Welcoming Ready At Dawn to Facebook

There are few higher compliments a developer can receive besides, “I dreamed about your game.” Many of us experienced that very phenomenon with Lone Echo—our adventures with the main character Liv were so vivid and the shared empathy so strong, the connection felt real. Ready At Dawn Studios’ storytelling and innovation DNA were on full display in Lone Echo and set the standard for VR narrative adventure, showcasing how virtual reality offers players more immersive, memorable, and emotionally charged experiences. Today, I’m excited to share that Ready At Dawn is joining Facebook—and the future of groundbreaking content in VR has never looked brighter.

[knickstr]

Please go away Facebook and leave gaming alone.

[Nyxus]

And same goes for Google.

[-Foxtrot]

Google, Facebook, Amazon...they’re just going to make shit let’s be honest and it’s never going to be serious stuff compared to what we get in the industry now

It’s a waste of talent

[Neonridr]

@Foxtrot - RAD have made some great VR titles for the Oculus platform. So why wouldn't they continue making good titles?

[SpineSaw]

Yes!.... All these crap companies should get out of gaming to include Google, Facebook, Microsoft and one of those 3 does way more harm than the other 2 and the 2 being Google and Facebook. Gaming would be much better off without the 3 for sure.

[darthv72]

So if RAD makes more VR games for FB then it would be like that scene in Ready Player one. "We estimate
we can sell up to 80% of a individual's visual field before inducing seizures."

[Yui_Suzumiya]

Agreed. If I gotta see another stupid Google Stadia commercial before a YouTube video again, I'm gonna scream.

[UltraNova]

Damn, so any plans for The order 2 are shoved down the drain...I can't see Sony tasking another team to make a sequel for years to come, if ever. Shit.

[morganfell]

And neither Google, Facebook, or Amazon are the threat that is Tencent.

@UltraNova,

I absolutely could see Sony handing this to another team.

[crazyCoconuts]

Well they own Oculus Rift, so from those of us with Rifts, please don't go away - continue to support the product...

[scofios]

We never got a sequel to heavenly sword , i'am afraid same thing will happen to the Order 1886 .
would be nice if Sony had acquired them.

[neomahi]

No, Google has the potential to do it right. I mean, let's be honest here, the head of Google Gaming Division (GGD) is none other than the man undeniably responsible for the success of PS3 and PS4, like or not or agree with it or not. Phil Harrison is actually a very smart guy, very smart. He's great at going out and finding great developers and getting them up and going. Media Molecule Sony owes to Harrison. Microsoft just wasn't s good fit for him and Google Stadia is tough because, let's be honest here, the world isn't ready for streaming yet. Internet technology isn't advanced enough and people still can't afford good internet, plus it's expensive with data caps and all that nonsense so, he's tied and limited and developers aren't sold on it just yet. That's why devs and publishers are testing the waters with their back catalog and not their upcoming games, especially with exclusives, that's suicide.

[rainslacker]

Harrison left Sony 2 years after the PS3 launched, and had nothing to do with the PS4. Harrison also has a fairly storied past within the many companies he's worked for, mostly good, some not so good. He did a good job over at MS with the XBox as well, but I agree it wasn't a good fit for him. Overall he is a likable guy, and generally I think he does know how to sell consoles and games, and generally run a video game business.

I won't discount Harrison's executive prowess, but he hasn't exactly lit the world on fire with Stadia, and he's been a major part of getting that going. Maybe long term he'll make something out of it, but it's been flailing out of the gate, and it doesn't seem like Google has any long term vision for it...just putting it out there and hoping it does something.

[Nyxus]

Nooo! There goes my hope for a sequel to The Order.

[IanTH]

Yeah, I'm torn. I really loved what they put out on PlayStation (I also really wanted an Order sequel), but they've also done some of the absolute best things in VR. VR does need more quality studios to pump out high-end experiences for the platform, so I'm at least glad there will be more of that coming from them. I'm a bit surprised Sony didn't grab them to do console & VR games for PS/PSVR, but Oculus will at least give them plenty of money to keep making great VR experiences...so yeah, torn.

[knickstr]

I honestly don't think Sony was interested in a sequel unfortunately.

[Neonridr]

I think they have plenty of established IPs now that were extremely well received. Obviously it's possible we could see something down the road by another development team at the helm, but I wouldn't expect anything anytime soon.

