Jim Sterling (The Jimquisition)

Ah, man that sucks for Jim. What are the chances?

Funny I had just watched a No Man's Sky review yesterday that raised the question of whether the developer lied and it really put me in the mood for this video. Quite enjoyed the in-depth look at it.

That Fuck Konami News in the previous episode was pretty precious though. He seemed so amused. .

edited 25th Aug '16 5:07:04 PM by MainManJ

Unrelated, but Jim released a review of a relatively-overlooked new game, Valley. He liked it a ton.

You guys sold on it? It definitely looks pretty, and a game that makes you feel fast while maintaining control is always a good time.

It's not hip to be Square Enix.

RIP Deus Ex.

Seriously tho, why Square Enix why?

Because money.

Now I wish I'd thought to post that clip when I said that.

But yeah, that clip pretty much sums up the motivations behind literally every shitty business decision ever made by a AAA game company ever.

And all because of that, Deus Ex, Garden Warfare 2 and OW won't get a standing ovation. Just as 2015 gave room for really good games.

Excellent games worth a play by most accounts, but I totally respect Jim choosing to disqualify them on these grounds.

Totlly agree fee to pay on expensive already games has to stop

Getting the memo to plop microtransactions in only two weeks before launch, geez...

edited 1st Sep '16 7:35:39 PM by FawfulCrump

There is a reason why Square is on the same level of bullfuckery as Ubisoft.

Their decision with ruining Mankind Divided was the absolute last straw.

Pretty much all the AAA developers are in this boat right now.

It makes me wonder if stuff like this even works because they keep doing it.

Given that their development costs appear to be ridiculously out of control, they may not have a choice. Three million sales to break even is not in any way sustainable without alternate sources of revenue, and the info given by the Jimquisition indicates they know it.

If this is the future of AAA gaming, that future won't last very long.

edited 2nd Sep '16 1:26:47 PM by TotemicHero

It's funny when you think about it. Bigger budgets and spending are in demand, yet no one can spend that money properly. Hell, it seems people can make a better game when under some form of restriction because you get to see how they can get around it.

I know Jim said this was mostly the Western branch and that the Japanese branch was an entirely separate kettle of fish, but I half-wonder if how bloated Final Fantasy XV's development got has any influence here.

(...probably not, since this is to recoup Mankind Divided's costs, but still, the things they were showing off in that release date reveal seemed extravagantly superfluous.)

It's hard to tell without first-hand knowledge of a publisher's or developer's inner workings whether a game's financial success is considered enough on its own or if it's expected to cover for other projects as well.

If I recall what I've read, this is part of the downfall behind Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. On its own, it had a pretty good launch (supposedly over 1 million copies sold in the first three months), but it also had to cover the cost of the gargantuan MMO the company was working on. And it wasn't nearly enough, so belly up 38 Studios went, and Rhode Island cried itself to sleep that night.

Ah, good ol' Jim. Always busy breaking the chains of love.

New one out on the Fallout 4 mods not appearing on PS 4 controversy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qn6OR7OtLj4

And he's not happy about having to do this one this week as it stops him doing one on Ark: Survival Evolved.

Courtesy embed 'cause we internet folks. Ain't nobody got time for clicking on links.

I can't figure out why Sony did this. They're usually all about the money, which is why there's still going to be three versions of the PS 4 on sale for a considerable time until they stop shipping the fat original one. And they don't usually allow Microsoft to score such easy PR goals against them - since historically it was the other way around, especially at the launch of the Xbox One.

Because they'd make more money if they allowed mods - as more copies of the game would be sold on the system - as has happened with the Xbox One version by Microsoft's figures, and they'd get good publicity doing so.

Failing to do it just got them the kind of kicking they got from Jim Sterling in the above video, and elsewhere on the net, and they've dragged Bethesda into the argument as well.

Until Bethesda or Sony release more details on why PS 4 mods were cancelled for Beth games, it's hard to come to any solid conclusions.