The bad news: Fallout 3 "shelved"

f.cking bastards, i was looking forward to it to, and i am not buy a console
juts to play BOS

>Financially troubled Interplay has sacked all members of Black Isle
>studios. Fallout 3 has been "shelved".

It's true :(

In an effort to amuse and confuse me, Filip van den Bergh blurted out :

> Financially troubled Interplay has sacked all members of Black Isle
> studios. Fallout 3 has been "shelved".
>
> Filip

<blink>

<blink>

merry f.cking Christmas....

<sniff>

http://www.rpgdot.com/index.php#23674
http://forums.interplay.com/viewtopic.php?t=35616
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/12/09/0721224

<sniff>

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Odin - 10 Dec 2003 16:36 GMT

LOL, we posted about this first actually..but have no fear guys.. The
Fallout name is huge, my
guess is that another developer will buy the rights to PC Fallout and it
will continue..

Odin

> http://www.rpgdot.com/index.php#23674
> http://forums.interplay.com/viewtopic.php?t=35616
> http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=03/12/09/0721224
>
> <sniff>

Reply to this Message

Filip van den Bergh - 11 Dec 2003 09:12 GMT

> LOL, we posted about this first actually..but have no fear guys.. The
> Fallout name is huge, my
> guess is that another developer will buy the rights to PC Fallout and it
> will continue..
>
> Odin

Is that "we" from NMA?
I'm glad to see you optimisic, but I can't see IPLY selling the license, as
they wish to develop FO console titles. I kind of hope an independent
company will buy the half-finished product and do beautiful things with it.
Anyone know a millionaire?

Filip

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Bateau - 11 Dec 2003 09:35 GMT

_.--""--._ On
." ". Thu, 11 Dec 2003 10:12:16 +0100
| . ` ` | in
\( )/ alt.games.fallout,
\)__. _._(/ Filip van den Bergh
// >..< \\ spoke
|__.' vv '.__/ 16
l'''"''l lines
\_ _/ to
_ )--( _ the

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|| __ )_( __ \\ replied...
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\ \ / /
\ \ / /
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| / \ |
| | \ \
| | \ \
| | \ \
| |-nabis\ \_
| | /-._\
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``''

>> LOL, we posted about this first actually..but have no fear guys.. The
>> Fallout name is huge, my
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
>company will buy the half-finished product and do beautiful things with it.
>Anyone know a millionaire?

Yeah but they're not into games :(

Signature

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Reply to this Message

Julie d'Aubigny - 11 Dec 2003 11:58 GMT

> > LOL, we posted about this first actually..but have no fear guys.. The
> > Fallout name is huge, my
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
> company will buy the half-finished product and do beautiful things with it.
> Anyone know a millionaire?

I thought I pointed this out, but the console rights are separate from
the PC RPG rights.

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Filip van den Bergh - 11 Dec 2003 14:29 GMT

> I thought I pointed this out, but the console rights are separate from
> the PC RPG rights.

Really? That's great news...

Reply to this Message

Homer - 11 Dec 2003 21:14 GMT

> > I thought I pointed this out, but the console rights are separate from
> > the PC RPG rights.
>
> Really? That's great news...

Great! Get some capital, buy the rights, call all the *former* BIS guys up and
get the game done. I'll prebuy a copy. Whom shall I send the check to?

~Homer

Reply to this Message

Julie d'Aubigny - 12 Dec 2003 10:56 GMT

> > > I thought I pointed this out, but the console rights are separate from
> > > the PC RPG rights.
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> Great! Get some capital, buy the rights, call all the *former* BIS guys up and
> get the game done. I'll prebuy a copy. Whom shall I send the check to?

The three messages following yours were get-rich-quick spams. I'd say
it's ironic, but it's completely expectable on usenet.

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Julie d'Aubigny - 12 Dec 2003 10:55 GMT

> > I thought I pointed this out, but the console rights are separate from
> > the PC RPG rights.
>
> Really? That's great news...

It's an assumption on my part, based on how PC and console game licenses
have been divided up across many publishers. For Interplay,
specifically, Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance are two
separate licenses. In fact, after losing the BG CRPG license, Interplay
still retains the rights to make BG:DA console games. With that in mind,
Interplay could treat Fallout the same way and sell off the CRPG rights
to Fallout games while holding onto the FO:BOS rights for console action
games.

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Elizabeth D. Brooks | kali.magdalene@comcast.net | US2002021724
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Odin - 14 Dec 2003 11:50 GMT

> It's an assumption on my part, based on how PC and console game licenses
> have been divided up across many publishers. For Interplay,
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> to Fallout games while holding onto the FO:BOS rights for console action
> games.

Actually you're correct, Interplay did sell the PC rights to Baldurs Gate
but still retains the
rights to develop console BG titles. Which is most likely what they will do
with Fallout, but
this all depends on if IPLY manages to stay alive..

Reply to this Message

4too - 14 Dec 2003 22:38 GMT

>>It's an assumption on my part, based on how PC and console game licenses
>>have been divided up across many publishers. For Interplay,
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
> with Fallout, but
> this all depends on if IPLY manages to stay alive..

Interplay must have been, must be, in desperate straits to abandon PC's
and dedicate their last draconian efforts on consoles. There may be
more advantage in distribution costs, guaranteed "shelf space", to
compliment the quicker turn around of the development investment.

I wonder if "Lionheart" was rushed to publication and this resulted in
it's reported bi-polar, BG/Diablo, personality. Maybe this last effort
of the SPECIAL system wasn't retarded, but the reviews slammed it as
dysfunctional.

