Sony Could Have Had Limbo All to Itself

The Wooster

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Sony Could Have Had Limbo All to Itself


Playdead Studios offered Limbo to Sony first, but arguments over IP rights soured the deal.

Playdead's unnerving, million-selling platformer, Limbo made a big splash when it was released on XBLA back in July 2010. Due to Microsoft's habit of pushing for timed exclusives, the game didn't make it to PSN until nearly a year later. An odd result, given that Playdead offered Limbo to Sony first.

According to Sony Computer Entertainment Executive Producer Pete Smith, talks with Playdead broke down because Sony wanted to retain the intellectual property rights to the game.

"There are obvious benefits to keeping it [the IP rights], but also to giving it up: you're way more likely to get the deal," he said to developers during a talk at the Develop Conference. "Remember: 100 per cent of nothing is nothing. A publisher is much more likely to commit to marketing and merchandising if they own the IP."

"Sometimes all we want is protection so [developers] don't make a game, finish it then go to one of our rivals," he said. "We look at IP on a case by case basis. With a bit of common sense, you can find common ground."

Unfortunately, Sony didn't find that common ground in this case. Limbo sold 300,000 copies in its first month on XBLA and had broke a million by the end of 2011. When it was finally released on PSN, it quickly became the service's best-selling downloadable title of 2011, but presumably could have performed even better if Sony had got it out first.

Source: Edge [http://www.edge-online.com/news/sony-lost-limbo-deal-because-it-wanted-ip-rights]

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Tradjus

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I love Karma, seriously, nothing makes me happier than seeing a bunch of corporate idiots kicking themselves for being.. well, corporate idiots. It won't change anything about how they do business, or even give them cause for thought, they're in the position they're in because of their unflinching resolve to do the wrong thing in the face of logic and good sense. So, the most we can hope for is satisfying little tid-bits like this.
 

Screamarie

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Mar 16, 2008
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Well someone took the BFG and just shot their foot clean the fuck off.

Sony really should have grabbed it up, I mean of course Playdead wants to keep the IP. Yeah sometimes you can can cut a deal that way, but if they say no, they're of course going to go somewhere else.

But then Sony got Journey so I suppose it all evens out.
 

Beautiful End

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Geez, Sony, you're making it hard for me to keep liking you.
Then again, M$ had the money to get Minecraft as an exclusive so...I dunno, it just seems like it went like this:

Limbo guys: "Have this game for this much?"
Sony: "Eh...seems like a lot. We'll think about it, alright?"

Limbo guys: "Have this game for this much?"
Microsoft: "Yeah...I think I have that much spare change in my glove compartment. Sure, why not?"
 

Trishbot

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In the end, I'm sure Playdead is glad they got to keep the rights AND made a huge splash with the game.

Best of both worlds for them.

While Sony is going "well... at least we have Journey" and Microsoft is going "we should've made them add Kinect support".
 

Scars Unseen

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Beautiful End said:
Geez, Sony, you're making it hard for me to keep liking you.
Then again, M$ had the money to get Minecraft as an exclusive so...I dunno, it just seems like it went like this:

Limbo guys: "Have this game for this much?"
Sony: "Eh...seems like a lot. We'll think about it, alright?"

Limbo guys: "Have this game for this much?"
Microsoft: "Yeah...I think I have that much spare change in my glove compartment. Sure, why not?"
Not really. Microsoft wanted the game to be theirs exclusively for a year. Sony wanted the idea behind the game to be theirs forever. Which sounds more reasonable to you?
 

oldtaku

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'Unfortunately, Sony didn't find that common ground in this case.'

That's not unfortunate. Platform exclusives suck. So glad Limbo came to Steam.
 

=y

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Well, you can't always have a crystal ball. Or make an educated guess about what will be really successful if you're Sony.
 

The Wooster

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oldtaku said:
'Unfortunately, Sony didn't find that common ground in this case.'