[Majin-vegeta]

Sony owns the IP.

[morganfell]

This.

RAD's position regarding for whom they work has nothing to do with it. Sony owns the IP, they own the artwork, the characters. All of it. In standard practice they every piece of digital material built for the game as well and that would be sitting in a warehouse.

[HarryMasonHerpderp]

Well I think Sony own the IP so it's still possible.

[warriorcase]

Honestly the first game was way way too short and I get the criticism but man was it such a great concept with so much potential for a sequel. It's a real shame, especially after that cliffhanger ending.

[Kratos_Kart2007]

I agree...The setting was great...just too short

[badz149]

Sony owns the IP. so...there might still be hope

[Rachel_Alucard]

No more Order sequel

[NecrumOddBoy]

I hope they give this IP to another studio. The Order 1886 needs its Uncharted 2-level sequel. Too much-wasted potential if they drop that world off forever.

[pabadamus1]

Crap!! Really wanted another Order game. I was hoping Sony would've acquired these guys. Well that is that.

[Sharky231]

Sony owns the ip. If they want a sequel we’ll get one!

[pabadamus1]

Yeah I know but without RAD will it be a true successor? You can tell from the first game that they were truly passionate about this IP. Can another studio do it justice? Maybe, but I really wanted RAD to have another go at it.

[RaidenBlack]

Well, the devs did show off a PC build of Order 1886 at SIGGRAPH running at 60fps.

[THC CELL]

Rip ready at dawn

[Neonridr]

I'm guessing if Sony had acquired them it would have been "great job Sony". But because it's a competitor, in flows all the negativity. :/

Honestly this is good for VR, at least on the PC side. This ensures Oculus/FB will have a top tier developer giving them great content. It wasn't really a surprise. Sure it sucks for PlayStation fans, but you can't have em all I guess.

[sushimama]

Facebook are on the same level as Google in gaming. They have yet to prove themselves and the odds are against them. Also, the majority of gamers will never play another Ready At Dawn game ever again. So it's RIP imo. They're 'dead' to most gamers now.

[Neonridr]

Yet there are plenty of people in the Oculus ecosystem. You can't just put on blinders and pretend like those people don't exist. Ready at Dawn already proved themselves as a top tier VR development team. This just ensures there is quality to be had for years to come.

You can't be ok with Sony buying studios but then get upset when someone else buys another. Oculus isn't going anywhere, they are 4+ years in the game now.

[darthv72]

I wouldnt say dead just because they are part of FB now. It all depends on how much creative freedom FB gives them. As any developer, their product is only as good as their creative vision/freedom (and budget).

[Nyxus]

Well I don't game on PC and I liked their games. So am I supposed to be happy about this acquisition? Plus I dislike Facebook in general.

[Neonridr]

No but that's like Xbox gamers who liked Sunset overdrive being upset that they will never get a sequel or Bayonetta fans not wanting the franchise on Switch only. Unfortunately this is the business. But it was a smart move for FB. RAD was probably their best developer. They are trying to ensure their platform has a future. Besides who knows, maybe there could be a deal in the future for titles to still appear on PSVR. Anything is possible I guess.

[neutralgamer1992]

Neo

That's not the same SSOD is owned by insmoniac which now means Sony while the order ip already belonged to Sony

That's why Sony wants IP's. They own so many now

[Christopher]

I dunno. A lot of people on both sides praised Microsoft's acquisitions for the most part. Sure, your harder mindsets complained about buying their way into gaming, but people understood they were good things to improve Microsoft's portfolio.

Perhaps rather than continuing to focus on the worst parts of the community, we could instead realize that most of us are pretty happy when studios can continue to make games and realize why they go where they go without some slant? A lot of people make it look like our community is just slanted and never to meet one or the other side.

[Neonridr]

This is a good move for FB. That is my point. Sony bought Insomniac because it made sense. They made great games for the Sony ecosystem. Ready at Dawn proved themselves by making some really engaging VR titles for Oculus. This ensures that continuing tradition. I just fail to see why one is good and one is bad I guess.

[Christopher]

I'm not disagreeing with you. But don't look at the naysayers and think it's "everyone".

