Company News BioWare is still alive

[Major_Blackhart]

Tim Cain and the others took breaks from the industry due to severe emotional exhaustion because they were closing up shop.
These guys didn't take a break. They were fucking booted. That's my belief anyway.
It's really pretty standard.
A company is bought out, the top dogs are kept on for a period of time to keep things running smoothly, all the while the owner brings it's own people in, that it can trust.
Meanwhile the former independent mgrs are basically teaching the new guys the owners trust how to do their job.
Not uncommon.

 

[Morgoth]

So now that Greg & Ray are fired gone, I guess EAs top management can finally ravage BioWare like vultures ravaging a cadaver without any opposition. Expect more people leaving.

 

[Volourn]

I bet they signed a 5 year contract when EA boguht BIO. 5 year sup, and they left. Simple as that. they probably have a couple of years of a no compete clause then they'll likely be free to pursue gaming work (or a new company) if they so wish. BIG FUKKIN' DEAL. In the meantime, they are richer than rich and have no worries.


"Tim Cain and the others took breaks from the industry due to severe emotional exhaustion because they were closing up shop."

They took breaks because they FAILED.

The BIo docs did not FAIL. They sold their company for a billion dollars. That's then opposite of FAIL.

 

[Major_Blackhart]

Give it another game or two before people leave in droves. But expect them to get put onto other projects and new, non-bio games being made by bioware developers.

 

[Jaesun]

Ray Muzyka ‏@RayMuzyka
I respect/revere fans, because they speak with deep, honest passion. Journalists speculating on ill-founded rumors should reassess approach.

Anyone know what these ill-founded rumors are?

 

[Infinitron]

Ray Muzyka ‏@RayMuzyka
I respect/revere fans, because they speak with deep, honest passion. Journalists speculating on ill-founded rumors should reassess approach.

Anyone know what these ill-founded rumors are?

Trent Oster's babbling, obviously.

 

[Volourn]

is that a real tweet?

 

[FeelTheRads]

Yes, Volourn, he's talking about you. He respects you. You.

 

[Jaesun]

is that a real tweet?

yes. https://twitter.com/RayMuzyka

 

[waywardOne]

Oster's just setting it up to blame fans when his BGEE tanks. He's already pinned the delayed release on them. It wouldn't surprise me if Ray and Greg actually quit because EA signed off on Oster's necrophilic rape of their best franchise.

 

[Black]

Volly, it's okay. It's okay to let go now. We're here for you, I'm here for you.
It's fine.

 

[Volourn]

"Oster's just setting it up to blame fans when his BGEE tanks. He's already pinned the delayed release on them. It wouldn't surprise me if Ray and Greg actually quit because EA signed off on Oster's necrophilic rape of their best franchise."

Ahh.. so that who Oster is? He's that bullshitter. i wonde rhow money BIO/EA would make off of the BGEE crap.


"Volly, it's okay. It's okay to let go now. We're here for you, I'm here for you.
It's fine"

heh. You obviously don't know me very well. I don't give a shit if the docs retired, got shitcanned, or went away crying to their mommie because of meanie internet posters. As of now, theya re irrleevant to me.

I will continue to do what I have always done - buy games that interest me no matter who makes them and ignore games I'm not interested in no matter who makes them.

 

[Sabriana]

This "blame the customer" is turning into a very bad habit of Bioware/EA. They really and truly don't get that people won't appreciate a nice, overflowing cup of garbage for at least 60 Euros a pop, even when it comes from them.

Good grief, they have gotten so used to everybody kissing their ass, they thought they could do anything, anytime, to everyone, and they would still be getting their butts kissed. Now they just have become the poster children for describing "Delusions of Grandeur".

Bioware/EA have already pissed many customers off with their heavy-handed and amateur PR, now they are pushing it even further. I guess some people/companies do not learn. What is this, a new way to win customers over? Insult the crap out of them, get your shills to do the same, and then keep on doing it? Oh well, let me know how it turns out Bioware/EA, I'm interested if it buries you before of after DA3.

 

[Volourn]

Sabriana is an idiot who doesn't read posts before posting. Why do people believe Oster's word as gospel? FFS

 

[Major_Blackhart]

So how long before Bio anounces the next game?

 

[Sabriana]

Sabriana is an idiot who doesn't read posts before posting. Why do people believe Oster's word as gospel? FFS

Oh hello there, princess. I still read very well, you know. The thing is, most of the garbage that is coming out of the Bioware/EA absolutely inferior PR, is aimed at blaiming the paying customer. Don't you think that someone connected to Bioware/EA spouting off and putting the blame on the people who pay for their efforts is a bad thing?

Quite a bad move, don't you think?

