The Witcher: Rise of the Console Profits cancelled?

[Mojo]

If that's true then it's quite the sad news indeed.

:start rant:

Funny, I suppose the game maket is big enough nowadays that every niche should be attended to. Instead the exact opposite happens: you get a massive amount of similar titles on the market, catering to the few maisntream tastes, while every type of game that is for some reason not frequently present on every fucking "top-ten" list simply vanishes.

Sadly, because of that market uniformity, genres like the adventure and the rpg are dying.

The independent scene should be growing because of that, but unfortunatelly it's getting harder and harder for an indepedent developer to make a quality game. Industry standards keep rising beyond the indies reach. And I'm not talking exclusively about graphics here, I'm talking about general production values. Production values even old games like Fallout or Blade Runner had. Decade old production values that are still far from the grasp of the indie developer. Unless an indie developer strives for "Vogel" like quality standards he's gonna have quite the hard time. Quite the expensive hard time too.

And hell, I know the hivemind here. All the whining about the lack of worth of every production value. You guys talk about it like if the only thing important about a game is it's balanced design and good writing. If that was true how come Spiderweb games don't get unanimous praise here? A game without graphics is a text game. A game with bad graphics is a Vogel game. A game without production values(music, sound, art, graphics), will simply never be a masterpiece like Fallout,Torment or any other game you guys praise.

:end rant:

 

[Hard Knox]

1. Is the Witcher an RPG?

No.

2. Is the Witcher a good game?

No.

3. Are the Choices and Consequences in the Witcher real or fake?

Who cares?

4. How much does CD Projekt suck for hyping up their patches?

See 3.

5. PCs are so much better than consoles, and only fucking retards play console games, amirite?!!

No, you're just trying too hard to sound cool and edgy.

 

[Mojo]

Witcher is a niche game? I have woken up in the Twilight Zone.

In this day and age, even fucking Neverwinter Nights is a niche game. Yes it is. Believe it or not.

 

[Satori (original)]

Just frustrated. I bought an Xbawks solely in anticipation of this. Think I can get a refund?

Or get the Ninja Gaiden games.

 

[Jaesun]

I really don't care. I don't own an xboks.

 

[Elwro]

CDP will be significantly increasing prices on all their series save for the premium releases. This doesn't bode well.

 

[Monocause]

Official:

W chwili obecnej nie komentujemy tych informacji. Chcemy się do nich całościowo odnieść w stosownej formie, co nastąpi już wkrótce.

Which means "We won't comment on this right now. We'd like to address the rumours in proper form, which we will do soon."

This isn't good. Cancelling a cash cow wouldn't occur if they were only knee-deep in shit. If they cancel console TW, it'll mean that they're drowning in it.

 

[Black_Willow]

CDP will be significantly increasing prices on all their series save for the premium releases. This doesn't bode well.

Source plz

 

[dragonfk]

http://markolf.pl/?newsid=1773

 

[Elwro]

They also seemingly canned their "lifetime warranty".

 

[racofer]

I hope CD Projekt goes down.

I hope YOU go down.

Wow, such an INTENSE come back.

Nope, they suck. The Witcher is just a diablo clone. And a poor one at that.

That is the stupidest thing I've ever read on the Codex. Congratulations, bitch.

I doubt it comes anywhere to to this post you made. Talk about bending over do a developer, LULZ!

 

[aries202]

I didn't see this one coming. It would be a shame if CDRED Project went down, I think. It seems that over 1 million or 1,5 mill. copies just does do it anymore....

I thought they got a lot of money from MS? to make the console version of The Witcher:

As gratefull as I am that I got the Enhanced Edition for free, (via download), I would gladly have paid say 10 or 15 US dollars (or Euros) for it. [I did buy the full pack, The Enhanced version as a retail product as well...].

I thought that CD RED Project was a well managed company that kew how to save money to expenditures along the way e.g. to put money aside to paychecks, license fees etc. -- apparently this hasn't been so...

