NowGamer: I have to deal with N4G quite a lot when writing things for the web – it’s no secret to say it’s a big source of traffic and good for getting more hits on the site. This does mean I am exposed to the opinions and general feelings of the more vociferous users on the site, and as such I’ve been able to pick up on quite a lot of anti-Ninja Theory sentiment...
"Introducing Muse, a new kind of generative AI model that lets you play and create. From developer ideation to one day supporting game preservation, Muse holds potential to unlock new possibilities." so says Microsoft
Absolutely slimy to use game preservation as a thinly-veiled excuse to continue peddling generative AI garbage. 😡
MUSE
Massive Unmitigated Suspension for Employees.
Lets get this straight. When they say its to asisst creators, they mean assist executive managment. Tell me this, if companies stop paying real people to do real work, who is going to be able to buy anyone else's AI generated products in the first place?
You're definitely preaching to the choir. If you read my own version of the news (it's in the alt sources), it's one of the few times I took the fuc*ing gloves on. I was pissed all day after reading this crap.
Microsoft's latest push into mediocrity and billions wasted. I do wonder if Microsoft will eventually meet the same fate as Intel.
They need to replace Xbox execs with generative AI. It'll do less damage than Phil and the gang for sure
> a first of its kind generative AI model trained on Ninja Theory’s multiplayer battle arena game, Bleeding Edge
Yikes
This is a "Coming soon" from their gaming copilot thingy they're so proud of https://www.youtube.com/wat...
Dunno, feels and looks awful to me
And they didn't explain how they're planning to preserve older games, just some world salad
> To imagine that beloved games lost to time and hardware advancement could one day be played on any screen with Xbox is an exciting possibility for us
This doesn't explain anything. How can they run the older games without hardware it's tied to? Magic?
Whole article actually feels like a world salad galore. Did they use AI to write this?
P. S.: Calling it «Muse» is disgusting.
At Xbox we shit on our employees and our customers. Now who is going to buy this nearly no effort game?
TSA revisits Enslaved Odyssey to the West to see how it holds up.
fantastic game. Criminally underrated. Yes, the combat was overly simple. But the sound design, world design, characters and lore were absolutely top-notch.
Ninja Theory might have games in the pipeline, but that doesn't mean Xbox won't close it for no reason
Alot of speculation on their part. Ninja Theory has two games that have been green lighted and are in the works. Yes it’s always a possibility they could be closed but no matter how you feel about the Senua games. They do make a quality game. I personally think MS is going lay low for a bit, after the firestorm they experienced last week.
I really hope one of them is a long awaited sequel of heavenly sword or enslaved. Both are good games that deserve a 2nd chance... or at least a reboot.
Santa Monica is a great studio, but I would rather the minds behind the original make it (ninja theory). I never liked sequels that were done by someone else, they are usually never as good as the original.
Enslaved would be awesome. If they did a remaster, then the next game in the series…..one can hope.
Hopefully they'd get Evan Wells back for a sequel to Enslaved. After the original Enslaved he went on to Naughty Dog and did The Last of Us.
darth
HS IP is owned by sony and enslaved sold so poorly that you want a sequel now? let's say a sequel is made and sells like the first than this studio is for sure shut down. Their next game needs to be a big hit(if there is a next game)
rlow1
that's not how business works, if a studio needs to go it will go whether ot not that will come with negative PR. They just spent 100 billion and now they are in the phase to find out which studios will survive and which needs to go to cut costs. NT let a huge opportunity slip away, they had the backing of MS and the sequel has even less gameplay, that makes zero sense
Heavenly Sword IP is owned by Sony and Enslaved IP is owned by Namco Bandai
Hellblade was the only IP that Ninja Theory themselves owned when MS acquired them
NT completely lost it since dmc, their
last good game to date! And has been a long time since.
An average studio at best, got lured by MS money and forgot to improve
They make quality games, but they're usually hit or miss. Either they are average, or they are awesome. However, besides heavenly sword and DMC, they aren't big sellers either. Ms is as big of a corporation as it gets. If ninja theory isn't making them money, they will shut them down. Simple as that.
Studio survival no matter who is reliant on MS's quarterly reports, if MS is looking to save money then studios like Ninja Theory are gone as we've seen with Tango and others. MS has their IP's, the devs mean nothing to them but a handy tool to balance the books with layoffs.
Eh, maybe. Microsoft seems like a phenomenally wealthy company that's (generally) wise with how they handle their finances. What they're not wise with is how they spend social capital. As soon as they get it, they spend it by doing something nefarious. Can't say they're the only ones of course.
Will they get rid of Ninja Theory? No earthly idea. Honestly, I have a hard time even speculating about it because we don't have any details on performance metrics. If I had to guess... And really, this is is a guess... It's just about engagement. It's the only thing that makes sense to me. If you've got a popular mobile game or MTX-heavy multiplayer game, you're safe. King and Activision aren't going anywhere. Even if player count tapers off, MTX keep them in the game as a form of engagement.
But then you've got single player games. I suspect that's a losing battle because single player games, unfortunately don't get long term engagement broadly. So games launching half baked is perhaps a strategy for the studios themselves to get people coming back to their games? It would make some sense, but it doesn't match with studios being surprised at the closures.
All of this to say, we'll just have to wait and see. The simplest explanation with the most streamlined thinking on the matter is just that they're getting rid of studios they see as dead weight in the long run. HFR was quite well received, but I guess it doesn't translate into happy investors because it's critical acclaim and not commercial success exactly. Bethesda isn't going anywhere. Making very long RPGs kind of saves you automatically in terms of engagement.
But on the other side of this, while studios don't close per se, nothing stops them or any other company from just cutting the work force within each studio.
It's not for no reason.
