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Neverland Company (Rune Factory, Shining Force Neo) to cease operations
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michaelius
Banned
What they will do isn't hard to predict
It's only a matter of when those brands come to iOS
The "lucky" ones that is, the rest will be forgotten.
I suppose it would save me some heartbreak if I would just assume "Mobile until proven otherwise" for Rune Factory or any other Japanese series 
It's not so much that there're games being made on mobile platforms that bothers me, but rather the movement of certain brands/series to mobile platforms. Do new generations of gamers prefer the "microtransactionized" games rather than buying one complete, quality game all at once? Or why not make those people new series instead of changing up older series (But, it's easier to make money with brand recognition taken care of, so I understand why they're doing that.)
In any case, it will be interesting to see how it plays out, what most worries me is that the games themselves will be fundamentally changed in order to accommodate the mobile model. Can't mobile devices be treated like a traditional platform? I'm worried that Yoichi Wada's "how can we charge the people?" ends up pervading all aspects of a game.
It's not so much that there're games being made on mobile platforms that bothers me, but rather the movement of certain brands/series to mobile platforms. Do new generations of gamers prefer the "microtransactionized" games rather than buying one complete, quality game all at once? Or why not make those people new series instead of changing up older series (But, it's easier to make money with brand recognition taken care of, so I understand why they're doing that.)
In any case, it will be interesting to see how it plays out, what most worries me is that the games themselves will be fundamentally changed in order to accommodate the mobile model. Can't mobile devices be treated like a traditional platform? I'm worried that Yoichi Wada's "how can we charge the people?" ends up pervading all aspects of a game.
Hero of Legend
Member
I suppose it would save me some heartbreak if I would just assume "Mobile until proven otherwise" for Rune Factory or any other Japanese series
It's not so much that there're games being made on mobile platforms that bothers me, but rather the movement of certain brands/series to mobile platforms. Do new generations of gamers prefer the "microtransactionized" games rather than buying one complete, quality game all at once? Or why not make those people new series instead of changing up older series (But, it's easier to make money with brand recognition taken care of, so I understand why they're doing that.)
In any case, it will be interesting to see how it plays out, what most worries me is that the games themselves will be fundamentally changed in order to accommodate the mobile model. Can't mobile devices be treated like a traditional platform? I'm worried that Yoichi Wada's "how can we charge the people?" ends up pervading all aspects of a game.
Think farmville.
charlequin
Banned
Really sad about this news. Neverland were still producing great games (like the excellent Rune Factory 4), produced some great classics that never saw English release (like Energy Breaker -- now with an English translation patch -- and Chaos Seed -- English patch coming soon!), and -- most importantly -- brought into this world Lufia 2, one of the grandest and most wonderful titles ever released in the RPG genre.
Good luck to every employee there, and thanks for everything.
lolwut
No. Please don't listen to this.
Good luck to every employee there, and thanks for everything.
lolwut
No. Please don't listen to this.
Black Door
Banned
The plot for "Ruins Chasers" was supposed to be set ~500 years after Lufia II, and the characters had access to high technology (chasing dat FFVII dollar), but they scrapped everything except the basic ideas for the characters for the GBC game. What could have been...
Millsington
Member
GhaleonQ
Member
Well-put. As others have written, it must have been outright bad financial planning or some crisis we didn't know about a few years ago. The staff, past and present, is clearly talented, and it sucks that yet another great developer has died.
And, yes, Energy Breaker was such a surprise! I like it more than the Lufia games, honestly.
Lufiaddict
Member
...
Black Door
Banned
Might want to drop 10 bux on this, then
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/171497873/festival-of-magic?ref=home_location
Combat looks janky, though
Magicpaint
Member
Wow this stinks, damnit.
Even though we get RF games ridiculously late here (still waiting for RF4), I will definitely miss their output.
Even though we get RF games ridiculously late here (still waiting for RF4), I will definitely miss their output.
Meh. Agree to disagree then?
Lufia 1 pretty much summarizes the overall plot of Lufia 2 in the first fifteen minutes - it starts with
most of the friggen ending sequence of Lufia 2 and thus robs it of much emotional impact
It spoils the fate of one important character
( Selan ;_; )
(Maxim's heroic sacrifice is cheapened by making him turn up as an old man)
(floating fortress of doom)
and their unceremonious demise
Erim/Lufia
her nature in Lufia 2
Guy's
you just meet that crazy old coot and then he suddenly kicks the bucket a minute later
...and then you loot his precious short sword or whatever. FROM HIS GRAVE.
Putting that aside, my reasoning is as follows: If you can't stand Lufia 2 you have no chance of ever liking Lufia 1. Lufia 2 is far more polished, looks and plays better and has more content - frankly, I think it's the better game of the two. So if you're possibly only going to play one of the two anyway, why not go with the better one.
...
I like that username, Lufiaddict, I suppose I could have very well made my username "Rune Factory Addict." What I can do now to show my appreciation in a small way is to create this new avatar of mine in the style of the Neverland logo as exhibited in the Rune Factory games (dusting off those Inkscape skillz).
Thank you Neverland; after my father passed away early this year I thought hard and desperately about things that gave me joy and I realized that video games were something that I hadn't really delved into seriously. I realized how much fun I had with Xenoblade and wanted to find more games that had that spirit of camaraderie, friendship, and the joys of starting out with little and having it grow into something bigger through experience and adventure. I learned of NeoGAF, found out there were many "gems" of games available on the Wii, and got to searching for more of those "quirky Japanese looking games" as I used to see JRPGs. After I innocently arrived at Rune Factory Frontier, I was captivated by the joyful spirit of a life of hard work, adventure, and friendship, the laughter I had at the goofy characters and situations, the satisfaction I had at crafting things in the way a person enjoys the fruits of their labor. It was also like a childhood anime come to life.
Thank you for breathing life into the story, characters, and the world of Rune Factory. As a person who previously did not think too highly of "fiction" as he got older I have come to appreciate the escapism that fiction in all its forms can provide. Right now I am playing through all the Rune Factory games, and though Neverland's adventure has come to an end, it feels like the Rune Factory adventure could be endless (there's no way I'm 100%'ing all of those games, pesky real world responsibilities!). If gaming becomes a lifelong joy for me, as I expect it will, then Neverland's Rune Factory will have definitely been a big factor in that, no matter how late I was to experiencing one of their games, so I will proudly say I am a Neverland fan.
Domo Arigato, Neverland Co.
charlequin
Banned
No, I think you're giving people bad advice.
The entire emotional thrust of Lufia 2 is based on it being a prequel. The story is written with the assumption that you've played the former game and delivers its beats based on the idea that you're familiar with the story. The story's supposed to be experienced in the order the games were released. Bowing to the silly idea that stories always have to be played in chronological order screws that up.
This is always the reason to play the worse and less polished game first, rather than force yourself to go back to it later!
Hero of Legend
Member
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