The Business Side of Video (Space) Games EXCLUSIVELY ON IDLE THUMBS

[Roderick]

I will always love this one. It's just marvellous.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GpIE8OiXsI

[brkl]

We got shit like this:

WTF is with this alien doll with a Glaswegian accent!?

[Nachimir]

Eurocom making about 200 or so redundancies today (That's an estimate, last time I heard they employed about 250 people). I know several people who work there, and it's a shit sandwich. I'm hearing (edit) that Activision really had them over a barrel with the last game, it's fucked them, and today's situation is worse than reported.

If they don't survive this, I'll always remember them as the company whose HR department once told me "We don't think it's appropriate for our developers to socialise with people from other companies" (Being nicer: That was about four years ago, and I heard they'd been changing a lot in that respect).

The only big studio left in my region is now Crytek UK, and perhaps Outso.

[brkl]

I've never even heard of that studio. But apparently they were pretty big.

[Nachimir]

They've done licensed games for years now. A lot of them were poor games, due to being rushed out for Hollywood studio schedules.

Of all the big studios, they're a pretty strange and insular one; I once got an event speaker from them, but he could only speak on condition that we list him without a company name and he didn't tell anyone he worked for Eurocom. Again, something I'd heard they were being more progressive about this year.

[melmer]

Sony rip off Battle royal stars has done really badly

http://www.edge-online.com/news/black-ops-ii-stays-on-top-of-uk-chart-miserable-start-for-playstation-all-stars-battle-royale/

[Henroid]

Sony rip off Battle royal stars has done really badly

http://www.edge-onli...-battle-royale/

It really is a "no shit" moment. Since they revealed the characters and third parties were involved I knew this was going to tank. I've also been aggressive against this game because it was supposed to demonstrate Sony's brand strength, and they're too dumb to realize that their brand strength has jack-all to do with video game characters they've published into being. I would hope for this to be a humbling experience for them but it sadly will not be.

[Roderick]

Yikes! But I can't say I'm very surprised. One of the fun things about Smash Bros that almost all of the characters in it, besides being extremely well-loved and known, were generally also non-violent. So to have guys like Mario and Kirby suddenly beating up people was exciting.

[Sno]

I need to emphasize that i haven't played All-Stars, so this is me committing the sin of complaining about a game i haven't played, but i've found a lot of the news and details surrounding the game fairly interesting and peculiar.

For starters, there are some incredibly bizarre mechanics in that game, like nobody having any health bars. (Health is literally not a mechanic.) The act of dealing damage is simply a means to feed your supers so you can execute on one hit kills, while blocking is purely a means of denying your opponent the ability to grow those supers. It's so weird, but maybe that's the kind of weird that game needs.

It's hard to imagine it working better than what Smash does, though. The constant risk and a gradually dwindling possibility of recovery, the feeling of being right on the edge at all times. The combination of the smash attacks and damage percentages is a big part of why Smash is such an enduring and popular design.

That All-Stars roster too... It comes across as a little safe. It's all very current, where Smash has frequently succeeded by digging deep into Nintendo's history. Hal knows how to bring the fan service, while All-Stars has ended up looking more like a cross-marketing promotion than a celebration of Sony's history.

[SiN]

That All-Stars roster too... It comes across as a little safe. It's all very current, where Smash has frequently succeeded by digging deep into Nintendo's history. Hal knows how to bring the fan service, while All-Stars has ended up looking more like a cross-marketing promotion than a celebration of Sony's history.

To be fair, the N64 roster was pretty safe as well. (It's been a while, but) I think the unlockables contained fan service, but All Stars has Parappa, so it balances out.

What has the critical reception been like? Those mechanics certainly sound kinda crazy, but maybe they actually work?

The bigger issue is just being a new franchise. All-Stars will succeed if Sony takes a long-term approach to developing the franchise. And I suspect we'll get better fan service if the series goes on.