And what will happen with www.gog.com now id CD RED goes under ? I haven't purchased any games (yet), but it is nice to have site that is dedicated to the games of olden days

 

[Jaesun]

Atari is the publisher for The Witcher, so the console version Producer would also be Atari. As Atari owns the rights to The Witcher and it's assets.

It would not surprise me if Atari pulled the plug on this. Sad actually, in that I like CDProjekt.

 

[Brother None]

IIRC, the Witcher was never intended to make money by itself. It was more CDP trying to get a foothold in the market, build a solid fanbase and make money from those foundations

The Witcher wasn't supposed to make money and it didn't, it about got its budget back.

That wasn't the problem though, the problem was what CDP:Red did afterwards.

And yes, TW:RotWW is cancelled, but CDP:Red still has another project running. Not hard to guess what that is, but I should have something for the rumour-mill later.

Atari is the publisher for The Witcher, so the console version Producer would also be Atari. As Atari owns the rights to The Witcher and it's assets.

It would not surprise me if Atari pulled the plug on this. Sad actually, in that I like CDProjekt.

Incorrect. CD Projekt is the publisher and owner of the Witcher, Atari was just the worldwide distributor.

 

[Hobo Elf]

IIRC, the Witcher was never intended to make money by itself. It was more CDP trying to get a foothold in the market, build a solid fanbase and make money from those foundations

The Witcher wasn't supposed to make money and it didn't, it about got its budget back.

That wasn't the problem though, the problem was what CDP:Red did afterwards.

And yes, TW:RotWW is cancelled, but CDP:Red still has another project running. Not hard to guess what that is, but I should have something for the rumour-mill later.

Is it another Witcher game?

 

[Monocause]

That wasn't the problem though, the problem was what CDP:Red did afterwards.

And yes, TW:RotWW is cancelled, but CDP:Red still has another project running. Not hard to guess what that is, but I should have something for the rumour-mill later.

Could you be more specific? What CDPR did? Where did you found out that RotWW is cancelled? Sources plz.

 

[Brother None]

Could you be more specific? What CDPR did? Where did you found out that RotWW is cancelled? Sources plz.

I'm not going to name my sources, sorry.

Here's what I know and can make public, posted on GameBanshee:
Details are sketchy, but the following facts have been confirmed: after the release of the Witcher, CD Projekt Red took the financial obligation of starting 3 projects simultaneously, a console port of the Witcher and two more titles based on the Witcher Intellectual Property, one of which was the Witcher 2.

As the financial crisis hit, the studio was affected as well, and forced to lay off a significant portion of its staff. The third Witcher IP project was cancelled, and its entire crew was fired or left of their own volition. A second round of layoffs followed as the Witcher: Rise of the White Wolf was cancelled, including around two dozen people losing their jobs yesterday.

All funds and manpower have been redirected to a single project, The Witcher 2, which will be a multi-platform title for PC and consoles.

It's simple overstretch. They tried running a port and 2 AAA projects simultaneously. Would've been fine if not for the financial crisis

I don't think they'll fold, not with the health of CDP behind them, but they need to focus on TW2, and it needs to be a hit.

 

[Shannow]

And hell, I know the hivemind here. All the whining about the lack of worth of every production value. You guys talk about it like if the only thing important about a game is it's balanced design and good writing. If that was true how come Spiderweb games don't get unanimous praise here? A game without graphics is a text game. A game with bad graphics is a Vogel game. A game without production values(music, sound, art, graphics), will simply never be a masterpiece like Fallout,Torment or any other game you guys praise.

