Halo was on napkins at Bungie long before MS bought them. Halo/Bungie is no different than PD/GT.
Rumor: MS and Bungie splitting
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Halo was on napkins at Bungie long before MS bought them. Halo/Bungie is no different than PD/GT.
If the rumour is true, then it's really a bad decision on MS part, especially if they split over something so trivial as the creation of another Halo. Bungie created this really great IP, that MS could outsource without major trouble, while retaining the creativity of top tier developer. Frankly, losing Bungie means losing potential. Maybe a new Bungie game would start a new franchise that could sell just as well.
I am still somewhat sceptical about this rumour, though. The only way Bungie could part from MS (the owner) is a buy-out. I am not sure but do the Bungie founders have the pockets for that? Or is another publisher buying them?
Overall, I'd say after the missed opportunity with Bizarre Creations this would really be a bad move.
I am still somewhat sceptical about this rumour, though. The only way Bungie could part from MS (the owner) is a buy-out. I am not sure but do the Bungie founders have the pockets for that? Or is another publisher buying them?
Overall, I'd say after the missed opportunity with Bizarre Creations this would really be a bad move.
MS will not let Bungie go as there is no incentive to do so.
Plus, with Halo3 released the advantage goes to MS as there is nothing for Bungie to leverage to force a seperation.
All MS has to do if Bungie is unhappy is target the most important people with large monetary incentives then keep all the talent that bites on the bonuses or pay raises and fire everyone else. A new Halo project wouldn't start for a length of period so there is time to flesh out a new team. Its the end of a triology so new talent and fresh ideas are needed anyway.
Plus, with Halo3 released the advantage goes to MS as there is nothing for Bungie to leverage to force a seperation.
All MS has to do if Bungie is unhappy is target the most important people with large monetary incentives then keep all the talent that bites on the bonuses or pay raises and fire everyone else. A new Halo project wouldn't start for a length of period so there is time to flesh out a new team. Its the end of a triology so new talent and fresh ideas are needed anyway.
Given the same resources they could do it. There is no magic involved here.
It's not just about making money though. Many devs who get caught in an IP want to break away from it. Creative people often like new things. There are some companies doing what they love, like PD, who won't change. There are some who do the same thing over and over without being enthusiastic about it because it pays the bills, like Team17. There are some who make a break after years. Whether it's individuals leaving a company to pursue something new, or companies going a different route, it happens enough that it shouldn't be surprising. Why did ND create R:FoM? Because they wanted to! Why did R* create Table Tennis? Because they wanted to! If Bungie want to create something different, even if just another shooter but in a different universe, there's good reason to want to.
So, they go out of an evening with their guns, going round killing Aliens do they?
It is not the same thing at all. Halo is just a game. GT is based on a way of life, one that the creator actually lives.
Again... assuming it's true:
It may not be that clear cut. The quality of work may suffer even if people stay because of money. Other people who don't think they are compensated well will feel unhappy.
Some of the folks in Bungie may be rich enough for money to not matter to them. Afterall, they have already sold themselves once to MS from the Mac platform, and they know the experience. From some account, Ed Fries was a lot more kinder to the studios.
The final formula (for Bungie to stay) has to deal with more than just money. It's likely a control issue: Who has the final say over their future/destiny. If Bungie has the final say in what they want to do, then why is MS paying "so much" for them (Someone needs to explain it to Steve Balmer) ?
I'm not saying they are definitely splitting. But these are some of the points that will be brought up under such scenario. Ultimately, Bungie may still stay if the negotiation is successful.
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Or Halo 3 was the leverage ...
You're basically already giving reasons yourself why it's not so unlikely ...
This rumour just got slightly more corroborated with another source:
http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/14693/Rumor-Bungie-Is-Leaving-Microsoft/
http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/14693/Rumor-Bungie-Is-Leaving-Microsoft/
Ever heard of paint guns. Plus, I doubt that everyone at PD has a garage full of race tuned cars that they take to the track every chance they get.
The longest running series in gaming aren't maintained by pubs and devs that live that lifestyle in reality.
I have as it happens, but that is a hobby, not something you enjoy doing most of your life.
It doesn't matter if everyone has tuned cars at PD, the head honcho does, he decides what games they make, not his underlings.
Anyway, it's hardly something to argue about.
You don't think Bungie could be feeling stifled by "having" to make Halo, I do. No harm, no foul.
They may well make 10 million more FPS games after Halo, but maybe they want to try something different for a change.
You think if he suddenly wanted to forego GT and make a cooking game, somebody at Sony woud say "sure do what you like"?
MS and Sony ultimately decides what games Bungie and PD makes and thats more than likely Halo and GT.
The PD guy is less likely to want to do a different game, but that doesn't mean that Bungie as whole is anymore tired than PD as a whole of making a game based on the same franchise and genre.
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How about MS taking some of the top people at Bungie and spinning out a new first party dev responsible for a new IP and promoting people within Bungie to take over the empty positions?
The point is he wouldn't, as he's making the game he wants to make.
