Can Gearbox handle another disaster?

The review embargo for Aliens: Colonia Marines drops later today but a few unscrupulous (or uninformed) sites have dropped their reviews already and it really isn’t looking good for this title.

[ElleGee]

Beyond Borderlands and BiA, Gearbox hasn;t really done anything of note. In the past, they did some pretty decent stuff with Half Life..but I think their "prestige" right now rests entirely on Borderlands' success.

[DOMination-]

Even Hells Highway was a shoddy game. I know they probably have multiple teams but they've released quite a lot this gen, and for an independent studio that may take its toll on quality. The same thing with Insomniac too imo.

But this game was announced in 2006/07.. They didn't even start developing it until years after. Clearly a mistake that Im sure they'll learn from.

[EVILDEAD360]

Dice only did the multiplayer for Metal of Honor and was fine when BF3 was released.

Gearbox did the Aliens multi and they will be fine when a full game that they developed is released.

Evil

[SilentNegotiator]

@Evil

http://n4g.com/news/1172216...

Don't eat up rumors. It's bad for the brain.

[ApolloTheBoss]

They should just stick to making original stuff. Because for some reason they can't handle other franchises.

[jaklink]

I honestly thought that Gearbox rose above and redeemed themselves with Borderlands 2 after that train wreck that was Duke Nukem Forever. Unfortunately, it seems that they try to work on too many projects at once, which causes projects like Aliens to be subject to less-talented outsourcing developers. At the end of the day, they are putting their name on the game and after six years of development, it's inexcusable that they couldn't pry together some resources to make this game a true AAA title.

[Donnieboi]

Can't these guys ever try to make anything else other than shooter's? Have they no idea how crowded that market is? Every new FPS ip has an increasing chance of failure due to oversaturation of FPS's (not to mention lack of brand recognition when it's also a new IP). If they want to stand out, try making a game in a genre that is sorely missed (worked for ni no kuni).

[FlyingFoxy]

That's what the problem with the 360 is, too many generic FPS games.

if you want good shooters you need to have a decent PC.

[humbleopinion]

"Beyond Bordarlands and BiA"!? These are basically their two titles, and both have been good.
They didn't really make anything beyond these series (2 borderlands and 1 BiA) this gen because DNF wasn't their project in the first place and Aliens was outsourced to timegate.

Still, 3 titles with good reviews and good sales (both sales and reviews improved from title to title) is a good output for an independent studio. Borderlands 2 sold over 6 million copies so I'm pretty sure they can handle another disaster or two or five...

@FlyingFoxy above?
Too many generic FPS games on the 360!? If you want good shooters you need to have a decent PC!? you definitely are flying...
Practically 90% of the FPS titles are shared between PC, 360 and PS3 so your comment doesn't really make any sense.
On top of that the PS3 has Resistance and MAG and SOCOM and Killzone (and on the other hand is missing on 360-PC games such as Metro and L4D), the 360 has Halo and Perfect Dark, and the PC has some small scale experimental games such as shattered horizons and natural selection and a boatload of F2P games.

So In terms of actual numbers, the 360 has less FPS franchises than both the PS3 and the PC (and they are definitely less generic). It just that one of these franchises is so dominant and highly reviewed and popular that it solely makes the 360 the de-facto platform for people who love FPS games.

[Linsolv]

That's kinda the criticism. If you want something markedly different from CoD/Halo (Resistance is Cod 5 with aliens and I won't hear otherwise; MAG is CoD with lots of people) or 3rd-person-CoD (the most recent SOCOM), you have to look at Arma for simulationistic realism, or Quake Live for a strong professional presence and a different take on fast-paced arena gameplay, or TF2 for team-based action (don't tell me 'TF2 is on consoles,' because TF2 from five years ago is on consoles--The changes are drastic), or any of the many exclusives that are particularly well-regarded by people other than IGN.

[humbleopinion]

Perhaps the version of TF2 on consoles is from five years ago, but MNC (although 3rd person) is also on consoles and offers something similar, as well as many other game modes for popular games which offer pretty similar core functionality to classic TF2.
And after all, even the new co-op TF2 mode is just another take on the Gears of War horde mode available in countless other games...

The same applies for Quake Live alternatives such from UT to Nexuiz (in case you're looking for a fast paced arena shooter). The last thing you can say about Quake Live is that it's unique since the concept is almost as old as FPSes are.

And ARMA just spanned from Operation Flashpoint (the original from the same developers), and the new Operation Flashpoint games are available on consoles.

