Good Bye Interplay Boards

[Tigranes]

VB had some twenty members, I think. The exact numbers may be wrong but I'm very sure it had more than 9 people on it. Also, as a company the 105 or so staff would involve marketing, management, secretaries/clerks, their console game development divisions, public relations, etc. Actual game makers would not be more than half of the staff count, I imagine.

[ShadowPaladin V1.0]

VB had some twenty members, I think. The exact numbers may be wrong but I'm very sure it had more than 9 people on it. Also, as a company the 105 or so staff would involve marketing, management, secretaries/clerks, their console game development divisions, public relations, etc. Actual game makers would not be more than half of the staff count, I imagine.

The number developers on VB was taken from one of JE's old posts. Think it dropped even lower after that (4 or 5). Of course the number changed over time the initial number may have been 20 or more. There are 80 something people working on JE apparently.

 

If it is including all those under the umbrella of developers then it does make a bit more sense.

[Diogo Ribeiro]

I have only one thing to say, repeated 10 times.

 

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

[Phosphor]

You know, the reason I'm not glad that Interplay bit the dust, and that seems increasingly apparent, is that the folks who everyone blames for this isn't the one who will suffer. I don't know "Herve" and I really don't care about him one way or the other, but I seriously doubt he will end up losing everything even if his company falters. With the amount of money flowing between Titus, Avalon, and Interplay, there's little doubt he's protected himself very well. The only people who will suffer are the employees. ...And, to a lesser extent, the consumer.

Caen will certainly have his coffers well stocked. A CEO never cuts his own income while depriving his employees of theirs.

I don't know if there really is a lot of money flowing between Titus and Interplay, though. Caen certainly used Interplay to feed Titus, so in that I suspect there's something questionable going on - Caen seemed to have more interest in Titus than in Interplay and making games. I have the impression that the whole Interplay disaster is the fallout (heh) of a corrupt or at least unscrupulous corporate practice. With proper leadership, none of this need to have happened. Caen, like so many CEOs, fell victim to greed and in turn ran things into the ground. It was always clear to me that he had no sense of what was going on in terms of games - his mind seemed to be elsewhere.

[Volourn]

All this crying over a game company. Boo hoo. You would think Caen had murdered people's fmailies or something. Waahh.. People lost their jobs. Big whoopity do dah. They'll porbably get new ones. Why don't you morn all the other people who don't have jobs or have been fired before? Gah. Some people should get their priorties staightened up.

[Cantousent]

I remember folks being livid because the L.A. Rams went to Saint Louis. Yep, I would have thought, "hey, it's just a football team. Who gives a crap?"

 

Virtually everyone cares for something that someone else, maybe virtually everyone else, considers trivial. For instance, you seem to care about our interest in gaming companies, Vol. If it's truly insignificant, why are you reading and responding in this thread? Clearly, we find something in this topic worthy of discussion. I, for one, don't feel ashamed to say that I care. If you care that I care, then that doesn't say anything bad about me.

[Judge Hades]

BLARG!

[Volourn]

No, it just shows I am bored and wasting my time sharing my opinion even when it's unpopular.

 

As for your Rams-St.L analogy; sorry I just don't find it important.

 

I'm not saying these things aren't worth disucssing or evenc aring about; but it's the extremes theya re. Like people absically wishing Caen (or whoever) death or some other horrible fate. I find it sad that humans think running a busines poorly is grounds for bad things to happen to you (other than losing money and business). That's what I'm getting at.

 

Espicially, when hypocrisy hits the ugly head when dissing him for the loss of jobs from months ago then wishing he goes out of business which, of corue, elads to more job losses. Not to mention, the hundreds of thosuands of people who lose thier jobs every year. Where's their well deserved sympahty. It's all about selfishness. Very few people hear care about about the fatc that Interplay/BIS employees lost their jobs; and are only upset that they woun't be feeding their lust for games.

 

P.S. I'm disapointed about that too so I'm no mr. Innocent.

[Phosphor]

Following that logic, why talk about anything at all since there'll always be a bigger, greater or more important problem or issue than the one you're currently discussing?

This is a gaming forum, and we're talking about a gaming company. It's perfectly relevant. Going on about other issues would be rather off-topic.

[Volourn]

I'm not saying these things aren't worth discussing or even caring about

 

I'm not saying these things aren't worth discussing or even caring about

 

I'm not saying these things aren't worth discussing or even caring about

 

I'm not saying these things aren't worth discussing or even caring about

 

I'm not saying these things aren't worth discussing or even caring about

[Judge Hades]

This is the Way Off Topic forums, isn't it.

 

Anyway, I don't want to see Caen dead, just financially ruined that he has to live in a homeless shelter for a while. Thats all.

[Phosphor]

So Volourn, what was your "Some people should get their priorties staightened up." comment meant to imply, then?

I haven't actually seen any death wishes for Caen, at least spoken with any seriousness. Perhaps you should look at who's talking in extremes.

[Volourn]

I thought that comment was claer, and you haven't. I sure have and all sorts of nasty things wished on him. I talk in extremes since I'm talking about extremists. And, how do you know they're being serious or not? You saying theya re seriosu about everything they say about Caen *but* that. That's very convienent.

[Cantousent]

Just for the record, Vol, I'm not irritated with you. I say that just in case you care one way or the other. I think you bring up a valid point. There are worse problems in the world. I'm just saying that I tend to discuss things that are a concern to me personally.

