Buck up, Fiddy fans: It looks like 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand may see the light of day after all.
A new database entry at the Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification indicates the hip-hop-themed FPS is now in the hands of publisher THQ. The game was originally set to be published by Vivendi, but the company’s recent merger with Activision and resulting cancellation of all but a few of Vivendi’s most popular titles left the game’s future in doubt. Previously, Activision Blizzard would not comment on the ultimate fate of Blood on the Sand beyond saying, “The company is reviewing its options regarding titles that it will not be publishing.”
The follow-up to 50 Cent: Bulletproof sees the rapper and his merry band of G-Unit trekking off to “a war-torn country” in the Middle East, where they perform a concert, acquire a gem-encrusted skull, get jumped by some guys and then go all gangsta in an attempt to retrieve the skull, which they apparently think would look really nice on Tony Yayo’s mantle, between the glass-domed clock and the ceramic unicorn. Producer Aaron Blean said Blood on the Sand would be more story-focused than Bulletproof, and that Fiddy himself is “heavily involved” in the game’s design.
The Australian classification board awarded the game an MA15+ rating, the highest available in the country, for “strong violence and coarse language, sexual and drug references,” while the game has not yet been rated by the ESRB. At last check, 50 Cent: Blood on the Sand was scheduled for release in early 2009 for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
