390°

Hideki Kamiya apologizes to Microsoft for Scalebound problems in new interview

In a chapter of the Kamiya Chronicles interview series by Cutscenes the Platinum Games director explains why Scalebound didn’t go the way it should’ve gone. During the interview he says sorry to Microsoft and the people who were looking forward to playing the game.

During the interview he says: “We weren’t experienced enough and couldn’t get over that wall, leading to what happened in the end.” and ”I’m sorry to Microsoft who had placed their trust in us as a business partner.”

Sonyslave31304d ago

It too late to apologizes 😉

chrisx1304d ago

It's tooo late, it's too late to apologiiiiiize, yeaaaaahhhh, I said it's too late to apologize

-Foxtrot1304d ago

Why apologise though

It wasn’t a co-op game, Microsoft wanted it, the team wasn’t experienced enough so Microsoft should have let them do it their way, the way they planned it from the start

KingofBandits1304d ago

This. They could not deliver the game the way Microsoft wanted it, which as usual is the problem with MS, WAY too much oversight and push to include whatever trendy game mechanic is hot at the moment. If they had just let them make the game that Platinum wanted it probably would have been a hit .

TheHan1304d ago

Why? Their the ones paying for the project. If you can’t deliver than pull the plug.

LordoftheCritics1304d ago (Edited 1304d ago )

Microsoft at that time in that gen was making artistic decisions using calculation.

This quarter 1 co-op, 1 shooter, 1 racer, 1 whatever etc if we cant get that, drag project to recycle bin.

Their launch calculation of games with tv shows was the funniest. You cant calculate audience desires, you can observe and make decisions after. Or lead with passion, Sony style.

Thats what happens.

Godmars2901303d ago

"Why? Their the ones paying for the project. If you can’t deliver than pull the plug."

Which is all well and good to say, yet MS doesn't have a game. Aren't well known for making games or even creative development.

Given such evidence, their lack of 1st party, the need to buy pre-popular IPs to only then fail to further develop them such as the number of times Halo sans Bungie has faltered as a franchise, maybe - just maybe - it could be said that they're doing something wrong?

@Foxtrot:
Given that co-op was a much touted/wanted thing in the game, was ANY in game/story reason given for it? That Platinum never gave any reason - other than MS wanting it - speaks volumes of why they likely had issues making the game.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 1303d ago
deleted1304d ago

Still would have preferred to play this one over Crackdown 3. Can we get an apology for that one?

iplay1up21304d ago

I played Crackdown 3 for maybe 20 min. What a POS!

MadLad1304d ago

The game is far from great, but I find the outright hate for the game pretty overblown.

Magog1304d ago

Just typical Japanese politeness and self depreciation. If Microsoft had been patient with the development process they could have had a surefire hit in their hands. A shame they pulled the plug on this ambitious project.

darthv721304d ago

They were very patient. They just didnt like seeing their $$ going towards other projects.

As for pulling the plug, MS has everything PG worked on and could very well task one of their teams with finishing it. Who knows... maybe they are and that would be a pretty big surprise if they did.

PrinceAli1304d ago

And yet... Team Xbox were fine with wasting their time with buying Mixers and streamers and entering an industry that is SO clear to already have someone with a monopoly on it... They were fine wasting money on Crackdown 3 and its tech, Were fine wasting their money and time on Kinect.. this entire thing was just a shame. MS could have absolutely pulled the reins in order to get the game where it needed to be and its evident as they own the game and whats been made but haven't revived the production.

Sephiroushin1304d ago

Meh theyre not, they did the same to Level 5; reason why Level 5 never ever developed a game for their system again ...

Digital51304d ago

Sephiroushin

Mad respect for Level-5 they kept their self-respect, unlike Kamiyama who is basically on his knees for a company who screwed him over.

Platinum should just do contracts for Sony and Nintendo and Square and other companies that will treat them with respect.

Fishy Fingers1304d ago (Edited 1304d ago )

"We were working in an environment we werent used to"
"We lacked the necessary know-how"
"We weren’t experienced enough and couldn’t get over that wall"
"I'm sorry to Microsoft"

Blames Microsoft.... Why visit a news site just to make up your own?

PrinceAli1304d ago

Because he isn't wrong... not entirely anyways. You never get this problem when things are going well and things ONLY go well when BOTH sides are on the ball

Gaming4Life19811304d ago

Yea people now adays can't accept facts and the truth.

MadLad1303d ago

@princeali

One has nothing to do with the other.
You may need both sides holding their own to make things go proper, but only one side to mess everything up.

