in motion and set into it's next phase: The Invasion of the Shadow Parasites!
The Autobots are back on Cybertron, continuing the eternal battle with the evil Decepticons when a new menace arrives that threatens both factions: The Shadow Parasites!
Infecting the host Cybertronian, the Shadow Parasites, alien entities that live only within the shadows, take over the host body, causing violent and combatative actions from peacekeeper and warmonger alike. Attempting to stop the Shadow Parasites is Elita - 1, who's Autobot team based on another planet was completlely destroyed by the dark entities. Elita - 1 has made it her mission to end the evil threat.
Want to get in on the action? The Seibertron.com RPG is looking for new players to enter the fray and either help the heroic Autobots win peace for Cybertron and the Universe or side with Decepticons and conquer everything in your path!
A new list of available characters has been made available. See all playable characters below:
Autobots:
Wheeljack
Ultra Magnus
Jazz
Ironhide
Slag
Swoop
Ratchet
Trailbreaker
Cliffjumper
The Aerialbots
Jetfire
Blaster
Bluestreak
Blurr
The Protecobots
Perceptor
Nightbeat
* Price and quantities subject to change. Shipping costs, taxes and other fees not included in cost shown. Refer to listing for current price and availability.
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