FriskyTanuki
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Activision blocking Double Fine from finding a new publisher for Brutal Legend?
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Jesus_S_Preston
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Oh goddammit.
crystalklear64
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I thought I read in an EGM issue that they had already found a publisher.
mykevermin
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Activision? Doing this?
Duh.
Duh.
crystalklear64
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Ah found it.
"Don't worry about the fate of Tim Schafer's Brutal Legend. Even though Activision recently dropped the title, look for MTV Games/EA to publish it in 2009."
"Don't worry about the fate of Tim Schafer's Brutal Legend. Even though Activision recently dropped the title, look for MTV Games/EA to publish it in 2009."
FriskyTanuki
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That was in the rumor mill, wasn't it? 
The Crotch
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Hm. If true, I shall alert the Dark Templar.
The Crotch
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[quote name='eswat']We will do what we must. But we do it for Aiur, not you![/quote]
My friends, this is our final hour. Not all of us may survive the coming conflict. Yet, death may be a blessing should we fail here.
My friends, this is our final hour. Not all of us may survive the coming conflict. Yet, death may be a blessing should we fail here.
Hey guess what Activision - 
YOU
Translation: Look, even we can't bleed one anus dry with only one dick. We need at least the potential for 9 dicks a year. Brütal Legend is a one-dick franchise, with no future of spawning more dicks. It is because of this lack of dick-spawnitude-otential that we feel that we shouldn't pursue publishing it. Also, we feel the need to prevent other publishers from getting their hands wrapped around the Brütal shaft, because we don't want them getting bukakked with the awesome we are so fervently trying to quash.
In non-awesome terms: They can't find a way to spawn a billion sequels, nor can they find a way to make it superuberultra cross-platform. Because of this, they can't farm it out to bullshit fourth string devs to make quick cash on the name alone.
Strell's reaction> YOU EACTIVISIONSOFT.
Did you see what I did there? It is critically important that you see what I did there.
YOUTranslation: Look, even we can't bleed one anus dry with only one dick. We need at least the potential for 9 dicks a year. Brütal Legend is a one-dick franchise, with no future of spawning more dicks. It is because of this lack of dick-spawnitude-otential that we feel that we shouldn't pursue publishing it. Also, we feel the need to prevent other publishers from getting their hands wrapped around the Brütal shaft, because we don't want them getting bukakked with the awesome we are so fervently trying to quash.
In non-awesome terms: They can't find a way to spawn a billion sequels, nor can they find a way to make it superuberultra cross-platform. Because of this, they can't farm it out to bullshit fourth string devs to make quick cash on the name alone.
Strell's reaction>
YOU EACTIVISIONSOFT.Did you see what I did there? It is critically important that you see what I did there.
mykevermin
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There's a certain modicum of respect for their frankness, though, you know?
They're not hemming and hawing. They're saying "if we can't release 7 different versions of it 6 times per year, it and you for asking."
That's like Dick Cheney-stylein' gutsy, man.
That said, provided I don't have a brainslip, I'll do my best to buy Activision titles used from this point on. I totally forgot they had 007 now - even if it's heavily promoted as "mostly like CoD4 but with a tuxedo!"
They're not hemming and hawing. They're saying "if we can't release 7 different versions of it 6 times per year,
it and you for asking."That's like Dick Cheney-style
in' gutsy, man.That said, provided I don't have a brainslip, I'll do my best to buy Activision titles used from this point on. I totally forgot they had 007 now - even if it's heavily promoted as "mostly like CoD4 but with a tuxedo!"
Trancendental
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[quote name='mykevermin']There's a certain modicum of respect for their frankness, though, you know?
They're not hemming and hawing. They're saying "if we can't release 7 different versions of it 6 times per year, it and you for asking."
That's like Dick Cheney-stylein' gutsy, man.[/quote]
I completely agree, although I think this might be an investor play. As in - let's talk exclusively to the wallstreet types because consumers are so stupid they can't realize our biz model relies on them continually rebuying the same generic game with some new levels, a new paintjob, and 5 new guns.
