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Update on the lawsuit: Aliens: Colonial Marines lawsuit assigned dispute resolution, plaintiffs still seeking class action suit ( http://www.polygon.com/2013/5/1/4289488/aliens-colonial-marines-lawsuit-to-enter-arbitration-plaintiffs-still ) The lawsuit claiming Gearbox and Sega falsely advertised Aliens: Colonial Marines with misrepresentative trade show demos has been recommended alternate means of settlement by a California District Court judge, but the plaintiffs are still seeking class action status for the suit. According to two court documents obtained by Polygon, the case has been assigned to Maria-Elena James, federal magistrate judge for the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. The judge has ordered the two parties to consult with representatives for "Alternate Dispute Resolution" (ADR), a non-binding process overseen by either Judge James or an elected third party. This order is given to nearly all cases in the Northern District of California Court; both parties must discuss early settlement options with a state-ordered ADR official, which they must accept or refuse within 90 days of the initial lawsuit filing. Both parties would need to agree to an ADR option to enter into arbitration; but considering the plaintiff, Damion Perrine (represented by Edelson LLC), is seeking a jury trial, it seems highly unlikely they'll agree to it. If the case does enter into ADR, either party dissatisfied by the result may file for a trial de novo within 30 days of the decision. If approved, the case would go to trial in the Northern District of California Court. The plaintiff, Damion Perrine (represented by Edelson LLC), is still seeking class action status for the lawsuit. In its argument for class action eligibility, the plaintiff claims the game's early purchasers were equally influenced by the trade show demos in question. Moreover, the suit argues the number of potentially eligible plaintiffs would be too great for a more limited form of arbitration to be effective, and legal fees for those individuals would likely be too high for them to take on the case by themselves, regardless. We are still awaiting response from Sega and Gearbox on the lawsuit. Correction: This post has been edited to reflect the voluntary nature of the ADR process, which our original post didn't accurately explain. We apologize for the error.
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May 2, 2013 14:36
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Tecman posted:Update on the lawsuit: Fairly typical fishing lawsuit. Edelson is hoping for a settlement.
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May 2, 2013 15:44
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I really don't know what kind of damages they could be asking for beyond 'I want a refund', which in this case SEGA would probably be wise to accept.
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May 2, 2013 16:17
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Alchenar posted:I really don't know what kind of damages they could be asking for beyond 'I want a refund', which in this case SEGA would probably be wise to accept.
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May 2, 2013 16:25
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quote:The tale of Aliens: Colonial Marines' mismanagement gained an additional layer on Wednesday when the game's co-developer TimeGate Studios filed for bankruptcy protection with the Texas Southern Bankruptcy Court. So, do you usually get pizza on credit, then? http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/...masutra+News%29
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May 2, 2013 21:11
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Tecman posted:Update on the lawsuit: I find this fascinating because of how unprecedented it is, and what the effects could be. Arguably, the claim is at least somewhat legit, since the purpose of the demo was to show what the final game would look like, and they failed to deliver what they demoed. While there may not be anything legally binding Gearbox to deliver what they demoed (if there were, there should have been a Spore class-action), if SEGA does settle, then they're essentially conceding that the lawsuit's claim is legitimate. A settlement in this case would mean that a demo is a legally binding promise of a final game, which needless to say has scary implications for game studios.
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May 2, 2013 23:51
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DStecks posted:I find this fascinating because of how unprecedented it is, and what the effects could be. Arguably, the claim is at least somewhat legit, since the purpose of the demo was to show what the final game would look like, and they failed to deliver what they demoed. While there may not be anything legally binding Gearbox to deliver what they demoed (if there were, there should have been a Spore class-action), if SEGA does settle, then they're essentially conceding that the lawsuit's claim is legitimate. A settlement in this case would mean that a demo is a legally binding promise of a final game, which needless to say has scary implications for game studios. No kidding. Bioshock Infinite would be on the loving chopping block right now.
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May 2, 2013 23:59
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DStecks posted:A settlement in this case would mean that a demo is a legally binding promise of a final game, which needless to say has scary implications for game studios. A settlement creates no legal ruling for case law.
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May 3, 2013 00:09
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DStecks posted:A settlement in this case would mean that a demo is a legally binding promise of a final game, which needless to say has scary implications for game studios. Yes, it means games might be forced to be released in finished state 
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May 3, 2013 00:12
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Hakkesshu posted:No kidding. Bioshock Infinite would be on the loving chopping block right now. Bioshock Infinite had pre-release reviews, and demonstrations prior to launch that showed off exactly what the shipped version of the game was like, so it's not exactly the same thing. It also wasn't a total piece of garbage, though I'm sure some will dispute that.
