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THQ: Core, Casual, Nintendo + SR3 and RF2 at E3

S

squicken

Member
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/106/1069733p1.html

IGN: Let's travel back two years -- 2008 was a rough year for THQ. Five studios closed. Some serious restructuring. What happened?

Brian Farrell: Well, like a lot of publishers, we anticipated continued growth. We were gearing up. You know, we hit a billion dollars in our fiscal 2007 and we were planning to go to a billion-five and then two billion -- we were building out accordingly. The market flattened out. We had to adjust costs and adjust costs quickly. So the way we're looking at that now is that our fiscal 2010 is all about turnaround. We went from a $165 million dollar operating loss the prior year to making money this year -- I mean, that's amazing in a year. I don't like the cost-cutting. I've been building for 20 years at THQ, but you know, you've gotta deal with reality. And what we're thinking about for this coming year, calendar 2010 or fiscal 2011, is just continued rebuilding. We cut our costs, so now let's take that next step. Build the brands a little bit more. Add a couple more brands to the portfolio. But we look at our fiscal 2012 or next calendar year -- I'm sure you're going to be at E3; I think we're going to blow people away at E3. You'll be seeing Saints Row 3. You'll be seeing the next Red Faction. You'll be seeing more of Homefront. We've been talking about it, but we'll actually show some of our Warhammer 40k MMO, and I think people are going to go, "Oh my God. They've got their stuff together."

So, turnaround, rebuild, and then knock the cover off the ball in calendar 2011 or fiscal 2012.

IGN: So this year's about continued rebuilding.

Brian Farrell: Well, you've seen Darksiders. We're leading the charge with that. I think we've got a real sleeper coming with Metro 2033. It's a really interesting game. Not everyone will love it and we know that. And one of the great things about a game like that is that it's being developed in the Ukraine so our development costs are lower and we don't need a huge hit to do well. I think that's the model for the future. With games like that and our Montreal studio, the idea is to still deliver quality to the gaming audience, but not having to spend $30 million dollars to get there. So we think Metro 2033 will find an audience. We've got a Dawn of War expansion pack coming. As you probably already know, that's been a huge franchise for us over the years. Then we get into UFC.


IGN: All right, let's switch focus a bit. THQ was one of the first and biggest third-party backers of Wii and you guys gambled with original licenses like de Blob and Deadly Creatures. The latter was a T-rated game that flopped. Why do you think T and M-rated titles like these haven't found an audience on Nintendo's platform?

Brian Farrell: Yeah, it's the audience. I'm glad we made the experience. Deadly Creatures was a fun experience. Critically well-reviewed. Didn't find much of an audience and I think more of the core-gaming audience is on 360 and PS3. I know Nintendo doesn't like that message. I'm a huge fan of Nintendo personally, but that's just not where the audience is or the audience there is fairly limited. The old guys like me and maybe you will still play the core stuff -- all the stuff we love about Nintendo on the Wii. But we don't branch out and play some of the core experiences on the Wii. If we do, we go HD and play on PS3 or 360.

I think that's the dynamic that's going on. There's nothing wrong with that. There's plenty of audience on the Wii. We've been concentrating more on our kids, family and casual stuff there and there is a viable business on the Wii for that stuff. It's just not the core experiences.

IGN: So it's safe to assume we won't ever be seeing a version of Darksiders or anything like that on Wii?

Brian Farrell: Yeah, I won't rule anything out. There are things that we can do. At E3, we'll be unveiling a few things around Wii that are some brand extensions and you go, "Okay, that makes sense on Wii." I can get that audience on the Wii. I don't want to front-run our PR department on some things. I don't want to rule out those things. You have to be smart about what you put on Wii from a core gamer's standpoint. But if you look at what's selling on Wii, it's Nintendo's stuff and it's kids, family and casual. Our kids, family and casual gained a lot of share this year on the Wii with things like The Biggest Loser and Marvel Super Hero Squad, and those type of products. And that's where the Wii consumer is.
Click to expand...
 
