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[SaturnSaturn]

Crash 4 developer was Toys for Bob, not VV.
And that game sold poorly for their standards.
If Crash Trilogy sold more than 10M and they still killed its studio...

Just hope that they don't close Toys for Bob too...

Crash 4 was just needlessly hard and gimicky with hidden boxes everywhere, i say this as someone who finished the trilogy with platinums on all three games, sold crash 4 a few days after buying it

 

[GonSama]

Don’t give a fuck if they sold poorly, they were good games. If you have a good studio, you do what you can to help it to thrive. This is piss poor.

But the worst part is that they sold well.
Crash Trilogy sold more than 10M copies. THPS 1+2 sold 1M in 2 weeks (second best launch in the series).

Crash:

THPS:

 

[MistBreeze]

Crash 4 was just needlessly hard and gimicky with hidden boxes everywhere, i say this as someone who finished the trilogy with platinums on all three games, sold crash 4 a few days after buying it

excuse me sir

crash 4 is best of what a new crash game could have bean

the masks are not gimmicks and it is the best thing about the game and incorporated into the game so well ... it added a lot to the game play loop it is amazing

the difficulty is great and respect the gamer... it is only difficult if u want to get 100% the game and this is expected

except only the last section of the final level ... this is only legit hard part of the game imo

they offered a shadow assist for god sakes

do people want games play themselves now days

please people let us have nice things

if the game is easy they complain

if the game somewhat challenging they complain

Im grateful for vicarious visions for remaking the trilogy

and applaude toys for bob for their outstanding work

Activision has many talented studios but their management are shit

 

[sainraja]

I know some people reacted to my post with a laughing emoji but how is everyone forgetting that Blizzard does make good games? The people at VV could be given their own thing to work on, perhaps one of the Blizzard franchises. I see nothing wrong with that!

 

[CamHostage]

Merging them with Blizzard is a same waste of talent like what Activision did with pushing Raven Software to supporting development of Call of Duty games.

That said, this move may actually confirm rumors that Vicarious Visions was working on Diablo II remaster.

I don't know if "waste of talent" is fair, given that they may do great things at Blizzard. (And at some point, I rather see great-playing, well-selling games from Blizzard than to worry about how long Activision will give a shit about a franchise I was interested in...) Similarly, I don't know that Raven is unhappy making CoDs considering they're really good at it and it's a top-tier franchise (not my fave, but I do acknowledge it's success and playability.)

It is a sad narrowing of creative outlets, though. Anybody who has had a wild idea for what's next in either company now, at best, needs to filter that idea through a single franchise or two, and at worse, have no hope of actually putting that idea to use because their job now is to think of only specific types of ideas.

 

[SaturnSaturn]

excuse me sir

crash 4 is best of what a new crash game could have bean

the masks are not gimmicks and it is the best thing about the game and incorporated into the game so well ... it added a lot to the game play loop it is amazing

the difficulty is great and respect the gamer... it is only difficult if u want to get 100% the game and this is expected

except only the last section of the final level ... this is only legit hard part of the game imo

they offered a shadow assist for god sakes

do people want games play themselves now days

please people let us have nice things

if the game is easy they complain

if the game somewhat challenging they complain

Im grateful for vicarious visions for remaking the trilogy

and applaude toys for bob for their outstanding work

Activision has many talented studios but their management are shit

Its just my opinion, im glad you had fun with the game, but it was just not for me, levels felt to open compared to the original. did not like the new masks, i just wanted something old school in terms of level design

 

[MistBreeze]

Its just my opinion, im glad you had fun with the game, but it was just not for me, levels felt to open compared to the original. did not like the new masks, i just wanted something old school in terms of level design

I appreciate ur opinion brother

I know u want old school design but I bet if they designed the game like that many people will complain and say it is the same game every time

so the devs making what they are passionate about is the most important thing ... people will complain either way

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

Blizzard is arguably the greatest developer of the last generation.

Overwatch, Hearthstone, Diablo III, Heroes of the Storm...

We're really upset because the developer who made THPS remakes and Crash Bandicoot got absorbed?

Sorry guys, Blizzard has been on fire over the last 5 years.

 

[AceofJakes]

What a strange decision.

I mean they must have a reason, but they made 2 successful remakes. Why not let them doing THPS 3+4 or THUG instead?!

 

[MistBreeze]

this day keeps getting better and better

first xbox live double price

know activision destroying one of the main crash games pillars old and respectable studio

great gaming industry ... keep it up

 

[Saber]

Crash was an amazing game. Now it will be the only good thing people gonna remember from them...gods help their souls.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

What a strange decision.

