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[IbizaPocholo]

https://gematsu.com/2018/09/capcom-...jects-at-capcom-vancouver#KkO2TVb7BWvUMsQL.99

Capcom has announced that it expects to record losses of approximately 4.5 billion yen from the termination of untitled projects that were in development at Dead Rising studio Capcom Vancouver.

Capcom Co., Ltd. (Capcom) announces that it expects to record losses from the termination of development projects in its consolidated financial results for the six months of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019 (April 1, 2018 - September 30, 2018). Details are as follows:

1. Details of losses from the termination of development projects

Capcom Game Studio Vancouver, Inc., a consolidated subsidiary of Capcom, primarily carries out development of home video game software for markets outside of Japan; however, Capcom is currently reviewing the allocation of its development resources that support the production of world-class content.

In consideration of this process, as a result of reviewing titles in development at Capcom Game Studio Vancouver, Inc., Capcom now expects to record losses from the termination of development projects of approximately 4.5 billion yen under cost of sales in its consolidated financial results for the six months of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019.

 

[Soltype]

Don't know what happened to the studio, Dead Rising 2 was a good game. After that the quality of their output became questionable.

 

[xrnzaaas]

Dead Rising franchise needs a long break (I'm assuming at least one of the terminated projects was a new DR). Find a solid dev, pick a good engine (DR4 offered less realistic interactivity with the environment than DR1), also make the game that the fans of the series are expecting.

 

[linker]

Well let's be real: while 2 was still quite a good game, not only later works were not received as well (with a very poor 4th installment), but their very existence basically is a consequence of the self-hating policies that Inafune imposed on a creative level trying to catch the interest of western audiences via outsourcing. Capcom recently has had very good success with the Japanese division 1 games even outside of their homeland so it stands to reason that the way forward is trying to strike again the blend that made Capcom games so popular in the 90's and early 2000: japanese game design with a worldwide appeal. In this picture, Capcom Vancouver looks like a dried branch and a creative and financial dead end. It might also be that Inafune's successors want to distance from his policies as much as they can. It makes sense. I hope the guys and girls working there can land on their feet though, as this looks like the step before termination.

 

[Zaffo]

Good, we are finally done with the dumb pursuit of the western market by producing generic westernized games.
The things that fans want out of Japanese developers like Capcom is modern Japanese games, like Monster Hunter World and Resident Evil 7.

 

[plushyp]

DR3 was a decent game with some interesting ideas which all got obliterated with DR4.

Anyone know what games were in development at Capcom Vancouver?

 

[MoogleMan]

DR3 was a decent game with some interesting ideas which all got obliterated with DR4.

Anyone know what games were in development at Capcom Vancouver?

They did pretty much nothing except the dead rising games.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

Dead Rising 2 was good but after that they screwed it all up, I still can't believe how lame DR3 is.

DR4 at first looked like it was going to be a return to form but the bad buzz has kept me away, considering the game featured the return if Frank and Willamette that really says something (will still probably give it a try eventually, but it's not a high priority)

I really, really hope DR goes back to Japan, because even 2 isn't as good as the original game, I hope DR doesn't just go away completely.

 

[sublimit]

Does that mean they will be also closing the studio?

 

[Storm Prelude]

Sorry to say this but I've never been a huge fan of the serie after the first episode.
I always felt like Vancouver Games never caught the real spirit of Dead Rising. DR2 and 3 were nice games tho.

 

[Alexander DeLarge]

Sucks for everyone there but I haven't enjoyed a single one of their games (haven't played DR4, the recasting of Frank West certainly didn't get me very excited) . It's frustrating because Dead Rising didn't need to be dramatically overhauled. People enjoyed the first one. They wanted more of it. In their constant attempts to make the series a household name, they ended up killing a lot of the appeal.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

damn, I hit post too soon, sorry

 

[raytea]

The only reason Capcom has kept these guys around is because they needed a western studio to make games that would be big sellers in the west; or so they thought.
Then Monster Hunter World happened.
It happened so hard that apparently Capcom can afford to eat a sizeable loss shutting down mid development projects they already sunk a ton of money in, and not even have to change their profit forecast because the PC version has made so much more money then predicted, the surplus covers the loss.
If Capcom even keeps the Vancouver studio now I doubt it will be involved in any more triple A projects in the foreseeable future, and Dead Rising 5 is almost assuredly canceled.
All the remaining funding that was going to be allocated to Vancouver is probably being reallocated to the Monster Hunter teams back in Japan as they are now going to be Capcom's highest priority moving forward.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

Sorry to say this but I've never been a huge fan of the serie after the first episode.
I always felt like Vancouver Games never caught the real spirit of Dead Rising. DR2 and 3 were nice games tho.

