Company News Spellbound is Back, Aims to be "Leader in RPG and Strategy Games"

[Crooked Bee]

Tags: Black Forest Games; Spellbound

Spellbound, the infamous (and insolvent) developer of the masterpiece that is Gothic 4, has re-emerged as Black Forest Games, aiming for nothing less than "re-establishing itself" as "a leader in RPG and strategy games," according to Eurogamer:

Gothic 4 developer Spellbound has "emerged from insolvency" as a new company, Black Forest Games.

BFG?

There's new funding, new resources. The team's still in Germany.

Of the 65-person Spellbound team, 40 will join Black Forest Games. The key members of the management and creative team remain.

Black Forest Games wants to re-establish itself as "a leader in RPG and strategy games".

Spellbound Entertainment started out in 1994, and made Airline Tycoon, Robin Hood: Legend of Sherwood and Desperados 1 and 2.

Desperados 2, Eurogamer reviewed. It was a team-based real-time strategy game a bit like Commandos, but in the Wild West. Turned out pretty good, too.

Most recently, Spellbound set about the RPG licence Gothic, after series creator Piranha Bytes split with publisher JoWooD. Gothic 4 turned out badly, though.

Piranha Bytes owns the Gothic IP, by the way - JoWooD had leased it. It's now gone back to Piranha Bytes, which has been biding its time making Risen 1 and Risen 2. The latter's out on PC already, and comes to consoles in early August.

Back to Black Forest Games.

"Black Forest Games will add to the legacy of Spellbound Entertainment by empowering the core of the team to build an even greater company that is tuned to today's market opportunities," commented CEO Andreas Speer.

"With the talent and IP we have internally, we know we'll again be recognised as a leader in the creation of games for the RPG and strategy genres."​

Looking forward to the inevitable Schwarzwald RPG. Just imagine all the tree corridors and wooden animations! I'm sure the new Spellbound will deliver that, and more.

 

[thesheeep]

Run!!! Run for your lives!

Then again, Airline Tyoon was pretty solid...

 

[mondblut]

again recognized as a leader...?

That's funny, I never heard of them before.

 

[Morkar Left]

Their strategy games were pretty good. But afaik the only rpg they ever released was Arcania?

"Black Forest Games will add to the legacy of Spellbound Entertainment by empowering the core of the team to build an even greater company that is tuned to today's market opportunities,"

I give them two years max for being totally clueless of what the market demands for a company in their position...

 

[Tolknaz]

Desperados was actually great and their Robin Hood game and Desperados 2 sort of good, but these motherfuckers deserve to go down and stay down for good for Arcania.

 

[commie]

Great Commandos clones, but trying to promote themselves as RPG makers? Get the fuck out of here. Stay dead indeed. Only redemption could come with another good Desperados/Robin Hood game. Leave RPG's alone, even casual faggots don't go for their pitiful efforts.

 

[Morkar Left]

If they would come up with a Wild West rpg that basically has an engine like Desperados with stats (with the same options) and make the world free to explore they could develop an outstanding game, actually.

 

[mbpopolano24]

I wonder if this is just PR shit that they have to say in order to attract confidence and funding, or just the delusional level in our planet is increasing proportionally to gas emissions...

 

[Zed]

I wonder if they'll still be in cahoots with "nordic games".

 

[JarlFrank]

I want them to continue making solid Commandos clones, preferably with the gorgeous 2D graphics of Robin Hood.

But we all know that won't happen.

 

[Outlander]

Another Desperados fanboy here, although the second one I didn't like that much.

 

[FeelTheRads]

There's also Desperados 3, by the way. It's called Helldorado:
http://www.mobygames.com/game/helldorado

Don't know how it is though. I didn't even try the second one since it looked to be more actiony or something.

 

[TalesfromtheCrypt]

They also made a game called "Spellforce" I think, some awkward (and totally forgetable) RPG/rts hybrid. I'm not sure it was even released outside of germany though.

