[B_Rik_Schitthaus]

So wait, did they actually develop any Battlefront games? Because Wiki says they were all made by Pandemic?

The first cancelled one.

[dark10x]

Might have to toss in Haze again just for shits. It's definitely one of those strange forgotten games from earlier in this generation. Sony was really striking out during the PS3s early days.

I've been on an old, average FPS kick lately (mostly playing N64/PSX/Saturn/Dreamcast ports of old PC games) and Haze would fit right in.

[BattleMonkey]

Might have to toss in Haze again just for shits. It's definitely one of those strange forgotten games from earlier in this generation. Sony was really striking out during the PS3s early days.

And they all had technical issues. Have to wonder if many of these early PS3 exclusives would have been better if devs weren't stuck spending all their time trying to work with the PS3 hardware to get the games just to run, and actually spending the time working on the game's content

[B_Rik_Schitthaus]

Might have to toss in Haze again just for shits. It's definitely one of those strange forgotten games from earlier in this generation. Sony was really striking out during the PS3s early days. I've been on an old, average FPS kick lately (mostly playing N64/PSX/Saturn/Dreamcast ports of old PC games) and Haze would fit right in.

Also try the last Turok and Hour of Victory, wonderfully bad games.

[Haunted]

Things like these reinforce why the current publisher -> developer relationship is bad and why people are welcoming alternatives (as limited as they are) like selling Alpha access/updates and crowdfounding.

[Criminal Upper]

With this, and that story about latest Might & Magic, it seems Ubisoft is a terrible publisher to work for.

[B_Rik_Schitthaus]

With this, and that story about latest Might & Magic, it seems Ubisoft is a terrible publisher to work for.

Also see the Ship devs.

[Doomshine]

In the mold of most HD "collections," it would contain two games. You don't want an HD version of the first TimeSplitters, trust me. Maybe the maps, but I think TS2 and FP contain a lot of remade maps from the original game anyway.

I think some sort of remake would make the most sense for Timesplitters. A hybrid with all the weapons, maps and game modes with online play would be amazing.

The original games could be released as PS2 classics or something.

[Clear]

That's a quite selective reading of events; from what I've heard from former employees of FR and other folks within the UK industry their management was very much at fault for leaving the company in an exposed position.

Its a matter of record that FR had a horrible reputation within publishing circles for prima-donna behaviour and to say that Battlefront was the only project they had on the go at the end is simply untrue.

Google "Pumpkin Beach" for example.

[Shiggy]

That's a quite selective reading of events; from what I've heard from former employees of FR and other folks within the UK industry their management was very much at fault for leaving the company in an exposed position. Its a matter of record that FR had a horrible reputation within publishing circles for prima-donna behaviour and to say that Battlefront was the only project they had on the go at the end is simply untrue. Google "Pumpkin Beach" for example.

They created various prototypes after Battlefront 4 was cancelled, but none of them were signed. Pumpkin Beach was also developed by FRD without external funding, wasn't it?

[diffusionx]

Haze was so spectacularly awful. I remember actually looking forward to it too.

Now, one bad game shouldn't sink a company, but it came at a time when they tied their fortunes to a basketcase company (Lucasarts). It's just bad luck and bad games.

[hwalker84]

rough. still, haze would kill most studios. i remember david doak smugly acting as if haze was some next level fps.

The best thing about Haze are the mints I got from the PAX Prime booth back in 07.

[Sephiroth503]

Haze had some interesting concepts but poor execution. Too many to name but I'm sure most who played knew what they were.

It wasn't helped commercially that it released inbetween GTA4 and MGS4.

[ScreenSplitter]

Hey, Crytek. Crysis 3? Okay, sure, whatever. Timesplitters 4? YAY.

[dark10x]

Also try the last Turok and Hour of Victory, wonderfully bad games.

Oh yeah, forgot about Hour of Victory. I actually LIKED Turok, though. :P Yeah, it wasn't a AAA shooter or anything and it really didn't play anything like the N64 games but I still had a good time with it.

Hey, Crytek. Crysis 3? Okay, sure, whatever. Timesplitters 4? YAY.

I'm kind of surprised to hear this kind of opinion, to be honest. I've played TimeSplitters 2 and didn't find it to be anything special. Smooth framerate was nice but the game was kind of a run of the mill FPS. Crysis, on the other hand, was one of the defining moments in FPS history.

Of course, it's not fair to compare their older output as I'd take TimeSplitters over Far Cry 1 any day.

[Schrödinger's cat]

That's a quite selective reading of events; from what I've heard from former employees of FR and other folks within the UK industry their management was very much at fault for leaving the company in an exposed position. Its a matter of record that FR had a horrible reputation within publishing circles for prima-donna behaviour and to say that Battlefront was the only project they had on the go at the end is simply untrue. Google "Pumpkin Beach" for example.

I'd heard (second-hand) of some pretty immature conduct between directors and the publishers they were negotiating with across meeting room tables.

[spanks]

To think in some alternate universe we would be playing Battlefront 3, Timesplitters 4 and Goldeneye 2 by Free Radical...