I will 100% admit, though, that I want Facebook to burn to the ground. I would love it if Microsoft would have instead bought and completely taken over Oculus in this scenario. RAD is obviously good at VR games.

I do think some people are attaching RAD to a game that can honestly be made by plenty of other studios or even be recreated by former members of the studio. Again, though, I think the game was a dud (I rated it about a 5/10), so I'm not seeing why people are so attached to it.

[Hakuoro]

"I will 100% admit, though, that I want Facebook to burn to the ground. I would love it if Microsoft would have instead bought and completely taken over Oculus in this scenario."

Why?

They are both megacoorperations that just have more money than they know what to do with. Both of these companies success in gaming only see the landscape that we have loved changed for the worse. I would put money on the long term effect of this two companies and Amazon entering gaming ends with companies like Sony and Nintendo being pushed out of the business.

What really needs to happen is Microsoft, Facebook and Amazon all need to be broken up into smaller companies to maintain competition in the industries.

[Christopher]

Because Facebook is the most careless and predatory IT company out there that I know of other than internal Chinese alternatives. Their company is the least ethical of the big groups of IT companies and I don't feel they should exist in the way they do and I am completely confused as to why they are not levied with countless fines.

[Edgelordsupreme]

I find it hilarious that Hakuoro doesn't think Sony or Nintendo are interested in gaming for the money. That's some beautiful teenage, anime avatar naivete. If gaming wasn't profitable, no corporation would be interested in gaming its the money that keeps everyone in the game even Sony

[rainslacker]

R@D has been doing pretty good since The Order though. I'm not sure an acquisition was necessary to keep them going. Not every studio that gets brought out is in dire straights. Insomniac for instance was one of the largest indie studios in the world before they got brought out, and has very few failures in their portfolio.

R@D obviously saw the price to be brought out as acceptable if they allowed themselves to be purchased, and the console makers, or other companies are going to be trying to acquire studios regardless of their current financial situation.

[XabiDaChosenOne]

Well its easy to ignore the nuance of the situation and base your argument on a superficial level. Intellectual laziness at its finest.

[Neonridr]

This was a good move for FB. That was my point.

[Hakuoro]

Who cares what's good for Facebook, it's bad for literally everyone else.

[Hakuoro]

I'm guessing that the usual people will look for any excuse to say something negative about Sony.

Well I can do it too, it's a shame Microsoft had to start the trend of buying studios instead of just licensing games so studios could continue making games for all platforms as they get paid to work for them instead of this outcome where studios are now locked into one company sink or swim.

It was better for gamers when these studios were independent.

[Neonridr]

So you disagreed with Sony buying Insomniac?

[darthv72]

MS didnt start anything. Sony has a track record of buying up studios as well as exclusives. To think others arent allowed to do the same is rather selfish... and petty.

edit, @Hakuoro, you must be new or really young. Go do some research on Sony and their gaming habits of the late 90's and 2000's. then you will understand.

And MS only helped fund the release of SSOD. Sony wasnt going to let it get made without owning the IP and IG wanted to retain it. so they went to MS. Sony buying IG gives them the game in the end anyway so there could have been no MS licensing of what they have no control over (even before the buyout).

[Hakuoro]

Man this is always the answer "well Sony did it too", how predictable.

The table was already set because Microsoft had started buying studios. At that point Sony was forced to protect it's investments specifically things like Spider-Man and Ratchet.

What I wish is that it hadn't need to come to that, Microsoft could have licensed Sunset Overdrive 2 and Sony could have licensed Spider-Man 2 and Ratchet and everyone including Insomniac would have been winners.

Now it's just a mad rush for ever increasing amounts of money to buy up all these studios with no guarantees. Look at Lionhead they were owned by Microsoft and now they are dead by mismanagement.

I swear, I feel like I am the only person in the world who can see past today and understand the long term implications of things that happen.

[RamRod88]

@Hakuoro Sorry, but Xbox wasn't going to roll over and die like you would like. Look at the studios MS has acquired. All of them small to medium size with a history of financial/development issues or they already had a relationship with MS.
As much as you don't see the value in MS for gaming, MS sees the value of Sony in gaming. There is a reason MS and Sony have made a partnership for Sony to use Azure cloud tech. MS would rather see Sony continue to thrive in the industry than Amazon or Google grow with their own cloud gaming and take over.

