Paranoia: Happiness is Mandatory - isometric RPG based on the tabletop game

[Zombra]

Finally, someone on the Codex has the courage to talk about the Epic Store and whether exclusivity is good or bad.

 

[Kyl Von Kull]

Right now there’s a lot of competition in the indie space. If you believe there will be less competition in 3-5 years, it makes sense to postpone the reckoning.

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Tuco Benedicto Pacifico]

I talked to one developer that signed an exclusivity deal, and he said with the money Epic gave them they could increase the budget and scope for their next project, while also not having to crunch right away.

What Epic offers developers is the elimination of risk, in an extremely risky industry. That sounds like a good deal to me.

 

[Infinitron]

Still no page on the Epic store though.

 

[Parabalus]

That depends heavily on local bankruptcy laws.
There are places where debts follow people for generations.

I'm of course assuming that you live in a civilized nation. You can't do business with barbarism everywhere around you.

I talked to one developer that signed an exclusivity deal, and he said with the money Epic gave them they could increase the budget and scope for their next project, while also not having to crunch right away.

What Epic offers developers is the elimination of risk, in an extremely risky industry. That sounds like a good deal to me.

That's just self-delusion. There's no such thing as a sure-bet, and there's no such thing as a free lunch. If all you do is avoid risk, you will never make any money. It's only sensible to try to avoid unnecessary risks. Most of the risks that people take are unnecessary ones, but some risk is always necessary in order to make gains. That's how all investments work, you risk a loss on your investment in the hopes of making some money.

How much money does Epic pay out?

Can't find VD's post of AoD's sale numbers, but how would that compare to the handout?

 

[Zombra]

Friend Computer has an announcement to make. Troubleshooters who wish to access Alpha Complex from their PC will need to do so via the @EpicGames Store.

Haha. Wow. The devs aren't exactly effervescent with joy about this. The publisher is much happier, surprise surprise.

 

[Tuco Benedicto Pacifico]

How much money does Epic pay out?

Can't find VD's post of AoD's sale numbers, but how would that compare to the handout?

They don't pay any fixed amount of money and the details are negotiated on a case-by-case basis, but the general gist of it is that they make an estimation of how much you are likely to sell, pick a number close to an average performance for your specific game (i.e. "We think Paranoia could sell between 30k and 50k copies") and then they pay you the amount for these sales as a minimum guaranteed.
If you sell less than that, they'll still pay for the fixed amount. If you sell more, you'll start to gain even from the additional copies.
Which in practical terms means that no one will get rich on an Epic deal, but it's admittedly a tempting safenet against failure.

Now, my problem with that is... That I genuinely don't give a shit. I don't care about how good the deal may be from a developer standpoint when it's actively detrimental to my preferences.

 

[Carls Barkley]

They don't pay any fixed amount of money and the details are negotiated on a case-by-case basis, but the general gist of it is that they make an estimation of how much you are likely to sell, pick a number close to an average performance for your specific game (i.e. "We think Paranoia could sell between 30k and 50k copies") and then they pay you the amount for these sales as a minimum guaranteed.

That's also why developers like Supergiant were upset that Epic was giving $10 off on the megasale. They don't make any additional money off sales when they fall short of their target.

 

[Parabalus]

They don't pay any fixed amount of money and the details are negotiated on a case-by-case basis, but the general gist of it is that they make an estimation of how much you are likely to sell, pick a number close to an average performance for your specific game (i.e. "We think Paranoia could sell between 30k and 50k copies") and then they pay you the amount for these sales as a minimum guaranteed.

That's also why developers like Supergiant were upset that Epic was giving $10 off on the megasale. They don't make any additional money off sales when they fall short of their target.

But if the above is factual, they still made more money than they would have on Steam.

The way it's described above the opportunity cost is the difference between potential Steam sales and EGS sales, due to backlash/the latter being a shittier/more obscure platform.

 

[Carls Barkley]

Yes they do, but not from additional sales.

