Kings Quest fan game shot down in flames :(

[Mr Lemony Fresh]

Has anyone seen this?

 

http://www.tsl-game.com/

 

Everything you need to know: http://www.youtube.c...h?v=mCQpbL-02cM

 

I don't know if many of you have ever played any of the kings quest games, but even if you haven't this is just downright scum.

When I look at this game and it's community I can't help thinking about the dark mod. Remember this 8 year long project when ever you start to take for granted this great mod and the great community that goes with it.

 

But aside from that, i, personally empathetic for it given similarities.

I'm signing the petition for them to continue development. If you feel the same way you can visit the petition HERE

[SneaksieDave]

Ugh, this kind of crap! They should just continue on and let the C&D be put to the test. It's a letter, not a court mandate. Eight years of (permitted) development gone? Required them to close their forums? What? Tell Activision to shove it up their collective ass and make them take you to court, then defend yourselves (to save on costs) if you must. At worst you'll be forced to stop by the courts, which you've already agreed to do anyway, so there's nothing to lose in trying. And if you win, not only do you get to continue, but you go down in history as setting precedent.

 

What about rebranding the project? It's better than throwing the whole thing away. Alternately, leak it out. Oops! Fuck's sake, man.

[Goldchocobo]

Ugh, this kind of crap! They should just continue on and let the C&D be put to the test. It's a letter, not a court mandate. Eight years of (permitted) development gone? Required them to close their forums? What? Tell Activision to shove it up their collective ass and make them take you to court, then defend yourselves (to save on costs) if you must. At worst you'll be forced to stop by the courts, which you've already agreed to do anyway, so there's nothing to lose in trying.

 

What about rebranding the project? It's better than throwing the whole thing away. Alternately, leak it out. Oops! Fuck's sake, man.

 

I'll have to agree with SneaksieDave here. *ahem* Fuck Activision

This isn't their only bad PR move lately... ergh, Kotick needs to GTFO!

[Melan]

I bet this will have a chilling effect on all fan sequels, permitted or not.

 

On the other hand, this quote from a poster on Rock, Paper, Shotgun has the unpleasant ring of truth to it:

 

 

As Wulf implies, there is a bitter irony to this. When everyone hated EA for their constant stream of bland, uninspired, repetitive and mediocre products, they were king of the hill and made a bucketload of money. Since they've turned themselves around in a way that we, as gamers, applaud, they've started haemorrhaging money.

 

It seems gamers in general are happy to complain about constantly having a publisher releasing inane sequels, but when that publisher starts trying to produce new IPs, new gaming experiences, the gaming public move over to the next big publisher that is producing the same-old same-old inane drivel that is "safe". I think most gamers are scared of trying anything new. This is what Actard have worked out. This is why they have made enough money to coat the whole planet in a thin coat of silver dust if they so chose.

[Ladro]

I'll have to agree with SneaksieDave here. *ahem* Fuck Activision

 

And I agree too.

[Crispy]

Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaame.

[jdude]

Why don't they modify the stuff they have and release it in a way that doesn't resemble the 9th game? It would be worth it rather than throwing away years of work.

[aidakeeley]

Yeah, but, still...

[LEGION]

I don´t understand this. If released this could boost the franchise and Activision could make a game on their own and profit from the growing community. This way I would guess that no one of this community will ever pay for an Activision product.

 

I hope the DarkMod is save but I can´t see anything offending (this is maybe not the right word) in it right now.

[SneaksieDave]

[LEGION]

What the hell?

[LEGION]

What if 'someone' makes it available through a torrent?

[Komag]

He's saying Dark Mod is already released, it's too late for them to try to keep a lid on us now! If you got a wild cat in a bag, and somehow you let him out, you ain't gettin' 'im back in dere

[LEGION]

He's saying Dark Mod is already released, it's too late for them to try to keep a lid on us now! If you got a wild cat in a bag, and somehow you let him out, you ain't gettin' 'im back in dere

 

Aha, damn. I must look like an idiot.

[Mortem Desino]

No, no, It's perfectly fine, Legion. I have a lot of fun when I try to explain English idioms to my German Friends.

 

"Go knock yourself out" (This one is really funny around thief fans) "Going cold turkey" "How about them apples?" "Let the cat out of the bag" "Go piss up a rope" "Fall off the wagon" "Paying through the nose"

 

SneaksieDave "hit the nail right on the head," though. The Thief 4 team admits to playing, enjoying, and complementing The Dark Mod. They're fully aware of TDM, yet Eidos hasn't stopped us now.