[Typographenia]

Completely unfair that such a wonderful studio was treated so poorly. Easily some of my favorite games ever made came from that dev group. They deserved so much better, and their games deserved so much more recognition than they received.

[B_Rik_Schitthaus]

Completely unfair that such a wonderful studio was treated so poorly. Easily some of my favorite games ever made came from that dev group. They deserved so much better, and their games deserved so much more recognition than they received.

The big problem that the article never touches on is how even if Haze wasn't a bucket of shit it was still them forcing themselves into a followers position, and if it had been successful they might never have just kept with that IP and never gone back to the more light-hearted fare anyway.

[Htown]

That's a quite selective reading of events; from what I've heard from former employees of FR and other folks within the UK industry their management was very much at fault for leaving the company in an exposed position. Its a matter of record that FR had a horrible reputation within publishing circles for prima-donna behaviour and to say that Battlefront was the only project they had on the go at the end is simply untrue. Google "Pumpkin Beach" for example.

It's also well-known that Lucasarts has been schizophrenic the last few years, and that Ubisoft screws developers on a regular basis.

[Pyronite]

With this, and that story about latest Might & Magic, it seems Ubisoft is a terrible publisher to work for.

Keep in mind that Scrum is a well-accepted form of software development.

I don't know anything about the exclusivity deal with Sony, however. I remember thinking at the time (apparently incorrectly) that it was "Sony's answer to Halo" or something similar. Not the position you want your game to be in.

[Heart of Black]

That's a shame. I'm thankful for that reading because it's a great cautionary tale on avoiding putting all of your eggs in a basket.

Loved Timesplitters 2, never played any of the rest.

I wish a Free Radical Goldeneye could have existed.

[Foliorum Viridum]

Second Sight was by far their best game and should have sold millions and millions. Shame on every single person that didn't buy it.

[Typographenia]

Loved Timesplitters 2, never played any of the rest.

You should play Future Perfect some time. The multiplayer isn't as good as it is in 2 (in my opinion), but the single player is really fun and has an actual story to follow this time.

Second Sight was by far their best game and should have sold millions and millions. Shame on every single person that didn't buy it.

I don't know that I'd go so far as to say "best," but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[dark10x]

Second Sight was by far their best game and should have sold millions and millions. Shame on every single person that didn't buy it.

Oh yeah, that was definitely my favorite of their games. By far.

Not a perfect game by any means but it was definitely a very cool experience. I enjoyed it much more than, say, Psi Ops.

[Xav]

Second Sight was by far their best game and should have sold millions and millions. Shame on every single person that didn't buy it.

Don't look at me, I loved Free Radical Design.



Haze was rubbish though.

[Foliorum Viridum]

Second Sight love warms my heart <3

[SkyMasterson]

What a sad story, the final quote is really melancholic. Fuck Ubisoft and Lucasarts

Seriously, really pisses me off.

Lucasarts has so much content it could put out and be successful with, yet they do jack shit.

I say good, fuck them and all these other shitty companies(Activision, EA, Ubi, etc.).

*goes back to playing Super Nintendo*

Edit: Second Sight was really good. Shame it bombed hard.

I'll never forget PS2 Launch day. Tekken Tag Tournament and TimeSplitters(and getting my first DVD's, Terminator 2 and The Matrix). A seriously mind-blowing day.

TimeSplitters multi was pretty fun and the game was sooooo fast and fluid. Create a levels were awesome too.

[dark10x]

Don't look at me, I loved Free Radical Design. Haze was rubbish though.

Oh yeah, I forgot how awesome the PAL boxart for TS2 was. Love it!

[earvcunanan]

Don't look at me, I loved Free Radical Design. Haze was rubbish though.

Awesome cover arts for TS 1+2.

[SkyMasterson]

Awesome cover arts for TS 1+2.

Man that art is soooooooo much better than what we got in America.

T1 cover art was absolute GARBAGE! One of the worst cover arts of all time for sure.

[Xav]

Man that art is soooooooo much better than what we got in America. T1 cover art was absolute GARBAGE! One of the worst cover arts of all time for sure.

Not to rub it in or anything but not only did we get a better cover art for TimeSplitters, they even managed to make the American one look good as a back cover.



And yes TimeSplitters 2 had great art, very stylised.

[Satchel]

Sucks.

But to be honest. An extra year wouldn't have made Haze a good game. Let alone 3 months.

[Clint Beastwood]

With this, and that story about latest Might & Magic, it seems Ubisoft is a terrible publisher to work for.

Is there any publisher that isn't?

[Pyronite]

That robot's got some strange robot nipples.

[Baron_Calamity]

What is the easiest way to play a Timesplitters game? I have a good gaming pc, an older 360, current model ps3 (no bc) and a dusty Wii.

[Joe Shlabotnik]

What is the easiest way to play a Timesplitters game? I have a good gaming pc, an older 360, current model ps3 (no bc) and a dusty Wii.

GC version on the Wii, I'd say.

[MedHead]

Haze was wonderfully bad. The characters were definitely "dudebros", to use the term that annoys so many here. The other guy playing the game with me didn't find it so entertaining, but it was making me laugh.

[outunderthestars]

Sigh. I really miss Timesplitters.