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10 Industry-Shattering Stolen Exclusives

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PacoDG

Member
Put up by GamesRadar found via MaxConsole

10) Rare (Microsoft).
9) Shenmue II (MS and Sega)
8) Street Fighter II (Sega)
7) Dragon Quest IX (Handhelds)
6) Halo (Microsoft)
5) Devil May Cry 4 (Microsoft)
4) Castlevania: BloodLines (Sega)
3) The Capcom 5 (P.N.03, Viewtiful Joe, Killer7, Dead Phoenix and, Resident Evil 4) (Sony)
2) GTA IV (Microsoft)
1) Final Fantasy VII (stolen by Sony)

Reasons and pics are @ gamesradar (first list ive seen from this site that wasn't spread across twenty pages.. plus they mentioned the Final Fantasy Sony stealing which too few gamers really recognize... not here on GAF.. but other places).
 
GTA IV was never "stolen", it's always been multiplatform. All other GTA games have appeared on the PC and original Xbox before GTA IV.
 
_leech_ said:
GTA IV was never "stolen", it's always been multiplatform. All other GTA games have appeared on the PC and original Xbox before GTA IV.
Click to expand...

Yeah, the guy mentions that (but still listed it).. anyways, his words are same as yours.. but much more drawn out...

"True, Grand Theft Auto IV was never actually announced as a PlayStation 3 exclusive. In fact, the first we heard of it was during Microsoft's E3 2006 press conference, when then-Xbox chief Peter Moore rolled up his left sleeve to reveal a (presumably fake) tattoo of GTA IV's logo.

But in the minds of PlayStation fans prior to that announcement, GTA was and always would be a PlayStation series. Oh, sure, the earlier versions had all eventually crossed over to the Xbox and PC, but that was ages after they'd already made their splash on the PS2."
 
Were the Capcom 5 really that important? They basically sold all they were going to sell by the time they came to PS2...
 
_leech_ said:
GTA IV was never "stolen", it's always been multiplatform. All other GTA games have appeared on the PC and original Xbox before GTA IV.
Click to expand...

People assumed it was the PS3 exclusive. Nearly everyone thought it would appear on the PS3 as a timed exclusive at least.

Even Shane from EGM/1Up was listing it off as an exclusive, years ago.

Loudninja said:
Why did they put Devil May Cry 4 on there as well?
Click to expand...

DMC4 was definitely considered a PS3 exclusive.
 
FightyF said:
People assumed it was the PS3 exclusive. Nearly everyone thought it would appear on the PS3 as a timed exclusive at least.

Even Shane from EGM/1Up was listing it off as an exclusive, years ago.



DMC4 was definitely considered a PS3 exclusive.
Click to expand...
But it was not Industry Shattering?
 
Duderz said:
Hell of a lot more "industry-shattering" than anything ever related to Shenmue. The only thing that game shattered was Sega.
Click to expand...
Maybe, but most of the non-DQ things just suck, anyway.

DQ... now THAT could've changed things, if it were brought to say... the PS3 (although, more likely it would've been brought to the Wii.. which wouldn't really shatter the industry that much, anyway.)
 
zoku88 said:
Were the Capcom 5 really that important? They basically sold all they were going to sell by the time they came to PS2...
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure at least a few Gamecubes went unsold when a PS2 port of Resi 4 (with exclusive extras too) was announced before it even came out on the GC.

EDIT: BETRAYALTON. NEVAR FORGET.
 
Marty Chinn said:
Shouldn't FFXIII be on that list?
Click to expand...

When the game comes out, it should take the spot at number one.

For right now, it is the top of the 10 Fanboy-Shattering Stolen Exclusives list.
 
PacoDG said:
When the game comes out, it should take the spot at number one.

For right now, it is the top of the 10 Fanboy-Shattering Stolen Exclusives list.
Click to expand...

why wait for when the game comes out? shit gamesradar already has a game on that list that was NEVER released.
 
PacoDG said:
When the game comes out, it should take the spot at number one.

