The Agony of Cancellation

Image courtesy of Blizzard 

Last week, news broke that Titan, Blizzard's long in development MMO, was finally cancelled. Many fans of the developer were disappointed at the news, though not entirely shocked, as very little was revealed about the game following its unveiling back in 2007. Perhaps the most striking news to come out of Titan's cancellation was the fact that it will end up costing Blizzard over $50 million, a result of the company halting development so late into its development cycle.

For most development companies, canceling a major project as far along as Titan would spell certain doom, but Blizzard is a large and profitable enough company that a $50 million loss will barely leave a dent. Canceling a major game is nothing new to the industry; in fact, it has happened at Blizzard before. It was obvious that Blizzard was putting a lot of faith and resources into Titan, and to have it see this end is a major letdown for the company and its gaming faithful. Titan was poised to be the next big MMO from Blizzard, following in the hugely successful shoes of World of Warcraft. There is no doubt in my mind that Blizzard will eventually try its hand at making a new MMO in the future, but for now, they should take a step back and start over.

According to Blizzard co-founder and President Mike Morhaime, the company set out to create an incredibly ambitious game, and after years of development felt that nothing came together the way the team intended, thus prompting its cancellation. I totally can agree with the decision to cancel a game if it does not match the developer's ambitions and goals, no matter how much money and time was put into it. I just cannot believe that it took seven years for Blizzard to realize that the game they were making was not up to their standards. Perhaps they started over numerous times or tweaked aspects of it multiple times to try to salvage it, but they should have seen the signs much sooner. I feel the worst for the development team behind the game, as it must feel awfully terrible to have all of hours upon hours of hard work they put into a game be wasted. I am sure that they will lick their wounds and start over again, but the sting of a failed project is something that will stick with them for awhile.

Chris Metzen, Blizzard's Senior VP of Story and Franchise Development, said that the team "lost perspective" and had to allow themselves to take a step back and reassess why they were making the game in the first place. Metzen added that canceling a game is never easy, but that all of their failed projects resulted in the team learning from mistakes and delivering higher-quality on the next go-around. Even in the wake of Titan's cancellation, there are signs that Blizzard is putting things into perspective. Their free-to-play collectible card game Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft has been received extremely well and serves as a prime example that Blizzard can make great games on a smaller scale, and that they do not have to swing for the fences every time.

Blizzard thought that they had to make a game comparable to World of Warcraft, but ended up biting off more than they could chew. This is a lesson all game development studios should take note of: ambition is always great, but never let it get in the way of making a great game. If you know deep down that the game you are making is not good, please do not hesitate to cancel it. Releasing a bad or unfinished game is much, much worse than not releasing one at all.

Heart of Darkness: The Marketing Genius of P.T.

Image courtesy of SheAttack.com

During GamesCom this past August, a mysterious horror game called P.T. was teased during Sony's press conference. A short trailer for the game was shown, featuring your run-of-the-mill reaction footage of players screaming in terror of what was transpiring onscreen. The trailer also revealed that a free downloadable demo of the title was immediately available on PlayStation 4, allowing gamers to get a small, early peek at the game.

Upon first glance, the "playable teaser" of P.T. is an incredibly atmospheric and terrifying gaming experience, developed by a small and completely unknown developer called 7780s Studios. But it was not until gamer SoapyWarpig, streaming P.T. on her Twitch.tv channel, discovered the true secret behind the game.

In reality, P.T. was just an elaborate ruse. The game was not being developed by 7780s Studios; in fact, 7780s Studios does not even exist. It was not even called P.T., as that title was simply just an acronym for "playable teaser". There was something much bigger at play here.

Upon completing the demo, gamers were treated to a cinematic that reveals the game's true identity: a new entry in the long-running and incredibly revered horror game franchise Silent Hill, created in tandem by Hideo Kojima (of Metal Gear Solid fame) and Guillermo del Toro (director of Hellboy and Pacific Rim), and starring Norman Reedus (Daryl on The Walking Dead) in the title role.

A new entry in the Silent Hill franchise is a major cause for celebration on its own, but to have it be developed by two of the brightest minds in entertainment brings an extra boost of excitement and anticipation. If the demo is any indication (though it does stress that the final product is not a representation of what the final game will look or play like), this new game - simply titled Silent Hills - will be a truly terrifying experience. Having played the "playable teaser" myself, I can safely say that I have never had a more horrifying or intense gaming experience in my entire life. If the final game can match the demo's level of dread and intensity, gamers everywhere will be in for a truly fantastic (and scary) experience.

As exciting as the reveal of a new Silent Hill game is, I was more fascinated with the way it was introduced. This sort of thing has happened before, again coming from the brain of Hideo Kojima. During the Spike Video Game Awards in 2012, a mysterious new game called The Phantom Pain was revealed, coming from an unknown development studio. Rumor and speculation ran rampant, and after many months of guesswork and conspiracy theories, the game was finally revealed to be a new entry in Kojima's Metal Gear Solid franchise.

Kojima could have just gone on stage at GamesCom and told the world straight out that he was working on a new Silent Hill game, and the gaming world would have gone nuts. But to reveal it in such a unique and fascinating way adds so much more excitement (and mystery) to the game.