They're not hemming and hawing. They're saying "if we can't release 7 different versions of it 6 times per year,
it and you for asking."That's like Dick Cheney-style
in' gutsy, man.[/quote]I completely agree, although I think this might be an investor play. As in - let's talk exclusively to the wallstreet types because consumers are so stupid they can't realize our biz model relies on them continually rebuying the same generic game with some new levels, a new paintjob, and 5 new guns.
007
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When you look at the future gaming landscape shaped by Activision and EA, that shit looks bleak.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.
[quote name='Strell']Hey guess what Activision - YOU
Translation: Look, even we can't bleed one anus dry with only one dick. We need at least the potential for 9 dicks a year. Brütal Legend is a one-dick franchise, with no future of spawning more dicks. It is because of this lack of dick-spawnitude-otential that we feel that we shouldn't pursue publishing it. Also, we feel the need to prevent other publishers from getting their hands wrapped around the Brütal shaft, because we don't want them getting bukakked with the awesome we are so fervently trying to quash.
In non-awesome terms: They can't find a way to spawn a billion sequels, nor can they find a way to make it superuberultra cross-platform. Because of this, they can't farm it out to bullshit fourth string devs to make quick cash on the name alone.
Strell's reaction> YOU EACTIVISIONSOFT.
Did you see what I did there? It is critically important that you see what I did there.[/quote]
lilboo would be proud of the amount of "dick" usage in this post.
And yeah, this really sucks. I swear THE MAN is always trying to keep Schafer down!
YOUTranslation: Look, even we can't bleed one anus dry with only one dick. We need at least the potential for 9 dicks a year. Brütal Legend is a one-dick franchise, with no future of spawning more dicks. It is because of this lack of dick-spawnitude-otential that we feel that we shouldn't pursue publishing it. Also, we feel the need to prevent other publishers from getting their hands wrapped around the Brütal shaft, because we don't want them getting bukakked with the awesome we are so fervently trying to quash.
In non-awesome terms: They can't find a way to spawn a billion sequels, nor can they find a way to make it superuberultra cross-platform. Because of this, they can't farm it out to bullshit fourth string devs to make quick cash on the name alone.
Strell's reaction>
YOU EACTIVISIONSOFT.Did you see what I did there? It is critically important that you see what I did there.[/quote]
lilboo would be proud of the amount of "dick" usage in this post.
And yeah, this really sucks. I swear THE MAN is always trying to keep Schafer down!
Trancendental
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[quote name='007']When you look at the future gaming landscape shaped by Activision and EA, that shit looks bleak.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.[/quote]
I really just don't know about that.
It really is a story about patience to me.
For example - Burnout 3 is a great game that benefitted from the evolution of the first two. I can play that game again and again (tons of replay value), a game that I bought for $20. And my excellent gaming experience is being funded by a kid who shelled out $150 for all three Burnout titles when they were new.
You don't have to buy into their marketing scheme, you don't have to buy the game again and again. It's not hard to spot the franchises they plan on milking so just wait for the review that indicates the game has been perfected before ponying up the dough. And if the game story matters to you, by that point you can usually pick up the first two or three titles on the cheap.
Hard for me to see the future as bleak when I don't have the time to play all the great games out there now anyway.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.[/quote]
I really just don't know about that.
It really is a story about patience to me.
For example - Burnout 3 is a great game that benefitted from the evolution of the first two. I can play that game again and again (tons of replay value), a game that I bought for $20. And my excellent gaming experience is being funded by a kid who shelled out $150 for all three Burnout titles when they were new.
You don't have to buy into their marketing scheme, you don't have to buy the game again and again. It's not hard to spot the franchises they plan on milking so just wait for the review that indicates the game has been perfected before ponying up the dough. And if the game story matters to you, by that point you can usually pick up the first two or three titles on the cheap.
Hard for me to see the future as bleak when I don't have the time to play all the great games out there now anyway.
Trancendental
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[quote name='Halo05']While I think the concept for Brutal Legend is beyond retarded, I still think it deserves a fair shake. I'm not going to commit to never buying Activision games again but like Myke, I can certainly try and buy them used.[/quote]
I actually like the concept but think heavy metal is beyond retarded. They should have made a game that spans musical genres.
I predict this game is aiming for a very small audience.
I actually like the concept but think heavy metal is beyond retarded. They should have made a game that spans musical genres.
I predict this game is aiming for a very small audience.
apollo610
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Well, if anyone remembers, a few years ago EA was in the same position as Acti-Blizzard is now... They could pump out the same game year after year, and just increment the number at the end of the title (NHL 1996, Madden 1998, College Fball 2003, NBA 2005, etc). Very little new IP (let alone quality new IP) came from them.
Then something funny happened at EA. Quality slipped. Competition came in. EA got obliterated and had to buy up companies to make up for the lack of new IPs (see: Bioware). I seriously envision this happening with Acti-Blizzard. They're relying WAY too much on Guitar Hero and Call of Duty, and to a lessor extent WoW (which has the advantage of being a socio-perpetual world, keeping people hooked).
Acti-Blizzard's movie licenses, to be honest, are absolutely pathetic but sell well, so they keep doing it. Look to THQ if you'd like to see what happens to a company that sells rotten license-based games that people suddenly stop buying.
IMO, the future is with indie games and digital distribution. Digital distribution allows small shops to create games for a low cost and sell at a high cost. All you need to see is the iPhone dude who built a game solo for $5k and made $250k off it - after Apple took their royalty percentage. Braid. Castle Crashers. World of Goo. This is the hope for those of us who enjoy original content.
So some day Acti-Blizzard will pay for being an IP-cloning shop. Unless, of course, they do their best pac-man impersonation and start eating up all the indie devs.
FWIW - I absolutely love how Blizzard handles their sequels and IP management. If anything, I hope Activision doesn't ever mess with that formula.
[quote name='007']When you look at the future gaming landscape shaped by Activision and EA, that shit looks bleak.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.[/quote]
Then something funny happened at EA. Quality slipped. Competition came in. EA got obliterated and had to buy up companies to make up for the lack of new IPs (see: Bioware). I seriously envision this happening with Acti-Blizzard. They're relying WAY too much on Guitar Hero and Call of Duty, and to a lessor extent WoW (which has the advantage of being a socio-perpetual world, keeping people hooked).
Acti-Blizzard's movie licenses, to be honest, are absolutely pathetic but sell well, so they keep doing it. Look to THQ if you'd like to see what happens to a company that sells rotten license-based games that people suddenly stop buying.
IMO, the future is with indie games and digital distribution. Digital distribution allows small shops to create games for a low cost and sell at a high cost. All you need to see is the iPhone dude who built a game solo for $5k and made $250k off it - after Apple took their royalty percentage. Braid. Castle Crashers. World of Goo. This is the hope for those of us who enjoy original content.
So some day Acti-Blizzard will pay for being an IP-cloning shop. Unless, of course, they do their best pac-man impersonation and start eating up all the indie devs.
FWIW - I absolutely love how Blizzard handles their sequels and IP management. If anything, I hope Activision doesn't ever mess with that formula.
[quote name='007']When you look at the future gaming landscape shaped by Activision and EA, that shit looks bleak.
While I love that Activision *is* being that honest, it scares me a bit that... well, frankly... they're BIG enough to say shit like that and get away with it. It's already been mentioned here, but it bears repeating: It's hard to AVOID Activision games at this point, same with EA. It's like a small company that you can boycott and miss out on a handful of games, this is a situation where'd you'd boycott two companies and literally miss almost 30% or *more* of the major third party releases. It's a huge issue, and one that's only going to become increasingly worse.[/quote]
The Mana Knight
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[quote name='Halo05']While I think the concept for Brutal Legend is beyond retarded, I still think it deserves a fair shake. I'm not going to commit to never buying Activision games again but like Myke, I can certainly try and buy them used.[/QUOTE]Yeah, that's what I'm doing with every Activision game now, is buying them used. You better bet I'm very upset over them saying if a game has no sequel potential, then don't bother making it (although I got the article here):
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=20984
I'm glad Ghostbusters found a publisher, but I would have preferred it to not be Atari (they tend to not market their games well and are somewhat troubled IMO).