S

schuelma

Wastes hours checking old Famitsu software data, but that's why we love him.
Before he gets jumped on, I would say its completely valid to say that "more" of a core market exists on the HD platforms. Now, I think there are much better examples to use for that proposition than Deadly Creatures which would have sold horrible on any platform, but oh well.
 
A

Aaron Strife

Banned
IGN: All right, let's switch focus a bit. THQ was one of the first and biggest third-party backers of Wii and you guys gambled with original licenses like de Blob and Deadly Creatures. The latter was a T-rated game that flopped. Why do you think T and M-rated titles like these haven't found an audience on Nintendo's platform?

Brian Farrell: Yeah, it's the audience. I'm glad we made the experience. Deadly Creatures was a fun experience. Critically well-reviewed. Didn't find much of an audience and I think more of the core-gaming audience is on 360 and PS3. I know Nintendo doesn't like that message. I'm a huge fan of Nintendo personally, but that's just not where the audience is or the audience there is fairly limited. The old guys like me and maybe you will still play the core stuff -- all the stuff we love about Nintendo on the Wii. But we don't branch out and play some of the core experiences on the Wii. If we do, we go HD and play on PS3 or 360.

I think that's the dynamic that's going on. There's nothing wrong with that. There's plenty of audience on the Wii. We've been concentrating more on our kids, family and casual stuff there and there is a viable business on the Wii for that stuff. It's just not the core experiences.
Click to expand...
"We put our niche bullshit on Wii and it didn't sell as well as our GTA and Zelda clones. Clearly this is Nintendo's fault!"
 
N

Net_Wrecker

Member
Saints Row 3 + Red Faction Guerrilla 2 = WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN

Volition GETS fun in gaming, and I fully except them to outdo themselves with those sequels.
 
B

Bizzyb

Banned
:lol

Yeah, let's see them put an HD version of Deadly Creatures on 360/PS3 and we will see how much of a core audience is there for it then. Are these guys serious??
 
S

schuelma

Wastes hours checking old Famitsu software data, but that's why we love him.
GDGF said:
I wish someone would have asked why they decided to give Deadly Creatures zero marketing.
Click to expand...


A game about giant insects wasn't going to sell, period. Saved money by not advertising. Now, where I disagree is with his implication that this was the Wii userbase's fault.
 
G

Gospel

Parmesan et Romano
I am all for SR3.

I would also be all for SR3 with Wii Remote.

THQ is not all for it though.

I am okay.
 
S

scitek

Member
schuelma said:
Before he gets jumped on, I would say its completely valid to say that "more" of a core market exists on the HD platforms. Now, I think there are much better examples to use for that proposition than Deadly Creatures which would have sold horrible on any platform, but oh well.
Click to expand...

Yeah, Deadly Creatures was the definition of "sent to die". What a fucking joke. The cover art made it seem like an Animal Planet game.
 
M

MYE

Member
Translation: Yup, we will mostly do cheap and badly designed shit that we conveniently call "casual" and or "family oriented" even though its physically possible to make good stuff in those categories.
 
J

Jigsaw

Banned
rfg was the worst single player game i played in 2009 (and that includes terminator,wheelman and bionic commando) but the online was so damn good i played it for months...cant wait for rfg2,i hope they put a story in it this time around
 
H

hellclerk

Everything is tsundere to me
Well, they broke the Golden Business Rule. They blamed the consumer. You NEVER blame the consumer. EVER.

They hereby deserve their shitty sales.
 
A

Agnates

Banned
This kind of bullshit talk makes me think they'll only put effort in the PS360 De Blob game and make the Wii version an outsourced dumbed down mess or something... De Blob was a new IP and sold great without insane marketing, more awesome 3D platformers for Wii please...

Edit: also, what? At least other companies shun M games for Wii, now the Wii isn't even fit for Teen? Their Wii games will be for ages 12 and below? Jeez...
 
