LucasArts, the developer famed for Star Wars Battlefront, the reason we are all here, is no more.
http://kotaku.com/disney-shuts-down-lucasarts-468473749
Quote"After evaluating our position in the games market, we've decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company's risk while achieving a broader portfolio of quality Star Wars games," LucasArts parent company LucasFilm said in a statement. "As a result of this change, we've had layoffs across the organization. We are incredibly appreciative and proud of the talented teams who have been developing our new titles."
Disney, please :censored: yourself.
Lol, might as well lock the topic now xD...
Edit: If Lucas Arts = exterminated, would it still be illegal to do things like 'special' modding that otherwise wouldn't be allowed?
Yeah, it might get messy. But let's see if people can give reasoned opinions first.
EDIT: All the licenses were transferred in the initial purchase deal months ago, so anything happening since is pretty much under a different microscope anyway. Disney probably won't care about Battlefront, but I wouldn't rock the boat too hard just yet. Given LucasArts has effectively shut down, that might explain why psych0fred gave us the LUA scripts for BF1.
So this could be either really good, or really bad, in terms of the future of star wars games. 1313 looked like a decent game, but I don't know if I would have gotten it...First Assault looked like it would be the first step to a 3rd SWBF, so that's unfortunate.
This could turn into Disney sitting on the game licenses for awhile and being stingy about allowing development, but perhaps we'll see Star Wars picked up by big-time game developers. I wonder if Disney would let Obsidian develop another star wars game, there's a lot of potential there.
I wouldn't over react to this quite yet, since Star Wars games can certainly still be made.
This still kinda sucks though, and Lucasarts was a good developer for a while, RIP.
I wish it was still April fools...
I know that LucasArts haven't made many good games recently but it's a shame to see all their talent and creativity go to waste, I was looking forward to these games but I suppose after what Disney have said about games in the past we should have seen it coming.
The good news is that most of the recent Star Wars games were externally developed and it sounds like that will continue to happen (there's no way there won't be Star Wars games anymore but I worry they won't be on PC/consoles) so hopefully a wide range of developers like Bioware, Pandemic etc will mean even better games.
This doesn't mean bad news necessarily, the quote says they will shift from internal development to licensing outside sources. The big question is will we ever get a SWBF3, and could we get it faster with this new move?
Quote from: deadmeow on April 03, 2013, 11:56:07 AM
This doesn't mean bad news necessarily, the quote says they will shift from internal development to licensing outside sources. The big question is will we ever get a SWBF3, and could we get it faster with this new move?
An important thing to also remember, is that some of the best Star Wars games in the last 10 years have been made by outside developers.
Examples: Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2, and both Star Wars Battlefront games.
I wonder if they'll try to outsource 1313. They've poured a lot of money into it. In the case of SWBFIII, they've tried outsourcing many times. I think that's why they tried doing it internally this time (First Assault was 'step zero').
Egads!
Lucas Arts were always known for sacking employees at the end of projects so I guess it's some kind of irony that they themselves have been snubbed out.
But yes, it's terrible really, some amazing games came out of that place as well as SWBF.
(https://www.swbfgamers.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fen%2Fthumb%2Fa%2Fa8%2FThe_Secret_of_Monkey_Island_artwork.jpg%2F250px-The_Secret_of_Monkey_Island_artwork.jpg&hash=e4d505497cd83a1ca8120859c8b8d718e21a5a2c)
Yes folks, this means both 1313 and First Assault are dead.
Disney will get their hands all over the swbf3 concept.
Quote from: [FC]Josh on April 03, 2013, 12:09:13 PM
Disney will get their hands all over the swbf3 concept.
It's not PG-centric enough for them. Stay tuned for a thousand Star Wars Angry Birds spin-offs!
Casual market > HC market
Disney said when they first got the star Wars licence that they had no interest in console games and that they wanted to make more casual games. :(
Quote from: UNIT 33 on April 03, 2013, 12:10:29 PM
It's not PG-centric enough for them. Stay tuned for a thousand Star Wars Angry Birds spin-offs!
Casual market > HC market
lol yes that is a good point. they will make swbf3 be micky mouse as a stormtrooper. i would rather have no swbf3 then one that makes swbf in general look bad.
Quote from: {PLA}gdh92 on April 03, 2013, 12:15:17 PM
Disney said when they first got the star Wars licence that they had no interest in console games and that they wanted to make more casual games. :(
i hate disney now, and now i have a reason for it. LETS START A RIOT!!!!!!
Disney will find out what Star Wars games are about to their peril. Trust me: when they lose the core market, which would have netted them big bucks, they'll change their tune.