P.S. In before Newfaq dissing the princess, I joined in 2009, thing is, I missed the switch-over, and only remembered my old member name just very recently. I'm still there, in the members list, but I'll be damned if I remember my old password.

 

[Dexter]

The BIo docs did not FAIL. They sold their company for a billion dollars. That's then opposite of FAIL.

They didn't sell shit, and certainly not a billion. Back in 2005 they took an investment deal for $300 Million by Elevation Partners (with John Ricitiello being on board) and joined forces with Pandemic: http://www.gamespot.com/news/elevation-bioware-pandemic-joining-forces-6137143
They got stock options and got to be shareholders after their companies went public following that, they were likely also promised the moon e.g. same old crap about independence from publishers and safe monetary backing/funding and all that, they immediately invested a lot of the money to open up BioWare Austin and begin proper work on SWTOR, which was both announced March 13, 2006 and was one of the main reasons for the EA buyout (and we all know how that turned out):

Carefully referred to as a "creative and management partnership," the new operation is a holding company called BioWare/Pandemic Studios. BioWare's two cofounders, Greg Zeschuk and Ray Muzyka, and Pandemic's two cofounders, Andrew Goldman and Josh Resnick, will become shareholders and senior executives. As one might expect, Riccitiello becomes the company's CEO. The 400 employees of both studios will also receive stakes in BioWare/Pandemic, and the studios in Los Angeles, Edmonton, Canada, and Brisbane, Australia, will continue to operate largely as before.

According to Elevation, the BioWare/Pandemic deal is even bigger than the Eidos acquisition, being a "combined investment" of more than $300 million, including future funding. It also could have major repercussions within the game industry. Its express design is to sidestep the traditional publisher-developer relationship, where the latter is dependent on the former for funding, via the injection of outside capital.

"Some developers have chosen the path of selling to publishers, and that's a viable path," Resnick told GameSpot. "We have specifically chosen not to go down that route because it was important for us to maintain our independence. You know we really look for inspiration in companies like Pixar, because they're able to remain independent from distribution partners and increase their focus on creating great products."

Later Ricitiello became CEO of EA and bought the developer duo off of Elevation Partners for $860 Million, they likely got a high payoff for their stock, but at that point they didn't really have any choice, no matter how they felt. If anyone made lots of money off of the deal it's likely Ricitiello. Just imagine first brokering a deal to buy a company for $300 Million and become their CEO, then turning around and leaving to become EAs CEO and broker a deal to buy the very same company for $860 Million nearly two years later, almost tripling the initial investment.

http://www.businesswire.com/portal/...d=news_view&newsId=20071011006083&newsLang=en

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) today announced an agreement with Elevation Partners to acquire VG Holding Corp. -- the owner of both BioWare Corp. and Pandemic Studios. This acquisition gives EA a strong competitive position in key genres in interactive entertainment: action, adventure and role-playing games. The two studios have been recognized for creating some of the highest-quality games in the industry.

Notice how they didn't buy anything from any doctors, but from Elevation Partners, who had ownership over them

Ahh.. so that who Oster is? He's that bullshitter. i wonde rhow money BIO/EA would make off of the BGEE crap.

How do you really feel, talking like that about one of the founders of BioWare, there must be some sort of deep inner conflict within you eating away at your sanity xD

 

[Volourn]

I don't give a shit who he is. He puts words in other mouths hence bullshit. I doubt the docs spend their time surfing twitter (or the net in general) yet it took mere hours for oen ofn them to absically blast that bullshit lie that now lots of people actually believe that crap. And, Oster is the retart who is 'remaking' BG for no fukkin' reasons. Fuck him.

When he makes a whorthwhile game than he'll become important.

 

[DwarvenFood]

Site looks seriously fucked up: http://www.nowgamer.com/news/160981..._was_too_much_for_ray_greg_exbioware_dev.html

Damage control ?

 

[Volourn]

Why do people continue to spam the same idiot's lies?

 

[Major_Blackhart]

Do we know it's a lie?

 

[dnf]

Remember when this story was just rumours? And if someone begin a thread in BSN to talk about it, some mod asshole will go all false-LOCKDOWN on your ass?

 

[Shannow]

Do we know it's a lie?

It's not what volly wants to be true, so it's obviously a lie.

Joined: Dec 5, 2002

Damn new-fags. You have to explain everything...


PS: I have no idea as toward the veracity of that article. I haven't read it and I don't intend to since Bioware stopped releasing good games after HotU, IMO.

 

[Volourn]

One of the docs alreayd said the guy who made the claimw as a fukkin' piece of shit liar.

 

[Menckenstein]

One of the docs alreayd said the guy who made the claimw as a fukkin' piece of shit liar.

Because they've proven so truthful and reliable