160°

'We don't have shareholders, but we also don't think about them,' Larian Studios

"Building games that are actually fun is going to make you the most money, that's it."

PRIMORDUS95d ago

I highly respect Larian Studios. I say fuck all the greedy shit bag shareholders, they are rich to begin with, and only want more and more who sometimes do not even know about the industry they invest in.

XiNatsuDragnel95d ago

Good stuff other studios take notes 📝

Christopher95d ago

Those other companies have shareholders, so they aren't even thinking about this.

XiNatsuDragnel95d ago

Problem is some shareholders are greedy mofos which ruins creativity imo

shinoff218394d ago

Take note of how they handled the physical release to. They seen a demand for it and unlike remedy they decided to meet that demand half way. Have us pay for our pre orders it pays for itself. No money needed from the studio. More studios should do this before outright dismissing.

The_Hooligan94d ago

Exactly! I preorder a physical copy and the amount of stuff it comes with, really speaks to the care they have taken. I'm part of Q2 release so not sure when I'll get it, but it'll definitely be worth the wait.

XiNatsuDragnel94d ago

For real they're doing all the right moves.

isarai95d ago

God this sounds like to good ol days 😌 when the industry was ran by gamers and nerds who just wanted to make something cool.

phoenixwing95d ago

No wonder other companies said they couldn't replicate the standard they set. They're too busy bending over for shareholders to make a good game.

dumahim94d ago

I just watched a video from an environment artist who worked on Forza Motorsport and he talks about this 18/6 contractor thing that MS uses. Work for 18 months, and then you go away for 6 months. He talks about him being there for a pretty short time and his mentor in the role messages him that his contract is about up so big responsibilities are going to fall on him now. I had never heard about it, but no wonder Microsoft studio games just lack passion.

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

BrainSyphoned94d ago

Yet they had to sell 30% of themselves to Tencent. Don't go crying outloud about your purity when you had to take Chinese money to stay afloat. China doesn't censor anything though so no worries about future issues with bear sex.

shinoff218394d ago

China I'm sure has some form of censorship

The_Hooligan94d ago (Edited 94d ago )

As long as it's a normal bear and not Winnie the Pooh

Edit: meant to reply @brain

TheColbertinator94d ago (Edited 94d ago )

If you had read ANYTHING about Larian's involvement with Tencent, you would know their 30% investment still does not give them any voting power or influence. The majority of the company belongs to a private investor in Europe who makes the final call not Tencent, China or anyone else.

dumahim94d ago

"Larian Studios does technically have a single shareholder in Tencent—which owns around 30% of the company. However, an important piece of context is that Tencent appears to own what's called a "preference" share, meaning that Tencent doesn't have voting rights when it comes to Larian's decision making. The rest of the company belongs to CEO and Founder Swen Vincke and his wife."

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50°

Unicorn Overlord Developer Vanillaware Is Working On New Action RPG Featuring Online Component

Unicorn Overlord developer Vanillaware is currently working on a brand new action RPG that features an online component.

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twistedvoxel.com
50°

Alien: Rogue Incursion Creator Survios: A History of VR Works

VR veteran Survios is currently working on Alien: Rogue Incursion, so we take a look back at its history of VR works.

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xrsource.net
230°

Unfortunately, Ninja Theory Isn't Actually Safe From Microsoft

Ninja Theory might have games in the pipeline, but that doesn't mean Xbox won't close it for no reason

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thegamer.com
rlow110h ago

Alot of speculation on their part. Ninja Theory has two games that have been green lighted and are in the works. Yes it’s always a possibility they could be closed but no matter how you feel about the Senua games. They do make a quality game. I personally think MS is going lay low for a bit, after the firestorm they experienced last week.

darthv728h ago

I really hope one of them is a long awaited sequel of heavenly sword or enslaved. Both are good games that deserve a 2nd chance... or at least a reboot.

blackblades7h ago

I'm 100% doubt its heavenly sword for obvious reason and Enslave 99% doubt it.

romulus236h ago

"Sony Computer Entertainment retains the intellectual property of Heavenly Sword", so that's not happening. Sony should let Santa Monica Studios make a Heavenly Sword sequel.