I dont care. Without lucas arts, star wars games in general may never be the same again. 150 people who have been making these games for years were laid off, never to make them again.
:censored: you Disney, :censored: you.
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 12:21:33 PM
I dont care. Without lucas arts, star wars games in general may never be the same again. 150 people who have been making these games for years were laid off, never to make them again.
Just quoting this to point out that a large percentage of their most succesful games were outsourced in the first place. The only internally-successful one was TFU.
But they still had a hand in much of the things involving them though.
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 12:25:39 PM
But they still had a hand in much of the things involving them though.
They'd still have a hand in new projects: they're just shutting down the internal developments studio.
Stupid... Im really mad at this motion :rant:
Quote from: Helios on April 03, 2013, 12:46:41 PM
Stupid... Im really mad at this motion :rant:
we all are
Oh, now it's realy sad... I am afraid, real "Star Wars Era", maybe over now... :bye:
Still, I just wonder, if Lucas Arts, as owner of SWBF, and other games, is not exist anymore, so, it's maybe possible, that "slice modification" of the game exe, and such kind of unlegal things, is cud be counted as "legal" now, and can be uploaded?
Everyone calm down. This doesn't mean the end of all Star Wars games. They will just now be licensing the Star Wars name out to other gaming studios to develop the games. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. The two most successful games for LucasArts were Knights of the Old Republic and Battlefront. Both were made with heavy involvement by outside sources like Bioware and Pandemic.
Didnt lucas arts come up with the idea for at least some of them though?
Yes, they approached developers. Now they're publisher-only, that means that'll all LucasArts will be doing. A game has to be comissioned by the publisher first (in this case given its concerns licensed titles)
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 12:59:12 PM
Didnt lucas arts come up with the idea for at least some of them though?
Of course they did, but much of the work was done by outside sources. For instance, LucasArts told Bioware they could make a game based on one of the movies or an entirely different story line set 4000 years before. Bioware chose the latter because it gave them more freedom to create the best Star Wars story line since the original Star Wars trilogy.
Has anyone noticed that ever since lucasfilm was bought by disney, everything official has been detrimental in someway? This cant all be just a coincidence. THEY ARE TRYING TO RUIN STAR WARS.
It is an undeniable and may i say fundemental quality of star wars, that, when faced with extection, still, only one alternative is preferable.
I think you're making a huge deal over a game and a few films that last a couple hours each.
If the owners want to destroy something they own, just let em.
Don't get all tree huger about a silly movie...
(This is me, throwing a wrench into your system for the fun of it^^ :))
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:07:35 PM
Has anyone noticed that ever since lucasfilm was bought by disney, everything official has been detrimental in someway? This cant all be just a coincidence. THEY ARE TRYING TO RUIN STAR WARS.
It is an undeniable and may i say fundemental quality of star wars, that, when faced with extection, still, only one alternative is preferable.
Just like THEY RUINED MARVEL, amirite? ::)
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:07:35 PM
Has anyone noticed that ever since lucasfilm was bought by disney, everything official has been detrimental in someway? This cant all be just a coincidence. THEY ARE TRYING TO RUIN STAR WARS.
They are definitely not trying to ruin star wars. would u pay all that money disney paid to buy lucasfilm just to ruin star wars?
Quote from: [FC]Josh on April 03, 2013, 01:16:09 PM
They are definitely not trying to ruin star wars. would u pay all that money disney paid to buy lucasfilm just to ruin star wars?
they may not be ruining it it their eyes, but they are in mine. They think star wars is for little kids only. Like what they did with marvel kind of.
marvel look at all these animated shows about spider man and stuff. Its for kids! Little ones!
:sick: :whip:
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:07:35 PM
THEY ARE TRYING TO RUIN STAR WARS.
Disney isn't trying to ruin Star Wars. They paid over $4 billion dollars for it. What they are trying to do is make money which is what every for-profit business is trying to do. It's not like George Lucas wasn't using Star Wars as a money maker. I could make the argument that George Lucas made the entire prequel trilogy just to make a load of money. Business is business.
Quote from: SirPimped on April 03, 2013, 01:17:08 PM
Disney isn't trying to ruin Star Wars. They paid over $4 billion dollars for it.
exactly what i was saying
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:16:33 PM
I know nothing about marvel, but look at all these animated shows about spider man and stuff. Its for kids! Little ones!
:sick: :whip:
Just like the 1990s Marvel shows were for kids. And that was long before Disney bought them.
Look at The Avengers, Iron Man, Spider-Man... none of these have been ruined by Disney at all. As a matter of fact, I'd sya that those movies are not little kids movies at all.