That's not unfortunate. Platform exclusives suck. So glad Limbo came to Steam.
Unfortunately for them, that is.
 

-|-

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Hammeroj said:
This "publisher owns the IP" business can fuck right off. Good for Playdead.
You think it's immoral for people to sell things they own?

Sony and Playdead couldn't agree terms so they went their separate ways, something which is entirely normal in business. Why does this make Sony the evil empire all of a sudden?
 

Trishbot

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-|- said:
Hammeroj said:
This "publisher owns the IP" business can fuck right off. Good for Playdead.
You think it's immoral for people to sell things they own?

Sony and Playdead couldn't agree terms so they went their separate ways, something which is entirely normal in business. Why does this make Sony the evil empire all of a sudden?
The entire practice of basically telling creators to forfeit all creative rights to their creation under their terms is common, but also greedy and draconian.

It's the very reason the creators of Superman died poor and the reason there is an entire foundation established to help support the comic creators that created characters like Captain America, Green Lantern, Wolverine, Thanos, The Punisher, etc.

It becomes especially sad when a game developer loses the rights to their own IP when a company buys them out and then screws the IP up with sequels that totally fly in the face of their original intent... I mean, Mega Man's co-creator, Keiji Inafune, has for years labored to make a great Mega Man game for the fans, but Capcom cancelled everything he was developing. Same goes for Street Fighter's producer championing a new Darkstalkers, only to have no sway. Even Hideo Kojima is sick to death of Konami forcing him to make more Metal Gear Solid games when he's well and truly tired of doing them.
 

-|-

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Trishbot said:
-|- said:
Hammeroj said:
This "publisher owns the IP" business can fuck right off. Good for Playdead.
You think it's immoral for people to sell things they own?

Sony and Playdead couldn't agree terms so they went their separate ways, something which is entirely normal in business. Why does this make Sony the evil empire all of a sudden?
The entire practice of basically telling creators to forfeit all creative rights to their creation under their terms is common, but also greedy and draconian.

It's the very reason the creators of Superman died poor and the reason there is an entire foundation established to help support the comic creators that created characters like Captain America, Green Lantern, Wolverine, Thanos, The Punisher, etc.

It becomes especially sad when a game developer loses the rights to their own IP when a company buys them out and then screws the IP up with sequels that totally fly in the face of their original intent... I mean, Mega Man's co-creator, Keiji Inafune, has for years labored to make a great Mega Man game for the fans, but Capcom cancelled everything he was developing. Same goes for Street Fighter's producer championing a new Darkstalkers, only to have no sway. Even Hideo Kojima is sick to death of Konami forcing him to make more Metal Gear Solid games when he's well and truly tired of doing them.
Oh, I understand the reasons why a content creator would not want to sell - especially if they are confident in their creation (as Playdead obviously were). I just don't see it as a draconian concept because there is no coercion involved - nobody is really forced to do anything. Greedy, yes, I can accept that.

My view is that if you own IP then you should be free to sell it without interference from third parties. Selling something today that is more valuable tomorrow is just the way it goes sometimes. I have some sympathy for creators who fall on hard times, but I don't think that party A buying something from party B makes party A unethical just because party B regrets the sale at a later date (with the proviso that party B wasn't defrauded)
 

oldtaku

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Grey Carter said:
oldtaku said:
'Unfortunately, Sony didn't find that common ground in this case.'

That's not unfortunate. Platform exclusives suck. So glad Limbo came to Steam.
Unfortunately for them, that is.
Yeah, I know, that was wildly out of context, wasn't trying to imply your story was wrong there. But it's very fortunate for everyone but Sony.
 

Danzavare

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I'm happy they didn't get exclusive rights to it either, I beat it on Steam with my partner (Who hates spiders, heh heh heh) and it was a wonderful experience.
 

ivc392

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As a old time PlayStation fan-boy I'm glad to say, "IN YOUR FACE SONY!! IN YOUR FACE!!"