E3 2005: Bohemia Interactive's Xbox FPS operation

News - Operation Flashpoint creator's console move

In an announcement that should command the interest of fans of Operation Flashpoint, the Czech developers of that seminal PC combat-sim have let it be known that they are hard at work on an Xbox FPS. Now they may say it's an FPS, and they may not be giving much away about the game's name or its history, but there's a very good chance that this is the re-tooled Xbox version of Operation Flashpoint. Bohemia split with Codemasters, Operation Flashpoint's original publishers, a while back so legal issues meant that a change of branding was in order.

This, their first Xbox title, sounds an awful lot like a military shooter, featuring as it does a squad of soldiers, a war between NATO and Russia and over 30 real-world guns and 40 vehicles. Another one of the Operation Flashpoint's many features is also being replicated for the Xbox, as the new game will contain 4 playfields of 100 square kilometres each, as well as a full mission editor. Operation Flashpoint's gigantic battlefields and simulated military operations have never been bettered, with the game's only weak point being some horrendously unreliable netcode. This new FPS will take full advantage of the Xbox Live service, with 50 different battlefields for players to wage war across. The prospect of an Operation Flashpoint style game with a streamlined interface and multiplayer that doesn't require a degree in networking to enjoy is certainly compelling.

Bohemia also confirmed that they are working on Armed Assault. A similar style of game to Operation Flashpoint, Armed Assault is not the successor to that game, but rather an upgraded version of the now-ageing original, with a new storyline, improved mission editor and a new battlefield. Armed Assault will reportedly be fully compatible with all the old Operation Flashpoint add-ons.

More news, such as release date and a name, when we get them.