We live in an age when secrets are no longer safe and surprises no longer exist. To have a game this big be revealed in this way and kept hidden that well is a marvel. The gaming world used to thrive on surprise announcements and reveals; now with the Internet, games are leaked days, months, or even years before they were intended. 

The entire P.T./Silent Hills reveal was a massive breath of fresh air. On its own, the P.T. demo works as an incredibly well-focused and tight gaming experience; as a stealth reveal of a new Silent Hill game, it works even better. The demo unraveled the mystery and true identity of Silent Hills so brilliantly, and I wish more game announcements would follow suit. What an exciting concept: a game reveal within a game reveal. If that is not brilliant marketing, I do not know what is.

Just think about it: gamers everywhere were playing a new Silent Hill, and they did not even know it.

Destiny Review: Universe Under Construction

Image courtesy of Twinfinite

Destiny, the massive new sci-fi IP from Halo masterminds Bungie, has finally been released into the wild. I have spent every waking moment available exploring its massive world, teaming up with friends, leveling up my character, and blasting every alien that gets in my way.

Destiny is a difficult game to describe, and an equally difficult one to review. This is a game that really isn't finished yet; Bungie will be continuously be adding new content (both paid and free) to build, change, and evolve Destiny's universe. At its core, Destiny is a shooter with very basic MMO and RPG elements. You go on missions, level up your character, collect loot, upgrade weapons and armor, join guilds (which are called factions here), team up with buddies (or with strangers, if you prefer), and fight various enemies. Destiny is trying to be a lot of things at once; there is no doubt it is very grand and ambitious in scale.

Destiny was billed as a truly unique next-gen experience, combining a multitude of features into one gigantic shared world, where everyone could play, explore, and fight together. The pieces are all there, but not all of them fight together well. Destiny reaches so very high, but comes up just short of hitting its target.

Microsoft Buys Mojang: What's Next?

Image courtesy of Kotaku

After weeks of speculation and rumor, Microsoft officially purchased Mojang, creators of the hugely successful game Minecraft, for $2.5 billion. On the surface, this seems like a huge win for Microsoft, whose Xbox One has been struggling to keep up with the PlayStation 4 in sales. Minecraft has grown from a small yet ambitious game into a media empire; it is quite hard to go anywhere these days without seeing a Minecraft themed product. Having full ownership of the Minecraft brand will no doubt bring Microsoft a boost in revenue, as they already expect to break even on the deal by June of next year.

Marcus "Notch" Persson, creator of Minecraft and Mojang Studios, was the one to instigate the deal and has officially left Mojang and the gaming industry, citing that he wanted to focus on smaller projects and stay out of the public eye. Persson stepped aside from developing and adding to Minecraft a few years ago, giving that position to fellow Mojang programmer Jens Bergensten. Persson tried to create another game in hopes to match Minecraft's ambition and popularity, but cancelled the project after having, as he put it, "creative struggles". 

I can fully understand where Persson is coming from; Minecraft started as a small project he worked on for a long time that unexpectedly became a massive worldwide success. Gamers everywhere have waited on baited breath for his next game, and that kind of expectation can really wear someone down. Persson is a very smart guy, and it is slightly troubling to see one of the industry's brightest and most creative minds leave it so suddenly, especially when there has been a distinct lack of imagination in the gaming industry as of late. Perhaps most surprising of all is the fact that Persson has been very vocal about his dislike for Microsoft, yet they were the first company he ever considered selling Mojang to.

When I first read about the acquisition, there were two things that came into my mind:

1. Microsoft is infamously known for buying other game development studios and stifling their creativity. The most famous example of this is when they bought British developer Rare in 2002. Rare developed some of the most well-known and iconic games in history, notably Donkey Kong Country, Goldeneye 007, and Banjo-Kazooie. Today, Rare has been forced by Microsoft to make games exclusively for the Xbox's Kinect peripheral; all of their releases since being acquired by Microsoft have been received poorly by critics and gamers alike. My fear is that the same fate awaits Mojang, especially now that Persson is no longer a part of it. Hopefully Microsoft lets the studio have creative freedom and does not let business get in the way of imagination.
2. As I stated earlier, Minecraft is everywhere. The game is on just about every gaming platform imaginable, including Sony's PS3 and PS4, two of the Xbox's rival consoles. Minecraft is famous for being constantly updated, as the game is never truly meant to be "completed". Now that Microsoft has the rights to Minecraft, future updates for versions of the game not on Microsoft's consoles could potentially stop. Mojang and partner 4J Studios have a PlayStation Vita version in the works, and if Microsoft says so, it may never be released. Microsoft claims that other versions of the game will continue to be supported, but only time will tell is that remains true.

The fact is simple: Microsoft now owns Mojang, Minecraft, and everything else that comes with it. In the business world you cannot avoid things like this; companies are designed to make money, and if that means buying other companies to do so, then so be it. Only time will tell what this acquisition ultimately means for the industry, but for the time being, I am a little nervous about the future.

Four Video Game Industry Trends That Need To Change

I have been playing video games since I was 10 years old, and have watched the industry grow and evolve from an entertaining hobby to a full-blown multi-billion dollar business. Games are no longer considered a "kids toy" or "nerdy"; millions of people around the world are playing games, connecting and competing online. But that does not mean that everything is smooth sailing; in reality, there are many aspects of it that remain broken or problematic. After the jump, I will discuss four of the most prominent problems facing the video game industry today, and why they need to go away.