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May 3, 2013 00:18
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Obsurveyor posted:A settlement creates no legal ruling for case law. That's a good point. Still, I'd still say that publishers and developers might treat it as a victory for the plaintiffs, to err on the side of caution. Mans posted:Yes, it means games might be forced to be released in finished state I don't think you quite get it. Worst-case scenario, this means no more E3.
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May 3, 2013 00:19
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Settlement doesn't set precedent. Plus it would keep the details hush hush. There will be a settlement.
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May 3, 2013 00:26
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DStecks posted:I don't think you quite get it. Worst-case scenario, this means no more E3. The problem wasn't even that what they showed off wasn't representative of the final game. The problem is that those videos were all people had to gone on to tell them what the end product was going to be like. Normally, something like this might show up in reviews, or at least there would be reviews to say the games was terrible. Also, generally, the weeks before launch involve a push to hype the game by releasing gameplay videos, which would presumably show the completed games. With Colonial Marines, there were no pre-release reviews and any videos they released just prior to release were not indicative of the end product. THAT is the problem.
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May 3, 2013 00:34
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Great Rumbler posted:With Colonial Marines, there were no pre-release reviews and any videos they released just prior to release were not indicative of the end product. THAT is the problem. Yeah, the comparison with Bioshock / other not-released games doesn't really work, I think, as I seem to remember a lot of their videos being clearly labeled as not gameplay footage. I haven't seen the TV ad but I read that TV ad does that as well. Whereas with CM, it was claimed that the videos were gameplay footage when there's no possible way that was true.
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May 3, 2013 03:26
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DStecks posted:Worst-case scenario, this means no more E3. This would be great news for most developers.
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May 3, 2013 04:54
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Seriously the worst thing coming out from this is TimeGate going bankrupt. They made some decent games that were eons better than Colonial Marines (Section 8: Prejudice) and the upcoming Minimum looked very promising. Basically gently caress Pitchford.
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May 3, 2013 14:50
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Alchenar posted:I really don't know what kind of damages they could be asking for beyond 'I want a refund', which in this case SEGA would probably be wise to accept. The suit would probably have some kind of punitive damages attached to it in addition to any refind requests, I would imagine. The settlement will likely not even address refunds, and will do nothing to discourage this kind of behavior in the future. IMO.
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May 3, 2013 15:00
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Palpek posted:Seriously the worst thing coming out from this is TimeGate going bankrupt. Sounds like it was probably more from the lawsuit from Southpeak, which sounds pretty drat crooked from what I can find. Sounds like they have been making money just suing people for years now and ripping off the companies they publish games for.
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May 3, 2013 16:13
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TimeGate has officially closed and laid off its staff now: http://www.joystiq.com/2013/05/09/report-timegate-closes-its-doors/
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May 10, 2013 15:43
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Well that's sad. They were a competent studio.
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May 11, 2013 04:03
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But hey, you can dry your tears with A:CM's latest patch, which added the new Reconnaissance Pack DLC and graphical improvements that make the game not look like it was developed in 2011! As for the hip new DLC? you get FOUR new maps, a set of new alien heads/skins that are indistinguishable from the default sets, and some hastily animated custom fatalities, all for the meager price of 9.99 US! What's not to love? (Aside from the fact that the multiplayer is already a barely-populated ghost-town and the new maps will never see actual play because no-one oustide the dupes who own the season pass would ever purchase DLC for this game) Also of interest is Michael Biehn's podcast appearance about Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon, where he comments a bit on Colonial Marines: Biehn posted:“I heard when it came out. Nobody ever came up to me afterwards and said ‘Oh, that Aliens game was really good’, or whatever.“
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May 11, 2013 04:56
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New patch added a FOV slider I believe. I don't think it changes much and the FOV certainly doesn't go high enough for my taste, but hey it's there. I bought the game when it was on sale at Gamersgate for $12 and that's basically the highest price I'd recommend the game at. It's an alright game, bad plot aside, and maybe it's because I suck at FPSes but the game is kinda challenging for me. That said I wonder if they would get a better reception to the new DLC if they just scrapped all multiplayer content and focused exclusively on single player stuff. Hell, a splitscreen coop DLC would be better at this point than a multiplayer map/skin pack.
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May 11, 2013 05:06
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There's still 2 more DLC packs in the pipeline, at least one of which will allegedly have "campaign" content.
