The Godfather II

Indiana Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson has ruled in favor of games publisher Electronic Arts in a case against the estate of American gangster and bank robber John Dillinger. The suit was filed by EA in response to threats of litigation from the Dillinger estate for using the “Dillinger” name for a machinegun in the Godfather games.

According to Magnus-Stinson, the Dillinger estate has no claim to exclusive publicity rights over the Dillinger name via the right-of-publicity statute, since the infamous gangster passed away before that law was passed. EA's case rested on a precedent ruling that the same exception applied to the name “Marilyn Monroe.”

Magnus-Stinson commented that Dillinger's association with the Thompson (or “Tommy Gun”), after which the Dillinger in EA's game was modeled, had been cemented in popular culture over the years...

Notorious bank robber John Dillinger was gunned down by FBI agents in 1934, but his fame lives on. And that is causing some problems for game publisher Electronic Arts. EA has filed suit in federal court in San Francisco, requesting that a U.S. District Court judge grant them the okay to use the name Dillinger in association with a pair of virtual machine guns depicted in its Godfather games. The Dillinger Tommy Gun appears in the original Godfather game, while the Modern Dillinger is featured in The Godfather II. The publisher has taken the unusual step because the owner of Indiana-based Dillinger LLC, reportedly the grandson of the famous gangster's half-sister, lays claim to all things Dillinger, including his name and likeness.

Godfather II includes a bonus trailer on the game disc but it's not for some upcoming EA game - it's for Dead Space, the survival horror game released last fall. Why put an old trailer on your game disc and bypass an opportunity to promote a new product? Well, there's a few reasons.

The Godfather 2 - New HD Trailer and Screenshots Also new info on the multiplayer mode.

Following EA's earlier announcement that the Don Control mode will be available in the Godfather II's multiplayer game, the publisher has released new shots showing the mode in action.

EA has released a new developer blog for their upcoming title, The Godfather II. In the blog that can be read below, Creative Director Mike Perry offers up some strategies for being a successful Don. The Godfather II is scheduled to release on April 7 for Xbox 360, PS3, and PC, and is rated M for Mature.

As a Don in the Corleone family, The Godfather II allows players to carve out their own story of deception, betrayal, and conquest in a 1960's organized crime world. Interacting closely with major characters, your story will interweave with many of the key events from the film, such as the meeting of the Don's in Cuba, blackmailing Senator Geary, and the Senate investigation of organized crime. Players will have to invest in their family, manage their business, and reach out to corrupt officials – all of which is done through the revolutionary Don's View. The Don's View is a 3D representation of the player's criminal empire; it allows them to coordinate their strategy, plan hits on rival made men, attack enemy rackets, and much more.

WorthPlaying writes: Inspired by the film and Mario Puzo's Corleone family drama, The Godfather II game goes beyond the film's story by setting players in the world of organized crime in 1960s Florida, Cuba and New York. Delayed a few weeks back, EA has confirmed a new release date for North American and Europe...

Following on from last week's news that The Godfather II had been delayed until the first quarter of fiscal 2010, the EA Store is now listing the title for release on April 10th.

Joystiq writes: EA has revealed that its ambitious sequel, The Godfather II, won't be making its release later this month, stating that the game will instead arrive at retail sometime during the 2010 fiscal year. EA said the reason for this delay is to generate more excitement about the title and to help it capitalize more on the major release. Let's hope the extra time spent on developing the game really makes it as buzzworthy as EA hopes it will be.