Replaying DR1 and DR2 back to back was a real revelation.

DR2 is an acceptable sequel but it's not nearly as good as the original, what Capcom Vancouver missed was a lot of nitty gritty details, for example the weapons, the different types of weapons in DR1 each have different pluses and minuses, baseballs bats for example are good crowd clearing weapons for when you've just got to get by, but they aren't very lethal, weapons like swords for example will kill a zombie in one hit but only a single zombie at a time, then there are weapons that are both crowd clearing and lethal in one hit but are either fragile and/or hard to find.

Basically there's lot of strategizing that goes into picking the best weapons for the job, the whole thing very much feels inspired by Max Brooks' The Zombie Survival Guide and it's chapter on the pros and cons of different methods of killing the undead, was that book published in Japan? Keiji Inafune is an English speaker is he not? I just feel like someone on the development team just had to be familiar with that book because it seems like too big of a coincidence.

Most weapons in DR2 simply kill zombies, without those nitty gritty details and differences, a lot of the strategy and challenge is gone.

Then there's things like zombie density, DR1 has a stock number of zombies that it reuses which can get repetitive, but the sheer density of the crowds of zombies is a still impressive effect and adds a lot of challenge, not to mention is scary as hell.

DR2 by contrast has a "randomizer" for zombies that adds more variety but at the cost of numbers, it's actually pathetic how easily you can often just weave your way through a crowd of zombies without having to fight any of them, wasn't a worthy sacrifice if you ask me (and the zombie models in 1 had charm, the ones in 2 just feel totally generic, making them all more unique ironically robs them of any personality)

Then there's story and tone, DR1 has a very Japanese weirdness to it's humor and satire, the contrast of that with the all American setting was hilarious and memorable, translating that to an actual western developer caused a lot of that charm to be lost and replaced with a more generic and on the nose feel, take DR2's plotline of an evil pharmaceutical company, straight out of Resident Evil, what a tired trope, that's really the best they could come up with?

On a side note, DR1's story is a perfect example of game that gets a little political in a way I can totally respect, playing it at the height of the Dubya years was an interesting experience.

DR1 is a top ten, maybe top five game for me, I love it so much, if the series dies now, it's a shame, but we'll always have that original game, not only is it perfect, but it works as a standalone story with no real obvious sequel hooks in it's main ending.

 

[Storm Prelude]

DR1 is a top ten, maybe top five game for me, I love it so much, if the series dies now, it's a shame, but we'll always have that original game, not only is it perfect, but it works as a standalone story with no real obvious sequel hooks in it's main ending.

Ditto
You got exactly what I was trying to say, btw
DR1 was a really nice satire of the West and of American people in general, considering the fact that the hero of the story was just doing it for personal profit.
Since its second iteration it lost a huge part of its charm and most of what made the first one such an unique and peculiar experience.

 

[wipeout364]

Maybe Capcom can divert the resources to a sequel to Lost Planet 2 which may be better received in this modern age of co op multiplayer games. It was an attempt to make a futuristic Monster Hunter.

 

[Red Crayon Aristocrat]

considering the fact that the hero of the story was just doing it for personal profit.

Not quite, Frank West starts off that way but quickly rises to the occasion and just wants to save the world from the zombies by getting the truth out, not for personal gain but to prevent a zombie apocalypse, he doesn't know what the fuck is going on at first, but when he does and realizes how bleak the situation is, he becomes a hero.

Of course that's one ending, if you take the easy way out and just leave, the ending implies that zombies then start spreading throughout the country.

I love that character though, he's one of my favortie video game protagonists.

 

[TheShadowLord]

DR3 was a decent game with some interesting ideas which all got obliterated with DR4.

Anyone know what games were in development at Capcom Vancouver?

They were going to be working on Dead Rising 5 and a new ip(knights of something). Dead Rising 5 was considered to be over scope and understaffed where the team would have to make a much smaller game. And the new ip got canceled. They got the team fro 250 to 200 when this was announced back in February.

 

[ar0s]

If they aren't closing the studio then hopefully they get put on HD port duty.

I would kill for a Viewtiful Joe 1 HD.

