Information EA Origin gets Kickstarter projects, Wasteland 2 is first

[Morkar Left]

What I'm wondering is what is EA's angle here? Why butter up to the indies and Kickstarter?

To promote the Origin store.

And to see how successful indies really are with exact numbers they can trust.

 

[Kz3r0]

ITT people fall for a 0 money PR stunt, guys, Wasteland 2, Shadowrun, Doublefine, Al Lowe, Jane Jensen, The Banner saga bagged almost 10M$ all combined, that the publishers smelled the money is only natural, without mentioning the hype that Kickstarter generated.

 

[Johannes]

What I'm wondering is what is EA's angle here? Why butter up to the indies and Kickstarter?

To promote the Origin store.

And to see how successful indies really are with exact numbers they can trust.

How would waiving the distribution fee for them help with that? Either way most sales won't be happening through their store.

 

[Morkar Left]

No Distribution fee makes sure they get a lot of indies on Origin. That's already covered withthe promotion, too. And to estimate all sales they only need to know how big the market share of Origin is. Which they already know, of course.

 

[Executer]

Still don't trust EA but this and the Linux thing are 'interesting' developments.

 

[InspectorRumpole]

Meh, doubt the W2 audience will buy if from Origin anyway.

Maybe it was just Fargo owing AE one, and thought what the heck.

 

[commie]

The more I think about this the worse it gets: the whole point was to free oneself from big publishers in every form, not rely on them for anything. Even a free ride is not free when it compromises the whole philosophy behind going cap in hand to fans in the first place. Not a good move Brian, not a good move at all. It's like the thing that happened to Winston Smith: he had to be re-educated before he could be destroyed.

 

[Mozgoëbstvo]

The more I think about this the worse it gets: the whole point was to free oneself from big publishers in every form, not rely on them for anything. Even a free ride is not free when it compromises the whole philosophy behind going cap in hand to fans in the first place. Not a good move Brian, not a good move at all. It's like the thing that happened to Winston Smith: he had to be re-educated before he could be destroyed.

Yes. Even if the game turns out as good as everyone wants it to be, he still violated the principles that he espoused so vocally and gave him excess funding from the fans to start with. And that's always bad, no matter how you cut it.

 

[commie]

The more I think about this the worse it gets: the whole point was to free oneself from big publishers in every form, not rely on them for anything. Even a free ride is not free when it compromises the whole philosophy behind going cap in hand to fans in the first place. Not a good move Brian, not a good move at all. It's like the thing that happened to Winston Smith: he had to be re-educated before he could be destroyed.

Yes. Even if the game turns out as good as everyone wants it to be, he still violated the principles that he espoused so vocally and gave him excess funding from the fans to start with. And that's always bad, no matter how you cut it.

He made a big song and dance about 'evil publishers' to garner sympathy and funds and now goes crawling back to them. The quality of his browser game is not the point but rather his cynical manipulation. The point was to break with this once and for all and to slam the door in the big publishers' faces. You think now after the 'free offer' he'll suddenly pull Wasteland 2 from Origin? It will stay there and EA will profit from it, no matter how little. Why should they get a cut of something they shat on for 20 years? Why should they be the beneficiaries of crowd funding?

 

[Oriental European]

First Unity, now this...
:fishy feeling:

 

[Morkar Left]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

 

[Infinitron]

Again: Every sale Bard's Tale makes (on iOS, and soon Android as well) is due to Brian Fargo's collaboration with EA.

inXile and Fargo never declared jihad against EA. They're against publishers funding their game development and nothing more

 

[Mozgoëbstvo]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

The fact is, he insulted the big publishers so vehemently you would've thought even such a maneuvre was off limits. For principle's sake.

 

[Morkar Left]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

The fact is, he insulted the big publishers so vehemently you would've thought even such a maneuvre was off limits. For principle's sake.

He didn't say PUBLISHERS FUCK YOU ALL. I SPIT ON YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He said that he really dislikes it when publishers gonna tell him how to develop the game and what he has to say when promoting the game and that publishers didn't want to fund W2 in the first place because of its design principles (classic tb partybased rpg).

 

[Kz3r0]

Correct me if I am wrong.
EA owns Wasteland's rights, and Fargo can make the game only because they didn't asked money for the license.

 

[commie]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

The fact is, he insulted the big publishers so vehemently you would've thought even such a maneuvre was off limits. For principle's sake.

Sorry bro, I thought you were being sarcastic earlier. Reading your later post I see that you weren't.

I don't like this apologising for him from members here: it's fucking corporations like EA that are responsible for the situation Fargo found himself in the first place and the state of the gaming industry as a whole. Why then peddle your wares using their resources? Ok EA isn't publishing the game, but every cent they make from Origin just goes back into maintaining their stranglehold on the industry and perpetuating the cycle. A man of Fargo's stature could easily rally a whole cross section to an alternate method of distribution for the little guy and send a message that would be taken much more seriously than if anonymous indie #347 did the same! It would be a chance to really start a counter movement but like this he gets the desperate fans to stump up the cash while he and EA reap the rewards. That's the real fucking problem, EA benefit without any risk. Their corporate model of not funding niche titles is actually going to pay off for them!

