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The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 8, 2013, 12:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
I think EA's problem is that they're losing ground, they know they're losing ground, and they can't figure out what to change. They look at their main competitor (Activision) and themselves at their peak (2007) and see corporations that - at least on the surface - work pretty much like EA does today. The only obvious difference is that their games don't sell. EA needs to figure out why those games don't sell instead of inventing more crazy monetization schemes of the few games that do sell.
I forgot to respond to actual meat of the post.

I'm not sure they look at Activision. What do they have other than Call of Duty? (Seriously, what IPs do they have left that they're milking?)

EA seems like a posterchild for how the games industry is like the movie industry. Every game is AAA and must sell millions, just like studios aim for summer blockbusters. The concept of making a lower budget title and accepting a smaller fanbase is dead. There's a vocal minority that wants Mirror's Edge 2, so why not throw a fraction of a budget at it and let a studio have at it?


Originally Posted by P View Post
Unfortunately, I don't think they'll do that. I think they'll try to buy some well-run studio to milk again. Any bets on who? My money is on Gearbox.
After the Colonial Marines debacle, I don't think anyone is interested Gearbox. It looks likely they defrauded SEGA to help fund Borderland 2. Which was their claim to fame and the sequel isn't exactly lighting the world on fire again.

Oh, here's a new trend I'm not enjoying - outsourcing DLC.
     
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Apr 8, 2013, 02:21 PM
 
Penny Arcade - Perennial
Everybody who reads a site like Penny Arcade probably knows about the Microsoft dude showing his “Twitter ass” re: Always On Consoles. His butt and the surrounding environs were no doubt hurt by this ambiguously sourced Kotaku piece, one which contradicts its entire thrust within the body of the article itself, and he decided to start peeing in consumer’s mouths when the actual solution was to stop reading Kotaku.

I don’t actually know what “always on” means. The first Xbox was “always on,” because it offered a perpetual connection and the creature comforts that come from a unified service. I’ve asked about what it means this time around, of course, and gotten “responses” moated deep in quotation marks. But you talk to me the way this Adam Orth character did at your ****ing peril. He’s been muzzled now, of course; brought to heel. When others told me what he tried to say, they emphasized just how connected everything is now. They aren’t wrong, certainly: World of Warcraft is typically the object lesson for things like this, but that’s a single game. Steam is much more apt, as a container service which is more or less my computer’s primary operating system. Google Docs, as a kind of Cloud Elemental, is also a solid point of comparison. Both of those feature offline modes that let you “own” your stuff to a large extent independent of the silver cord.

I could nod gravely in the direction of Electronic Arts and Ubisoft’s attempts to corral piracy to the detriment of legitimate customers, but those grisly tales need no reference. What’s being suggested slash pilloried - a console which must constantly speak to the Internet or be rendered inert - could not possibly work as a global entertainment appliance. That’s why I don’t actually believe it’s the case. But we saw this with the PS3, also: a glutted victor gesturing with a ham hock, making a host of slurred decrees. And that’s where the worry begins to creep in at the edges.
     
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Apr 8, 2013, 03:29 PM
 
In re Kuchera: I think the main gain is that he doesn't have to write so effing much now. Fewer pieces with more work and a more time behind them.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I forgot to respond to actual meat of the post.

I'm not sure they look at Activision. What do they have other than Call of Duty? (Seriously, what IPs do they have left that they're milking?)
Warcraft. Starcraft. Diablo.

Yeah, Blizzard is part of Activision, even if they try to pretend it isn't. The combined entity is bigger than EA. Also, CoD is the biggest moneymaker around.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
After the Colonial Marines debacle, I don't think anyone is interested Gearbox. It looks likely they defrauded SEGA to help fund Borderland 2. Which was their claim to fame and the sequel isn't exactly lighting the world on fire again.

Oh, here's a new trend I'm not enjoying - outsourcing DLC.
You think EA is going to have moral scruples? Are we talking about the same company here? If EA finds evidence of anything sneaky like that, they may just have found their new CEO.

Gearbox has done too much lately, but they have shown that they can release quality console shooters that sell, and that's what EA has to be focused on if they want a turnaround in the AAA department. There aren't too many such indies left - Valve isn't going to sell out.
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The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 8, 2013, 03:37 PM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
Warcraft. Starcraft. Diablo.
No, sorry, that's Blizzard. They may be a joint company, but they definitely work separately. Blizzard focuses on PC titles released whenever. Activision makes their money on yearly releases on consoles. Not remotely the same.