1304d ago
Sayai jin1304d ago

Your reply is nonsensical. MS paid them for this game, but the dev continued to miss development milestones....all the while completing projects that were started that stsrted after their deal with MS. That's bad business. Full stop.

MadLad1304d ago

So who do I listen to?

Magog, or senior development leads who admitted the dev process was hell, and there was a lot of mismanagement in house at Platinum.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 1303d ago
Digital51304d ago

The guy does a whole interview and this is the only thing this she wants to talk about?

Let's be real, at the same time Microsoft was canceling this game they were canceling a bunch of other games and closing studios like Lionhead and Phil was on the press circuit saying thing like "We didn't want to compete with third parties, and we're only going to make the hardware" and then pretty much stopped game development for the rest of the generation until they started buying studios which is why most of those games are still years out

Sayai jin1304d ago

Let's see. It's going start raining and it won't end for months. You pay a contractor to start and finish your roof in 3 days. 2 weeks later your roof is not done, yet people who hired the contractor after you have their ropfs completed. Months later same story repeats. Would you keep waiting for this contractor?. This anology represents what the dev pulled with MS.

Digital51304d ago

I don't know why he keeps apologizing, he just got caught up in Microsoft's wave of canceling games and closing studios. They should apologize to him.

Sayai jin1303d ago

You still never answered any onf my questions. Isntead you provided revisionist version of the specific happenings between MS and Plantinum. As aformentioned, MS has shoddy practices as well, this one wasn't o e of those cases.

MadLad1303d ago

@digital

They took money. Accepted milestones. Not only did they not meet the milestones on many occasions, but they actually focused efforts on other projects throughout its development; not the big, highly funded console exclusive you feel THEY deserve an apology for not making a priority and completing.

They admit management was a mess during development. They've come right out and said it was a much larger project than they assumed.

Microsoft gave them many chances, but it was a botched project that just kept bleeding time and money, so they cut their losses. If you really think that constitutes an apology on MS' end then, one, never go into business and ,two, well .... it's just an idiotic take.

Sayai jin1304d ago

You didn't answer my question...?

Whether he apologizes or not, they conducted bad business. Are you condoning devs not honoring their contracts?

Now onto MS, they have some shoddy practices as well. Those cases ha e nothing to do with this dev"s fumbled development of Scalebound.

Digital51304d ago

They didn't "not honor" their contract, Microsoft pulled out of the contract. I would say Microsoft didn't honor their contract.

Let me give you an example...

A crew works on a project for months and months, then the contract holder gets cold feet and changes their mind about what they want because their product line isn't performing as well as they hoped, so management asks them to cut costs, so they make up some excuse and cancel your project or close your studio.

Does that sound familiar?

Kind of like what happened to Lionhead, Press Play, BigPark, Function Studios, Good Science, LXP, SOTA and cancled games like Project Spark, Fable and Scalebound a long with a rumored half dozen unnamed game projects that didn't get announced but were cancled all the same all around the same time.

ZwVw1304d ago

Exactly, when MS was killing studios and projects left to right (2015-2017 ish), you had Uncle Phil coming out talking about how SP games (i.e. Horizon) were a thing of the past, an endangered species and how gamers only wanted MP experiences (despite the fact that his favorite Xbox game Recore is SP).
Now all of a sudden, SP focused games aren't going anywhere and very crucial to Xbox's future and success? GTFO.

Digital51304d ago

Remember, they aren't just making green versions of Sony and Nintendo games...

Michiel19891303d ago

@zw xbox market was clearly dictating that their money was in mp, those were their most succesful titles and argueably the reason they even became a real big player in the industry. they doubled down on that, and along with mangagement decisions that were bad and didnt work out they were falling behind at a rapid pace which they still suffer the effects from to this day. Then the market became oversaturated with (dull) mp experiences. So what would you do? would you stick to what you made a comment about a couple years back that the money is in the mp and drive your company into the ground, or would you try and adapt to the industry and save your company? Easy choise if you ask me. I dont get why you get so angry over a change in business strategy.

deadfrag1304d ago

Platinum Games of late is chewing more than it can and that shows...they have not release a new title or any good title for a long time!

Outlawzz1304d ago

Their working on bayo 3 for next year and had Astral chain which had some great action in it. Maybe they haven't released anything your interested in

Seraphim1303d ago (Edited 1303d ago )

Nier Automata and Astral Chain were amazing games. Yes, 2017 and 2019 respectfully. The point is that it takes time to develop a good game. Even Call of Duty is on something like a 3 year development cycle considering the fact there are 3 developers all working on their own entry to the series. If I recall Assassins Creed is split amongst 2-3 developers as well. Then of course you have the gaps between say, a Naughty Dog, Insomniac, 343 studios, etc games that are generally 3-ish plus years.....