Not really bothered about 2 but throwing that and the Red Hot Fighters (?) game in would make for a nice trilogy. Could even chuck the not totally awful DS one in as a bonus!

 

[DunDunDunpachi]

I think it's about time for zombie-genre to die.

Ba dum tish.

But seriously. Enough zombie games for now. More played out than WW2.

 

[Kacho]

I'm ok with this. Dead Rising was cool at first but it hasn't been interesting in years. Mechanically it's incredibly dated.

Capcom proper has been on a kick lately with quality games. No sense in mucking that up with Capcom Vancouver's garbage.

 

[Deputy Moonman]

It is interesting to see so many people happy about this. Good thing MS wasnt the one that cancelled the project lol.

 

[Kacho]

It is interesting to see so many people happy about this. Good thing MS wasnt the one that cancelled the project lol.

Haha you’re not wrong but I’m an Xbro and even I can’t feign excitement for Capcom Vancouver games.

This part of the quote is pretty telling:

Capcom is currently reviewing the allocation of its development resources that support the production of world-class content.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see them get axed completely but we will see.

 

[Blam]

Any talks I had with people who worked there, stuff seemed grim. So best of luck to them, and I hope they don't get shut down.

 

[TheShadowLord]

It is interesting to see so many people happy about this. Good thing MS wasnt the one that cancelled the project lol.

maybe microsoft should buy the entire team if the worse thing might happen.

 

[Dabaus]

EVERYTHING in regards to exclsuivity Microsoft has touched this generation has died or fallen in favor tremendously. Quantam break, sunset over drive, Halo 5, gears 4, Titanfall, all underperformed tremendously. Its incredible to me that 3rd parties treat Microsoft like they deserve a seat at the big kids table. Because quite frankly, they don't.

 

[Lionel Richie]

EVERYTHING in regards to exclsuivity Microsoft has touched this generation has died or fallen in favor tremendously. Quantam break, sunset over drive, Halo 5, gears 4, Titanfall, all underperformed tremendously. Its incredible to me that 3rd parties treat Microsoft like they deserve a seat at the big kids table. Because quite frankly, they don't.

Dude I don't think this is a very good thread to console warrior on.

 

[Dabaus]

Im not console warrioring. Dead rising was pretty much an xbox exclusive franchise and now the studio is on the verge of closing.
-Titanfall was supposed to be the second coming, the first one underperformed and the sequel did even worse.
-Quantam break bombed and the devs are now multiplatform.
-Sunset over drive bombed and now insomniac are having th best success they've ever had being a ps4 only dev.
-Scalebound? Enough said.
-Ryse? Does Crytek even make games anymore?
-Tomb Raider? Went xbox exclusive and bombed. Sequel just came out and did even worse on the same platform.
-Halo 5 and Gears of war both under performed from their predecessors.

I stand by what I said, microsft has been poison for almost every exclusive studio they've partnered with. Its a conversation worth having. Sorry if it rubs you the wrong way.

 

[MoogleMan]

But seriously. Enough zombie games for now. More played out than WW2.

No way. As long as they're good, keep em coming.

 

[Lionel Richie]

I stand by what I said, microsft has been poison for almost every exclusive studio they've partnered with. Its a conversation worth having. Sorry if it rubs you the wrong way.

It's not a conversation worth having. Look at the install base for the Xbox One, it's unrealistic to expect PS4 numbers from any game. And what the fuck are you even implying here? That there's some kind COSMIC REASON for why Microsoft backed games do poorly? How does that make any more sense than the simple fact that the Xbox One didn't sell all that well? Plus, your reasoning doesn't apply to Xbox 360 games, now does it? I wonder why... I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that the 360 sold better... I guess we'll never know.

Yes, you are console warrioring.

 

[lock2k]

I loved Dead Rising 3. I think it's an excellent game and I still fire it up occasionally.

I hated 4. Uninstalled it after 2 hours playing it and never played it again. I didn't pay much for it, but it was a bummer. Such a boring game.

I love the 1st and the 2nd as well.

 

[WaterAstro]

Local grapevines said they had three projects in the works. They were on a hiring spree maybe a year ago because people were leaving their in droves citing leadership problems.

The studio wasn't that great before the acquisition. Blue Castle didn't really make anything special. Capcom Vancouver already started out as a sinking ship imo.

