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Neverland Company (Rune Factory, Shining Force Neo) to cease operations

duckroll

Member
http://www.n-land.co.jp/ (I think the site is down or hammered now)

Neverland Company, the developers of Lufia, Rune Factory, and the Shining Force Neo and EXA games, will cease operations on November 29 2013 because they have failed to successfully raise funds to continue their business. In a few days they will officially begin bankruptcy proceedings. :(

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L~A

Member
Looks like it simply didn't matter than Rune Factory IV became the best-selling entry in the franchise. Always sad to see some decent companies close down like this.
 

wrowa

Member
Rune Factory was rather successful, but most of the money probably went straight to MMV. What else have they done in recent years? I guess they just didn't have enough contracts apart of the Rune Factory fare. :(
 

mclem

Member
Looks like it simply didn't matter than Rune Factory IV became the best-selling entry in the franchise. Always sad to see some decent companies close down like this.

I was about to comment on that; I was under the impression Rune Factory IV did fine. Would it be the other titles that dragged them down? Had MMV lost interest in RF despite it being on the up?

Are MMV doing okay in themselves?
 

Apdiddy

Member
That's horrible. There is a place in this world for developers like Neverland Company (even though all they've made recently is Rune Factory games)....at times, I really hate this focus on AAA gaming. So no more Lufia or Rune Factory. :(

Help us Sega, you are our only hope....
 

duckroll

Member
I was about to comment on that; I was under the impression Rune Factory IV did fine. Would it be the other titles that dragged them down? Had MMV lost interest in RF despite it being on the up?

Are MMV doing okay in themselves?

For a developer to close down like this, it would be likely that they've been operating in the red for a while now. They probably finally ran out of money to pay their debts and bills.
 
Sad. Rune Factory has been a good series - started off a bit rough but constantly improving until it produced some very enjoyable games. My heart goes out to those who are going to lose their jobs because of this; I hope they can get back on their feet elsewhere.
 

L~A

Member
Well FUCK.

No PAL localisation of RF4 I guess ;_;

Why do you say that? Zen United already said they'd bring the game to Europe in early 2014. Besides, it's only the developers that are impacted by this, the publisher (Marvelous) is doing just fine.
 

Coxy

Member
huh, that's odd, thought the rune factory games were doing good.
They did make shit out of some beloved IPs but since that was work for hire I didnt think it'd effect them
 

LayLa

Member
awww this sad, maybe they didn't get the contract for RF5? still haven't played RF4 due to region locking :(
 

mclem

Member
For a developer to close down like this, it would be likely that they've been operating in the red for a while now. They probably finally ran out of money to pay their debts and bills.

Well, yes, but I'm curious how they ended up in debt; were they accepting development contracts for much less than what they'd spend on development? Were they expecting other contracts which never came through (that's rather like the reason I got laid off, ultimately)?

Was RF4 significantly delayed? I don't recall. I'd have to assume given MMV's MO that they'd have been receptive to an RF5 unless they themselves were hard up, so I'm wondering if it's *other*, non-RF reasons that they couldn't sustain themselves.
 

duckroll

Member
Well, yes, but I'm curious how they ended up in debt; were they accepting development contracts for much less than what they'd spend on development? Were they expecting other contracts which never came through (that's rather like the reason I got laid off, ultimately)?

Was RF4 significantly delayed? I don't recall. I'd have to assume given MMV's MO that they'd have been receptive to an RF5 unless they themselves were hard up, so I'm wondering if it's *other*, non-RF reasons that they couldn't sustain themselves.

I doubt it has anything specific to do with RF4. The press release makes it sound like they've been in trouble for a while. It says that in recent years, because of a slump in results due to changes in their business environment, they've been saddled with debt from banks and they're having problems paying it back. They also mention that they've tried everything in terms of raising funds to continue operations, including trying to find a buyer for the company, but everything has failed. So now they're winding down the business. :(
 

Other

Member
Why do you say that? Zen United already said they'd bring the game to Europe in early 2014. Besides, it's only the developers that are impacted by this, the publisher (Marvelous) is doing just fine.

Localization Programming is usually done by the developer, though there are exceptions in certain cases.
 

L~A

Member
Localization Programming is usually done by the developer, though there are exceptions in certain cases.

Game has already been translated and released in the US. The EU release will definitely use XSEED localisation, so there's little left to do development-wise. No doubt Marvelous AQL will take care of whatever needs to be done, since they're the publisher after all.
 

Datschge

Member
Another Telenet Japan offspring kicks the bucket. Sad, I just recently learned that the Rune Factory series was directed by the person that handled the Zan series (among others) in the Wolfteam days early to mid 1990s...
 
Hmmmm, let's see how this impacts Rune Factory 5.

Looks like it simply didn't matter than Rune Factory IV became the best-selling entry in the franchise. Always sad to see some decent companies close down like this.
They got paid for their work, Marvelous is the one who collected all the extra coins.
 
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