FINE! I know they paid a lot of money for star wars, and that they wont try to ruin it. But thats not what i mean when i said that. You are taking it too literally. I meant, in my eyes, it is being ruined.
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:20:16 PM
I meant, in my eyes, it is being ruined.
I don't mean to sound mean, but I seriously doubt Disney cares about your particular opinion :shrug:
There are way too many people out there for them to care about 1 specific person, even if it's the president. (although, if they did change just for the president, it would be pretty screwed up...)
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:20:16 PM
FINE! I know they paid a lot of money for star wars, and that they wont try to ruin it. But thats not what i mean when i said that. You are taking it too literally. I meant, in my eyes, it is being ruined.
At which point is it being 'ruined' in your eyes? Because the general concensus among the fans is that Lucas himself ruined it with Star Wars Episode I and with the numerous Star Wars Original Trilogy revisions. In other words, it was being 'ruined' long before Disney even eyed LucasFilm.
The point is this: Disney have not mishandled Pixar or Marvel, so why should you think they'd mishandle Star Wars? Aside from the LucasArts closuer, which, IMHO, was inevitable, Disney or not.
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:20:16 PM
FINE! I know they paid a lot of money for star wars, and that they wont try to ruin it. But thats not what i mean when i said that. You are taking it too literally. I meant, in my eyes, it is being ruined.
Change can be a scary thing. Most people don't like change, but it can actually make things better in the end. We won't really know how this affects anything until at least a few years from now. I'm actually very excited that Disney is overseeing the next Star Wars movie and George Lucas isn't. They are already putting the right people in place to start it in the right direction. Any story can be interesting, it's just about the way you tell it.
Quote from: -RepublicCommando- on April 03, 2013, 01:23:23 PM
I don't mean to sound mean, but I seriously doubt Disney cares about your particular opinion :shrug:
There are way too many people out there for them to care about 1 specific person, even if it's the president. (although, if they did change just for the president, it would be pretty screwed up...)
i dont mean to be mean right now, but do you think i dont realize that? I dont care if they are about me, i only care that people hear me out, even if they arent the right people.
Quote from: SirPimped on April 03, 2013, 01:25:12 PM
Change can be a scary thing. Most people don't like change, but it can actually make things better in the end. We won't really know how this affects anything until at least a few years from now. I'm actually very excited that Disney is overseeing the next Star Wars movie and George Lucas isn't. They are already putting the right people in place to start it in the right direction.
im not talkint about movies, im only referring to the gaming area atm. Im just as excited for the new movie as anyone else.
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 01:27:30 PM
im not talkint about movies, im only referring to the gaming area atm. Im just as excited for the new movie as anyone else.
Well LucasArts hasn't exactly produced great games in the past even if that is hard for some people to hear. So change can be a good thing. There will still be Star Wars games. The downside is it will take longer for the next ones to come out. But good things come to those who wait. ;)
This topic is going better than I'd thought originally :happy:
Quote from: Ltini dont mean to be mean right now, but do you think i dont realize that? I dont care if they are about me, i only care that people hear me out, even if they arent the right people.
Ah okay, that makes things much more understandable :P
Quote from: SirPimped on April 03, 2013, 01:25:12 PM
I'm actually very excited that Disney is overseeing the next Star Wars movie and George Lucas isn't.
me too. i dont think george lucas would have made the last 3 star wars movies. it was good to hear disney was going to do it.
Quote from: SirPimped on April 03, 2013, 01:31:05 PM
Well LucasArts hasn't exactly produced great games in the past even if that is hard for some people to hear. So change can be a good thing. There will still be Star Wars games. The downside is it will take longer for the next ones to come out. But good things come to those who wait. ;)
some things make me very impatience, and me raging is one of them
Goodbye, lucas arts :bye:
For we know Mickey Mouse could be in the next series of games or movies
Quote from: Helios on April 03, 2013, 01:53:35 PM
For we know Mickey Mouse could be in the next series of games or movies
Except given Disney's managment of Marvel shows that is about as likely to happen as I am of winning tonight's lottery. Actually, I might have a better chance of winning the lottery than that.
Quote from: SirPimped on April 03, 2013, 01:31:05 PM
But good things come to those who wait. ;)
Said like a true wise man.
Although I am also disappointed in LucasArts closing the internal development, it was inevitable. Though I do hope SW 1313 and First Assault do get published, I do look forward to the future of Disney/LucasFilm. I think the movies might be a hit, something to build upon.
My general fear, I hope that Disney doesn't focus solely on mobile gaming. Although I myself have iOS devices and an Android smartphone, I still would love to play PC games or console games (if I ever buy an Xbox or PS3/4). Sure mobile gaming is inevitable, but I would still prefer they had an open market for the PC gamer.
