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Ready at Dawn (TO 1886) self-publishing its games, hires Paul Sams (Blizzard) as CEO

vpance

Member
RAD plus a real game director and about 300 more developers has a good chance at making an amazing game.

Worst of all is my dreams of a RAD and From Souls collab is over :(
 

BeforeU

Oft hope is born when all is forlorn.
So will they be making multiplatform ip now?

I still don't understand, somehow they have that much money to just make their own company? Doesn't publishing a game require lot of money.

If it was that easy than why didn't bungie did similar thing lol

what's going on.
 

Reset

Member
So will they be making multiplatform ip now?

I still don't understand, somehow they have that much money to just make their own company? what's going on.

They were never owned by Sony. Sony only published their games and in return Sony got to keep their IPs.
Now they'll be able to self publish and be able to release their games on multiple platforms. Correct me if I'm wrong.
 

Amir0x

Banned
I knew something like this would come. After how The Order performed both sales and critical wise, Sony who is far less forgiving about this sort of thing due to its own situation business-wise was not going to just let it be.
 

BeforeU

Oft hope is born when all is forlorn.
They were never owned by Sony. Sony only published their games and in return Sony got to keep their IPs.
Now they'll be able to self publish and be able to release their games on multiple platforms. Correct me if I'm wrong.

That seems to be the case and I understand that. But what I am saying is, The Order didn't do so well. And yet they have massive funding somehow to become a publisher? This is a big thing, and a huge success. Isn't it? lol It just doesn't add up. Weird

I knew something like this would come. After how The Order performed both sales and critical wise, Sony who is far less forgiving about this sort of thing due to its own situation business-wise was not going to just let it be.

what you guys talking about lol. Because how Order performed poor sales and critical wise. The company got more successful? wat

if it was that easy, the fuck is crytek, bungie, insomniac doing lol
 

RexNovis

Banned
Wow. Was not expecting this at all. Sad that we, in all likelihood, will not see a follow up to The Order 1886 now but I wish the studio the best of luck going forward. Paul Sams will surely help them immensely in whatever it is they choose to do.
 

Endo Punk

Member
They definitely are going to need a publisher because I do not see them having the funds for self publishing. Hell Capcom is using 3rd party publishers and they are in somewhat a better place and bigger in comparison to RAD

RAD plus a real game director and about 300 more developers has a good chance at making an amazing game.

Worst of all is my dreams of a RAD and From Souls collab is over :(

Wat? That's like combining peanut butter and mustard. They couldn't be more different, FROM doesn't need RAD for anything.


Wow. Was not expecting this at all.

umm.. really? I always thought it was clear as day that they would end up mulitiplatform after the reviews and lacklustre sales figures from uk and npd.
 

Reset

Member
That seems to be the case and I understand that. But what I am saying is, The Order didn't do so well. And yet they have massive funding somehow to become a publisher? This is a big thing, and a huge success. Isn't it? lol It just doesn't add up. Weird
Maybe it was just safer for them to publish under Sony rather than self-publishing even though they had the money, since Sony would be funding the game?
Now that The Order did terribly, Sony is refusing to publish their games and they'll have to self-publish or go to another publisher? Or maybe they just now want to keep their IPs like Insomniac. Eh I'm just guessing lol
 

Amir0x

Banned
what you guys talking about lol. Because how Order performed poor sales and critical wise. The company got more successful? wat

if it was that easy, the fuck is crysis, bungie, insomniac doing lol

This is simple, so please don't try to act like you're incapable of comprehending what people are saying.

Sony had a very close relationship with RAD. Had The Order not been a total fucking bomb of a game critically and extremely mediocre sales wise, you bet your ass Sony would have locked it down for another few games. They will probably come out and say that's not true, this has always been their plan, but it's nonsense.

They had to seek alternatives because their path that was a success failed. They released an expensively developed game that was eviscerated in critical circles and amongst gamers, and sold at levels no AAA game in this day and age would ever be proud of. The fact that it was a failure critically and sales-wise is indisputable.

