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The God who Peter Molyneux forgot - Curiosity winner Bryan Henderson

kmag

Member
No, I don't think so. Unless he signed a paper contract, I am not sure they legally owe him anything.

Verbal contracts are binding under both Scottish law* (where the winner was based), and English law (where 22Cans is based).

*there does need to be corroboration in Scots law but the video is enough for that.
 
'Imagine a game where every problem is solved by saying 'I categorically apologize and will bear the weight on my shoulders forever'

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This made my day. It really did.
 

Rentahamster

Rodent Whores
I thought he worked for Molyneux at some point.

IIRC, the real Molyneux was at first annoyed by Molydeux, but over time actually grew to respect the parody account and it made him remember the bountiful creativity he had as a child.

I think there was then a GameJam event where each team picked one idea from Molydeux and tried to make it into a game. The real Molyneux actually spoke at the London one.

This was around the time when the real Molyneux quit MS to form 22cans.
 
IIRC, the real Molyneux was at first annoyed by Molydeux, but over time actually grew to respect the parody account and it made him remember the bountiful creativity he had as a child.

I think there was then a GameJam event where each team picked one idea from Molydeux and tried to make it into a game. The real Molyneux actually spoke at the London one.

This was around the time when the real Molyneux quit MS to form 22cans.

Imagine a game about a Twitter account that causes personal growth by parodying the player's stupid game ideas.
 
Sounds to me like they will introduce multi-player and it will be set up so that the God of Gods role is transferrable through play. Then somebody with more time or luck on their hands will take the title from poor Bryan, as the kid won't be able to play enough to keep hold of it. And his reward will be 1% of whatever revenue Godus brings in on that particular day. I do hope I'm wrong...
That's the same way it read to me. Raw deal and the prize for curiosity turns out to be complete bullshit.
 

FoxSpirit

Junior Member
Sure seems like it. Manipulative to the core. And yet he's still around instead of being a total pariah. Blows my mind.


Holy shit, this is good. Thanks for that.
Well, while the Fable games massively underdelivered on the promises they were decent.
And Populus, we were promised nothing more than a fresh take. No utter hyperbole, everything seemed very doable.
But with Molyneux at the helm, even 22 people can't cook up a simple decent game.

Contrast that with 5lives studios and Satellite Reign.
 

ocean

Banned
I loved Black & White. The original Favle would have had far better reception had it not been tied to this guy and his promises. It was a disappointment because of how they hyped it but not a bad game by any external standard.
 
T

thepotatoman

Unconfirmed Member
"I can still remember it vividly. It was like an angel and a devil on my shoulders, one saying "Go on, you've just got to tell the truth. You can't lie like this" and then this other voice saying "Just lie, Just lie, get the machines, go to the (?) place, and just sort it out afterwards.

Of course I ended up lying."
.

Never before has a man's career been so easily summed up in a single quote, said by the person themselves.

Yeah, pretty much. Lie, get the benefits, then a couple years later admit it and act like it wont happen again. He's been sorting things out afterwards for years, for at least Commodore, B&W, and Milo as far as I know, and probably more. At some point we need to say it's not ok, even if you do own up to it a couple years later when the lie no longer serves a purpose.
 
John Walker over at Rock, Paper, Shotgun discusses the Eurogamer article and summarizes a few of the more blatant lies:

Another odd claim to come out of Eurogamer’s interview is that the reason the multiplayer hasn’t worked in Godus, and for the extensive PC development delay. As Eurogamer puts it, “Godus’ publisher forced a server switch back in November 2014, which then forced 22Cans to build new tech in order for people to keep playing the game.” Right, but how does this square up with claims made in the Kickstarter pitch, where Molyneux explained they were turning to crowd-funding in order to avoid needing a publisher.

“But we need funding to continue, and rather than partner with a publisher, we’re keen to explore the exciting new Kickstarter platform. It means we can stay independent and it gives you the opportunity to have a voice in the development of GODUS… Funding it via Kickstarter allows us to stay a small independent team with unlimited freedom in our creativity. It’ll just be you, us and our unbridled dedication (no publishers).”
 
