The thought process of Lucasrats.

[Sean Hollyman]

So it's pretty evident, that Lucasarts hasn't really made a well recived game for a while. Star Wars Kinect wasn't exactly awesome, and the less said about TFU2, the better.

What the fuck is going on in their heads? I mean they had a bunch of great franchises with potential, such as Battlefront, Republic Commando, Empire at War, KOTOR, Rogue Squadron, and they just left them there to rot, remnants of their once great lineup.

Now what do we get instead of them? The Force Unleashed (Ok, I loved the first one, but the second was just awful.)

The Clone Wars tv series... I haven't really seen much of it so I can't really judge it, but it was alright of what I saw.

I think there are some highly imagintive and creative minds at work there, but they are being dragged down and hindered by idiots who are higher up on the chain of command, and it is up to them.

So anyway, what do you think? Are they completely oblviious to the fact that they had great franchises, and they just left them, making games nobody wanted instead?


Gah. And apparently BF3 was cancelled for TFU1..

 

[FalloutJack]

I think they've been channeling Curly Howard for a while.

"If at first you don't succeed, keep sucking 'till you DO succeed."

*Smack!*

"OW!"

 

[chadachada123]

If they made a new Republic Commando or Battlefront, they would receive all of the money.

Why they have yet to do this, I seriously do not have a clue. It's like they HATE MAKING MONEY or something. They had their best works when they did dedicated semi-within-the-realms-of-cannon works. Why they're trying to pull Michael Bay shooty-shooty-boomarooneys on this franchise is simply beyond me.

 

[Cabisco]

That 1313 game looks potentially cool and It's interesting that they are moving away (at least for a game) from jedi/sith.

To be honest I show very little attention to the star wars games but you do make it sound like they make money in spite of themselves.

 

[General Twinkletoes]

Trying to figure out if the title is an amusing typo, or intentional insult...
Nope, still can't figure it out.

OT:
Why haven't those sons of bitches made battlefront 3! There's so many people that want that game

And why was SWTOR an MMO, Should have just been KOTOR 3.
If the story of your game is more fun than the raids and PvP, your game shouldn't be a damn MMO.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

I think the problem is that none of those games were actually developed in house. The X-Wing games were developed by Totally Games, the Battlefront games were developed by Pandemic, KotOR was developed by Bioware for the first game, and Obsidian for the second, and so on and so forth. The few studios that are still in business aren't really in a position to work for Lucasarts at this point, and even if they were, Lucasarts isn't interested in anything not developed in house at the moment. The sad fact is, whatever your favorite Star Wars game is, it's better off never getting (another) sequel, because whoever makes it will almost certainly not be the people who made the original(s), and they're not likely to fully get what made it great, either.

 

[Goofguy]

I think the problem is that none of those games were actually developed in house. The X-Wing games were developed by Totally Games, the Battlefront games were developed by Pandemic, KotOR was developed by Bioware for the first game, and Obsidian for the second, and so on and so forth. The few studios that are still in business aren't really in a position to work for Lucasarts at this point, and even if they were, Lucasarts isn't interested in anything not developed in house at the moment. The sad fact is, whatever your favorite Star Wars game is, it's better off never getting (another) sequel, because whoever makes it will almost certainly not be the people who made the original(s), and they're not likely to fully get what made it great, either.

Well thank you for that enlightening post... seriously. I've been desperately hoping for a sequel to X-Wing or TIE Fighter all these long years. I failed to see that LucasArts didn't develop either of those games. I'd love to them developed with modern graphics, is that really so much to ask for?

Probably.

 

[Sean Hollyman]

Lucasrats lol. Good nickname.

It's just a typo I always seem to make, I just can never be bothered to correct it

 

[ElPatron]

More like Lucasfarts, amiright?

#IncredibleWit #FuckingTold

I don't understand why they gave up on Battlefront, it was my favorite Star Wars game after TIE Fighter.

 

[SonicWaffle]

What the fuck is going on in their heads? I mean they had a bunch of great franchises with potential, such as Battlefront, Republic Commando, Empire at War, KOTOR, Rogue Squadron, and they just left them there to rot, remnants of their once great lineup.

Presumably they were involved in The Old Republic somewhere along the line, it still being their property. Lego Indiana Jones & Lego Star Wars were quite good, from what I was told. Many people (not I, admittedly) liked The Force Unleashed games. How about all the Telltale point-and-click stuff? There've been new Monkey Island and Sam & Max, though I'm not sure whether Lucasarts actually have any involvement anymore.

I'd personally kinda like a new Rogue Squadron game, but a little more in with the first than the second; trying to get all the medals on the GameCube one was a ****. Make it so I die less, damn it!

 

[culpeo]

Many of the good games Lucasarts has "made" were actually developed elsewhere, with Lucasarts serving more as the publisher. And everybody knows that the publisher's primary directives are to hype, market, and rush games to shelves to meet deadlines irrespective of their actual degree of completion or polish.

 

[SonicWaffle]

I don't understand why they gave up on Battlefront, it was my favorite Star Wars game after TIE Fighter.

Why haven't those sons of bitches made battlefront 3! There's so many people that want that game

If they made a new Republic Commando or Battlefront, they would receive all of the money.

I have the original Xbox version of Battlefront, and play it on my 360. Love that game. Can play it for fucking hours without getting bored.

I have the PS2 version of Battlefront 2, and it sucks. Weak campaign, poor graphics, just way less fun than the original.

Maybe it's just me, but given the quality drop between 1 and 2, I'm not so sure I want to see a 3. I'll stick with BF1, dicking about on Endor with my speederbike.

