Episode 488: 2018 Has Begun

The audio quality is a little bad on this podcast, probably because Scott goes on and on about his fractured butt-hole. However, the episode was recorded on January 1, so there isn’t much news. The gang also challenges Paul to pop in and do an episode sometime.

What news that was discussed includes:

  • Project Phoenix accused of being a scam
  • Platinum Games working on two self-published games
  • Mutant Football League kicks off the New Year with a console launch

All this and Listener Feedback. The Question of the Week remains, “What game are you looking forward to in 2018?”

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Episode 482: NaptimeEpisode 482: Naptime

This particular episode becomes a little sleepy as one host actually falls asleep during recording. Guess which one. After last week’s episode only partially uploaded, the Gaming Flashback for Okami is actually an insert, too.

The news items include:

  • It’s a big week for new game releases on Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC
  • Lego Dimensions comes to an early end after two years
  • Why Xbox One backward compatibility took so long
  • Ex-BioWare says Anthem is an example of EA’s monetization plans

Let us know what you think — without falling asleep first.

Smart Business Choices During Economic DownturnsSmart Business Choices During Economic Downturns

Many game studios are being dropped following a bit of an economic downturn in the United States and globally. Activision has to deal with being agile enough to survive the economic times like anyone else and has dropped a few games that had great potential.

Gamers continue to ask the question, “why?” when some of their highest potential games were dropped to the floor. Ghostbusters and BrĂ¼tal Legend are a couple examples of games with eager fans already salivating prior to its launch. Some of these fans are a bit ticked off that Activision named them as dropped franchise opportunities.

People ask why a company holds one “mediocre” title while getting rid of other potentially awesome ones. Don’t forget, this is a business and a good studio/publisher is going to make good business decisions without emotional attachments – those that bring emotions into play may end up with a highly valued product (to them) with no additional potential and lower revenue. This isn’t to say developers cannot be passionate about their games and their industry, they just have to build games gamers will buy and continue to fall in love with release after release.

Activision CEO Bobby Kotick is one of these business savvy individuals who knows where investors will find profits for the future, and he also know how to manage employees, with the use of software like this sample pay stub for payments and more.

“[Those games] don’t have the potential to be exploited every year on every platform with clear sequel potential and have the potential to become $100 million dollar franchises. … I think, generally, our strategy has been to focus… on the products that have those attributes and characteristics, the products that we know [that] if we release them today, we’ll be working on them 10 years from now.” (1up)

Ghostbusters is a great example of a title which could be well received and fun to play but probably wouldn’t be an exploitable franchise. The game, based on a popular movie, has limited potential for yearly releases and huge franchise success. Ghostbusters fans would probably disagree, but that’s when emotion comes into play. Think dollars and cents, not awesome fun gaming.

Oddly enough many of these business decisions from Activision, Electronic Arts and other big publishers arrive when the economy is in free fall and investors are eying your revenue potential. People make their most important and, usually, unfriendly business decisions when their company is at risk.

It’s sad to think money comes first and entertainment value comes second but we’re not the ones trying to make a profitable living in the industry. Put yourself in Kotick’s shoes as he walks into a board meeting to discuss future plans, road maps and profitability – you’d do what you have to do to keep your job, right?

Gaming Podcast 213: Pith HelmetsGaming Podcast 213: Pith Helmets

It’s time to use your meat, you gotta work at it! Yeah, this weeks gaming podcast talks a bit about moma’s meat on her Pooyan, this is your gaming flashback for the week! We’ve also got some news bulletins including:

This weeks question of the week, sorta off the cuff random: What’s your favorite old school game, and how long do you believe it took to make it? (and, do you really know how long–do the research and let us know!)