That they are still alive and have a new CEO and will self-publish its own games speaks nothing to the failure of their relationship with Sony vis-a-vis exclusive games, because Sony has given up on them.
 

SmokyDave

Member
Ah cool, man. They're talented peeps, I look forward to seeing them squeezing the most out of a variety of hardware.

Kinda. The Apple TV refresh. It's not at WWDC because there's a slightly more suitable conference that will make for a nice surprise shortly afterward....

Suppose I'd better point out I'm talking pure shit before someone takes me too seriously.
 

BeforeU

Oft hope is born when all is forlorn.
Maybe it was just safer for them to publish under Sony rather than self-publishing even though they had the money, since Sony would be funding the game?
Now that The Order did terribly, Sony is refusing to publish their games and they'll have to self-publish or go to another publisher? Or maybe they just now want to keep their IPs like Insomniac. Eh I'm just guessing lol

This is simple, so please don't try to act like you're incapable of comprehending what people are saying.

Sony had a very close relationship with RAD. Had The Order not been a total fucking bomb of a game critically and extremely mediocre sales wise, you bet your ass Sony would have locked it down for another few games. They will probably come out and say that's not true, this has always been their plan, but it's nonsense.

They had to seek alternatives because their path that was a success failed. They released an expensively developed game that was eviscerated in critical circles and amongst gamers, and sold at levels no AAA game in this day and age would ever be proud of. The fact that it was a failure critically and sales-wise is indisputable.

That they are still alive and have a new CEO and will self-publish its own games speaks nothing to the failure of their relationship with Sony vis-a-vis exclusive games, because Sony has given up on them.

Okay I get all of this. It would have been nice if the game did better, and Sony kept them around and all. BUT since they didn't shouldn't RAD be waiting for someone to buy them or publish their games? Is it that easy to just become a publisher like that? This looks like a success story than a failure to me. Look at Crytek, aren't those guys struggling right now. Damn I bet, every developers wants to publish their own game and get all the profit.

I am sorry, I still don't get why everyone feeling sorry for RAD. They seems better than they were
 

Amir0x

Banned
Okay I get all of this. It would have been nice if the game did better, and Sony kept them around and all. BUT since they didn't shouldn't RAD be waiting for someone to buy them or publish their games? Is it that easy to just become a publisher like that? This looks like a success story than a failure to me. Look at Crytek, aren't those guys struggling right now. Damn I bet, every developers wants to publish their own game and get all the profit.

I am sorry, I still don't get why everyone feeling sorry for RAD. They seems better than they were

I am saying their partnership with Sony has ended in failure. They clearly were hoping to make The Order a franchise, so they could have many years of dependable success.

I'm not saying this news means the future is bad for RAD. It may end up being the best thing for them. I am simply saying I knew this was coming, because RAD really fucked up their last release and it was an expensive endeavor.

From the ashes of failure may come success, but it doesn't make what happened with The Order not a failure in other words.
 

BeforeU

Oft hope is born when all is forlorn.
I am saying their partnership with Sony has ended in failure. They clearly were hoping to make The Order a franchise, so they could have many years of dependable success.

I'm not saying this news means the future is bad for RAD. It may end up being the best thing for them. I am simply saying I knew this was coming, because RAD really fucked up their last release and it was an expensive endeavor.

ahh I see.
 

JohngPR

Member
Sony should have acquired them.

I wouldn't be surprised if that was on the table had The Order done well. This game felt like a flagship title had things gone well and Sony has a history of doing this with Naughty Dog, Sucker Punch, and Media Molecule.

I liked The Order but it had its share of flaws...it's a shame that we won't get to see how RAD would've responded to making an improved sequel.
 

shandy706

Member
Well, I was never too impressed with Sunset Overdrive and aside from Resistance 3, I'd say Insomniac were declining in their wake since Fuse was terrible but I know a lot of that was down to EA. But the titles they produced in the latter half of their lifespan as a PlayStation partner, I wasn't overly keen on. I love Ratchet and Clank but no game really matched ToD and ACiT on PS3. I bought into the Nexus and All for One but they were over before I really got into them. Resistance 3 was great, Resistance 1 was good and the only thing good about Resistance 2 was the ending and final level. Other than that I don't rate them too highly.