Edit: Nope, memory playing tricks. Someone else made it.

 

[Metro]

Arcania was so bad I literally felt embarrassed for them. Costume Quest was a better RPG.

 

[Micmu]

"even greater company that is tuned to today's market opportunities"

I, too, give 2 years/2 failed console slashers max.
They're so cute when they try...
Best would be to not mention their history and just try to sneak by as some entirely new company and target non-AAA market. Which they won't do. BYE

 

[mbpopolano24]

Desperados was actually great and their Robin Hood game and Desperados 2 sort of good, but these motherfuckers deserve to go down and stay down for good for Arcania.

And then he tried to bash DU in the head for trying too hard to be too witty.... oh, the irony.....

 

[Tolknaz]

Desperados was actually great and their Robin Hood game and Desperados 2 sort of good, but these motherfuckers deserve to go down and stay down for good for Arcania.

And then he tried to bash DU in the head for trying too hard to be too witty.... oh, the irony.....

There is a difference between a random five second forum post and an editorial you know.

 

[bhlaab]

Arcania being shitty was probably JoWood's fault more than theirs

 

[eric__s]

Ooooooooooooooh yeah. Spellbound's back in the ring. It's time to get hyped. It's Spellbound everyone. It's fucking Spellbound. You thought Spellbound was down and out. You thought Spellbound was gone for good, but you were wrong. Want to know why? Because Spellbound is fucking back. That's right. THE Spellbound. It's time to get pumped, everyone. Pumped for Spellbound. Are you hyped? Are you pumped up? You better be, because this is Spellbound. That's right. THE Spellbound, and they're back.

 

[laclongquan]

I dont know about later games, but Desperados and Robin Hood were two games I enjoyed. Much more than the famed CoD games or whatever.

 

[Darth Roxor]

This gon be gud

 

[laclongquan]

wat? It's true. Never bother to go beyond two mission of any CoD game, but I remember 10 missions of Robin hood and Desperados. And it's bloody scenetic, too.

 

[commie]

There's also Desperados 3, by the way. It's called Helldorado:
http://www.mobygames.com/game/helldorado

Don't know how it is though. I didn't even try the second one since it looked to be more actiony or something.

You could play it in this gimmicky third person action way but that was bullshit as it made the game far too easy. Ironically it also confused reviewers who thought it was a mediocre third person action game(and in this mode it certainly was) and rated it down accordingly. If you limited yourself to the traditional 'Commandos' view, you got a pretty good Commandos style game, both in D2 and Helldorado.

wat? It's true. Never bother to go beyond two mission of any CoD game, but I remember 10 missions of Robin hood and Desperados. And it's bloody scenetic, too.

The castles looked fucking great. 2D art FTW! Was also cool how you could select your team to be ultra violent or pacifist giving different gameplay styles and even changing how many recruits you could gather based on how bloodthirsty you were(not that it mattered too much, but it was a nice touch).

 

[Roguey]

Arcania being shitty was probably JoWood's fault more than theirs

I don't think developers should be let off the hook for bad execution. And you can execute bad ideas well, just look at [popular thing you hate].

 

[bhlaab]

Arcania being shitty was probably JoWood's fault more than theirs

I don't think developers should be let off the hook for bad execution. And you can execute bad ideas well, just look at [popular thing you hate].

They seem like a decent enough dev house. Arcania is boring but, like you said, it's bad ideas executed well. It certainly doesn't make them come off as incompetent. Their previous games were alright, and the fact that it seems 65% of the employees from spellbound-- and 100% of the key creative staff-- came back for round 2 implies that it is well managed.

JoWood, on the other hand, doesn't have the best track record as a publisher. They were responsible for most of Gothic 3's issues and most of their business lately has been putting out shitty Painkiller mods on the shelf for $20. Them I'm more willing to give... what's the opposite of the benefit of the doubt? The uninformed blame, I guess.