Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Epic kicks, whips, then cancels Bulletstorm 2

Anthony John Agnello
By
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Epic is in a killing mood. Word came out over the weekend that the studio behind the ubiquitous Unreal Engine had cancelled Gears of War: Elite, a Kinect spin-off of its popular sci-fi shooting series. Now company president Mike Capps says that Epic has pulled the plug on a sequel to its most recent new intellectual property. Bulletstorm 2 has been cancelled.

“We thought a lot about a sequel, and had done some initial development on it, but we found a project that we thought was a better fit for [Bullestorm studio] People Can Fly,” said Capps speaking to Gamespot at the PAX East conference. “We haven’t announced that yet, but we will be announcing it pretty soon.”

Recommended Videos

Published by Electronic Arts at the beginning of 2011, Bulletstorm was expected to become another major hit for Epic. Critics praised the game’s slapstick, high-score-driven shooting. Its blend of crass humor and self-serious melodrama didn’t connect with consumers though, as it was widely reported after Bulletstorm released that EA was disappointed with sales. “I think Bulletstorm was very critically successful, and I think a lot of folks really enjoyed seeing something new. From a sales perspective it was good, but not amazing. I think EA was hoping we’d do better,” said Capps.

Related

Piracy was a limiting factor for the game as well, according to Capps. “We made a PC version of Bulletstorm, and it didn’t do very well on PC and I think a lot that was due to piracy. It wasn’t the best PC port ever, sure, but also piracy was a pretty big problem.”

The Epic executive did say that the series may not stay away forever. “I’d love to go back. I think there’s more to do with Bulletstorm. Heck, it kind of ended wanting more. I’d love to see another project, but right now we don’t have anything to talk about.”

Epic has had some trouble getting new franchises to thrive in recent years. Gears of War has become a monumental success for both Epic and Microsoft, but Bulletstorm and exploration game Shadow Complex have failed to become more than just interesting one-offs. Epic’s IP struggles seem to be turning around though. Its iOS series Infinity Blade has already spawned two sequels, the second of which was teased at the March unveiling of Apple’s new iPad. The company is also veering away from its traditional grim militarism with its next attempt at a new property, Fortnite. Maybe that game’s cartoony vibes are just what Epic needs.

It is encouraging to hear that People Can Fly is working on a new project. Both Bulletstorm and that studio’s Painkiller are great fun.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Anthony John Agnello
Anthony John Agnello
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Anthony John Agnello is a writer living in New York. He works as the Community Manager of Joystiq.com and his writing has…
Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 publisher opts out of Epic Games store sale
Epic Games store mega sale vampire the masquerade publisher remove

It’s hard not to spot some kind of controversy any time the Epic Games store is mentioned. This time around, it involves the platform's first major sale event. Steam is obviously the platform's biggest competitor and sales on Valve’s storefront have essentially become holidays at this point. Epic Games started its own first sale off with the bold decision to cover the cost of discounts so developers and publishers receive the same amount of revenue from game sales. Despite that, though, some publishers opted out of the sale.

The Epic Games store Mega Sale is a four-week sale where Epic is taking $10 off every single game priced over $14.99. Despite Epic covering the cost, Gamasutra reports that two publishers have decided to pull their game from the store for the duration of the sale.

Read more
How to turn off the DualSense controller speaker on PS5
PS5 Dual Sense controller on a dark background.

There are a lot of creative features integrated into the PlayStation 5's DualSense controller, including a small speaker that is often used to add a layer of immersion in certain games. However, if you're annoyed by this speaker's interruptions — or if you're just trying to cut down on noise while folks are sleeping, perhaps — you can actually disable this feature altogether. Here's how to turn off the DualSense controller speaker on your PS5.

Read more
How to sign up for the Hades 2 playtest
Melinoe fighting in a dark forest.

We first saw Hades 2 last year when it was announced, but it has yet to receive a release date. We know it will first be coming to early access, just like the first game, but the only timeframe we have is the second quarter of 2024. It appears that Supergiant might be closing in on that date, however, as you can now sign up for the first playtest and experience the game even before it comes to early access. This technical test is a said to be a major step toward early access to resolve any technical problems before a wider audience can play. Here's how you can sign up to be part of a small team selected to play the game before anyone else.

Read more