🚀 go-pugleaf

On Thu, 6 Jul 2017 13:12:37 -0700, Dimensional Traveler
<dtr...@sonic.net> wrote:


>> Apparently the sequel was canceled along with a couple other SW games in 
>> the wake of Disney's taking of the franchise.
>> 
>I'm still confused about The Mouse's decision to forgo making more 
>obscene amounts of money off computer games when they bought Lucas. 
>Heck, video/computer games has been a bigger industry than movies for 
>several years now.

Disney isn't opposed to Star Wars video games; they are opposed to
making the games /themselves/. They have divested themselves of their
entire entertainment software division. Any future Star Wars games (or
Mickey Mouse, or Marvel comics, or...)  will be licensed to other
developers. 

This actually makes sense from a finiancial stand-point. Computer
games are an extremely risky investment. Triple-A games cost upwards
of $100 million dollars, and the audience can be extremely fickle. Bet
on the wrong platform, or fail to nail the gameplay, or just misread
the audience's desires and you got a very expensive bomb on your
hands. It's killed more than one studio. While Disney is too large to
be taken down by a bad game, they are averse to losing money. By
licensing, they get the benefit - cash in the bank - with almost no
risk; even if the game flops, they still get paid by the developer
(albeit maybe not as much).

It is unfortunate that Disney killed all of LucasArts projects rather
than transferring them to other developers, but this isn't unusual,
and probably for the best. Projects that bounce between developers and
publishers usually do not result in quality games.

I believe EA currently has an extended license to Star Wars. We're
getting another Battlefront from DICE, the Dead Space developers
(Visceral) are doing a third-person action game, as are Respawn
Entertainment (developers of Titanfall) and there are rumors of a new
single-player Knights of the Old Republic by Bioware. Plus, while
recent selections may not have been to everybody's taste, numerous
Star Wars games have been released under Disney's aegis, including two
Lego Star Wars titles, 2016's Battlefront, and the continued expansion
of The Old Republic MMORPG. So it would be inaccurate to say Disney
isn't interested in Star Wars computer games.