290°

American McGee Interview: ‘developers are being stifled by the systems in which they work’

An indepth and somewhat controversial interview with game industry veteran American McGee. American speaks about how the current generation needs real change, and poses the question - is the creativity of developers behind many of the latest releases being stifled by constraints of the industry, including limitations of hardware, monetization methods, distribution channels, interface (controls, screens) and more?

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postdesk.com
nam3d4570d ago

I hope there is a chapter in that book about how to be ripped off by Tim Burton.

morventhus4569d ago

you know... the first game came out b4 the tim burton movie right?

nam3d4569d ago

yes which is why I said he was ripped off by Tim Burton. :)

morventhus4569d ago

@nam3d im sorry i read that wrong... i for some reason read that he ripped off Tim burton... im sorry

Eddy2234569d ago

wait whatd tim burton do? his alice wasnt even dark

majdees4570d ago

Alice: Madness Returns is one of the best games this year in my opinion despite harsh reviews. I really hope there will be a sequel.

Pikajew4570d ago

It got bad reviews because people expected it to be better and they looked at every flaw

nam3d4570d ago

Too much hype. Look at Spore ;)

Baka-akaB4570d ago (Edited 4570d ago )

This game was snobbed by the press , despite having more qualities than the otherwise critics darling : Enslaved .

Its realisation and storytelling easily rivals Enslaved , and unlike it , it's gameplay was consistant , meaty and good enough .

kevnb4569d ago

enslaved didnt sell well either. problem with alice 2, alice 1 was completely amazing when it came out.

jack_burt0n4570d ago

well I am still waiting for it to hit a reduced price on console so i can buy it new, that in these times is a good sign.

pctrollv44569d ago

it is the best platformer ive played in years. Ppl bashed it cause it wasnt cod or mario. It is in fact one of the best looking games this gen and so much fun to play.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4569d ago
BrightFalls764570d ago

I thought games were being stifled by developers who make incredibly repetive platformers based on old fairy tales.

gunnerforlife4570d ago

is this guy talking about consoles? cuz as far as i know the PC doesn't have a game that's at the level of uncharted2 and seems like the same with 3 and gears of war 3, if he thinks that the consoles are holding him back then he should take hes game to the PC fan base i'm sure they'll love it, oh wait the profits wont be as good will it and there's a chance that it'll flop. moron a bet at the end of the day hell drool over the check that he gets from hes company just cuz of the profits he gets from the console market.

anonym4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

Nothing he said has anything to do any part of your comment. I suppose he does mention consoles, but it has nothing to do with the "PC vs Consoles" war.

gunnerforlife4569d ago

i know he doesnt, but i'm using PCs as an example of where he should go if he thinks console limit hes potential, but he wont cuz at the end of the day consoles make 70% of hes profits, just a cowardly swipe at the hand that feeds you.

kevnb4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

uncharted games look nice because of art style, and gears of war... dont make me laugh. Both those games also use stop and pop gameplay, very limited gameplay wise with enemies all close up. Battlefield 3 smashes them easily tech wise, but only on pc. Also dont make me laugh about the console market, most games lose big money on console which is why publishers stick to sequels of successful franchises. Want something new and different, you almost have to look at pc and the odd ps3 exclusive.

gunnerforlife4569d ago

is that why uncharted is being called one of the best games of all time and best game of this gen? umm it really depends how much a game cost to make so you cant say all games dont profit at the first try, or are you saying that all games on the PC are profitable straight away and consoles mostly fail to profit?

kevnb4569d ago

uncharted is not most games, and yes little lesser known games can actually make money on pc.

4569d ago
pctrollv44569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

ahahha gears 3 is not even better looking than gear1 on pc at maxxx settings on dx10. Uncharted 2 is surpassed by witcher 2 in every single way. You sir, are an obvious ps3 fanboy with no idea about games. Your mind is limited to a pad. Stay salty my friendly peasant. Uncharted is called the best looking game by whom? paid reviewers? never have i agreed once that uncharted is the best looking game. Its all bout the art and if we want to argue about it, witcher 2 has better art, alice has better art. Bf3 will blow away anything this gen easily, since i can max it out, ill let you know how it looks since you cant.

rdgneoz34569d ago

I agree with most of what you said, except for the grammar and spelling...

Shadowaste4569d ago (Edited 4569d ago )

@gunner

pc makes far more money than ps3 and 360 combined, and uncharted 2 looks worse than titan quest from 2006!

http://software.intel.com/e...

In 2009 pc games(steam, retail, direct2drive, mmo's, free2play, facebook, indie, direct downloads from game pubs like ea and ubisoft) accounted for 43% of total game revenue, the next closest console was the wii with 24% marketshare, the 360 and ps3 fight over the scraps.