If Epic guarantees 100,000 copies, it doesn't matter if the developer sells 80,000 or 90,000, because they get paid the same either way.

 

[Saduj]

Sounds like a good deal if your game is based on a known IP but the game itself is meh. The known IP will inflate the sales estimate to levels the gameplay won’t allow them to actually reach once word of mouth gets around. This game could be right in that wheelhouse based on the combat videos.

I wish EPIC would have done this with TTON. They could have lost some good money on that one.

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Tuco Benedicto Pacifico]

That's also why developers like Supergiant were upset that Epic was giving $10 off on the megasale. They don't make any additional money off sales when they fall short of their target.

No, that was another issue.
The problem with that megasale, the thing that pissed several developers, was different. It was sudden devaluation. Epic was offering discounts on games that were just released or that were still in preorder. For all the whine about "Steam sales educating people to wait to get games for cheap", they never did anything equally outrageous.

You had Timmy Tencent waving bills around and yelling "Come on people, come and take it, it's on me!". He even bragged about how he was still paying the devs the full price of the game for each sale (because making the business profitable really never was one of his concerns, apparently).
What he didn't account for was the negative impact of creating a precedent where games just released were suddenly discounted from 15 bucks to 5 and so on (which players and services like https://isthereanydeal.com/ track these days) or already discounting by a significant amount games that will release in a year.
That's why several developers and publishers panicked and pulled out from the store to be excluded from the megasale.

Yes they do, but not from additional sales.
If Epic guarantees 100,000 copies, it doesn't matter if the developer sells 80,000 or 90,000, because they get paid the same either way.

Yeah, that's what makes the deal appealing. Well, at least until you'll fail spectacularly to meet the quota, and at the time to release the next game Tim will look down on you and tell you "I think we overpaid the first time and it's time to renegotiate".

Still, if you happen to be among the lucky ones being genuinely successful, you are definitely going to make way more money on Steam, because your chances will be to become a 300k, 500K... even a million seller or better. Like Risk orf Rain 2.
Of course, most never will.

 

[Roguey]

It's our old pal Safav.

epic deals sounds like communism

It's crony capitalism; not so different I suppose.

 

[Ismaul]

Paranoia: Epic Store is Mandatory

 

[Ranarama]

Yes they do, but not from additional sales.

If Epic guarantees 100,000 copies, it doesn't matter if the developer sells 80,000 or 90,000, because they get paid the same either way.

Hence the best move for a developer once their game gets on to Epic is to stop support entirely and start development on the next thing.

 

[Infinitron]

https://cramgaming.com/paranoia-happiness-is-mandatory-gameplay-preview-gamescom-2019-50747/

Paranoia Happiness Is Mandatory Gameplay Preview – Gamescom 2019

During our visit to Gamescom 2019 we managed to get a glimpse of Cyanide Studios’ and Black Shamrock’s tactical RPG Paranoia Happiness is Mandatory gameplay.

Paranoia Happiness Is Mandatory was running on PC and boasting RTX ON features. It’s quite a weird game with a dystopian premise fused with a ton of dark humour. It releases on PC this October 3rd, with a console release planned for next year. So what is the game about?

The story goes something like this, Paranoia takes place in humanity’s last refuge called Alpha Complex. This facility comes controlled by the rather enigmatic Friend Computer whose rule is absolute. Any deviation or questioning of the status-quo means treason and then met with direct action which is where your team of characters comes in to play. Alpha Complex allows all of it inhabitants a pain-free existence, and as the title suggests, happiness is mandatory. However, as you would expect, all is not what it appears to be and things go wrong, traitors are abound and elements need investigating because someone, somewhere is plotting to take down the establishment.

