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[bender]

 

[Aguero9320]

Didn't the Tango creative lead retire last year? Maybe they couldn't find a good enough replacement?

Don't see how anyone can be mad about Arkane after dragging them through the mud mercilessly over Redfall for the last year - they were made to be a laughing stock, I'd wager by many of the same people now pretending to mourn their demise. Between metacritic and the general meanness of the community, it's a harsh world out there as a developer. Some might say cut throat...

 

[feynoob]

What the fuck you doing Microsoft.
FFS.

It's shareholders pleasing phase now.

 

[ToadMan]

Yeah, great game but what have they produced since?

They produced the superior version of HFR on PS5 just weeks ago... The PS5 Pro version could've been better still.

EDIT: And apparently a switch version has been rated which I hadn't heard about. Damn they've been busy producing actual sellable content. But MS doesn't need the money I guess...

 

[YeulEmeralda]

Fuck it I liked Ghostwire. It was a decent 8.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Didn't the Tango creative lead retire last year? Maybe they couldn't find a good enough replacement?

Yes, and they did, that John Johanas dude who directed Hi-Fi Rush.

 

[Varteras]

Wasn't Spencer jerking himself off in an e-mail about how they don't close studios unless there just isn't anyone there to keep it running? So what happened? Did he lie as usual or did they lose too many people?

 

[Senua]

The games that connect with the topic.

Hi-fi isn't my thing but people like it and Arkane Austin were made to do a game they had basically no experience or interest in as far as I know. That is on MS. Also Prey was incredible and I still want a sequel

 

[mejin]

Become full 3rd party and stop with GP failed model.

 

[Fredrik]

It just appeared on this month's humble monthly where games are negotiated up to 6 months in advance.

That should give you an idea of where they were at with it and how long this decision has been in the making.

I’m too shocked it don’t give me any ideas I don’t understand any of this, this is like the weirdest studio closure I can remember. And they say engagement is what’s important anyway so even with low sales it shouldn’t end like this, it’s been on GOTY lists and getting awards and is high on rating everywhere and it’s Microsoft’s only studio from Japan. Why???

 

[hyperbertha]

It's all over ms fans

 

[Varteras]

I'll tell you one thing. Klobrille is having a panic attack thinking about how many times he's going to have to change his little infographic about how many companies Xbox gobbled up.

 

[sachos]

No fucking way! They didnt even give them a chance to actually develope a new game/IP under Xbox...
Im seeing people actually talking about many of the things we warmed about here like the harm the acquisitions may end up doing or how low sales (Gamepass/HW) may affect the brand moving forward.

 

[PropellerEar]

Too late to be about the PC version, and 97% user rating shouldn’t end with a closure, and Xbox is dead and Tango can’t be blamed for low sales there and Switch version didn’t even arrive. The timing makes it seem like it’s about the PS version not selling as well as they thought, like it was the last chance, and now they’re just giving up on the studio and IP.

 

[Fredrik]

You're not getting doubts about Game Pass and the future of Xbox are you?

Doubts? That’s mild. I haven’t started my Xbox this year and I don’t sub to Gamepass. Do I have to detail it further?…

 

[YeulEmeralda]

Phill Spencer right now

 

[S0ULZB0URNE]

Hi-fi isn't my thing but people like it and Arkane Austin were made to do a game they had basically no experience or interest in as far as I know. That is on MS. Also Prey was incredible and I still want a sequel

None of them are to my liking but that's my opinion.
I like the older Prey game but would like to see a more polished version of the modern one.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

So people are pissed about Tango, but wouldn't ms have kept the around if they made money for them?

Yes. No one wants to admit that games are a commercial enterprise for some reason.

 

[semiconscious]

The Initiative... how many years since they were formed with absolute zero output so far?

going on 6 years (founded 2018):

 

[Oppoi]

Doubts? That’s mild. I haven’t started my Xbox this year and I don’t sub to Gamepass. Do I have to detail it further?…

I could have sworn you've been quite the advocate for Game Pass and how it affecting the quality of gaming overall doesn't bother you because at the end of the day you save money. Was that not you?

