You know, I was appreciating the fact that EA was generally leaving BioWare alone. Now they go and do this.
BioWare and Mythic Merge, Mark Jacobs Leaves
- Thread starter John Funk
- Start date
I am not really a big fan of this. However, I wasn't excited when I heard Bioware was bought by EA either. But until a game is realeased by Bioware w/ their new partners (EA and Mythic) I'd perfer not to judge EA to harshly. But the merger (Bioware and Mythic) could have been worse. At least Ray Muzyka is in charge.
The typical response to what is the insane thread on our forums (15k views, 20+ pages and still going) seems to reflect the normal bias of forum-goers - optimists will see optimism and pessimists will see pessimism. And then there are the people like Schmoopy here who I think take games just a little too seriously. Dislike Mark all you want, criticize him for poor communication tendencies, I'm with you there. But the kind of vitriolic hatred people have over what amounts to pixels and a game boggles me sometimes. Games are supposed to be a hobby, and people, real people with families and loved ones pulling a paycheck make them. People need to relax on the haterade.
It seems terribly obvious, but the reality is going to be neither optimistic nor pessimistic. Optimists need to learn that something like this doesn't happen without a reason, that given the facts that we know, WAR severely underdelivered on its intended subscriber numbers. The fact that Mark Jacobs was sacked, and that this re-org has happened, means EA sees WAR is having difficulty retaining subscriptions. At the same time, pessimists need to learn that predicting death for MMOs is passe and rarely happens, with only Tabula Rasa, Hellgate London dying soon after launch. The Matrix Online and Shadowbane, both arguably games that should have been on the chopping block long ago, have just ended their runs after years of operation. Though EA published losses the last couple quarters (which studio not named Blizzard didn't) significant revenue comes from MMOs and they know it. By creating a main group that can be managed centrally with different talent pools, there's more benefit than detraction.
No one can accurately predict what will happen, and I'm one who likes to look at empirical evidence on something before making judgments. We'll see.
It seems terribly obvious, but the reality is going to be neither optimistic nor pessimistic. Optimists need to learn that something like this doesn't happen without a reason, that given the facts that we know, WAR severely underdelivered on its intended subscriber numbers. The fact that Mark Jacobs was sacked, and that this re-org has happened, means EA sees WAR is having difficulty retaining subscriptions. At the same time, pessimists need to learn that predicting death for MMOs is passe and rarely happens, with only Tabula Rasa, Hellgate London dying soon after launch. The Matrix Online and Shadowbane, both arguably games that should have been on the chopping block long ago, have just ended their runs after years of operation. Though EA published losses the last couple quarters (which studio not named Blizzard didn't) significant revenue comes from MMOs and they know it. By creating a main group that can be managed centrally with different talent pools, there's more benefit than detraction.
No one can accurately predict what will happen, and I'm one who likes to look at empirical evidence on something before making judgments. We'll see.
They could still finance it. =poliveira8 said:
I'm hopeful. Warhammer Online had a lot of potential and in a lot of ways I liked it better than WoW, but got bogged down, and made some critical errors of judgment (i.e. no general chat on launch). The economy was terrible. Tier 4 needs an infusion of fresh ideas.
I was going to resub for Land of the Dead, but mostly it seems it STILL has a lot of the design flaws from launch. I don't know if this is MJ's fault, but I do hope for an infusion of new blood and new ideas into the game. I don't think it would take much to turn things around and make it more popular. The backbone of a good MMO is in place.
You'll be disappointed then. BioWare has repeatedly said that a new KotOR is not in the works.dodo1331 said:
Still, many reviewers from E3 said that SW:TOR has the feel of a single player game. The formula that make KotOR so great is still there (story, companion characters, etc.) but with an upgrade a-la Mass Effect. Personally I say wait to form your opinion on it. It may surprise you.
nothing can go head to head with WoW. its just too awesome. i played WAR and found it pretty good, but i stopped playing at lvl 28 because of the huge amount of glitches. one second, my Sorcerer was walking normally, the next, hes walking 3 foot into the ground. or was invisible.
Damn well better have been!headshotcatcher said:Thats what I was aiming at mind youChromeAlchemist said:
Me and my friend think the coolest name ever is a toss up between [name] Denton and Ethan Hawke. I still pick Denton.
ChromeAlchemist said:Damn well better have been!headshotcatcher said:Thats what I was aiming at mind youChromeAlchemist said:
Me and my friend think the coolest name ever is a toss up between [name] Denton and Ethan Hawke. I still pick Denton.
You'd better..