[LEGION]

I had a lot of fun translating those phrases. But I couldn´t find the origin for 'piss up a rope'. I know what it means (like piss off, right?) but I want to know the origin!

 

Of all things you named 'letting the cat out of the bag' we have exactly word for word in german, so I could have known, but it didn´t really looked like a bag IMO...

[Tels]

No, no, It's perfectly fine, Legion. I have a lot of fun when I try to explain English idioms to my German Friends.

 

"Go knock yourself out" (This one is really funny around thief fans) "Going cold turkey" "How about them apples?" "Let the cat out of the bag" "Go piss up a rope" "Fall off the wagon" "Paying through the nose"

 

Even more fun are the ones that are frequently literally translated and the replace the original German ones:

 

* shot into the dark => schuss ins dunkle (eigentlich "schuss ins blaue")

* makes no sense => macht keinen sinn (eigentlich: "ergibt keinen sinn")

* the early bird catches the worm => der frühe vogel fängt den wurm (eigentlich "morgenstund hat gold im mund")

* to fork over money => geld zum fenster rauswerfen (nix mit gabel

 

etc. As they say, Wenn die Kacke den Ventilator trifft, is the shit steaming

[Crispy]

I don´t understand this. If released this could boost the franchise and Activision could make a game on their own and profit from the growing community. This way I would guess that no one of this community will ever pay for an Activision product.

Logic rarely factors into the calculations of corporate executives.

[_Atti_]

This way I would guess that no one of this community will ever pay for an Activision product.

 

I am sure most will. Rule of a hungry man.

Edited April 23, 2010 by _Atti_

[Mr Lemony Fresh]

Hmm, yes activision, I sure am looking forward to 'pirate' themed 'missions' in the future...

Edited April 24, 2010 by Mr Lemony Fresh

[Crispy]

To be fair, I should admit that there is a potentially legitimate issue for Activision here: Since they don't hold the purse-strings on this one, they have no control - in particular, no quality control. Even though we know it's a fan project, it's quite possible that someone would say to their friends "hey guys, check it out, a new King's Quest game!" Their friends download it, play it, decide that the quality doesn't meet their standards, and decide that the series as a whole sucks. (Stupid thing to do, I know - but have you ever read the comments section on YouTube? ) That damages the brand, and could theoretically reduce sales if Activision ever decides to fund a professional developer to make another King's Quest.

 

To be clear, I'm not saying that TSL would have provoked such a reaction in reality, or that it was of low quality - I haven't seen it myself. I'm just saying that Activision does have at least one basis for real concern. That's just how publishers think.

 

It still stinks.

[Komag]

I think the greater issue than quality control is brand ownership, at least I have the impression of reading situations that once you knowingly allow your brand to be freely used by others and you DON'T demand they stop, you are in essence relinquishing your sole rights to the brand by that precedent, or at least making it harder to fight future brand incursions that really would be harmful. Something like that

[aidakeeley]

Or if a kid gets ahold of this mod and it inspires him to kill everyone in his immediate vicinity while listening to the soundtrack to the original KQ? There could be "far-reaching" "consequences and repercussions".

 

C'mon. This is a dick move by a bunch of petty cretins.

[Crispy]

I think the greater issue than quality control is brand ownership, at least I have the impression of reading situations that once you knowingly allow your brand to be freely used by others and you DON'T demand they stop, you are in essence relinquishing your sole rights to the brand by that precedent, or at least making it harder to fight future brand incursions that really would be harmful. Something like that

There is probably some truth in that, in general, but that's only if one actually does "abandon" one's rights. Activision could certainly have signed an agreement giving a specific group of people the right to create that single game without harming their legal ownership of the IP. They do that kind of thing all the time with professional development studios, after all.

 

Or if a kid gets ahold of this mod and it inspires him to kill everyone in his immediate vicinity while listening to the soundtrack to the original KQ? There could be "far-reaching" "consequences and repercussions".

What did that poor straw man ever do to you?

[stumpy]

the term 'go piss on a rope' which became corrupted to 'go piss up a rope' comes from an olde nautical term about pissing on hard hemp ropes to make them more pliable, as you couldn't use sea water as it was the sea water that made them hard in the first place, and you couldn't use drinking water as its too valuble to use and most sailors were issued with a pint of gin a day in their ration anyway.