Author Richard Morgan, best known for his cyberpunk sci-fi novel Altered Carbon, revealed on his blog that he's been working with Electronic Arts as a consultant on three upcoming games (via A Dribble of Ink). He explains that the relationship started with an email from John Miles at EA about a year ago. A meeting with Miles and fellow EA employees Jeff Gamon and Colin Robinson resulted in an offer to write the script for a project already underway and to consult on future games. Part of the deal included heading off to Berlin the next week and since it seems he accepted we can assume that was his next stop.

While Morgan does not disclose what projects he might be on the names and locations offer plenty of clues. Miles, who initially reached out to him, recently has been working with the EA Partners group which includes developers Crytek and Starbreeze. The quick trip to Berlin put him only a short train ride away from Crytek's headquarters in Frankfurt. Morgan's gritty style would definitely fit well with the Crysis franchise. But hold on, before we forget, Crytek also bought developer Free Radical earlier this year, including the rights to the TimeSplitters IP, and kept the studio in the UK running. That sounds like two perfect fits already.

As to whether Starbreeze is involved that seems too be out. They're currently working on a Bourne game for EA. More likely, given Morgan's strengths, is that he would be working on the Mirror's Edge sequel Patrick Soderlund said a small team was working on already back at E3. So there you go, three games: writing a new TimeSplitters (4), and consulting on the next Crysis game and Mirrors Edge 2.

UPDATE: Or, as Chris just pointed out to me, maybe Starbreeze isn't out of the picture. We reported earlier this year that EA planned to revive Syndicate. At the time rumors pointed to Starbreeze being the studio tabbed to take the project.

Following word from EA CEO John Riccitiello that the Mirror's Edge franchise will continue, Electronic Arts has confirmed that a small team is now at work on the sequel.

"You will see another Mirror's Edge for sure," said EA Europe VP Patrick Soderlund to Videogamer. "It's just a matter of when that time is and what we do with it. We have a small team on it and I'm excited about what we do."

Originally planned as a trilogy of games, the franchise's sequel potential was called into question after the disappointing debut of Mirror's Edge last November.

DICE's parkour-inspired, first-person action title was released during the crowded holiday season to lukewarm reviews and slow sales. The title went on to eventually pass the 1 million mark, despite DICE's sales target of over 3 million units.

"The game wasn't perfect by any means," said Soderlund. "We would have liked the game to sell better even though the game has sold better than most people think."

While lowered expectations have caused Electronic Arts to consider axing some games, the company has suggested that the planned sequels for EA Redwood Shores' Dead Space and DICE's Mirror's Edge will not be affected by the upcoming cuts.

"Dead Space looks like a long-term big winner for us," EA CEO John Riccitiello stated during a conference call today. "Mirror's Edge is one that was very strongly reviewed. That one's gonna go forward--we'll be looking at some issues around the design to make sure strong IP is married with strong business."

Riccitiello added: "Many times, what happens with new IP is the first edition doesn't generate the units that subsequent editions could generate."

The CEO also touched on the recent release of Mythic's Warhammer Online, stating his belief that the PC MMO "will continue to perform very very well."

Following up on the late August release of Mercenaries 2 (PC, PS2, PS3, 360), EA publishing COO John Pleasants has stated that "there will be a Mercenaries 3, and if I can have anything to do with it, there will be a Mercenaries 10."

The Pandemic-developed open-world action game sequel has sold 1.9 million copies since it hit retailers, the company revealed during a conference call yesterday.

With EA riding a wave of planned sequels--Dead Space 2, Army of Two 2 and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 along with Mirror's Edge 2 and 3--Pleasants noted that future Dead Space and Mirror's Edge games "are not likely to be annual sequels."

He also promised a strong future for the Spore franchise, vowing that both expansion packs and new business models are coming for the Maxis-helmed evolution series.

As EA DICE's first person free-runner Mirror's Edge sprints towards its November 11 release on PS3 and Xbox 360 and the winter-due PC edition, senior producer Owen O'Brien has revealed that the title is actually the first installment in a planned trilogy.

"The story we're telling at the moment is kind of a trilogy, a three-story arc," O'Brien informed AusGamers. "For these first couple games, it's all about Faith. It's all about her experience in the world."

But that doesn't mean the series will stop after the third entry. "I think there's a lot of scope to take the story in different directions, or maybe tell someone else's story," he explained. "I think the world we've created, the city and the culture and the environment, is almost as interesting or more interesting than any one individual story."

A level editor may be among the features of Mirror's Edge 2, as O'Brien noted that it would be "something we're probably going to look out for the sequel."

"The thing is, the game is so easy to play and intuitive, that creating a level editor is a skill in itself," he reasoned. "If we do it, we want to make the editor as easy to use and intuitive as the game is."