henke on 7/4/2015 at 08:53
Polygon did a really great, comprehensive look back at THQ a while back, which I greatly enjoyed. And this morning I'm pleasantly surprised to see they've done one for Looking Glass as well.
(
http://www.polygon.com/2015/4/6/8285529/looking-glass-history) http://www.polygon.com/2015/4/6/8285529/looking-glass-history
It's a long article, but it comes in audio form as well. Good for listening to while working.
Of course the history of LGS is well known to most of us by now, but it still offers up a few tidbits at least I was unaware of. Did you know they were gonna make a Star Trek Voyager game at one point? And Eric and Terri Brosius were in a band before joining LGS? The part where they talk about the demise of the studio still puts a lump in my throat. It's a really great, well-told story. Check it out.
demagogue on 7/4/2015 at 09:00
Heh, we posted this at the same time. Hi five. o/\o
Well gives me a chance to practice my 'thread deleting' powers at least, since your thead is the more detailed of the 2.
It's a great article. I don't know if anything is revolutionary new information, but the interviews are fun.
henke on 7/4/2015 at 09:03
Haha oh shit dema. :D I sat with the Post Thread page open for a good while, waiting with posting until I'd actually listened to the whole thing, and so didn't check Gen Gaming to see if a similar thread existed. :p
henke on 7/4/2015 at 10:34
I'm re-listening to (
http://www.polygon.com/covers/2014/12/9/7257209/the-fall-of-thq) the THQ article right now and I'm struck by how different these "fall from greatness" stories are. Whereas the LGS article focused on the games being made, the THQ story is almost all about the business side of things, and all the boneheaded management decisions and internal strife it took to drive THQ into the ground. And it just makes me feel even worse for LGS. It's not like they made any out-and-out dumb decisions, like spending boatloads of money trying to break into areas they had no experience in (mobile and MMOs), or letting the marketing guys come up with their "next big thing" (uDraw). To be fair, there were talented and creative people at THQ as well, but all too often what they wanted to do was disregarded in favor of what the higher-ups thought would make the company money. :tsktsk:
ZylonBane on 7/4/2015 at 12:36
Quote Posted by demagogue
Heh, we posted this at the same time. Hi five. o/\o
Well gives me a chance to practice my 'thread deleting' powers at least, since your thead is the more detailed of the 2.
But your thread title doesn't say "Ahead of it is time".
henke on 7/4/2015 at 14:26
bah!
TannisRoot on 8/4/2015 at 13:18
"Ahead of its Time"? Perhaps. But that time is not today. I'd argue that a studio as special as LGS could only exist in the time it did. The nineties were a golden age of innovation for video games. Entrance costs were still low, teams were small, and everyone was pushing boundaries into new and exciting places.
There was no telling what could and could not be successful or what could and could not be done. Remember this was a time with a glorified slide show was the biggest selling PC game of all time? Why? Audiences craved new experiences and wanted their imaginations stimulated. Myst wasn't a slide show, it was a dream world we could visit at anytime.
LGS is like sixties rock and roll. It was innovative, uniquely expressive, and short lived. It occurred just before big business formulized what a best seller was. It could only have lived in the time it did.
henke on 8/4/2015 at 14:18
Quote Posted by TannisRoot
"Ahead of its Time"? Perhaps. But that time is not today. I'd argue that a studio as special as LGS could only exist in the time it did. The nineties were a golden age of innovation for video games. Entrance costs were still low, teams were small, and everyone was pushing boundaries into new and exciting places.
[...]
It occurred just before big business formulized what a best seller was.
Tannis, it sounds like you stopped paying attention to the games industry sometime in the early 00's. The days you are describing have come
and gone. I'd say right now it's cheaper to develop and distribute games than it was in the 90's, and it's leading to just
a ton of indies making and releasing unique stuff all the time.
TannisRoot on 8/4/2015 at 19:33
Quote Posted by henke
Tannis, it sounds like you stopped paying attention to the games industry sometime in the early 00's. The days you are describing have come
and gone. I'd say right now it's cheaper to develop and distribute games than it was in the 90's, and it's leading to just
a ton of indies making and releasing unique stuff all the time.
I agree, indie studios are definitely the most exciting field in gaming right now with a lot of potential. That said, what games are coming out that resemble LGS? That's a genuine question because I'd love to check them out!
Starker on 8/4/2015 at 22:47
Solarix.