How the fuck is being a character in a video game life-changing?

That's a Kickstarter Tier.

And no, having access to a percentage of a games sales is not life-changing. Who knows how it would sell.

Peter probably considers meeting him is life changing :) . Or maybe he was referring to your life changing when you get screwed out of all your money.
 

Alienous

Member
How the fuck is being a character in a video game life-changing?

That's a Kickstarter Tier.

And no, having access to a percentage of a games sales is not life-changing. Who knows how it would sell.

I'd disagree.

The notion that you can earn thousands of dollars from the profits of a game with the proviso that you maintain your status as 'God of Gods' as other players challenge you for that position has the potential to be life changing. How much time to you now dedicate to the game to maintain your status? None, and risk being overruled easily? Lots, and maintain the income? It's both a blessing and a curse, of sorts.

With good execution it could have been fascinating.
 
I know it's sometimes necessary because of the distribution channels involved, but this is an ugly trend with Kickstarters...

"We need your support, because we couldn't get this game made by going through a publisher!"
*the pledges clear*
"Guess what, guys? We have a publisher now! They saw there was interest in the game!"
"Aw, the publisher screwed us over and took lots of the money."

I admit, I don't know if Godus specifically spoke about not going through a publisher (I'm not in the mood to rewatch their Kickstarter pitch to check), but I wouldn't be surprised.

John Walker over at Rock, Paper, Shotgun discusses the Eurogamer article and summarizes a few of the more blatant lies:

Another odd claim to come out of Eurogamer’s interview is that the reason the multiplayer hasn’t worked in Godus, and for the extensive PC development delay. As Eurogamer puts it, “Godus’ publisher forced a server switch back in November 2014, which then forced 22Cans to build new tech in order for people to keep playing the game.” Right, but how does this square up with claims made in the Kickstarter pitch, where Molyneux explained they were turning to crowd-funding in order to avoid needing a publisher.

“But we need funding to continue, and rather than partner with a publisher, we’re keen to explore the exciting new Kickstarter platform. It means we can stay independent and it gives you the opportunity to have a voice in the development of GODUS… Funding it via Kickstarter allows us to stay a small independent team with unlimited freedom in our creativity. It’ll just be you, us and our unbridled dedication (no publishers).”

Hah. He really did promise no publisher during the Kickstarter, then complained about the influence a publisher put on his project.

Don't miss the italicized note at the bottom of the article, pointing out where Peter Molyneux did a back-and-forth on whether there was actually going to be a PC version at all.
 

Izuna

Banned
Peter Molyneux is like Yeezus who never made a good song.

"Swear down, next album will have something call Jesus Walks. When I made it, I'll never go to hell."

Thing is, Fable 1 was a good game despite how disappointing it was in comparison to the previews. His new games aren't even good but he is hyping them up even more.
 

Wiktor

Member
Peter Molyneux is like Yeezus who never made a good song.

"Swear down, next album will have something call Jesus Walks. When I made it, I'll never go to hell."

Thing is, Fable 1 was a good game despite how disappointing it was in comparison to the previews. His new games aren't even good but he is hyping them up even more.

The only reason why people still sometimes fall for his BS is because he was truly amazing in 80s and 90s.
 
am i missing something or is this basically about a guy who won a contest and was told his prize was a percentage of revenue from a game, but the devs never gave him anything?
big deal, it's not like the kid put down any of his own money or did any work for them. always want something for nothing.
 

Alienous

Member
Well I guess if you lie pathologically that's the only way to curb that.

I must say he does seem genuinely contrite. The notion that there was an employee specifically tasked with keeping Bryan in the loop who left is, on face value, understandable ... but it isn't exactly a big company, so that should have been communicated.

I don't know what to think.

“I think people are just sick of hearing from me,” he says in one disarmingly dark moment. “They’ve been sick of hearing from me for so many years now. You know, we’re done.”
 
