Indie MMOG Developer Fails 15
Gamespot has the news that independent developer of the MMOG 'Twilight War' Smiling Gator has unfortunately closed up shop. Funding was the primary reason for their closure. From the article: "Twilight War, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game using the Source engine (first featured in Half-Life 2), would have been Smiling Gator's first game. The company had billed Twilight War as 'an MMORPG with an integrated first-person-shooter-style combat system where thousands of online players come together in an expansive and immersive three-dimensional world.'" The Twilight War HQ site has information on the game for those interesting in what might have been.
Ya' know... (Score:5, Insightful)
Good grief, just go back and take a *quick* look at the company they are in and it becomes quickly apparent just how many have delusions of grandeur and then take the fall. Even the "big boys" screw up MMO development with alarming (some would say with near 100%) failure rates.
Sadly, these kinds of companies are often trying to take the high road and do something innovative with the MMO space, but that only *adds* to the likelihood of failure. I used to code and admin MUDs and even with a fraction of the user base, trying to be innovative only brought us grief 80% of the time... and we weren't financially vested in the outcome to we *could* be innovative without worrying about ticking off investors.
Re:Ya' know... (Score:2)
I'm on the same page as you- I almost thought it was an Onion article from the title.
no, really!! (Score:3, Funny)
What to do with fanfiction (Score:1)
Re:no, really!! (Score:2)
When I read this first sentence I get the distinct feeling there is something orange being described, and also a horizon is somehow in the mix.
MMORPG? (Score:1, Troll)
I think this should read:
"Twilight War, a massively multiplayer online FPS using the Source engine (first featured in Half-Life 2), w
it takes more than developer talent... (Score:3, Insightful)
it takes more than developer talent to run a game business because it is still a business! it operates on the mathematical practice of incoming cash being greater than outgoing cash. once that fails, the business has failed.
Re:it takes more than developer talent... (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:it takes more than developer talent... (Score:2)
That seems to be giving too much credit to VC. There is nothing that says you have to fund a start-up with the help of venture capitalists, and indeed it's usually about the worst possible way to get funding because of the strings that come attached.
The problem, it seems to me, is if you think you're going to be able to fund our own start-up on a reasonabl
Just imagine what could have been (Score:1, Funny)
Why imagine? (Score:2)
Re:Just imagine what could have been (Score:2)
What la
Your entire army has been gibbed by L337-LPB-h8r's slow moving but obscenely powerful combat units
g?
Can't see your problem myself. :-)
Ah well... (Score:2)
Bruce
Re:Ah well... (Score:2)