For all of us at Insomniac, every time we build a new property it’s a wild and crazy rollercoaster ride. From the initial concept to the day that first game hits the shelves, anything can happen. Fuse is our latest escapade.

From the outside it probably appears that the development process for a new franchise is fairly mechanical where there is a recipe of sorts one uses to build the game. Put tab “A” into slot “B”…make sure each box is checked…file all the right TPS reports.

But the reality is far different. Game development is an insanely fluid process even when you’re not making new IP. After almost 20 years we’re still figuring it out. Still evolving. Still trying, failing, trying again, succeeding, and still learning. And that’s what makes building games so much fun!

While we’ve continued to experiment with Ratchet & Clank and while we’ve jumped into browser games (and soon mobile) with Outernauts, Fuse is the first new console IP we’ve built since Resistance. It’s also our first multiplatform game ever. It’s running on a brand new engine. It’s got a new world, new characters, new weapons…and it’s doing stuff that no other 3rd person co-op shooter does.

We’re damn proud of it.

Of course I’m well aware that we’ve taken some heat over our switch from Overstrike to Fuse. We read the YouTube comments. We watch the forums. And we listen.

After our re-reveal of the game in summer 2012 we continued to make adjustments to the game, adding more color; making sure the humor came through in emergent dialogue. No, we didn’t make aesthetic changes because of a 12 year-old’s focus test comments. We did what we thought was right for the Fuse universe. In particular we focused on creating co-op weapons and gameplay that we think work better than any other co-op shooter out there and allowed that to drive the game.

In particular I remember when we had a collective “eureka” moment with the Shattergun. It was last year in mid-spring – in other words way late in production. But we were up against the wall with none of our Xenotech weapons achieving the fun factor we knew we needed.

We decided to go back to the drawing board with all four weapons. Better, our weapons team decided to take off the T-rated shackles and go big with the weapons’ visceral nature. The Magshield started liquefying enemies with a satisfying blast of kinetic energy. The Arcshot began to shoot streams of molten mercury for its traps, melting soldiers. The Warp Rifle, a complete redo, generated black holes where the blast rings would chain together and disintegrate nearby enemies.

It was also then that the Shattergun, my favorite weapon in the game, was born. The weapons crew prototyped this vicious-looking effect where enemies were trapped in razor-edged black melanite. Shooting the melanite resulted in an explosion of bloody black melanite shards – it looked like something out of a heavy, dark sci-movie. And it worked big time. With the Shattergun, everything clicked into place and we knew we had finally figured out the weapons puzzle we had been trying to solve for so long.

That’s just one story out of many. Yet we’ve been unusually (and sometimes unintentionally) open – giving everyone a window into the changes we’ve made along the way. This has been both good and bad for us. While I know there are some who will never be convinced that moving to Fuse was the right decision, I know there are many who appreciate what we’ve done. I know there are many who will try Fuse and will love it.

For you, our fans…for those of you who dig what we do with crazy worlds, characters and weapons…for those of you who check out Fuse and enjoy a co-op romp through a very “Insomniac” game, this is what I have to say: we’re just getting started.

We’ve already begun expanding what we’ve begun with Fuse. Right now as I write this we’re taking the core concepts behind Fuse and prototyping new stuff…stuff that leverages this bizarre alien substance which is at the heart of the game. No, I’m not talking about DLC. I’m talking about new Fuse experiences altogether.

What’s wonderful about creating and owning one’s IP is that you can take it any direction you want. And that’s what we’re going to do. Stay tuned!

Ted

In one week, you shot, spliced, and remixed together your very own Fuse video. Not a small task by any stretch of the imagination. Despite the tight deadline  we were thrilled by the amount of talent and creativity displayed in the entries. Every single one showed passion, and for that we sincerely thank you.

However, four grand prize winners had to be chosen.  After fans voted in the Top 10, we had the arduous task of narrowing it down. Selecting the final four was tough, but in the end we believe we selected the videos that showcased the creativity, energy, wit, and skill we were looking for. So, let’s get to it. In no particular order: The Fuse This! Video Contest $5,000 Grand Prize Winners!

- Unzipped Zebra

- Colin Windmuller

- Hardedge

- ajuno131 

Good looking bunch! Congratulations to all the winners and thank you so much to everyone that entered. Again, it was a very hard decision deciding who took home the top prizes.  However! The Top 10 will also receive signed copies of Fuse and the Top 25 will receive signed posters. Not a bad palette cleanser.

Check out the other talented top 25 entrants here.

Insomniac’s first game, Disruptor, came out all the way back in 1996.  Like any good narrative imbued game released during that time period, it features live action cutscenes.  The acting was… well… bold.  If you want a more vivid idea of what we mean by bold – go check out some of them out on YouTube.  We’ll wait.

Welcome back! Hopefully, you didn’t get distracted by that fake “Harlem Shake Goes Wrong” video.  Anywho, things have changed a lot over the years including the caliber of the actors in our games.  You’ve seen from Ratchet and Resistance how we like to wrangle the best possible voices for our games – and with Fuse it’s no different.  The challenge this time, however, was finding four veteran voice-over actors to bring the dysfunctional chemistry of Overstrike 9 to life.  After looking at the cast list – we think you’ll agree that we found them.