You pretty much proved my point which was the opposite of the prior criticism from FlyingFoxy: there are actually many more FPSes on the PC, but there is nothing really unique about them that you can't get on consoles.

[Darranged]

Make a new Duke Nukem already! With more poo-flinging!

[YolandaGreen]

Stick to what you're good at :)

Always having an excuse that you weren't entirely responsible for the development won't last long.

[first1NFANTRY]

I wonder if this is why we never got a demo to try out...makes you think

[ElectricKaibutsu]

That's never a good sign.

[BanBrother]

So if the game got positive reviews, they made it. If not, they didn't. Pretty nice deal there.

I never actual,y like BIA tbh, thought they sucked. Borderlands was great, and I'll definitely get this game. Duke Nukem wasn't made by them anyway, yet they got all the blame lol.

[Starfox17]

WiiU version is meant to be far superior so i'll wait for that trailer as the wiiu version is said to be the best version even above the pc,but that's due to ps3 and 360 holding pc bk ?

[Irishguy95]

In what way is it superior? The gameplay and design of the game is the fault...nothing to do with hardware and the graphics are not so bad that they would ruin a game. They are quite good for the most part.

Also, it would be completely retarded for PC to be held back by 360 and Ps3 but not the WiiU. That makes no sense so don't even try and swing it.

[ElectricKaibutsu]

But, but, you can use the GamePad as the tracker from Aliens!

It really is a shame this game turned out so poor. I was going to pick it up.

Edit: By "poor" I mean going by the reviews we've seen so far. Maybe it's actually great, I don't know.

[Realplaya]

Well it looks like a different studio is developing for the wiiu you. Demiurge Studios are they decent?

[ElectricKaibutsu]

@Realplaya
According to Wikipedia it seems they help other developers complete projects. They've worked on some high profile titles like Bioshock and Mass Effect. The Wii U version being a port, no matter how good they are, I can't see it actually being better than the 360 version. We'll see though.

[Sheikah]

The game has seen releases from sites we have never heard of. I am not speaking in denial here - but until we actually get hands ON experience and reviews from the more liable sources, I think we should all can the hatred.

From my experience, if a game scores 7 - it is lynched by the online communities.

I could be terribly wrong, but the builds people are using could be WIP builds, particularly among the PC community.

I won't judge the game untill I play it later today.. Then, if the game is just half decent, I am prone to beleieve that my sense of nostalgia will carry my enthusiasm through the game. And I reckon the MP sounds interesting.

Again, I could also be terribly wrong, and realize that the raging mob is not just spewing bile for the sake of it. The game could very well be the disaster people make it out to be.

tl;dr: Not gonna judge the title as a disaster till I at least get to try it.

[CouldHaveYelledUiiW]

I agree with you,

I like Pro- Reviewers but I generally don't make a judgement until I also see some player reviews/scores as well.

Players generally give a slightly higher score than reviewers- they generally score on the "Fun" factor rather than having to focus intently on technical aspects.

[ZeekQuattro]

I agree with you. I want to hear about my games from people that aren't paid to give reviews for a living. I also find that in many official reviews the person doesn't even like the type of game or the source material and the games score usually always lose points.

[CouldHaveYelledUiiW]

I agree with you,

I like Pro- Reviewers but I generally don't make a judgement until I also see some player reviews/scores as well.

Players generally give a slightly higher score than reviewers- they generally score on the "Fun" factor rather than having to focus intently on technical aspects.

[TheGeekNextDoor]

Once it's released retail, embargo drops.

[FlyingFoxy]

Anyone taking bets that the Wii U version may be cancelled in favor of bad reviews?.

I was looking forward to this for years.. can't believe it failed, i was hoping something similar to L4D quality & fun.

Looks like i'll be sticking with Killing Floor and L4D2 at least until Doom 4 and Half Life 3.. ugh i hope Doom 4 isn't a failure.

[dubberman]

I think that because the WiiU is lacking in having any consistency with its game releases, with major releases being delayed or just not announced yet. This could be a prime time to release on the WiiU, using the reviews and extra time to fix whatever balls up's there are. At the moment a game like this has no real competition on the WiiU where as every other platform has shooters in abundance. The really hard task is to make these changes and then make it clear to the community that the WiiU version is in fact 'the superior version'. I'm sure we all know how fickle people can be..so good luck to them. Maybe im bias though, considering im holding out for this game on my WiiU.

Killing Floor...bastard Killing Floor. I've been trying, struggling and failing to remember that title for days..
Thank you kind Sir.