 

[Infinitron]

Sorry bro, I thought you were being sarcastic earlier. Reading your later post I see that you weren't.

I don't like this apologising for him from members here: it's fucking corporations like EA that are responsible for the situation Fargo found himself in the first place and the state of the gaming industry as a whole. Why then peddle your wares using their resources? Ok EA isn't publishing the game, but every cent they make from Origin just goes back into maintaining their stranglehold on the industry and perpetuating the cycle. A man of Fargo's stature could easily rally a whole cross section to an alternate method of distribution for the little guy and send a message that would be taken much more seriously than if anonymous indie #347 did the same! It would be a chance to really start a counter movement but like this he gets the desperate fans to stump up the cash while he and EA reap the rewards. That's the real fucking problem, EA benefit without any risk. Their corporate model of not funding niche titles is actually going to pay off for them!

There's nothing to apologise for here. Brian Fargo has done his part, and it's more than enough. Somebody else will have to take the next step of your revolution. BF has a pre-existing relationship with EA and he cannot declare war on them even if he wanted to.

 

[Mozgoëbstvo]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

The fact is, he insulted the big publishers so vehemently you would've thought even such a maneuvre was off limits. For principle's sake.

He didn't say PUBLISHERS FUCK YOU ALL. I SPIT ON YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He said that he really dislikes it when publishers gonna tell him how to develop the game and what he has to say when promoting the game and that publishers didn't want to fund W2 in the first place because of its design principles (classic tb partybased rpg).

No, he didn't say it. But he put in in terms that sounded very much like it to people that wanted to hear it that way - and probably funded because of it.

I hold to my main point, though. Nothing actually matters until the game is out, and we can judge how it is, what distribution form is more popular, etc.

 

[DragoFireheart]

They gonna get burned.

 

[Azalin]

I never asked for this!

 

[Gladi]

Sorry bro, I thought you were being sarcastic earlier. Reading your later post I see that you weren't.

I don't like this apologising for him from members here: it's fucking corporations like EA that are responsible for the situation Fargo found himself in the first place and the state of the gaming industry as a whole. Why then peddle your wares using their resources? Ok EA isn't publishing the game, but every cent they make from Origin just goes back into maintaining their stranglehold on the industry and perpetuating the cycle. A man of Fargo's stature could easily rally a whole cross section to an alternate method of distribution for the little guy and send a message that would be taken much more seriously than if anonymous indie #347 did the same! It would be a chance to really start a counter movement but like this he gets the desperate fans to stump up the cash while he and EA reap the rewards. That's the real fucking problem, EA benefit without any risk. Their corporate model of not funding niche titles is actually going to pay off for them!

'Day
Are you bitching the same amount about the game being on Steam?

And also let us be certain of one thing. Wasteland will not be available through Origins, because EA will et it there. But because Brian Fargo wants it there and always wanted it there. He also want to see the game sold on Gamespot NOW, Gamersgate. He is making the game to sell it to people. If he wanted to make an RPG for the sake of making an rpg, he could have thrown something together over some weekends in INFORM or whatever. If he wanted the game for "fans" he would ask for donation and then release it for free. This has always been about selling the game and getting the return on it high enough to justfy further developrments.

The shareholders and management in EA are not enemy of classic RPGs. They do not care about games enough to be the enemy. All they care about is their 15 percent and vacation in Belize. In this they are the same as shareholders and managment of every other large company in the world.

 

[Topher]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

I'm glad someone beat me to it. Honestly, it's a fucking distribution platform, nothing about that goes against any sort of "kickstarter" ideal. Distribution on origin isn't any different than distributing on steam or GoG, which people have outright asked for in this very topic.

 

[commie]

Don't you guys think there is a big difference between choosing a distribution platform alongside all other possible platforms and having a publisher who's funding your game telling you how to develop it?

I'm glad someone beat me to it. Honestly, it's a fucking distribution platform, nothing about that goes against any sort of "kickstarter" ideal. Distribution on origin isn't any different than distributing on steam or GoG, which people have outright asked for in this very topic.

No, it's not 'just another distribution platform'. This is a service that provides EA with income; income which they then use to keep churning out their shovelware and fuel the decline. This is a service that feeds these cunts that have destroyed one great dev after another. People laugh at it now, but eventually it will be a very useful addition to the coffers of EA.

Valve's Steam or GoG is nothing like this. Valve barely releases any games of their own and GoG only has the two Witcher games. They are not predatory scum in the vein of EA.

I'll make it simple for you: Every Origin sale directly or indirectly funds Dragon Age 3. I supported this because I didn't want a cent going to EA. I don't give a good fuck about Valve or GoG or Gamersgate or Impulse because they haven't shit on the things I've enjoyed over the years, nor do they have the all encompassing footprint dominating the industry with slash and burn methods stifling all the creativity. Had Activision a distribution platform and Fargo went there I'd be just as pissed off.

 

[Johannes]

Why is it so much worse that money from WL2 distribution goes to fund DA3 (though it really doesn't work that way) than to pay for the vacation of a Valve shareholder or whatever? I don't care about either of those, why do you? I don't care about bad games being released considering nobody forces me to play them.

 

[Malpercio]

Yeah sure, i want to sign my soul to devil EA.