This wasn’t MMO game development; this was a bloody soap opera. Continue reading
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Australia Passes R18+ Gaming Classification, But…
… it’s only at the Federal level. It’s up to the States and Territories to then pass complementary legislation that allows the sale of R18+ titles. Are the States and Territories likely to pass such things on? It’s a good question and not one that I’ve seen get much attention. Just because the Attorneys-General decide … Continue reading
Great MMO Collapses of Our Time – Destination Games
You can get excited now, because if you picked this option, you’ve decided to back Destination Games! Destination Games Game That Destroyed Them: Tabula Rasa Studio Launch Date: April 2000 Studio Closure Date: 28 February 2009 Invested In By: NCsoft Estimated Money Blown: US$106m Cause of Death: Restarting the project, internal culture of fear and secrecy, … Continue reading
All Just A Little Bit of History, Repeating – 38 Studios Versus RealTime Worlds
I was going to continue with my current series, but looking at the collapse of RealTime Worlds really brought home the similarities between that event and the collapse of 38 Studios. Observe: RealTime World’s collapse was a big thing at the time, but they didn’t have any public money involved with them (that I’m aware … Continue reading
Great MMO Company Collapses of Our Time – RealTime Worlds
If you selected this option, congratulations – you decided to back RealTime Worlds! RealTime Worlds Game That Destroyed Them: All Points Bulletin (APB) Studio Launch Date: Early 2002 Studio Closure Date: September 2010 Invested In By: Private investors Estimated Money Blown: Over US$100m Cause of Death: Spending all the budget before the game had even launched, … Continue reading
Great MMO Company Collapses of Our Time – Flaghip Studios
If you selected this option, congratulations – you decided to back Flagship Studios! Flagship Studios Deceased Games: Hellgate: London, Mythos Studio Launch Date: 2004 / 2005-ish Studio Closure Date: August 2008 Invested In By: Independent investors, publishing partnerships such as Hanbitsoft, financial services company Comerica Estimated Money Blown: Unknown, but the title spent around 4 … Continue reading
Pick A Winner!
Here’s a hypothetical for you: You’re an investor with US$100m burning a hole in your pocket. You absolutely have to invest that money in an MMO. (Why? That’s up to you – all your investor friends are doing it, you’re under an ancient gypsy curse, you have brain damage, whatever.) If things go wrong, you’ll … Continue reading
What’s Wrong With The AAA MMO Industry, Using An Imperfect Baseball Analogy
You’re the head manager of a new baseball team. You’re passionate about what you want to achieve, have some great ideas in mind and have at least enough money to get things rolling. When you tell other people about what your team is going to achieve, they sound excited too. You know that you are … Continue reading
38 Studios: Striking Out
Concluding my previous look at 38 Studios and possibly how all the money got spent is the news that 38 Studios has shut down, laid everyone off (including the Big Huge Games team) and will likely now be carved up and sold in order for Rhode Island to possibly get some money back. There’s an … Continue reading
Embers of Caerus: If I’m Snarky About Kickstarter, At Least I’m Consistent
Another day, another Kickstarter in the gaming “press” (which loves it, let’s be honest – it’s super-easy content to write regardless what happens). What caught my eye about the Embers of Caerus Kickstarter is that it is so that a group of 50 volunteer, amateur developers can develop an investor prototype that may eventually be … Continue reading
World Class Villains 