[Edgelordsupreme]

Yeah it was better when Zipper and Psygnosis were independent. Its to bad Microsoft closed them down.

Buying studios is NOT a new thing, and its not exclusive to platform holders. Shaba games made an okay Skateboarding game for the PS1 called Grind Session. Activision bought them and promptly turned them into a support team for Tony Hawk games, and then closed them in 2009.

All companies involved with games have bought studios, all companies involved with games have a body count. To say its a pattern exclusive to any one of them is ignorance.

[rainslacker]

About half of Sony's top studios were brought from studios that were independent before hand. This dates back to before the PS1 days when they made games mostly for PC. For the most part, those studios got better after being acquired by Sony. Some ended up being closed eventually. Some didn't do as well.

Sony slowed down on acquisitions in the early PS3 days, but that was likely due to financial issues within the company as a whole, not because they weren't interested. They brought a few smaller studios this gen, and of course, Insomniac, which is a huge studio

MS buying studios stood out mostly because they did it all in a relatively short time frame.

For all these other companies, they've been buying studios for a while now. We just haven't been paying attention, or didn't care. This one gets some notice because they made games for PlayStation.

[Hakuoro]

rainslacker

Why are you telling me that, did you read the original post?

Neonridr
"I'm guessing if Sony had acquired them it would have been "great job Sony". But because it's a competitor, in flows all the negativity. :/"

He was the one that decided he needed to make this about Sony for some reason.

Don't reply to me and act like I started it.

[RazzerRedux]

"I'm guessing if Sony had acquired them it would have been "great job Sony". But because it's Facebook in flows all the negativity. :/"

Fixed

[rainslacker]

I'd rather the top tier developers for VR remain independent, or at least multi-plat. R@D has made some really good VR games.

But, it is what it is, and I would have said "great job Sony", because I think they'd be a good get. Not only can they make VR games, but they can make AAA games like The Order, and they are capable enough to make their own high quality game engines....although if they had used a 3rd party engine for The Order, they may have actually finished the game.

This is a good get for Facebook as well, but I'm not terribly convinced at Facebook's commitment to the VR platform for the long haul.

I do think that people are seeing the Facebook name and assuming that means they have to play the game using Facebook though. Which isn't accurate as far as I'm aware. I think Facebook is preparing to make a move more into the PC gaming market, along with Google, Amazon, and some others. Those plans aren't terribly clear right now though.

[gigzamillion]

LOL! "competitor". Would have made far more sense and been far more beneficial for them to join Sony. So yeah I would have said great job Sony.

[-Foxtrot]

I’m sure Sony owns the Order IP so we might be alright

[Christopher]

They do, but I'd honestly on show interest if it was a complete revamp and not a sequel following the same concepts.

[Edgelordsupreme]

You dont like by the numbers third person shooting, terrible stealth sections and boss fights that would be considered awful in 2002? I'm shocked.

[rainslacker]

Question is, would we want someone other than the person who first envisioned it taking the reigns? This isn't a bad thing on more established IP's, but The Order still seems to be fairly open to which paths it could take in the future.

Granted, there is probably a lot of material related to the IP available, and there are talented writers and directors out there who could make it into something still. I'm sure the creators also wouldn't mind giving some input if asked. The industry isn't so bitter towards one another that they aren't willing to help out if asked.

However, I'm not sure Sony is interested in a sequel. The first only did marginally well, not the blockbuster I think they were hoping for. Sales may have sealed the fate of this IP. Lot of potential there, but Sony has quite a few IP's that would be less risky, or they could make something new from what is likely a huge collection of ideas that have been pitched to them over the years.

[Chaos-Dad]

RIP... Order 1886 was a good Game :/

[ElementX]

With the partnership between Xbox and FB for streaming, might there be some game partnerships as well?

[Christopher]

I'm guessing Microsoft will make their partnership for VR and streaming, not sure about anything else.

[ElementX]

VR might be a possibility. I actually didn't think about that.

[JEECE]

Gamers: "VR sucks, there are no good games."

Company that owns Oculus buys a great studio.

Gamers: "What? That sucks, now that studio I like is only going to make VR games!"