 

[CatCouch]

I hope we can get a reboot of the Dead Rising games with all the wacky, Japanese stuff in it that I loved so much in the first game. Erotic photography of Zombies is still a gaming highlight for me! I like DR 2 quite a bit as well so Blue Castle/Capcom Vancouver did a nice job there but 3 was a bit boring to me and I refused to play 4. The slow but steady westernization of the series killed it for me. I loved the timer and the tightly designed environments (and the ability to beat zombies with a dildo) of the first two games a lot. Without those elements the series was just another empty open world.

 

[TheShadowLord]

I hope we can get a reboot of the Dead Rising games with all the wacky, Japanese stuff in it that I loved so much in the first game. Erotic photography of Zombies is still a gaming highlight for me! I like DR 2 quite a bit as well so Blue Castle/Capcom Vancouver did a nice job there but 3 was a bit boring to me and I refused to play 4. The slow but steady westernization of the series killed it for me. I loved the timer and the tightly designed environments (and the ability to beat zombies with a dildo) of the first two games a lot. Without those elements the series was just another empty open world.

Don't for two or three. But one isn't that wacky unless you meant it was being told a serious kind of way i guessed. Four from what I have seen is that people complain about it being too wacky. saints row like(which the first one isn't , second a little more so, but 3 and 4 through the roof.) Just type in dead rising 3 hilde in google and tell if there is anything that comes close in the first game.

 

[Stuart360]

I really liked Dead Rising 3, i never understood the hate for it.

 

[Northeastmonk]

It was cool how there was a plot to the games, but later on the plot was never the focal point of the franchise. I always ignored it to slaughter zombies. I played the Walking Dead in the arcades and the plot is so pointless in that game. All it does is engage the player in some life threatening scenario where they have to kill the zombie before the zombies kill the person. I don't mind 1 and 2, but 3 is where it turned into a zombie simulator for me. I stopped caring about the characters and what was going to happen. It was all about making a weapon and killing zombies.

Dead Rising 3 had an interesting environment most of the time and the side missions had different characters to play as. Versus having a single character who levels up and actually has a voice to whats going on around him. I felt so detached long after Dead Rising 3 came out. I like 3, but it doesn't make me want to buy 4.

 

[Deputy Moonman]

EVERYTHING in regards to exclsuivity Microsoft has touched this generation has died or fallen in favor tremendously. Quantam break, sunset over drive, Halo 5, gears 4, Titanfall, all underperformed tremendously. Its incredible to me that 3rd parties treat Microsoft like they deserve a seat at the big kids table. Because quite frankly, they don't.

You're ignoring the fact that most of the games mentioned are actually pretty good. The reason they didn't sell as well was due to the xbox one flopping out of the starting gates and having such a negative reputation this gen. It's not so much poison as unfortunate timing imo. You also have to have a more long-term vision. The likelihood of Microsoft's next console being inferior to the ps4 or costing much more is slim to none.

 

[CatCouch]

Don't for two or three. But one isn't that wacky unless you meant it was being told a serious kind of way i guessed. Four from what I have seen is that people complain about it being too wacky. saints row like(which the first one isn't , second a little more so, but 3 and 4 through the roof.) Just type in dead rising 3 hilde in google and tell if there is anything that comes close in the first game.

Maybe wacky isn't necessarily the right word to convey what I loved about the series. What I specifically loked was the Japanese take on western art. Capcom used to be great at this with games like Resident Evil that had that weird western meets Japanese influence. DR was the perfect mix of it. DR was simultaneously serious and a parody of western culture (a mall is the perfect microcosm for western culture) with the type of Japanese humor I love (like the erotic zombie photography). The meat consumption plotline was pretty nice, too! DR 2 retained this quite well (vegas is another solid setting). 3 lost me with the gind house aesthetic but was still a good game. 4? I won't touch it.

Capcom seems to be back on track, though. Maybe I will get to see another great DR game! I just hope they don't think things like dildo weapons and erotic photography are unacceptable now.

Funny enough Saints Row 3 and 4 together and Dead Rising 1 are all in my top ten games!

 

[cryptoadam]

It's not a conversation worth having. Look at the install base for the Xbox One, it's unrealistic to expect PS4 numbers from any game. And what the fuck are you even implying here? That there's some kind COSMIC REASON for why Microsoft backed games do poorly? How does that make any more sense than the simple fact that the Xbox One didn't sell all that well? Plus, your reasoning doesn't apply to Xbox 360 games, now does it? I wonder why... I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that the 360 sold better... I guess we'll never know.

Yes, you are console warrioring.

