About time..

[Semper]

Are they broke? What about the earnings from all the EA Bioware hand-me down projects? It just kept them afloat?

 

no, they party hard 24/7 and melt their jewgold into awesome grillz. have you not noticed their bright golden smile while watching the video?

Edited September 17, 2012 by Semper

[Hornet85]

 

 

I would, given that the Overhaul Games team has already stated that "There are legal problems with Kickstarter and licensed properties". No details were offered, but I suspect that the root cause is the "two masters" problem -- the kickstarter investors have a reasonable expectation that their interests will be represented in the final product, but the license holder feels that they should have final control over the content. Is it impossible to use Kickstarter for a licensed property? Obviously, no, there is at least one of these sorts, but it is pretty clear that Overhaul Games doesn't feel that this is an option for a theoritical BG3.

Fair points. Though I thought that's why technically, they call Kickstarter pledge a donation. Investment would bring a whole different meaning and the issues you mentioned.

 

 

BTW, what do you suggest Obsidian do to fund PE? Waste their time polishing old games?

Are they broke? What about the earnings from all the EA Bioware hand-me down projects? It just kept them afloat?

Even for big companies, they are funded by publishers for each project. That is, for example, DICE do not take their money from their previous title to fund Battlefield 3. That's just not possible. EA do fund Battlefield 3 project for DICE to make it happen. This is why it was reported that DICE had to get EA's approval for Mirror Edge 2 which EA shot down and work had to stop. Without funding, no project will happen regardless of how big a company is.

 

So its really no different whether you're under a publisher or crowd funded. If you're under a publisher, you go to them for the money for your next project, you always do. If you are crowd funded, then you need to obtain the funds first from your fans.

[MReed]

BTW, what do you suggest Obsidian do to fund PE? Waste their time polishing old games?

Are they broke? What about the earnings from all the EA Bioware hand-me down projects? It just kept them afloat?

 

Honeslty, yes, I suspect that's absolutely correct.

 

When a publisher advances the money to make a game, they dictate the terms of the deal to minimize their risk. I wouldn't be suprised if, for a typical AAA title, 50 - 75 % of the gross revenue is given to the publisher plus 25 % of the profits. Add in the fact that the developers are likely on the hook (without futher compensation) for any patching activity that they choose to do, and the fact that if they over-run the budget / miss the release date they are likely to suffer additional penalities...

 

Yeah, making games for publishers is a really lousy way to get rich. Keep in mind that you rarely hear about multi-milllionare developers -- publishers, yes, but not developers. This is why.

 

Note that kickstarter has a similar problem, as you are sacrificing future sales by offering the game as an incenitive to invest. The upside is that if it is an enormous success, you do get rich, because you keep 100% of any actual sales that you make. But if everyone who wants to play your game was part of the kickstarter (at the "$20 / get a free copy of the game" level), then you are right back at square one.

[Gyges]

I imagine Obsidian doesnt consist completely out of monegrubbers and the bosses there are actually enthusiastic about their jobs and the idea that they can have creative freedom on a project.

Or maybe im just being naive... or you're too cynical.

[The Sharmat]

Are they broke? What about the earnings from all the EA Bioware hand-me down projects? It just kept them afloat?

The recent layoffs suggest they are, in fact, short on funds.

 

Developers tend to life hand to mouth. They get money for a game, hire people, then are forced to drop them once the project is over. Most profits from the product goes to the publisher, who then funds more games.

[fkldnhlsdngsfnhlsndlg]

Actually, the Obsidian Kickstarter idea has been floating around internally for at least six months, if not longer. Buck from GameBanshee spoke with Feargus directly about making an Infinity Engine-style game at least around 2010. Obsidian has also been trying to get the rights to Icewind Dale for many years past now.

 

But yeah, I guess legendary RPG developers like Chris Avellone, Josh Sawyer and Tim Cain have just run out of ideas and need to draw "inspiration" from such talented individuals as Trent Oster. Shame on them!

Edited September 17, 2012 by sea

[Bos_hybrid]

cancelled Alien projects.

 

The world is a darker place because of that cancellation.

[Kilroy_Was_Here]

I think that all of these projects are related. There is currently a demand for isometric RPGs. Beamdog/Overhaul has responded with BGEE (and upcoming BG2EE and possible BG3 and/or PS:TEE). Obsidian responded with Project Eternity.

 

Even if you believe that BGEE is a cash grab the fact is that it will introduce a new generation of players to the genre, especially those who play it on a tablet. If they like it (which is likely since BG remains a great game) then they might find out about PE and find their way here. There is more than enough room in this market for some healthy competition. Besides, according to the kickstarter page PE is scheduled for April 2014 so it will be able to take full advantage of this heightened interest.

[CalamityDrive]

Perhaps the question we should answer is something like: Do the developers have to become rich by making a game? Do we measure success only by how much wealth was amassed? It's also possible to see this as just making a living while pursuing a passion that has been waiting on the sidelines for a long time.