 

Whether you agree or disagree, I tend to enjoy your "in your face" style. Well... maybe not so much when it's in MY face. B)

[Volourn]

No problem.

 

And, of course you care about things that effect you personally. That only makes sense. You wouldn't be human otherwise; but I just wish people would admit that the reason why they are so uspet about Interplay's woes; and that the main reason they're upset is the fact people lost their jobs. If people were honest they'd rnak that much lower on the sacle of why they're so upset.

[Gfted1]

What is this "Interplay"?

[roshan]

The boards were already dead before Interplay removed it. So the boards didnt really die, they died already. This is just the death certificate.

[triCritical]

given the glut of crappy developers out there, however, sometimes it is better if the talent moves on and lands at a better house.  i'm not trying to say the devs at interplay were bad, just that interplay was obviously bad as a business (they wouldn't be in this pickle otherwise).

Thats partially true though this goes all the way back to the Fargo days anyway. Interplay never made what you would call blockbuster games. They just made a lot of games overall. Of course lots of games with lower turn over means higher overheads.

 

Brian Fargo put the initial problem down to missing the boat when it came to the popularity of console titles. Probably some truth in that.

Brian Fargo is the one who initially put IPLY down the console road. Fargo screwed up IMO by buying a crapload of licenses he could pay for as well. And he is doing to samething again with InXile. What does he do, he reaqcuires the Bard Tale license only to call it a BGDA clone. Hell you can make any stupid game and call it a clone of another. He also buys back the rights to Wasteland, and he will probably call that a FOBOS clone. Nothing like spending a whole lot of money for a fledgling company. But he won't really be Fargo unless he does it on plastic.

[triCritical]

The boards were already dead before Interplay removed it. So the boards didnt really die, they died already. This is just the death certificate.

Kind of like the Ottoman Empire.

[Phosphor]

but I just wish people would admit that the reason why they are so uspet about Interplay's woes; and that the main reason they're upset is the fact people lost their jobs. If people were honest they'd rnak that much lower on the sacle of why they're so upset.

My concern with the Interplay situation is that it was a company with potential for both it's employees and the gaming public. Interplay was in trouble years ago, but it was far from being a lost cause. Unfortunately, bad management ruined something that could have been turned around, for the benefit of it's staff and for it's audience. With Black Isle, Interplay had some of the best designers in the industry (in my opinion), but that potential was wasted time and time again. So instead of furthering game evolution, Interplay tossed it aside in some shallow greed and ignorance.

Sometimes a company closes and people lose jobs in an inevitable situation, and that sucks. The Interplay situation was not inevitable had it been run by someone who cared about running a game company.

My concern is that idiocy and greed ruined something with potential. That personal greed and idiocy has put a huge burden on a number of people, and the person responsible will be the one to be the least hurt.

[pants_happy]

the way i see it, just take a moment to look at the members on these boards, or the developers working at obsidian. most of us came here from the interplay boards because of friends, game interests, or just because some people believe that blackisle's/interplay's former employees are the best in the business. it's like going through the light at the end of the tunnel (not to be cliche, of coarse.) essentially, everything that we had that mattered over there is over here now, with the sad exception of a few game liscenses that would never have been used anyway, or a few developers persuing thier own interests or just moving on to better pastures (like puuk to EA). really, the only thing that was lost were the jobs of the interplay employees, which, if you really do view those people to be the best, you need not worry too much about them finding further work. it is a horrible thing for so many to lose their jobs at the same time, at a company we as consumers and friends cared so much about, but maybe it was just interplay's time to go. this is the new and improved interplay/blackisle, created and run by people who really do have an interest in the games they make, and are not just interested in money. interplay and its former employees have gone to a better place.

 

 

pants_happy

(formerly known as CLS...)

[Magena]

don't forget that Wolf went over to Activision. :D

[Phosphor]

The thing is, it didn't have to be Interplay's time to go. They weren't in great shape for a long time, but the management certainly did nothing to encourage the company to maintain itself. Two of the potentially biggest PC RPGs were in development at Interplay, but both were cancelled due to some idiotic decisions from Caen.

If it was Interplay's time to go, then it's just as much your time to go if someone puts a gun to your head.

I'm sure the Interplay people won't have too hard a time finding jobs. Some non-design people might.

[pants_happy]

well, yes it's management's fault. but that's why it was interplay's time to go, because it had bad management. if the management had been different, i'm sure that the outcome would certainly have been different, for better or for even worse. since bad decision makers make bad decisions by definition, and interplay was stuck with them as management, the only road they had led down.

but for eulogy's sake, if a gun was put into your friend's face, and if your friend was shot in the head, you don't analyze the steps they could've taken to prevent being killed at the funeral (or demonstrate to a crying crowd your tae kwon do expertise on being able to snatch a gun from someone's hands), you talk about memories and stuff like that. this thread is titled "good bye interplay boards" not "what interplay did and didn't do", so i just treated it as such.

anyway, i do see your points about why it didn't have to die (and i certainly agree with most if not all of them), but it did. and for now, that's all i'm concerned about.

 

 

 

pants_happy

[taks]

As for your Rams-St.L analogy; sorry I just don't find it important.

 

*gasp*

 

you, you... you... ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!

 

ahem...

 

*regains composure*

 

listen mr. ontarian, that happens to be a very touchy subject for me. so ppppththththhthththtth...

 

and until mike martz is canned, LA can have 'em back.

 

taks