 

[XXL]

The time to stop trusting what Phil Spencer said was years ago.

 

[GHG]

I’m too shocked it don’t give me any ideas I don’t understand any of this, this is like the weirdest studio closure I can remember. And they say engagement is what’s important anyway so even with low sales it shouldn’t end like this, it’s been on GOTY lists and getting awards and is high on rating everywhere and it’s Microsoft’s only studio from Japan. Why???

Because like I tried to explain to you many times over during the discussions/debates we had during the Activision acquisition process - the more money they spend, the more pressure there will be on the division to produce productive and sustainable financial results. The deal was the largest acquisition Microsoft as a business have ever made by quite some distance. Xbox were never going to be allowed to continue to fly under the radar after that.

It was either this or they hike the price of gamepass significantly.

 

[havoc00]

 

[SnapShot]

 

[CoreyFlawless]

Can’t believe they cut tango

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

Granted, Redfall wasn't just a bomb but an utterly inept embarrassment on every level for them. I highly doubt this is all 100% on the devs considering the director also directed Dishonored 2 but it's not like this wasn't to be expected. That game failed so fucking hard, it made a laughing stock out of the studio and the X exclusive.

Still fucking sad to see Arkane get nuked this hard after making beautiful gems like Prey and Dishonored.

 

[Thaedolus]

Well I get three more days of gamepass before last month expires, can I finish Persona 3 in that time? I’m only a few hours in

 

[Nydius]

It was either this or they hike the price of gamepass significantly.

I suspect the latter will be coming soon regardless. Game Pass subs have peaked and it’s never going to be on competing hardware so the only option to increase revenue from it now is to increase the costs or decrease the value. (Or both.) Especially now that EA Play is increasing costs; No way Microsoft will just eat the difference forever.

 

[Varteras]

If Indiana Jones fails, expect Machine Games to close or consolidate. If Blade fails, expect the same for Arkane Lyon. If Hellblade 2 fails, expect the same for Ninja Theory. Seriously. Prepare for the very real possibility that this isn't the end of this. I suspect most of their studios are in the cross hairs to one degree or another.

 

[LordCBH]

It was either this or they hike the price of gamepass significantly.

You’ll be getting that too. Probably around the time the first COD goes up on it.

 

[bender]

Yes. No one wants to admit that games are a commercial enterprise for some reason.

So are gaming divisions and yet...

 

[havoc00]

 

[diffusionx]

I am not sure about this, as Phil is clearly involved in restructuring and making these huge changes. They wouldn't be empowering him to do that if they didn't have confidence in him, obviously.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

So are gaming divisions and yet...

Different strategies require different rope lengths.

 

[havoc00]

Austin being shutdown is disgusting after Phil said all that shit last year about how they'll come back from this in the future, why the fuck jump straight to a shutdown? Why not merge Arkane Austin back with Arkane Lyon? Does that not make more sense than a fucking shutdown? Even if Redfall was a huge flop critically and commercially, they have talent which can benefit Lyon.

Tango Gameworks being shutdown is infuriating, Hi-Fi Rush clearly flopped and they tried to use PlayStation to save it and it flopped on PlayStation too but they went through all that multiplatform drama for Hi-Fi Rush only to kill the studio and Hi-Fi Rush even if it flopped was an amazing product, Tango can't have been that expensive to operate, they had like 100 employees based in Japan which is well known for low pay!

Mikami said he was planning on leaving Tango years ago but didn't because he was afraid of Zenimax shutting them down, he left now because he felt like Tango was safe, that is Mikami's words and then months later, Xbox decides to shut them down and spit in Mikami's face, there's no way they shut Tango down because they lost Mikami when John Johanas made Tango's best IP in its existence!

I wish Xbox wasn't apart of Microsoft, Microsoft is just too fucking greedy, need that 30-40% profit margin or w/e.

 

[SJRB]

 

[Wastelander92]

That top comment lol.

 

[diffusionx]

Austin being shutdown is disgusting after Phil said all that shit last year about how they'll come back from this in the future, why the fuck jump straight to a shutdown? Why not merge Arkane Austin back with Arkane Lyon? Does that not make more sense than a fucking shutdown? Even if Redfall was a huge flop critically and commercially, they have talent which can benefit Lyon.

