Vapourware System Shock 3 by OtherSide Entertainment - taken over by Tencent!

[MasterLobar]

We don't know if he got laid off or fired, or left himself.

People who quit voluntarily usually have their next job already (else why would they leave) and announce what comes next.



Looks to me very much like OS is kicking out people just to survive a few more weeks so they can kowtow in front of a few more potential SS3 publishers, none of which will be interested, and then shutting down a few weeks later, instead of being honest to their employees and tell them right now that the studio has no future and that they should start looking for a new job now.

Well, anyone with a brain knows this and is searching for new opportunities already.

 

[Curratum]

Well, anyone with a brain knows this and is searching for new opportunities already.

The catch is, there's nobody with a brain working at Otherside.

 

[Child of Malkav]

SS3 could be good if Arkane would help Otherside to make it.

Possibly but I don't want Arkane anywhere near these hacks.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

We don't know if he got laid off or fired, or left himself.

People who quit voluntarily usually have their next job already (else why would they leave) and announce what comes next.

Again, you seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of what the phrase “laid-off” means in American business. Being “laid-off” is not voluntary on the part of the employee; it is the employer terminating the employee without cause, and thereby tacitly acknowledging that they are in deep financial doodoo, because no remotely competent employer would ever terminate someone without cause if they didn’t have to (there are big, widely enforced laws to prevent profitable companies from doing this).

It’s particularly strange to me that you continue to disregard this, as it actually supports your narrative (which for the record I largely agree with) that Otherside is in its deathrattle better than your weird conspiracy theory that Otherside is firing people for... reasons?

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

no remotely competent employer would ever terminate someone without cause if they didn’t have to (there are big, widely enforced laws to prevent profitable companies from doing this).

Ha!

Okay. Fair. Let us then say that there are big, widely enforced laws to prevent small to midsize profitable companies from doing this. The big companies can more or less do whatever they want, but none of that applies to Otherside so far as I can tell.

 

[passerby]

SS3 could be good if Arkane would help Otherside to make it.

It sure helped Wolfenstein: Youngblood.

 

[MasterLobar]

Again, you seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of what the phrase “laid-off” means in American business. Being “laid-off” is not voluntary on the part of the employee; it is the employer terminating the employee without cause, and thereby tacitly acknowledging that they are in deep financial doodoo, because no remotely competent employer would ever terminate someone without cause if they didn’t have to (there are big, widely enforced laws to prevent profitable companies from doing this).

It’s particularly strange to me that you continue to disregard this, as it actually supports your narrative (which for the record I largely agree with) that Otherside is in its deathrattle better than your weird conspiracy theory that Otherside is firing people for... reasons?

I don't understand your comment. The community manager confirmed Chris Siegel was "laid off" (i.e., fired) and that's what I am saying.

Former "studio art director" Nate Wells left voluntarily in February 2018 (https://forums.otherside-e.com/t/looks-like-nate-wells-has-left-otherside/9503/10 - Oh, these "long harsh winters" in New England...) and joined Arkane, so he wasn't "laid off" or "fired" (I never said he was). He probably quit because he knew UA was a unsalvagable mess and Otherside as a whole was a train wreck.

And this Mike Ammer guy likely didn't leave voluntarily because the company is in financial trouble and he didn't announce any new position or plan (unlike Nate Wells), so I am saying he likely was fired/laid off. Should be correct, too.

No disagreement between us, right?

 

[Katana1000S]

Let me be the first to remind anyone who is stupid enough to think this once good franchise will be released by these criminals, out of the mouth of one of the developers, SS3 was supposedly more than half complete almost a year ago, quite clearly it was not and is still not.

These people are lying criminals who steal our hard earned money and lie for a living, this is a criminal offence, and they must be prosecuted and made to serve the harshest prison sentence's ever handed out, preferably sharing a prison cell with a big fat nudist mentally ill guy who once tried to play Underworld Ascendant before he was pushed over the edge.

 

[MasterLobar]

7 months.

Semi-regular reminder: This game is not going to be released.

It's now almost 4 months since Starbreeze cancelled the deal. That's more than enough time to present the game to any publisher who might even remotely be interested. It's obvious that everyone turned it down.

