Tuesday, July 29, 2008

I Think Their Acti-vision is a Bit Nearsighted

image

I like chaos sometimes, when you are not part of it, it can be fun to stand back and watch it all unfold. This is what I feel like being an observer of the Activision/ Vivendi nonsense going on. If you are unaware of what is happening, Gamesindustry.biz posted an article detailing Activision-Blizzard’s upcoming release schedule. Missing from the list was, Ghostbusters from Terminal Reality, 50: Cent: Blood on the Sand from Swordfish or Brutal Legend from Double Fine. Many initial reactions were, that the games were all cancelled. Gamespot added fuel to this fire by garnering this quote from an Activision Rep:

“The only franchises that Activision Publishing will release are based on Crash Bandicoot, Ice Age and Spyro, as well as Prototype and one other game that has not yet been announced,” the representative said. “We are reviewing our options regarding those titles that we will not be publishing.”

What I take this to mean, is that another publisher will taking these games on, as they are quite high profile. So far even the 50 Cent game has received some good preview press. Kotaku seems to have backed this conclusion as well getting this quote from a Vivendi spokesperson in regards to the Ghostbusters game:

“It is not cancelled and will not be cancelled.”

So is Activision making the right choice here? Does anyone care about Crash and Spyro anymore? I don’t think they have been important since the PS1. And Ice Age is a better license then Ghostbusters? Really? Maybe they were cheaper to pick up? I am honestly having trouble wrapping my noodle around this one. Ghostbusters looks great and is being backed by the creators and talent from the movie. The last 50 Cent game sold a ton and was utter crap, imagine how it could do if the game is decent. Double Fine made Psychonauts, sure it didn’t sell but the critics loved it. Maybe someone should tell Activision that it is 2008, not 1998. Unless of course this was all an oversight and these games are re-announced soon.

No comments: