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[gdt]

This is such a bummer man. I was hoping Visceral working on a big sp sci fi game with Amy Hennig would blow the doors off. They needed a big return.

They deserved it.

I was hoping for Dead Space to come back.

 

[Kagoshima_Luke]

No place for lootboxes in a linear, story-based game.

 

[0ptimusPayne]

Damn...I was still living in the universe where Visceral was given another go for a dead space 4 in Frostbite

 

[SomTervo]

Yup. That’s what “pivot” means. Lots of checklists full of tedious and mundane tasks ensuring “players will want to come back to and enjoy”

It's more about letting players just do what they want and not funneling them. In playtesting and listening to people I've seen this first hand. The minute you give the reins to (in my experience) an average player they just want to fuck off and do their own thing.

The novelty of "go any where, do any thing" still a powerful drug apparently. The norm.

 

[Audioboxer]

I agree. In fact, EA had the kahunas to sacrifice one of the biggest IPs of last generation for the sake of getting in on that Destiny action with their flagship Action RPG developer known for their storytelling, world building and characters. These guys are now funneling down the same path as Bungie. Mass Effect was one of the biggest IPs of last generation alongside Uncharted and Assassin's Creed.

That says a lot. Not just about EA's strategy but the gaming industry as a whole. That's like if Sony tasked Naughty Dog to rush and release a broken mess of an Uncharted 4 so they can get started on a GaaS title.

EA are showing that all they care about right about are GaaS, mobile, EA Sports and microtransactions because that's where the money is. They have never been privy of playing the market, as popularly shown during 2013 when they backed Microsoft extremely hard to banning used games, which blew up in their faces.

Best wishes.

At the end of the day EA can do whatever they want. Konami certainly are. They'll basically just keep releasing Pro Evolution Soccer and going bonkers over pachinko machines. That's fair enough, Konami can do Konami. Gamers have accepted all the IP they horde are basically forever dead.

I just hope less developers sign up to EA if they expect longterm futures making games that aren't strictly dictated by what EA wants. The dead studios meme might be funny but it does seem to be the trend for what will happen if you don't meet EA's small window of accepted success.

Bioware will really be in hot water. I won't be surprised if more of any of the longterm staff who still exist at the company jump ship. The big boys can just exclusively chase esports, FPS games and GaaS if they want. Gamers have plenty of choice and as always the indie market continues to surprise and exceed expectations. It will only continue to produce studios that move up to fill the AA void as well. As much as some of us are cynical, when you seriously look at all the games on offer these days, no, not all of them are MTs, loot boxes and generic AAA clones. There will always be a few AAA games that don't take the piss either, no matter how much some on GAF are currently arguing every AAA can't sustain itself without F2P infestation. That's fine, some of us will just stop buying such games and go enjoy others.

Somewhere will pick Amy Hennig up as well as she's a class act.

 

[Bishop89]

Damn...I was still living in the universe where Visceral was given another go for a dead space 4 in Frostbite

yeah im so angry about this.

 

[Obliterator]

WHATTT??? so if a Half ass game can make that much only because it has Star Wars in its name something else happened at Visceral's. Because Star Wars is all the rage right now. I think the only game that underperformed by numbers was the Force Unleashed 2?

A single player linear Star Wars game was never going to sell as much as Battlefront.

Don't get me wrong I wish this wasn't canceled either and that Visceral wasn't being closed but you can't use Battlefront performance to gauge what this title would have done

 

[duckroll]

Number of Amy Hennig Games:

2001-2011: 7
2011-2021: 0 (Possibly)

Given extreme dev times its very likely we won't see another project from her for 3-4 years unless she joins a game already well in progress.

 

[neojubei]

Amy Hennig kicked off two AAA games in a row now. Hmmmm.

Square Enix should hire her to write the story for the next tomb raider game.

 

[Palabragrís]

EA is at it again, huh?
The Worst Company in America strikes again.

 

[Kin5290]

Becomes an open world sandbox game.

P much says so right there

Like Mass Effect Andromeda?

The video done by The Know raised some good points. EA Vancouver is a developer of primarily sports games (NBA and NHL, through EA Sports). Its last single player action experience was Medal of Honor 2, back in 2007.

Also, EA’s exclusive license to produce Star Wars games lasts only through 2023. If the inexperienced EA Vancouver is indeed starting from, if not square one, then square two, that not a lot of time to turn out a game of the scale and scope EA’s press release suggested, let alone a sequel.

Square Enix should hire her to write the story for the next tomb raider game.

Talk about a step down, though.