Now Platinum isn't perfect, they will and have failed but I'll take quality over quantity every day if they can continue delivering. And assuming Bayonetta drops next year that will be 3 years, I believe, since Astral Chain. not bad at all, again, considering the development games takes time. They're also working on Babylon's Fall for Square which should be out next year. I imagine they have other projects in the works and in pre-production as well as they've grown to a point of having more hands on deck; possibly.

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70°

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 devs praise games like Space Marine 2 for "lowering the barrier"

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2 developers discuss the huge success of Space Marine 2 and its effect on the series as a whole.

Read Full Story >>
videogamer.com
Jingsing2d ago

How about an official level editor for Boltgun?

jznrpg7h ago

I’ll get Space Marine 2 when it’s cheaper. I don’t pay more than half price for short games.

60°

Glen Schofield: Dead Space Wouldn’t Be Greenlit Today—Publishers Are Afraid to Take Risks

Sector sat down with Glen Schofield—creator of Dead Space and The Callisto Protocol—during the Game Developers Session (GDS) in Prague to discuss the evolution of the game industry, the current challenges of AAA development, and why it's become so hard to get original ideas off the ground in today’s risk-averse environment.

1nsomniac3d ago

It’s easy enough to say that, but why? It feels weird to me when developers say this but common sense would tell you everything about the idea itself should work.

The idea of the concept seems like a winner at whichever angle you look at it so why would publishers not greenlight it?

… it’s almost as if the majority of publishers are massively incompetent at their jobs. But there’s no surprise to anyone there.

150°

WILD HEARTS S Q&A - 'Switch 2 Is Closer to the Series S Than PS4'

Wccftech interviewed Koei Tecmo about their upcoming game WILD HEARTS S, gathering their first thoughts on the Nintendo Switch 2 console.

Read Full Story >>
wccftech.com
Christopher5d ago

This new tech, in 2025, is more comparable to 2020 tech than 2013 tech.

*tip toes over that bar*

Also, why are all the comparisons to PS4 and not Xbox One?

Neonridr5d ago

PS4 is more powerful than the XB1, S2 is more powerful than both, so why not use the higher of the two?

Christopher5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Probably because people who owned an XBO and not a PS4 don't really know what it means. The assumption is that everyone is as knowledgeable as journalists or gaming news junkies. Gaming is mainstream, that means that mass majority of people don't know these specifics, only online talking points.

And the PS4 and XBO are the closest in power systems we've ever had, so this 'more powerful' is so small, it really isn't the big talking point people think it is.

RaidenBlack3d ago

I'd rather add, Xbox One X can be used as a good metric to gauge if a said system is more powerful than last gen.

VariantAEC3d ago

It's pretty clear that Switch 2 isn't more powerful than PS4 Pro. Is the base model PS4 being beaten? Well, Switch 2 is hardly ever actually being compared to the base model PS4, but seeing as how it's yet to outperform PS4 Pro in basically any other way than loading data into RAM in video comparisons. I have to assume the individual developer being interviewed has very little experience with PS4 and Xbox One.

OtterX4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Which is great for a handheld/hybrid! Some people still stick to Digital Foundry's PS4 comparison comment as gospel, back when they were just watching trailers and hadn't even had their hands on it yet.

With that said, this interview doesn't go into very much depth on this. I'd like to see more analysis, but so far I'm really impressed with the performance since I got mine on Friday. Truth be told, having a PS4 Pro level handheld is enough for me. Anything beyond is icing. I'm not looking to replace my PS5 or PC.

VariantAEC3d ago

In this case Digital Foundry is right. They didn't adequately explain or sound remotely confident when showing Switch 2's "visual" benefits in that HogLeg comparison was related to loading. Yes, sometimes two massive world segments can be connected by a smaller individual loading zone like how Jak 2 handled open world zones on PS2. There is a small room that in itself is it's own discrete loading zone that you wait inside as the next massive portion of the map loads in. Very common when going from Haven City to any part outside of the city owlr when descending into the sewers or entering the city from the outside or leaving the sewers. Anyway, the HogLeg skybridge loading zone is more detailed because Switch 2 could load in more varied textures. Models load pretty fast. It's probable that the decimated models that appear in the Switch 2 version were supposed to be visible on Xbox One and PS4 in that scene, which might be why they exist on Switch 2. Unfortunately, the same video showcased above shows PS4 Pro is basically ahead of Switch 2 in all other ways imaginable. Higher rendering resolutions with a sharper cleaner image, better effects quality, and a better distance all favor PS4 Pro. Both the Pro and Switch 2 seem to have a pretty solid 30FPS performance level.