[I_smell]

When it was first announced I was just saddened by how much of a Smash Brothers rip it was, but then I came around and said "oh well in Japan there's tonnes of these games. It's a genre. There's a manga one, an anime one, a toy one, it's a whole trend, so they're not really ripping off much."

Then recently I watched more video of the game and I'm back to being appauled and offended.

Yikes! But I can't say I'm very surprised. One of the fun things about Smash Bros that almost all of the characters in it, besides being extremely well-loved and known, were generally also non-violent. So to have guys like Mario and Kirby suddenly beating up people was exciting.

Let's not gloss over the point of Smash Brothers though: It's Pikachu and Super Mario and Zelda man. Characters we all know, even if you've not played those games for 10 years.

How the holy hell does this PlayStation game not have Tomb Raider!? Or any Final Fantasy? I get that Crash Bandicoot is someone else's property, but if you can't GET Tony Hawk and Spider-Man, then don't make this game. There's waves of Point Blank and Rez and VibRibbon and God Hand and other forgotten PlayStation games to have as background filler, but don't jump into this idea knowing you can't have Solid Snake.

Sony's history doesn't go back as far as Nintendo's, but this Dante is from a Devil May Cry that isn't out yet, and this background is from a Bioshock that isn't out yet. That's not a nostalgia thing, that's just advertising. Regular Cole and Evil Cole as two seperate characters, are you being serious? And Bioshock wasn't even out on PS3 for the first year!

It's legitemately a little bit sad how far off the mark this game is. Obviously it's legal stuff, and it's probably way more difficult to get these characters animated and voiced properly than it is to get Jigglypuff done, but what a shame this is. The atmosphere in the game is so sterile and template, and I don't know if that's because the characters aren't as cartoonish, or because the games are all just a couple years old, or because the cutscenes are slideshows, or because the backgrounds play the same animation every time, or-- fuckin WHAT. Heavenly Sword was one game, and who the FUCK is "Radec".

Anyway that's my rant about that. The first DLC is to download Emmet Graves from Starhawk, and "Kat from Gravity Rush", which is a PSP game I think.

In Smash Brothers you play as DONKEY KONG from FUCKIN GOD DAMN DONKEY KONG. You can play as Sonic, the hedghog from "Sonic the Hedgehog".

[Sno]

So this just leaked: Details on Bungie's Destiny.

I like that premise, I like that art. I am instantly excited about this.

It seems to suggest that Bungie is sticking to their strengths, in the Halo/Marathon sense of it at least. Some of the concept art could almost be depicting stuff from Halo. (Dudes with customized power armor huddled together under an energy bubble?)

Four games, though? One every two years? Downloadable expansions on the off years? I wonder how Bungie will take to working with a meat grinder publisher like Activision, having been afforded pretty generous three year cycles by Microsoft in the past. (Also, the first game shipping on both the 360 and the "720"?)

[Roderick]

Plus one rant, I_smell!

[I_smell]

You'd get twice as much life out of "SEGA All-Stars Battle Royale", and that is saying something.

[melmer]

I think you're being a little harsh, i mean come on! Fat princess vs parappa the rapper vs kill zone soldier vs a clown with his head on fire is a grudge match for the ages!

So this just leaked: Details on Bungie's Destiny.

that looks hawt!

[Henroid]

You'd get twice as much life out of "SEGA All-Stars Battle Royale", and that is saying something.

But Sega is known for characters and even just faces of games. Sonic, Bayonetta, Valkyria Chronicles, Jet Set Radio, Phantasy Star, Streets of Rage (especially this), Kid Chameleon, Comix Zone, Shinobi, Panzer Dragoon, Shining Force games...

I mean holy shit, Sega should actually do this. And it would be great.

[I_smell]

Yeah I noticed after that that I accidentally named the best people in the world to do it besides Nintendo.

[Sno]

So this just leaked: Details on Bungie's Destiny.

that looks hawt!

And now this has been going around..