Originally Posted by P View Post
You think EA is going to have moral scruples? Are we talking about the same company here? If EA finds evidence of anything sneaky like that, they may just have found their new CEO.
EA won't want to own a developer that has a track record of squandering and embezzling money for the publishers they're doing work for. No one would.
     
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Apr 8, 2013, 03:56 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I'm not sure they look at Activision. What do they have other than Call of Duty? (Seriously, what IPs do they have left that they're milking?)
They seem to have alot of Movie based games - 007, Transformers, Spiderman, Xmen, etc. Then they have a bunch of dead IPs, like Quake, Doom, Guitar Hero)

I'm surprised they haven't tried to resurrect Mechwarrior (damn I loved that game on the Mac) as a franchise. Especially with the movie Pacific Rim coming out.

edit: I see they also have Prototype and Prototype 2. Not a bad game, could be better, though. As well one of the movie games of the Transformers took off and I think they're making money on that.
( Last edited by Leonard; Apr 8, 2013 at 04:06 PM. )
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The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 8, 2013, 04:01 PM
 
Skylanders seems to be their Pokémon. That's what I'm overlooking.
     
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Apr 8, 2013, 05:51 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
No, sorry, that's Blizzard. They may be a joint company, but they definitely work separately. Blizzard focuses on PC titles released whenever. Activision makes their money on yearly releases on consoles. Not remotely the same.
OK, fair enough, although Blizzard's currently milking their franchises fairly hard as well - and the last new one they created was in frigging -98 or whenever Starcraft came out.

Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
EA won't want to own a developer that has a track record of squandering and embezzling money for the publishers they're doing work for. No one would.
Why not? If EA owns them, they'd just put a few financial people that they trust in charge of that part of the operation. Besides, if Gearbox has truly burned some bridges, now might be the time to pounce.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
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Apr 8, 2013, 09:50 PM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
Gearbox has done too much lately, but they have shown that they can release quality console shooters that sell, and that's what EA has to be focused on if they want a turnaround in the AAA department. There aren't too many such indies left - Valve isn't going to sell out.
I agree with Dakar, EA doesn't need or want Gearbox. They already have Respawn (Infinity Ward 2.0) working on their next AAA shooter.

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Apr 8, 2013, 09:53 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I'm not sure they look at Activision. What do they have other than Call of Duty? (Seriously, what IPs do they have left that they're milking?)
Oh I'm sure they're looking forward to milking Bungie's new IP.

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Apr 9, 2013, 05:27 AM
 
Originally Posted by Stogieman View Post
I agree with Dakar, EA doesn't need or want Gearbox. They already have Respawn (Infinity Ward 2.0) working on their next AAA shooter.
They don't own Respawn, though. EA will publish their first game, but they don't own it.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 10:24 AM
 
Originally Posted by P View Post
Why not? If EA owns them, they'd just put a few financial people that they trust in charge of that part of the operation. Besides, if Gearbox has truly burned some bridges, now might be the time to pounce.
I don't care enough to keep going, I just don't see Gearbox as being any more special than any other developer and comes with more baggage.

Originally Posted by Stogieman View Post
Oh I'm sure they're looking forward to milking Bungie's new IP.
I forgot about that, but that's Kotick's big gamble.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 11:39 AM
 
All this conversation does is remind me how much developer <-> publisher relationships must suck.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 11:41 AM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
All this conversation does is remind me how much developer <-> publisher relationships must suck.
Not that Maxis is guiltless, but I have a strong feeling part of the SimCity debacle was it getting pushed out before the end fiscal 2012. They likely knew they needed more time and EA likely vetoed the idea.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 11:47 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
After the Colonial Marines debacle, I don't think anyone is interested Gearbox.
I think there are lots of publishers that would kill to own the Borderlands and Duke Nukem properties.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 11:58 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
Not that Maxis is guiltless, but I have a strong feeling part of the SimCity debacle was it getting pushed out before the end fiscal 2012. They likely knew they needed more time and EA likely vetoed the idea.
I don't think they're 100% guiltless either, but when have you ever heard of a developer being the ones prematurely pushing out a game?

I know I'm supposed to be Mr. Capitalism, but I hate almost all publishers, and almost always blame them for everything in the industry.

