March Mayhem Top 64 Announced

[Spinwhiz]

As promised, the field of 64 who will be battling it out in the 2011 March Mayhem: Developer's Showdown.




2K Marin
EA Canada
Mojang AB
SCEA
Santa Monica




Bethesda
EA Tiburon
Namco Bandai
Silicon Knights




BioWare
Epic
Naughty Dog
Sony Online Entertainment



CD Projekt
Firaxis
Neversoft
SquareEnix




Blizzard
Game Freak
Nintendo
Team ICO




Bungie
Gearbox
Obsidian
Team Meat




Capcom
Guerrilla Games
Platinum Games

TellTale Games



CCP
HAL Laboratory
Polyphony Digital

The Behemoth



Creative Assembly
Harmonix
PopCap

Treyarch



Criterion
Insomniac
Quantic Dream

Turbine



Cryptic
Irrational
Rare

Ubisoft Montreal



Crytek
Konami
Relic

Valve



devCAT (Nexon)
Level 5
Remedy

Visceral Games



DICE
Lionhead
Rockstar North

Volition



Disney Interactive
LucasArts
Rockstar San Diego

Rovio



Double Fine Productions
Media Molecule

Rocksteady
Zynga

 

[Katherine Kerensky]

Well, I already know the one developer I will be backing all the way, no matter what.
If it comes down to that one facing another of my favourites, well, easy choice, Mojang will easily be the choice I make >.>

 

[Batfred]

I bet the odds this year will be a little more stacked towards the casuals (although I work at a bookies and I didn't catch the latest in-play betting on this event - bizarre).
Personally I can't stand Zynga and all that they stand for, but didn't they do surprisingly well last year?! Certainly took me by surprise.

 

[Baby Tea]

C'mon Bioware! You did so well last year!
You're my pick, just like every year!

*GASP*! And Mojang is on there!! MINECRAFT!
Well played, Escapist Magazine...well played.

 

[JourneyThroughHell]

Treyarch has replaced Infinity Ward or something? Fair enough, I guess.

As long as Quantic Dream is still there, I'm fine.

Aand... Mojang? Is that the Minecraft one?

 

[Circusfreak]

probably gonna vote for Mojang, Valve and team ICO

 

[Blizzarded Soul]

I bet the odds this year will be a little more stacked towards the casuals (although I work at a bookies and I didn't catch the latest in-play betting on this event - bizarre).
Personally I can't stand Zynga and all that they stand for, but didn't they do surprisingly well last year?! Certainly took me by surprise.

Yes but only because they spammed all their game players with messages telling them to come to this site and vote for them. Oooooor was the the Webbys?
Someone correct me if im wrong please.

 

[Batfred]

I bet the odds this year will be a little more stacked towards the casuals (although I work at a bookies and I didn't catch the latest in-play betting on this event - bizarre).
Personally I can't stand Zynga and all that they stand for, but didn't they do surprisingly well last year?! Certainly took me by surprise.

Yes but only because they spammed all their game players with messages telling them to come to this site and vote for them. Oooooor was the the Webbys?
Someone correct me if im wrong please.

That was the MM last year, I'm sure. I bet they offered a free pig in Farmville or an extra aquarium background in Fishtown or whatever it was called. Either way though, clever marketing and well done them.... gits! They probably even got people to pay £5 to get an extra vote, it wouldn't surprise me (in case you are wondering, that's why I don't like them.... and yes, it is similar to DLC, I don't like that either when it comes out on game release day).

 

[Spinwhiz]

I bet the odds this year will be a little more stacked towards the casuals (although I work at a bookies and I didn't catch the latest in-play betting on this event - bizarre).
Personally I can't stand Zynga and all that they stand for, but didn't they do surprisingly well last year?! Certainly took me by surprise.

Yes but only because they spammed all their game players with messages telling them to come to this site and vote for them. Oooooor was the the Webbys?
Someone correct me if im wrong please.

Everyone asked their communities to participate through blogs, facebook and patchers. However we have a couple gates people have to go through just to vote this year, so that should help.

 

[Gaderael]

Not Zynga again! That's it, this time we kill it with fire!

[HEADING=1]GO VALVE![/HEADING]

 

[Sassafrass]

Aand... Mojang? Is that the Minecraft one?

Yep, that it is.

I'm disappointed that Turn 10 didn't get into the competition but what can you do, huh? This is a good list and it should be fun to watch the contest unravel, from a bunker about 600 miles away. And I predict Mojang will get far and cause a few upsets too.

Should be good this year.

 

[Owlslayer]

Well, there are a lot of names i haven't even heard of before. But i guess when March comes, then I'll find out. And yay, Zynga is here... I doubt I'll be voting for it, though i played a lot of mafia wars last year. I think I'll just stick to the one's i did last year: Valve and some others.

 

[Spinwhiz]

Poor Square Enix is like Indiana University. Had an undefeated season a while back. Perennial contenders with their controversial leader. Then when he left amid animosity, the program has struggled. I don't see them making it out of the Round of 32 alive.

Game Freak is like Gonzaga. Rely too heavily on a one superstar to carry them.

Bungie is like Duke. Another hot recruiting class and the most loyal fanbase. But everyone else finds them insufferable, and the fans can be downright obnoxious at the best of times.

Mojang is St. Marys. Hot team coming out of nowhere with solid play in a weak conference. I don't think they have the big game experience to pull this off.

Bethesda is North Carolina. They have a good team this year, but not the overwhelming power of previous years, and their seniors are showing wear and tear.

Blizzard is like Kentucky. They trot out the same style, the same go to moves year after year. And why? Because nobody has figured out how to stop them yet. Add in the return of foreign player from injured reserve, they could be scary.

Valve is like Pitt. Tons of hot players that can get from every angle and get in your face. They're gonna have to fight hard, but they can do that.

Rockstar San Diego is Texas. Super player that won/is winning player of the year. Can the chemistry pull them through?

Finally, Nintendo is Kansas, a team with history, that brought and a new team this year and is making strides. Do they have what it takes to take on more talented crews?

Bravo! A fellow sports nut such as myself! *applause* Well done on the comparison write-up.

 

[Spinwhiz]

Everyone asked their communities to participate through blogs, facebook and patchers. However we have a couple gates people have to go through just to vote this year, so that should help.

What "gates" and will they apply to existing members?

As of now, an agreement form. It's basically a form with all of the rules on it so everyone can see them. All you have to do is read through it, "accept" the terms and then you can post and vote.

This agreement form will also state the rules of the March Mayhem forums.

 

[Fraught]

"Zynga"

Welp, here we go.

 

[Sightless Wisdom]

Ah, another year of madness. Great. Well I'll be voting up Valve, Bioware and Mojang AB. Hopefully Zynga won't get so close to winning this year.

 

[Jaded Scribe]

Lots of great devs.

But I'm disappointed to see Zynga on the list. I have nothing against casual/Facebook games, but Zynga's business practices (even reported here on The Escapist) have been borderline illegal (e.g. installing spyware on your computer, selling your info, copy-pasting other people's code).

I'd rather see the developer's of Castle Age or PlayFish Games get the nomination.