However.

I feel they had more of a name in the industry as a Sony exclusive partner. I think they got more exposure and support for marketing and they definitely got a lot of support. Since going third party, I haven't seen anything from Insomniac that I really wanted and seeing how they abruptly ended Into the Nexus, I don't really have that much interest in them any more. They're doing what they want and that's great but I feel as though Ready At Dawn may end up the same way.

SO is one of the best current-gen games released and one could argue one of the best Insomniac games released to date.

Are you even interested in what RAD does next, or does not being Sony exclusive mean you turn a blind eye to them?
 
Shame I won't get to play The Order 1887 now but I hope RAD continues to support the PlayStation platform in the future with their new IPs.
 
This isssue is, that Guerrilla Cambridge (which is an amazing team) seems to be the new Killzone studio. Which is a shame. Awesome team, amazing talent, shitty IP/franchise.

KZ2 multi (which they made) was amazing. I feel like they could turn the franchise around. So many fun hours spent on the multiplayer for kz2.


Well at least ready at dawn still has some life left in it.
 
Ouch..

This means Sony cancelled the, almost certainly planned, sequel

Just as well really, the order was a bad game. Period.

Not at all, it was one of the best shooters I have played this gen, far more enjoyable than the overhyped Wolfenstein:The New Order for instance.
Too bad there will most likely not be a sequel.
 

msdstc

Incredibly Naive
trying their hands at self publishing in no way equals more success. they are now entering a high risk and highly competitive field since they've lost their number 1 backer. one more order and theyre absolutely done. they went from borderline guaranteed financial stability, funding, resources, marketing, etc. to having to make sacrifices and budget properly. a game like the order may not stand out in its own without the backing of a powerful backer like sony. the order would've tanked on the level of insomniacs fuse.
 
This is pretty unfortunate. Ready At Dawn had a pretty huge task of going from handheld developer to full blown next-gen showcase, and on the engine and core mechanics side of things, they delivered.

With all the investment/legwork, I would have hoped Sony would be more willing to partner with them on a sequel. Perhaps Sony wanted to mandate more changes than the studio was willing to consider for their direction for the series, and the two have decided to part ways over a conflict of vision.

Sales weren't bad, as much as some people like to claim. It sold around 300K in NPD, which is pretty good for a new IP on a single platform. Bloodborne didn't do that much better, and it seemed to have sold more than a lot of Sony's titles last gen (maybe on par or slightly below Resistance / Killzone, but above the initial sales of InFamous, Ratchet, Beyond/Heavy Rain etc). Sony and Microsoft have churned out a lot more sequels of titles that have sold less.

A damn shame given how the sequel could have been mind blowing since the engine was already in place. I thought Shinobi said that a sequel was well under way as of a few months ago? I guess Sony had a change of heart :(
 

vpance

Member
Their next game will either be extremely scaled down or derivative of the framework they've built with TO (another TPS?) I doubt they'll find eager investors willing to splash down $50M until they can show that they're capable of commercial success. Kind of caught in a bad spot here IMO.

My guess is they'll salvage as much work as they can with TO and make another cinematic TPS but done better. Still, that's not an admirable position to be in since there's little room for growth in that genre outside of what ND puts out and maybe the next Gears.

Actually, I think their best bet is to go full on Telltale games style. They could easily 1 up those jank ass games without having to worry much about the gameplay part. They'd just need to get some worthwhile IP to partner with.
 
I would love to see them go multiplatform by bringing their games to Xbox and especially PC in addition to the PS4. I feel like the PC especially would serve them very well as they must have some incredible technical artists, and programmers to have produced such a beautiful game as the order.
 

Game4life

Banned
I would love to see them go multiplatform by bringing their games to Xbox and especially PC in addition to the PS4. I feel like the PC especially would serve them very well as they must have some incredible technical artists, and programmers to have produced such a beautiful game as the order.

