[Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

I'm ready go tonight. There's a party, alright. We don't need the raisin for joy, oh yeah. Tick down to midnight.
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John Layfield
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by John Layfield » Wed Sep 19, 2018 6:22 am

Tekken 3? I thought Gon was stopping that from getting an official re-release of the home version (I know Tekken 5 had the arcade port in there). Of course, now that they're pushing a classic console, even more unlikely it'll get to PSN. Hrmm.

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DHerder222
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by DHerder222 » Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:44 am

I might get PS Classic. With this and the Switch Online that launched yesterday, I'm hoping the Big Three can finally start launching digital backlog libraries that are independent of whatever console they're currently in.

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Delthazar
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Wed Sep 19, 2018 2:42 pm

I might get a PS Classic if it makes both startup noises. Usually the PS1 games on PSN only make the second noise? Shameful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaONOQswRSQ

#GamesPreservation #PreserveTheNoise

...jokes (?) aside, games from the 32-bit era kinda haven't aged well, and a lot of those which have already got remastered everywhere else, so any interest I have is based a lot on rarities or oddball choices in the rest of the lineup, which I doubt we'll see. Chances are it'll be a cross-section of the top 20 best-selling PS1 games on PSN with maybe a handful of leftfield picks for colour. I don't remember the PS1 having anything on the level of Starfox 2, for example.

Wipeout XL/2097 is probably a lock, but I'd also want Colony Wars (unlikely?). Metal Gear and at least one more Final Fantasy seems probable, but I'd also want Persona 2 and Suikoden (Wild Arms is there already, so... maybe. They're not gonna go too RPG-heavy with only a 20-game roster, though.) A kind, just universe would include Incredible Crisis, Vib Ribbon, Irritating Stick, Tomba, all sorts of weird stuff. We'll probably get every Crash Bandicoot before any of those happen.

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John Layfield
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by John Layfield » Wed Sep 19, 2018 2:56 pm

Klonoa should make the cut if Sony have any idea about what was good about the PS1. Colony Wars as well. I think people underestimate how much games like Colony Wars sold the PS1 as a next-gen machine, even if they didn't shift units themselves.

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DHerder222
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by DHerder222 » Wed Sep 19, 2018 4:49 pm

Yeah, as is always the case with these, it's extremely important what might be in the queue for later. One of the raisins I didn't get the NES or SNES classic was that the game libraries were fixed with no possibility of more being added later.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by cybersix » Wed Sep 19, 2018 8:22 pm

If Crash Bandicoot, Tekken, and Twisted Metal aren't on there, I'll vore my hat.

Maybe even some

Image

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Delthazar
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Thu Sep 20, 2018 1:01 pm

oh yeah I guess the PS Classic is using the original controller design and not the Dual Shock, bleh.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by John Layfield » Thu Sep 20, 2018 1:45 pm

In true dedication to PS history, the first PS Classic Dual Shocks blew up the system. Probably.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by John Layfield » Fri Sep 21, 2018 8:06 am

Oh, the PS4's PS Now service now allows you to download the games you're playing, rather than streaming them. Which has instantly made it a far more attractive option.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Fri Sep 21, 2018 11:29 am

Totally. Hell, I still remember when OnLive was starting up way back when, "cool idea but not enough people have the right infrastructure yet" was the prevailing attitude about it, and unfortunately that's barely changed in 10+ years.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Fri Sep 21, 2018 12:12 pm

uh, yikes

https://twitter.com/gamasutra/status/10 ... 3121176577

Capcom Vancouver also shut down this week. Telltale going away feels like bigger news, but whatever the case, it's rough times for a lot of folks - over 400 jobs lost between Capcom and Telltale, all told.

e: early word for Telltale is bankruptcy, meaning all the folks laid off today won't even be getting severance, nor will the 25 staying behind when they're done, probably.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Fri Sep 21, 2018 3:36 pm

Holy shit.

https://www.usgamer.net/articles/report ... s-canceled
Update 4 [4:12pm]: As information continues to come out of today's announcement that Telltale Games is closing, and particularly in light of Telltale's statement, there are new revelations to the situation at Telltale.

We previously reported that a skeleton crew will remain behind to complete work on The Walking Dead Final Season. That information was inaccurate. Sources who wishes to remain anonymous explained that there is a skeleton crew at Telltale, but they will be working on the Minecraft Story Mode project for Netflix. In fact, The Walking Dead team was also laid off today and The Walking Dead Final Season will not be completed.

This matches with the statement issued by Telltale games where the company promised to "fulfill the company's obligations to its board and partners," presumably Netflix. Our sources say The Walking Dead Final Season is set to end after the second episode launches next week.
...so The Walking Dead Final Season will end before completion and those 25 remaining staff are only sticking around to fulfil the Netflix contract for Minecraft. That's super unfortunate and a huge fall from where TWD was when it started.

C6 or others will have to clarify for me whether or not TWD Final Season was sold upfront as a multi-episode deal kinda like Life is Strange or whatever, and with that attached full season cost, 'cause that sounds like an even bigger mess waiting to happen if there were way more than two episodes in such a bundle.

also uh apparently the laid-off staff only had 30 minutes to leave the building upon hearing today's news

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John Layfield
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by John Layfield » Fri Sep 21, 2018 3:46 pm

Bizarre. You have to wonder what kind of behind-the-scenes mess had led to this. Did they pay top-dollar for all the licenses during their huge expansion and just couldn't move the units needed?

