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I want to post an editorial on Mixnmojo.com...


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Do you think the employees at Lucasarts are acting like spoiled children?  

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  1. 1. Do you think the employees at Lucasarts are acting like spoiled children?

    • Yes
      2
    • No
      13
    • Yoda
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The title of my editorial is "Are We Giving Lucasarts Too Much Power?"

 

I want to write this editorial because I think the people at Lucasarts are acting like spoiled brats lately, as in, refusing to give up their old IPs, or refusing to listen to people other than themselves. I'm basing my editorial on this article I read online called "Do Kids Have Too Much Power?", which is an article about spoiled children.

 

http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101010806/cover.html

 

You can just imagine the Lucasarts employees acting like the children in that article, huh? They'd probably say to another company, "My franchises are bigger than yours!"

 

Anyway, any help with this editorial would be greatly appreciated.

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I think you need to bear in mind that LucasArts is a business. Regardless of how fondly you remember their classic 90s games, and no matter how much you want them to come back, these facts remain:

 

  1. Essentially all staff from the golden age are gone
  2. LucasArts make far too much money from their film franchises to stop making them (Why would a business not carry on?!)
  3. Adventure games don't really make that much money nowadays, and haven't done since towards the end of the 90s; while smaller companies can do it, a big one with big executive staffs and budgets is going to be less willing to chance it

Not that I don't think it's a shame, but it is what it is. I'm not sure that a big rant about how you want them to do what you want them to do is really going to achieve anything, nor am I sure I'd like Mojo to be a place for people to just air their various rants.

 

If you can be reasonably objective and consider why LucasArts has stopped making adventure games (don't forget that it wasn't just LucasArts who stopped making them; they went from one of the most-played genres to the least-played for more reasons than "LucasArts stopped making them"), maybe it'd be a good article. If you're just going to use it as an excuse to attack LucasArts, perhaps not.

 

And let's face it: after your last thread, I'm not sure you can stay objective. You're clearly fuelled by nostalgic emotion.

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I think you need to bear in mind that LucasArts is a business. Regardless of how fondly you remember their classic 90s games, and no matter how much you want them to come back, these facts remain:

 

  1. Essentially all staff from the golden age are gone
  2. LucasArts make far too much money from their film franchises to stop making them (Why would a business not carry on?!)
  3. Adventure games don't really make that much money nowadays, and haven't done since towards the end of the 90s; while smaller companies can do it, a big one with big executive staffs and budgets is going to be less willing to chance it

Not that I don't think it's a shame, but it is what it is. I'm not sure that a big rant about how you want them to do what you want them to do is really going to achieve anything, nor am I sure I'd like Mojo to be a place for people to just air their various rants.

 

If you can be reasonably objective and consider why LucasArts has stopped making adventure games (don't forget that it wasn't just LucasArts who stopped making them; they went from one of the most-played genres to the least-played for more reasons than "LucasArts stopped making them"), maybe it'd be a good article. If you're just going to use it as an excuse to attack LucasArts, perhaps not.

 

And let's face it: after your last thread, I'm not sure you can stay objective. You're clearly fuelled by nostalgic emotion.

 

But I think one reason why they're doing all this is because we, as people, are allowing all of this to happen. We're buying their first-person Star Wars shooters and giving money to them. It's as much our fault as it is theirs, and that's the point I want to get across in my editorial, hence the title "Are We Giving Lucasarts Too Much Power?".

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Even if every single adventure game lover stopped buying LEC products, it wouldn't make a dent, because Star Wars is that enormous a license. We're a relatively small group to the point of being inconsequential from a financial point of view (the only view the company's got nowadays). The fact that LucasArts has repeatedly punched its longtime fans in the face knowing that losing us won't kill them is proof that we don't have the kind of numbers that actually make a difference.

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As I said, if your article can consider both sides of the fence properly when that's fine. I just worry it'll end up as a total flame-fest like your last thread and end up rejected, thus wasting your time.

 

You're right that it's down to the buyers, but such is the way of supply and demand. Companies will only provide what the consumers want most.

