Video Game Discussion Thread

[Lennis]

Square-Enix is expressing some interest in Kickstarter and Steam's Early Access as a way of increasing interaction with its customers.  Given the company's size and history in product development, this is rather surprising.  Is this a AAA developer turning over a new leaf, or are they only looking at this from a marketing perspective?

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-05-27-square-enix-kickstarter-the-way-forward-in-customer-interaction

[tushantin]

Probably a marketing strategy (I really don't trust them anymore), but it's still a nice thing that they development is (at least partially) transparent.

What I don't get is the Kickstarter business... Are they going to be asking donations from their followers and still have it sold to them? Or is it something like "donors will get this and this as reward"? Wouldn't that essentially have them make more money than they acquire on sales of their product?

[Acacia Sgt]

So guys, what did you thought about this year's E3?

I was laughing a lot when everybody was like worshiping up Sony for the way they trumped Microsoft due to the whole Restricting Games Usage and Online Requirement things the XBOnes will have and the PS4 won't, among other stuff.

Meanwhile on the Nintendo side I found surprising the newcomers revealed for the new Smash Bros. Game. Again laughing at the reactions.  

EDIT: Well well well, of all the things Microsoft could have pulled already, this probably tops it. I mean, forget about the issues regarding the Internet Connection, turns out, the console itself can only work in certain countries.


http://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-one/pre-order-xbox-one/disclaimer

I mean, this goes without saying. That has to be the most restricting console I've ever seen...

[tushantin]

Does that mean... I can't play XBox in the middle of the Sahara Desert?

......


...Aw, man!

[Acacia Sgt]

Okay, on further research, apparently this isn't final, since there is prospect of release on Asian countries... by late 2014. Practically a full year after the initial release. So yeah...

Also found this, surreal...

http://www.gonintendo.com/?mode=viewstory&id=205110

[alfadorredux]

Most amusing takeaways from E3 and associated coverage:

It is possible to win by effectively doing nothing, as Sony demonstrated.

I'm not the only one who sometimes parses a certain abbreviation as X-Bone rather than XB-one. Pretty damned expensive for a skeleton, innit?

(The next-gen XBox was a non-starter for me to begin with, but Microsoft seems to have put a lot of work into making it even less attractive. A shame that console sales account for such a small slice of their business, because they could use a serious humbling.)

[tushantin]

I just checked Asura's Wrath. Even though I can't afford a console, HOLY SHIT does it make me wanna buy one at any cost!

They call it an "Interactive Anime" more than a game, because the battle system and the story-play are integrated in a cunningly meticulous cinematic way. You don't feel as if you're playing a game or watching a movie; you feel like you DIRECT the protagonist throughout the movie, as well as how he fights!

On top of that, Asura's Wrath got me on one thing: Hindu Mythology. That has rarely been taken advantage of in Neo Art (such as Gaming), as Japanese, Greek and Norse mythologies seemed to dominate internationally, so I'm sort of grateful for this variety. But that doesn't mean the game does justice to it, because what disappointed me was that the Hindu / Buddhist references were just the names, not the actual characters: Asura isn't a group of characters with unique traits (such as Sun-devouring Rahu, or "Bhasmasura" of the Explosive Touch, or even Raktabija who "clones" himself with his own blood) but actually a single person, and Durga isn't the badass War Goddess who can hold her own against a thousand foes but is actually the stereotypical damsel who is conveniently killed off to give the protagonist a Freudian Excuse (so much for character development...). And Durga's actually Asura's wife, not Shiva's (and hence probably no badass Karthikeya either). And we've got a Zeus named Deus. Er....

Well, let's just leave it to your expectations.

Though speaking of cinematic...

[youtube]aUB6jidsS5A[/youtube]
[youtube]Q3jlJbM6K5I[/youtube]

[Acacia Sgt]

http://news.xbox.com/2013/06/update

Seems they're actually back-pedaling about it...

[Sergmov]

What games are your playing at the moment?
Me I'm playing The World Ends With You and Lunar: Silver Star Story. I really recommend TWEWY if you have a DS the battle system is wicked fun.

And Halo 3 online religiously...

Edit: Felt the topic could use a name change.

Now I'm playing Final Fantasy IV DS  and  Tales of Eternia   . I like this two games , they are awesome .

[Lennis]

It seems that there is a curious amount of job security if you are a big time executive in the video game industry.