[Neonridr]

Nature of the beast. I get that it sucks losing a developer to a competitor and then to a platform you may not even support. I mean not everyone in gaming is sold on VR, so naturally those people who aren't engaged in that type of gaming won't be thrilled to hear that all the games would be VR as well. Obviously it's good for FB and VR but bad for console gamers as it means that studio won't be making games for their hardware anymore.

[borneFROMblood]

to be honest only PSVR has great games. Quest has only 1 game, Half Life Alyx.
I wouldn't say that VR has no good games. There are at least 10 great PSVR games with RE8 and Iron Man coming next (possibly Ghostwire Tokyo too).

[Edgelordsupreme]

Seriously do you guys get paid for these? Do you get paid per message or is it a per day thing? What you said is obviously not true, 95% of VR software on PSVR also appears on Oculus and SteamVR.

[ajax17]

🤮

[Stanjara]

OMG, no!

[Tedakin]

Amazon did the same thing. Bought up studios.... and now look at it.

[FlavorLav01]

There goes our chance at The Order:1887! Damn!!

[neomahi]

I'm surprised, I thought for sure Sony would've jumped right on this, or maybe they were told no, but I can't see that, Sony must not have approached them as games these days are getting so much more expensive. Facebook a very odd sort of company to be associated with, especially just for Oculus, eh.... I think this was a wrong business move, Facebook doesn't have the clout to nurture Ready at Dawn in the way they need to be and it'll be fatal but, at the same time you can't blame RAD for doing what they did, it was a huge offer I'm sure, and games are getting expensive. Geez, that's too bad but good for RAD all the same. I wish Sony would've done it though as Sony knows games and RAD does too. Was looking forward to 1912.

[AnotherGamer]

Well that sucks.

[MWH]

I guess all hopes for a sequel to The Order are gone with the wind.

[Games1st]

Rip

[DeadManMMX]

Ohhh wtf there goes my Order: 1887

[Fraggle1987]

Damn was wanting an order sequel. Well there goes that...

[AK91]

Not surprising considering their last few projects has Oculus exclusive games which have been amazing but I guess this is further proof that The Order 1886 isn’t getting a sequel.

[Gamerking82]

Would absolute love a sequel . But I know I have more chance of getting hit by a meteor . And Facebook F that . Sorry don’t do that thing , I mean do people really care when any one else or these so called celeb nobody’s on there have a dump ?. Sorry might be thinking of that twitter thing . Well same shit different shit roll .

[BrettAwesome]

Thank god. Means it wont stain PS anymore

[gigzamillion]

That sucks.

[chicken_in_the_corn]

Thought Sony would have bought them after The Lrder and God of War

[ILostMyMind]

R.I.P.

[ALMGNOON]

wtf wasn't it part of Santa Monica Studios ?

[ginsunuva]

No SM just publishes a lot of other devs' games.

[CrimsonWing69]

There goes The Order sequel...

[Einhander1971]

The Order really deserves a sequel.

[neomahi]

Good for them, for getting acquired but it's a waste of talent. Was hoping Sony would acquire them but, Sony dropped the ball on this one. Eh, maybe Oculus will allow them to develop The Order 1912 under the Oculus publishing name, Oculus does VR, doesn't mean they can't do regular games for PlayStation and make money. Jason Ruben has worked with Sony before, they took care of him and Mark Cerny gave him good business advice, he has good relationships with Sony, he just wants to try his hand running a business. He knew Sony had good taste and has been going after the devs they've been ignoring, they almost had Insomniac, luckily Sony wised up and acquired them, but I think it was mostly because they had a soft spot for Ratchet and Clank still and wanted to continue to do that.

[TheHan]

Everyone knows that the major parties in gaming are PS, Xbox, and Nintendo. We may see more, but these are the definitive company’s who practically run the gaming industry. I’m a bit surprised how dedicated FB has become with the oculus, though competition is good and sometimes it’s better for another company to take that financial risk into something new. Though VR is mainly a accessory to the gaming community, it’s also the first form of entertainment for others. I myself see potential in VR but I just don’t see appeal to me to invest in such a thing, though I think what it’s missing is a definitive VR game one that could show how a triple AAA title should be. Yet to see such a game though. Not sure about the google console being a steaming device... I think google should know when to quit. Maybe start another project.

[Sharingan_no_Kakashi]

I hate to say it but this is a waste of talent.