Exception: Team ICO.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:00 PM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
I think there are lots of publishers that would kill to own the Borderlands and Duke Nukem properties.
Let me restate. No one is interested in Gearbox as developers.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:01 PM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
I don't think they're 100% guiltless either, but when have you ever heard of a developer being the ones prematurely pushing out a game?
When funding runs out (i.e., they're the publisher as well).

Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
I know I'm supposed to be Mr. Capitalism, but I hate almost all publishers, and almost always blame them for everything in the industry.
Reality has a liberal bias.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:04 PM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
I think there are lots of publishers that would kill to own the Borderlands and Duke Nukem properties.
Borderlands, no doubt.

Nukem? What 16-year-old do you know that cares about that franchise? Duke Nukem faces two huge problems:

1. The Wolfenstein/Doom/Duke Nukem era contains some of the most-easily forgotten "classic" games. They were amazing at the time, but the graphics and gameplay don't hold up well at all. I tried to play Wolfenstein 3D for the first time when it released on PSN, and I made it all of ten minutes before quitting.

2. Duke Nukem in particular is a character that doesn't reflect the societal sensitivities of the modern era. He was supposedly hilarious in 1996, but part of the Duke Nukem Forever backlash seemed to be based in an attitude that's been long-forgotten and even disdained. It's a dead franchise.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:08 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
When funding runs out (i.e., they're the publisher as well).
Precisely why I hope/foresee PSN/XBLA playing an even greater role in the coming generation. Good developers are independent by nature — publishers are a necessary evil. If enough small dev teams consider creating smaller/cheaper titles to be a worthwhile sacrifice for maintaining their vision and artistic independence, the downloadable scene will continue to blossom.

At least that's what I'm hoping.

Reality has a liberal bias.
So did Hitler.




I sincerely hope anyone who reads understands the joke.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:18 PM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
Precisely why I hope/foresee PSN/XBLA playing an even greater role in the coming generation. Good developers are independent by nature — publishers are a necessary evil. If enough small dev teams consider creating smaller/cheaper titles to be a worthwhile sacrifice for maintaining their vision and artistic independence, the downloadable scene will continue to blossom.

At least that's what I'm hoping.
I'm open the XBLA but it doesn't provide the same gaming experience as full release games. It's more of a diversion.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:31 PM
 
Originally Posted by Jawbone54 View Post
Nukem? What 16-year-old do you know that cares about that franchise? Duke Nukem faces two huge problems:

1. The Wolfenstein/Doom/Duke Nukem era contains some of the most-easily forgotten "classic" games. They were amazing at the time, but the graphics and gameplay don't hold up well at all. I tried to play Wolfenstein 3D for the first time when it released on PSN, and I made it all of ten minutes before quitting.

2. Duke Nukem in particular is a character that doesn't reflect the societal sensitivities of the modern era. He was supposedly hilarious in 1996, but part of the Duke Nukem Forever backlash seemed to be based in an attitude that's been long-forgotten and even disdained. It's a dead franchise.
The exact same could have been said about Tomb Raider until recently.

Guns, aliens, T&A, and humor will always sell, provided it is reasonably well-executed. Hell, Duke Nukem Forever wasn't well-executed, but I'm sure Gearbox still earned back their investment and then some. And Gearbox bought DNF just so they could exploit the property for future games, not because they thought DNF itself would sell really well.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:38 PM
 
And it looks like The Bat is coming back: The Escapist : News : The Bat Is Back in Batman: Arkham Origins

Different dev, but with access to all the game-building resources of the previous games. (Except Hamill and Conroy.)

I thought Arkham City was an amazing game, but I don't really think I need more of it. (Unless we get a Batman game where you can actually drive the damn Batmobile.)

I'd be more interested in an Arkham City type game with Superman, Wonder Woman, or Green Arrow. But just like the films, DC/Warner Bros just can't seem to execute here.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:49 PM
 
We're looking at a one year turn around, right? I feel like games should take a cue from movie and stop this yearly bullshit. Rotate out IPs, jackasses.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 12:59 PM
 
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 03:08 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
We're looking at a one year turn around, right? I feel like games should take a cue from movie and stop this yearly bullshit. Rotate out IPs, jackasses.
Or even, I know it sounds strange, come up with new ideas.

