Tag: cancelled

The Agency Canned Amidst Sony Layoffs


SOE is discontinuing production of The Agency so it can focus development resources on delivering two new MMOs based on its renowned PlanetSide and EverQuest properties, while also maintaining its current portfolio of online games. All possible steps are being taken to ensure team members affected by the transition are treated with appropriate concern.

With the announcement that Sony Online Entertainment had performed layoffs and shutting down studios (Denver, Seattle, Tuscon), a lot of the eyes on the news websites turned at The Agency, Sony’s upcoming yet secretive MMO. So, although disappointing, it isn’t all too surprising that the game is the first on the chopping block among the cost cutting at SOE.

Granted, the news is not all bad. In reaction, John Smedley has posted to Planetside Universe that the Planetside Next team has actually expanded, and a post on the Everquest forums has reaffirmed players that the game is not going anywhere.

Once again our best wishes go out to the 205 employees who are now on unemployment. Hopefully you’ll all have just as easy of a time finding a new job as the Realtime Worlds guys did last year.

THQ Aborts Company of Heroes Online


Zip this one up in a body bag.

Company of Heroes Online went into beta last September, so when THQ announced that the beta would end in March, with the following:

“We are excited to reveal the next evolution of the series in the near future.”

I think we can forgive anyone who didn’t expect the entire development to be shut down. Today, THQ announced that Company of Heroes Online will cease development, during an earnings call. In the call, THQ announced that they will be reevaluating their “strategy of adapting certain Western content for free-to-play online games in Asian markets.” Company of Heroes Online was to be an adaptation of the 2006 title, republished as a free to play MMO primarily for Asian markets.

Also of note, THQ has cancelled their WWE MMO.

Such is the case of MMOs. Many live, many others die, some don’t even make it past the Alpha or beta stages. Hopefully this will allow THQ to divert more resources into Vigil’s Warhammer 40k MMO.

Star Trek Online: Console Version Officially Canned


I don't think that button started the microwave...

It feels like only late March that Cryptic announced shutting any hopes of Champions Online appearing on the Xbox360, even though it was marginally through the third quarter of the month (A little business humor for you). I noted at the time that, although Star Trek Online was planned for release on the console platform, the buzz about the title was minimal at best.

Well consider your fears confirmed: In an interview, Craig Zinkievich of Cryptic Studios announced that the console port of Star Trek Online has hit the same wall as Champions Online: The wall of cancellation.

“It’s pretty much in the same boat as the Champions console version right now,”

But surely you have more of an explanation…

“It’s something we can readily do in terms of technology. We’ve had it up and running on certain consoles, and had plans and designs in order to take advantage of those platforms. But as it stands right now it’s a little difficult to make that final leap on the business side of things. So, currently, just like Champions, the console version of Star Trek Online is on the back burner.”

Before the Cryptic trolls pounce on this, I will remind you that Star Trek Online holds over one hundred thousand subscribers. Hopefully “back burner” means that Cryptic hasn’t canned the idea completely, but this does give much more restitution to those who were waiting on news of Star Trek Online being available for preorder.

Now if only Funcom would let Age of Conan 360 go.

A Downward Spiral Does Not Mean Death.


I like to take some time every now and then to detail certain parts of MMO Fallout, usually terms and expressions I use, that generates the most feedback from fans. More recently, I’ve had a few questions about my consistently ending certain product articles (Star Wars Galaxies, Age of Conan, Planetside, and several others) with “More on ____’s downward spiral as it appears.” Some of the readers appear to be under the impression that I’m calling the deaths of these MMOs, lovingly pointing out that I have said from day one that I will never predict the death of an MMO.

Well they are right, at least on the last point. When I say downward spiral, I always have facts to back myself up, and I am not always referring to subscriber numbers. Take Funcom for example, who not only cut off 20% of their staff, delayed a non-dated MMO, announced a massive revenue drop, and somehow is still finding the time to develop a free to play kid MMO. When I say Funcom is in a downward spiral, I mean financially that company is in a downward spiral, that changes direction depending on your hemisphere and leads right into the septic tank.

I don’t call death because, to be honest, it’s redundant. Dwindling subscriber numbers? Yes. Financial ruin? Yes. Ponzi Scheme? Stargate Worlds. Calling death on an MMO is akin to calling yourself a soothsayer and predicting that someone would die, but they would have financial gain at some point before they do. Not when they’ll die or what the financial gain is, and all that can be chalked up as everyone dies and, generally, everyone has an income at some point in their lives. Blamo, you’re the most generalized soothsayer in all the land.

Continue reading “A Downward Spiral Does Not Mean Death.”