Rage (video game)

"RAGE" redirects here. For other uses, see Rage.

Rage
File:Rage video game logo.jpg
Developer(s)	id Software
Publisher(s)	Bethesda Softworks
Engine	id Tech 5
Platform(s)	iOS, Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Genre(s)	First-person shooter, sandbox
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Rage (stylized as RAGE) is an upcoming first-person shooter game by id Software. It will use the company's new id Tech 5 engine. The game was first shown as a tech demo on June 11, 2007, at Apple's WWDC, and was officially announced on August 2, 2007, at QuakeCon. On the same day, a trailer for the game was released by Gametrailers.com. A handheld spin-off has been released for iOS.

Information available so far indicates that the game takes place in a post-apocalyptic world similar to that of other popular video games such as Fallout and Borderlands. In an interview with GameSpot, designer Tim Willits revealed that the game is set in the near future following the impact of the asteroid 99942 Apophis. Matthew J. Costello, who worked on the plot of Doom 3, is also working on the Rage plot. Influences on the driving and racing gameplay include games such as MotorStorm and Burnout, according to another Willits interview by Shacknews. Players will be able to upgrade their cars with money won from races.

Gameplay

The user plays as a member from an Ark (a world-wide movement which took scientists and other significant people, and froze them underground in cryo-pods so they could rebuild Earth) but then the player comes to realize that his Ark has malfunctioned and that he is the only survivor. Apparently this environment is perfectly suited to the rough-and-tumble dune buggy racing seen in games like MotorStorm, as that sort of gameplay will be an important feature of Rage. Players will have the ability to augment their cars with various items and upgrades they can gain by completing races, but the game is not specifically a racing title, as available trailers of the game have shown some first-person shooter content as well.

Rage will also feature some role-playing game (RPG) elements—an inventory system and the capabilities of weapons will be based around types of ammo. Whether or not there will be weapon customization is not known. There will also be side missions. More on the RPG elements have not been detailed. At E3, Tim Willits stated that at the game's core is a first person shooter with car-combat added in and without the racing being the sole and central focal point. The game will be set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland created by an asteroid impact. The world will be populated by the human survivors of the impact who were preserved from the asteroid by being buried in the Arks. The world will also be populated by mutants who will serve as the player's main enemies at least for the first half of the game, as id is currently talking of a major change at the midway point of the game.

Synopsis

The game is set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland created by an asteroid impact, based on the real life asteroid Apophis, which is on track to pass near Earth in 2036. In Rage's story, the asteroid hits, and the few pockets of survivors are forced to start a new civilization.

The world is populated by human survivors of the impact, who have come together to form settlements around oases and other practical or habitable locations. These fragile homes are diligently defended by the inhabitants against bandits and mutants, which have organization of their own. Bandits and mutants serve as the player's main enemies for much of the game, although id Software has hinted at some sort of significant change around the halfway point in the storyline.

The player emerges into this setting after being preserved inside an underground shelter called an Ark. The Arks are the direct result of the Eden Project, a massive international undertaking in which hundreds of Arks (cryogenic pods) were sealed under the surface of the Earth with twelve people inside each. Each passenger possessed a special skill or trait that, combined with those of the other members, would help them rebuild human society. The Eden Project, however, was far less successful than hoped. The player's Ark in particular is in sorry shape upon the start of the game - all of the other residents of the player's Ark are dead (presumably because of the impact), and the equipment of the Ark is destroyed as well, and so the player wakes up alone and uninformed. With no memory of his identity or objective, the player is forced to head for the surface to find sustenance and allies.

Development

One of a number of early screenshots of the game released at the SIGGRAPH conference.

Reports indicate that id is developing Rage with a "T-for-Teen" rating in mind, and that the Windows, Mac and Xbox 360 versions will ship on either two or three dual-layer DVD discs, while the PS3 version will ship on one Blu-ray disc. John Carmack has revealed that an uncompressed software build of Rage is one terabyte in size. While a Linux version is speculated there has been no confirmation of an official build, though Timothee Besset has stated that he will try to make Linux builds for Rage much as he has done in the past.

id announced its decision to partner with Electronic Arts for publication of Rage. On March 9, 2009, the company's CEO Todd Hollenshead told GameTrailers TV, "No, it won't be out this year," when asked about a possible release date. A trailer and several screenshots were released on August 13, 2009 at QuakeCon where it showcased various locations, racing and first person gameplay, and a brief insight into the storyline of the game. During GamesCom in Cologne Germany, Electronic Arts released four new screenshots for Rage.

In 2009, John Carmack stated id Software is not planning to support dedicated servers for the PC version, and instead will use a matchmaking system not unlike console games. ZeniMax Media Inc., who had acquired developer id Software in June 2009, announced that it had picked up the publishing rights to Rage, and that EA would not be involved in the sales or marketing of the title. The announcement also noted that the development of Rage had not been affected by the new deal. Creative director Tim Willits confirmed to videogames blog VG247 that the game would miss releasing in 2010, and will now launch in 2011. Rage is due out on September 13, 2011 and will be available on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. Willits later accepted the award from IGN Media for "Best Game" and "Best First Person Shooter" at E3. Additionally, the game was awarded Best First-Person Shooter, Best New IP, Best Xbox 360, PC, and PlayStation 3 game as well as the Game of the Show of E3 2010 by GameTrailers.

In his keynote speech at QuakeCon 2010 on August 12, 2010, Carmack announced that id was developing a Rage-related game for Apple's iOS. He later described the mobile Rage as a "little slice of Rage ... [about] 'Mutant Bash TV', a post apocalyptic combat game show in the Rage wasteland", and separately hinted that he would try to port Rage Mobile to Android.

Promotion

On November 18, 2010, id Software released the mobile version, RAGE HD, for iOS devices. John Carmack also hinted that he intends to release another iPhone app based on the Rage universe that focuses on the racing aspect of the game.

On January 20, 2011, Bethesda vice president of public relations Pete Hines told VG247 that a demo of the game is not likely.

External links

• Official Rage website