CEO Sees Bright Future for Midway

CEO and president of Midway Games David Zucker sat down with Eurogamer to discuss Midway,s future developments and his views on Sony,s PlayStation 3. In the past, fans labeled Midway as a one-trick-pony with its classic Mortal Kombat franchise, and their obsession with mature content seems all too apparent; however, Zucker sheds some light on some of the new projects that are on the rise that cover all kinds of ground.

Many of Midway,s upcoming titles are specifically focused on next generation, and Zucker mentioned that all of Midway,s internal studios are working on next-gen material. Stranglehold, slated for this winter on the PC, Xbox360, and PS3, is an action-oriented game in collaboration with John Woo. Another exciting title is The Wheelman, which features Vin Diesel. In a press release earlier this year, Zucker said “We believe The Wheelman is a groundbreaking new model for our industry. We intend to create a broad-arcing experience, simultaneously developing entertainment properties across a number of mediums, with Vin Diesel right at the center of it all.”

With a somewhat shady track-record as far as quality goes, Zucker stressed that gamers are going to see “fewer, bigger, and better” games coming from Midway. He wasn,t shy to admit to trouble in the past: “If you go back a couple of years ago and you look at average review scores for publishers, titles, Midway was in the bottom quartile. In the last 2 years, we,re #1.”

As hardware gets more and more advanced, software often takes time to catch up with the potential. Titles over the next few years are going to have to not only look and play great, but also introduce innovative ideas and groundbreaking features to catch the attention of gamers. “In 2007 you,re going to see a lot of big, aggressive, ambitious titles,” said Midway,s CEO. “What the player expects to be able to do in that environment, they,re going to be able to do in our games.”

The end of the interview focused on the upcoming PS3 and the mixed reactions about the high price tag. Zucker seemed to support Sony,s position, and praised the console,s next-generation DVD format Blu-Ray, large capacity hard-drive, and other features. “There,s a lot in the PS3,” he said. “It seems like a reasonable price for the early launch-presumably that price will come down over time.”

There,s no question that Midway has some interesting titles that will be released over the next year, and owners of any console will be able to enjoy a taste of what they,re cooking.NSCEO and president of Midway Games David Zucker sat down with Eurogamer to discuss Midway,s future developments and his views on Sony,s PlayStation 3. In the past, fans labeled Midway as a one-trick-pony with its classic Mortal Kombat franchise, and their obsession with mature content seems all too apparent; however, Zucker sheds some light on some of the new projects that are on the rise that cover all kinds of ground.

Many of Midway,s upcoming titles are specifically focused on next generation, and Zucker mentioned that all of Midway,s internal studios are working on next-gen material. Stranglehold, slated for this winter on the PC, Xbox360, and PS3, is an action-oriented game in collaboration with John Woo. Another exciting title is The Wheelman, which features Vin Diesel. In a press release earlier this year, Zucker said “We believe The Wheelman is a groundbreaking new model for our industry. We intend to create a broad-arcing experience, simultaneously developing entertainment properties across a number of mediums, with Vin Diesel right at the center of it all.”

With a somewhat shady track-record as far as quality goes, Zucker stressed that gamers are going to see “fewer, bigger, and better” games coming from Midway. He wasn,t shy to admit to trouble in the past: “If you go back a couple of years ago and you look at average review scores for publishers, titles, Midway was in the bottom quartile. In the last 2 years, we,re #1.”

As hardware gets more and more advanced, software often takes time to catch up with the potential. Titles over the next few years are going to have to not only look and play great, but also introduce innovative ideas and groundbreaking features to catch the attention of gamers. “In 2007 you,re going to see a lot of big, aggressive, ambitious titles,” said Midway,s CEO. “What the player expects to be able to do in that environment, they,re going to be able to do in our games.”

The end of the interview focused on the upcoming PS3 and the mixed reactions about the high price tag. Zucker seemed to support Sony,s position, and praised the console,s next-generation DVD format Blu-Ray, large capacity hard-drive, and other features. “There,s a lot in the PS3,” he said. “It seems like a reasonable price for the early launch-presumably that price will come down over time.”

There,s no question that Midway has some interesting titles in store over the next year, and owners of any console will be able to enjoy a taste of what they,re cooking.

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