For right now, it is the top of the 10 Fanboy-Shattering Stolen Exclusives list.
Click to expand...
It's a lot less significant than FFVII was
 
MrNyarlathotep said:
I'm pretty sure at least a few Gamecubes went unsold when a PS2 port of Resi 4 (with exclusive extras too) was announced before it even came out on the GC.

EDIT: BETRAYALTON. NEVAR FORGET.
Click to expand...
The PS2 version was announced that soon? I don't remember, I was never really into RE.
 
zoku88 said:
The PS2 version was announced that soon? I don't remember, I was never really into RE.
Click to expand...

Even for people who were never into RE, RE4 woulda / shoulda / coulda been a system seller.

Actually, especially for people who were never into RE. It remains one of the best games on any format from last gen.
 
To me, Rare is top of the list. I thought they were very much part of Nintendo in the N64 / early Cube days, and never thought there was a chance of them becoming an exclusive or outright-owned developer for anyone else, let alone Microsoft.

Nothing would have surprised me more should it not have been for the lengthy remours beforehand (and that Christmas card!).
 
_leech_ said:
GTA IV was never "stolen", it's always been multiplatform. All other GTA games have appeared on the PC and original Xbox before GTA IV.
Click to expand...
Timed exclusives. They were timed exclusives - more than enough to push the ps2, and more than enough that nobody cared when the gta3 games came out on the xbox. So its still a big deal, IMO.
 
well the omission of FFXIII is more evident if you brave the link. i hate the site so i'll just copy paste what they wrote here.

10 industry-shattering stolen exclusives
Final Fantasy XIII isn't the first major title to sleep around

Final Fantasy 7

Stolen from: Nintendo
Stolen by: Sony

What happened? Square Enix's decision to make Final Fantasy XIII multiplatform is nowhere near as shocking as what it did to the series in 1996. Back then, publisher Square was close to Nintendo - so close, in fact, that the two companies partnered to create Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, still regarded as one of the best RPGs of its era. Square's flagship series, Final Fantasy, had been given its start on Nintendo's NES, and the franchise had delivered two extremely successful games (three in Japan) to the Super NES.


Above: Final Fantasy VII? In the minds of many Nintendo fans circa 1995, yes

Then, at the 1995 ACM SIGGRAPH convention in Los Angeles, Square unveiled its now-infamous Final Fantasy SGI Demo. Featuring three Final Fantasy VI characters and fully interactive, the demo led many fans and journalists to assume it was a demo for a Nintendo 64 Final Fantasy game, and that assumption became widely regarded as hard fact.

In actuality, as FF creator Hironobu Sakaguchi later said in an interview with PlayStation Underground, the SGI demo was "an experiment" meant to show what a 3D RPG could look like. There had never been concrete plans to create a Final Fantasy VII for the N64, Sakaguchi said, and if anything, creating the SGI Demo was part of what convinced the FF team that their vision couldn't be accomplished with Nintendo's hardware.


Above: Oh, what might have been

Despite Sakaguchi's intentions, however, Nintendo fans were already salivating over the idea of an N64 Final Fantasy, which - given the demo and the relationship between Square and Nintendo - already seemed like a sure thing. That's why it came as a huge shock when, in January of 1996, Square announced that Final Fantasy VII would be made for Sony's then-new PlayStation.

Short-term effects: The fallout between Square and Nintendo was immediate, bitter and so severe that Nintendo effectively barred Square from making another game for its consoles until 2002. Nintendo fans weren't happy, either, and accusations flew that Sony had stolen the series with some shady backroom deal, or that Square had betrayed Nintendo outright by turning what had been an N64 juggernaut into a PlayStation exclusive.

Eventually, however, most of them got over their nerd rage, overcame their console loyalties and bought PlayStations, and Final Fantasy VII became the series' most beloved entry to date.


Above: According to Square, this just couldn't be done on the N64

Long-term effects: Eight games after FF VII, the core Final Fantasy series and its spinoffs have become even more closely identified with the PlayStation brand than they had been with Nintendo. The PlayStation's popularity has helped make FF one of the most successful franchises in videogame history, which is part of why it came as such a surprise when, at E3 2008, Square announced that the formerly PS3-exclusive FF XIII would appear on Xbox 360 as well.

Strangely, the fallout hasn't been as bad this time.
Click to expand...

