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Movies And Video Games Should Be Mutually Exclusive

Ben-Dutka 35 Comments

For a while there, things were looking up.

There was Kung Fu Panda , The Bourne Conspiracy , and Transformers: War for Cybertron (one of three pretty decent "Transformers" titles). But you know, we have to come to the conclusion that no video game based on a movie, and no movie based on a game is going to be winning any awards.

The whole "Battleship" fiasco is just another example, although in this particular case, the movie tanked, too. The bottom line is that whether a game is based on a film or vice versa, there just aren't enough resources or effort put into the production. This is partly because the distributor probably knows it won't win any awards or hit big on the sales charts; thus, the vicious circle: Not enough resources and effort, no win on either side. The whole thing is just pointless, so let's just keep the industries mutually exclusive, shall we? No, of course it won't happen. I'm just saying, in an ideal world…

I think the final element is one not enough people acknowledge- Movies and games are just vastly different. This isn't about visuals; this is about how we participate in both hobbies. One is entirely passive while the other is almost entirely active. To take a production from one world and attempt to jam it into the other is the epitome of square peg syndrome. Worse, it's entirely unnecessary. Let movies do their thing and let games do theirs. Let's not keep cross-polluting because after many years of futility, the failures are numerous and obvious, and it's time to accept that.

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Warner Bros. On Superhero Games: “Forget The Movies”

Ben-Dutka 7 Comments

Well, it seems a game publisher finally figured it out: mediocre games based on movies just don't cut it anymore.

For a long while, superhero video games – specifically, games based on movies – were average at best. But then along came Rocksteady, Warner Bros., and Batman: Arkham Asylum and everything changed. The publisher has certainly learned its lesson.

During an interview with Canadian Business , Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment boss Martin Carrier said simply- "Forget the movies." He says they're not satisfied with sub-par superhero games any longer, and developers have to have time to focus on the quality of a product. WB's Reid Schneider added that gamers have no tolerance for low-quality titles, either:

"If you just look at the market, the number of those and the money they’re bringing in is dwindling.,. There’s a real stratification of games where only the really high-quality games with mass market appeal are making money. That whole middle layer, where there were movie games or cash-ins–that market is gone."

You know, sometimes it's a little surprising how long it takes for big companies to figure stuff out…any gamer could've told you the facts years ago. But hey, at least game producers see the light now! Yeah, just forget the movies. Good call.

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EA On Movie-Based Games: They’re Just Not Worth It

Ben-Dutka 38 Comments

Although some games based on movies have proven decent this generation, EA says they're done with the games/film licensing business. It just isn't worth it, they say.

This according to what EA Games president Frank Gibeau told Develop during a recent interview. What once was a big cash cow for the company has failed to deliver; games like James Bond 007: Blood Stone and titles based on "The Lord of the Rings" just don't seem to sell well. Said Gibeau:

If you want to make a hit, you have to give a game time to get to quality. The days of licensed-based, 75-rated games copies are dead like the dinosaur."

After being asked if EA would be returning to the movie/game business – in which they've participated for a good 15 years – Gibeau's response was firm and unwavering:

"The percentage royalties you have to pay the licensors are going the wrong way for publishers. The margins are being squeezed. And, to top it all off, the movie-game business is falling apart.

Considering the total amount of money we have to spend on those types of James Bond games, and the total amount of man-hours we had to put into them, we thought; hell, let’s work on our own IP. The guys who made James Bond games for us, well yeah, they went on and made Dead Space. And look where we are now; what would you rather publish, retail and play – the latest James Bond or Dead Space 2?"

Well, that's a darn good question. While we said Blood Stone was a pretty fun game and worth playing, we also know it paled in comparison to the fall season's truly great titles. This is the type of thing that drives EA nuts. However, we will say that High Moon Studios ( Kung Fu Panda , Transformers: War for Cybertron ) seem to be quite capable when it comes to making decent games based on films that also sell well.

You might want to ring 'em up, EA.

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