Round-up: Cell Quake, Payne Movie, Namco/Bandai Merger, ITVS Game

Today's round-up includes news on an infamous FPS coming to cell phones, the movie version of a hardheaded Finnish action game, approval of the imminent Namco/Bandai merger, and information on an RFP for a PBS-related online game, as well as the latest product and job information. - id Software’s first-person shooter icon Quake is being ported to upcoming 3D-enabled cellular phones. An agreement announced between id Software and publisher Pulse Interactive will bring the multiplayer fragfest, titled Quake Mobile, to a mobile handset near you. Todd Hollenshead, CEO of id, said that his company is “already looking forward to the first mobile deathmatch.” Quake Mobile is being developed by Bare Naked Productions for 3D-enabled mobile phones available in the U.S. this summer, and may be available as an embedded game on these new phones. - 20th Century Fox announced today that a Max Payne movie is in the works. The originally Remedy Entertainment-developed game franchise will be co-produced into celluloid form by Scott Faye, who aims to focus on the origins of the Max Payne character. “I think this is a real actor’s part,” Faye said, “because although the story will have action and intrigue, at its core it’s a story about a man who loses everything in life that’s dear to him.” Julie Yorn, executive producer of the 2003 Lions Gate film Wonderland, will also co-produce. - Japanese-headquartered publisher Namco’s shareholders have now officially approved a previously announced merger between the gaming giant and one of Japan’s largest toy and game makers, Bandai. The deal is set to close at the end of September, and will create a new company, Namco Bandai Holdings Inc - before the merger announcement, Bandai had 979 employees and Namco had 2,413 employees. - The Independent Television Service, a public television foundation and new media sponsor on the Internet, is searching for online game proposals through its Interactive Electric Shadows funding initiative. The Congressionally funded projects are meant to be non-traditional, interactive works for the Internet that “involve creative risks and address the needs of underserved audiences.” Designers of the winning project will receive $100,000 to produce an online game and supporting website. Guidelines and applications are available on the ITVS site. - Also updated today: product news including Ageia's signing of GungHo for its physics middleware solution, as well as the latest industry jobs from companies including Blue Fang Games, Pronto Games, and many more.