Most console games do not even make in 3 years what world of warcraft makes in a month!

so both of your above statements are meaningless!

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4569d ago
kevnb4569d ago

move to pc, gamers will follow. Only problem is so many dummies dont get anything about pc specs.

4569d ago
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220°

EA Hopes to Use Generative AI to Drive Monetization and Make Development 30% More Efficient

Today Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson provided a look into his ideas for the use of generative AI in the company's development processes.

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techraptor.net
thorstein52d ago

I wonder what the next buzz word they'll slap in front of AI to make it sound exciting next? "Generative" as if it's creating its own content. Lol.

Cacabunga52d ago

EA is already dying a painful death..

peppeaccardo52d ago

i have a better idea .. why the whole exec team doesn't get replaced by chat bots ?

just_looken52d ago

Though i agree the ai thing is already in other forms of media there have been ai translations/scripts/voice over and even full ai commercials aired on tv. Ubisoft has created a ai game creator story/vo/music except the building of the game

The new unreal engine has auto terrain creation tools

In the world of greed in which it is winning without any major blow back ai is our future.

everyone want's biden dead on the mic or a criminal instead of a woman and now we are getting ai everything because no one will stop watching/playing ai created media.

GamerRN52d ago

Maybe they should just focus on making good games?

Just a thought...

Kiryu199251d ago

Exactly EA are just pure evil. When they are beating Bank of America to be voted the worst company to work for that’s saying a lot

Good thing I don’t buy their games day one and wait for deep deep sale years after launch (the select few games I am actually interested in)

Gaming is making so much money yet the greed of these companies is never ending

CEO’s and people on board making millions yet cutting jobs to those who are actually making the products

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 51d ago
Knightofelemia52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

EA is still a shady shitty company even with or without the help of Skynet. All they will use AI for is new ways to milk loot boxes and come up with the same sports title with a different year on the label. They are one company I truly do hate with a passion. They single handedly ruined some great franchise with their death touch. ME, Dead Space, Alice Returns, Dante's Inferno.

Stuart575652d ago

EA layoffs followed by 'Generative AI to Drive Monetization'

I knew it. Wonder what AI salary looks like? Nothing.

ChasterMies52d ago

I having a feeling that most of the layoffs in the industry are based on the idea that AI will do the same job for less.

DarXyde51d ago

Very likely, yes.

Made worse by the fact that the execs aren't changing their compensations.

My deepest fear at this point is that we are now in the capitalism endgame.

At this point, we really should just burn AI to the ground. Executives cannot be trusted to do the right thing.
How are those people expected to support families if everything gets automated?

Barlos52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

And take away creativity, and people's jobs as we've been seeing. Got it.

No thanks. I want my games created by people, not AI.

CobraKai52d ago

Exactly. If or when games start becoming more AI than people, im done with gaming. AI and companies like EA can suck donkey d***k.

just_looken52d ago

Though i agree remember this is no ps3/360 era were we got up to 3 games in one generation from on developer like gears/halo/bioware/sony/ms

The people today are pro esg/sweet baby for the most part AAA gaming is imploding right now.

We should be stepping back re evaluate everything as a whole this year xmen 97 written/directed by a woman that is nuts and its also being made by a group reshaping bodies to be less sexual like wtf. A dam famous cartoon from the 90's is being rebuilt with millions spent to be worse in everyway.

Gaming/movies/tv shows made today are worse than what we had 7years ago ai won't change this but that ai is also being made by these groups so either way we are screwed.
https://www.youtube.com/wat...

Eonjay51d ago

Don't be of afraid of women. Sexy characters in games and movies still exist. Got my Stellar Blade on preorder!!! Everything all the time doesn't need to be sexual...that's stupid, childish and dull.

Chocoburger52d ago (Edited 52d ago )

EA doesn't want to lose their title of worst gaming company ever, always trying their best to remain the champs!
What's sad is that they have so much potential to be a decent publisher.

SSX Tricky / SSX 3
Def Jam Vendetta / Fight for New York
NBA Street
NFL Steet
Mirror's Edge
Bad Company
Burnout 3 / 4 / 5

Remember when EA used to be awesome? It's all over with now. Unpolished, if not out-right broken games these days. Endless monetization and gambling in their sports games, and let's not forget wasting hours of your life trying to unlock characters or equipment using "surprise boxes!"

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80°

EA And Sony Layoffs, Entertainment News And More Skewedcast

Gareth, Justin, and JoeyZ look at Layoff news for EA and Sony and reasons behind the downturn in the industry and more.