Although it's completely irrelevant to the discussion, I think they would allow him to do whatever he wanted.
Well, that definitely puts it in play as something of significance. The core Bungie team seems to have been feeling stifled by the relationship since early days... after Halo 1 was complete a lot of staff left, then studio founder Alex Seropian left in 2004 to found Wideload, then most recently multiplayer lead Max Hoberman left in February to found Certain Affinity... and certainly in each of these cases the arguments made earlier in the thread of "they have it made" or allusions to MS' cash horde were not enough to incentivize these guys to stay.
Also, I've found Luke Smith's joining Bungie strange since it happened; it's unusual for an internal 1st party studio to go for such a high-profile PR presence when they can easily rely on their parent company's PR resources. Having Luke Smith there makes more sense in advance of some sort of quasi-independence.
What it comes down to is that until right now, Bungie has been a wholly owned studio; for them to truly be independent, it would require a buy-out. Such an action could be privately structured, and there is precedent in other industries. The second path would be to spin-off the studio, with MS retaining an equity interest ranging from marginal to complete... with whatever degree of directional control/voting rights determined. There would probably be a number of future 360 exclusives tied to the deal as well, either way.
Rare's been developing Nintendo DS software recently, so obviously MS isn't opposed to working on other, non-directly competing hardware to leverage their dev pool and increase profitability. It'll be interesting to see what comes of this Bungie move.
Well that's the 300 million dollar question, isn't it?
Saying that it's "it is more complex than simply Bungie leaving Microsoft or Microsoft letting Bungie go" is akin to saying that water is wet. Bungie can't just leave, and MS can't just let them go, so if the rumor has merit there has to be something more to it. MS obviously wouldn't want the 'intellectual capital' of Bungie to walk out, but they can't allow themselves to be held hostage by a subsidiary either.
Perhaps some of the top people at Bungie (who must have made a reasonable amount of cash over the years) have found themselves some additional investors to buy themselves back from MS (possibly at a discount contingent on a future partnership agreement). Such a move wouldn't be unheard of.
Why not? They've let David Jaffe do his own thing.
Actually I think that's not true, and certainly not equal across publishers. Some publishers say 'do this and that and make this'. Others say 'we trust your artistic integrity and here's the money for you to realise you're vision'. It seems as though Sony are very constructive in that way. Lots of devs have said Sony take quite a hands-off approach with a lot of freedom. There hasn't been much talk about how MS handle developers. We've heard some publishers are very domineering.
As PD and Bungie work for two different companies, it's quite possible that they are treated differently.
archangelmorph
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As far as i'm aware Bungie are currently working on a medieval game for the PC (dragon age or something..?) and they've been looking to put down Halo for quite some time..
I hope this is the ticket they've been waiting for since, as lucrative as working on the franchise maybe, making countless iterations of the same IP isn't something any developer wouldreally enjoy for the entirety of their career..
I wouldn't imagine such a split would be so direct as most seem to percieve..
I would think it's going to end up a slightly similar scenario to what happened with David Jaffe when he left SCEA Santa Monica..
Think:-
M$ releases Bungie but retains the right to the Halo IP & an 'x' percent stake in the company & also on the condition that Bungie contract an 'x' year/game license with M$ to develop future games in the Halo series..
Bungie is then free to re-structure, droppping future Halo development into one of it's second tier dev teams (mid-level experienced guys, entry-level noobs and recruited experienced new-blood..) leaving the core team (Halo 1, 2 & 3) free from the pressures of M$ iron grip and able to start up new IP with great success potential and M$ exclusive publishing rights..
This way Bungie benefits from complete self-management & the scope to expand if they want to really diversify across new platforms, better profits from their Halo contributions (which they can use to fund new developments) and the freedom to develop new IP at will and without "higher up" interference..
I'd imagine that if this rumour WAS true, then it wouldn't be so far from that arrangement..
I hope this is the ticket they've been waiting for since, as lucrative as working on the franchise maybe, making countless iterations of the same IP isn't something any developer wouldreally enjoy for the entirety of their career..
I wouldn't imagine such a split would be so direct as most seem to percieve..
I would think it's going to end up a slightly similar scenario to what happened with David Jaffe when he left SCEA Santa Monica..
Think:-
M$ releases Bungie but retains the right to the Halo IP & an 'x' percent stake in the company & also on the condition that Bungie contract an 'x' year/game license with M$ to develop future games in the Halo series..
Bungie is then free to re-structure, droppping future Halo development into one of it's second tier dev teams (mid-level experienced guys, entry-level noobs and recruited experienced new-blood..) leaving the core team (Halo 1, 2 & 3) free from the pressures of M$ iron grip and able to start up new IP with great success potential and M$ exclusive publishing rights..
This way Bungie benefits from complete self-management & the scope to expand if they want to really diversify across new platforms, better profits from their Halo contributions (which they can use to fund new developments) and the freedom to develop new IP at will and without "higher up" interference..
I'd imagine that if this rumour WAS true, then it wouldn't be so far from that arrangement..
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