MDTunkown4d ago

For how thin switch 2 is it’s impressive especially when it’s stronger than steam deck and cost less

Christopher4d ago

Steam Deck is cheaper at $399. Switch 2 also uses cheaper materials. See joycon drift still being an issue. You'll also save a ton more money on software alone with the Steam Deck.

Honestly, if the Steam Deck was released today, it likely would at least match the Switch 2 in areas where it outperforms the Steam Deck but still have more advantages. Main thing holding back the Deck is the cores and resolution, because it still has the better CPU and GPU otherwise.

Neonridr3d ago

@Christopher - I own one, no stick drift. My OG joycons never had drift either.

Steam Deck relies on FSR which is still inferior to DLSS. Not to mention that the S2 can push double the GPU performance in docked mode. Deck has more memory, which is nice.

I have both, but my S2 will be getting the lion-share of playtime in the near future. That being said, I can still appreciate being able to play my steam games on the go.

FinalFantasyFanatic3d ago

For me, the game sales/prices and flexibility of the Steam deck outweigh the cost of the system itself, but I'll probably get a Switch 2 anyway.

OMNlPOTENT4d ago

And the ps5 was comparable to a PC that could be built over 5 years before it came out lol, how do you think consoles stay affordable?

Christopher4d ago

You're actually proving my point even more.

badz1493d ago

@omnipotent

PS5 comparable to a PC built OVER 5 years before it came out? let's see...

the best mainstream PC combo back in 2015/2016 would be the i7 6700K ($350) + GTX 1080 ($600). Sorry, but that setup is never going to outperform the base PS5 in games, especially modern ones.

you done lying yet or still want to continue lying so your precious Switch 2 doesn't get hurt by facts anymore?

CosmicTurtle4d ago

It’s a tech article speaking about specs people who care about this will know. I did not own an XB1 but know it’s at a similar tech level as PS4. PS4 has a far greater sales footprint, it makes sense to use it.

ABizzel13d ago (Edited 3d ago )

Technologically it’s closer to the Series S….. Raster-wise it’s closer to a base PS4 which has been the point.

Why Switch 2 is better:
The much better CPU allows for higher FPS than the last gen Jaguar CPUs could ever produce.
The 12GB of RAM prevents the system from being bottlenecked in most modern games (even SS fails here)
The storage while not NVMe Gen4 speeds, is significantly faster than the HDD in last gen
It’s a RTX 3000 hybrid, and DLSS is a better upscaling solutions than all other consoles even PSSR currently, and significantly better than checkerboard rending.

This is where the PS4 & PS4 Pro comparisons come into play. Natively it can’t compete with the PS4 Pro, and really closer to the base PS4, but due to the better CPU, more RAM, faster storage, and DLSS it can upscale resolution, image quality, and performance to get close, match, or certain cases exceed the PS4 Pro, and rivals the Series S.

DLSS is really the saving force behind Switch 2 getting current gen ports to acceptable resolution quality, and NVIDIA and Nintendo did it at 10w, so kudos to them, because many of the AAA 3rd party games are and will continue to be native 540p - 720p upscaled through DLSS.

Also this game would benefit from DLSS.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 3d ago
Sonyslave34d ago

I notice it always ps4 or ps4 pro but never xbox one x which is more powetful then the ps4 pro.

MDTunkown4d ago

And it’s also in someways stronger than series S. Xbox one x is a special console that was never fully utilised and has 1,5 times more teraflops than series s.

badz1493d ago (Edited 3d ago )

but the Bulldozer CPU is much weaker and inefficient compared to Zen2 used in the Series S

Neonridr3d ago

the CPU's were those crappy Jaguar based chipsets though.

jznrpg3d ago

Because most people don’t care about Xbox

repsahj4d ago

This is an ugly port, they should improve it more instead of releasing it early.

gold_drake3d ago

sooo ...

what this is telling us, is that it comes down to the game and the devs optimization.

VariantAEC3d ago

There are already several games on Switch 2 coming up short in side-by-side comparisons. Cyberpunk 2077, Fortnite, and HogLeg are just the first examples with the first game in this list only having better image quality due to DLSS and slightly more stable performance due to that lower resolution than last gen systems enabled by DLSS, but having simplified models at mid distances and fewer NPCs roaming around than on PS4 or Xbox One.