2013-08-02 It's going bubonic

[zaprzapb]

Here...we...go.

[empath]

One could say that the whole reboot was pandering for profit. Making everything darker and edgier and more violent because that's the only thing execs think will sell.

Of course, that's not entirely inconsistent with the new version being Tristan's true artistic vision. You think that Darker and Edgier will sell best, you recruit overgrown-adolescent-boy creatives whose visions are always murky and noxious, so they'll throw themselves heart and soul into following through on that idea.

Exactly; I'm sure that 'Dr. Claw' is the one got hold of the Chamelia property, had the idea to 'cash in on the Dark and Edgy trend', and - after a quick interview to determine his suitability for the project, assigned Tristan as project lead/lead developer/etc.

...and now Dr. Claw has changed his mind.

That's how this works: when you are the boss, YOUR EMPLOYEES DO WHAT YOU SAY.

I mean, projects get rebooted all the time (more than the public would suspect)...staff changes due to unforeseen circumstances - and thus the collective 'creative vision' of the team is altered...a new engine comes out that sounds much better for the project and would be cheaper to license (of course, repeat that enough times and you get DNF ), and so on.

And even the 'reveal presentation' isn't a fait accompli nowadays; these media galas are often anywhere from 3/4 to only 1/3 through the development cycle, and the driven by marketing decisions, rather than creative ones...

I DO like Oarboar's idea for 'the Developer's version' to be included in a Collector's Edition; salve to Tristan's (magnum) opus, and gives more of a 'value-added' feel to it rather than "the game in a cool box that won't fit alongside all the others on the shelf, and with a handful of themed tchotchkes that I'm gonna lose before long" ;)

One good thing to come from this - if...*stops and checks*...ahem: If Dark Matter Games comes out and announces the about face before the presentation is over - gets the message out while the audience is still captivated (albeit by a fiery, passionate spokesmodel rather than the Dev, but still), this could make DMG (huh, never noticed that; cute) look VERY GOOD to the consumer - a game developer that can PROVE that it listens to its customer base...

[Don Alexander]

I bet the company president will congratulate Tristan on having found a great new Chamelia model.

I fess up, I was completely wrong.

Good to know Doctor Claw has finally found a new job and is now making video games! World domination and tracking down a certain inspector was certainly not a path for him...

Yussss, I totally though the company boss is only missing a big fat cat to pet and scritch!!

Okay, Sandra, you've won. Power down before you make a fool of yourself.

Too late. Her last speech bubble means that she's skied over the edge of the cliff.

You do not like ice cream?

Anyway, if Sandra shouts "Who likes boobs??" that LiveStream will go down immediately (even before it can be DDoSed...)

By the way, when I first saw the thread title, I thought the boss was one of the Pointy-Haired variety and that he did not even know how to use "it's gone viral"...

['J']

Anyway, if Sandra shouts "Who likes boobs??" that LiveStream will go down immediately (even before it can be DDoSed...)

nah, she's not nearly drunk enough for that yet.

i'm betting on a wardrobe malfunction.

[Spidrift]

You do not like ice cream?

I love ice cream. I'm kind of sorry that I don't generally see things like green tea or red date flavours at this end of the Eurasian landmass, but G&B dark chocolate does me just fine. But I wouldn't risk seeming to offer to supply it to an entire theatre full of geeks.

[hightechartist]

As an MBA, I have three things to say:

1. To all the people expressing disbelief at a company reworking or scrapping a mostly-finished game, you need to think about marketing. A company's product does not exist in a vacuum. With noticeably good or bad products, there is a halo effect. One really good and popular product, and you'll see your sales goes up in other products. One really offensive/bad product, and you'll see the opposite. If you spent lot of money on a product and realize before launch that it'll bring you bad PR, scrap it. Bury it.

2. I'm always amused when executives are portrayed as the bad guy for wanting the company's product to make a profit. Game studios typically aren't NPO's. There are plenty of things that too many executives do that DOES merit villain status: treating employees like animals, conning people out of money, etc. So the repeated focus on "profit = evil" baffles me.

3. I'm curious where this company's office is located that the boss is allowed to smoke that cigar indoors ;-)

[Bobluvsandra]

Of course, now she'll have this video game designer mad at her, but, if the big man likes it..does this mean maybe she'll BE in the next video game? Or, is this a huge blunder?

Still..I'm so loving her in that outfit!! Slurp!

[philippos42]

Sandra is a superhero!

[Zippy]

To all the people expressing disbelief at a company reworking or scrapping a mostly-finished game,...

And it probably *is* rework rather than scrap if it's mostly finished (which we don't know - this was the announcement, not debut, ja? Could be that little more than the trailer and CG models therein are done, and actual gameplay is at a very early stage). Only the cutscenes would be a dead loss.

Of course, now she'll have this video game designer mad at her, but, if the big man likes it..does this mean maybe she'll BE in the next video game?

Well, the comparison shot of her with the cardboard standee was already damn close. It's hardly unlikely that the 1000-in-1 Carmelia could be based directly on her at this point.

[Spidrift]

I suspect that she'll need a large collection of concept art in a hurry. Any... moment... now...

[Dehumanizer]

Exactly; I'm sure that 'Dr. Claw' is the one got hold of the Chamelia property, had the idea to 'cash in on the Dark and Edgy trend', and - after a quick interview to determine his suitability for the project, assigned Tristan as project lead/lead developer/etc.

...and now Dr. Claw has changed his mind.

That's one possibility. Another is that the boss doesn't even care about what the game will be like at all. Tristan told him "this'll sell" and, watching the presentation, he's just noticed that it'll in fact anger the franchise's fans, who, instead, just showed they're dying for a game actually true to the character. One won't sell, the other will -- probably more than it would if not for this presentation, Sandra included.

Tristan may really care about his "artistic vision", although his vision, IMO, sucks -- not just geniuses have artistic vision, after all, right? Just because you care about what you do, doesn't mean you're good. And he's demonstrated he does NOT care about the character or the franchise's history; he'd probably make almost exactly the same game if he had been handed Princess Peach, Beyond Good & Evil, Recettear, Giana Sisters, The Longest Journey...

[OldBrit]

Tristan's 'vision' can probably be saved by changing the character's name, tweaking the graphics slightly, and launching it as an entirely new franchise, while Dark Matter Games gets another development team to rush out Carmen Chamelia: The Wardrobe Expansion Pack - an outfit for every occasion, each with its own super-power, along with a straight conversion of the 16-bit game.

[Dorje Sylas]

So he's a more sadistic chauvinistic M. Bay, but with a gore fetish instead of an explosion one. Established franchises are just excuses to scribble on someone else's canvous.

[Zorlond]

Tristan's 'vision' can probably be saved by changing the character's name, tweaking the graphics slightly, and launching it as an entirely new franchise,

Workable in theory, but they would have to start over with the main character at least, starting with origional concept. And then they'd have to re-do all the audio that mentions the main, as well as re-write the script for any references to the older games, possibly redesign a level or two if they're based on the 16-bit game, check all the animations for any possible blatant overlaps... It might be easier (and less ulcer-inducing) to just scrap the whole thing. Not saying that Tristan will, just pointing out his options.

[Mutant for Hire]

You know, from the sound of it, in the modern gaming market, the original Chamelia's powers sound like an easy sell to the executives at the company. They can do multiple DLC releases with packs of new outfits/powers for her character.

And yes, I agree, the simplest way to salvage the original content is just give the original character a new name and look and sell it as a new franchise. It will probably bomb as it's a clone of much better selling franchises, but who knows?