That's from ODST, which came out in 2009.

Bungie, you clever devils, you.

[melmer]

Ha, that's very cool.

[I_smell]

That's Rod Ferguson, Cliff Bleszinski and Mike Capps now leaving Epic Games in 2012.

Mark Rein and Tim Sweeney are still there, but hey there's 20 days left in the year!

[Henroid]

That's Rod Ferguson, Cliff Bleszinski and Mike Capps now leaving Epic Games in 2012.

Mark Rein and Tim Sweeney are still there, but hey there's 20 days left in the year!

A friend elsewhere actually compiled this. Quoting him:

I'll point out that:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-03-07-molyneux-leaves-lionhead-to-join-indie-studio-22-cans

Microsoft Studios Europe creative director and Lionhead founder Peter Molyneux left both companies in March to found independent developer 22Cans.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-08-13-creative-director-artists-exit-people-can-fly

People Can Fly (Epic subsidiary) founder and creative director Adrian Chmielarz, lead artist Andrzej Poznanski, and principal artist Michal Kosieradzki left that studio to form The Astronauts in August.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-08-10-gears-of-war-producer-joins-irrational-games

That same month, Gears of War producer Rod Fergusson jumped from Epic Games to join BioShock Infinite developer Irrational Games.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-09-18-bioware-co-founders-retire

Bioware founders Dr. Greg Zeschuk and Dr. Ray Muzyka retired in September, leaving the industry to pursue other interests.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-10-03-gears-of-war-designer-cliff-bleszinski-leaves-epic

A month later, Epic Games design director Cliff Bleszinski left the company to take a “much needed break”.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-10-22-joe-mad-madureira-leaves-vigil-games

That same month, creative director Joe Madureira left Darksiders 2 developer Vigil Games to return to drawing comics.

And that's off the top of my head. Weird year for the industry. And that's not even going into whatever the hell is happening at Epic.

[Merus]

The big gulf between downloadable titles and AAA titles, particularly because anything in between just does not sell what it needs to any more, I think is leading to a lot of fatigue from experienced developers who remember knowing the names of everyone on your team.

[Henroid]

TOR is going to have some of its paid for features relaxed. They're making the extra action bars something you get just by reaching "Preferred" status (buy something from their store once; as in a pack of points), and also reaching Preferred status will take you from 2 character slots to 6.

They still have room to go but it's a start.

[Henroid]

One of my peers just brought this to our attention.

So, remember this big moment 1.5 years ago?

Well.......

A BioShock title for Vita is something Irrational’s Ken Levine is interested in developing, but he’s told Eurogamer the decision to create the game for the handheld is up to Sony and Take-Two.

Levine said he has “cool design” ideas for BioShock Vita, but he needs the go-ahead from “the business people” before getting to work.

“Where the Vita stands right now, it’s in the hands of the business people at Take-Two and the business people at Sony working out, hey, what happens in these business people discussions? Fortunately I don’t have to take part in it any more because I sold my company a long time ago,” he said.

“It’s something I’m still very interested in. I still have a cool design for it. It’s a question of, do those guys come to find the right mix that makes everybody happy to make that happen?”

Don’t be hoping for a port of Infinite though, at least not yet, because it may be something entirely different altogether.

“I’ve never said it was Infinite,” said Levine. “It will be something. I’m always hesitant to talk too much about things we don’t have anything to show because it’s getting ahead of ourselves.

“I’m trying to be very careful.”

BioShock Infinite releases on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 in March.

They haven't even started Bioshock Vita.

Edit - Oh by the way, Bioshock Infinite is delayed once again. This time from February to March.

[Henroid]

Gamasutra has an article about AAA development being up against the ropes and possibly ready to go down.

One thing it doesn't note as a problem is executive payout (overhead costs) at publishers being a problem. A lot of that money can be going back into the companies to cover costs / pay for employees. But that's more a problem across American business as a whole and very political.