Free Radical vs. the Monsters (An article by Eurogamer)

[Sexy Beast]

I have always been interested with what happened to Free Radical. They were the guys behind Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Timesplitters, and unfortunately Haze. This article paints a depressing picture of a Third Party studio and their dealings with with various big name publishers while trying to stay afloat. It is a long read, but a very insightful and candid look at the industry.

Here are a few excerpts:

"In retrospect, what happened after TimeSplitters 2 was that EA saw the Metacritic and came to us," says Ellis. "I don't actually think they'd looked at the game very much." The publisher demanded Future Perfect have a strong lead character in order that it appeal to the US market. "EA turned up with this stuff that was supposed to help us," says Doak. "And it was just big boards with pictures of Vin Diesel on them. Wesley Snipes was on one in his Blade outfit." Future Perfect ended up with Cortez, a cowardly and dumb marine whose catchphrase falls flat every time: "It's time to split!"

Meanwhile, Second Sight had finally entered full production. The project had changed hands from Eidos to Activision, and Free Radical were about to taste business Bobby Kotick style. "We got some way through it with Activision," says Ellis. "Then they had a day in November 2003 where they made big changes. They decided they didn't like UK development anymore, they didn't like external development anymore, and they didn't like developer-owned IP anymore. Bad for us, because we ticked every box! On that day I think they canned ten projects and in the process put some companies out of business."

LucasArts wanted to find an exit, and the balance of power swung firmly in its favour. "What we found out in 2008 is that your contract is only worth as much as how far you can pursue it in court," says Steve Ellis. "Say the contract is, 'If publisher wants out, they have to pay X million pounds to developer.' Well, what if they don't? What are you going to do about it?"

Link: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-05-04-free-radical-vs-the-monsters

 

[Sexy Beast]

Anyone actually read this article? This is like actual honest to god journalism, something that has been missing from gaming journalism in recent years.

also...bump.

 

[ChocolateVillain]

I read the whole thing and watched the few videos they had posted... It pains me to see stuff like this but it really is no different then any other industry.

 

[Emotive]

If you're not making a Call of Duty status game then you're going to get canned.

It's not about the creativity or vision anymore, it's about how much money it will make.

 

[Raul Tha Monk]

I read half of it and got bored and made a sandwich

 

[AnotherAsian]

Unfortunately, thats all business

 

[Spitfire'd]

You're right about the article. That was a good read. I remember hearing about Free Radical doing Battlefront 3 and then wondered what happened when they weren't anymore.

It's a tragic tale but I think it's great that it's being told. The thing is, Free Radical had the balls to stand up and fight for themselves. Makes you wonder how many small dev companies get screwed over because they don't have the same conviction. I imagine more than we really want to know.

Emotive, you may be right. That's why I love the trend of Indie Gaming and games these days. Creativity is still out there and it exists all over the place. The Indie's are realizing they don't have to play with the big companies anymore.

The gaming industry is fascinating to watch right now. It's great to hear the stories even if some are unfortunate.

Thanks for sharing the article you Sexy Beast.