Gearbox and Ubisoft are Brothers in Arms

After teasing PC Gamers for weeks on its warstory.net Web site, Gearbox has finally revealed the official title of its upcoming World War II shooter. Though the name of its protagonist, Sgt. Matt Baker, led some to believe the game's moniker would be "Baker's Dozen," Gearbox went with the more militaristic (and focus-group friendly) Brothers in Arms. Gearbox also launched the new URL for the game, http://www.brothersinarmsgame.com/.

Besides learning its title, gamers also found out the identity of Brothers in Arms' publisher. Confirming many industry-watchers' suspicions, Ubisoft announced it is entering the crowded WWII shooter genre with the game, which it already plans to turn into a series. "Ubisoft today reinforces its strategy to dominate the wargames market by announcing a long-term deal with award-winning developer Gearbox Software to publish a new military franchise," said the publisher in a press release.

Between marketing bellicosity and corporate saber-rattling, Ubisoft's release also revealed some information about Brothers in Arms' story. While other games feature historical battles, Gearbox is touting the fact that its shooter will follow characters based on individual, real-life soldiers. Players will strap on the boots of Baker, the leader of a nine-man squad of American paratroopers similar to those portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers (which was itself drawn from the late historian Stephen Ambrose's nonfiction best-seller). The game's maps will be based on eyewitness accounts, aerial reconnaissance images, and US Army Signal Corps photos. One of the screenshots featured overlays a grainy black-and-white photo of a French country house with the game's re-creation of it.

As far as Brothers in Arms' gameplay is concerned, Ubisoft and Gearbox would only say that it is based on a "breakthrough squad-based combat mechanism" and will contain "unprecedented realism." However, the two companies did drop two very important details. First, the game will be released for both PCs and consoles. And second, it will march off to stores "starting winter 2004."