LucasArts Ceasing Internal Development?

[robwright]

Article by Devin Connors

LucasArts recently layed off around 100 employees and now is embroiled in rumors that it will cease internal development following Star Wars: The Force Unleashed and an upcoming Indiana Jones title.

http://www.tomsgames.com/us/2008/06/11/lucasarts_development/

 

[infornography42]

They better not can The Force Unleashed. That game is so close to coming out and looks so cool.

 

[JeanLuc]

They better not can The Force Unleashed. That game is so close to coming out and looks so cool.

Given the money and time they have ploughed into that game I highly doubt it will be canned, however the layoffs means there's is virtually no chance of a PC version of the game ever being developed.

I would hate to see LucasArts stop making games altogether, even though I'm annoyed with them no PC version of Force Unleashed they have made some of games of all time – X-Wing, Tie Fighter (I hope to god this gets remade one day), X-Wing Vs Tie Fighter and Monkey Island 1 & 2.

 

[cutmeister]

How does Mr. Connors know that around 100 employees were laid off at LucasArts? If he is relying on other websites for that info then I recommend caution. I don't know of any website that has actually verified the number of employees that were laid off. It seems to me other websites like Kotaku are relying on reports from recently sacked employees and who knows how accurate those are? LucasArts management definitely won't tell anybody how many employees they let go last week.

There is definitely some sort of restructuring going on at LucasArts but I don't think we have any reliable numbers on the number of employees who have lost their job as a result.

 

[robwright]

How does Mr. Connors know that around 100 employees were laid off at LucasArts? If he is relying on other websites for that info then I recommend caution. I don't know of any website that has actually verified the number of employees that were laid off. It seems to me other websites like Kotaku are relying on reports from recently sacked employees and who knows how accurate those are? LucasArts management definitely won't tell anybody how many employees they let go last week.

There is definitely some sort of restructuring going on at LucasArts but I don't think we have any reliable numbers on the number of employees who have lost their job as a result.

Actually, Cutmeister, LucasArts has publicly stated that it layed off approximately 100 employees. The company hasn't given a specific number -- and it probably won't, because as a private company, it doesn't have to -- but it did confirm the lay off rumor and the company's "restructuring."

And yes, I'm as shocked as everyone else is about this.

And no, Info, I don't think there's any chance LucasArts will cancel The Force Unleashed.

 

[physx7]

Given the money and time they have ploughed into that game I highly doubt it will be canned, however the layoffs means there's is virtually no chance of a PC version of the game ever being developed.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhh!!!!!!!!!!!! *Beats head on keyboard*

 

[infornography42]

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrgggggggghhhh!!!!!!!!!!!! *Beats head on keyboard*

Wow, that is some seriously precision head beating. The best I can get is k,jmsasdaflkjmbnfdaa.

 

[cliffro]

With SW:TFU being console only, and me having nothing to do with consoles, I couldn't care less if the company tanked.

<rant>
When they first started talking about it, I was excited to say the least but that quickly turned to disappointment even disgust when i found that it was console only...literally every other platform from recent history(Including the PS2) except PC gets it. I have loved playing their games as well as i enjoyed watching all of their movies.
</rant>

So overall no big deal it doesn't affect me. I do however hope the people that got canned manage to find other jobs though.

Edit
Dang it, all this talk about LA/SW made me install Jedi Academy again...i need some saber combat......

 

[infornography42]

That game was a lot of fun. I really wish they had made A Jedi Academy II.... Of course with their bizzare naming convention it would have been what ... Dark Forces 5 effectively?

 

[physx7]

That game was a lot of fun. I really wish they had made A Jedi Academy II.... Of course with their bizzare naming convention it would have been what ... Dark Forces 5 effectively?

Yeah I used to play that game a lot! Until I got my new graphics card that is......... *beats head on brick wall* I'm getting a headache....

 

[IM0001]

Lucasarts was soo good back in the days making amazing adventure games and games based on the X-Wing series (as well as the all out awesome Tie Fighter)

It seams that they just died slowly since they stopped making anything like them past the last Monkeys Island and X-Wing Alliance. Seriously they almost abandoned the PC market altogether except for the ocasional Console Port. I do not know whats going on behind the scenes but they were so good back then and since they have seamed to neglect the PC market as well as making other star wars games in general, if they wanted to make a nice re-entry back into the market, make a new X-Wing game, or a new Tie Fighter one. Hell I know they remade the old ones with newer graphics a while back (While screwing up the music and the ingame menu's and such) But if they made a DX10 based star wars sim, maybe X-Wing vs Tie Fighter 2 or something, they would sell out!

Maybe i am wrong but I really havent heard much anything great coming from lucasarts for a long time that was a must play for the PC (Minus the force unleased, their first good strategy game)

 

[infornography42]

Maybe i am wrong but I really havent heard much anything great coming from lucasarts for a long time that was a must play for the PC (Minus the force unleased, their first good strategy game)

?

The Force Unleashed hasn't come out, isn't expected to come out for the PC, and isn't a strategy game. Did you mean Empire at War?

Also, I'm not sure how far back you thinking with that statement, but a few years ago there were KOTOR and Armed and Dangerous. Both games were, in my opinion, must haves. Since then though, yeah, pretty dry.