GTA4

Stolen from: Sony
Stolen by: Microsoft

What happened? True, Grand Theft Auto IV was never actually announced as a PlayStation 3 exclusive. In fact, the first we heard of it was during Microsoft's E3 2006 press conference, when then-Xbox chief Peter Moore rolled up his left sleeve to reveal a (presumably fake) tattoo of GTA IV's logo.

But in the minds of PlayStation fans prior to that announcement, GTA was and always would be a PlayStation series. Oh, sure, the earlier versions had all eventually crossed over to the Xbox and PC, but that was ages after they'd already made their splash on the PS2. To these fans, Moore's assertion that the game would appear on the 360 at the same time as - if not before - the PS3 was a shock. It was also the first faint hint that the PS3 might not rule this console generation like it did the previous two.


Above: Why, Rockstar? Whyyyyyy? (Answer: Money)

Of course, the real "theft" here wasn't that the game was going multiplatform - it was that the 360 version would get exclusive, downloadable content that the PS3 wouldn't. At first, many fans just sort of assumed this meant the PS3 would be getting its own exclusive content, but that hope fell away when we asked Rockstar's then-spokesman, Hosi Simon, whether PS3 owners would get anything to compensate.

"Not that I can think of," Simon said, adding, "I guess if you want the complete experience with the episodes, then yeah, you should buy the 360, I suppose."


Above: An incomplete experience?

Short-term effects: Not as drastic as you might think. In spite of the promise of absolutely no add-on content to extend the game's story, the PS3 version of the game still claimed 40 percent of GTA IV's ridiculous first-week sales. Had things gone differently, though, it's extremely likely that the PS3 would be the No. 2 console in America right now. You know, after the Wii.

Long-term effects: It's too early to tell - for all we know, the DLC might suck, or the deal to keep it 360-exclusive might turn out to be time-limited like the PS2 exclusivity deals were for GTA III, Vice City and San Andreas. Alternately, the DLC might be so awesome that it spurs 360 sales even more. We won't know for sure until 2009.
Click to expand...


CAPCOM 5

Stolen from: Nintendo
Stolen by: Sony

What happened? Third-party support for the GameCube never seemed stronger than it did on Nov. 13, 2002, when publisher Capcom announced five games exclusively for Nintendo's console. Overseen by Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami, the five games included P.N.03, Viewtiful Joe, Killer7, Dead Phoenix and - most significantly - Resident Evil 4.


Above: Killer7, Resident Evil 4 and Viewtiful Joe - The Three That Left

Only a few months later, Capcom backpedaled a little, announcing that - of the five games - only Resident Evil 4 would be a definite Cube exclusive. In fact, the only game that stayed exclusive was P.N.03 - and that might have had something to do with its critical and commercial failure. Meanwhile, Dead Phoenix was canceled outright, Viewtiful Joe stayed exclusive for nearly a year before an expanded PS2 version hit stores and Killer7 shipped simultaneously with its PS2 counterpart.

Somehow, though, the only one that really felt like a betrayal to Nintendo fans was Resident Evil 4. When it stomped onto the Cube in January 2005, it seemed like nothing less than the system's savior. It was arguably the best-looking game of the last console generation, and it redefined both the survival horror and third-person shooter genres. Of course, by that point everyone knew it wasn't going to last - after months of insisting the game would be exclusive to the GameCube, Capcom finally admitted in October 2004, that yes, it would make its way to the PS2 eventually. And it did, nine months after hitting the Cube, complete with extra modes, weapons and costumes to make up for the wait. And noticeably inferior visuals, but nobody seemed to mind.


Above: This gun looks so much cooler than anything on the GameCube

Short-term effects: Resident Evil 4 proved to be the GameCube's last great third-party game. It sold extremely well for a Cube title, clearing about 1,600,000 copies, although it probably would have sold even better if Capcom hadn't announced the PS2 edition (which sold over two million copies) months before it came out. Viewtiful Joe and Killer7, meanwhile, failed to attract anything much bigger than a devoted cult audience on either platform.

Long-term effects: The Cube is dead and the PS2 is still amazingly strong for a console that's been obsolete for like three years. Coincidence? Yeah,
Click to expand...