Our time was limited to just a 30 minute presentation which for a game of this scope requires a little extra to if one is to understand what it aims to achieve. You control your clone character and choose team mates to conduct various investigations on the behest of Friend Computer. Sometimes it’s robots who have gone rogue, other times other clones. Interestingly, you have plentiful options to tinker with including equipment and various weapons. However, underlying the entire gameplay quirk which is based on table-top mechanics, any of your team mates can turn against you. This is dependant on your relationship with them but also the actions you take during missions. Obviously, if your decisions don’t toe the line your companions can view your character as treasonous and put you in negative standing with Friend Computer. However, your team mates can potentially work against you as well. It’s not all plain sailing and disagreements in direction does occur. However, death isn’t final for your character if things go awry. You are a clone and can dive-in again with fresher legs and an adjustment of your specialized skills.

Paranoia core mechanics look divided into three main areas dialogue, interactions and combat. The latter is self-explanatory but the dialogue is an interesting element which as mentioned comes into play with regards to your relationship with other characters. Certain missions will focus on this aspect rather than all out guns-a-blazing. Hacking and crafting are options as well with regards to interaction with the environment, so there’s lots to do here and different ways to play.

Combat is in real time but an option to pause and plan movements is available as well. It seems chaotic and what we were told cover is realistic rather than stat based. Expect intense battles against man or machine in hazardous environments.

In terms of progression, the game offers a colour coded system with your character starting out with red clearance. The deeper you dive into the rabbit-hole more areas open up as you gain new clearance levels. This is the reward for performing well for Friend Computer.

Paranoia Happiness is Mandatory is looking like an interesting game when it launches in the coming weeks. We really needed more time and some hands-on to get a proper impression of what it entailed though especially in terms of the player choices and how that affects other teammates. There is quite a bit of dialogue to read through to get a better understanding of what’s happening and so a 30 minute look at the game didn’t allow to fully explore the options. That said, from the demonstration the game looked polished and filled with neat ideas. So we’re looking forwards to the final release. A caveat for some gamers though, it’s an Epic Games Store exclusive for now. Take that as you will. Now check out some gameplay.

 

[Abu Antar]

I totally missed that this was Epic Games Store exclusive.

 

[Infinitron]

Click for interview: https://www.gamereactor.eu/squadmates-in-paranoia-not-exactly-on-your-side/

Squadmates in Paranoia "not exactly on your side"
Black Shamrock's Rafael Camisa Nova explained how your actions are always being watched in Paranoia: Happiness is Mandatory.

Paranoia: Happiness is Mandatory is adapting a tabletop game into a video game, and we talked to Black Shamrock game designer Rafael Camisa Nova at Gamescom about the process, and how the relationship with AI Friend Computer reproduces a core element of the original game.

"One of the biggest things in the original game was how one player interacts with the other; how one player needs to be on top of each other all the time," he explained. "At first we were like 'okay how will we handle this in a single-player game?' because, well, you're just playing by yourself."

"So what we did is, each one of the officers that are with you in your team - they're part of your team but they're not exactly on your side, so if you do something that might be illegal or might be treasonous, they can pick up your attention, they can speak with you. You're gonna have instances where dialogues are gonna unfold, so you're gonna see the officer questioning your actions, you're gonna be answering these actions, and depending on the choices you make, this officer might end up telling everything to Friend Computer at the end, and this is not gonna end well for you."

Paranoia: Happiness is Mandatory lands on October 3, and you can find the full interview down below if you're interested in the RPG.

Does this sound like a good system?

 

[GentlemanCthulhu]

I totally missed that this was Epic Games Store exclusive.

Did you mean CODEX exclusive?

 

[Carls Barkley]

Store page is up... in Thai.

https://www.epicgames.com/store/en-US/product/paranoia/home

Bold marketing move.

 

[Saduj]

I won’t say that the Epic deal disqualifies the game from my purchasing it. But it does raise the bar. If it were on Steam, I’d probably buy it early and only return it if it were buggy. But in order for me to install Epic just to buy this game, I’m going to have to hear some rave reviews from trusted sources.

 

[Infinitron]

French gonna French.

 

[baud]

French gonna French.

Fuck, he sound just like my grandfather, just a little quicker. Must be a result of pre-50 French education.