 

[physx7]

Has anyone here played KOTOR through? What did you think of it? Everytime I looked at the game the combat seemed pretty boring... so I haven't bothered getting it..

 

[GrandAdmiralThrawn]

Has anyone here played KOTOR through? What did you think of it? Everytime I looked at the game the combat seemed pretty boring... so I haven't bothered getting it..

KOTOR is a great game it is an RPG and the story is great, the combat is kind of a modified turn based system you can play it real time or pause it to give comands to your party, it is not like the Jedi Acadamy style, but is still a fun game.

 

[infornography42]

Don't go for KOTOR if all you are interested in is the combat. It is an RPG and functions like one. If however you are looking for an RPG with an extremely well written plot, great characters, and a story you will remember fondly for years to come, definitely pick it up.

If you judge it as an action game it will fall flat. If you judge it as an RPG, you would be hard pressed to find anyone that doesn't put it among the best and you will find several who rate it as the best.

 

[physx7]

Don't go for KOTOR if all you are interested in is the combat. It is an RPG and functions like one. If however you are looking for an RPG with an extremely well written plot, great characters, and a story you will remember fondly for years to come, definitely pick it up.

If you judge it as an action game it will fall flat. If you judge it as an RPG, you would be hard pressed to find anyone that doesn't put it among the best and you will find several who rate it as the best.

Is it anything like Oblivion? I liked Oblivion even though it was kind of weird...

 

[infornography42]

not really. Both are RPGs but they are very different as RPGs go.

Oblivion was a single person party, was very non character focused and most NPCs in the game were completely unmemorable. The world was fairly generic when you get right down to it, but a large part of the appeal was the free wheeling sandbox world and the direct participation in the combat system.

KOTOR is much more character focused. The other members of your party are the stars of the show and each one is very memorable (except maybe T3M4, but at least I remember it's name). The combat in KOTOR is more abstracted than in Oblivion and has more to do with tactics and less to do with skill. Where Oblivion was an open world, KOTOR is a series of lightly scripted zones that you could take care of in any order you wished (with a few plot related exceptions). Lastly, where the dialog in Oblivion was extremely abstracted, you have more interactive dialog trees in KOTOR which leads to much richer dialog.

It really boils down to, Oblivion was more action and exploration oriented, whereas KOTOR is more character and plot oriented. If you have never played a game like that before, this would be a very good introduction to that style, just don't expect a lot of exciting and challenging combat. The combat is fun, but not as action oriented as Oblivion.

 

[cutmeister]

Actually, Cutmeister, LucasArts has publicly stated that it layed off approximately 100 employees. The company hasn't given a specific number -- and it probably won't, because as a private company, it doesn't have to -- but it did confirm the lay off rumor and the company's "restructuring."

I don't understand. First you state that LucasArts has publicly stated that the company laid off approximately 100 employees and then in the next sentence you say that the company hasn't given a specific number. So where is this 100 number coming from? Kotaku? Joystiq? Mr. Connors' own conversation with a LucasArts representative?

From everything I've read LucasArts hasn't given any approximation of the number of employees that got laid off. PR director Margaret Grohne only confirmed that there were some lay offs that occurred. How one can translate that statement into 100 people is the question. Kotaku intially reported a 50-100 number and then came back and said it was 75-100 and that these numbers were coming from some of these laid off employees. How do they really know how many of them got laid off? Did LucasArts call them all into a room and to tell all 100 of them that they were being let go? No, that's not how it went down at all. The walk outs occurred on an individual basis.

For the record, I'm not questioning the fact that some sort of reorganization occurred at LucasArts. When a company sends its only two vice presidents related to production packing then one can rest assured that the company is making some serious changes. I am questioning Mr. Connors report of approximately 100 employees being cut and want to know where he got this number from.

And yes, I'm as shocked as everyone else is about this.

Not that surprised. LucasArts named a new president back in April and he has decided to do some house cleaning. Same thing happened back in 2004 when his predecessor took over. I'll be interested to see if the non-LEGO Indiana Jones game really does make it to market.

 

[eofu]

The last starwars game I played was Starwars Galaxies and it didn't deliver for me...

I hate to see this company get closed down. I also don't want EA buying up all the game developing compaines cause I feel like it could create a monopoly.

 

[cutmeister]

I don't think it likely that LucasArts will close down. Nor do I think it likely that Michael Pachter's statement to the effect that if he were EA he would go in and try to buy LucasArts from George Lucas is something that George Lucas would agree to. GL seems willing to sell off technology but I've never known him to sell rights to any of his intellectual property. If a deal with EA is in the works then it could be exclusive licensing of the Star Wars IP to EA with some sort of co-publishing arrangement with LucasArts.

If Margaret Grohne's statements are indeed true and accurate then LucasArts still plans to develop some games so they shouldn't be closing shop anytime soon.

 

[airblazer]

Great..you can just imagine EA devloping star wars games..
The new battlefield 3 featuring X-wing/ tie Fighters ...quick get your limited edition X-fighter now..
Plus after release noobs would start bitching about how they were getting pwned by X-wings etc and EA would release a patch to completely kill combat and introduce the no vehicles option.