This is the last podcast of 2023, as the gang just talks about the year that was and the upcoming 2024 in a long, unscripted episode.
Episode 707: Goodbye 2023
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Gaming Podcast 181: Bag of FailGaming Podcast 181: Bag of Fail
This weeks gaming podcast, we’re going through a bit of Sega content, Sonic The Hedgehog CD and the second tier of Sega history. We’ll hit some listener feedback about Steam and Blizzards RealID as well as some meaty news topics including:
- Starcraft 2 will have a 3D option
- After four years, Sony is finally making a profit on the PS3
- Activision comments on Xbox Live
- Gamers want physical media over digital media
- Now you really can drink like a Murloc
This weeks question of the week, what video game genre’s could really benefit from 3D gaming that may not have been considered yet?
Episode 398: Only Two MoreEpisode 398: Only Two More
Two more episodes, and Paul is no longer a regular podcast host. On a side note, there will be no podcast next week due to scheduling conflicts.
This week’s news:
- The Pokémon Company shuts down PAX party with lawsuit
- 881 E.T. cartridges buried in New Mexico desert sell for over $100K
- The smaller new 3DS is coming to the US on September 25
- How GOG rescued 13 Forgotten Realms games from licensing hell
All this and Listener Feedback.
Sierra’s Franchise Titles Fade Into HistorySierra’s Franchise Titles Fade Into History
One of the great downfalls of an acquisition or merger, in the game industry, is the loss of great franchise titles. Sierra, or Sierra Online, once stood on its own as a company with great gaming titles but later fell into the depths of Hades under many different company names.
Sierra’s last stop on the acquisition highway was Vivendi, years after much of Sierra’s steam had slowed. Now, they’re part of Activision Blizzard so we had high hopes they’d find a great use for some of the old Sierra properties long since collecting dust. Space Quest, Kings Quest, Leisure Suit Larry and especially Gabrielle Knight were some of our favorites, but times have changed.
“We are retaining only those franchises that are a strong fit with our long-term strategy including Crash Bandicoot, Ice Age and Spyro, as well as Prototype and a second game that has not yet been announced. We will not publish any other titles that previously were part of the Vivendi Games portfolio and we are currently reviewing our options regarding those titles,” says Activision Blizzard (joystiq)
This is unfortunate news, Activision Blizzard now has a large set of franchises on their hands, many of which have collected dust for years. Those dust collecting franchises could rise from the dead and reinvigorate their old fan base… or be dropped to the earth as unwanted scrapes after a big hunt with the vultures awaiting their take (sorry, too much watching of Animal Planet)
A reworked Kings Quest or Gabriel Knight could have seriously awesome potential in this time and age, imagine a dark comedy version of Gabriel Knight or a huge scaled world in King Quest using todays graphic engines. Although, these titles could also go the way Atari has gone and taken a well remembered franchise and made mud of its great name (*cough* Alone in the Dark).
Unfortunately, we’ll probably never know the distance an old franchise could go in this new world. We’ll have to pull out an old copy of our prized posessions and remember just how great they once where.