Escapist Podcast: 092: Star Wars, Electronic Arts and The PS Vita

[The Escapist Staff]

092: Star Wars, Electronic Arts and The PS Vita

This week, the Escapist crew discusses Electronic Art's exclusive contract with Disney on making Star Wars games. We also discuss Penny Arcade's recent Kickstarter campaign for their podcast and our experiences with the PS Vita.

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[Chrono212]

Stop making Friday's come so quickly! I don't have enough time in the week to listen to all your great podcats!

Also analogue buttons: if it ain't broke, don't touch screen it.

 

[flaviok79]

To Mike Wehner: Man, if you fall asleep during Michael Bay movies in the theater, you probably have sleep apnea. I now I have it, and had this same problema before treatment. Sorry to impose, but it fits the part.

 

[shadowxvii]

This might be the Lord of ring game you were talking about

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings:_The_Third_Age

 

[Ashoten]

In regards to penny arcade using kick starter. It is not wrong to use it and if fans want to give them money fine. It is just really obnoxious that a successful company is using a structure intended for the small timers who have no starting funds. Imagine if it was Disney or Microsoft in the story instead. Would you feel the same way?

 

[2clueless]

Loved Thomas Was Alone. Narrator made the game. Blocks having more character than some major triple A titles is awesome. Very much recommend the game as well.

EA with Star Wars titles.. please be good, please don't screw them up! Please be good, please don't screw it up! Learn from your mistakes! Don't rush the games! Just.. so much hope versus so much cynicism. End of the day, hope for the best, but wait for the reviews.

Young Jedi Knights! Loved those! Jacen, Tenal Ka, Lowbacca, Zekk, Jaina! Was awesome teen reading candy as I was growing up. Exciting, great stories, very relatable. Could read an entire book in under four hours, but still great.

Always forget this podcast comes up on Fridays, it is a lovely little surprise. Enjoyed the show, will be back next week.

 

[Quiotu]

Hate to say this, but I still play TOR and actually like it a lot because you are allowed to NOT play a force user, and your story isn't about Jedi and Sith but rather the Republic and Imperials, but you occasionally can shoot a Sith or Jedi to death just to prove a point. In fact most people I play with agree that playing a Bounty Hunter or a Smuggler is WAY more fun than someone who uses the Force. It's not the best MMO by a long shot, but it DOES have that perk.

 

[Susan Arendt]

In regards to penny arcade using kick starter. It is not wrong to use it and if fans want to give them money fine. It is just really obnoxious that a successful company is using a structure intended for the small timers who have no starting funds. Imagine if it was Disney or Microsoft in the story instead. Would you feel the same way?

I can only speak for myself, of course, but it wouldn't bother me in the slightest, because no matter who's doing the asking, it all comes down to the same thing: You have the choice to give them money or not. If you don't think Disney needs the help, you don't contribute. Others feel differently, I understand, and I don't think they're crazy to find it obnoxious, but it doesn't bother me at all.

 

[Quiotu]

In regards to penny arcade using kick starter. It is not wrong to use it and if fans want to give them money fine. It is just really obnoxious that a successful company is using a structure intended for the small timers who have no starting funds. Imagine if it was Disney or Microsoft in the story instead. Would you feel the same way?

I can only speak for myself, of course, but it wouldn't bother me in the slightest, because no matter who's doing the asking, it all comes down to the same thing: You have the choice to give them money or not. If you don't think Disney needs the help, you don't contribute. Others feel differently, I understand, and I don't think they're crazy to find it obnoxious, but it doesn't bother me at all.

My only issue with the Kickstarter itself is it undermines one of the website's rules. Kickstarter doesn't take your money at the end of the crowdfunding run unless the project's goal was met. But here we see Penny Arcade set an extremely low and frivolous amount just to throw it up there, and Kickstarter didn't have a problem with this. This could be exploited a LOT. Someone could use this to start a project, set an unrealistic low goal, meet it but still not have nearly enough to make the project, but pocket your money anyway.

I don't mind PA doing it only because it only takes a few grand to start a 6 month podcast, and they were gonna get that easily. But say setting a $10k goal to make a video game that clearly needs at least a few hundred grand to do right, that project should have bullshit called on it without the project handler giving clear reasons why the goal is so low.

 

[DrRockor]

Is this the game you were thinking of? Its like battle front in Lord of the Rings if I remember right.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings:_Conquest

Relating to the kickstarter, I hadn't heard about this but when you said it my first thought was that they did it to see if people wanted it back.

 

[dakkster]

In regards to penny arcade using kick starter. It is not wrong to use it and if fans want to give them money fine. It is just really obnoxious that a successful company is using a structure intended for the small timers who have no starting funds. Imagine if it was Disney or Microsoft in the story instead. Would you feel the same way?

