News General gaming stuff, random news etc

Sep 17, 2011
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Because sometimes news doesn't fit into a nice little console thread.

The impetus of this thread is this.

Game Informer has just received a statement from Patrice Désilets regarding his departure from Ubisoft. As we reported earlier, Désilets is no long with the publisher and has opened up about the circumstances.
The following statement comes from Désilets by way of his agent.
Contrary to any statements made earlier today, this morning I was terminated by Ubisoft. I was notified of this termination in person, handed a termination notice and was unceremoniously escorted out of the building by two guards without being able to say goodbye to my team or collect my personal belongings.
This was not my decision.
Ubisoft's actions are baseless and without merit. I intend to fight Ubisoft vigorously for my rights, for my team and for my game.
I find this immensely disappointing news.

The guy was one of the key players in the creation of the Assassin's Creed series and his team has been working on new IP for sometime.

This sacking has thrown the new IP into some sort of legal hell.

I've heard Game Informer staff talking about him on their podcast and he was ridiculously excited about this project before the studios acquisition by Ubisoft via the THQ auction.


 
Not unexpected, but surprising that he was the one let go and not him walking out.

I guess he burnt his bridges when he walked out on Ubisoft that they just didn't want him there when they purchased his dev, which makes things weird when you think about the discussions going on before the purchase of the developer and title that they're making.

Either what they've seen of the game is extremely awesome that they couldn't pass up the opportunity of getting the game under their belt. Or they were just looking to do to Desilets what he did to them.

Very weird.
 
Ubisoft taking the piss out of Desilets confirmed?

Source: http://au.ign.com/articles/2013/05/15/ubisoft-suspends-1666
Ubisoft has confirmed that the former THQ Montreal project codenamed 1666 has been suspended. During a call reporting earnings for Ubisoft’s 2013 fiscal year, CEO Yves Guillemot said “we have suspended project 1666 for an undisclosed period of time.”

Guillemot also commented on Assassin’s Creed creator Patrice Desilets - the former head of the 1666 project - noting that “After more than two months of discussions with Patrice, we couldn’t align our visions both on the project development and team management. Consequently, our collaboration has ended.”
 
Oct 1, 2007
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Suppose this can go here.

Electronic Arts has decided to leave the controversial system that requires players to purchase or redeem a code to access a game's online features behind.

EA's senior director of corporate communications John Reseburg confirmed the discontinuation of the program in an e-mail to VentureBeat. Reseburg said EA launched the online pass program, "As an effort to package a full menu of online content and services, many players didn’t respond to the format. We’ve listened to the feedback and decided to do away with it moving forward.”

Update: We had a chance to talk with Electronic Art's VP of corporate communications, Jeff Brown, and he spoke towards why EA has decided to abandon online passes.
"There's not much to say. The online pass came out in 2010. It was a way of packaging together a suite of post-launch content and services for people. There was also an element for people who bought the game second sale. It never really caught on. People didn't like it. People told us that they didn't like it and you know, we went through a cycle and we're about to put out some new games and we just decided not to do that anymore. We're 100 percent committed to creating on-going content and services so the consumers get more value out of the game – you know games like Battlefield and FIFA where there's all sorts of new things that get added all the time – but the whole idea of packaging it up with an online pass, clearly it was not popular, so we listened to people and we stopped doing it."
We asked if this new policy will affect released games that have existing online pass structures, and Brown said he would check on that question and get back to us.

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...ectronic-arts-abandoning-the-online-pass.aspx
 
Desilets now suing Ubisoft.

Source: http://au.ign.com/articles/2013/06/08/assassins-creed-creator-patrice-desilets-sues-ubisoft
Patrice Désilets is pursuing legal action against Ubisoft following his firing in May. Claiming his termination was "without Cause," the Assassin's Creed creator is seeking payment for damages, unpaid salary and expenses, as well as a healthy severance, in addition to all intellectual property rights to 1666, the now suspended game Désilets began with THQ Montreal prior to its buyout by Ubisoft. Court documents retrieved by Game Informer detail Désilets' account of the complicated events leading up to his firing, which his legal representatives claim was "abusive."

Now, the developer is demanding the following from his former employer:
1.Total ownership of 1666.
2.Salary, vacation, and expense payments through May 7, the day of his firing.
3.Severance in the form of one year of Désilets' salary.
4.$25,000 for relocation and job searching.
5.$5,000 in legal fees.
6.$100,000 for "moral damages caused to [Désilets] reputation.
 