Not long ago, we got word that former Square-Enix CEO Yoichi Wada was named Chairman of the Board of that company.  Now comes news that Don Mattrick, recently ousted head of Microsoft's X-Box division, has a new job as Zynga's CEO.  As a reward for what is probably the most disastrous console reveal since people started caring about such things, Zynga offered Mattrick the following compensation:  One million dollar base salary.  Five million dollar signing bonus.  Forty million dollars of stock options.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-07-04-mattricks-USD50-million-welcome-from-zynga-laid-bare

It's enough for the struggling independent developer to put a gun to his head and say "persona".  How many millions would they get for failing their most recent job?

[Kodokami]

In case anyone is interested, the FFXIV beta is open to all until Monday. If you have the time and care to join me in playing, I'll be in the "cactuar" server. Just shoot me a PM so I'll know where to find you in-game.

[Radical_Dreamer]

It seems that there is a curious amount of job security if you are a big time executive in the video game industry.

Not long ago, we got word that former Square-Enix CEO Yoichi Wada was named Chairman of the Board of that company.  Now comes news that Don Mattrick, recently ousted head of Microsoft's X-Box division, has a new job as Zynga's CEO.  As a reward for what is probably the most disastrous console reveal since people started caring about such things, Zynga offered Mattrick the following compensation:  One million dollar base salary.  Five million dollar signing bonus.  Forty million dollars of stock options.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-07-04-mattricks-USD50-million-welcome-from-zynga-laid-bare

It's enough for the struggling independent developer to put a gun to his head and say "persona".  How many millions would they get for failing their most recent job?

This particular problem is not unique to the game industry. It's a structural problem in how corporations operate.

[tushantin]

It seems that there is a curious amount of job security if you are a big time executive in the video game industry.

Not long ago, we got word that former Square-Enix CEO Yoichi Wada was named Chairman of the Board of that company.  Now comes news that Don Mattrick, recently ousted head of Microsoft's X-Box division, has a new job as Zynga's CEO.  As a reward for what is probably the most disastrous console reveal since people started caring about such things, Zynga offered Mattrick the following compensation:  One million dollar base salary.  Five million dollar signing bonus.  Forty million dollars of stock options.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-07-04-mattricks-USD50-million-welcome-from-zynga-laid-bare

It's enough for the struggling independent developer to put a gun to his head and say "persona".  How many millions would they get for failing their most recent job?

This particular problem is not unique to the game industry. It's a structural problem in how corporations operate.

The first thing I thought of when I read that line was, "how do we fix it?"

Because seriously; some day I might have my own studio, and I'd prefer that every artist works there efficiently and without complaints, in fact without sacrificing their physical and mental health in order to drive the projects forward with sheer enthusiasm and love for their work.

[Radical_Dreamer]

The problem of executive compensation and the problem of work/life balance are largely distinct.

For work/life balance, the trick is, in principle, very simple: don't over promise when you make your deals, and leave wiggle room in your budget and schedule for things taking longer than expected for unforeseeable reasons.

In practice? This is trickier, because you are competing for contracts with other, less scrupulous people, who are willing to say they can do it for cheaper and in less time. Their trick is simple, they don't care if they work their team like dogs. And guess what? The people at the other end of the deal? They don't give a damn if the team has worked itself to death by the end of the project, all they care about is getting results on the cheap.

Now, if you can independently finance yourself, this puts you in a situation to avoid that. But there are a lot of things that are simpler if you're wealthy. Of course, starting a game studio is a great way of turning a large fortune into a small fortune.

I'm not trying to be overly negative here, but these are real problems you're going to encounter. Best that you start looking for solutions sooner rather than later.

[tushantin]

Best that you start looking for solutions sooner rather than later.

Which is why I thought I'd check you for opinions. I'm aware that there will be a lot of hurdles in the line of entrepreneurship, and I don't even have a "fortune" to begin with currently -- I'm hoping to create my foundation with at least one solid content / brand that people can trust and love (not unlike Spawn, which helped McFarlane), and thus propelling me further.

But by "how do we fix it", I actually meant if there's a way to avoid this management hell altogether for the sake of all those who work below me, and myself, and if there's a better, more convenient way to finish projects, give ample room for creative discussions within the team, give capacity to inspire each other and grow WITH each other intellectually and career-wise, while at the same time being economically fair.

Basically, if the current structure / hierarchy of a company doesn't work well, it's a good idea to create a NEW kind of structure. Perhaps some form of transparency? I dunno. I'm not experienced enough to say anything about it, but I KNOW there's bound to be a better way to manage such studios to counter the problems we're currently facing.