I mean they must have a reason, but they made 2 successful remakes. Why not let them doing THPS 3+4 or THUG instead?!

The remakes weren't successful.

Blizzard Activision is in the industry dominating business. They're trying to take over the world.

THPS and Crash Bandicoot don't help with that goal.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

I think youre all seeing this wrong. They are basically promoted from working on remakes to making original games from their most famous ip.

 

[GrayFoxPL]

 

[Holammer]

Blizzard is the stronger brand, so VV will serve as a blood sacrifice to prop up a failing studio.

 

[Fake]

GonSama can you update the OP?

 

[GonSama]

GonSama can you update the OP?

Done

 

[Caffeine]

man fuck blizzard gonna focus on morhaime and browders studios.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

RIP to THPS 3+4 dreams. Was looking forward to a HD Zoo level.

 

[Davey Cakes]

THPS 1+2 Remaster is a “pure joy” kind of game. I was REALLY looking forward to seeing them take on 3+4. Maybe some day...

 

[drganon]

Shitty way for a studio to go out. THPS 1 and 2 was awesome. Also fuck blizzard.

 

[Shadowplay1979]

Vicarious Visions were also working on the expansions for Destiny 2 not just the PC port.....so i guess they wont be doing that anymore.

 

[D.Final]

But why?

N Sane Trilogy is awesome

 

[IbizaPocholo]

Vicarious Visions to drop its name and fully merge with Blizzard, sources say

The merger was announced earlier in 2021, but workers were told Wednesday about the name change

www.polygon.com

Activision Blizzard informed Vicarious Visions employees Wednesday that the studio would lose its name as part of its ongoing merger with Blizzard Entertainment, sources told Polygon.

Vicarious Visions workers told Polygon that they were initially under the impression the merger meant their employer would continue to operate as its own studio, although it was owned by Blizzard. The news about the name drop came during a town hall meeting on Wednesday morning. A new name for the studio has not been announced, but some workers speculated that it could be simply called Blizzard Albany. (Vicarious Visions’ office is located in Albany, New York. Blizzard typically uses this naming convention for its satellite offices, for example, Blizzard Austin in Texas.)

In August, former Vicarious Visions studio head Jen Oneal was named a co-president of Blizzard Entertainment. (She was named an executive vice president of development at Blizzard during the January merger.)

Polygon reached out to an Activision Blizzard representative about this development. We have not heard back as of publication time.

Most of the Vicarious Visions employees who spoke to Polygon said they aren’t necessarily surprised by the announcement, with one noting that the “writing was on the wall.” But at least one worker was disappointed by the lack of transparency and sudden announcement during a “light and quick” meeting on what employees described as a costume day. Some employees were dressed in Halloween costumes during the call.

Leadership said there were no layoffs currently planned, according to the employees who spoke to Polygon. With the merger already announced and underway, staffers didn’t expect much to change otherwise, but some employees noted that there were still a lot of questions unanswered.

“For all of the leadership’s talk about being more transparent in response to the lawsuit and resulting fiasco, the fact they decided to blindside us all with this feels about as far from transparent as you can get,” an employee told Polygon.

Vicarious Visions was founded in 1991 in Albany, N.Y. by then high-schoolers Karthik and Guha Bala, who today lead Velan Studios, developers of Knockout City for Electronic Arts. The Balas sold the studio to Activision in 2005 and left it in 2016.

Prior to the studio’s formal merger with Blizzard Entertainment, Vicarious Visions had worked on ports for titles like Ultimate Spider-Man, Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast and Jedi Academy.

 

[TransTrender]

Just a reminder that Vicarious Visions were leading Diablo 2 Ressurected and Jen Oneal left Blizzard because she felt there was no saving them...among other things...

 

[YCoCg]

Still mad that we didn't get any 60fps patches for N.Sane Trilogy, CTR and Spyro.

 

[Ceadeus]

Manly Blizzard employees watching the new batch of female VV employees entering the studio:

 

[Kadve]

Could be worse. The could have been absorbed into Activision and become yet another COD studio.

 

[The_Mike]

I know some people reacted to my post with a laughing emoji but how is everyone forgetting that Blizzard does make good games?

To be fair it's easy to forget when they haven't made a decent output the last 8 years.

 

[Oddvintagechap]

Still mad that we didn't get any 60fps patches for N.Sane Trilogy, CTR and Spyro.

These games must really not move the needle.

Maybe Sony will buy them now. Unless Activision sees their future as a mobile games