dontnod entertainment Archives

New Life Is Strange Game To Be Announced During Square Enix Presents

Gabriel Stanford-Reisinger March 12, 2021 News 0 Comments

The next entry to the Life is Strange franchise is slated to get a world premiere during Square Enix’s upcoming event, Square Enix Presents. The announcement tweet doesn’t quite go into detail about who will be developing the game, though, it’s safe to say that it’s probably not Dontnod Entertainment.

Let's gooo!

Debuting March 18 at 10AM PDT, the first digital-direct #SquareEnixPresents the world premiere of the next @LifeisStrange, with a 40-min lineup set of new trailers & announcements from many of our upcoming titles https://t.co/IgHkawSCaE pic.twitter.com/VNYDFdoikR

— Square Enix (@SquareEnix) March 11, 2021

This piece of Life is Strange news will be a part of a 40-minute-or-so presentation that’ll be livestreamed on both YouTube and Twitch by Square Enix themselves. Alongside the new entry, they’re also going to touch on Marvel’s Avengers, the 25th anniversary of Tomb Raider, the Just Cause mobile game, and more.

The event is set to go live on March 18 at 10 AM PDT/5 PM GMT.

What do you think? What are you most excited about? Tell us below!

Life Is Strange Dev Is Working On Fresh IP

Gabriel Stanford-Reisinger September 27, 2020 News 0 Comments

Leaders at Dontnod Entertainment, which garnered a ton of attention thanks to its Life is Strange franchise, have gone on record saying the developer is working on a fresh IP. Following the announcement of a brand-new studio in Montreal, fans were taken aback when the studio began seeking people for developers for a fresh IP.

In a statement to Eurogamer, Dontnod isn’t ruling out returning to Life is Strange but it does feel like formulating fresh ideas for a fresh studio. That said, it seems the studio wants to appease all its fans – including fans of its famed franchise.

“It doesn’t mean we will not continue working on the Life is Strange franchise in the future but we have also some new exciting ideas we want to explore and that we hope will please all of our Life is Strange community and fans.”

The studio expects to fill a dozen positions by the end of 2020. The brand-new IP remains a mystery thus far, but it probably won’t be long before we learn more. Dontnod’s Parisian team, on the other hand, is hard at work on Twin Mirror, which is set to launch this December.

What do you think? Do you want to see more Life is Strange? Tell us below!

Remember Me Developer Reveals Vampyr

Ben-Dutka June 21, 2015 PS4 10 Comments

Hey, we could really use an awesome vampire game.

Dontnod Entertainment, the team that brought you Remember Me and Life is Strange , has revealed their new game: It's called Vampyr , a role-playing adventure headed to PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.

You can see the concept teaser below; it shows the setting (early 20th century Britain) and gives us a few glimpses of the dark, mystical theme. The Spanish Flu has ravaged the streets and vampires aren't helping the situation. Players assume the role of Jonathan E. Reid, a miiltary surgeon that becomes a vampire after returning home from the first Great War.

Here's a description from Dontnod:

"Absolutely all characters in the game are potential victims of your vampiric lust. Carefully study the habits of your next victim, his or her relationships with other characters, and set up your strategy to feed, unnoticed: seduce them, change their daily habits, or make sure they end up alone in a dark street."

Combat will feature melee and shooting mechanics, along with some supernatural vampire skills. We'll even be able to create our own weapons via a deep crafting system. All in all, Vampyr sounds like a great idea and it holds a tentative release window of 2017.

Related Game(s): Vampyr

Dontnod Considered Over 100 Names For Life Is Strange

John-Shepard March 6, 2015 PS4 1 Comment

Choosing a name for a video game is tougher than you might think.

For instance, while Life is Strange seems like a pretty nifty title, developer Dontnod Entertainment didn't arrive at it easily.

During a PAX East panel (as summarized at GameSpot ), the French studio said the project was originally codenamed "What If," and they actually considered making it the final official title. But the 2013 romantic movie starring Daniel Radcliffe, also called "What If," posed a problem.

This resulted in the team considering over 100 names for the game in question. For instance, did you know it could've been called "Chrysalis?" In regards to the game itself, Dontnod praised publisher Square Enix because they didn't want to "change anything" about the game. Other publishers wanted "more action sequences," for example. Previously, the developers thanked Square Enix for not balking at the idea of a female protagonist.

Life is Strange spans five episodes on consoles and PC and the first episode just released this week. Check it out if it sounds intriguing.

Related Game(s): Life Is Strange

Life Is Strange Dev On Protagonist Gender And Story Quality

Ben-Dutka February 1, 2015 PS4 8 Comments

Does the main character's gender have any impact on the quality of a storyline?

Life is Strange developer Dontnod Entertainment thinks gender has zero impact, as co-game director Michel Koch explained during a recent Reddit AMA session .

In the game, the protagonist is a teenage girl and one poster said that while the concept seems interesting, he's not interested in high school girls as main characters, as the stories "seem to be focused more on drama and romance." Koch's response:

"To be honest we also really think that the gender of a main character is quite irrelevant when creating a good story, it really depends on how you write your characters in relation to the themes you are dealing with. Life is Strange is starring a teenage girl, you're right, but it is clearly not only a teenage girl story and we really think that both male players and female players will relate to this game and enjoy this adventure."

Of course, Dontnod encountered some resistance when pitching the game because the main character was a teenage girl. Creative Director Jean-Maxime Moris is on record saying Square Enix was "basically the only publisher who didn't want to change anything about the game."

Life is Strange launched on January 30 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. Review coming soon.

Related Game(s): Life Is Strange

Remember Me Studio In Receivership

Ben-Dutka January 31, 2014 Archive 17 Comments

Update: Dontnod Entertainment has confirmed that it's not bankrupt; they're entering "judicial organization." Check the full update at GameSpot.

Original Story:

New IPs can be rough on a developer, especially when it's their first game.

Capcom tapped unheard-of studio Dontnod Entertainment for the ambitious title Remember Me , and they had big plans for the franchise. Capcom intended to turn it into a long-running series.

Unfortunately, despite some decent reviews, the game sold poorly. And now, French publication Factor News is reporting that Dontnod is bankrupt and they've entered receivership.

This obviously means they probably didn't break even on Remember Me and the developer still owes. It doesn't mean curtains for Dontnod but it's not a good sign. For the record, the studio was founded by ex-Criterion developer Oskar Guilbert in 2008, and they had big plans for protagonist Nilin. Doesn't look like a sequel is going to happen any time soon, though; this company needs to get out of debt first.

Remember Me was a solid effort. It just needed more honing and polishing, and the gameplay required more dynamic creativity and less repetition.

Related Game(s): Remember Me