Yes it can be done : Minecraft, Journey
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 9, 2013, 03:11 PM
 
They don't have strength of IP to do it. Plus they like to do it by genre (i.e. amazingly EA rotates out FPS IPs by two year increments – Medal of Honor and Battlefield. CoD doesn't count because its that same shit)
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 03:33 PM
 
Google throws up some quotes of $10K for an Xbox dev kit. You would have thought that MS, Sony and Nintendo would drop the price a bit to try and get more people making games for their platforms - since Android and iOS seem to be doing so well getting games made for them. Maybe then we'll see a bit more diversity.
     
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Apr 9, 2013, 04:34 PM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
I don't care enough to keep going, I just don't see Gearbox as being any more special than any other developer and comes with more baggage.
Point wasn't so much "EA is going to buy Gearbox" as "EA is going to buy someone to turn this around, and my bet is Gearbox" - buy someone because that's a classic new CEO thing to do, and Gearbox because of their profile as working with shooters and working with many platforms. The second half is obviously much less certain.
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Apr 9, 2013, 04:37 PM
 
And the very first example of why is that they released Dragon Age 2. Glad I'm not the only one.
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Apr 9, 2013, 04:42 PM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
And it looks like The Bat is coming back: The Escapist : News : The Bat Is Back in Batman: Arkham Origins

Different dev, but with access to all the game-building resources of the previous games. (Except Hamill and Conroy.)

I thought Arkham City was an amazing game, but I don't really think I need more of it. (Unless we get a Batman game where you can actually drive the damn Batmobile.)

I'd be more interested in an Arkham City type game with Superman, Wonder Woman, or Green Arrow. But just like the films, DC/Warner Bros just can't seem to execute here.
I though already Arkham City was too much of a rethread, but I can see another Batman game working if they drop the freakiest of the tool belt content and go more linear on a deep story instead of the multiple weak stories of Arkham City.

Every scriptwriter who has taken a stab at making Superman or Wonder Woman stories has testified about how hard it is to make that interesting. I don't doubt that that factors in to the decision. Given that Arrow seems to be doing OK, I suspect a Green Arrow game might show up one day.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 10, 2013, 12:38 PM
 
SimCity will be coming to the Mac on June 11 exclusively as a digital release via Origin™. Fans who purchase SimCity will be able to play the game on Mac and PC, regardless of which version they buy, as well as access their cities from across both platforms. Players who have previously purchased SimCity for PC, either as a physical or a digital copy will receive the Mac version as a free digital download on Origin* on June 11.
SO between now and then I should look for the best deal on the PC version, because I'll get the Mac version automatically on the 11th?
     
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Apr 10, 2013, 01:00 PM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
I thought Arkham City was an amazing game, but I don't really think I need more of it. (Unless we get a Batman game where you can actually drive the damn Batmobile.)
Get Lego Batman 2, you can drive your choice of batmobiles. Heck you can drive the batbike, batwing and batjetboat too...
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Apr 10, 2013, 01:43 PM
 
After a week of taking a beating in the news, the Verge coincidentally gets exclusive 'positive' rumors on the nextbox!
Exclusive: Microsoft's next Xbox will take over your TV, interact with your cable box | The Verge
We understand that the next Xbox will require an online connection to use the entertainment services, allowing them to be always-on for streaming and access to TV signals.

The functionality will work by taking a cable box signal and passing it through to the Xbox via HDMI, allowing Microsoft's console to overlay a UI and features on top of an existing TV channel or set-top box. We're told that this is a key part of the next-generation Xbox and that it will go a step further than Google's TV implementation thanks to Microsoft's partnerships with content providers. Extended support for various cable services will be rolled out gradually, but the basic functionality will be available at launch.

Coupled with this TV functionality, Microsoft's next-generation Kinect sensor will also play a role in the company's TV focus. The Verge has learned that the next Kinect will detect multiple people simultaneously, including the ability to detect eye movement to pause content when a viewer turns their head away from a TV. Microsoft is said to be using these capabilities as part of its UI and features for its TV plans.
     
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Apr 10, 2013, 01:52 PM
 
Yup, MS is now in damage control mode. I guess they wanted to wait a few days before responding. Like a guy waiting a few days before calling a girl to seem less desperate.

Thurrott: Inconceivable that next Xbox will require internet connection to game - National Console Gaming | Examiner.com

"It is inconceivable that the next Xbox is going to require the type of connection that you would have to maintain to play a high quality shooter online like Call of Duty,"

"We don't know what they are doing. So why even speculate? In a month and a half or so, Microsoft will announce the Xbox. I presume that because of the craziness that has occurred here they will discuss this. They will not allow that event to go by without explaining this part of their strategy.
     
