Promising MMOG Cancelled...

Ankaris · Postby **Ankaris** » Mon Jun 21, 2004 4:43 pm

<img src='http://definecynical.mancubus.net/forum ... ns/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' /> Apologies to everyone if this shouldn't be here, but damn, I'm just so angry about this! Don't know how many of you know about Games Workshop, or the MMOG they had in production, but they just canned it. I don't get it. I really don't. This is something I've seen time and time again, a company has a really promising title in production, it has the potential to earn them oodles of money, and then, without the good grace to warn someone, they just drop it. Just like Sam and Max 2. The fan base was there, and the game had the potential to revolutionise the world of MMOGs, so why? I really don't understand this current trend in computer software. Revolution and inspired features, complicated stories and different gameplay, it's all being shunted aside in the rush for profits. If a company considers an idea but doesn't think it profitable, and never starts, that I can understand. But to cancel a game 2 / 3 years in the making, almost at beta? It beggars belief. What do you think guys, is this all we've got to look forward to in the world of computer software? Progression and innovation sacrificed for easy money? *Lopes off, ears down, tail between legs*

norsenerd · Postby **norsenerd** » Mon Jun 21, 2004 6:26 pm

wait! what's the company and game? I'm still confused here. Here's what goign on int he world of gaming in a nut shell: 1) Games are being played by more and more peopel incuding people who are nerd-phobic. 2) Games are usign high budget tactics to sell including actor placement and royalty issues. 3) There have been great strieds in graphical arts wihtout strides in graphical procesing. 4) The pace of thencological develpment has beeen slowing. 5) Teh computer gaming industry has atracted investers who don;t care abotu gamming but care about the botomn line. 1+5 copuld have been forcasted and represent an industry in change as componies strugle to ge tthe largest market share. This means to atract the dumber (or less involved/interested if you prefer) masses they are willign to sacrafice complicated storylines and dynamics for streightfoward cinimatic or action based games. 1 creates 2. The gamer of old would cae if Shawn Conery did the voice of James Bond in a Bond game but the gamer today would. 2+5 means that the prices of games will go up and the work put itno games would go down to help keep expenses as low as posable while keeping prfits high. The expenses created by 2 + 3 also increase the price and also make a need for each new game to be a bluckbuster. Games that will have low apeal won;t be made. IF you think that games coudl be without 2+3 and sell less think again. The presands of 5 makes it a game of market share while 1 is the market share. Further more these bluckbusters are more so because of reasons such as who the characters are and how good the grahpica are instead of stratagy or development. 3+4 plus the need for graphics to sell means that more prosesor and memory will be devoted to graphics strangaling the procesor to micro sims or to user interface. All of these things means that the trend in gaming is for bluckbuster big name and high graphics movie games sacraficign complicated story writing, open ended play, and stratagy. One exaple of this is Lucus arts. Back in the day the clasic star wars fighter games were X-wign and Tie-figher. If you compare thsoe to the lates clasic star wars fighter game: Rouge Squadren there is a big diference. I think Roag Squadren was a step back. Teh flight cotnrols arehorable, the game play is simpiler, the missions are more basic and no decision making, but it includeds more complicaded graphics including mroe cynimatigs and stardom involved int eh game. In conclusion if you want games to be like interactive movies that you will look foward to teh future of computer gaming but if you want sratagy and choices in yoru computer games then the next few years at-lesst will be bleak. Gaming is no longer for the nerd. That has it;s consiquenses. Eventully there will be a company that will develop almost exclusivly for the nerd and this company will get measurable profits but never be a big name outside of people who know the gaming industtry or who buy it' products. That said there are still some good out there: Maxis: The developer of Sim City and The Sims. This company is know for chalaging preconsived ntotions about gaming and making huge profits doing so. EA largly lets the company do what it wants thankfully but I do miss the golden age of Sim games. MAxis is conentrating on it's two big titles at the moment and ther isn;t much in the way of other game types. I hope they will expand again and try to achive what it had before it went public. Still if it coems out with somethign ti is likly to be invovative in some way and posable ground breaking. If it wern't for SIm City Sid Mir woudln;t have develope Civilization and that was the title that broke open open play games. Sierra: Dos;t give int eh the bluck buster mode and never has a title that gets wide spread recongition but the company is known throught the gaming industry and beyond. Formt he hoyle game games to other titles, includign Impresion studios, Sierra makes quality pruducts wihtout falowing the lead of the rest of the industry. It has even developed real time stratagy games that focuses on economy instead of military. Think Microsofts Age of Empires series but with the military mode and the economic mode swiched in complexity. It's altest products has been stragey and action games bassed off of the loard of the rigns trillogy. Another good think about seirra is that theyre documantion is still usefull. To meny other companies either have instuction mauakls that are jokes or have goten rid of them completly.

Henohenomoheji · Postby **Henohenomoheji** » Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:58 pm

dont forget fan games. bring that into the equation and I predict that eventually, so many people will be making fangames (and getting better at it) that making games for profit will be obsolete. Advertisers will then pay for product placements in the fangames themselves, as opposed to the real games. then they'll sign a three way deal where the people who own the rights of the games which the fangame was based pay the people who make the fangames to make more fangames with their character/concept/whatever. Fangames will become the new commodity for big businesses. ...but that's just a wild guess <img src='http://definecynical.mancubus.net/forum ... tongue.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tongue.gif' />

norsenerd · Postby **norsenerd** » Mon Jun 21, 2004 11:59 pm

The thing is fan games will always behind the curve of profesional game. People are getting better at animation as well but Disney is still at the top in that world.

Miles E Traysandor · Postby **Miles E Traysandor** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 12:29 am

I never really got into those kind of things.... and I probably won't anytime soon. Though the Grand Traysandor idea still lurks about in my head... but then again, that's just me.

Sabre · Postby **Sabre** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 1:33 am

DONT REMIND ME ABOUT SAM AND MAX! *cries*

Burning Sheep Productions · Postby **Burning Sheep Productions** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 12:01 pm

What is this MMOG and what's up with Sam and Max? Wasn't that a TV show?

Ankaris · Postby **Ankaris** » Tue Jun 22, 2004 12:34 pm

The MMOG was called Warhammer Online. Sam and Max was a comic, then a point 'n' click adventure game and TV series. ... I think. Oh, and I found out slightly more. Damn shareholders.

mrpwase · Postby **mrpwase** » Mon Jul 05, 2004 12:14 pm

I won't be surprised if 'damn shareholders' was a completely unrelated comment. <img src='http://definecynical.mancubus.net/forum ... ns/sad.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='sad.gif' />

Ozymandias · Postby **Ozymandias** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 4:58 pm

I nearly bought Max and Sam. I was just the right age...but then I got sucked into FPS with Dark Forces. Well, there went my passiveness...

mrpwase · Postby **mrpwase** » Tue Jul 06, 2004 8:29 pm

I was looking forward to that Warhammer MMOG, although I would have preferred it to be a WH40K MMOFPS instead. MMOFPSs are more fun IMO.

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