I'll admit I use to hate EA for doing various things, but now I like them more than AB (because at least they are doing new things).
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=20984
I'm glad Ghostbusters found a publisher, but I would have preferred it to not be Atari (they tend to not market their games well and are somewhat troubled IMO).
I'll admit I use to hate EA for doing various things, but now I like them more than AB (because at least they are doing new things).
Guess I can't ever hate on EA ever again. Well played, EA. Well played indeed.
It's true, you know. Hell, I even have some sympathy for them since they actually took the risk of trying to make new, high quality IPs, and it's biting them in the ass. And since they are more or less the next comparable thing to Activision, I'm glad they are taking the chance on this. I hope it ends up being quality (which it almost certainly will) and sells nicely, just to send a damn message.
It's true, you know. Hell, I even have some sympathy for them since they actually took the risk of trying to make new, high quality IPs, and it's biting them in the ass. And since they are more or less the next comparable thing to Activision, I'm glad they are taking the chance on this. I hope it ends up being quality (which it almost certainly will) and sells nicely, just to send a damn message.
FloodsAreUponUS
Banned
I will purchase this game new.
In the wrapper, and I will play it, and I will praise it for it will be a masterpiece worthy of the name.
In the wrapper, and I will play it, and I will praise it for it will be a masterpiece worthy of the name.
mykevermin
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[quote name='Strell']Guess I can't ever hate on EA ever again. Well played, EA. Well played indeed.
It's true, you know. Hell, I even have some sympathy for them since they actually took the risk of trying to make new, high quality IPs, and it's biting them in the ass. And since they are more or less the next comparable thing to Activision, I'm glad they are taking the chance on this. I hope it ends up being quality (which it almost certainly will) and sells nicely, just to send a damn message.[/QUOTE]
I've really changed my tune on EA since Rock Band. They're still EA, but it seems (to me) like Activision has beaten EA at their own game, and it's too hard to have two villains in mind when hating on game companies isn't something I dedicate a whole lot of my time to.
Still haven't purchased any Activision titles. I think. Lemme check.
It's true, you know. Hell, I even have some sympathy for them since they actually took the risk of trying to make new, high quality IPs, and it's biting them in the ass. And since they are more or less the next comparable thing to Activision, I'm glad they are taking the chance on this. I hope it ends up being quality (which it almost certainly will) and sells nicely, just to send a damn message.[/QUOTE]
I've really changed my tune on EA since Rock Band. They're still EA, but it seems (to me) like Activision has beaten EA at their own game, and it's too hard to have two villains in mind when hating on game companies isn't something I dedicate a whole lot of my time to.
Still haven't purchased any Activision titles. I think. Lemme check.
[quote name='mykevermin']I've really changed my tune on EA since Rock Band.[/QUOTE]
Same, and since then they've (mostly) gone in a positive direction, offering more original stuff like Skate, Mirror's Edge and Dead Space rather than just sitting on Madden and a few choice others. Their Rock Band DLC has been (from an overall perspective, at least)ing magnificent since day 1. Every week without fail they're pushing out something at a fairly reasonable price. I know that aspect of it isn't all EA's doing, but it doesn't hurt their rep with me...and neither does this latest news.
Same, and since then they've (mostly) gone in a positive direction, offering more original stuff like Skate, Mirror's Edge and Dead Space rather than just sitting on Madden and a few choice others. Their Rock Band DLC has been (from an overall perspective, at least)
ing magnificent since day 1. Every week without fail they're pushing out something at a fairly reasonable price. I know that aspect of it isn't all EA's doing, but it doesn't hurt their rep with me...and neither does this latest news.
mykevermin
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That's more or less the point: EA is taking chances - with their early surge of Wii support, 'niche' titles like those KR mentioned, etc. Meanwhile, Activision's stance is a very overt "if we can't turn it inside out like a trick at a gangbang, we don't want it."