Rynxie5h ago

Santa Monica is a great studio, but I would rather the minds behind the original make it (ninja theory). I never liked sequels that were done by someone else, they are usually never as good as the original.

rlow145m ago

Enslaved would be awesome. If they did a remaster, then the next game in the series…..one can hope.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 45m ago
Rynxie5h ago

They make quality games, but they're usually hit or miss. Either they are average, or they are awesome. However, besides heavenly sword and DMC, they aren't big sellers either. Ms is as big of a corporation as it gets. If ninja theory isn't making them money, they will shut them down. Simple as that.

MrDead1h ago

Studio survival no matter who is reliant on MS's quarterly reports, if MS is looking to save money then studios like Ninja Theory are gone as we've seen with Tango and others. MS has their IP's, the devs mean nothing to them but a handy tool to balance the books with layoffs.

Einhander19729h ago

It's not for no reason.

The reason is they made two games that were underwhelming (Bleeding Edge) and didn't/aren't going to grow the user base for game pass.

They spent 5-7 years and this was what they produced, it's easy to see how they would be on the short list for termination at this point.

Sciurus_vulgaris9h ago

One thing to point out was that all the recently closed studios were under Bethesda. Before being purchased by MS, Bethesda had a slew of poor or under performing titles (Evil Within 2, Prey (2017), Wolfenstein: The New Colossus, Young Blood, and initially Fallout 76 ). I don’t think, Ghost Wire Tokyo, Deathloop, Redfall and sadly even High-Fi: Rush performed well after the buyout.

Einhander19729h ago(Edited 9h ago)

I bet this game with a 5-7 year dev cycle being launched directly onto game pass is going to generate less tangible cash profit than any of those games.

I'm sure Microsoft will brag about players or sword swings or some other pointless statistic, but those don't make cash money.

Lightning779h ago(Edited 9h ago)

Apparently Ninja Theory is safe From being closed down https://www.gamespot.com/ar...

Already working on a new game. They are a 80 person team and relatively inexpensive I suppose to any other publisher

Buuuuut.

Yeaah sorry this is MS, I don't believe anything MS says. They have to be joking if they think anyone will believe them besides gullible Xbox fanboys. Once again MS needs to earn my trust back. Just when they earn some trust back, they always seem to destroy it and have to work to get it back. I still think they're getting shut down and canceling whatever game they're making because the game won't sell, again MS fault for not advertising it.. This company man...

FPSRUSSIA8h ago

the article talks about that to i recommend checking it out when you get a chance.

romulus235h ago

Tango was probably working on something new as well.

outsider16242h ago

The problem with this game probably not selling will be because of Gamepass. Every comment i see from xbox players are "dude, no need to buy this amazing game, just get it on gamepass"

Will it sell well based on word of mouth? Will they release it on ps5? Will ps players buy this game vs free on gamepass? Time will tell.

Knightofelemia8h ago

I don't see Microsoft shutting off the lights to Ninja Theory. As a studio they actually have talent and have released some decent games. I love Enslaved maybe a sleeper hit but it's one of my favorites. Only way I see Microsoft shutting off the lights is if Ninja Theory releases games that sink faster then a lead weight. And there are fans of Ninja Theory one thing I would hate to see is Ninja Theory ending up like Bioware. Loosing all their talent and being a former shell of what they use to be.

Elda5h ago

Never say never. Tango Gameswork were just as talented as Ninja Theory & they were shut down.

shaenoide5h ago

To be honest for Microsoft (not Microsoft gaming) it's all about making for the 70 billion purchase of AKB. No matter how good the games are. If they don't generate sales or new gamepass subs the studios can be shutted down.

Rynxie5h ago(Edited 5h ago)

Yes, they make decent games, but do they sell? Unfortunately, no. Heavenly sword sold 1.5 million, even when the ps3 had a much lower install base than the 360. However, it's not a ninja theory ip. Enslaved sold poorly. DMC, sold well, but that's also not a ninja theory ip. Hellblade was a hit, but in my opinion, barely. Hellblade 2, unfortunately, might be a flop. There's no bigger corporation than Ms, they are as corporate as they come. If ninja theory isn't making them money, they will get shut down and their ips giving to another studio.

Elda5h ago

It was just announced that MS gave NT the greenlight for its next game. I just hope it's not another Hellblade. https://www.yahoo.com/tech/...

shaenoide5h ago

Tango was working on a new game.

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