I can only speak for myself, of course, but it wouldn't bother me in the slightest, because no matter who's doing the asking, it all comes down to the same thing: You have the choice to give them money or not. If you don't think Disney needs the help, you don't contribute. Others feel differently, I understand, and I don't think they're crazy to find it obnoxious, but it doesn't bother me at all.

My only issue with the Kickstarter itself is it undermines one of the website's rules. Kickstarter doesn't take your money at the end of the crowdfunding run unless the project's goal was met. But here we see Penny Arcade set an extremely low and frivolous amount just to throw it up there, and Kickstarter didn't have a problem with this. This could be exploited a LOT. Someone could use this to start a project, set an unrealistic low goal, meet it but still not have nearly enough to make the project, but pocket your money anyway.

I don't mind PA doing it only because it only takes a few grand to start a 6 month podcast, and they were gonna get that easily. But say setting a $10k goal to make a video game that clearly needs at least a few hundred grand to do right, that project should have bullshit called on it without the project handler giving clear reasons why the goal is so low.

Still comes down to choice, though. We as consumers aren't completely helpless here. We choose what projects seem trustworthy enough to spend money on.

On another note, and I don't remember who in the podcast said this, but where in the Kickstarter rules does it say that it has to be a last resort to get cash for a project? It doesn't, so stop preaching that as some sort of gospel.

 

[PunkRex]

*Susan hates 'Ocarina of Time'*

OH JESUS CHRIST, ABANDON SHIP!!!

Also, I find it easier to sleep with familiar voices like Escapist peeps and Jontron, its soothing... sort of.

 

[darknight910]

*Susan hates 'Ocarina of Time'*

OH JESUS CHRIST, ABANDON SHIP!!!

Also, I find it easier to sleep with familiar voices like Escapist peeps and Jontron, its soothing... sort of.

Ah yes, the soothing sounds of "ECH ECH!" and "EEEEEERRRIIINNN!!!"

 

[AkaDad]

Last week I made a comment about the sound quality of the podcast and this week the sound was perfect. Susan clearly listened to my "complaint" and rectified the problem.

You're welcome.

 

[puff ball]

when i heard Justin say rpg about bunnies the first thought that came into my head was that someone made a water-ship down tie in video game that would be awesome i can see the tag line now, scaring a whole new generation of children for life.

 

[Eric the Orange]

I recently got a Vita and have been using it mainly to play old PSP games I never got.

 

[Revolutionary]

Good Podcast guys. I was so excited when I heard Bioware and dice were going to be given star wars titles. my mind immediately thought "Yes Bioware make KOTOR 3, and Battlefront 3 in the frostbite engine F*** Yeah!".
And then I realised this was EA and there's so much that could go wrong with that.

 

[teebeeohh]

so susan is the air-travel equivalent of the people who type obscenities at you in DOTA because you are new? except probably not with language quite as colorful

regarding star wars: i don't mind the jedi and sith but they don't need to be the centerpiece of everything, if a jedi or two show up in a story where they are not not the main characters i would be fine with that. even having old sith artifacts and suchs as plot point is something i would really be OK with, just don't try to turn every story into a "ultimate dark and light struggle for THE UNIVERSE" because that is boring as fuck.
i also think it would be smart for disney to introduce force users independent of the jedi or sith (think jolee(?) from KOTOR) so can have people swirling around lightsabers without involving the whole ancient order of warrior monks.

 

[Entitled]

In regards to penny arcade using kick starter. It is not wrong to use it and if fans want to give them money fine. It is just really obnoxious that a successful company is using a structure intended for the small timers who have no starting funds.

This factoid about Kickstarter's supposed "intended purpose" is getting so obnoxious, that Kickstarter itself came out explicitly denying it:

http://www.kickstarter.com/blog/who-is-kickstarter-for

"We?re a tool available to anyone (in the US and UK, currently) to fund and build a community around their creative project. Big or small, established or indie, serious or fun."

 

[Parakeettheprawn]

Hate to say this, but I still play TOR and actually like it a lot because you are allowed to NOT play a force user, and your story isn't about Jedi and Sith but rather the Republic and Imperials, but you occasionally can shoot a Sith or Jedi to death just to prove a point. In fact most people I play with agree that playing a Bounty Hunter or a Smuggler is WAY more fun than someone who uses the Force. It's not the best MMO by a long shot, but it DOES have that perk.

Imperial Agent. I've actually been meaning to maybe get back and try to burn through the core agent storyline just so I can finally see the end. Got the first two planets done during the last beta weekend thanks to a friend, haven't managed to get there since due to lack of time.