[ironfist92]

Gearbox didnt completely make this game, it was outsourced to Timegate. Gearbox cant be completely blamed for this, if they made it from the ground up, it'd be just as amazing as Borderlands

[kostchtchie_]

they may have outsourced it, but that does not stop them keeping an eye on what they have been doing right?

and people go on about borderlands, that game was only successful because of the change in art direction that lots of people liked including myself, it makes borderlands feel like fluke from these guys

i did not disagree with you

[OC_MurphysLaw]

As much as this may be a disaster review score wise, I can easily see them pumping out a million+ sold just off the IP and those not checking reviews. I am sure this disaster will be far less of one financially then we all would think.

[Blacklash93]

Why does Gearbox put its name on things and sell them as its own if it's not even making most of the product in question? All it does is brand them as lazy (or over-loaded with game developments) and give them a bad reputation.

[honkayjeezus]

They did make it, just like Duke Nukem Forever. Both these titles are about as quality as Borderlands 2.

[honkayjeezus]

I didn't notice any critical backlash against the DLC-feel of Borderlands 2. Sometimes they team up on a game only when they feel safe doing so.

*see - Max Payne 3

[admiralvic]

The difference is that Borderlands 2 is a good game, so even if the DLC is absolutely worthless, it gets a buffer for having the good source. Even with this the DLC is struggling to score above 7 points, so there is definately backlash. Also if you read virtually any forum about the DLC, you will see that MANY people feel like they got scammed by the season pass and will not buy another if the rumored second season pass is announced for Borderlands 2.

[TheRacingX]

My problem is why outsource it if you wanted to do the game? If you didn't want to do it, tell Sega no and get someone else to dev it, don't give all these interviews saying you're huge fans of the franchise then go and let someone else halfass it because you signed a contract. I figured there was something a foul when this game was to be the 1st release and got delayed, almost cancelled at one point, then pushed back to be the last release. What else this leads me to believe is that Sega rushed/pushed/forced Rebellion to get AvP out the door because Sega was obligated under the contract with 20th century fox to release games in certain time periods and that game wasn't really fully realized/finished but Sega forced it out, and that game was panned as incomplete and unfinished, maybe not Rebellions fault. At least they still had cajones to release a demo before the game came out.... hmmmmmm

[Gr81]

Getting scary when one game can under perform and the entire company goes bye bye. Games are becoming too bloated. CM is a great example of this. Its been marketed heavily, Has had a long dev time, tons of resources and it seems all for naught.

This is why the industry is contracting, there will only be well known IP's Assassins Creed 4-7, CoD BO3-7, Mass Effects Madden 25-30, Uncharted 4-8, MGS 6, RE 8, Gears of War 6. This isnt a problem by itself, but when the industry relies completely on established franchises it will become problematic.

Much like Hollywood, relying too much on the Summer Blockbuster. If the fan bases ever tire of these games, then what?

[admiralvic]

It is definately scary, but at the same time it's also a good thing. We've seen companies do some unfavorable things, which will go away / become less common if they don't have any sort of buffer. Look at Gearbox and Borderlands 2...

They release a fantastic game with a really good preorder bonus, but then pretty much everything went to hell for them...

Many people learned that the golden keys weren't that cool, nor were they exactly hard to come by (Gearbox has done a LOT of promos with them). Limited Edition buyers were also disappointed to see their DLC costumes could be dropped, so they weren't that unique / special. We then saw The Bee basically break the game (not that I mind), which took them months to finally patch (despite constant debates about it). They then outsourced 3/4 (probably the last one too) of the DLC packs, so many season pass holders felt like they were lied to / scammed (not exactly true, but not exactly honest either). The first DLC pack (Scarlett) had a number of bugs and Master Gee was a train wreck (awful mechanics, typically froze the game when he died, sometimes didn't drop loot, didn't drop seraph crystals, didn't unlock his bad ass challenge, poor drop chart), plus we saw raid bosses get a 24 hour lock. Now Gearbox has hyped up a level increase (also some people claim another difficulty, though I never saw anything about it), but then a interview revealed that they didn't plan ahead, nor did it sound like they're exactly close to being done (we might see all the DLC before we see a level increase...).

If they can't get their act together or at least properly manage expectations, then I can't say them or any company with similar problems would sadden / shock me if they went under.

[Soldierone]

I know people that bought it simply because Gearbox's name was on it. Me on the other hand got stuck with Duke Nukem and already learned my lesson lol