Incline Chris Avellone Appreciation Station

[NecroLord]

He looks relatively well. Not ideal, but definitely less fat and miserable than a few years before.

I was just about to say that.
Here's to hoping he goes back to writing good games.

 

[Roguey]

This is hardly uncommon. For instance, out of the three developers Tim Cain has had on his talk show, one blurred his background and another one replaced it with a spaceship.

He never did it before.

 

[Takamori]

Much better, hope he fully recovers and go back to writing for RPGs
Its an absurd that company fire people or cut ties without a sentence from an actual court, should be grounds for a lawsuit that sort of troglodyte behavior.

He's an independent contractor not an employee. If he didn't have a solid contract in place or there were severability grounds, etc. then that's it.

You know perfectly well what he meant. The contrarian role doesn't suit you. Keep to your corny quips and painful japes.

Do I? The point seemed to be that a company should keep ties with someone they really don't have to when it could hurt their business and reputation. Good luck with that.

How? Those people that spent their entire day on twitter have the attention spam of a goldfish. New drama rise up they move to it, they are not there for ideals they are there to feed their lack of social interaction.
The fundamentals of society is the due process, when companies can trample this with the excuse of reputation is pretty easy to leave someone without a job if you got enough influence to do so.

 

[Hellraiser]

Contractor or not losing out on a job solely because of nothingburger accusations (he was what, awkwardly flirting using his status of a famous game writer at conventions or something?), made years after said events even took place is just plain unfair. Character assassination of such kind is incredibly easy and there are good reasons why libel/defamation laws exist, to prevent very low-effort high reward attempts of such kind.

If they had other reasons to drop him (that weren't Feargus being butthurt or something, unless it went into constant arguing and thus caused project-related issues) I can understand it, contract over, fuck off we don't want to work with you since you bring negative value added to the projects. But AFAIK this was solely because suddenly some woman had regrets from some situation years earlier, one that wouldn't even fly in court.

 

[ropetight]

Contractor or not losing out on a job solely because of nothingburger accusations (he was what, awkwardly flirting using his status of a famous game writer at conventions or something?), made years after said events even took place is just plain unfair. Character assassination of such kind is incredibly easily and there are good reasons why libel/defamation laws exist, to prevent very low-effort high reward attempts of such kind.

If they had other reasons to drop him (that weren't Feargus being butthurt or something, unless it went into constant arguing and thus caused project-related issues) I can understand it, contract over, fuck off we don't want to work with you since you bring negative value added to the projects. But AFAIK this was solely because suddenly some woman had regrets from some situation years earlier, one that wouldn't even fly in court.

All those cunts that acted like they suddenly don't know MCA after some petty chick talked shit about him ended up with stinkers that were full of bugs and sold poorly.

Curse of Avellone is real.

 

[NecroLord]

Contractor or not losing out on a job solely because of nothingburger accusations (he was what, awkwardly flirting using his status of a famous game writer at conventions or something?), made years after said events even took place is just plain unfair. Character assassination of such kind is incredibly easily and there are good reasons why libel/defamation laws exist, to prevent very low-effort high reward attempts of such kind.

If they had other reasons to drop him (that weren't Feargus being butthurt or something, unless it went into constant arguing and thus caused project-related issues) I can understand it, contract over, fuck off we don't want to work with you since you bring negative value added to the projects. But AFAIK this was solely because suddenly some woman had regrets from some situation years earlier, one that wouldn't even fly in court.

All those cunts that acted like they suddenly don't know MCA after some petty chick talked shit about him ended up with stinkers that were full of bugs and sold poorly.

Curse of Avellone is real.

Chris just wanted to explain to the bitch his third wheeling exit strategy like the big dick game writer he is.

 

[motherfucker]

Not sure why Riot needed that many people to begin with. How many people does it really take to maintain League of Legends? Sounds like typical HR bloat.

It's a worldwide live service that has to be up 24/7, with servers all around the world, and potentially millions of users at any given time. A substantial crew is needed imo.

Somehow, I don't think it's the actual techs that are getting axed en masse. Just a hunch.

 

[Moink]

A lot of these companies expanded due to the uptick in demand during COVID and are now having to downscale since COVID stopped being a thing, it's mostly all on the e-sports/streaming side of things.