Chicken or the egg I guess. Did the exclusive games not sell well because the XBOX didn't sell as much, or did the XBOX not sell as much because the exclusive weren't that good (or at least what the market was looking for).

 

[cryptoadam]

DR1 was lightning in a bottle. A game that was meticulously designed from the first pixel. It wasn't going to be repeated, and it had a very eastern design philosphy. Once the game was popular and as Zombies exploded it got more westernized and bastardized.

i don't think we will see a game like DR1 again, it was a game of its time.

 

[Lionel Richie]

Chicken or the egg I guess. Did the exclusive games not sell well because the XBOX didn't sell as much, or did the XBOX not sell as much because the exclusive weren't that good (or at least what the market was looking for).

The exclusive games didn't sell much because the console didn't sell much which in turn lead to fewer exclusives. Not to mention MS doesn't have as many studios as Sony or Nintendo. I'm still not sure what's the angle here.

 

[Dabaus]

It's not a conversation worth having. Look at the install base for the Xbox One, it's unrealistic to expect PS4 numbers from any game. And what the fuck are you even implying here? That there's some kind COSMIC REASON for why Microsoft backed games do poorly? How does that make any more sense than the simple fact that the Xbox One didn't sell all that well? Plus, your reasoning doesn't apply to Xbox 360 games, now does it? I wonder why... I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that the 360 sold better... I guess we'll never know.

Yes, you are console warrioring.

Im implying what I explicitly said, that Microsft do not deserve any benefit of the doubt from third parties. They do not deserve a seat at the big kids table, and short of sony completely and utterly abdicating all forms of business sense for 4 years, are a niche product at best. Im not going to repost all the studios closed, franchises killed, and games that bombed just from this generation alone. Its a conversation worth having because its only happening to one of the big three publishers and the partners they make deals with.

 

[Rekki-Maru]

rip blue castle, DR2: Off The Record was all them. It was a fitting conclusion to the franchise too for me, never played three or four.

 

[MC Safety]

Im implying what I explicitly said, that Microsft do not deserve any benefit of the doubt from third parties. They do not deserve a seat at the big kids table, and short of sony completely and utterly abdicating all forms of business sense for 4 years, are a niche product at best. Im not going to repost all the studios closed, franchises killed, and games that bombed just from this generation alone. Its a conversation worth having because its only happening to one of the big three publishers and the partners they make deals with.

This thread is about Capcom Vancouver and not your hatred for Microsoft.

Your point is tangential at best, and you didn't even acknowledge Dead Rising went multiplatform after the first game.

 

[Dabaus]

This thread is about Capcom Vancouver and not your hatred for Microsoft.

Your point is tangential at best, and you didn't even acknowledge Dead Rising went multiplatform after the first game.

As far as I know all dead rising games have been timed xbox exclusives, which is the broader point of my posts in this thread.

 

[MC Safety]

As far as I know all dead rising games have been timed xbox exclusives, which is the broader point of my posts in this thread.

Your argument is weak, as Dead Rising is playable on all consoles and PCs. But do continue believing timed exclusives helps push your point...somehow.

Meanwhile, maybe you can spare a thought for the people who lost their jobs, as Capcom Vancouver has closed. Your hatred for Microsoft will keep until the next thread.

 

[Dabaus]

Your argument is weak, as Dead Rising is playable on all consoles and PCs. But do continue believing timed exclusives helps push your point...somehow.

Meanwhile, maybe you can spare a thought for the people who lost their jobs, as Capcom Vancouver has closed. Your hatred for Microsoft will keep until the next thread.

My condolences to everyone who lost their job.

 

[Mochilador]

Profound sadness.

 

[sublimit]

They are also closing the studio.
https://gamedaily.biz/article/250/c...amid-companys-overall-record-breaking-revenue

 

[NahaNago]

Your argument is weak, as Dead Rising is playable on all consoles and PCs. But do continue believing timed exclusives helps push your point...somehow.

Meanwhile, maybe you can spare a thought for the people who lost their jobs, as Capcom Vancouver has closed. Your hatred for Microsoft will keep until the next thread.

I honestly still thought it was exclusive to Microsoft.

 

[flashfire926]

You guys are okay with a studio closure? No matter what you think of their games, no one should get happy over 158 people losing their jobs.

Anyways, I really liked Dead Rising 1 and 2, really hated 3, but thought 4 was a good step forward, and pretty decent game overall (although not as good as the first two).

So this studio was 2 out of 3 in my book.