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Apr 10, 2013, 02:12 PM
 
My heavens! Another positive leak!
Microsoft Xbox Roadmap (2013) -
Microsoft is working hard in its new strategy for the next years. The company wants to expand its Xbox brand with two new Xbox. One would be next-gen, the other one would be a new redesign for Xbox 360. Take in mind the Wii Mini, MS would like to offer something similar to Nintendo. This cheap model would be focused as a set top box product, although you will be able to load games too, but the games should be load directly from the HDD. This Xbox wouldn’t have disc drive.
When the Durango (game machine) launches, it will not support backwards compatibility for 360 games out of the box. Instead, this functionality will come from the other unit that will be networked with the Durango to provide this (not unlike the DVD add-on for the original Xbox).
They had better enable this functionality on the old consoles or they can Durango****themselves. I am not buying another 360 just to maintain BC.

The purpose of the smaller Xbox unit is to compete with Apple TV, but also provides XBLA and 360 game support which will give it an edge over Apple TV. The rumors of “always online required” comes from the smaller Xbox unit which may not have a disc drive and like Apple TV it would require a network connection and internet to provide any real functionality. It may be possible they will design both consoles to be stackable.
Good job MS. We know how the AppleTV and googlebox are ripping up the sales charts.

Durango itself will also always be online like any other device (correct with rumors), but it will not be a requirement to play local content and it will not prevent playing used games. Putting in an Xbox 360 disc into Durango will prompt the user to attach the supporting device that is sold separately.
     
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Apr 10, 2013, 02:58 PM
 
Originally Posted by Leonard View Post
Get Lego Batman 2, you can drive your choice of batmobiles. Heck you can drive the batbike, batwing and batjetboat too...
That game was on my to-do list, and it just sprung to the top. Thanks.
     
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Apr 10, 2013, 03:36 PM
 
The Last Months Of LucasArts (And A Glimpse Of Battlefront III)
In the video, you can see all sorts of vehicle combat: the player, looking from a first-person perspective, zips around in X-Wings and AT-AT Walkers while shooting down TIE Fighters and other Star Wars-y vehicles. The art isn't final, but the combat looks very cool: one section, for example, shows multiple players riding on hoverbikes and shooting lasers at everything in their paths.

Last October, we saw a listing for Star Wars: First Assault, an unannounced Xbox Live Arcade game… Read…
First Assault, as we reported a few weeks ago, didn't have any vehicles. Version Two did.

This is because, according to multiple sources, developers at LucasArts planned to turn Version Two into Star Wars: Battlefront III, the highly-anticipated third game in the Battlefront shooter series that has shuffled from developer to developer over the past few years. This time, LucasArts hoped to make it themselves.
Jesus Christ, Battlefront III died, again. It's like a cursed title.
     
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Apr 11, 2013, 03:46 AM
 
Originally Posted by The Final Dakar View Post
SO between now and then I should look for the best deal on the PC version, because I'll get the Mac version automatically on the 11th?
That's the way it tends to work, yes - EA has done this for years with cross-platform Mac/PC titles. Don't know if it's all of them, but basically, you can register any EA game you've bought on Origin, and if there is a Mac version, you can then download the Mac version through Mac Origin - just like Steam.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
mattyb
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Apr 11, 2013, 05:03 AM
 
Too many bloody boxes will be attached to the TV, networked in the home. I'll have to get those solar panels installed soon!

And why would set-top box makers/cable box makers/TV over internet suppliers want to let MS 'control' what they're providing? And this is for P : what sort of processing power would be required for this? Doesn't seem to me to be a simple affair.

The PS4 is looking more and more interesting.
     
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Apr 11, 2013, 09:50 AM
 
Originally Posted by mattyb View Post
Too many bloody boxes will be attached to the TV, networked in the home. I'll have to get those solar panels installed soon!
They're going ever lower power, though. The latest AppleTV (v3, rev 2) supposedly draws under 1 W. You can fit a LOT of boxes into what it would take to run say a big plasma and the original Xbox. I agree with your main point about there being too many boxes, though - right now I avoid touching my HT setup because I know that something will come loose and stop working the second I touch that thing. I have to move them at some point when I redo the floors in that room, and I'm dreading it.