Y

Y2Kev

TLG Fan Caretaker Est. 2009
THQ has really put out some quality titles in RF3, SR2, Darksiders, and the UFC game that probably saved them in the last fiscal year. Looking forward to sequels to all of those...
 
P

Penguin

Member
Yeah, I was a little surprised he glanced over the fact that de Blob was a success for the console unless they assume it only sold to kids and parents or whatever.
 
F

Fredescu

Member
Brian Farrell said:
Not everyone will love it and we know that. And one of the great things about a game like that is that it's being developed in the Ukraine so our development costs are lower and we don't need a huge hit to do well. I think that's the model for the future. With games like that and our Montreal studio, the idea is to still deliver quality to the gaming audience, but not having to spend $30 million dollars to get there. So we think Metro 2033 will find an audience.
Click to expand...
Great to hear stuff like this.

Brian Farrell said:
Yeah, it's the audience. I'm glad we made the experience. Deadly Creatures was a fun experience. Critically well-reviewed. Didn't find much of an audience and I think more of the core-gaming audience is on 360 and PS3.
Click to expand...
I remember this same guy was lambasted on GAF for saying those same things about the Wii audience a year or so ago. He's now the CEO of a profitable company though, so right or wrong he's doing something right.
 
E

erpg

GAF parliamentarian
They're definitely my amongst my top PC publishers nowadays. Looking forward to what they send out next (please, more Space Marine gameplay!)
 
Z

ZombieSupaStar

Member
MORE SAINTS ROW 3!


SR2 had so much hidden stuff for no reason it was sweet, sea monsters, giant squid, huge balloon rabbit in the ocean, random Jason mask at camp site :lol fav was the skydiving guy who falls into open grave.
 
E

erpg

GAF parliamentarian
Fredescu said:
Bit annoyed that he asked about Darksiders Wii but not on PC, especially since the developer hinted at the latter.
Click to expand...
Whoa, where was this mentioned? I'd love to have a go at this on the PC, it'd be such a huge change of pace to all the WRPGs/RPS/RTS games I've been playing in the past couple months.
 
C

ClovingWestbrook

Banned
Net_Wrecker said:
Saints Row 3 + Red Faction Guerrilla 2 = WIN WIN WIN WIN WIN

Volition GETS fun in gaming, and I fully except them to outdo themselves with those sequels.
Click to expand...

They may get fun but they don't get supporting their PC titles. That is something they DON'T get.
 
S

squicken

Member
ZombieSupaStar said:
MORE SAINTS ROW 3!


SR2 had so much hidden stuff for no reason it was sweet, sea monsters, giant squid, huge balloon rabbit in the ocean, random Jason mask at camp site :lol fav was the skydiving guy who falls into open grave.
Click to expand...

It really is awesome. And as much as people talk up GTA's narrative (and I like GTA4 a lot), Aisha's death has more emotional impact than anything in GTA4.

I'm looking forward to a new city and hopefully some engine improvements and a change in the way the cars handle.
 
M

mugurumakensei

Member
Bizzyb said:
:lol

Yeah, let's see them put an HD version of Deadly Creatures on 360/PS3 and we will see how much of a core audience is there for it then. Are these guys serious??
Click to expand...
To be fair, the question IGN asked was guaranteed to lead the answer. Still, despite IGN's leading questions, it's odd for the guy to not consider the fact that a game where you play as insects as off-putting. Even among nerds, there's few who get enjoyment from insects. In fact, I'd wager most of us are creeped out by them.

crazy monkey said:
would the deadly creatures sell on ps3 or 360?
Click to expand...

Of course, it would. Even niche titles like Dark Void sold half a million in the U.S. alone... :lol
Question is pointless as it would never cross this guy's mind, and Dark Void sold like 22k
 
S

speculawyer

Member
Speak of THQ, I'd recommend the THQ complete pack at Steam that is on sale for $49.99.

Sorry for the crappy formatting but I'm too lazy to clean it up:

Items included:
Buy Company of Heroes
Company of Heroes
Released Jul 17, 2007
93
$19.99

Buy Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts
Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts
Released Sep 24, 2007
87
$19.99

Buy Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor
Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor
Released Apr 8, 2009
70
$29.99

Buy Frontlines™: Fuel of War™
Frontlines™: Fuel of War™
Released Feb 27, 2008
73
$29.99

Buy Full Spectrum Warrior
Full Spectrum Warrior
Released Jul 17, 2007
80
$9.99

Buy Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers
Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers
Released Jul 17, 2007
70
$9.99

Buy Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights
Juiced 2: Hot Import Nights
Released Oct 13, 2007
61
$14.99

Buy Red Faction
Red Faction
Released Aug 5, 2009
78
$9.99

Buy Red Faction Guerrilla
Red Faction Guerrilla
Released Sep 15, 2009
82
$19.99

Buy Red Faction II
Red Faction II
Released Aug 6, 2009
64
$9.99

Buy S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
Released Aug 31, 2007
82
$19.99

Buy Saints Row 2
Saints Row 2
Released Jan 7, 2009
72
$29.99

Buy Titan Quest
Titan Quest
Released Jul 17, 2007
77
$14.99

Buy Titan Quest - Immortal Throne
Titan Quest - Immortal Throne
Released Jul 17, 2007
80
$14.99

Buy Warhammer® 40,000™: Dawn of War® II
Warhammer® 40,000™: Dawn of War® II
Released Feb 18, 2009
85
$29.99

Buy Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade
Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Dark Crusade
Released Aug 7, 2007
87
$19.99

Buy Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Gold Edition
Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Gold Edition
Released Aug 7, 2007
86
$19.99

Buy Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm
Warhammer® 40,000: Dawn of War® - Soulstorm
Released Mar 5, 2008
73
$29.99

$354.82
$99.99
-$50.00
Individual price
Package price
Week Sale


$49.99
Cost to you
 
A

AceBandage

Banned
Aaron Strife said:
"We put our niche bullshit on Wii and it didn't sell as well as our GTA and Zelda clones. Clearly this is Nintendo's fault!"
Click to expand...


This is pretty much how all third parties think sadly.
It's just confounding how stupid they are.
 
B

boiled goose

good with gravy
I honestly dont care about what THQ's output could be on the wii as long as they make their games for Pc, but what a shitty narrative.

Wii gets Deadly creatures as the single test for the core audience and the other platforms get RFG, DS, etc.

Deadly creatures was a cool idea, but not only is at a pretty niche offering, it was not even properly supported by THQ DURING DEVELOPMENT. The game was glitchy and pretty much unfinished. It was crapped out by THQ and not given any exposure.
Im not saying the game would have sold more regardless, but let's not pretend THQ had faith in it BEFORE IT LAUNCHED.

It seems once ppl decide on a narrative they will blindly think it magically explains everything.
 
L

Lonely1

Unconfirmed Member
Did they have said anything about the Deadly Creatures final cinematic? My two cents is that they recycled an asset they had for a canceled game.com project... Still, is a good game though.
 
C

Cat in the Hat

Member
amtentori said:
I honestly dont care about what THQ's output could be on the wii as long as they make their games for Pc, but what a shitty narrative.

Wii gets Deadly creatures as the single test for the core audience and the other platforms get RFG, DS, etc.

Deadly creatures was a cool idea, but not only is at a pretty niche offering, it was not even properly supported by THQ DURING DEVELOPMENT. The game was glitchy and pretty much unfinished. It was crapped out by THQ and not given any exposure.
Im not saying the game would have sold more regardless, but let's not pretend THQ had faith in it BEFORE IT LAUNCHED.

It seems once ppl decide on a narrative they will blindly think it magically explains everything.
Click to expand...
Why should they put out more 'core' games destined to fail, when they can just see other games from other companies do that for them. No More Heros1&2, The Conduit, Madworld, Dead Space Extraction, Silent Hill, ect...

