MS buy Bungie

Shinji

Bungie Software - who we probably know best for the upcoming Halo, but also did stuff like Myth - just got bought out by Microsoft. Rumours from inside MS are that Halo will now go into another development phase, for enriching the graphics even more, and will emerge as an X-Box exclusive title. So, there's a good chance that Halo won't see service on the PC or Mac...

Before everyone starts whinging, I should point out that this is no different to any other console manufacturer, who also strike deals for exclusive titles on their systems... It isn't MS being evil, it's just the way the console industry works. Also, rumour has it that it was either this, or no Halo at all - Bungie may have been in financial trouble before the buyout.

Given how good the game looked on a tricky platform like the PC, it'll be cool to see what is added to it on the fixed-spec X-Box... Not to mention that it should work pretty well on a console, being third-person perspective.

Ja,
Rob

ThunderingMike

Sorry Shinji , but I have been following this game from the very beginning I am going to get pretty ****ing upset.
About a year ago it was first brought to my attention and all I said was "GODDAMN!" I was blown away. I have been following the previews, watching the clips and listening to the opinions. When I hear that I can not play it until I get hold of an X-Box sometime around December 2001 , I feel very much betrayed. That is not , in any way shape of form , on at all.
Yes Microsoft had every right to buy Bungie and they are not being evil. After all it makes perfect business sense to buy up such a promising seem. But Halo has the potential to be a fantastic game on the X-Box in the very late stages of 2001 , but it would have been nothing short of earth shattering on the PC in Feb/March of 2001. It appears that looking at what X-Box can handle with ease , that Halo will just look good on that format , where as it could have been magnificent on the PC.
Now I am glad that it will have a couple of new features , but goddammit we have been waiting long enough and although it is no ones fault and the blame can not easily rest anywhere, the fact is , Halo is now further away , then it ever was. And THAT is what ****s me off. MS are going to start buying up everyone. They are huge and all the best developers will fall under their wing. For instance , Gabe Newell , President at Valve is friends with Bill Gates. What if he asks MS to buy Sierra? Then what? Team Fortress 2 on X-Box? Be afraid. Be very ****ing afraid.

Shinji

Small development houses are gonna get bought up, that's how things happen

Rumour is that MS will buy Midway next week as well...

Sony just bought Verant, makers of EverQuest... They have the licence to make Star Wars Online (although I have a sneaking suspicion that it'll die a horrible death - EverQuest only succeeded by being in the right place at the right time, with no decent competition. So Verant have a big licence, a big success, and NO idea how they got either of them....) - this means all Verants future development is PS2-only.

Chubby

Buying up developers is just MS's way of getting developer support for the X-Box. Making Halo an x-box only product does not make sense except to secure x-box sales. Good to have lots of money to throw at a problem eh?

There is so much potential in Halo (even 3rd person shooter haters like yourself shinji was looking forward to it ) that Bungie could've got financial support some other way I am sure. What's your source for Bungir in financial trouble?

This will give people a legit reason to hate Microsoft because a lot of gamers have been following the development of this game for ages and it's only a few months away from release on the MAC and the PC.

And everyone knows how similar the the PC and x-box is so not releasing a PC version, especially with so much work done already, and forcing people who wants to play it to buy a x-box will hopefully generate lots of negative feedback and the x-box will die a horrible death. Grrrrr.


[This message has been edited by Chubby (edited 19-06-2000).]

Shiminay

What's gotta be remembered is that it's not been confirmed as an X-Box only affair, so we'll have to wait and see.

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All the best,

Dav
@B^)
My page of stuff

Hobbes

Yea, like I'll see a MAC version ever. ******** to that.

I see the Halo Forums are just full of love for MS.

I see the Mill have also shut down in disgust (read the page source code).

I was going to buy a kick ass G4 simply based on how cool HALO looked and not it's being sucked into the MS collective?! I won't buy it simply because it's MS based on thier friendly track record at helping the Tech industry "innovate".