220°

EA - Continuing to evolve our business and teams

EA CEO Andrew Wilson writes: "In this time of change, we expect these decisions to impact approximately 5 percent of our workforce. I understand this will create uncertainty and be challenging for many who have worked with such dedication and passion and have made important contributions to our company. While not every team will be impacted, this is the hardest part of these changes, and we have deeply considered every option to try and limit impacts to our teams. Our primary goal is to provide team members with opportunities to find new roles and paths to transition onto other projects. Where that’s not possible, we will support and work with each colleague with the utmost attention, care, and respect. Communicating these impacts has already begun and will be largely completed by early next quarter."

LG_Fox_Brazil59d ago

All the big ones doing the same stuff. Terrible. I just hope that all these people are able to get a new job as soon as possible, God know that it is horrible to be left jobless when you have your kids or your parents depending on your financial help

Jin_Sakai59d ago (Edited 59d ago )

2024 so far.

Feb ’28 Electronic Arts (EA) 670 (5%)
Feb ’24 PlayStation 900 (8%)
Feb ’24 Vice Media Group Several hundred
Feb ’24 Buzzfeed 16%
Feb ’24 NowThis 26 (50%)
Feb ’24 Paramount Global 800 (3%)
Feb ’24 SiriusXM 160 (3%)
Feb ’24 Snapchat 10%
Jan ’24 TechCrunch 8 + subscription product
Jan ’24 U.K.’s Channel 4 200
Jan ’24 Business Insider 8%
Jan ’24 Microsoft Gaming 1,900
Jan ’24 Riot Games 530
Jan ’24 Sports Illustrated Possibly all
Jan ’24 YouTube 100
Jan ’24 Pitchfork (Conde Nast) Undisclosed
Jan ’24 Universal Music Group Hundreds
Jan ’24 Discord 17%
Jan ’24 NBC News 50-100
Jan ’24 Audible 5%
Jan ’24 Google Hundreds
Jan ’24 Amazon Hundreds
Jan ’24 Duolingo 10%
Jan ’24 VideoAmp 20%

DATA AS OF FEB. 28, 2024

outsider162459d ago

Is it possible maybe this whole ai thing is in play?

just_looken59d ago

Another long list that skips over UPS cutting 12,000 jobs those workers as we know work without ac low pay and old box trucks but that company had to cut 12k jobs do too loosing billions of dollars year 2 year.

https://edition.cnn.com/202...

The greed and lack of transparency/oversight is disgusting.

Ups are still making bang but not enough for a golden boat fleet.

Remember we all use ups at some time even stuff in our stores this is going to be a huge issue gong forward i know in my area they removed half the state ups stores northern half least population got some 3rd party running packages now from minivans.

Sonic188159d ago

When I explan this I get called a troll 🤔 like wtf

thorstein59d ago

@just_looken

UPS is a different story altogether.

They are paying the people doing the actual work/ earning the money more and eliminating management.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 59d ago
CrimsonWing6959d ago (Edited 59d ago )

You do realize around this time this happens all throughout many industries (not just the game industry), right? It has to do with taxes for these major companies, like tax subsidies for downsizing. You want to know a little secret? Around May or so you’ll see a spike in hiring…

It blows my mind that people are oblivious to corporate workings.

Andrew33659d ago

So over 25 huge companies cut jobs every year like this and it only got noticed this time?

CrimsonWing6959d ago (Edited 59d ago )

@Andrew336

Yes, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Google it up if you’re uninformed of how corporations work. Only gamers seem to live in a bubble and when they see things like crunch, acquisitions, and lay-offs they act like this is the only industry it happens to and how shocked they are about it.

Welcome to the real world, kid.

thorstein59d ago (Edited 59d ago )

EA CEO Wilson's total compensation was 20 million. Let's take away 19 million (I'm sure he can survive on 1 million.... somehow).

1 million is the salary of an in the chair developer @100,000 for 10 years.

He could earn 1 million a year.

And save the jobs of 15 in the chair devs for A DECADE (plus benefits) with ONE YEAR'S compensation.

RhinoGamer8859d ago

No Executive accountability or firings I see...

just_looken59d ago

Do not worry they will take over 40mill say sorry then get hired by playstation or xbox

blackblades58d ago

I heard Japan does it better, they do layoffs like what's happening with companies in the west. The higher ups also being agreeing to to lower there own salary. These MFs like jim and Phil isnt gonna do that they want that $

Sonic188159d ago

Like I said earlier, this is happening all around the gaming industry.

Petebloodyonion59d ago

The point I feel is problematic about all of this is that focusing on Owned Ip means more sequels, remasters and more of what was selling last year.

TheColbertinator59d ago

EA is certainly among the worst,if not the worst

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