 

[likash]

It seems that onlyfans is next logical step for Avellone

 

[Viata]

Some codex users will have no problem with onlyfans when that happens.

 

[deuxhero]

I can't believe I have to hear about this new podcast with Chris from sources other than this thread.



We need to figure out a way to get Fairfax back so this doesn't happen again.

Tell him to get on WriterDojo. Their previous guest on video games was just a NuRaven designer talking about writing through level design.

 

[likash]

I can't believe I have to hear about this new podcast with Chris from sources other than this thread.



We need to figure out a way to get Fairfax back so this doesn't happen again.

Dude is running the podcast from his mother's basement like a true codexer.

 

[Russia is over. The end.]

Watched half the interview, fell asleep after.

Main takeaway: MCA has played DE and liked it. Tough day for DE haters.

What a terrible interview otherwise. Most exchanges are either trite small talk, or inane, job interview-style questions like "what stuck with you the most after your career in gamedev".
MCA answers "your text will be translated, the aesthetic of your English text doesn't always survive". Uh huh. Banalities after banalities.
Then MCA gives advice on how to get into gamedev writing.... When we're on the bring of AI revolution.

What I'd ask MCA:
- Has he tried AI as a writing assistant? Thoughts? Why would he recommend anyone getting into writing when they're on the brink of replacement?
- I'd like to hear his perspective on how fantasy evolved from the times he started out to now, if he likes the evolution and where he thinks it's going to go.
- If he's involved with any project or if his career is over by his own volition?

I'd ideally like to ask him for thoughts on the opinion that the culture is in decline and video game writers are contributing to this, but knowing his nature (gentle, like the touch of an angel), I wouldn't ask him to critique his colleagues. I'd just stare into his beautiful eyes and leave it unsaid.

 

[Grauken]

When we're on the bring of AI revolution.

Is the VR revolution already over?

 

[ERYFKRAD]

When we're on the bring of AI revolution.

Is the VR revolution already over?

They're basically rotations at this point.

 

[thesecret1]

Has he tried AI as a writing assistant? Thoughts? Why would he recommend anyone getting into writing when they're on the brink of replacement?

I have. It's basically useless for creative writing - the quality is rock bottom. Very handy for quickly looking up grammar though, or when you need to quickly look up some historical context (ie. "what kind of accessories did people in early 19th century wear for high society events"), but even then you gotta verify it yourself whether it's true or not.

Don't think AI is at a level where it could replace writers. Copywriters should be shaking in their boots though.

 

[Lord_Potato]

Main takeaway: MCA has played DE and liked it. Tough day for DE haters.

And now MCA will join forces with Robert Kurvitz to produce the ultimate storyfag RPG. With blackjack and hookers (no combat though)!

 

[Decado]

A lot of these companies expanded due to the uptick in demand during COVID and are now having to downscale since COVID stopped being a thing, it's mostly all on the e-sports/streaming side of things.

This is correct. 80% of these jobs being axed are ancillary/tangential that have little to do with game development. These are esports, marketing, PR, influencer, and corporate jobs. The actual dev jobs are the fallout of projects being canceled. For example, a large number of "Service Games" -- which historically have had very high headcount -- are getting thrown out the window.

I think we will see a contraction of resources but an expansion of titles released in 2025 onward. There's a lot of stuff going on. Companies are looking at games like Palworld and Helldivers and noticing you don't need to spend a trillion dollars to make your game successful (they know this, but they always forget). Also, some of this is the Elon effect -- the watched the guy cut 80% of his staff and realized they are likely carrying a similar load of completely useless employees. Plus, they are likely now realizing that "working from home" for all but the most dedicated and disciplined employees is just flushing money down the fucking toilet, since most of them do nothing when they're in the office, let alone at home in their fucking yoga pants. They're also taking this opportunity to cut DEI programs and their associated useless headcounts.

In addition, one huge item that nobody is talking about is the change in the tax code here in the US. It is complicated but the gist of it is this: you can no longer immediately write off the costs of R&D. This hurts a lot, as modern video games spend a tremendous amount of time in "research and development" mode. This makes it more expensive up front to develop a new game, so non-essential personnel are hitting the bricks.

I think the output of this will be games that cost less to develop and are made faster. Game companies are going to have to throw more darts to hit a smaller bullseye.