MarioColbert
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Well, then...
This is the second time Double Fine had a publisher pull out fairly close to the game's completion. This time it's been a little angrier, a little grittier, and a little bit more in the public's eye.
Now, as much as I can't completely relate to metal music, I feel that I certainly have more connection to it than to being a space marine, a Persian prince, or a potentially ghey child draped in green. If this was a Guitar Hero / Rock Band expansion, I'd probably ignore it completely.
Sunday, Jack Black (with or without Tim Schafer) will be presenting the gameplay demo (first one) on Spike's VGAs. Live.
EDIT:
Thought you guys might find a few things interesting:
Eurogamer didn't lose a beat and interviewed Tim Schafer about these excellent news.
Double Fine opened Psychowiki, which ising awesome - concept art and cool shit.
And to make the deal ever so much sweeter, they also feature a full one-hour special on the last week development of Psychonauts up on that wiki. Unfortunately, the video is broken and stops delivering frames as soon as it gets to the history of Grim Fandango, but don't email double fine, as I know they have been contacted already.
Well, and last but not least, for all the official stuff released about Brütal Legend, you might head up to the best damn unofficial fansite, which attempts to rock at least half as hard as the actual game will in the near fugure.
Also, Windows Users: ALT + 129 = ü.
This is the second time Double Fine had a publisher pull out fairly close to the game's completion. This time it's been a little angrier, a little grittier, and a little bit more in the public's eye.
Now, as much as I can't completely relate to metal music, I feel that I certainly have more connection to it than to being a space marine, a Persian prince, or a potentially ghey child draped in green. If this was a Guitar Hero / Rock Band expansion, I'd probably ignore it completely.
Sunday, Jack Black (with or without Tim Schafer) will be presenting the gameplay demo (first one) on Spike's VGAs. Live.
EDIT:
Thought you guys might find a few things interesting:
Eurogamer didn't lose a beat and interviewed Tim Schafer about these excellent news.
Double Fine opened Psychowiki, which is
ing awesome - concept art and cool shit.And to make the deal ever so much sweeter, they also feature a full one-hour special on the last week development of Psychonauts up on that wiki. Unfortunately, the video is broken and stops delivering frames as soon as it gets to the history of Grim Fandango, but don't email double fine, as I know they have been contacted already.
Well, and last but not least, for all the official stuff released about Brütal Legend, you might head up to the best damn unofficial fansite, which attempts to rock at least half as hard as the actual game will in the near fugure.
Also, Windows Users: ALT + 129 = ü.
Last edited by a moderator:
MarioColbert
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[quote name='Gamespot Interview with Tim Schafer']"It's not so much about market windows, it's when is the game ready to get in the hands of millions of people?" explained EAP chief David DeMartini. "That's what we need to focus on, is looking at when we can get this game out to the mass market and give Tim as much time as possible to make it the quality-level experience that he wants to make it. And then give EA the opportunity to ramp the excitement around the product, based on how good it is, so that when you release it, you've got a ton of people that are lining up and want to play it." [/quote]
SAUCE
Hmm... If EA will do for BL what they've done for Mirror's Edge, will the fate of the game just be in gamers' tastes and quality of the title? Because I certainly think that Mirror's Edge was a very well-hyped and well-presented title...
EDIT: NEW INTERVIEW (this time from LA Times) - with Jack Black & Tim Schafer.
SAUCE
Hmm... If EA will do for BL what they've done for Mirror's Edge, will the fate of the game just be in gamers' tastes and quality of the title? Because I certainly think that Mirror's Edge was a very well-hyped and well-presented title...
EDIT: NEW INTERVIEW (this time from LA Times) - with Jack Black & Tim Schafer.
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bread's done