:end rant:

Off Topic, of course, but I'm bored:
1. There is no hivemind.
2. Few if anybody claim that that balanced design and good writing are the only important things in games.
3. "If that was true how come Spiderweb games don't get unanimous praise here?" Because it isn't true, "balanced design" is very general and the only design in a Vogel game that resembles it, as far as I'm concerned, is the character development. The rest, from UI to gameplay, is crap. And "good writing" is a matter of opinion. I never noticed any in Vogel's games. Not bad, either...
4. Production values of course have their value (hurr, hurr). It is the priority that the majority on the codex bemoans. Instead of focussing on gameplay, writing, stability, quality, etc, the industry goes for Bloom, next-gen buzzwords, dumbing down so much a toddler could play the game with a thumb stuck in its arse, a target audience that has an IQ in the range of room temperature (and I'm not talking about Fahrenheit), and throwing out unfinished games to be beta-tested by consumers. plagued by DRM, etc.
5. The sort of production values that really matter to me don't require a huge budget but lots of talent, originality and dedication. And that is something an indy can come up with. Not only that, any studio could come up with that, but that would mean going against the grain. And some opinions have been repeated so often that they've become accepted as truths (only under 20 year olds play games, a game needs top notch graphics to sell, remove anything that could frustrate ADD kids, long games can't have quality, TB doesn't sell, etc.) . And I doubt that there will be something similar to the financial crisis to shatter those "truths".
/rant (sorta)

 

[Jaesun]

Incorrect. CD Projekt is the publisher and owner of the Witcher, Atari was just the worldwide distributor.

Interesting, I did not know that. Nice to know they own their IP. Thanks for the info.

 

[DraQ]

Official:

W chwili obecnej nie komentujemy tych informacji. Chcemy się do nich całościowo odnieść w stosownej formie, co nastąpi już wkrótce.

Which means "We won't comment on this right now. We'd like to address the rumours in proper form, which we will do soon."

This isn't good. Cancelling a cash cow wouldn't occur if they were only knee-deep in shit. If they cancel console TW, it'll mean that they're drowning in it.

 

[fizzelopeguss]

I thought they got a lot of money from MS? to make the console version of The Witcher:

It was being made for the ps3 also, i doubt they got a single dime from MS.

The witcher should of made it's money back, and then some. Have they had any bombs recently? Poland in the shit? GoG cost too much?

Bad idea cancelling the console port, the assets are already there and finished.

 

[Brother None]

The witcher should of made it's money back, and then some. Have they had any bombs recently? Poland in the shit? GoG cost too much?

I think the Witcher was inching towards making its money back when they announced the 1.2 million sales. It might've made its money back by now, but not by much.

GOG is profitable, CD Projekt itself is still healthy, but like I said, the problem is with growing too fast and the financial crisis hitting. 3 simultaneous projects were too much, and they're now down to one, which makes that much more sense.

 

[Deleted member 7219]

I doubt it comes anywhere to to this post you made. Talk about bending over do a developer, LULZ!

I've liked every game Obsidian have made so far, of course I'll buy New Vegas, why wouldn't I? Just because I post on the Codex doesn't mean I have to be a cynical troll like almost everyone else here.

Face it, the only company the Codex likes that is actually operating is Iron Tower, and they're indie.

 

[Jaesun]

Could you be more specific? What CDPR did? Where did you found out that RotWW is cancelled? Sources plz.

I'm not going to name my sources, sorry.

Here's what I know and can make public, posted on GameBanshee:
Details are sketchy, but the following facts have been confirmed: after the release of the Witcher, CD Projekt Red took the financial obligation of starting 3 projects simultaneously, a console port of the Witcher and two more titles based on the Witcher Intellectual Property, one of which was the Witcher 2.

As the financial crisis hit, the studio was affected as well, and forced to lay off a significant portion of its staff. The third Witcher IP project was cancelled, and its entire crew was fired or left of their own volition. A second round of layoffs followed as the Witcher: Rise of the White Wolf was cancelled, including around two dozen people losing their jobs yesterday.

All funds and manpower have been redirected to a single project, The Witcher 2, which will be a multi-platform title for PC and consoles.

It's simple overstretch. They tried running a port and 2 AAA projects simultaneously. Would've been fine if not for the financial crisis

I don't think they'll fold, not with the health of CDP behind them, but they need to focus on TW2, and it needs to be a hit.

Wow. That is really sad to hear. But yea I agree, that was too many projects for them. Hope TW2 will be another good success for them.