It's bad enough they took away SWBF3, and now they take away Star Wars 1313, the only other LA game I was looking forward to. Pathetic disney, pathetic...
:sick:
Quote from: [FC]Josh on April 03, 2013, 02:56:14 PM
:sick:
:td: :rant: :slap: :'( :sick:
edit: a representitive for said to gameinformer that star wars 1313 and all other projects are fine, they are just being outsourced.
:cheer: :cheers: :disco: :clap: :graduated: :worship:
Quote from: Ltin on April 03, 2013, 04:31:07 PM
:td: :rant: :slap: :'( :sick:
edit: a representitive for said to gameinformer that star wars 1313 and all other projects are fine, they are just being outsourced.
This is Ltin, feeling many emotions when facing the fact that Starwars is "Doomed!"
Quote from: -RepublicCommando- on April 03, 2013, 04:39:45 PM
This is Ltin, feeling many emotions when facing the fact that Starwars is "Doomed!"
And the joy of the games not being dead yet
Well this sucks.
Time will tell if this was good or bad.
Who killed SWBF3--wasn't it the LucasArts management? Maybe with them out of the way, the franchise can move forward.
(Hopefully the bad management got the axe too, and not just the staff. ;)
Quote from: -={212}=-!M@rt! on April 03, 2013, 05:27:22 PM
Well this sucks.
Hehe lol in the fewest words possible yes... Yes it does!
I look at this in a positive and negative light.
Positive: LucasArts didn't create great games on their own. Outside studios created them. They will make more Star Wars games. They will be both "serious" and "childish." I have to say that I have Angry Birds Star Wars and I think it's pretty fun! I would like another "serious" Star Wars game, but I also don't want them to all be serious. It's kind of hard to express my emotions, since I can live without Star Wars games. What I can't live about is Star Wars as a whole (movies, books whether they are chapter books or informative (Cross-Section, Year by Year etc. ). This is what really matters to me, and when I get older I won't be playing games, but I will be watching the movies and reading books.
And what Sereja said, can we modify the .exe now?
Negative: Does this mean that the new Star Wars games won't feel like Star Wars? Does this mean that we won't ever see any games that we want? Pretty much what you guys all said.
I feel like since the Disney Take-Over, all that has happened to Star Wars has been "canceling" Right? I mean they canceled The 3D prequels, 2 games that could have been successful, 2 TV shows, among other things.
Star Wars is a touchy subject for me (if you don't already know) so I won't go into the Disney Star Wars VS independent Star Wars franchise.
Kidnap Mickey mouse and hold him for ransom? :xmastim:
Quote from: {212th} Ldr. Norris on April 03, 2013, 06:44:06 PM
Kidnap Mickey mouse and hold him for ransom? :xmastim:
haha i have goofy tied up in my basement :P
Quote from: [FC]Josh on April 03, 2013, 06:47:36 PM
haha i have goofy tied up in my basement :P
That some of a goof needs to be executed!
Well the Jedi Knight community will now be over the moon considering with the closure LucasArts Raven Software just went released the source code to both games they developed. Shame Pandemic has long since been closed.
RIP LucasArts, some of the games they published will always hold a special place in my collection.
it seems it publisher hunting season as of late. First THQ, now LucasArts. Come on Electronic Arts if all the good publishers are dying how about you? Go on die, do it. Do it. I would love to see them fall.
Yes I hate EA. Not just because they closed Pandemic.
Does this potentially mean all previous LucasArts games' Online Support will be stopped? (SWBFII, RC etc.)
I am sad about this.
LucasArts was one of the very few companies I actually liked the idea of. I liked their products. I liked that they were tied to everything Star Wars... The were "the source" of fantastic entertainment. Star Wars, Day of the Tentical, Indianna Jones, Grim Fandango, Sam & Max. The idea that some of the folks whose hands were in on production of the things I like most have been layed off so their company could be turned into an impotent branding office makes me ill.
Perhaps disney can find folks with the desirable skillsets and qualifications to meet their goals, but everything that comes out now with the Star Wars name on it is a branded, knock-off in my eyes. I fully expect them to plaster R2-D2's all over everything they can and charge enormous prices for it all. Not 1 more dime from me.
It feels like a betrayal. Like hearing an old punk band's music in a TV advertisment. Yeah, yeah.. time moves on, and companies have a bottom line.. whatever. Please feel free to step on another piece of the world I find to be beautiful in your money hunt. I'll just be over here sulking and playing with my business attorney action figures. They won't care, they just expect us to buy into the dull gray world they sell. All this does is further harden my hatred of marketers and everything business related.
and..