Originally Posted by mattyb View Post
And why would set-top box makers/cable box makers/TV over internet suppliers want to let MS 'control' what they're providing? And this is for P : what sort of processing power would be required for this? Doesn't seem to me to be a simple affair.

The PS4 is looking more and more interesting.
Not sure how the cable providers are going to like it. Generally they don't like anything that they feel is like losing their control over the stream, but I don't see how they can do anything about it.

The processing power to do it is going to be trivial. HDMI is a digital signal wrapped up in an analog framework - all the pixel brightness values coming in order, scanline for scanline - so all you'd need to do is figure out which pixels you are going to change the color for and do that in the stream. There are cheapo Google TV boxes that do this - including one that doesn't even have an HDMI key, so it cracks the encryption on the side as well. That said, I don't think that that is what MS will be doing. I suspect that they will be rendering the HDMI signal into a texture in that special eSRAM storage to act as a background, render the other elements into textures, and let the GPU do the compositing with full alpha blending and the whole shebang. Quartz Extreme, basically. If true, they could theoretically accept inputs over component or VGA and send them out over HDMI.
The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
     
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Apr 11, 2013, 11:13 AM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
That game was on my to-do list, and it just sprung to the top. Thanks.
It's a great game, the story is okay, but it's got a great open world where you have to find a bunch of collectables - gold bricks, red bricks, characters, vehicles. there's alot to collect. You get to change batsuits and robin's suits for various puzzles in the story mode and open world mode.
Mac Pro Dual 3.0 Dual-Core
MacBook Pro
     
Jawbone54
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Apr 11, 2013, 01:09 PM
 
PlayStation users, listen up:

If you haven't bought Guacamelee! yet, please do yourself a favor and download it. Here's why:
  • It's $15.
  • The art style is absolutely gorgeous. It's based in a fantasized Mexico, and it's beautifully drawn.
  • The combat is unique, challenging, and insanely addictive (more at the bottom of this post).
  • The animation is silky-smooth at 60 FPS (on both PS3 and Vita), but the reason it's worth pointing out is that this game is clearly made by a group of top-tier artists who know how to make characters move in a very Pixar-esque style that's beautiful to watch.
  • The setting is one-of-a-kind. The few times that Mexico has been represented in gaming, it seems it's never cast in a flattering light. This game respects Mexican culture (Mexican-Canadian developers were involved), and this game vaguely feels like a love letter to our Southern neighbors.
  • The music. This is reiterating my previous point, but the music is unique, punchy (especially with headphones on and LOUD), and Mexican. I love it.

The atmosphere isn't quite as engaging as the incomparable Journey, and the music isn't quite as good as Shatter's, but Guacamelee's gameplay has made it my second-favorite PSN game (I don't know how anything could eclipse Journey).

Also, I might be the only Vita owner on 'NN, so this probably isn't a huge selling point, but the game is cross-buy/cross-save, so I'm able to upload my save to the cloud, pick up where I left off on Vita, and repeat the process.

Oh...and this game has a reachable Platinum Trophy.

Guacamelee! - Metacritic (currently at 85/100)
Guacamelee! - Joystiq Review
Guacamelee! - IGN Video Review (YouTube)

[EDIT] - Also, you get to punch chickens. A lot.
     
Jawbone54
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Apr 11, 2013, 01:12 PM
 
I forgot to elaborate on the combat. This is (sort of) a brawler...

It comes down to this: hit enemies, weaken them, throw them, suplex them, piledrive them, etc.

In Metroidvania tradition, you upgrade abilities/attacks, unlock new areas across the map, and yes...there is something similar to a double-jump.
     
Jawbone54
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Apr 11, 2013, 02:15 PM
 
One last Guacamelee! post: a few of the http://kotaku.com/the-many-memes-ref...lee-471782520:



















     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 15, 2013, 12:09 PM
 
New article by Kuchera: The PA Report - Why your games are made by childless, 31 year old white men, and how one studio is fighting back

The problem is that trying to create an environment where developers can take a day off here and there is harder than he assumed. The system is set up to support, reward, and expect long working hours, and Boucher-Vidal is beginning to feel the pressure that leads to unhealthy working environments.

...