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May 11, 2013 06:39
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It happened again... Aliens: Colonial Marines and the Season Pass are 66% off on GetGamesGo.com, http://getgamesgo.com/product/aliens-colonial-marines http://getgamesgo.com/product/aliens-colonial-marines-season-pass So... yeah... Don't all rush for it at once. [EDIT]: Fun Fact, the game was 66% on April 27th, but not the Season Pass. We may even see it in the Steam Summer Sales, or even lower soon enough. PowerBeard fucked around with this message at 10:02 on May 11, 2013 |
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May 11, 2013 09:57
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Bah, still too expensive. I'd go for it if it were 10 bucks on Steam, though. I'm not expecting to see such a price until at least this Christmas holiday sale.
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May 11, 2013 10:25
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BattleMaster posted:I'd go for it if it were 10 bucks on Steam, though.
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May 11, 2013 11:09
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RoadCrewWorker posted:For 10 bucks you can get at least a hundred better games on steam, i'm sure. Yes, but I have a lot of them already (at least among the ones I care to play). I don't know, maybe it will make it to the 5 dollar range. I'll feel better about it then.
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May 11, 2013 11:29
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RoadCrewWorker posted:For 10 bucks you can get at least a hundred better games on steam, i'm sure. More like a thousand. A:CM will only ever be worth it when it's in the $0 range. Although I can think of better use for the hard drive space.
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May 11, 2013 12:32
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Give it 3 years, for when it is 75% off and about €4 or $4, like AvP 2010.
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May 11, 2013 13:07
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How about you guys just have some actual conviction and just not give Gearbox any money at all? Even ignoring that they did so much shady and arguably illegal poo poo during the development of this game, the last thing they need is reinforcement that gamers will throw money at a franchise no matter its quality.
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May 11, 2013 13:25
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B-b-but it's a game about ALIENS that's like the best movie ever! And Gearbox made Borderlands!
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May 11, 2013 13:33
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...of SCIENCE! posted:How about you guys just have some actual conviction and just not give Gearbox any money at all? I'd make a crack about downloading the game but even that isn't good enough for them, people should literally go and outright rob cash money from Gearbox 
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May 11, 2013 14:12
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...of SCIENCE! posted:How about you guys just have some actual conviction and just not give Gearbox any money at all? I'd hardly call people picking up the game for 1/5th or 1/6th the launch price reinforcement that gamers will buy Aliens games regardless of the quality. You could make the argument that preorders show this by having people put down money on a game without knowing the quality of the game, just the franchise involved and the promotional material, but unless Gearbox was looking into making Aliens budget titles and selling them cheap, I really don't see how people buying a game once the price gets cut significantly evidence people will always buy it regardless of quality.
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May 11, 2013 17:55
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Shima Honnou posted:B-b-but it's a game about ALIENS that's like the best movie ever! And Gearbox made Borderlands! Ah yes Borderlands, completely mediocre games that are amazing because they are cel shaded.
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May 11, 2013 18:27
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When I think Gearbox in a positive light, I don't immediately think of Borderlands. I think of Opposing Force 
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May 11, 2013 18:39
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Revitalized posted:When I think Gearbox in a positive light, I don't immediately think of Borderlands. Opposing Force was actually more fun than Half-Life 1, mainly because the guns were badass, it didn't really have a Xen section (JUMPING PUZZLES IN SHOOTERS ARE FUN, RIGHT EVERYONE?), and the new monsters were great.
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May 11, 2013 18:46
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Revitalized posted:When I think Gearbox in a positive light, I don't immediately think of Borderlands. I really enjoyed the first Brothers in Arms. And the second. From then on the formula's got a bit stale.
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May 11, 2013 19:02
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OneThousandMonkeys posted:Opposing Force was actually more fun than Half-Life 1, mainly because the guns were badass, it didn't really have a Xen section (JUMPING PUZZLES IN SHOOTERS ARE FUN, RIGHT EVERYONE?), and the new monsters were great. You're not alone with this opinion, or, well, I found OpFor more entertaining throughout, while HL still had the better atmosphere through most of the game. It was just so drat enjoyable to have the marines on your side, the, curiously enough, most memorable enemy of HL to me. It wasn't just their advanced AI, I'm a sucker for radio chatter in my games. 
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May 11, 2013 19:11
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THE BAR posted:It wasn't just their advanced AI, I'm a sucker for radio chatter in my games.
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May 11, 2013 19:30
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PowerBeard posted:Give it 3 years, for when it is 75% off and about €4 or $4, like AvP 2010. I'm waiting for it to be in some "Humble Disastrous Flops Bundle" or something, where I get it and three other turds for four bucks, install one, and forget the other three even exist.
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May 11, 2013 19:35
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