People complained about their creaky engine after a while, but it seemed like that was the deal they made to keep costs low so, I dunno.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by True Perception » Fri Sep 21, 2018 4:11 pm

That's crazy. You would think they have an obligation, first and foremost, to the customers who already paid for the product, but corporate America doesn't think that way.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Fri Sep 21, 2018 4:28 pm

A perception of obligation to consumers doesn't magically stave off bankruptcy. There'd be no money left to pay the TWD staff with anyway. If they can only manage to maintain a skeleton crew for x amount of days/weeks to avoid a breach of contract with Netflix, and no such TWD contract exists to risk breaching (or has possibly already been fulfilled just with two episodes) then they aren't really left with any options.

This also marks the end of their unreleased Stranger Things and Wolf Among Us 2 projects, which I guess weren't far enough along to have the same kind of legal strings attached.
John Layfield wrote:
Fri Sep 21, 2018 3:46 pm
Bizarre. You have to wonder what kind of behind-the-scenes mess had led to this. Did they pay top-dollar for all the licenses during their huge expansion and just couldn't move the units needed?
It seems that among their large portfolio, only the first couple seasons of The Walking Dead and this Minecraft thing did well at all for them financially, and some, even with huge licenses attached like Batman, Game of Thrones, and Jurassic Park, were outright bombs. So that plus their rapid expansion after those earlier successes with TWD could be it.

Not quite a big flashy John Romero's ION Storm situation but I guess nothing is.

Funny cosmic timing has the now-final episode of TWD coming out next week just as Life is Strange 2 drops from DONTNOD. With Telltale gone, the LiS teams and the Kentucky Route Zero people are kinda it for this style of adventure game, huh.

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True Perception
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by True Perception » Fri Sep 21, 2018 4:39 pm

Good point. I hadn't considered legal obligation.

Hopefully, the teams move on to other studios and produce some good things.

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cybersix
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by cybersix » Fri Sep 21, 2018 5:19 pm

Well, fuckin goddamnit.

Walking Dead Final Season was sold as a multi-episode package with a planned release schedule, so if it ends up being cancelled mid-season there is going to be a lot of angry people.

Funny you mention Kentucky Route Zero. The fact that it's been 5 years and they still haven't finished it was the raisin I never used to buy episodic games until the entire thing came out... I guess I'm going back to that model.

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Delthazar
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Fri Sep 21, 2018 5:25 pm

At least we can probably assume DONTNOD/Deck 9 are in a much better position to not suddenly die in the middle of an episodic season. One anecdote I saw mentioned Life is Strange: Before the Storm moved about 250k units in a month last year versus Telltale's Batman struggling to break 70k.

(Being firmly in the pocket of Big Square Enix also helps a lot, undoubtedly.)

In other, also unfortunate news

https://twitter.com/TroyBakerVA/status/ ... 2405173248

so expect at least a little whiplash in Vesperia Definitive :pacdown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5ffaTv4ajg

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Delthazar
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Sat Sep 22, 2018 5:15 pm


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DHerder222
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by DHerder222 » Sat Sep 22, 2018 8:29 pm

Yup, I'll get that.

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Bier_Engel
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Bier_Engel » Sun Sep 23, 2018 7:44 am

Wow, that sucks about Vesperia. I know Baker is probably more expensive now, but the game has gotten enough hype that it would have been worth it... I wonder how many people are going to cancel their pre-orders.

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Delthazar
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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Sun Sep 23, 2018 11:53 am

It's a downer, but I dunno if it's enough to move the needle on preorders unless there's a ton of new content without Baker. I don't really know enough about what the old Japan-only PS3 version added in terms of voiced dialogue aside from the new character and the scenes/skits involving her. So maybe Yuri's end of those conversations isn't too big a deal.

I think Baker is SAG, so there's also maybe some chance Namco Bandai wanted to tiptoe around the union, too, rather than, like, paying people properly.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Falcon Critical » Sun Sep 23, 2018 12:39 pm

With Telltale declaring bankruptcy they don't have to pay back any money they owe, basically all their material assets will be sold off and that money will be given to whomever they owe the most to... presumably banks and shareholders (if they have them). The chances that there is enough money out of that to pay people back for preorders is slim, and you can't really do anything about it because the company doesn't exist anymore so there's noone to sue and they have no money to give.

You see the shady side of this quite often with urban property developers, they like to set up a company specifically to build one building, and then do the legal recourse where they will support the building and listen to tenant complaints etc after it is built, but then once building completes and they've sold the apartments within, they declare bankruptcy and drop all those obligations.

Telltale's case doesn't sound nefarious, but given the nature of bankruptcy (at least here in NZ) they don't have any obligation to even release Episode 2 - so it's nice that they're doing that, though it sucks that people aren't getting paid to do so.

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Sun Sep 23, 2018 2:05 pm

Adding to the list of unfortunate things going on lately, it kinda looks like the assholes at Stardock are gearing up to take some sorta action against the Ur-Quan Masters Project abandonware team, as if messing with the original Star Control creators at Toys For Bob wasn't bad enough.

http://forum.uqm.stack.nl/index.php?topic=7396

So if anyone has any particular nostalgia for Star Control 2 and wanna be able to play it in its best available version, maybe go grab a UQM download just in case.

http://sc2.sourceforge.net/

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Re: [Game News] + General Gamesy Chatter

Post by Delthazar » Tue Sep 25, 2018 9:27 am

...looks like Telltale tripped over California and/or federal labour laws, so here comes a class action.

https://www.polygon.com/2018/9/25/17901 ... t-warn-act