The publishers have to die...

corvax · Aug 30, 2005

Heads up for those still unaware of The Escapist. Sign up for the freakin' thing. Here is a decent article discussing the downfall of the gaming industry. It's kind of RPG related. Although most here are probably familiar with the problems it's still a nice read that can serve as a lesson for the clueless.

Twinfalls · Aug 31, 2005

This really is a terrific article. Polemic, maybe, but he is very eloquent.

DarkUnderlord · Aug 31, 2005

He said Doom 3 sucks so the article you linked is all good.

Their article about Aimee's Panties however is... insane.

That Bewildering Sword of Whoop-Ass you've been coveting isn't something you can hold in your hand, but it's something that will make your avatar's story more interesting. It's extra content in the same way that buying the director's cut of your favorite movie is - you get a richer, more engaging narrative out of it

No, that Bewildering Sword of Whoop-Ass is something you get from the Foozle when you can be bothered killing it your fucking self. If you buy it, what the fuck's the point in playing the game? Oh right, story. Uhuh. Yeah. The story of the guy who popped into possesion of a level 60 character with a Bewildering Sword of Whoop-Ass who gets his arse kicked because he's still a fucking idiot who doesn't know how to play but, you know, hey! He's got a fucking sword, so it's all right.

I have to admit, buying some item someone else has produced via scripting in Second Life has merit (if I understand the system correctly) because you're buying something you can't or won't do yourself for the benefit of not having to bloody well script the thing. Buying a fat sword in Diablo 2 however, is just lame.

Human Shield · Aug 31, 2005

Made the same points I did. Publishers and retail are seperate entities that only care about shelf space for 2 weeks, much like how Hollywood works now.

Self-publishing combinded with controling sales, means long-term quality games because two weeks on the shelf isn't an issue.

littleboy · Aug 31, 2005

I don't see why self publishing would solve the problems in the current retail enviornment, and most developers can't amass the capital needed to finace the productioin, publishing, and advertising that's needed for a game.

Saint_Proverbius · Aug 31, 2005

littleboy said:
I don't see why self publishing would solve the problems in the current retail enviornment, and most developers can't amass the capital needed to finace the productioin, publishing, and advertising that's needed for a game.

I think he means internet publishing when he talks about self-publishing.

Drakron · Sep 1, 2005

That is worst, look at Stream that nothing but a fancy spyware downloader.

Sarvis · Sep 1, 2005

Drakron said:
That is worst, look at Stream that nothing but a fancy spyware downloader.

Or... you know, Spiderweb?

One bad implementation does not mean the whole idea is bad.

DarkSign · Sep 1, 2005

Im the one that blasted The Escapist onto this forum, thank you very much.

Drakron · Sep 1, 2005

Sarvis said:
Or... you know, Spiderweb?

One bad implementation does not mean the whole idea is bad.

The idea is bad because you dont get a backup device for starters, also you cannot re-sell the game (as its your right).

Besides we already moved well into the 4 giga size games, even fast P2P programs cannot download then within a reasonable time.

Also there are server issues, Steam servers failed to meet requests when the game as release.

Claw · Sep 1, 2005

That is nothing.

You should have seen the introduction of the German Autobahn Toll System.
Steam's introduction was flawless in comparison.

Dhruin · Sep 1, 2005

Internet publishing is the best way forward but there are still seriously difficult issues like financing, marketing and overcoming the public's desire for those fancy top-of-the-line graphics to work through.

Walks with the Snails · Sep 1, 2005

Saint_Proverbius said:
I think he means internet publishing when he talks about self-publishing.

Nah, he means every publisher owning their own chain of brick and mortar stores, in an thread he started and then apparently abandoned when people disagreed.

Drakron said:
The idea is bad because you dont get a backup device for starters, also you cannot re-sell the game (as its your right).

Besides we already moved well into the 4 giga size games, even fast P2P programs cannot download then within a reasonable time.

Also there are server issues, Steam servers failed to meet requests when the game as release.

Yeah, and he was talking about other methods than Steam. Spiderweb will mail you a CD if you pay a couple of bucks extra.

corvax · Sep 1, 2005

DarkSign said:
Im the one that blasted The Escapist onto this forum, thank you very much.

You're welcome. Sorry if I stole your thunder.

errorcode · Sep 1, 2005

Take a look here or here. independent publishing is becoming more and more prolific, especially as companies like popcap show that goofy little online games that take a couple months to make can be fiscally lucrative.

I respect the hell out of Greg Costikyan and i agree with most of his points regarding the state of publishers and marketing killing the mainstream game market. But i don't agree when he says that indie games don't have a venue to get to consumers. While they may not have a traditional physical venue, they have carved an effective online niche. There is a rather large library of titles that can be bought online or offered through membership to online games groups like TotalGaming.

The venue is there, the developers are there, and there is enough of a market there to let these folks make a profit. It's only a matter of time till this venue of indie games matures and starts reaching a broader audience. Much like the indie music and the indie movie scene did.

LlamaGod · Sep 1, 2005

I think Paradox does the online thing (in addition to retail), but I could be wrong.

kris · Sep 1, 2005

LlamaGod said:
I think Paradox does the online thing (in addition to retail), but I could be wrong.

No, you are correct. They began with it about a year ago. As said, they still use retail, but the relative income they get from their webshop is MUCH larger. They basically come to the point where they can decide on their own as to when they should release their games and the positive sales of Hearts of iron 2 surerly helped them being less stressed about releasing early. I would also like to add that it have been seen in how their last two products been much more stable than their older ones.

littleboy · Sep 7, 2005

the second part of the article is up now and is an even better read

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/issue/9/4

go read it now "This I Command"

Sandelfron · Sep 8, 2005

From that article:

"If you can fund your own development, you get some big advantages. First, you can negotiate a higher royalty rate with the publisher, because they have less capital at risk. Second, you are not utterly at the publisher's mercy during the development process; if the publisher-side producer wants you to do something really stupid (and horror stories abound), you can tell him to screw off. And third,you can retain ownership of your own IP, so if you build a successful franchise, you (rather than the publisher) reaps the benefit."

Here's my bit of 'polemia':

There was a case in Sydney recently where a development company ended
up suing a publisher (it's often the other way around) after they didn't supply
payments and had been slandering the company publically on the net.

Fortunately the company had an established reputation for quality work and
the publisher ended up losing in court .

The publisher had been trying previously to force a deal whereby the company
would not only repay all capital, but give up the rights to the title and code
completed as well (so that the publisher could pass it on to another company..).

Newer developers are not always so lucky; it can be very hard to get a publisher,
and they sometimes end up signing up with a shark just to get the game out there.

The publishers have to die...

corvax

Augur

Twinfalls

Erudite

DarkUnderlord

Professional Throne Sitter

Human Shield

Augur

littleboy

Liturgist

Saint_Proverbius

Administrator

Drakron

Arcane

Sarvis

Erudite

DarkSign

Erudite

Drakron

Arcane

Claw

Erudite

Dhruin

Liturgist

Walks with the Snails

Erudite

corvax

Augur

errorcode

Liturgist

LlamaGod

Cipher

kris

Arcane

littleboy

Liturgist

Sandelfron

Scholar