 

[scytheavatar]

A lot of these companies expanded due to the uptick in demand during COVID and are now having to downscale since COVID stopped being a thing, it's mostly all on the e-sports/streaming side of things.

This is correct. 80% of these jobs being axed are ancillary/tangential that have little to do with game development. These are esports, marketing, PR, influencer, and corporate jobs. The actual dev jobs are the fallout of projects being canceled. For example, a large number of "Service Games" -- which historically have had very high headcount -- are getting thrown out the window.

I think we will see a contraction of resources but an expansion of titles released in 2025 onward. There's a lot of stuff going on. Companies are looking at games like Palworld and Helldivers and noticing you don't need to spend a trillion dollars to make your game successful (they know this, but they always forget). Also, some of this is the Elon effect -- the watched the guy cut 80% of his staff and realized they are likely carrying a similar load of completely useless employees. Plus, they are likely now realizing that "working from home" for all but the most dedicated and disciplined employees is just flushing money down the fucking toilet, since most of them do nothing when they're in the office, let alone at home in their fucking yoga pants. They're also taking this opportunity to cut DEI programs and their associated useless headcounts.

In addition, one huge item that nobody is talking about is the change in the tax code here in the US. It is complicated but the gist of it is this: you can no longer immediately write off the costs of R&D. This hurts a lot, as modern video games spend a tremendous amount of time in "research and development" mode. This makes it more expensive up front to develop a new game, so non-essential personnel are hitting the bricks.

I think the output of this will be games that cost less to develop and are made faster. Game companies are going to have to throw more darts to hit a smaller bullseye.

"Throw more darts to hit a smaller bullseye" has already been tried by Embracer group, also games like Immortals Of Aveum, with disastrous results. AAA will always be much more preferred by publishers over more AA because it's simply far harder to hit a smaller bullseye, and throwing more darts will add up in costs very quickly.

Stuff like outsourcing studios out of Cali to Eastern Euro countries will happen at an accelerated rate to reduce costs, but ultimately the game industry needs to produce less games, not more.

 

[deuxhero]

Embracer's issue was overextending and Deep Silver being a throughly toxic asset. Immortals of Aveum was being shitty AAA slop at 90% of the budget of AAA (seriously: They gave everyone magic radios because they couldn't write anything but modern military shooters, and immediately stick the reluctant untrained hero in offscreen training so they didn't have to write him as anything but modern military operator)

 

[Decado]

Embracer's issue was overextending and Deep Silver being a throughly toxic asset. Immortals of Aveum was being shitty AAA slop at 90% of the budget of AAA (seriously: They gave everyone magic radios because they couldn't write anything but modern military shooters, and immediately stick the reluctant untrained hero in offscreen training so they didn't have to write him as anything but modern military operator)

IMO, Embracer's issue was waiting for Saudi money to come through that never came through. They went on a buying spree they couldn't pay for, and when the check they were anticipating didn't clear, they realized they were, to use the expression with no offense to my Scandinavian friends, way over their skis.

But yes, I also agree - they bought a bunch of okay, AA developers -- at best. I think they mistook the very relative popularity of some of the franchises they bought and assumed they had a bunch of hit-makers. With the exception of Gearbox (and they really only have the one IP in Borderlands), they didn't buy anything spectacular. When I look through their portfolio of owned companies, I don't see anything compelling. At least, not $2-billion-USD-compelling. What exactly were they so excited about? The next Darksiders? Goat Simulator 2? The Saber Interactive port of Kingdom Come: Deliverance for the Switch? I don't understand their thinking. They spent tons of money to buy IPs that historically did just okay.

 

[likash]

Has Avellone posted anything here since his 2020 rants about Obsidian? From what i remember some fellow codexers helped a lot with his case against those lying bitches.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Has Avellone posted anything here since his 2020 rants about Obsidian?

2020 was the year that Chris Avellone was accused of sexual improprieties. His last posting occurred in 2018.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

Speaking as a lawyer:

I can pretty much guarantee you that MCA’s high-powered counsel told him that they would drop him as a client if he posted here (as they should).

 

[Russia is over. The end.]

Speaking as a lawyer:

I can pretty much guarantee you that MCA’s high-powered counsel told him that they would drop him as a client if he posted here (as they should).

Isn't the case over?