Monster Cast #17, produced for the Console Monster website – covering news from all of the major players including Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo.
Featuring special guest Steve Lycett, Executive Producer from SUMO Digital to discuss his experiences developing for the Nintendo Wii U and their upcoming title Sonic & SEGA All Stars Racing Transformed.
Also featuring host James Woodcock and guests Marty Greenwell, David Wriglesworth and Anthony Barker.
Monster Cast is an un-scripted casual podcast, where Console Monster staff members come together and discuss the latest news in gaming over the past few weeks.
Using Google+ HangOut! streamed Live as they discussed the past month in gaming.
Show
CFIUS needs to greenlight Tencent's buying Sumo Digital due to concerns of national security, Sumo and Tencent agree to work together to ensure the deal comes through
Yikes.
Spoken like a person that has no real working understanding of the Chinese government or the oppression its citizens are subject to. As an expat living in the US I agree that this place is a far cry from perfect, but to suggest that US and Chinese authorities are alike shows a lack of understanding both for China's politics and for the benefits of America's ideals of freedom.
Before rebuking and backing up your claim in this thread, consider:
~in China, you can be arrested (and according to testimony, imprisioned, tortured, or killed) because of your religious views.
~in China, you can be arrested, imprisoned, tortured, or killed because you spoke ill of the government.
~in China, you can be denied a passport because you disagree with anything the government says, or have ever attended a protest.
~in China, you cannot jaywalk because you will be caught on camera and prosecuted due to the deep surveillance of the citizens in all dense public areas
~in China, the state owns the vast majority of major news a and journalistic publications and use them to print lies and propaganda for the state.
~in China, the government closely controls the internet and disallows access to most content.
I could go on.
I’m america you are called a domestic terrorist and put on a fed list for speaking out at a school board meeting lol. We’re trending towards the social credit score with a quickness. Enjoy the American “ideals” or whatever is left of them while they last.
Not even close. US government had a million problems but chinas is still incomparably more evil.
Hence why it’s the only thing I trust less than the American government. But if you want to pretend that the American corporate press is any different than the CCP propagandists then you are an idealist and not a realist. We are better, for now…. And that’s not saying much.
It’s slipping quick though and it’s already too far gone.
@sourOG Only way you're put on a list for speaking at a school board meeting is when you're an idiot and start threatening people... https://www.npr.org/section...
"Confrontations over masks, vaccines and how race is taught in schools have many school board members across the U.S. worried for their safety.
Mobs are yelling obscenities and throwing objects. In one district, a protester brandished a flagpole against a school board official. Other cases have included a protester yelling a Nazi salute, arrests for aggravated battery and disorderly conduct, and numerous death threats against public officials.
...
In Ohio, a school board member reportedly received a piece of hate mail that said, "We are coming after you and all the members on the ... BoE [Board of Education]. ... You are forcing them to wear mask—for no reason in this world other than control. And for that you will pay dearly." Threats have prompted school board members, many of whom are volunteers, to resign.
Turning Point USA, a group closely aligned with former President Donald Trump, maintains a website called School Board Watchlist, which includes the names and photos of members of school boards around the country who have adopted mask mandates or anti-racist curricula. The group maintains a similar website targeting professors for liberal views that has been linked to several incidents of harassment."
So yes, you can be put on a watch list for speaking at a school board meeting. If you start threatening or assaulting people... Then again, the people doing that are the ones cheering on the domestic terrorists from Jan 6th...
Parents angry about “masks, vaccines and how race is taught in schools have many school board members across the U.S. worried for their safety” doesn’t sound like violence to me. It sounds like useless, incompetent state losing its grip.
I don’t give a shit about trump. Get over it.
Speaking of state funded propaganda, it’s funny you link to NPR lmao. You even use the same language and are still going on about trump.
This is a prime statist here, observe people. People like this are why the CCP is launching hypersonic rockets into the atmosphere and the US military are being trans activists and rooting out the “white supremacy” from their ranks. Jan 6th 😱😱
^ @kthxcrayon, fwiw I was being facetious and I agree with all your points. Still, the fact is, the US spiralling the plughole right now - and China is waiting in the U-bend.