“Did you know if you don't claim to work 80 hours a week, potential investors will probably shun you?
That’s only part of the issue, however. Working those hours, and being stuck in that environment is only attractive for a very short time, and Boucher-Vidal claimed that the average life-span of someone in the game industry is around 5 years. “The real problem however is not that they are immature when they get in, but that too often they get out once they reach maturity,” he said.
Things get fuzzy when I asked for a source on the five year average of industry professionals, but a 2009 quality of life survey from the IGDA showed that 80 percent of respondents had been in the industry for 10 years or less, with the most common level of experience being one to three years in the industry. 71 percent of men were childless, with a stunning 79 percent of women being childless.

Your average industry professional is a 31 year old white man (86 percent of the respondents were male, 82 percent were white) with one to three years of experience, and no children. This man will likely leave the industry in under ten years, and another young, childless white man will take his place. Turnover is high, experience is low. This is the hidden cost of our favorite art form.
Nine Dots had a novel idea: They just send those employees home to work on their own projects. If you still want to make a game after working at the studio for a day, well then go home and make another game!

“They develop expertise and there is a lot of that experience that can be transferred back in our studio,” Boucher-Vidal stated. “It's also way more satisfying to vary from a project to another than always staying on the same thing for a long time. So it can be refreshing to work more, in a sense, if you participate in more than one big project.”

This is a strategy that wouldn’t work at most studios, where employees are asked to sign away the rights to their personal projects. Many companies want to own your work even when you’re off the clock. “Here at Nine Dots, we aren't using any non-concurrence agreements, so these personal projects can actually benefit them financially if they make something that is commercially viable,” Boucher-Vidal said.
Accepting his premise, i could answer some questions as to why games don't seem to be keeping pace with their audience in terms of quality and maturity.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 15, 2013, 12:17 PM
 
     
sek929
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Apr 15, 2013, 12:25 PM
 
I think the whole "45 million users of Origin proves that wrong" statement is hilarious.

It'd be like Exxon Mobile saying that millions of people love buying their gas, ignoring the fact that people are only buying gas because they have to, much like being forced to use Origin in order to play a game you like.

People choose to install and use Steam, EA strong-arms Origin into your computer.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 15, 2013, 02:35 PM
 
We Need Better Video Game Publishers
The orgy of cash publishers enjoyed in the PS2 era made the majority of the management in games publishing complacent. A lot of people at the publishing companies made it into positions they wouldn’t normally have achieved. They were carried there by those large profits. Basically, they failed upwards.

You also have insidious shit like Metacritic score targets written into contracts. That practice is done entirely to deny developers royalties if a game sells. And that’s not to mention the fact that, even if you make something that sells hugely and reviews brilliantly, you’re still likely to get screwed (just ask Infinity Ward).

To give you an idea about how bad publisher influence can be, consider this: during production meetings, publishing execs often have someone—often the developer—“drive” a game so they can see how it is coming together. The publishing people all watch and then make passive, aesthetic appraisals of active, functional aspects of a game. This is because the bulk of execs can’t and don’t want to play or understand how games work. They don’t want to play. This would be akin to editors in literary publishing being unable to read or write.


davidjaffe.biz: You Are Not As Good As You Think You Are
I agree with a number of AGD's theories about why modern games are tough to get right (i.e. AGD's write up on game's desire to be film vs. games was pretty spot on) but I reject the tired accusation that it's the publisher keeping game developers down. And I reject that accusation because of the classic line that I am sure you've heard before: you are worth what you can negotiate.

Period.

Don't like the way a publisher treats you?

Don't sign a contract with that particular publisher. Or if you do, make sure you have what you will and won't tolerate written into the contract.

And if your studio is not good enough to demand better deals and is not clever enough to secure alternate forms of financing (thus allowing you to bypass the publishers all together) then you deserve what you get.
     
lpkmckenna
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Apr 15, 2013, 03:56 PM
 
Originally Posted by sek929 View Post
People choose to install and use Steam, EA strong-arms Origin into your computer.
I'm pretty sure Steam is a requirement for many PC games. Bought BioShock Infinite in a box from Best Buy? You have to install Steam to play it.
     
The Final Dakar  (op)
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Apr 15, 2013, 03:58 PM
 
Originally Posted by lpkmckenna View Post
I'm pretty sure Steam is a requirement for many PC games. Bought BioShock Infinite in a box from Best Buy? You have to install Steam to play it.
Yeah, there's a bit of a legitimate argument to be made on Steam vs. origin. Most of the points in Steams favor are established trust, better game connection, and a pro-consumer bent (sales, support)
     
 
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