EA On Movie-Based Games: They're Just Not Worth It
James Bond 007: Blood StoneAlthough some games based on movies have proven decent this generation, EA says they're done with the games/film licensing business. It just isn't worth it, they say.
This according to what EA Games president Frank Gibeau told Develop during a recent interview. What once was a big cash cow for the company has failed to deliver; games like James Bond 007: Blood Stone and titles based on "The Lord of the Rings" just don't seem to sell well. Said Gibeau:
If you want to make a hit, you have to give a game time to get to quality. The days of licensed-based, 75-rated games copies are dead like the dinosaur."
After being asked if EA would be returning to the movie/game business - in which they've participated for a good 15 years - Gibeau's response was firm and unwavering:
"The percentage royalties you have to pay the licensors are going the wrong way for publishers. The margins are being squeezed. And, to top it all off, the movie-game business is falling apart.
Considering the total amount of money we have to spend on those types of James Bond games, and the total amount of man-hours we had to put into them, we thought; hell, let’s work on our own IP. The guys who made James Bond games for us, well yeah, they went on and made Dead Space. And look where we are now; what would you rather publish, retail and play – the latest James Bond or Dead Space 2?"
Well, that's a darn good question. While we said Blood Stone was a pretty fun game and worth playing, we also know it paled in comparison to the fall season's truly great titles. This is the type of thing that drives EA nuts. However, we will say that High Moon Studios (Kung Fu Panda, Transformers: War for Cybertron) seem to be quite capable when it comes to making decent games based on films that also sell well.
You might want to ring 'em up, EA.
Tags: movie games, game movies, game industry, ea
11/29/2010 9:14:36 PM Ben Dutka
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Comments (38 posts)
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:36:33 PM
11 up, 0 down
Temjin001
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:40:52 PM
8 up, 0 down
Temjin001
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:52:13 PM
It's a steal! Just the way you like it =p
4 up, 0 down
Snaaaake
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:53:11 PM
@Temjin, I already got Castlevania, fun game.
Last edited by Snaaaake on 11/29/2010 9:53:39 PM
1 up, 5 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:17:12 PM
10 up, 0 down
Temjin001
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:43:49 PM
Reply
And I'm not looking forward to Uncharted the movie. Something about it just seems wrong because the game does the cinematic side of Uncharted so well it'd be bizarre to see a different take on the characters that I already like.
3 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:18:06 PM
4 up, 0 down
Jawknee
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:49:06 PM
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Someone needs to tell Capcom.
6 up, 0 down
Jawknee
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:47:06 PM
0 up, 3 down
Godslim
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 4:50:55 AM
2 up, 0 down
Alienange
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:16:22 PM
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Now you wanna know why those 75 rated movie-based games are dead like the dinosaur? I'll tell you. It's because the kids who've been ripped off by movie based games for the past 20 years are now all grown up, and now we're educating our kids, our nieces and nephews and anyone else that'll listen, on how to avoid these crappy movie based releases.
I think the kids are listening. I think one day there'll be a world free of movie based games.
2 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:19:04 PM
1 up, 0 down
Alienange
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:46:35 PM
Or was it started by the devs who were smart enough to never get involved in the first place?
The world may never know.
2 up, 0 down
MadKatBebop
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:23:11 PM
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0 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:23:37 PM
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I'd much rather EA keeps pushing their awesome IPs than putting up money to make another steaming pile of Jame Bond.
As for High Moon studios, nice work on yours but don't you think it's time to get to work on Darkwatch 2? Hmmmm?
2 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 10:38:25 PM
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For me, AeonFLUX was one.
Last edited by BikerSaint on 11/29/2010 10:39:08 PM
0 up, 0 down
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 11:28:36 PM
1 up, 0 down
eLLeJuss
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 12:09:20 AM
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0 up, 0 down
SolidFantasy
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 1:20:10 AM
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Either way when you make a movie based game there are always those uninformed (ignorant) gamers that will buy it b/c they like the movie that it is based on and assume that the game would be no different and thus the publishers can be assured that they will get there money's worth even if the developers aren't up to the task of a AAA title just yet.
that has always been my theory anyway.