I don't think it is easy or straightforward to tell a bunch of peoples in Austin, Texas, to take a trip across the Atlantic and brush up on your French.

"So they stay in Austin" - ok but that's the point.

 

[bender]

Different strategies require different rope lengths.

With longest being given to those who stack the most losing strategies. 20+ years of failure.

 

[fart town usa]

Didn't the Tango creative lead retire last year? Maybe they couldn't find a good enough replacement?

Don't see how anyone can be mad about Arkane after dragging them through the mud mercilessly over Redfall for the last year - they were made to be a laughing stock, I'd wager by many of the same people now pretending to mourn their demise. Between metacritic and the general meanness of the community, it's a harsh world out there as a developer. Some might say cut throat...

Shinji?

Shinji did leave but he wasn't the brains behind all things Tango. He was the elder statesman that was able to speak up for the junior staff and allow that same staff to have the chance to direct games and hone their technique. Good example is him driving back to Sony HQ after the Ghostwire team tested a prototype of the dual sense. Shinji told Sony to make the haptics and triggers more substantial, and Sony did.

Shinji has been saying it for years, he doesn't want to direct games, he wants to help mold the next generation of Japanese developers. He doesn't even want to make survival horror anymore, he hasn't for years but that's what people clamor for whenever his name is involved.

He is basically trying to be what Tokuro Fujiwara was to him during Shinji's early days at Capcom. Tokuro is the true grand father of RE and his mentorship to Shinji is what lead to Shinji being Shinji. Shinji is just trying to pay it forward in a similar way. Hopefully his current studio remains independent.

Tango would have been fine without Shinji, not that he wasn't a huge asset but with him gone, there's no one to go to bat for the team as a whole and I'm sure that's why he left last year. Hands were too tied and he's becoming an old man, doesn't want to deal with that shit when he could probably just as easily retire and be done with it all.

Everything I've described is in his recent interviews over the past few years. Fascinating stuff.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

Not the billion corporation!

 

[kruis]

Full circle.

I fear this image will have many updates in the next two years. No studio is going to be safe when the bean counters are in charge at Microsoft.

 

[Dr. Samuel Hayden]

Tons of people fired, Phil Spencer most effected!

 

[GHG]

Is Helldivers 2 still coming to Xbox ?

Absolute disaster of a fanbase.

 

[Husky]

They fucking closed Roundhouse
I've been fucked over again
God dammit

 

[LordCBH]

Tons of people fired, Phil Spencer most effected!

Won’t someone think of the poor executives!

 

[Larivel]

The shills have been exposed

I think he forgot about that tweet

 

[hubertuss03]

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

With longest being given to those who stack the most losing strategies. 20+ years of failure.

The longest given to those with greatest upside.

 

[GHG]

Austin being shutdown is disgusting after Phil said all that shit last year about how they'll come back from this in the future, why the fuck jump straight to a shutdown? Why not merge Arkane Austin back with Arkane Lyon? Does that not make more sense than a fucking shutdown? Even if Redfall was a huge flop critically and commercially, they have talent which can benefit Lyon.

Tango Gameworks being shutdown is infuriating, Hi-Fi Rush clearly flopped and they tried to use PlayStation to save it and it flopped on PlayStation too but they went through all that multiplatform drama for Hi-Fi Rush only to kill the studio and Hi-Fi Rush even if it flopped was an amazing product, Tango can't have been that expensive to operate, they had like 100 employees based in Japan which is well known for low pay!

Mikami said he was planning on leaving Tango years ago but didn't because he was afraid of Zenimax shutting them down, he left now because he felt like Tango was safe, that is Mikami's words and then months later, Xbox decides to shut them down and spit in Mikami's face, there's no way they shut Tango down because they lost Mikami when John Johanas made Tango's best IP in its existence!

I wish Xbox wasn't apart of Microsoft, Microsoft is just too fucking greedy, need that 30-40% profit margin or w/e.

If Xbox wasn't part of Microsoft it would have already been dead a long time ago.

Careful what you wish for.