Today LucasArts, in conjunction with Day 1 Studios, announced their newest IP: a futuristic war game calledFracture, featuring a nifty little mechanic known as Terrain Deformation. It seems pretty self-evident: your actions directly affect the terrain around you.
Actually, let me let them explain it to you:
When Briggs throws a tectonic grenade on a level battlefield, the ground blasts upward to provide accest to an otherwise unreachable area. Moving on, when he comes accors what appears to be an impenetrable structure, Briggs utilizes the alt-fire functionality on his rocket launcher to create enormous craters to burrow underneath the wall. Surrounded on all sides by enemies, Briggs heaves a vortex grenade, creating a swirling tornado-like mass of boulder, dirt and debris to dispatch his foes. these are just a few samples of the possibilites for Terrain Deformation. Players not oly change the battlefield — they change the face of the battle itself.
The above trailer looks promising. Who knows, maybe LucasArts will deliver truly interactive and destructible environments and fun physics. God knows we’ve been disappointed before,but there’s still hope.
Hit the jump for more.
To clarify: players assume the role of Mason Briggs, a soldier fighting for the cybernetically enhanced Atlantic Alliance against the genetically superior Pacifican army. The action takes place in the 22nd century, in a world wracked by environmental crises: the polar ice caps have melted and the United States is one huge flood plain of the Mighty Mississippi. The two factions seem to bevfighting over a land dispute, as well as the moral stance of genetic engineering. Global warming? Stem-cell research?Somebody call Tipper Gore!
Below is a full press release, and be sure check out the gallery for some screen shots. Mason Briggs may notsweat like Gilbert Arenas, but he does have a cool ear-attachment thingie.
Fracturewill come out mid-2008 for the PS3 and Xbox360.
LucasArts and Day 1 Studios Reshape Next-Generation Entertainment WithFractureFuturistic Warfare Is Literally “Groundbreaking”SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – July 24, 2025 – LucasArts and development partnerDay 1 Studios today announced Fracture(tm), in which players reshape thebattlefields in a futuristic conflict with global implications. Thisepic war fought on American soil pits cybernetically enhanced soldiersagainst warriors augmented by the benefits of advanced geneticengineering. The company that brought you Star Wars and Indiana Jones,as well as successful new intellectual properties such as Mercenaries(the No. 1 new IP in 2005) and Thrillville (the No. 1 originalchildren’s IP of 2006), presents a new franchise full of groundbreakingnext-generation gameplay, an intriguing storyline and compellingcharacters.“Exciting new intellectual properties serve a vital role to the growthof LucasArts,” said Jim Ward, president of LucasArts. “Fracturerepresents the next step in this company initiative, complete with theintriguing story and compelling characters audiences expect of aLucasArts release.”Fracture advances players to the year 2161, where ecological andseismological disasters have radically altered the planet’s landscape,and a clash in ideologies places society on the threshold of war.Players set foot on the frontlines of this epic conflict in the role ofMason Briggs, a demolitions expert fighting for the Atlantic Alliance,the side that relies upon cybernetic enhancement. Pitted against thegenetically enhanced soldiers of the Pacifican army, players willexperience a revolution in 22nd-century warfare. In utilizing the coregameplay mechanic of Fracture, a destructive next-generation technologyknown as Terrain Deformation, players are equipped with an arsenal offuturistic weaponry to strategically reshape their surroundings on thefly. Every action they perform dynamically reshapes the earth in ways novideogame has ever seen.
When Briggs throws a tectonic grenade on alevel battlefield, the ground blasts upward to provide access to anotherwise unreachable area. Moving on, when he comes across what appearsto be an impenetrable structure, Briggs utilizes the alt-firefunctionality on his rocket launcher to create enormous craters toburrow underneath the wall. Surrounded on all sides by enemies, Briggsheaves a vortex grenade, creating a swirling tornado-like mass ofboulder, dirt and debris to dispatch his foes. These are just a fewsamples of the possibilities for Terrain Deformation. Players not onlychange the battlefield – they change the face of the battle itself.“LucasArts sees simulation-based gameplay as an essential component of atrue next-gen experience, and that’s exactly what Fracture delivers,”said Peter Hirschmann, vice president of product development atLucasArts. “Day 1 Studios has done a phenomenal job of creating truenext-gen tech that not only dazzles on a visual level but also serves asa core gameplay mechanic. Unlike many other next-gen games on themarket, Fracture simply isn’t possible in the previous generation ofconsoles.”“LucasArts’ excitement for Fracture is palpable, and it only inspiresus even further to ensure the game lives up to its lofty expectations,”said Denny Thorley, president of Day 1. “The opportunity to work with acompany such as LucasArts, that knows not only how to launch largeentertainment properties, but also successfully bring new IP to market,is truly a privilege. With Terrain Deformation leading the way, we knowwe’re creating something special, and we have absolutely no doubts thatLucasArts is the only company to verify Fracture receives its due.”More information about the game can be found at the official Fracturewebsite,www.fracturegame.com, whichwill continue to release details throughout the year.
