Syndicate Reboot Details Leaked

[MagGnome]

Originally Posted by crazyD

... Why? Reviving the license would make it far more likely that a throwback to the old would be released.

You really think that?

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd! Let's follow that up with a hard-core strategy RPG!"

Right...

This is much more likely:

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd. I'll bet we can sell 4 million copies of another Syndicate FPS if we add more tits, scripted events, more bloom, and include a beta code for Battlefield 4: The Battling!"

[crazyD]

Originally Posted by MagGnome

You really think that?

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd! Let's follow that up with a hard-core strategy RPG!"

Right...

This is much more likely:

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd. I'll bet we can sell 4 million copies of another Syndicate FPS if we add more tits, scripted events, more bloom, and include a beta code for Battlefield 4: The Battling!"

While not guaranteed, I would say that it is far more likely to release a follow up if the franchise is successful in another format then completely dead for years. And yes, I could see them doing a smaller budget strategy followup more in the vein of the original to keep excitement alive between FPS releases.

And not all FPSs are geared towards the Call of Duty crowd.

[menage]

That's so true, a good FPS can still be a very surprising concept. Bioshock, HL2, Metroid Prime, etc, best games ever material.

Just because it has a FP view and a gun doesn't mean it's all the same.

[DoctorFinger]

Originally Posted by crazyD

... Why? Reviving the license would make it far more likely that a throwback to the old would be released.

When has EA done that in the past? Taken a popular franchise and made a smaller, cross-genre offshoot? Especially when that other genre is considered a death mark on consoles. It would be smart I think, but I just don't see it happening.

[J Arcane]

Originally Posted by MagGnome

You really think that?

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd! Let's follow that up with a hard-core strategy RPG!"

Right...

This is much more likely:

"Wow guys, that Syndicate FPS sold like 3 million copies to the slobbering Call of Duty crowd. I'll bet we can sell 4 million copies of another Syndicate FPS if we add more tits, scripted events, more bloom, and include a beta code for Battlefield 4: The Battling!"

I want to +1 this post. Ultimately, I'm just going to repeat what I said about all this mess on Google+:

Really, what I think this all boils down to, is that the classic gaming many of us grew up with is dead, commercially speaking.

And I don't mean that in the sense of whether or not it will sell, I think that well done, many times it has been proven that isn't true.

I mean in the sense of whether the creatively bankrupt individuals at the helm of mainstream development will actually greenlight anything like them. Oh there are hold outs, to be sure, but they get fewer and fewer every year, as one by one caves to the ideas of the suits over the ideas of the people who actually play their games.

This is where the indie upswing is really primed to reboot gaming as we know it. A whole generation of developers who grew up playing the same shit we did, went into making them, then got fed up because the suits at the heads of these things wouldn't let them make more.

Do we need a new Syndicate or X-Com, when we have Frozen Synapse? Do we need a new Ultima, when we have Eschalon? Do we really need to even encourage mainstream publishers to even pretend to touch their old franchises when we know they'll do a far worse job of it than an indie developer could do just making an "inspired by" title that has the freedom to actually revive the gameplay that made that franchise great?

Oh sure, when they do manage to not cock it up totally, we should absolutely turn out. Deus Ex Human Revolution seems to have satisfied all but the most grognardy of DX fans, and for that I hope Eidos' efforts are spectacularly rewarded.

But when it comes to the other shit? Why bother. These people don't get what we like anymore, that much is clear. So lets instead focus on encouraging the people who do.

[MagGnome]

Edit - J Arcane, I completely agree. +1! I'm still holding out hope for an indie team to put out something in the vein of Dungeon Keeper. Sadly EA would rather do a Chinese MMO...or maybe even a DK First-Person Shooter. -_-

Originally Posted by crazyD

While not guaranteed, I would say that it is far more likely to release a follow up if the franchise is successful in another format then completely dead for years. And yes, I could see them doing a smaller budget strategy followup more in the vein of the original to keep excitement alive between FPS releases.

And not all FPSs are geared towards the Call of Duty crowd.

I'm struggling to think of a single example of this happening in the last several years. I guess there's Halo Wars, but that's all that's coming to mind.

[crazyD]

Originally Posted by DoctorFinger

When has EA done that in the past? Taken a popular franchise and made a smaller, cross-genre offshoot? Especially when that other genre is considered a death mark on consoles. It would be smart I think, but I just don't see it happening.

Again, I'm not saying it will happen, but I still think it is far more likely to happen then them making a new strategy game from the completely dead franchise. When was the last time EA brought back a game from 1993 in a less popular genre with a fanbase almost entirely on the PC? If the franchise becomes hot, I see more potential for an offshoot than otherwise.

Syndicate was dead for almost two decades. It wasn't coming back in the traditional way.

[J Arcane]

Originally Posted by DoctorFinger

When has EA done that in the past? Taken a popular franchise and made a smaller, cross-genre offshoot? Especially when that other genre is considered a death mark on consoles. It would be smart I think, but I just don't see it happening.

Well, they've re-released classic Madden a couple of times . . .

[Wolvie]

Originally Posted by Karak

Oh god damn it no it hasn't. You have been having a blast with us and playing games in the community thread and so forth, and having great discussions everywhere. I personally would be VERY put out if you went.

Be honest, putting your foot in the sand is going to piss people off if you don't give a valid reason other than "CAUSE".

That is one of the main reasons I was trying to say give it a chance. I wasn't arguing with you, which I tried to explain a ton of times. And despite tones, no one else thinks poorly of you including me. But you will receive some harsh counterpoints with that kind of argument JUST like you would in real life.

Don't fucking leave cause of that.
You haven't been wasting time.
You haven't been ignored or marginalized.
You have been tasked with trying to explain a very difficult, if not somewhat indefensible position.

Harsh feelings in this thread aside, CoG, you included, is a fucking giant steaming awesome pool of cool cats, don't make in minus 1 because of XCOM.

Yeah, I can't leave this place. I'd hurt too many if I did that. I realize now how much I mean to this community. And how much it means to me.