Quote from: SleepKiller on April 03, 2013, 09:12:37 PM
Come on Electronic Arts if all the good publishers are dying how about you? Go on die, do it. Do it. I would love to see them fall.
Me too... me too.
From kotaku (that glorious source of non bias information)
QuoteDisney aren't the bad guys here. Once you've squeezed out your requisite levels of nostalgia over the company's demise - and given Lucasarts' illustrious back catalogue, that's going to take some time - move on from thinking about what Lucasarts were and think about what they are. Well. Were more recently.
Lucas Arts as a video game developer - and publisher - had become a joke. A sad punchline. Here we have a company that was solely responsible for the Star Wars license. It also had Indiana Jones on the shelf. Not to mention a wealth of other revered and, no doubt, profitable self-made properties just lying around.
If any other major publisher with its own development staff had that kind of IP in its pockets, it would have changed the name of the company to Money Printing Inc. Lucasarts, though, through successive handovers from bad management to worse management, seemed content to do...well, nothing with it. And the few things they did do didn't work.
Internal development had dried up. Attempts to develop new IP failed, and were abandoned. Letting other people develop Star Wars games, at one time a seemingly smart move on the heels of games like Knights of the Old Republic, culminated in the disaster that was/is The Old Republic.
More Footage & Screenshots From Canned Star Wars: Battlefront III Surfaces
It was over three years ago that we got our first look at the Star Wars Battlefront game that never ... Read...
The less we say about Battlefront 3 the better.
They couldn't even manage to do the easy stuff. Every other publisher on Earth has mined their back catalogues for re-release on Steam, Good Old Games and new platforms like the iPhone. Lucasarts tried, sputtered for a bit, then gave up. I should be able to buy Full Throttle on Steam. I can't.
When you realise this dawdling and mismanagement has led to an exodus of staff, and see the sorry state the once-great studio was in, the decision by Disney is not a crime. It's a mercy. 2013's Lucasarts wasn't the same place behind games like Monkey Island and Tie Fighter. It was the place behind Star Wars Kinect.
Which leads us to the silver lining: Lucasarts can't waste their own properties anymore. Say what you will about Disney and its attempts to monopolise popular culture, but it's doing so because it wants to - and knows very well how to - make money.
It won't do this by sitting on projects and not releasing Star Wars games. It will make money by farming out its properties - Star Wars, Indiana Jones and whatever else it thinks will work - to the highest bidder. EA, Activision, Ubisoft, Take-Two, whoever.
Sure, that mightn't be the greatest thing. We'll no doubt see shameless cash-ins. Ill-advised remakes. But if Disney opens the vaults - and judging by the outpouring of nostalgia and emotion following today's decision it will, since the market is there - there could be good games as well. Maybe even some great games.
Need i remind you all a representivie from disney said that the projects are not cancelled, just waiting to be outsourced.
Quote from: SleepKiller on April 03, 2013, 09:12:37 PM
Well the Jedi Knight community will now be over the moon considering with the closure LucasArts Raven Software just went released the source code to both games they developed. Shame Pandemic has long since been closed.
I wish some SWBF developer would read this and go "Hey, these poor guys want the source code, they can have it." I don't really see anyone who would have much of a problem with it after Raven let JK community have it and Lucasarts and Pandemic (both practically dead) won't have anything to say.
This is just a dream though... odds are heavily favored against us.
On the bright side, for you JK modders (not me, Academy just sits on the shelf, the old DF2 is used more often (by the way, they still have a following even though the game is from 1996)), this is gold. Just browsing through the JA files make me salivate for the super slim chance we get source code for BF.
Yes, I went ahead a grabbed the source code.
Help us Psych0Fred, you are our only hope :)
Quote from: Buckler on April 04, 2013, 05:10:52 PM
Yes, I went ahead a grabbed the source code.
Help us Psych0Fred, you are our only hope :)
Couldnt agree more :P
Quote from: Dark_Phantom on April 04, 2013, 05:06:40 PM
I wish some SWBF developer would read this and go "Hey, these poor guys want the source code, they can have it." I don't really see anyone who would have much of a problem with it after Raven let JK community have it and Lucasarts and Pandemic (both practically dead) won't have anything to say.
Release of SWBF1 exe source code would be the most significant tool(s) ever for us modders to work with. It would be fantastic to be able to remove the AddOn limit for v1.2, fix endgame hang, add even more server hosting options, add a chat visibility toggler, add 6 or more units per team, and so much more. The new possibilities would take years to fully explore.
