After reading this article, it reminded me of something plaguing many other games out there. How many games have been released that should not have been in their current state? A lot.
I'm very naive when it comes to publisher/developer contracts, but it would make sense to me that each has a percentage of the profits from the game. So why isn't there a situation where the developer can go over budget and deliver the product late with penalties? ...or is there? Like, for every month after the supposed date, you get less 0.X% from the profits. Also, all profits go to the publisher until all developer expenditures over the budget amount are repaid.
In the above scenario, it would be the in the publisher's best interest for the developer to make a solid game and see the completion of an artistic vision. I mean, the publisher actually has more to gain when the completion date is missed and the developer will make more in the end with a finished product. Also, solid games continue to sell long after the publisher's marketing efforts have finished.
I'm mostly thinking out loud, but I don't understand the need for a publisher to make the calls on a product?s release date against the protests of the developer. If a publisher cannot sustain itself for 10 or more months without the profits from a particular title's release, then maybe developers shouldn't sign with that publisher. If a publisher was actually interested in putting out quality product, they'd have a clause to penalize the developer's profit sharing, but not the end product. Why does the end product have to suffer for the publishers to make their money? It makes absolutely zero sense to me.
Either the publishers have to change the way they operate or the developers need stick to their guns and not be so desperate to sign with whoever is willing. I would love nothing more than to see talented people developing successful games on small budgets and small teams. Who says that a successful game has to have a huge budget and an army of developers? ...Publishers? ;-)