 

[teebeeohh]

I think the problem is that none of those games were actually developed in house. The X-Wing games were developed by Totally Games, the Battlefront games were developed by Pandemic, KotOR was developed by Bioware for the first game, and Obsidian for the second, and so on and so forth. The few studios that are still in business aren't really in a position to work for Lucasarts at this point, and even if they were, Lucasarts isn't interested in anything not developed in house at the moment. The sad fact is, whatever your favorite Star Wars game is, it's better off never getting (another) sequel, because whoever makes it will almost certainly not be the people who made the original(s), and they're not likely to fully get what made it great, either.

EA bought most of those...

EA was trying to save the world from the Star Wars universe until they draw and quarter the man who invented midichlorians. IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW.

OR they were thinking "so people enjoy good star wars games? let's buy every developer so that they have no choice but to buy our mediocre crap

 

[Pickles]

It is pretty puzzling. Jedi Outcast/ Academy were good too and pretty simple, I'm surprised they didn't continue that series.
TOR stings the most though. As much as I love the idea of star wars MMOs it wasn't worth losing a third installment in the KOTOR series.
I am cautiously optimistic for 1313 though.

 

[Sixcess]

I think they just don't give a damn what they put the Star Wars name on so long as they think it'll make them a quick buck - hence why we get The Force Unleashed (aka God of War: Star Wars edition) and The Old Republic (aka World of Warcraft: Star Wars edition.)

But I guess it's not unexpected. if Lucas himself won't respect the integrity of his own franchise then what chance is there that his business managers will?

 

[RedLister]

Yeah i grew up playing there older games. Both star wars (tie fighter, Jedi knight etc) and there adventure games like monkey island (I know Lucasarts were probably only the publishers for the adventure games but least they didn't interfere with the dev teams like they do nowadays which i heard is pretty bad)

Almost feels like with lucasarts nowadays. They think that if they slap Yoda or Vader in a game we suddenly start wetting ourselves for it giving it 10/10. Obviously they are wrong.

 

[Fappy]

After finding out what they did to the studio that was making Battlefront 3 I honestly never want to hear from them again.

 

[MammothBlade]

Anything but investing money into a decent game. It's almost as if they were taken over by some f**kwart Jabba the Hutt who doesn't know a single thing about games. WHERE'S BOUNTY HUNTER II? That had potential to be a seriously great series if it worked on the issues with the first.

 

[Thoric485]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-05-04-free-radical-vs-the-monsters

"In many ways it was a depressing farce talking to them," says Doak. "They had an agenda motivated by purely financial considerations. Their goal was to stop doing it. And it didn't matter that we had a contract that protected us. If we wanted to fight about it they were quite happy to fight about it, but it would be on their terms, on their turf, and we would lose not because we were wrong, but because... well, we wouldn't be able to ante up."

LucasArts wanted to find an exit, and the balance of power swung firmly in its favour. "What we found out in 2008 is that your contract is only worth as much as how far you can pursue it in court," says Steve Ellis. "Say the contract is, 'If publisher wants out, they have to pay X million pounds to developer.' Well, what if they don't? What are you going to do about it?"

LucasArts presented Free Radical with a choice. "The amount of time [court] would take was more than the money we had left," says Ellis. "So in practice the publisher wants out, and what they do is offer a fraction of that amount. And you either accept a smaller payment and hope to pull through one way or another, or you don't accept the payment and go out of business quite quickly." Free Radical had no choice at all.

The pressure on David Doak was unimaginable. "My role at Free Radical meant that I was simultaneously involved in these unpleasant 'high level' discussions with psychopaths who wanted to destroy us, and then the next day sitting with our dev staff at their desks trying to boost people's morale. Helping them to pass milestones that I knew would subsequently be manipulated to cause them to fail. It was the most depressing and pointless thing that I have ever been involved in. The dream job which I once loved had become a nightmarish torture."

"I found it impossible to reconcile that situation in my head and I had a nervous breakdown. I had to stop and take time off for the sake of myself and my family - ultimately I left the company I founded feeling like I had failed it."

Nothing good can come out of a company like that.

 

[Fappy]

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-05-04-free-radical-vs-the-monsters

"In many ways it was a depressing farce talking to them," says Doak. "They had an agenda motivated by purely financial considerations. Their goal was to stop doing it. And it didn't matter that we had a contract that protected us. If we wanted to fight about it they were quite happy to fight about it, but it would be on their terms, on their turf, and we would lose not because we were wrong, but because... well, we wouldn't be able to ante up."

LucasArts wanted to find an exit, and the balance of power swung firmly in its favour. "What we found out in 2008 is that your contract is only worth as much as how far you can pursue it in court," says Steve Ellis. "Say the contract is, 'If publisher wants out, they have to pay X million pounds to developer.' Well, what if they don't? What are you going to do about it?"

LucasArts presented Free Radical with a choice. "The amount of time [court] would take was more than the money we had left," says Ellis. "So in practice the publisher wants out, and what they do is offer a fraction of that amount. And you either accept a smaller payment and hope to pull through one way or another, or you don't accept the payment and go out of business quite quickly." Free Radical had no choice at all.

The pressure on David Doak was unimaginable. "My role at Free Radical meant that I was simultaneously involved in these unpleasant 'high level' discussions with psychopaths who wanted to destroy us, and then the next day sitting with our dev staff at their desks trying to boost people's morale. Helping them to pass milestones that I knew would subsequently be manipulated to cause them to fail. It was the most depressing and pointless thing that I have ever been involved in. The dream job which I once loved had become a nightmarish torture."

"I found it impossible to reconcile that situation in my head and I had a nervous breakdown. I had to stop and take time off for the sake of myself and my family - ultimately I left the company I founded feeling like I had failed it."

Nothing good can come out of a company like that.

Yeah, because of this LucasArts is at the top of my shit-list. Worse than EA, Activision and Capcom.