For those interested, that interview i mentioned has been posted online now:

Peter Molyneux interview: 'It's over, I will not speak to the press again'

Havent read it yet but will do.

from the article:

Peter Molyneux has admitted regret and culpability; he was clearly in distress throughout the interview – an interview he told us would will be his last. An hour before publication, however, we discovered that he had spoken to the gaming news site Rock, Paper, Shotgun the day before, and had given their interviewer the same impression – that he would no longer be speaking to the press. He has also spoken to at least one other site, seemingly on the same afternoon as our discussion. Another trail of broken assurances...

sorry, this guy's just seriously ill, & in need of intervention...
 
from the article:

sorry, this guy's just seriously ill, & in need of intervention...

LOL That was the part that stood out the most, all his sympathetic tails that you could believe (Especially the abuse online) but to come out that it was his last interview, only to find out he spouted the same stuff to other interviewers….

Im assuming that once he has finished these interviews he will indeed skulk away until he needs to peddle his latest game but will take a much more behind the scenes approach to PR.
 
Peter Molyneux has admitted regret and culpability; he was clearly in distress throughout the interview – an interview he told us would will be his last. An hour before publication, however, we discovered that he had spoken to the gaming news site Rock, Paper, Shotgun the day before, and had given their interviewer the same impression – that he would no longer be speaking to the press. He has also spoken to at least one other site, seemingly on the same afternoon as our discussion. Another trail of broken assurances...

from the article: sorry, this guy's just seriously ill, & in need of intervention...

omg, this is hilarious LOL.
 

gofreak

GAF's Bob Woodward
For those interested, that interview i mentioned has been posted online now:

Peter Molyneux interview: 'It's over, I will not speak to the press again'

Havent read it yet but will do.

:/

Basically he's probably doing more or less the best thing he can do - but will he actually stick to that approach.

The one bigger fundamental thing he could do, though, is to switch his studio back to Godus until its done. It's hard to see how they'll eventually deliver on it if its down to a couple of people (?)
 

Falk

that puzzling face
I still love the idea and I still absolutely love the fact it was someone British that won it, I still love the fact that Bryan is young and it’s going to be a life changing experience for him.

wow
 

Axass

Member
He's borderline pathological at this point. I wish there was a way to raise awareness about his lying habit so that the general public may know. He doesn't deserve the money and love he gets.
 
For those interested, that interview i mentioned has been posted online now:

Peter Molyneux interview: 'It's over, I will not speak to the press again'

Havent read it yet but will do.

My god, that last paragraph buttons the whole thing up perfectly. Well done, Laura Kate Dale.

Reading that also made me realise why the game press has been so enarmoured with this guy despite his deceptions:

He is an enthusiastic and passionate developer, a singularly unguarded voice in an industry where upper level managers are media trained into robotic banality. But gamers are tired of it, and now, by falling short on Kickstarter pledges and stretching the site’s terms and conditions to their limits, he has incensed investors to deal with too.
 

CappyHamper

Neo Member
am i missing something or is this basically about a guy who won a contest and was told his prize was a percentage of revenue from a game, but the devs never gave him anything?
big deal, it's not like the kid put down any of his own money or did any work for them. always want something for nothing.


Except that Curiosity was monetized.
People gave money to speed up the process and increase their chances based on the promises.
 

GoaThief

Member
I don't quite believe he is that upset any more, the more I read the more it sounds like a ruse. The last paragraph even hinted at such.

Promising to deliver on a broken promise, shortly after releasing an in-house video stating that multiplayer may never be done just doesn't add up. The game is least important at this stage, Bryan should have financial compensation/reward and be done with it.
 
I don't quite believe he is that upset any more, the more I read the more it sounds like a ruse. The last paragraph even hinted at such.

Promising to deliver on a broken promise, shortly after releasing an in-house video stating that multiplayer may never be done just doesn't add up. The game is least important at this stage, Bryan should have financial compensation/reward and be done with it.


If he were really serious about finishing up Godus, he wouldn't have taken most of his team off it and left it in charge of a former intern (who has made it fairly clear that multiplayer and Linux versions are never going to happen).

Just more lies from Molyneux.
 

Wedge7

Member
Lol this fucking guy, unbelievable.

Always disliked molyneux, and always thought he was a lying piece of shit, and this confirms it. Lol at the fact he still has fans. What a joke.
 
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