The same "drop dead" point for cash flow to get FO:BOS and BG:DA 2
out for Christmas '03, (The fight for dev dollars with Vivendi, right?)
may have been the last gasp for BIS and Van Buren, aka, FO3.

If I'play can stabilize their fall, they would be in a better position
to negotiate the PC license of FO. If they are still capable of
thinking ahead they'll balance their price by finding a buyer that could
do credit to the FO franchise. Getting positive recognition of any FO
console effort they try later.

4too

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Julie d'Aubigny - 15 Dec 2003 07:14 GMT

> Interplay must have been, must be, in desperate straits to abandon PC's
> and dedicate their last draconian efforts on consoles. There may be
> more advantage in distribution costs, guaranteed "shelf space", to
> compliment the quicker turn around of the development investment.

According to someone who was at Black Isle, it's because the current CEO
has no room in his heart for PC games, only console.

> I wonder if "Lionheart" was rushed to publication and this resulted in
> it's reported bi-polar, BG/Diablo, personality. Maybe this last effort
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> out for Christmas '03, (The fight for dev dollars with Vivendi, right?)
> may have been the last gasp for BIS and Van Buren, aka, FO3.

This is entirely possible, although horribly bad timing.

> If I'play can stabilize their fall, they would be in a better position
> to negotiate the PC license of FO. If they are still capable of
> thinking ahead they'll balance their price by finding a buyer that could
> do credit to the FO franchise. Getting positive recognition of any FO
> console effort they try later.

This is a possibility, although they'll most likely sell it to the
quickest buyer.

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4too - 16 Dec 2003 23:43 GMT

>>Interplay must have been, must be, in desperate straits to abandon PC's
>>and dedicate their last draconian efforts on consoles. There may be
[quoted text clipped - 23 lines]
> This is a possibility, although they'll most likely sell it to the
> quickest buyer.

Haven't had much time to absorb the latest financial news of the shell
game that Titus and all the associated game companies have been playing.
Appears that Interplay was getting the short end too often, or maybe the
mistiming of necessary funding is the worst result of this creative
accounting.

Those that are still hot for boycott should consider following the money
trail up the larger corporate tree. Consider the stand that this
corporate mismanagement has crippled Interplay and forced the end of BIS.

The move of assets to BG:DA 2 and FO:BOS can be seen as reasonable
business decisions. The inept timing of their money handling, robbing
Peter to pay Paul, could be the desperate slight of hand of con men.

4too

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Julie d'Aubigny - 23 Dec 2003 03:28 GMT

> The move of assets to BG:DA 2 and FO:BOS can be seen as reasonable
> business decisions. The inept timing of their money handling, robbing
> Peter to pay Paul, could be the desperate slight of hand of con men.

All very likely true.

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4too - 23 Dec 2003 05:55 GMT

>>The move of assets to BG:DA 2 and FO:BOS can be seen as reasonable
>>business decisions. The inept timing of their money handling, robbing
>>Peter to pay Paul, could be the desperate slight of hand of con men.
>
> All very likely true.

Money Changers In The Temple?

Not to sound too messianic this season, ....

There are many compromises we make under the heading "everybody else
does it". It's the corporate cons that fail and take out all the other
players that were going by the rules that strips away any pretense I
might have of calling them businessmen.

Gamblers are risk takers, and gambling with other peoples' money strikes
me as being a confidence game.

My apologizes to all the budding MBA's and their dreams of a capitalist
utopia. May all our 401's and IRA's ride your spread sheets to glory.

Yes, it's a hot button issue for me. You'd think I was ranting about
the 4 Horseman bug in FOT, or something else more important, like what
color condoms are appropriate if one were dating Brittany Spears .....

4too

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Julie d'Aubigny - 24 Dec 2003 12:29 GMT

> >>The move of assets to BG:DA 2 and FO:BOS can be seen as reasonable
> >>business decisions. The inept timing of their money handling, robbing
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>
> Not to sound too messianic this season, ....

I have to admit that my opinion is ever so slightly influenced by:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3345639.stm

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> Financially troubled Interplay has sacked all members of Black Isle
> studios. Fallout 3 has been "shelved".
>
> Filip

bummer...
Maybe we'll get to play with the Fallout 2 Editor afterall then...
If only iply could release the fo2 source that'd be great... someone could
probably hack in higher resolution, 16/32 bit colors, better tools, whatever
is needed to make the game (semi) up to date...

Reply to this Message

wamingo - 09 Dec 2003 14:00 GMT

> If only iply could release the fo2 source that'd be great... someone could
> probably hack in higher resolution, 16/32 bit colors, better tools, whatever
> is needed to make the game (semi) up to date...

or even better, release the FOT code so we can hack in threaded dialogue and
quests... I'd love to get my teeth in the FOT code to make it more like fo1
and 2... It has superior graphics, as well as combat engine and AI - in my
opinion...
you can dream right?

Reply to this Message

> Financially troubled Interplay has sacked all members of Black Isle
> studios. Fallout 3 has been "shelved".
>
:(

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> Financially troubled Interplay has sacked all members of Black Isle
> studios. Fallout 3 has been "shelved".

Er, not all members. I'm not sure how many were fired, but at least one
of my direct acquaintance has stated that he wasn't. The list that was
posted was of people who went to lunch, some who were laid off, some who
were not.

I think it is true that BIS is gone, though, and Van Buren is dead as
well.

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