Contra: Hard Corps
Castlevania: Bloodlines

Stolen from: Nintendo
Stolen by: Sega

What happened? These two games, both released by Konami in 1994, were never actually intended for Nintendo fans. In fact, they were specifically geared toward Sega's audience - Contra: Hard Corps had a dark, ultra-macho, strictly-for-tough-masochists image, and Bloodlines was the first US Castlevania release to feature visible blood effects. Both, however, were outcroppings of franchises that had made their names and built their audiences on Nintendo platforms, and the idea of missing out on them made Nintendo fans seethe.

Yes, it's easy to look at them as whiners now, but if you were a kid in that era, odds are you could only afford one machine or the other (much like kids in this era). Anything that showed up on a console you didn't own was effectively barred to you. Maybe you had a friend who had it, but good luck convincing him or her to give up the controller and let you play.


Above: Oh my god, you guys, finally! A cool werewolf is fighting aliens!

So if you didn't own a Genesis in 1994, you had to sit there and watch as your friends got to play what looked like the most awesome Contra ever. Yes, the SNES' Contra III: The Alien Wars is remembered as a better game, but Hard Corps let you play not only as one of the usual gun-toting commandos, but also as a woman, a robot or a goddamn werewolf.

Meanwhile, Bloodlines - while nowhere near as technically impressive as Super Castlevania IV on the SNES - was a dark, gritty new chapter in the series that actually tied in (however loosely) with Bram Stoker's Dracula novel. More than that, it enabled you to play not only as a whip-cracking Belmont descendant, but also as his spear-toting buddy, Eric Lecarde. Unless you owned an SNES, in which case you were shit out of luck.


Above: Oh, man, look at that blood! TOO BAD IT'LL NEVER BE ON NINTENDO

Short-term effects: A whole lot of Nintendo fans who were pissed that their years of loyalty were being rewarded with games they couldn't play. Also, a lot of Genesis owners who got to play their very own badass installments of two beloved, formerly kid-friendly franchises.
Click to expand...


DMC4

Stolen from: Sony
Stolen by: Microsoft

What happened? We didn't really understand how bitter and ridiculous the current console war had become until March 19, 2007, when Devil May Cry 4 was announced for the 360. Like GTA IV, this wasn't a case of "theft" so much as it was of the game going multi-platform - but you wouldn't know it from the way the PS3 fans howled.

Following the announcement, some dedicated PS3 fans began a petition, threatening to boycott the game unless Capcom reversed its decision and made the game a PS3 exclusive again. Even though the PS3 version was still a go, the petition's creators complained that they felt "very left out." The petition drive was at first regarded with derision and amusement by less rabid fans, but it gained enough momentum to prompt Capcom's Christian Svensson to issue the following response to the company's forums (which has since been deleted):

"We are certainly moved that people are so passionate about our products that they would go to such extremes," Svensson wrote. "At the same time we feel that allowing more people access to our content pleases far more people than it displeases (after all, we're not denying DMC4 to anyone that was already going to get it). It really is the best decision for the company and for consumers."


Above: Yep, still plays about the same

In the end, it seems, the petitioners didn't hold much sway over the buying audience. DMC4 was released in February to strong sales, and as of May 2008, both versions of the game have sold a combined 2.3 million copies. And despite fan complaints that the 360 edition would be inferior, both turned out to be largely identical:

Oh, except for that 22-minute installation the first time you play the PS3 version, of course.

Short-term effects: Other than demonstrating that console fanboys are more touchy than ever, Capcom's decision to make DMC4 a multiplatform release showed that - in spite of being largely ignored by gamers in Japan - the 360 is being taken seriously by Japanese developers.

Long-term effects: Since the release of Devil May Cry 4, more and more games from Japan - where the 360 is mostly ignored - have either gone multiplatform, or have been produced exclusively for the 360. Examples include Ninja Gaiden II, Lost Odyssey and - of course - Final Fantasy XIII.
Click to expand...