Sep 22, 2008
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So this new project by GameFreak isn't Pokemon but its even better!!

Solitaire Horse, a game where not only can you play Solitaire, you race horses!! Wow sounds crazy, Pokewhat???

* you GameFreak you piece of s**t, why get me excited for this, seriously why even tease this announcement why would you even want people to know?
 
Aug 27, 2006
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http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2013/07/26/activision-blizzard-surges-on-buyout-news/

Activision Blizzard Surges On Buyout News


Activision Blizzard ATVI +14.88% shares soar on news of Vivendi buyout as video game publisher becomes independent once again.

Activision Blizzard has soared nearly 18% in pre-market trading following news that the video game publisher will buyout parent company Vivendi’s controlling stake in the company, in a deal clocking in at $8.2 billion.

Great news.

Not a fan of Activision and the games their developers produce but i've loved pretty much everything Blizzard has ever done. Diablo 3 being a solid low point.

They might be tight for cash for a few years but i'm sure this will free them up in the long run to do new and interesting things.
 
Sep 17, 2011
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It basically just frees them up from not being leached by Vivendi (who were looking to take out a 3 billion dollar loan in Activision's name to cover their own losses).

I like the move as it gives them control and means that they won't die out. They still provide some worthwhile franchises, so I'm glad they are hanging about.
 
Wasn't sure where to post this.

He got pissed off because some guy at Gametrailers basically called him and Blow arrogant pricks and referred to them as blowfish, meltdown followed.


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Glenno23
 
Put that stuff into this thread, as it's turned into Fez 2 being cancelled news. Which sucks. :(

Hopefully it's just a heat of the moment thing and when everything calms down they can go back and keep Fez 2 alive.

Source: http://au.ign.com/articles/2013/07/27/fez-ii-cancelled
Phil Fish has announced that production has ceased on Fez II.

The news broke on Fish's personal Twitter account, where the developer wrote: "im done. FEZ II is canceled. goodbye."

This was followed shortly by a more formal statement made via the official Polytron account (the company co-founded by Fish in 2008):
"It's with a heavy heart that we announce that FEZ II has been cancelled and is no longer in development. We apologize for the disappointment"

It's currently unclear why production has ceased on the very recently-announced game (we only found out about Fez II last month). But the announcement was made in the wake of a very public spat Fish was having over Twitter. We're refraining from re-posting these Tweets here, since the argument has not been cited as the reason behind the game's cancellation.
 

GrandBlue

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AnnoyedGamer would be Marcus Beer. Has a show on GameTrailers and this is his take on the debacle:
http://www.gametrailers.com/full-episodes/roj70m/invisible-walls-everything-and-the-kitchen-sink

Phil Fish comes off as a complete lunatic, who's completely out of touch reality and also an idiot of the highest order. It's really depressing that Marcus is the one getting all the criticism & death threats, it just proves how idiotic the gaming community is.
I think you've linked the wrong video or something, there's nothing about the Phil Fish stuff there?
 

GrandBlue

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I think you've linked the wrong video or something, there's nothing about the Phil Fish stuff there?
Well this is bizarre. The link is correct, but for some reason it takes you to an entirely different video. Now whenever I try to click on the correct video directly from Gametrailers, I get a 'The page isn't redirecting properly'.

Basically, he's having a massive go at Jonathan Blow & Phil Fish because of their whining & bitching over the gaming media wanting their opinion on the XBone's Development Kit, and says they should be happy they're respected figures in the industry. It escalated to the point of a Phil Fish meltdown, the cancellation of Fez 2, & now Marcus Beer is getting ragged on by a barrage of idiots on twitter & even receiving death threats.
 
Aug 27, 2006
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Take-Two CEO hints at Red Dead Redemption 2


Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick has dropped the greatest hint yet that a sequel to 2010 open-world hit Red Dead Redemption could be in the works.
Speaking during Take-Two's Q1 FY14 earnings results last night, Zelnick stated that the publisher's goal is "to try to create permanent franchises", before referencing BioShock, Borderlands and Red Dead.

http://www.videogamer.com/xbox360/r...e-two_ceo_hints_at_red_dead_redemption_2.html
 

Mantastic

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I bloody hope it's not Redemption 2 and instead they use the GTA model of a whole new cast/time/location for RDR3.

I really don't want to play a whole game as Baby Boy Marston.
 
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