Replies(2)“The letter asked the U.S. Department of Justice to mobilize law enforcement agencies to respond to “threats and acts of violence against public schoolchildren, public school board members, and other public school district officials and educators.”“
From an article about the school board. Believe it or not violent threats are not protected speech as decided by the Supreme Court of the US.
Depends on your definition of violence. A white kid sitting in a “POC” space is considered “violence” in modern America. That’s just one dumb example of the tired shit Americans put up with these days.
Lol what. Please cite that article. Never heard of that being considered violence.
Cite what article? It was some dumb video that it reminded me of lol. I’ll find it, it was all over the news. They all talk the same. Like general milley and his white rage obsession. He was so concerned about that shit he left a bunch of Americans in Afghanistan. And then they did a drone strike on terrorist leadership to look like they were being tough. It ended up being an Afghan family getting water. These people are a f****ng joke. I don’t wonder why the world hates us anymore lol.
https://youtu.be/zIUapVJv6Q...
This was some big story about a couple of kids getting harassed by some idiot. Listen about 35-45 seconds and and she describes them sitting there as violence. “This is the kind of violence the ACLU protects” or some such nonsense.
A large chunk of Americans are morons that believe that anything opposing their view is “violence”. That’s why it depends on the definition. Another example is Dave Chappelle. His latest show the closer was considered violence against lgbtq. It’s just rhetoric they use to moralize their shitty behavior and canceling people. It’s common and it’s bullshit but it works ike a charm. Americans (especially corporations) are largely non confrontational and fold quicker than a chair in a wresting match. I don’t care when these idiots use the term. But when an attorney general uses it as a vague term? Homie don’t play dat *smack* lmao
See the US government doesn’t torture you and kill you. If you think the CIA, FBI and the rest aren’t running domestic operations with corporations then you are a fool but that’s not the main arm. The culture just black balls you wipes you from digital services. Suddenly no big publications would be anywhere near Chappelle and canceled his documentary. It’s the price you pay for thinking jokes aren’t violence. Did the “culture” want Dave Chappelle canceled? I don’t believe so. The corporations did though. Because they are morons too.
How about actual violence? You’re on the wrong political side? Well you can’t have a pay pal or a gofundme. Like that rittenhouse kid that just had his first day of trial for killing those rioters in Wisconsin. People were trying to donate to his legal funds and gofundme and a bunch of other services dropped him off of the service. But kamels Harris can get funds to get rioters out of prison. Like I said, it’s all how you define it. When your actual violence is considered justice by the state but my words are considered violence by the state? We’re in China, my dude.
Hahaha damn that video of the girls complaining about the sticker is pathetic. But bare in mind man like yes there are a lot of dumb morons saying shit like that, but they’re still just the loud minority, I don’t believe that behavior is really part of law or supported by our representatives (except for the dumbest of them). Agreed Chapelle’s special wasn’t bad at all, but once again it’s a minority complaining about it, not the majority of people or a reflection of an entire party. I think if people are threatening violence, as in literal violence “I’m going to hurt you,” not a sticker of political views there needs to be some law to deter that (as there already is).
The silent majority doesn’t complain though and are largely oblivious. The loud minority control the narrative, control the corporations, control public discourse.
Unless you mess with the silent majorities kids, then they go apeshit lol. The worst example from the guy up there could come up with for a violent message to the school board is “I’m coming for you”. That doesn’t have to mean physical violence, it could mean they are going after their job on the school board. Virginia just flipped a bunch of seats on Nov2 on this one issue. A deep blue state turned red because they were going after their kids. Labeling parents domestic terrorists because they are pissed that the state is claiming ownership of their kids is laughable. And the jerks that justify it like the guy up there are bootlickers.
Our representatives and unelected bureaucrats are just as stupid. They are the ones pushing the shit lol. There’s maybe a handful of representatives that are worth a shit. The rest are useless.
I really hope the American security panel puts a stop to this game company being sold to Tencent.
Tencent in my opinion has too many ties to the Chinese Communist Party and giving them control of Sumo Digital makes no sense to me.
From GI.biz: "Highly regarded UK industry veteran Ian Richardson has died suddenly aged 53.
Richardson has spent over 30 years working in video games, including senior roles at Gremlin, Ocean, Europress and Rage during the 1990s. He's best known today for his work as business development director for Sumo Digital, where he has spent six years in which the developer has grown exponentially."