I dont think making their already pretty but shallow game even more pretty on the PC is going to solve the problem. They need some decent gameplay and level designers asap. Order was terrible in that regard.
 

Hugstable

Banned
Sucks to hear what's been happening with the studio. I found the game to be not good, but I have enjoyed alot of RAD's previous titles and it always hard to see a dev having troubles. For me, I think they should have been given a chance before the Order, they did well with small scale versions of exisitng IP on handheld (PSP, GoW games and Daxter). They should have been given a chance with say doing an GoW game or even a second Daxter game on the PS4, just something with less risk in that they wouldn't have had to create their own engine as well as IP. I honestly think RAD could have pumped out a better GoW game than what Ascension was.
 
Okay I get all of this. It would have been nice if the game did better, and Sony kept them around and all. BUT since they didn't shouldn't RAD be waiting for someone to buy them or publish their games? Is it that easy to just become a publisher like that? This looks like a success story than a failure to me. Look at Crytek, aren't those guys struggling right now. Damn I bet, every developers wants to publish their own game and get all the profit.

I am sorry, I still don't get why everyone feeling sorry for RAD. They seems better than they were
Who would want to publish flops like the order with shitty gameplay wrapped in high production values? Who would want to buy them now that they've become known for the order instead of all those quality handheld gow games? Losing Sony as their publisher is going to make it extremely risky for them.
 

Rembrandt

Banned
Not at all, it was one of the best shooters I have played this gen, far more enjoyable than the overhyped Wolfenstein:The New Order for instance.
Too bad there will most likely not be a sequel.

opinions and all, but i can't believe there are people out there that thinks its better than TNO. Easily one of the best FPSs of this gen and last.
 
Okay I get all of this. It would have been nice if the game did better, and Sony kept them around and all. BUT since they didn't shouldn't RAD be waiting for someone to buy them or publish their games? Is it that easy to just become a publisher like that? This looks like a success story than a failure to me. Look at Crytek, aren't those guys struggling right now. Damn I bet, every developers wants to publish their own game and get all the profit.

I am sorry, I still don't get why everyone feeling sorry for RAD. They seems better than they were

without Sony or any other big publisher backing them, you can bet that RAD's next game won't have the budget and production value as The Order.

being self published is not that big of a deal really, pretty much all indie games coming out right now are all being self published. you just have to adjust your expectation of what you're getting. don't expect The Order production value for RAD next game if it's entirely self published.

maybe they'll look into what Ninja Theory did, from what I understand, they're making a game with AAA production, but shorter/smaller in content.

Their next game will either be extremely scaled down or derivative of the framework they've built with TO (another TPS?) I doubt they'll find eager investors willing to splash down $50M until they can show that they're capable of commercial success. Kind of caught in a bad spot here IMO.

My guess is they'll salvage as much work as they can with TO and make another cinematic TPS but done better. Still, that's not an admirable position to be in since there's little room for growth in that genre outside of what ND puts out and maybe the next Gears.

Actually, I think their best bet is to go full on Telltale games style. They could easily 1 up those jank ass games without having to worry much about the gameplay part. They'd just need to get some worthwhile IP to partner with.

I'm guessing they'll go back to make action hack and slash game, basically a God of War clone. they had great praise for their GoW psp game.
 

msdstc

Incredibly Naive
opinions and all, but i can't believe there are people out there that thinks its better than TNO. Easily one of the best FPSs of this gen and last.

the order defense force is very strong. most are convinced we just want this game to be bad for whatever reason.
 
Let's see how they fare. They have shown to be great from a tech point of view and competent at copying existing formulas/franchises.

The order was their chance to do a game of their own and they wasted it. If they are going self published they are probably going for their own creations again. Let's hope they do well.
 

Rembrandt

Banned
the order defense force is very strong. most are convinced we just want this game to be bad for whatever reason.

I've noticed. It's actually pretty funny. People are fighting hard for this game. Maybe they're mad that there was a vocal minority of us that criticized the game before launch and we were right.
 

ban25

Member
I'm surprised they managed to get Paul Sams.