Please Fred if you are reading this, PLEASE (https://www.swbfgamers.com/Smileys/macx/worship.gif) consider releasing the source. Even if the source wasn't released for another 10 years, it would certainly be worth having. We could probably figure out how to bypass gamespy servers and create a new master server entirely for the game, without having to mess with virtual LAN adapter software any more.
Another question since LucasArts no longer exist how does this affect the EULA for SWBF?
He doesn't have the source code. If we're lucky Teancum on his quest to get the Racers Revenge source code and the SWBFII one brings back the SWBF1 one as well.
In theory we could make a whole new game if we wanted to with the source code. Anything goes. Jedi Academy/Outcast people are already talking about ports, major enhancements, fan sequels, etc. :ohmy:
Which is why most developers don't release it.
Quote from: Phobos on April 04, 2013, 05:58:33 PM
Another question since LucasArts no longer exist how does this affect the EULA for SWBF?
Lol, how many of us have asked a question along these lines so far? xD
As soon as it's legal, everyone pounces on the first chance and cutting and filing away at that exe file :P
Quote from: -RepublicCommando- on April 04, 2013, 06:26:34 PM
Lol, how many of us have asked a question along these lines so far? xD
As soon as it's legal, everyone pounces on the first chance and cutting and filing away at that exe file :P
Is that some kind of answer? Btw I didn't read every post in this thread and don't intend to.
Quote from: Phobos on April 04, 2013, 07:23:35 PM
Is that some kind of answer? Btw I didn't read every post in this thread and don't intend to.
I don't know what that was. But I have no problems with anyone discussing making exe changes, or how to make them.
It might still be better if we don't distribute it here until we learn more.
Quote from: Buckler on April 04, 2013, 07:29:33 PM
I don't know what that was. But I have no problems with anyone discussing making exe changes, or how to make them.
It might still be better if we don't distribute it here until we learn more.
Ok that sounds reasonable.
Quote from: Phobos on April 04, 2013, 07:23:35 PM
Is that some kind of answer? Btw I didn't read every post in this thread and don't intend to.
Not really, just thought it was kinda funny everyone (well almost everyone^^) was thinking the same thing.
I wouldn't bother reading every post either matter-of-factly.
I certainly hope the source is released, so much could be done!
re:Game Sources
If we got our hands on source for BF1 (or 2 even) it would be a long path to developing anything meaningfull as we (individually and collectively) learned to code and compile it. A worthwhile task, but certainly a long road.
Raven gave out their source code and the JK community has already got a nice todo list of edits for a patch and are setting up a core repository for further development. From what I read on JKhub, they are planning on forking future mods off that core hub so all the modders can benefit from everyone elses work (gotta love gpl stuff.)
Perhaps there would be a way to shoehorn a Battlefront style of play into the JKA/O code. Even start our own fork off their openJK project. (I'm not terribly familier with either but did buy them a few months ago on steam.)
I suggest that because I don't imagine the Pandemic BF source will appear. We don't even know where it is (Did Lucasarts have it last? or is it EA's now? is it on someones spare drive in a closet? is it lost forever?) The GT folks have spoken with an ex-developer about it (
link (http://gametoast.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=491746#p491746)) and the response was that it
may be in Lucasarts hands still. Or not...
Quote from: Phobos on April 04, 2013, 05:58:33 PMsince LucasArts no longer exist how does this affect the EULA for SWBF?
Unless I misunderstood the article, Lucasarts still exists as a licensing office, so the EULA would still stand.
READ THIS NOW. http://www.gwgnetwork.com/2013/04/the-future-of-star-wars-gaming-an-exclusive-interview-with-former-lucasarts-employee/
Also watch the YouTube video.
Now what? This really changes my perception of the LA ordeal. What about you guys?
Wow, that's interesting. Although I must say, I'm a bit disappointed... For obvious reasons...
Quote from: Kit Fisto on April 05, 2013, 09:34:15 PM
READ THIS NOW. http:link removed
Also watch the YouTube video.
Now what? This really changes my perception of the LA ordeal. What about you guys?
GT has a pretty good discussion on why this interview may be fake. Please keep that in mind.
I'm not even going to both reading because it is Gloom Walkers and I would call it a fake off that one fact. Factor in the conversation on GT I would say it is most likely a fake.
Fake or not, the interview doesn't reveal anything more than a guy went to work and did work stuff.
All the exciting bits are inferenced in by the interviewer.
You have to read carefully to tell the difference between interviewer and interviewee, and the grammer is worse than mine, making that harder.
I'm not going to say it is fake, but I am going to say I don't believe poorly written interviews on the internet.