 

[PlanHex]

Weird that they would cancel a port.
I know they made a lot of changes to the combat, but wasn't this supposed to be a cash-in project?
Most of it is done already. Art, sound, and so on.
Very odd...

 

[Mojo]

It seems pretty inconsequential indeed to ditch the console port. ROWW would have probably made some good profit and it would be certainly easier and quicker to finish than the sequel, whatever is the stage of development they are at.

Wasn't the console port a few months away from release anyway?

And hell, I know the hivemind here. All the whining about the lack of worth of every production value. You guys talk about it like if the only thing important about a game is it's balanced design and good writing. If that was true how come Spiderweb games don't get unanimous praise here? A game without graphics is a text game. A game with bad graphics is a Vogel game. A game without production values(music, sound, art, graphics), will simply never be a masterpiece like Fallout,Torment or any other game you guys praise.

:end rant:

Off Topic, of course, but I'm bored:
1. There is no hivemind.
2. Few if anybody claim that that balanced design and good writing are the only important things in games.
3. "If that was true how come Spiderweb games don't get unanimous praise here?" Because it isn't true, "balanced design" is very general and the only design in a Vogel game that resembles it, as far as I'm concerned, is the character development. The rest, from UI to gameplay, is crap. And "good writing" is a matter of opinion. I never noticed any in Vogel's games. Not bad, either...
4. Production values of course have their value (hurr, hurr). It is the priority that the majority on the codex bemoans. Instead of focussing on gameplay, writing, stability, quality, etc, the industry goes for Bloom, next-gen buzzwords, dumbing down so much a toddler could play the game with a thumb stuck in its arse, a target audience that has an IQ in the range of room temperature (and I'm not talking about Fahrenheit), and throwing out unfinished games to be beta-tested by consumers. plagued by DRM, etc.
5. The sort of production values that really matter to me don't require a huge budget but lots of talent, originality and dedication. And that is something an indy can come up with. Not only that, any studio could come up with that, but that would mean going against the grain. And some opinions have been repeated so often that they've become accepted as truths (only under 20 year olds play games, a game needs top notch graphics to sell, remove anything that could frustrate ADD kids, long games can't have quality, TB doesn't sell, etc.) . And I doubt that there will be something similar to the financial crisis to shatter those "truths".
/rant (sorta)

Off topic, and I'm also bored (why else would I be posting on the Codex?)

1- You wish.
2- Most if not all here at the very least give these two aspects of a game much more worth than every other game qualities. Truth is, good writing and design will be nothing if the rest of the game doesn't stand toe to toe with it.
3- Fair enough.
4- That's a bit of an exageration, don't you think?
5- You make it all sound so easy. If all that is required to develop a great indie game is "talent, originality and dedication" we would be seeing a lot of great indie games being released right? How come it ain't so? Most cheap and quick game concepts thrown around these forums from time to time ooze originality and talent (at least if compared to what mainstream games have). Yet 99,9% of them never get anywhere. Surely most of the people that post these ideas are wankers unwilling to go the distance, but that's only one of the reasons.

To make an indie game, specially an rpg, one will need *a lot* of time. To top it off, he wil need to have *a lot* of time and still be able to eat, feed the kids and keep his life on check. Then off course, there's the matter that unless you are some dynamo able to program, model, texture, design, write and take care of every other aspect of the game development, you will need to get help. That's probably the hardest thing to do on earth, and if you are not able to do it(chances are you ain't), you will need money. Lot's of money.

See where I'm getting at? That's just the tip of the iceberg, off course. Believe me, I know. I tried developing a game not long ago. It was the worse experience of my life.

 

[fizzelopeguss]

The witcher should of made it's money back, and then some. Have they had any bombs recently? Poland in the shit? GoG cost too much?

I think the Witcher was inching towards making its money back when they announced the 1.2 million sales. It might've made its money back by now, but not by much.

Jesus christ, what was the budget for the thing. 1.2 million are fantastic sales.

Face it, the only company the Codex likes that is actually operating is Iron Tower, and they're indie.

Capcom are probably the best gaming company going currently, pumping out triple A titles one after another.