Btw, Sony didn't just buy Verant. They owned them for quite some time (before it even shipped EQ). And EQ had at it's release a major competitior. None other then Ultima Online. The only reason they are getting massive amount of customers now is because the latest version of Ultima online is a pile of dog poo (people are leaving en mass to EQ+Asherons Call. Not to mention Item Duping is at an all time high).

Shinji

Sony owned 989 Studios, Verant weren't wholly owned by them.

EQ did well because everything else out at the time was frankly crap. EQ's success can be marked down to two things:

1: All the alternatives sucked hard. Software Rendering was a mistake Asheron's Call never recovered from, and Ultima Online's engine was from Ultima 7, hardly hi-tech even when it was brand new.

2: A core handful of 6-7 people worked like their asses off so that there would even be a game to sell.

Unfortunately for Verant, Brad McQuaid, VP who was in charge of development of EQ, has now managed to successfully alienate all those people who actually worked on the game. He is a totally inept idiot who regards himself as an "artist", responsible for the "vision" behind EverQuest. The guy couldn't manage a newsagents, never mind a company with 200 employees.


Chubby - of course MS bought Bungie to secure developer support for MS. Same way Sony bought 989 Studios and Psygnosis, and a big share in Squaresoft... People need to cop on to the fact that when it comes to being evil corporate scum, MS are babes in arms compared to Sony...

Hobbes

Originally posted by Shinji:
Sony owned 989 Studios, Verant weren't wholly owned by them.

EQ did well because everything else out at the time was frankly crap. EQ's success can be marked down to two things:

1: All the alternatives sucked hard. Software Rendering was a mistake Asheron's Call never recovered from, and Ultima Online's engine was from Ultima 7, hardly hi-tech even when it was brand new.

2: A core handful of 6-7 people worked like their asses off so that there would even be a game to sell.

Unfortunately for Verant, Brad McQuaid, VP who was in charge of development of EQ, has now managed to successfully alienate all those people who actually worked on the game. He is a totally inept idiot who regards himself as an "artist", responsible for the "vision" behind EverQuest. The guy couldn't manage a newsagents, never mind a company with 200 employees.


Chubby - of course MS bought Bungie to secure developer support for MS. Same way Sony bought 989 Studios and Psygnosis, and a big share in Squaresoft... People need to cop on to the fact that when it comes to being evil corporate scum, MS are babes in arms compared to Sony...

I got EQ the first day it came on the shelf. It has a big "SONY" logo on it. You also have to log into Sonys jumpstation (whatever the hell it's called now). When I had problems I had to email Sony and get spammed by Sony. 989/Verant didn't even exist to me at that time.

Ultima onlines engine is not from U7. The whole network end of it was built ground up and the graphics are pretty different to U7. I believe the Beta used the U7 graphics (as I remember seeing a picture on it).

However to say the alternatives suck hard is silly. Yes UO Sucks now, however there was a time when it didn't and had a lot more going for it then EQ ever does.

EQ has become the virtual Crack of the internet. Venom/Rev and the others might like to comment on that if they can get away camping the tinfoil axe spawn The whole game is designed around aquiring rare items to the point where it is a problem for other players.

I've only noticed EQ taking off (ie. Sucking other ORPG player bases) recently with the Ruins of Kunark.

AC suffers more from the limited amount of people allowed on the servers (it is not a MMORPG) and the sheer size of the game. Your sometimes left feeling the whole server is empty. However I believe the PK server seems to have the same spark UO once had and a lot of people who were once heavly into PvP in UO have moved more to AC then EQ.

AC may of supported Software rendering but it was also fully 3D enabled from day 1 (I also bought this when it first came out). But that's like saying unreal tournament never recovered from software rendering.

Yes Sony are probably worse then MS but it doesn't mean MS are any better.

I read the takeover FAQ and it looks like they just bought the developers for the X-BOX. There "you have as much chance as seeing Halo on other ports as you do FFX on SNES and Sonic on PS" somewhat disturbing.

Rev Hellfire

hee hee Everquest better than UO was, hee hee thats a good one.

[This message has been edited by Rev Hellfire (edited 19-06-2000).]

Maximilian

Why couldn't they have bought lglass instead