Well, I suppose we'll find out if it is soon, now won't we?
Quote from: -RepublicCommando- on April 06, 2013, 09:02:33 AM
Well, I suppose we'll find out if it is soon, now won't we?
No, I don't think we will ever know.
Disney still owns everything lucas arts did. it doesnt change anything in that regard
Quote from: Ltin on April 06, 2013, 01:31:46 PM
Disney still owns everything lucas arts did. it doesnt change anything in that regard
Your comment has no relevance to my post that you quoted.
Does anyone know if they will continue to make their action figures, I know Hasbro makes them but....
Quote from: {212th} AÐv | Märt¥ on April 07, 2013, 10:22:32 AM
Does anyone know if they will continue to make their action figures, I know Hasbro makes them but....
I'm pretty sure action figures are a steady source of income, so they won't be stopping that. Ever.
Not to say video games aren't. I guess action figures, figurines dolls etc are just uncomplicated and never lose their appeal.
Quote from: Buckler on April 06, 2013, 12:04:23 AM
GT has a pretty good discussion on why this interview may be fake. Please keep that in mind.
Could I see this? I couldn't seem to find it on GT. :confused:
GT Link: [Possible fake]Interview With Ex-Lucas Arts Employee (http://gametoast.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=29079)
I don't have the link to the article (they removed it.)
They have some good points. I will keep that in mind during there next "Battlefront Update"...
http://kotaku.com/the-last-months-of-lucasarts-472038151
Ohoh!
Check out the video here, in which is the second version of First Assault which looks a lot more like the battlefront we all know and love.
Too bad it's dead.
QuoteIn the video, you can see all sorts of vehicle combat: the player, looking from a first-person perspective, zips around in X-Wings and AT-AT Walkers while shooting down TIE Fighters and other Star Wars-y vehicles. The art isn't final, but the combat looks very cool: one section, for example, shows multiple players riding on hoverbikes and shooting lasers at everything in their paths.
First Assault, as we reported a few weeks ago, didn't have any vehicles. Version Two did.
This is because, according to multiple sources, developers at LucasArts planned to turn Version Two into Star Wars: Battlefront III, the highly-anticipated third game in the Battlefront shooter series that has shuffled from developer to developer over the past few years. This time, LucasArts hoped to make it themselves.
"[There's] a very vocal audience that's clamoring for Battlefront III," said a source. "We were hoping to eventually give it to them."
But over the past few months, morale has been low at LucasArts. Due to the freeze on all hiring and game announcements, staff at the company had no idea whether their games would ever actually come out.
In January, a month after the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, Disney's Iger came out and said they would be taking a close look at the violence in their video games.
This was a red flag for the developers at LucasArts. Here they are, working on a first-person shooter and a violent action-adventure game, and Disney says they're re-evaluating the amount of violence in their games? Not a great sign.
"It was very clear that we were kind of the redheaded stepchild," said a source. "We kinda came along with the hot mom being the film properties."
The Studio Behind Epic Mickey Has Shut Down
Following rumors yesterday, Junction Point, the development studio behind Epic Mickey and its... Read...
Next, Disney closed Junction Point, the studio behind Epic Mickey and its sequel. This was another ominous sign for LucasArts staff, a source said. "We understand that Epic Mickey 2 didn't sell that well, but I mean, they tried to make a musical," the source said. "We didn't know what was happening there either."
There were two more events that led LucasArts employees to believe that the end was near, a source told me.
Leaked Footage Of Star Wars' Newest Take On Battlefield And Call of Duty [UPDATE]
Over the past few days, I've been talking to multiple sources about Star Wars: First Assault,... Read...
The first was in March, when Kotaku leaked details and videos from Star Wars: First Assault, which still hadn't been announced.
"When Disney didn't make lemonade out of lemons there, they didn't use that as a marketing opportunity. They didn't do anything," a source said. That's when they knew things were bad.
The day after Kotaku put up video footage from First Assault, LucasArts had a meeting, that source said.
"They said 'Okay, look, if anything else happens, we're gonna take legal action, we're gonna find you,'" the source said. "Nobody wants Lucas and Disney lawyers coming after them... nobody could even publicly acknowledge that the stuff [Kotaku was] showing was tied to us in any way."
The second point when LucasArts employees knew that something had gone wrong was just before GDC, when, according to a source, they were given strict guidelines about what they could and could not say. First Assault developers were allowed to say they were working on a first-person shooter in the Star Wars universe, that source told me, but they couldn't name the game, even though it was already out there.
By this point, rumors had already been circulating that LucasArts might shut down. According to one source present at the pre-GDC meeting, executives acknowledged that rumor but wouldn't confirm or deny it.
"Luckily, many of us saw the writing on the wall and took GDC as an opportunity," said the source.
Last week, Disney shut down LucasArts. Although LucasFilm says they could license out games like Star Wars 1313 or First Assault to be finished by other developers, I've talked to three sources who don't think that's likely.
"Disney says they're shopping [First Assault] around to other outlets to see if they want to finish it, but we don't think that's gonna happen," a source said.
The big rumor floating around LucasArts circles—something we have not been able to confirm, but that has been relayed to us by two different sources—is that EA was considering buying LucasArts, but that some combination of the SimCity debacle and CEO John Riccitiello's departure put an end to those plans. We reached out to EA two days ago for comment on this, but they haven't gotten back to us.
UPDATE: EA has responded with a statement from labels president Frank Gibeau: "The entire game industry is in transition as we build more efficient organizations to deliver games on popular new platforms like mobile and consoles. EA is not currently considering any major acquisitions."
The shutdown of LucasArts has left the fate of Star Wars video games unclear. Will Disney license Star Wars to other publishers? Will they publish games made by external developers? Will we see more games like Star Wars Kinect? One thing's for sure: it won't be business as usual.
It seems everything that's ever been said about BF3 is that it's canceled.
It's getting old.
It's like all those AC/DC songs, with a hard hitting intro riff that seems to last the entire song. They spend 3 or so min. declaring that they are about to rock, but never quite get to the rocking part before the song ends. Like they forgot it along the way, or left it backstage.....
It's more or less the fact that every entity that has tried to touch Battlefront III has collapsed into a manging pile of heap. It's something I'm used to by now: we'll never, ever get BFIII.
Quote from: ggctuk2005 on April 10, 2013, 02:00:44 PM
It's more or less the fact that every entity that has tried to touch Battlefront III has collapsed into a manging pile of heap. It's something I'm used to by now: we'll never, ever get BFIII.
I'm sure, deep down inside, everyone figured that would happen...
The coolest things always die first.
well i think i always thought deep down that it might possibly happen some day. Especially with the new movies coming out.
This video looked awesome though, a lot more swbf 1 in it than 2. It looked a lot more promising than the last video posted for first assault (i tried going back to that last article and video to look at comparisons, but found that Disney/Lucas Arts had it pulled down).
Wait, what if we can do all sorts of cool stuff we couldn't before, we could make SWBF3 OURSELVES! :blink: :crazy: :wacko:
Quote from: Josh on April 10, 2013, 02:36:02 PM
Wait, what if we can do all sorts of cool stuff we couldn't before, we could make SWBF3 OURSELVES! :blink: :crazy: :wacko:
Believe it or not, I am trying to make an engine in GML that will run it's own type of 3D files, since the ones it has built in are far too primitive to use (like rotations and animation), but if I can -eventually- get the huge project done, perhaps it could be a SWBFIII (0.2) ?
I am still learning advanced GML though, so it will most likely be a few years to get it out, and that is assuming I don't just give up on it...
There are certainly many promising engines to chose from (for making a BF3 game.) Unity, that Cube engine, heck, even the JK code Raven just released. All sorts of ready made frameworks on sourceforge and other code repository sites.
Need a team to work on it though and some sort of lead to wrangle it all together.
I would suggest that formal programming knowledge would be helpful, but I'm more of a jump-in-and-break-it-then-fix-it kind of guy.
-edit
GML, that's programming. :)
I think your right about it taking a while on that route. The last version of GM I touched was before YoYo had it, and 3d was just not possible with it.
There have been several "Let's make SWBF3 ourselves!" groups over the years. There is one on GT right now.
The most successful of these has been, in my opinion, the COD4 group, a link to which I posted before but have forgotten about.
For those who "Just want to get the facts" and none of this BS news here is an interview with IGN.com's Mitch Dyer on the newest Rebel Force Radio episode. It aired before the new First Assult video but it will help you hear from a professional on the matter.
Here is a link to download on:
iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/rebelforce-radio-star-wars/id593355728?mt=2)
It's titled Rebel Force Radio: April 5, 2013
Or listen to it directly on your browser
HERE (http://ec.libsyn.com/p/c/5/a/c5ae7537af93f72a/RebelForceRadio_040513_WeeklyRFR.mp3?d13a76d516d9dec20c3d276ce028ed5089ab1ce3dae902ea1d01ce8231d5c855df66&c_id=5560902)
Let it load for a little bit, press play, and skip too 1:27:00 or around there.
Here is where I got the download options: http://www.shotglassdigital.com/release/april-5-2013/
I hope this helps people out. :)