• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Confirmed By Sony (finally): Fumito Ueda Has Left Sony; Under Contract To Finish TLG

P

Pooya

Member
Update:
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/39100/Confirmed_Ico_Creator_Fumito_Ueda_Leaves_Sony.php


In a statement received by Gamasutra on Monday, Sony confirmed that while the creator is no longer working as an employee, he is finishing the upcoming The Last Guardian on a contract basis, and is "committed to completing" the project.

Ueda's sudden departure is particularly significant, as The Last Guardian is still in mid-development, and is very much a product of Ueda's creative influence. In addition, Ueda's pedigree of successful games has placed him among Sony's top developers -- making this move a notable loss for the company.



http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2...ardian-creator-fumito-ueda-leaves-sony-rumour

Ico, Shadow of the Colossus and The Last Guardian creator Fumito Ueda has left Sony, Eurogamer understands.

Japanese video game development sources indicated the 41-year-old is working on finishing oft-delayed PlayStation 3 exclusive The Last Guardian in a freelance capacity.

Ueda's departure from Sony internal development studio Team Ico is one of the reasons for the game's protracted development, Eurogamer was told.

Following the completion of the game, Ueda will embark on personal projects.

In September Sony reassured gamers that Team Ico was still "hard at work" on The Last Guardian, despite the high-profile PS3 exclusive missing the Tokyo Game Show.

The previous month SCE Studios president Shuhei Yoshida gave an exasperated-sounding Last Guardian progress update:

"It's been very difficult in terms of seeing the progress: not as fast as we'd been hoping for, and the team has been under big pressure," he said.

Sony told Eurogamer it does not comment on rumour and speculation.
Click to expand...
 
E

EatChildren

Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Shut down everything.
 
F

Foliorum Viridum

Banned
Sad for the Sony exclusive library, but I'm sure he'll still make interesting games.

I'd love to see him take a crack at a PC game, even though he 100% won't.
 
F

Fersis

It is illegal to Tag Fish in Tag Fishing Sanctuaries by law 38.36 of the GAF Wildlife Act
:(

Cool that he will keep working on games. *Looks at Keita Takahashi*
 
M

Meier

Member
Looking forward to what we see next. Nintendo would be smart to snap up an exclusive of his next project.
 
A

Anteater

Member
If this is true, I hope that would mean he will stick with smaller projects.

I hope he will focus on releasing more games with different ideas/theme instead, sort of like what Suda is doing.
 
T

tranciful

Member
Will be interesting to see if he can find the same sort of flexibility and freedom that Sony seemed to afford him. Can't see too many other publishers offering that sort of opportunity. Wonder if he intends to go totally independent.
 
F

filler

Banned
Join Nintendo and make the next Zelda, Ueda! More likely he'll continue making games for Sony, but just have more creative freedom or whatever. Seemed like he was already doing whatever he wanted to though.
 
T

The Omega Man

Member
holy crap if true, so the rumor that The Last Guardian was in developer hell were real, this is a story I will like to know everything about, but sadly we will probably never know...
 
Paracelsus

Paracelsus

Member
Queueing that guy who said by no means Team Ueda's development model should be forgiven in this business.

Sony fans however...crushing blow.
Click to expand...

At this point? Not really, I agree seven years for one game, no matter how good or how small the team is, is just too much.
 
S

Sealda

Banned
I always thought Ueda got almost the same V.I.P treatment as Yamauchi. Maybe, SCEJ have not been fully diplomatic towards Ueda, maybe pushing him "too hard". We all know, how creative geniuses can be: very sensitive towards any sign of being pushed or forced.

Its sad if he ends up like most people who turned down the big money for personal integrity. What i mean is that when video game geniuses who have created masterpieces, jumps of the big publisher/developer money bandwagon and aims for their own small comfy studio, their games often actually turns out rather disappointing and mediocre. Without the budget of Sony etc. i am afraid Ueda will end up doing small iOS or PSN games what not or just low budget console games.

I think it went more like this:

Sony: Hey, Ueda, hows it going?
Ueda: Good good.

(after 2 years)

Sony: Ueda, may we see some of your game?
Ueda: Sure, *shows some of it*
Sony: Seems nice but it also seems far from finished
Ueda: Yeah i know

(after 2 more years)

Sony: Ueda, we look forward to having the game soon
Ueda: Yeah, yeah, we are working on it
Sony: Seems like you have a lot of things left to work on...Can you hurry up

Ueda: (I do not like this, i do not like this pressure, i want to be free, i do not want this life, i hate the deadlines and the late nights and all the pressure)

(after 1 more year)

Sony: We need it to be done!
Ueda: Yes...yes, i am working on it
Sony:...Come on Ueda
Ueda: You know what! I quit, i cannot take this anymore! Ill finish this then i am out, okay?! I want to be free, i want to be freelance.

*goes home and listens to Linkin Park*
 
G

Gustav

Banned
There's a german saying:
Lieber ein Ende mit Schrecken, als ein Schrecken ohne Ende.

What it means:
Better an end with horror than endless horrors
 
S

Spwn

Member
My heart stopped for a second. Bad news for Sony and now I'm worried if we'll ever see Last Guardian. Yeah, the news claim he'll keep working on TLG, but still.
 
D

Dibbz

Member
Holy shit if it is true. Is he going to quit gaming? I mean the guy had basically total control over there.
 
N

NHale

Member
Kyoufu said:
Considering he took how long he is taking to make TLG... this does not surprise me at all.
Click to expand...

Maybe he looked at the indie scene and saw that's where he belong and not continue to do high budget games that takes 5+ years to develop.
 
P

Princess Skittles

Prince's's 'Skittle's
This will upset Sony warriors if true (and it IS a huge blow to Sony's first party lineup, no doubt, even if they are clearly more focused on Western developers this gen) but..

The_Technomancer said:
As long as he keeps working its good for us.
Click to expand...
..this is what people should be concerned with, regardless of what system it ends up on (as long as it's not iOS, haha).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Eurogamer: Firesprite shedding talent over toxic work conditions, alarming number of people left after Sony retention bonus
2 3
149
10K
Blood Borne replied
Fumito Ueda Planning To Reveal Next Project In 2023
Opinion Game Dev
49
3K
reksveks replied
Could Bluepoint have saved GenDesign (Team ICO)?
20
1K
semiconscious replied
The Last Guardian developer GenDesign has suggested it will finally reveal its next game this year.
Rumor
28
2K
James Sawyer Ford replied
Mapping out Sony first party's Next Four years on PS5
2
92
6K
Woopah replied
Top Bottom