Halo

Stolen from: Apple
Stolen by: Microsoft

What happened? Developer Bungie is closely tied with Microsoft and Halo in the public's mind now, but it wasn't always that way. Before Microsoft bought them in 2000, Bungie was THE developer of Macintosh games, cranking out then-popular titles including Marathon, Pathways into Darkness and the Myth series (and, to a lesser extent, Oni). No other developer seemed more dedicated to the Mac as a gaming platform.


Above: The first official Halo screenshot, taken on a Mac

At the Macworld Expo in 1999, Bungie took the stage during Apple CEO Steve Jobs' keynote speech to introduce an action game it was working on called Halo. What came next was - for the time - nothing short of amazing. Spartans and Covenant Elites clashed in spaceship corridors and huge, open landscapes, freely hopping in and out of vehicles. At a time when the then-unreleased Quake III was considered the pinnacle of action gaming, Halo's promise of wide-open possibility was jaw-dropping. For the first time, Mac gamers had something they could hold over the heads of their PC-owning friends, and it looked incredible.

Download video!

That was, of course, until Microsoft took notice of it. In 2000, the Redmond giant acquired Bungie, and the hopes of Mac gamers were toast. The game was retooled into a first-person shooter and squirreled away until November 2001, when it was released as an exclusive launch title for Microsoft's Xbox console.

Short-term effects: For many (who'd apparently missed GoldenEye 007 four years earlier), Halo was the first proof that quality first-person shooters could be done on a console. Released in 2001, Halo became the centerpiece of the Xbox's launch, almost single-handedly ensured the system's success at retail and continued to command a high price for years after its release. Predictably, a lot of expectant fans griped loudly, but eventually bought Xboxes anyway.


Above: Not quite what we'd been led to expect

Apple, which had recently taken an interest in supporting game development, went back to mostly ignoring the medium, and Mac gamers went back to being treated like second-class citizens by all but a handful of publishers. Eventually, Halo did come to the Mac - but it didn't happen until 2003, and by most accounts it was just OK.

Long-term effects: What? You all know this story already - especially those of you with the goddamn Master Chief helmets sitting on your shelves. Halo became one of the most popular series in the history of gaming, and helped the Xbox carve out its niche as the system of choice for frat boys and burly-minded shooter fans. Master Chief became the console's - and, to a certain extent, Microsoft's - mascot, and people without Xboxes continue to deride the series as the most banal thing ever.
Click to expand...

DQIX

Stolen from: Consoles
Stolen by: Handhelds

What happened? Dragon Quest is, and has always been, one of the most popular game series in Japan (if not the most popular). And as one of Japan's most popular series, it tends to live on Japan's most popular console. The NES, SNES, PSone and PS2 have all been called home by Dragon Quest games, and all of them topped Japanese sales charts in their heyday. After the series followed the same Nintendo-then-Sony pattern as Final Fantasy, however, it seemed like a sure bet that the next DQ would be a PlayStation 3 exclusive - or at least a Wii exclusive - that would stomp the likes of Blue Dragon and Eternal Sonata.


Above: Wait, what?

What we didn't take into account was that roughly eight billion percent of Japan's population owns a Nintendo DS, and that Square Enix's main goal is to get Dragon Quest into the hands of as many people as possible. So it shouldn't have really come as a surprise when - during a December 2006 press conference - publisher Square Enix revealed that Dragon Quest IX would appear exclusively on the two-screen handheld.

Short-term effects: Even in the US, where DQ games enjoy middling popularity at best, the decision to make the next, full-fledged Dragon Quest game would appear on the DS raised some eyebrows. We're used to the idea of spinoffs of console titles showing up on handhelds, but a full-fledged sequel? Shouldn't that be on a "real" console?


Above: Really?

And that's what Dragon Quest IX has done - it's made us realize that handhelds have advanced to the point where they can be considered direct competitors to bulky, TV-bound machines. They're not toys anymore, they're not peripheral to the experience of playing consoles at home - for millions of people, they are the consoles. Who needs a bulky, $400 DVD-playing box when you can have a similar experience with a tiny, self-contained portable machine? Not Dragon Quest fans, apparently.

Long-term effects: It's too early to say, because the game isn't actually out in Japan as of this writing. But it's a safe guess that, unless the game turns out lousy, DQ IX will only cement the DS' position as the world's dominant game machine.

Long-term effects: Growing up with forbidden fruit like this is part of what fueled the console-emulator boom of the late '90s, and the nostalgia-fueled retro-gaming movement that followed right behind it.
Click to expand...


Street Fighter II

Stolen from: Nintendo
Stolen by: Sega

What happened? Street Fighter II's massive arcade popularity turned into a huge boost for Nintendo in July, 1992, when publisher Capcom brought the game exclusively to the SNES. At a time when Sega was gaining ground in the vicious 16-bit console was, Street Fighter II gave Nintendo its first huge hit, selling millions of copies and giving it its first real edge over the Genesis/Mega Drive. A year later, Street Fighter II Turbo arrived on the system, leaving many fans to wonder why the earlier arcade enhancement - Champion Edition - had been passed over entirely.

They got their answer two months later, when Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition came to the Genesis. Essentially identical to Turbo, it packed in a few additional modes and features, as well as introducing Genesis players to the joys of a six-button controller. More significantly, it meant that the advantage the SNES had enjoyed as the only console with Street Fighter II was over.

Short-term effects: Naturally, Nintendo fans were incensed - until they actually played the game, and realized that the fugly graphics and horrible sound (most of the voice samples were fuzzier and more robotic than a Speak & Spell) made Special Champion Edition a poor cousin to the awesome game they'd been playing. The gameplay was all there, of course, but presentation-wise, it didn't really compare.



At top: SFII Special Champion Edition on Genesis. At bottom: SFII Turbo on SNES

Even so, Special Champion Edition came out two weeks after the Genesis edition of Mortal Kombat - the one that retained the arcade game's blood and gore, which was censored on the Nintendo release. Those two releases, coming almost back to back, briefly turned Sega's machine into a perceived Mecca for fighting-game fans - at least until Super Street Fighter II came out simultaneously on both systems, and was mostly ignored on the Genesis.

Long-term effects: In the end, Special Champion Edition didn't make much of a difference. According to Capcom's own figures, the game sold just under 1.7 million copies, which sounds impressive until you consider that the SNES SFII and SFII Turbo ended up selling a combined 10.4 million worldwide.
Click to expand...
 
Shenmue 2

Stolen from: Sega
Stolen by: Microsoft (and Sega)

What happened? Prior to Grand Theft Auto III, Shenmue was one of the biggest, freest, most expensive-looking adventures ever attempted on a console. Following the story of Ryo Hazuki, a young martial artist out to avenge the death of his father in 1980s Japan, the game expertly blended seamless exploration with Virtua Fighter-style karate throwdowns and soon-to-be-standard quicktime events. It almost instantly became the darling of Dreamcast owners in spite of its inane side-quests and goofy dialogue - but for all that love, the game didn't make a whole lot of its money back.


Above: Keep on chasing that sunset, Ryo

Undeterred, its developers at Sega's AM2 studio went to work on a sequel that would be even bigger and prettier than the original. Shenmue II was slated to be released in late 2001, and after the Dreamcast's early demise in March of that year, saddened fans looked to Shenmue II as their console's glorious swan song.

But it never happened that way. In October 2001, shortly after the game's Japanese launch, Sega announced that - while it would be translated and released in Europe - Shenmue II would never see the light of day on American Dreamcasts. Instead, exclusive rights to the game had been snapped up by Microsoft, which would publish Shenmue II as an Xbox exclusive a year later. Effectively, Sega "stole" the game from itself.


Above: If we have to tussle with thugs, we guess we'd prefer '80s thugs

Short-term effects: By the time October 2002 finally rolled around, few gamers really seemed to care about Shenmue anymore, partly because GTA III and Silent Hill 2 had rewritten the book on free-roaming adventure by that point. Many who did care found themselves frustrated by the game's slow pace, crappy controls and stiff voice acting. By coming out a year later than it was supposed to, a game that might have found a small but enthusiastic audience on the Dreamcast instead sank into Xbox obscurity - ironic, considering that the move to Microsoft's console was meant in part to give the game a bigger audience.