 

[JeffZero]

I was already nervous last week with Mark Laidlaw leaving Bioware but this news makes me think that they are truly going all-in on Anthem and we may not see anything else from them for a long, long time.

Same.

Mark Darrah telling Mike on twitter "so excited for you to see the next Dragon Age" when he left is somewhat relieving for me. But I just don't know what to think about anything anymore, John Crichton. I just don't know what to think about anything at all.

 

[Obliterator]

Number of Amy Hennig Games:

2001-2011: 7
2011-2021: 0 (Possibly)

Given extreme dev times its very likely we won't see another project from her for 3-4 years unless she joins a game already well in progress.

I almost wonder if she takes a long break from the industry after this. Having two major games pulled from underneath her has to be a major hit to your morale

 

[Spyder_Monkey]

did Battlefront (1) flopped? I really don't know.

It sold really, really well. Cause Star Wars.

 

[labx]

It's sold at least 14 million copies. Seen people saying it's as high as 16 million though.
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2016/05/10/star-wars-battlefront-sales-top-14-million

A single player linear Star Wars game was never going to sell as much as Battlefront.

Don't get me wrong I wish this wasn't canceled either and that Visceral wasn't being closed but you can't use Battlefront performance to gauge what this title would have done

Yes, Yes.. false equivalence there. That's why I used the Force Unleashed and I'm going to put in this pot KOTOR... These Franchises were a success or failure?

 

[RiccochetJ]

Damn. I was really holding out hope that I was going to see a Dante's Inferno 2.

Depending on how you just read that last sentence, it may sound snarky, but I'm being genuine. I really liked Dante's Inferno and was hoping that Visceral was eventually going to be given the green light to make a sequel.

Very talented people at that studio. I imagine that a lot won't be out of work for long.

 

[duckroll]

I almost wonder if she takes a long break from the industry after this. Having two major games pulled from underneath her has to be a major hit to your morale

Since she made her directorial debut with Soul Reaver, she has consistently shipped a game every 2-3 years from 1999. All the way until Uncharted 3 in 2011. Then.... one setback after another. :/

 

[Floody]

Yes, Yes.. false equivalence there. That's why I used the Force Unleashed and I'm going to put in this pot KOTOR... These Franchises were a success or failure?

The first Force Unleashed did really well didn't it? It was the sequel that kinda fucked it all up. I'm pretty sure KOTOR sold well too.

I also think a good KOTOR would be a mega hit in the current market.

 

[SmoothRunningGun]

Everything has to be gaas now.

 

[anothertech]

So they're killing off KOTOR sequel, and putting all the devs on Battlefront 3. Got it.

Too bad.

Actually, if they are going to make a Star Wars GTA5, I wanna see some of that.

 

[AlexFlame116]

This may sound stupid of me to say but I'm not happy that only EA has the rights to make Star Wars games.

 

[Jumeira]

What is it with 3rd person SW games burning studios into the ground.

 

[MagicWithEarvin]

Damn, this sucks! Hopefully the developers can find work right away.

Also, is Dead Space dead?

 

[CAR105 3]

what the ...



"We had to find a way to add loot boxes"

I read the same way no joke.

I need a game directed by Amy Hennig!

 

[JeffZero]

Damn, this sucks! Hopefully the developers can find work right away.

Also, is Dead Space dead?

I cannot imagine a scenario in which Dead Space isn't utterly incinerated at this point, yes.

 

[SapphiCine]

Damn. Sounds like EA wants it to be some open world BS.

 

[rashbeep]

Number of Amy Hennig Games:

2001-2011: 7
2011-2021: 0 (Possibly)

Given extreme dev times its very likely we won't see another project from her for 3-4 years unless she joins a game already well in progress.

damn

 

[Audioboxer]

I cannot imagine a scenario in which Dead Space isn't utterly incinerated at this point, yes.

Farming it out to the cheapest bidder like Konami did with Silent Hill. Maybe we'll even get a botched Dead Space 1-3 4K remaster?

To be honest I don't think EA could even be arsed with the effort to farm it out. Konami were still going through their phase of pretending like they cared about games/SH when they were farming it out to any dev that could turn on a computer.

 

[Giolon]

Damn, this sucks! Hopefully the developers can find work right away.

Also, is Dead Space dead?

Dead Space died when Dead Space 3 released.

 

[ArkhamFantasy]

Talk about a step down, though.

For who? Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal are excellent developers and she would get more creative freedom from Square Enix than she will from EA.