And the BS interview that said they are going to self-publishing it...don't make me laugh. (btw, that confirmed no on else is interested)

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Let me be the first to remind anyone who is stupid enough to think this once good franchise will be released by these criminals, out of the mouth of one of the developers, SS3 was supposedly more than half complete almost a year ago, quite clearly it was not and is still not.

These people are lying criminals who steal our hard earned money and lie for a living, this is a criminal offence, and they must be prosecuted and made to serve the harshest prison sentence's ever handed out, preferably sharing a prison cell with a big fat nudist mentally ill guy who once tried to play Underworld Ascendant before he was pushed over the edge.

7 months.

Semi-regular reminder: This game is not going to be released.

It's now almost 4 months since Starbreeze cancelled the deal. That's more than enough time to present the game to any publisher who might even remotely be interested. It's obvious that everyone turned it down.

And the BS interview that said they are going to self-publishing it...don't make me laugh. (btw, that confirmed no on else is interested)

 

[MasterLobar]

I had another look at the Starbreeze Q2 report and it might be possible that I was wrong about the repayments to Starbreeze for the $6.8 million they invested so far in SS3.

The report says:

"Under the terms of the sale agreement for 10 Crowns and System Shock 3, Starbreezewill recover its investment over time. In accordance with IFRS reporting rules, however, the Group will initially recognize a losson the transactions, as IFRS 15 does not permit recognition of future royalties in revenue even if these are directly connected to the sale" (emphasis added)

https://www.starbreeze.com/sbz-media/2019/08/Starbreeze-Half-Year-Report-Q2-2019.pdf

If they are using the term "royalties" as it is most commonly understood, it would mean that they are getting their repayments only if and when SS3 is launched as a share of revenues. So Nyast might in fact have been right and the repayment is royalty-based.

Needless to say, if that really is the case, it massively improves their position compared to what I thought their financial situation is.

In this case, self-publishing a watered-down version might even be a viable option, because they just need to cough up the money needed to complete the game. In the other scenario, they would have to repay Starbreeze in addition to the development cost.

If the repayment is in fact royalty-based, they just have to get enough money to make the game and they can then see how it turns out. If it's a good seller, they can repay Starbreeze and still make a profit.

What's actually even more damning in this scenario is that they didn't find a publisher. I always opined that no one is doing it because they have to repay Starbreeze, but if they don't have to do that and still NO ONE wants to publish SS3, it must be a real train wreck that isn't anywhere near being ready for launch in the foreseeable future.

 

[BEvers]

 

[Max Heap]

Pretty obvious it's a pitch video for investors then.

 

[Roguey]

Did Sam get that promotion yet, because "making pitch videos for investors (not the community)" is definitely more than what's expected for a community manager.

 

[Dodo1610]

We all know that these hacks will launch another crowdfunding campaign and they will get away with it again.

 

[MasterLobar]

Did Sam get that promotion yet, because "making pitch videos for investors (not the community)" is definitely more than what's expected for a community manager.

She was reduced to part time last week.

 

[Max Heap]

Next thing you know she'll be promoted to customer

 

[MasterLobar]

Almost a year since they launched the game and they have still not brought the AI to a minimally acceptable standard.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/692840/discussions/0/1636417404916093906/

I understand why no publisher wants to touch SS3. If they can't get such a basic thing right months and months after launching a game, why should anyone be confident it will all be different when they launch SS3?

Combat, stealth etc. are probably a lot more complex in a Shock-type game. They can't do it in UA for a very limited number of enemies, most with a very straighforward way to fight and who encounter the player often in large, relatively open caverns.

How's that supposed to work out in System Shock which has 10 types of robots robots, cyborg assassins, flying mutants, invisible enemies, autobombs etc. who are operating in narrow corridors monitored by security cameras and who attack using melee weapons, grenades, psy power, rifles, rocket launchers... ...?

Imagine how much trickier it is to develop a good AI in that environment compared to UA.

 

[BEvers]

 

[MasterLobar]

7 months after they announced the game was "more than halfway completed," they are finally ready to release their second teaser video.

 

[Curratum]

Who the fuck is even posting on their forums anymore? Is Sam talking to herself?

 

[Jenkem]

Sam is a chatbot.

 

[Roguey]

Why release a teaser for something that will never happen?

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Why release a teaser for something that will never happen?

 

[Roguey]

Why release a teaser for something that will never happen?

From whom? I doubt it's going to create enough interest to convince any given publisher to change their mind if they're already not interested in what they've seen.