I realize they have some Blizzard vets there, but still, he was COO at a very large company.

Probably wanted a change of pace.

Seems like a high risk, medium return proposition. Their odds don't seem favorable, but definitely a change of pace.
 

Laughing Banana

Weeping Pickle
Well now.

The possibility of getting more closure for the Order's story is closed now, huh. Makes the whole ending of the game even more of a joke.

You don't get to close your game in such a stupidly hanging note if you intend to axe the continuity, damn it.
 
This is pretty unfortunate. Ready At Dawn had a pretty huge task of going from handheld developer to full blown next-gen showcase, and on the engine and core mechanics side of things, they delivered.

With all the investment/legwork, I would have hoped Sony would be more willing to partner with them on a sequel. Perhaps Sony wanted to mandate more changes than the studio was willing to consider for their direction for the series, and the two have decided to part ways over a conflict of vision.

Sales weren't bad, as much as some people like to claim. It sold around 300K in NPD, which is pretty good for a new IP on a single platform. Bloodborne didn't do that much better, and it seemed to have sold more than a lot of Sony's titles last gen (maybe on par or slightly below Resistance / Killzone, but above the initial sales of InFamous, Ratchet, Beyond/Heavy Rain etc). Sony and Microsoft have churned out a lot more sequels of titles that have sold less.

A damn shame given how the sequel could have been mind blowing since the engine was already in place. I thought Shinobi said that a sequel was well under way as of a few months ago? I guess Sony had a change of heart :(

But it was bad. This isn't some small budget indie title where you can make ends meet at that kind of sales reception. There's a reason why AAA games are so damn costly, you need the sales for that investment. Their recent acquisition of a new CEO and a directive to diversify their development from the last interview points to a change for a more stable approach for their studio.

Banking on games like The Order with multitudes of concerns that turned out to be vindicated in the end; an example of the developer not understanding the market outside its bubble.
 

Sp33Demon

Member
Well now.

The possibility of getting more closure for the Order's story is closed now, huh. Makes the whole ending of the game even more of a joke.

You don't get to close your game in such a stupidly hanging note if you intend to axe the continuity, damn it.

Not sure we know that was the case. A lot of love went into 1886 and the gaming public took a big fat shit on it worried more about length and complaining about mechanics enough that if I was a publisher, I would be apprehensive about green-lighting second with long and serious debate. It makes no sense to end that way for any reason other than to continue.

I wish the best for them and hope they don't end up in mobile hell and I really hope Sony revisits the series. I wouldn't mind more dude-bro gameplay just to see where the story goes.
 

wolfhowwl

Banned
Leaked NPD numbers also had first month sales of around 200k and then falling to under 40k the next month.

Not quite 300k.
 

virtualS

Member
Perhaps the studio is ramping up and is still contracted to Sony for more The Order. They've got the engine and tons of art in place already..

Looking forward to seeing what's next for the studio. Also, are preliminary Nintendo NX dev kits already out in the wild or is this a new console from Amazon or perhaps Samsung or Apple.
 

Withnail

Member
Well now.

The possibility of getting more closure for the Order's story is closed now, huh. Makes the whole ending of the game even more of a joke.

You don't get to close your game in such a stupidly hanging note if you intend to axe the continuity, damn it.

They almost certainly had a multi game deal with Sony with the option to cancel at various points, an option which Sony duly exercised. I don't think for a second that giving up first party funds to become a self-publishing indie was in any way Plan A for RaD.
 

Truant

Member
The Order was bland and soulless trash that was probably better suited for a straight to Netflix period horror piece. RAD are obviously a talented bunch, I'd love to see them tackle something with actual depth.
 

kuroshiki

Member
RAD has technical prowess and obviously very talented people.

But they are not very good at building franchise... or original games per se. They should consider themselves to be port/spin off developers like hexadrive. They are great making games with already established formula (like god of war), just can't seem to handle when they are given totally blank paper.
 
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