 

As a general note though, I think you'll find very few Mojo readers have bought any of LucasArts' games for quite some time.

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But I think one reason why they're doing all this is because we, as people, are allowing all of this to happen. We're buying their first-person Star Wars shooters and giving money to them. It's as much our fault as it is theirs, and that's the point I want to get across in my editorial, hence the title "Are We Giving Lucasarts Too Much Power?".

 

 

In general, their Star Wars FPS games are actually really good. Although not so much the simplistic Battlefront series, the Dark Forces and Republic Commando series were good - I'd say great.

 

As a general note though, I think you'll find very few Mojo readers have bought any of LucasArts' games for quite some time.

 

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga was fun and excellent, but apart from that... oh, Empire At War was quite good, by the makers of Command & Conquer you know, like those games, but ap... Knights of the Old Republic 2 was pretty good too, still hoping for a better sequel though... last original games then ? Gladius and RTX Red Rock? Rubbish! Oh, but I did buy Armed & Dangerous, that wasn't bad.

 

My point is, while LucasArts can churn stinkers out (Thrillville, Star Wars Battlefront) they can still publish fun and entertaining games and the Star Wars license is good if it's tied to a good game.

 

And if we're talking "developed" rather than "published", Republic Commando, their last game, was great as mentioned, and I've got high hopes for both The Force Unleashed and Indiana Jones 20XX. Although if TFU is rubbish those hopes will be dashed forever.

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You'd probably also want to consider that LucasArts were facing financial problems (it went from bad to worse), cancelled every game gamers wanted (KotOR 3, Freelance Police) and that adventure games committed suicide - not only because of LEC. Plus the rise of The Phantom Menace. This article is going to be pretty big.

 

What really bothers me is that Lucas could always lease out their licenses to other developers. Freelance Police could be sold to Telltale, Monkey Island to Hothead, Maniac Mansion to any of the three. They'd make money that way. There's a billion ways to do this. They just don't understand that there's a bigger market than the one they're aiming for.

 

What I personally don't get is why people still buy Star Wars games when there's a 1/20 chance it's any good. How stupid can you get?

 

Even if every single adventure game lover stopped buying LEC products, it wouldn't make a dent.
I disagree.
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I guess I missed the part where LucasArts stopped successfully selling Star Wars games after that petition.

What I'm saying is that 32 500 fans cause a dent. If they stopped buying Star Wars it would matter to them; not by a lot but it helps. I'd rather play Sam and Max than Star Wars right now, and probably will for a very, very long time.

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LucasArts still sells Star Wars games. They do not still sell adventure games. They're still in business.

 

No, 32,000 fans don't matter to LucasArts, not when there are a million or so eager purchasers of Star Wars games.

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LucasArts still sells Star Wars games. They do not still sell adventure games. They're still in business.

 

No, 32,000 fans don't matter to LucasArts, not when there are a million or so eager purchasers of Star Wars games.

 

Barely, though. I guess we agree to disageree.

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Wait, you think they're barely still in business?!

 

Hmm. Well they don't develop games anymore, I'll tell you that.

 

Personally I'm still hoping TFU sucks and no-one buys it but it's a glimmer of hope.

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What I'm saying is that 32 500 fans cause a dent. If they stopped buying Star Wars it would matter to them; not by a lot but it helps. I'd rather play Sam and Max than Star Wars right now, and probably will for a very, very long time.

 

I'm quite happy to play both, as long as both are good.

 

LucasArts: The Old Company doesn't exist any more. It's New LucasArts now. If they were given a different name it would be easier, but they didn't. We have to judge this new LucasArts by the games they produce now. If TFU is crap, then we can all lay in them again.

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I'm still hoping TFU sucks and no-one buys it but it's a glimmer of hope.

 

Can we all just agree to stop emoting about businesses please? It's totally pointless. I know that we are all bombarded with marketing material that encourages this, from car manufacturers to clothing stores, but take a step back for a second. Why do you hate LucasArts so much? What rational train of thought has led you to this?

 

LucasArts is not a person, so stop personifying it.

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