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child of Thor
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I cashed in my 'investments' for a VW Camper That then broke down all the time - still it was fun for a year
ON topic:
Did you get the shares as part of being on the Activsion team? Just intrested if game companies do the same thing as other corprate buisness...... (just tell me to sod-off if its too nosy, or ignore me )
Im thinking of getting involved, so im curious about all the Industry gossip.
As a long time game player(kinda from the begining almost),and small time game designer(board games/rpgs/choose your own adventure books etc), It puzzles me about some of the directions the Industry has taken.....something just doesnt 'sit' right...in terms of customers getting the product that the medium could offer. Well alot of the time anyway. I have seen that as the technology has progressed - it doesnt or hasn't always translated into the same thing for the software.
To bring it to the CTP games, i would say that these could have been the best of the genre(for me and others here they are, but we're a minority), and for whatever reasons they just didn't make it. My gut feeling on this is that it was the production company that dropped the ball somewhere, as it does happen on many occasions with increasing regularity as the years go by.
Im not saying games in the 'old days' were all roses, in fact there were some real stinkers(loads in fact), but it was the pioneer stage. Its strange that the same mistakes are being made like 20 years later? I know your sort of out of the industry, and your situation to me seems kinda tied in with what i see are the consequences of the direction the industry took over the years.
Whats your thoughts on this? I dont know how long you've been intrested in video games, and im a gentleman of sorts so i wont ask But have you noticed a change through your time as a player and creator?
Last edited by child of Thor on 26-08-2003 at 17:39
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st_swithin
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10069
Nov 2002
time: 05:27
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I remember the baby-out-the-window-onto-the-firemens-trampoline game - that game ROCKED!!!~~
My highest score was 99 - for some reason, I could never get to 100.
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ahenobarb
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Sort of a strange occurance... I was in Heathrow airport on the 25th of Oct. and there was a guy standing with a sign that said "Activision" waiting to pick some people up. Wonder who they were?
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child of Thor
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Ref an interesting few posts:
Posted by Peter Triggs(in the ‘I am Slow’ thread).
'Patience, Grasshopper' (as they say)
I came across this yesterday (on a site that's not allowed to be mentioned around here ):
"quote:When Activision was founded on October 1, 1979 by four veterans of the video and home entertainment industries, the company made history by becoming the first independent designer and marketer of home video game software. Irked by Atari's lack of respect and recognition given to their game designers and programmers, David Crane, Alan Miller, Bob Whitehead and Larry Kaplan left Atari and formed Activision with the financial help of James Levy (who became President and CEO of the company). They were later joined by other talented designers such as Larry Kitchen, Carol Shaw, Steve Cartwright and Alan Miller. Beginning in 1981, Activision released a barrage of first-rate VCS titles that captivated the gaming public and made people aware that Atari wasn't the only one that made games for the [Atari] 2600. Activision not only inspired other programmers and entrepreneurs to set up shop as independent publishers but they also forced Atari, at least temporarily, to improve on the quality of its own games. Activision was quite possibly the most prolific third party videogame publisher in their time, churning out everything from top notch sports games, (Boxing, Skiing, Tennis, Ice Hockey) racers (Grand Prix, Decathlon, Enduro) and even arcade adaptations (Rampage, Kung Fu Master, Commando, Double Dragon). Their original PC games enjoyed less success than Atari 2600 classics such as River Raid and Little Computer People, but did attract a loyal following. Among the most underrated games Activision made for PC are Portal, Ghostbusters, and Alter Ego.Activision was also innovative in other ways. They credited their designers by mentioning them on the manual of each of their games. (Lord British and Roberta Williams came later). Activision also offered patches to gamers who attained a certain score in their games as an added incentive. "
Maybe all this badmouthing they've been getting around here is a bit over the top.' - end
I think we need to keep it in perspective - all this was a LONG time ago, when Activision actually first developed games in house. Now they are publishers only and those ideals of the early days have long gone.
Its a very different ballpark these days - and in a way the industry only has itself to blame.
Hype, 'mercenry' game reviews and a glut of frankly uninspiring games have taken their toll.
Most people who know their games are now very wary of any new release, and the wise wait for others to buy and then check the forums to see what the 'real' game is like, not the image of it the industry has spent tens of thousands to promote.
Still what other option do the big publishers have? When a game costs movie money to make?
Will they realise how to turn the situation around before the money dries up?
How many more development houses will crash and burn?
So im not very sympathetic towards Activision as it now stands - especially concerning CTP2.
If they somehow find some of the old spirit mentioned in that article above i'll be amongst the first to pat them on the back 
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st_swithin
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10069
Nov 2002
time: 05:27
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quote:
Originally posted by child of Thor
Why is it that people like st_swithin get the rub and are in a position where the industry can say 'we OWN you and we decide you wont work again'?
Surely something isnt right here?
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I still don't know what's going on. Activision was, for a while, emulating the movie industry's production scheme. I remember thinking how odd it was that for CTP2, we were required to use only SAG actors to do VO. Of course, I couldn't do any of the voices myself because I am not SAG, but I could direct the actors.
It's a very strange time in the industry - there's no rhyme or reason in Tinseltown, nor can there be in a pseudo-Tinseltown.
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26-08-2003 16:56
), so i'm pretty sure nothing recent will run on that, so that leaves my xbox and the only thing that looks slightly interesting to me is Kelly Slaters Pro Surfing.
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