The evidence is clear.
 
F

Fantastical

Death Prophet
They are blaming the sales of Deadly Creatures on a T rating? Are you kidding me? It's a game about fucking insects. It's weird as hell.

Anyways, loved RFG and I just bought Darksiders today. Let's see a new de Blob as well!
 
S

Sho_Nuff82

Member
I think Darksiders would actually do pretty well on Wii. If the game is basically Zelda with blood, it should find an audience provided the performance isn't terrible.
 
J

jrricky

Banned
Why can't interviewers grill the people they are interviewing? I mean, why cant "game interviewers" grill the people they are interviewing? Anyone who does "game" interviews explain this?
Cat in the Hat said:
Why should they put out more 'core' games destined to fail, when they can just see other games from other companies do that for them. No More Heros1&2, The Conduit, Madworld, Dead Space Extraction, Silent Hill, ect...

The evidence is clear.
Click to expand...
Who are you and how long have you been here? This reads like a junior post...

or are you just pulling peoples legs.
please be sarcasm and not denseness
 
O

onipex

Member
The answer to the question is not as bad as the question itself. These game journalist always ask why certain games don't sell on the Wii instead of asking why the publisher even expected the game to sell on the Wii.

IGN also stated many times that Deadly Creatures would bomb before it was released, because of the theme and scope of the game. Yet they use it as an example of core game not selling.

Anyway all this got old over a year ago. I'm still looking forward to De Blob two.
 
A

AceBandage

Banned
Fantastical said:
They are blaming the sales of Deadly Creatures on a T rating? Are you kidding me? It's a game about fucking insects. It's weird as hell.

Anyways, loved RFG and I just bought Darksiders today. Let's see a new de Blob as well!
Click to expand...


Publishers will blame poor sales of their shit on anything but themselves.
I seriously want to have a psychological study done on them.
It must be fascinating from a medical standpoint.
 
T

The Technomancer

card-carrying scientician
Well, lets not confuse "THQ won't make mature games for Wii" with "THQ won't make quality games for the Wii". The two often get lumped together, because, well, third parties aren't doing either. But de Blob, while not very mature, was definitely a quality effort on their part. Although they did also release Marvel Super Hero Squad, ugh...
 
V

Vinci

Danish
I'm torn on THQ. As a PC gamer, I'm a fan; as a Wii owner, I think they're morons. GAH!! IDENTITY CLASH!!
 
M

Milabrega

Member
THQ is pretty much synonymous with mediocrity, so you really shouldn't care one way or another about what platform they support with what games. Unless of course you are an investor, but then I'll have to ask, if you've followed THQ's financials, why are you an investor. Seriously they make Take-Two look well managed. They stand out on GAF because they provide decent PC games beyond the Valve/Blizzard/PopCap trifecta. Even their decent console titles like SR and Darksiders aren't exactly classics that will be remember for years to come or lighting up sales charts. They tend to be short lived on shelves and in mind share.
 
S

speculawyer

Member
Yeah, THQ doesn't mean much to me. They are Wrestling games, licensed kiddie-ware, and then 1 or 2 decent games per year. (Like Red Faction, the Relic RTS games, etc.)
 
S

Sho_Nuff82

Member
Milabrega said:
THQ is pretty much synonymous with mediocrity, so you really shouldn't care one way or another about what platform they support with what games. Unless of course you are an investor, but then I'll have to ask, if you've followed THQ's financials, why are you an investor. Seriously they make Take-Two look well managed. They stand out on GAF because they provide decent PC games beyond the Valve/Blizzard/PopCap trifecta. Even their decent console titles like SR and Darksiders aren't exactly classics that will be remember for years to come or lighting up sales charts. They tend to be short lived on shelves and in mind share.
Click to expand...

They released

De Blob
UFC 2009
RF Guerilla
Saints Row 2
Darksiders

for consoles in the last 18 months. They're learning at least.
 
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