The reason is they made two games that were underwhelming (Bleeding Edge) and didn't/aren't going to grow the user base for game pass.
They spent 5-7 years and this was what they produced, it's easy to see how they would be on the short list for termination at this point.
One thing to point out was that all the recently closed studios were under Bethesda. Before being purchased by MS, Bethesda had a slew of poor or under performing titles (Evil Within 2, Prey (2017), Wolfenstein: The New Colossus, Young Blood, and initially Fallout 76 ). I don’t think, Ghost Wire Tokyo, Deathloop, Redfall and sadly even High-Fi: Rush performed well after the buyout.
I bet this game with a 5-7 year dev cycle being launched directly onto game pass is going to generate less tangible cash profit than any of those games.
I'm sure Microsoft will brag about players or sword swings or some other pointless statistic, but those don't make cash money.
You do realize it took 3 platforms and like 2 years to sell 1 million for Hellblade 1 right? Added in 3 more platforms and it didn't move much.
Now cut our 4 platforms. How many copies do you think this will sell?! Not just played on Gamepass
Apparently Ninja Theory is safe From being closed down https://www.gamespot.com/ar...
Already working on a new game. They are a 80 person team and relatively inexpensive I suppose to any other publisher
Buuuuut.
Yeaah sorry this is MS, I don't believe anything MS says. They have to be joking if they think anyone will believe them besides gullible Xbox fanboys. Once again MS needs to earn my trust back. Just when they earn some trust back, they always seem to destroy it and have to work to get it back. I still think they're getting shut down and canceling whatever game they're making because the game won't sell, again MS fault for not advertising it.. This company man...
the article talks about that to i recommend checking it out when you get a chance.
The problem with this game probably not selling will be because of Gamepass. Every comment i see from xbox players are "dude, no need to buy this amazing game, just get it on gamepass"
Will it sell well based on word of mouth? Will they release it on ps5? Will ps players buy this game vs free on gamepass? Time will tell.
Look at what happened to Hi Fi Rush.The game was sold on PS5 and didn't sell well.
Well i dont know about hi fi rush..as i didnt buy it. I mean others are getting it on gamepass..so ill just wait it for psplus. Im guessing others are doing the same..soo..
Sure Sony has done it too..and people are vocal about it. Look at the helldivers fiasco for example..they got called out.
I don't see Microsoft shutting off the lights to Ninja Theory. As a studio they actually have talent and have released some decent games. I love Enslaved maybe a sleeper hit but it's one of my favorites. Only way I see Microsoft shutting off the lights is if Ninja Theory releases games that sink faster then a lead weight. And there are fans of Ninja Theory one thing I would hate to see is Ninja Theory ending up like Bioware. Loosing all their talent and being a former shell of what they use to be.
Never say never. Tango Gameswork were just as talented as Ninja Theory & they were shut down.
I honestly blame starfeild and Microsoft for the closure of arkane and tango it didn't turn a profit like other huge Bethesda games. If it .are fallout 4 money Bethesda would have had the capital to share among the other studios. Microsoft should of also had the ability to step in and save the studio but decided to kill them instead likely because of Bethesda's financial failure with starfield and Microsoft's stupid goal of turning gaming into a subscription that everyone and their grandmas subscribe to
To be honest for Microsoft (not Microsoft gaming) it's all about making for the 70 billion purchase of AKB. No matter how good the games are. If they don't generate sales or new gamepass subs the studios can be shutted down.
Yes, they make decent games, but do they sell? Unfortunately, no. Heavenly sword sold 1.5 million, even when the ps3 had a much lower install base than the 360. However, it's not a ninja theory ip. Enslaved sold poorly. DMC, sold well, but that's also not a ninja theory ip. Hellblade was a hit, but in my opinion, barely. Hellblade 2, unfortunately, might be a flop. There's no bigger corporation than Ms, they are as corporate as they come. If ninja theory isn't making them money, they will get shut down and their ips giving to another studio.
It was just announced that MS gave NT the greenlight for its next game. I just hope it's not another Hellblade. https://www.yahoo.com/tech/...
Well, they refuse to give us PS3 owners Heavenly Sword 2 because they complained that selling 1.5 million copies was not enough so they went multi plat with Enslaved and it sold a pathetic 80k in the first month on TWO consoles. Serves them right. That 1.5 million for Heavenly Sword doesn't seem so bad now does it Ninja Theory?
@Nitrowolf2
I would love for Sony Santa Monica to do it but I'm sure they're busy withe the God of War game about Deimos, Kratos's brother.
As great as Heavenly Sword was and it's 3 years old, how does Ninja Theory release a brand new game(Enslaved) that is a few steps backwards from the game they did 3 years ago exclusively for the PS3? What was the problem?
The higher ups at Ninja Theory don't seem to have any common sense.
Heavenly Sword was a good game that could have been vastly improved with a sequel or prequel. Instead, they go off and make a whole new game that seems to doesn't seem to be that big of a step forward compared to Heavenly Sword (and a step back when looking at the graphics(facial expressions, skin texture, etc)). It sells poorly and I'm sure they're blaming everybody except for themselves.
Then, they have the nerve to completely destroy the cool image of Dante we all had in our minds thanks to the Devil May Cry series.
I'm just glad I'm not such a huge fan of DMC to begin with.
I don't hate them. I think their games are good as they do something different other don't.
I don't like the big talk they where doing before the release of the game. Complaining that their game was released on a slow starting console and still sold 1.5 million which at the time was a big achievement.
Ninja theory got what it deserved,
"Heavenly sword made no money for us"
Enslaved is multiplat
80k sold
"well..I..screw you guys were ruining DMC now!
Piss off Now Gamer. You guys are the worst web site on the planet. Crappy articles like this prove it.