May he RIP. My condolences to his loved ones. Way too young to leave us.
Lately..it seems some folks are not making it past their 40s & 50s. Sudden death is the worst,possibly a heart attack. May he r.i.p. Condolences to his family & friends.
Studies say programmers it happens the most because their job requires sitting a lot and lack of rest, and some don't have the best diets (Well the ones I know). Suck because he's still young.
Wow! It almost seems that type of job can be dangerous especially when one is not conscious of their health.
Tencent is set to buy Sumo Group in a deal worth $1.27bn (£919m), the companies have announced.
Tencent is really buying up everything. I'm surprised everyone is selling to them like this.
No way they are worth that much. They are a support studio. I guess tencent decided to throw them an insane price that Sumo would be crazy to turn down.
Its like the godfather. "Im going to make you an offer you cant refuse"
I've heard some time ago, that they created a special unit that has a mission to search for acquirable devs all around the globe.
I doubt anyone that matters to the actual production of the games is getting a raise. The only thing that has changed is that now they can't buy any Winnie the Poo products for their kids.
Well they’re allowed. America and China are leading the world in toxic capitalism.
As publicly traded companies it's either they sell and potentially get more, or tencent initiates a hostile takeover and buys at least 51% of the shares. These companies might not even be amicable to the buy out but opt to take it because hostile takeovers are terrible.
Yep. A company that built itself by ripping off IP of small, innovative developers and out-marketing them. Tencent is everything wrong not just with gaming but corporate ethics in general, and the assymetric regulatory playing field we for some reason permit from the Chinese government. Egregiously corrupt companies like Tencent should be banned from the US market.
The US market would take Tencent to dinner and have it naked on the bed by midnight if it could. America and China are as bad as each other
They can take Sumo those devs really aren't that great. Sack boys big adventure scored good however but Crackdown 3 wasn't great. They're 50/50 Sony will find a suitable replacement for Sack boy. MS desperately needs a suitable replacement for crackdown, if it's not already too late in terms of fanfare at this point.
Sumo to me isn't that big of a deal there are better devs out there.
This is the same Sumo who made Outrun 2, 2006 Coast to Coast, Sonic Racing Transformed as well as Forza Horizon 2 on the 360. I think they are better than you give them credit for.
You might want to walk this statement back. Why else do you think this game goes for over $200 now?
https://www.ebay.com/p/5144...
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yeah, thats what I thought. $1.3 billion is very high, Insomniac sounds like a bargain deal for Sony!
at the two above me,
it's easy to sell for less when you know you're in good hands business and culture wise. I mean sure you could scratch out some extra money elsewhere but are all the people you know going to be taken care of when you get bought out? Sony takes care of them. Basically you can tell who's a scheming money scumbag by what ceo's/execs choose to be bought by. In the end money talks but there's extras to consider sometimes.
Me too! After looking them up, it seems like they were the parent of other game studios: Lab42, Red Kite, Sumo India, The Chinese Room and PixelAnt Games and also have some cryptocurrency technology.
They may also still hold the IP for back when they were Gremlin Interactive.. back in the Amiga days they were really a dev of some repute.
They're not, it's likely them just throwing money around to make sure they have no opposition. Sumo is a valuable developer as they've assisted in alot of great games. They did LBP3, Sackboy, Sonic Transformed, I believe Assisted in both ModNation Racers and LBPK, Team Sonic racing, just to name the few off the top of my head that I own.
I honestly thought ms or Sony would have nabbed them, seeing as they have worked for both on their respective ips, colour me surprised.
It's a lot of money for a group with no ips, what would they have worked on to keep so many studios and staff employed. For now at least they continue working on ips for the likes of Sony and Microsoft.
Sony and ms have more than enough ips to keep em busy, the price would have been an issue though, that I agree with, just surprised is all🤷♂️
Tencent doesn't exactly pride themselves on original IP anyway. They just steal someone else's. They only need developer drones.
They have enough to make them busy but there is no point in buying the studio that high, they could just make the developers some offers and thats it... heck every single developer could just quit the studio and with what is tensen left? no point in buying a studio with no IP you dont own the developers
I already agreed that the price was high, still don't take away that they could have been used, and be useful to either ms or sony