1 up, 0 down
crunchy_nut_kid
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 1:50:34 AM
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0 up, 0 down
Lawless SXE
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 1:55:47 AM
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As for EA, they are simply giving up. And I don't blame them. Movie-based games haven't been profitable for a long time, and if they have been, it isn't by much. There simply isn't that unified quality.
Peace.
P.S. James Bond is a bad example of a movie-based game... because Ian Fleming wrote the books long before any movies were made... and I know the games follow the movies, but still...
Last edited by Lawless SXE on 11/30/2010 1:57:16 AM
0 up, 0 down
Fane1024
Wednesday, December 01, 2010 @ 2:08:01 AM
Correction: it's actually 9 years; Dr. No (the first movie) was made into a movie 4 years after the book release.
Last edited by Fane1024 on 12/1/2010 2:14:36 AM
0 up, 0 down
___________
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 2:03:17 AM
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thats why movie based games suck, because they get a minuscule budget compared to other games and have a minuscule time frame compared to other games.
one movie based game i would love to see a sequel for would be xmen origins wolverine.
was a fantastic game that, yea buggy, broken, f*cked camera, f*cked controls but it still was lots of fun!
0 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 3:05:57 AM
Reply
http://www.gamepro.com/article/news/217416/how-ea-kicked-the-license-habit/
Last edited by BikerSaint on 11/30/2010 3:07:18 AM
1 up, 0 down
Bjorn77
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 5:33:28 AM
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The list of good games made from movies contains only 2 or 3 titles... nuff said.
0 up, 0 down
JackC8
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 6:57:58 AM
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2 up, 0 down
Orvisman
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 9:29:39 AM
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Yes, BloodStone was based on a character from the movies and BOOKS; but it was an original story and game. As for War for Cybertron, it too was an original story and not based on any movie.
My point is that neither of these games faced the typical problems movie-based games have to endure: sticking to the plot of the movie and releasing when the movie releases. So, saying they are the exceptions to bad movie-based games is not entirely accurate.
Saying Kung Fu Panda and the X-Men Origins: Wolverine games are the exceptions would be true.
2 up, 0 down
A2K78
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 11:15:36 AM
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0 up, 0 down
swapnilgyani
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 3:26:06 PM
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Perhaps the reason it was a good game was because it was not pressurized to be released along with the movie, and because it was allowed to have a character development and story progression of its own.
Why can they not just take characters from a popular movie franchise and build their own game based on it.
Kindaa how they make games based on comic book characters, you know? Just use the immensely popular characters (Batman, for example), create your own story and environment, concentrate most on "game" things such as gameplay and controls.
If the latest James Bond game fails to be a great all round product, its not because it was based on a movie franchise. It's probably because it's just a "rental" kind of a game - good while it lasts, but nothing too great.
1 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 10:16:14 PM
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Billy Bob Thornton has decided to become the Keiji Inafune for his industry. The actor slammed the industry that made him famous in a small interview with The Telegraph, calling recent Hollywood productions “the worst movies in history.”
Thornton believes that video games are the cause of the decline.
“In our current state of affairs, especially in the entertainment business, we’re living in a time when we’re making — in my humble opinion — the worst movies in history,” said Thornton.
“They’re geared toward the video game-playing generation. And these video games, which I’m on my son about constantly, these games are people killing for fun, and I think traditionally in movies, there’s always been some kind of lesson in the violent movies.”
Thornton exempts his latest film, a violent revenge flick starring Dwayne Johnson called Faster, from this trend.
You can read the complete story right here....
http://www.industrygamers.com/news/billy-bob-thornton-believes-games-are-killing-hollywood/
BTW, here's that earlier B.B. Thornton interview with the "Telegraph" right here too...
Hollywood is making 'worst movies ever' says Billy Bob Thornton
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/film-news/8156395/Hollywood-is-making-worst-movies-ever-says-Billy-Bob-Thornton.html
0 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 10:20:12 PM
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1 up, 0 down
BikerSaint
Tuesday, November 30, 2010 @ 10:56:11 PM
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Here is a very "Frank" discussion with EA Games President, Frank Gibeau......
http://www.develop-online.net/features/1065/A-Frank-discussion-with-EA
0 up, 0 down
Snaaaake
Reply
Monday, November 29, 2010 @ 9:30:55 PM