Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers - Kotaku Comments

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

ZephyrXero — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 09:59:11 MST

D, Indrema was not an open standard...sure it ran Linux and may have had an open source SDK, but the system could only be published by Indrema, no one else. On top of that, it never actually got released so we don't really know how it would have went... As far as costs go, yes...they will have to cost a little more upfront when someone buys a system, but because there are no licencing fees the games themselves can be cheaper and in the long run gamers will save more money. DVD player manufacturers don't make royalties off DVD sales, but they still make the players don't they? ;)

ZephyrXero

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Mon, 20 Feb 2006 20:39:33 MST

I agree with Apreche about the open game consoles. They have failed in the past (indrema anyone?) and will continue to in the future. The main reason: there is no financial incentive to manufacture the hardware. Because the hardware isn't subusidised by licences and game profits the cost plus a profit margin is passed to the consumer. As with most open standards there would be competition to fight against in making the hardware, further hurting profits. If you are a company that entire senario dosn't look like something you want to get involved with. I think the xbox would have been a similar situation had ms gone the origional pc based way.

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Mon, 20 Feb 2006 20:27:40 MST

I Don't know what I am more impressed with, the fact sony thought people would go with this, or the fact they had the balls to present it. In this deal sony takes minimal risk and gets most of the profits along with the IP. When most korean gamers have a pc, there is simply no advantage for them with this method. Reminds me of the playstation scandal, but not the popular version you read most places. The story goes that sony wanted the publishing rights to nintendo's games and total control of the ill fated add-on. Every negotiation session ended with sony in agreement with nintendo, only to have them refuse to sign off on it. Then after the breakup suing for the rights to the games. (which is well known) If the story is true it only seems like history repeating, or more like a business strategy, you choose.

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

MasaMuneCyrus — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 20:15:21 MST

Mirai Matt: And a wildcard team won the Superbowl! ...Sorry. I couldn't resist.

MasaMuneCyrus

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

ZephyrXero — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 18:43:44 MST

Actually, Apreche, if you look at that link, your arguments wouldn't be valid. The only thing is that that the revolution type controller or gba connector would be considered a peripheral and not part of the standard. The only hardware that could possibly "suffer" is new internal components like a faster processor or something...and then a new version of the standard would be released a few years later anyway, so it's not really a problem like you think.

ZephyrXero

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

scazza — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 17:10:29 MST

I hope the KIPA goes behind sony's back and heads to M$ and find a better deal. In turn killing sony's online plans...that would be nice to see

scazza

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Mirai Matt — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 16:54:30 MST

Looks like Sony is the new Nintendo in terms of how they treat developers after achieving a position of great success. I guess that leaves Microsoft to become the old Sony and come in and swoop everything out from under them. Not to leave them out, but Nintendo is really a total wildcard at this point.

Mirai Matt

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

the trav — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 16:40:24 MST

so Sony will pay part of the development costs, unless they decide they don't want to (undefined subjective term used in criteria) Even if they don't want to pay costs they still own the game, the IP and can still sell it. If they do sell it they get to keep the development costs, then pay the developer an undisclosed amount... Well, that last bit is probably innaccurate, the dev will probably be told what ratio they are paid at some stage, probably before signing on. It sounds like a very very bad deal. Good if you want to get a government grant, take it for a ride then do something completely different. I can see it working out for IT graduates that want to learn to make games (training and wages are development costs), but not for a development house that wants to do anything serious. The absolute worst part of the deal in my opinion is the loss of creative control re sequels. On the one hand it may help to stem the sequel factory that everyone complains about so often, however on the other hand few artists like to see their creations collared and whored out by massive corporations. I wonder if you could get around the sequel clause by just doing a lot of "expansion packs" and "complete conversion mods"

the trav

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Omnitron — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 15:11:38 MST

For some reason, this doesn't sound surprising. Think back over a decade ago when Sony sought to retain worldwide manufacturing rights to the CD-based games for that doomed "Super Disc" partnership with Nintendo. It is true that back then was an entirely different situation. Sony was a non-player looking to enter the console business and Nintendo's dear profits depended on their manufacturing/licensing structure. However, I still see a similarity here in terms of Sony's purported style of aggressively leveraging business negotiations to their lopsided benefit. Who's to say; but if this Korean sour-fest were any indication, I would venture to speculate that Sony's philosophy towards cooperative enterprise is this: Place involved party's balls in open palm. Close fist. Apply vise-like pressure. Smile.

Omnitron

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

MasaMuneCyrus — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 14:46:32 MST

#3, #4, and #5 are almost mimicking Nintendo's old draconian policies, AND extending beyond them to a point of insanity. It's almost impossible to develop a single-platform game nowadays, ESPECIALLY on an Xbox 360 or PS3. The development costs are insane, so developers need to publish for as many systems as possible, and now Sony won't let them do this. I really hope the developers refuse to develop for Sony Online.

MasaMuneCyrus

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

nojok3 — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 12:42:17 MST

I'd like the PS3 as a second DVR player and a game console, but they keep turning me off.

nojok3

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

dslamngu — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 12:13:24 MST

Looks like Sony wants to start making game development look like the American recording industry. If you need a hint, that's bad. It looks like a pretty sweet deal for smaller developers to get free funding to make their game, but then the exclusive deals thing isn't so attractive. Selling one's soul to Sony won't be the best idea for everybody.

dslamngu

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

higon — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:42:30 MST

Ouhhhhhhh... Some of you are a professional working in the company, right? And you must know that, these game developers have been long funded by its government. They don't have to pay for network infrastructure and some other running/developing cost. They are already used to work under low risk high return environment. If they get big money invested, they tend to think it's free money. In this case Sony are outsourcing game development, but these developers can not think that way. Think about the state of their minds when they have leaked insider information on where the nationalism is crazy high. :( Sigh...

higon

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Apreche — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:32:52 MST

Yeah, bad deal for the Koreans. But open game console is a bad idea. Microsoft has been pushing it forever. Basically it completely ruins innovation by locking it into one standard of hardware. The Revolution, the GBA->GCN connector, all those things would not be possible without Nintendo having control over their own hardware. With a standard companies would need to get the approval of their competitors in order to change hardware to fit their innovative idea. They would also need to reveal their secrets in the process. Open game console bad. Just make PC game if you want to. You can turn a PC game into an Xbox game with barely any effort at all.

Apreche

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Kamalot — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:24:10 MST

Every day, Sony manages to make the PS3 less and less appealing to everyone, developers included. Anyone else have the sneaking suspicion that Sony's online game plan isn't well thought out?

Kamalot

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

DaveKap — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:18:31 MST

Raw indeed. It's like Sony automatically expects PS3 sales to be so awesome that they're allowed to shove their software developers into exclusive contracts. Does anyone know if Microsoft has anything close to these terms concerning Live? This might all just be out of context and actually a norm for today, but I wouldn't know.

DaveKap

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

Minister of Fun — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:15:34 MST

I love the fifth point. Developers will earn profit... sometime. If this is true and translated correctly, there is no way in hell anyone would accept that. Too many references to ownership by Sony.

Minister of Fun

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

VakeroRokero — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 11:05:02 MST

mmmmm. sounds like old Nintendo, is this how Sony is handling developers?

VakeroRokero

Sony Pisses Off Online Korean Developers

ZephyrXero — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 10:58:49 MST

Woowwwwwwww........ F#ck that! It really is time for an open game console format.

ZephyrXero