"Artists running naked in springtime" business model proved wrong with G.O.D. ?

[vimes]

I was browsing information on Delphine Software and I ended up reading an interview of Mike Wilson, former CEO of Gathering od Developers which published Darkstone... and then, it came back to me : it was this company that attend to E3 1999 or E3 2k but stayed outside the main building and demoedn its games on the parking lot....

Yea, the company which , rather than creating games in-house, supported small development houses allowing each group to retain much of their freedom but connecting them to resources and a publishing network that they wouldn't otherwise have. They even published great games between 1998 and their by Take2 in 2001 Heavy Metal : F.A.K.K. 2, Fly !, Max Payne, Myth III, Rune,Darkstone, , Railroad Tycoon II and Stronghold... then it was completely eaten by Take2 and lost its original purpose.

It's funny that a structure like United Artists founded by four stars (Chaplin,Fairbanks,Pickford and Griffith) could exist and stay true to its initial purpose during 60 years in the movie industry whereas a game company which gained the trust of high profiled developers such as 3D Realms, Third Law Interactive, Epic Megagames, Edge of Reality, Human Head Studios, PopTop Software, Ritual Entertainment, Remedy Entertainment, Delphine Software and Terminal Reality couldn't even reach its third birthday.

It's sad for the artist(s) who enjoyed the activity mentionned in the title.

[miffy495]

Hey now, G.O.D. will always have a place and I'd hope that it's not too far-fetched that someone will step up soon to do what they did. There always needs to be someone to break ground. When I first heard of Geist, my mind immediately leapt to "Hmmm... First person 'Messiah.'" G.O.D. pioneered a lot of play mechanics that are being revived now, and once that stuff becomes more mainstream, the next G.O.D. will arrive to start anew.

At least, I really really hope so...