Long-term effects: Six years after Shenmue II's release, Sega still has no plans for a Shenmue III. Ryo's quest for his father's killer will likely never be resolved, and Dreamcast fans will never get the closure they hoped for. Or at least, the ones who still care (and yes, we know you're out there!) won't.
Click to expand...

Rare

Stolen from: Nintendo
Stolen by: Microsoft

What happened? In the '90s, Nintendo's partnership with Rare was one of the best things ever to happen to the console giant. Rare was responsible for creating some of the biggest and best hits on the SNES and N64, including Donkey Kong Country, Killer Instinct, Banjo-Kazooie, the legendary GoldenEye 007 and the legendarily foul Conker's Bad Fur Day. For a while, many gamers considered the company's games to be second only to those produced by Nintendo's own Shigeru Miyamoto.


Above: SUCH BRILLIANT MAGNIFICENCE

In 2002, however, Rare made its last major game for a Nintendo console, Star Fox Adventures. Around the time of the game's release, Rare founders Tim and Chris Stamper sold their stake in the company to Microsoft, with Nintendo following soon after. For $377 million, Microsoft bought the goose that had been laying Nintendo's golden eggs - and with it, the franchises and characters that Rare had created for Nintendo.

Short-term effects: Nintendo fans who'd grown to love Rare's games were a little upset, although everyone else at the time seemed distracted by the news that the doomed StarCraft: Ghost wouldn't appear on PCs (which was somewhat less upsetting than its eventual failure to appear on anything).


Above: Perfect Dark Meh

However, it quickly started to look as though Microsoft might have gotten a raw deal. Grabbed by the Ghoulies, a 2003 game aimed at kids, was the first game to come out of the Rare-Microsoft partnership - and after its middling scores, industry-watchers began to suspect something was up. Rare's next Xbox effort, Conker: Live and Reloaded, was extremely pretty and featured a kickass multiplayer game, but nevertheless demonstrated just how dated and puerile the original Conker's Bad Fur Day looked in a post-GTA III world.

Then came the Xbox 360 launch and, with it, two games from Rare: Perfect Dark Zero, a prequel to the classic N64 shooter, and a project originally intended for the GameCube: Kameo: Elements of Power. Both were OK at best.

Long-term effects: After Kameo and Perfect Dark, Rare clawed its way back up to respectability with Viva Piñata, which managed to be a mostly excellent game despite the massive promotional blitz and awful cartoon that accompanied it.

The company is now poised to reinvent the Banjo series with Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, which trades obsessive item-hoarding for the ability to freely build working machines out of whatever junk is lying around. Due out late this year, it's a cool idea, although it's pretty clear that Rare's glory days are over. (Unless they bring out another Battletoads game, that is.)
Click to expand...

.
 
MrNyarlathotep said:
Even for people who were never into RE, RE4 woulda / shoulda / coulda been a system seller.

Actually, especially for people who were never into RE. It remains one of the best games on any format from last gen.
Click to expand...
I agree with you, since I know quite a few people who were just as you described.

I was just saying that I didn't know about it since I didn't really pay it much attention.
 
Remember the first RE4 "backstab"? "BIOHAZARD 4 - IT'S COMING" image shown at a Sony conference, then it's announced as a GC exclusive when it reappears. :lol
 
Rare was not stolen, they went to Nintendo first to offer them the change to buy the remaining 51% shares so that they would be fully owned, they declined and sold their stocks.

Also, things like DQ IX weren't stolen, the game was never announced for PS3 or anything. Monster Hunter 3 would even be a more suitable choice imo (if it somehow was "industry shattering".
 
The Gamecube still lives

It is named Wii now though

Id put

1. Monster Hunter 3

Stolen From PS3
By Wii

2. Lair

Stolen From Wii
By PS3

3. Too Human

Stolen From Wii
By 360

in

Probably in a low spot but needs to be mentioned

DQ XI is humbug

there was no indication that it will be released on PS3.. Enix always said that they will release on the highest selling platform

which is DS and not PS3
 
I'm not 100% sure on this so correct me if I'm wrong, but haven't they forgotten some decent information on Halo? I know it started out on Mac, but wasn't it meant to be in development for the PS2 and Xbox as well? Then Microsoft jumped in and made it Xbox exclusive.

or something.
 
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