 

[Seyfert]

why when someone working on great SP adventure game for new gen are doomed? : (

Not interest in any Star Wars game except this and it got basically same fate as 1313. At least it is not canned but it is not what i actually want : ( GaaS Destiny clone incoming again : (

Also, Dante's Inferno is a fun game but coming at wrong time when GoW dominated everything. I also always want Dead Space 4 someday but this just break my heart, oh my.

EA is going to get worst company reward again...

 

[borges]

Old enough to see what EA has done to once great studios that have created fantastic games I have cherished. But hey because I used the term "Evil Arseholes" I must be a child then, rather than angry that yet again EA steam rolls over another developer and is pushing the industry in a direction I do not wish it to go.

I mean EA has a rep for this. Whenever another big publisher closes a studio do you ever see people trot out the "Developer Pit of Death" meme for them ? No you don't it is exclusively a meme that gets trotted out when EA does it because EA does it that damn often.

Sony closed studios (remember Driveclub?)
Microsoft closed studios (remember Fable?)
All companies no matter the industry has sized down and up eventually.
Its not a religious thing, 'evil' or 'good'.
Its called business.

 

[MagicWithEarvin]

Dead Space died when Dead Space 3 released.

It’s the weakest entry in the series for sure, but... I still kind of had fun with it. Sucks that the budgeting didn’t work out for the series.

 

[longdi]

TBH a linear starwars game by Amy, likely will turn out to be an unchartered-ish, just with starwars skins but plenty of puns and quips. Will prefer a more open world rpg-ish game for my starwars fix.

 

[Pepboy]

Damn. Sounds like EA wants it to be some open world BS.

I think this is what the market wants as well. Personally I am more excited by the possibilities of it than another wall climbing game.

 

[Kin5290]

For who? Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal are excellent developers and she would get more creative freedom from Square Enix than she will from EA.

From project lead to writer, though? That would still have to sting.

 

[unknownstranger]

Last year at E3 EA said Visceral's Star Wars game was coming out in 2018. I think this pushes it back to 2020 now.

 

[Kin5290]

Last year at E3 EA said Visceral's Star Wars game was coming out in 2018. I think this pushes it back to 2020 now.

If there are no delays. Considering EA Canada/Vancouver's inexperience with open world or single player games, or anything but sports games (and a multiplayer Destiny-lite would be even harder to handle), expecting the studio to turn out a game of such scale in such a short time would be pretty ambitious.

And EA only has Star Wars until 2023. A sequel to such a game seems out of the question.

 

[Tawney Bomb]

Gotta get those Star Wars lootboxes in there.

 

[iPaul93]

I can’t believe they actually shut down the studio that made Dead Space.Fuck EA.

 

[Bronetta]

If there are no delays. Considering EA Canada/Vancouver's inexperience with open world or single player games, or anything but sports games (and a multiplayer Destiny-lite would be even harder to handle), expecting the studio to turn out a game of such scale in such a short time would be pretty ambitious.

And EA only has Star Wars until 2023. A sequel to such a game seems out of the question.

Looks like we know which studios getting shut down next, unless Criterion beats them to the punch.

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

Just reading this news for the first time. Absolutely crushed by this. Dead Space is one of my favorite games of all time, and the trilogy is absolutely magnificent. Fuck you EA. Fuck you indeed.

 

[Ahasverus]

Square Enix should hire her to write the story for the next tomb raider game.

You mean her true Opera prima, the Legacy of Kain series.

 

[A Serious Man]

Well fuck. I'll pour one out for those guys.

 

[ArkhamFantasy]

From project lead to writer, though? That would still have to sting.

Oh i see what you mean.

 

[xealo]

Does this "pivot" involve turning a linear story game into an open world one with more opportunities for micro transactions like loot boxes? That's what this statement about them doing it reads like.

 

[alt27]

Well, fuck , what shitty news to wake up to.

I suppose we will be getting another Multiplayer microtransaction riddled Star Wars from EA then. Isnt one enough?

 

[Xenoblade]

Haven't bought an EA game since BF4. I'll give them another chance, but it's all been downhill since then.

 

[Kin5290]

Looks like we know which studios getting shut down next, unless Criterion beats them to the punch.

Those sports games are pretty lucrative, not to mention cost efficient as hell. The studio is secure, although I still question the wisdom of tapping a dev studio with little experience in singleplayer or massive multiplayer games or action/adventure games with developing such a game.

Bioware Edmonton folks better be updating their resumes, however.

 

[TheRed]

It really sounds like the game will be turned into a more open world style game, filled with mundane activities and with a lot microtransaction hooks. That sucks.