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Brian Bloom as Dalton Brooks: I could list the games Brian has been in, but it would be much easier to list the ones he hasn’t. He’s never acted in a Mario game. Done. That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but he has put in some serious work in the games industry. He’s touched everything from Mass Effect to Call of Duty to StarCraft to Kane & Lynch to… you get the idea. He’s also voiced many characters in animated shows such as The Avengers, Batman: Brave and the Bold, and TMNT. Throw in his live-action films appearances (The A-Team, Smokin’ Aces, etc) and you have one seasoned actor at the helm of Overstrike 9.

Jennifer Hale as Naya Deveraux: This is another “Brian Bloom” situation. Jennifer’s game industry resume is quite possibly the largest of any actress out there. Seriously. My finger got tired from scrolling through her IMDB credits. A few highlights: Naomi in Metal Gear Solid, Samus in Metroid Prime, and, of course, FemShep in Mass Effect. And on top of all that she has been in over 50 animated series such as X-Men, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Well, now she’s in Fuse. With a British accent.

Khary Payton as Jacob Kimble: Chances are you’ve heard Khary recently. He’s been Drebin in MGS4, Emmit in Starhawk, Azrael in Batman: Arkham City, among many others. Heck, if you played our very own Resistance 2 – you heard him as Warner. Even when you aren’t playing videogames (gasp) you’ve probably heard him on T.V. Aqualad on Young Justice? Yup! Cyborg on Teen Titans? Double YUP! He certainly has the repertoire to bring Overstrike 9’s efficiency-loving sniper to life.

Ali Hillis as Izzy Sinclair: Another Mass Effect alumnus has joined the Fuse ranks! Only this time, she’s 100% less blue. Ali has been, of course, Liara in Mass Effect, Sofia in Gears of War: Judgment, and Lightning in a little indie game called Final Fantasy XIII.  In animation, she’s played Emma Frost in X-Men and Karin in Naruto. To add to an already impressive resume, she has also had parts in live-action movies such as Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Must Love Dogs. What’s the trick to voicing the world’s most apathetic support agent? Grab the game and see!

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But everyone can’t be a good guy, right? That would make it difficult to have a narrative arch. So, the antagonist crew in Fuse required acting-chops just as good as the protagonists’. To achieve this, we rounded-up Steve Blum (Cowboy Bebop, X-Men, Legend of Korra, and everything else ever) as Sovlenko, Gwendoline Yeo (Final Fantasy X-2, Wolverine and the X-Men, The Clone Wars) as Meilin, JB Blanc (Count of Monte Cristo, Darksiders, Naruto) as Luther, and Dave B. Mitchell (Fallout: New Vegas, Brutal Legend, Kingdoms of Amalur) as Fable.  So, rest assured that knowing that the other side of the morality scale is equally represented by a talented cast.

The result of combining this veteran cast is a game where character chemistry is at the fore-front. Every witty one-liner, jab, and dramatic moment lands thanks to their performances. The benefit for the player is that the world of Fuse is given life – whether from a cutscene or banter in the middle of a firefight. No live-action or boldness necessary.

To see these fine actors in action, pick up Fuse starting on May 28^th.

Description:

Experience the devastating power of co-op teamwork as you and up to three friends join forces in the Fuse demo from Insomniac Games. Overstrike 9 has tracked the stolen Fuse source to a remote Raven base in Pakistan’s treacherous Karakoram Mountains. The team must stop rogue paramilitary corporation Raven from carrying out its horrific plan to form a new world order. Taking place midway through the game, the demo gives players a chance to play with and level-up all four Overstrike operatives along with their Xenotech weapons. The demo supports 1-4 players with online and split-screen drop-in-and-drop-out-co-op.

Controller Maps:

PlayStation 3	Xbox 360

Play the Fuse demo online alone or with up to three friends. The Fuse Demo supports 1-to-4 player online co-op, you also can play alone or two-player split screen locally. If you have less than four human players, you can use LEAP to jump between the four available characters. To LEAP, press and hold Select/Back to bring up the character menu. Press the face-button to leap to the corresponding agent. You can LEAP to any agent who is not currently controlled by a human or performing an action. You also cannot LEAP to/from a downed or incapacitated agent.

Download Now:

PlayStation 3: Available Now
Xbox 360: Available Now (Gold Members)

We are less than four weeks out of Fuse, our new four-player co-op shooter, hitting shelves.  For those of you that live in the past – that’s two fortnights! It’s about time we start giving you more depth of the threats you will face through your globe scaling adventure.

To do that – trailer time! So, sit back, relax, press play, and become intimidated by Fable and company.

Good news, everyone! Fuse has gone Gold! For those of you wondering where Au fits into our game, let me halt your thoughts right now. Going Gold on a game means that it is fully complete and off the factory to be printed and delivered to your local store of choice – primed and ready to you to pick up on May 28th (NA) and May 31st (EU).

To mark this occasion, we have created an exclusive Unboxing video. I don’t want to say that it’s a momentous moment, but it’s a momentous moment.  Check it.

Make sure to pre-order today to experience your own Unboxing.