Interplay back in the publishing biz

Posted: Wed Sep 01, 2010 8:01 am

[ Company -> Update ] - More info on Company: Interplay

In a move which has good implications for Fallout: Online, Interplay has jumped back into the publishing business. Here's the press release:

Los Angeles, August 31st 2010 - PRESS RELEASE

Interplay Entertainment Corp. (OTCBB: IPLY) today announces Interplay Discovery ™, a new publishing program for original games that will launch two new titles in October 2010.

“Interplay Discovery ™ will introduce promising developers from all over the world to the global market by releasing great new games at great prices,” said Hervé Caen, CEO of Interplay. “So far our efforts are paying off and we have discovered two new games from two new developers.”

From developer CodeRunners in Portugal, Pinball Yeah lets players rock the silver ball through several themes, including an Irish Pub, Pirates, a unique Virtual Reality table called “AI,” and a classic 1950's party table.

Ricardo Teixeira from Coderunners said, “Our main objective is to give the players fun and immersive fantasy gameplay on our pinball tables, an area that has been left unexplored, while still providing a classic mechanical table for the hardcore fans. It's an honor to work with Interplay and taking part in Interplay Discovery presents an amazing opportunity for indie developers. This is our first game, after which we plan to add more content to Pinball Yeah and create other games with novel experiences for gamers worldwide.”

According to Interplay President Eric Caen, creator of the Interplay Discovery ™ Publishing Program, “We are happy to help this young talented team to fine tune their innovative game and reach a worldwide audience.”

Tommy Tronic, from Ukrainian developer Oasis Games, is a brilliant 2D platform game with a very colorful and fluid environment.

Nick Conlon, creator of Tommy Tronic said, “At Oasis Games we believe traditional 2D platformers have been unjustly abandoned by the game development community at large. We've done our bit to change that. Tommy Tronic will bring those old school memories flooding back!”

“We are impressed by Oasis Games' talent to create this solid game. Tommy Tronic has a fun vibe and should be a hit with fans of 2D platformers,” offered Eric Caen.

The Interplay Discovery ™ Publishing Program is open to developers with a complete or nearly completed game ready to be published. Eric Caen further explained the process: “Publishing agreements for promising titles typically can be signed within a few days of product submission. At that point, Interplay's team of design & gameplay experts can help developers through the finalization, optimization, approval and publishing processes. We hope to bring great games to market very regularly, as we are starting to do with these first two games. Who knows, one of these new developers could become as famous as some of the current greats previously published by Interplay.”

Pinball Yeah is slated for release in October 2010 for Mac, PC and iPad/iPhone4. Tommy Tronic is scheduled to launch in October 2010 for PC.

As most of us know, publishing is where the real money is in the game industry. If Interplay has any hopes of releasing Fallout: Online, then they need funding...and what better place to get funding than through selling games with no development expenses.

Thanks for the tip Frymuchan!

Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 2:53 am

Exciting.

Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 3:41 am

And the world turns.

Posted: Fri Sep 03, 2010 7:45 pm

Side-scrollers and pinball sims. Cutting edge.

Watch out Minesweeper and Checkers, we're gunning for you next!

Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 5:21 am

Next-gen graphics on that Galaga, son

Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 7:31 pm

minesweeper as an "rpg" (beth's idea of an rpg at least) and checkers as an fps.

Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 11:40 pm

Checkers as an FPS? probably be retarded yet still lulzy

Posted: Sat Sep 04, 2010 11:41 pm

Chess: The Real Time Strategy Game.

Posted: Sun Sep 05, 2010 2:55 am

Finished that one a few times, got all the endings too, my favourite's the one where the enemy accuses you of using the hand of god cheat when he went for a piss.

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 3:56 am

You've never played games developed by Indie studios then, I assume?

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 4:35 am

I've liked the Spiderweb games and really look forward to Iron Tower's offering when and if VD ever finishes it.

Seriously dude, side scrollers? Here's a fresh genre. Move left, move right jump and shoot. What video game genre is more tired and overused than side scrollers? It's fucking 25 years ago and is a innovative cul-de-sac at this point.
How much better could any game be than say..Contra circa 1987, Super Mario, Sonic et al. Dude I hit my threshold for side scrollers back then.

Can they throw in some jumping over the moving platforms and shit, I just love doing that. I didn't get enough of that.

To say nothing of the fact that this is Interplay we are talking about here, given their financial viability, these will probably never see the light of day anyway.

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 5:55 am

ha it's funny in retrospect because it's true

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 6:06 am

Actually I think side-scrollers are making a good comeback. Duke Nukem: Manhattan Project(re-released), Shadow Complex, Dishwasher Dead Samurai to name a few. It's nice to see a genre were the actual gameplay hasn't been infected by the "interactive movie" bug that a lot of developers seem to have fallen prey to.

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 4:48 pm

Why change it if it's not broken? It's all down to personal taste so I'll give you that.

Interplay isn't really developing these, they are simply publishing them with some development support through an independent games label.

Posted: Mon Sep 06, 2010 8:28 pm

The problem is, of course, who in their right mind would pay for a side scroller when there are several competent ones for free on the internet?

Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 1:05 am

Why pay for any game when there are plenty of free to play flash games, open source games, etc on the internet?

Competent...I assume you have played the final game then?

Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 2:10 am

You can type a lot of words without addressing the point.

Given the current state of open source, and the complexity of modern games, no one is going to find an Alpha Protocol or Left 4 Dead 2 or even a Fallout 3 for free on the internet, excepting piracy. But flash is very well suited for side scrollers, and a a lot of flash games are. They run the gamut from attrocious to fantastic.

Why spend money on a type of game widely available everywhere for free because bored kids churn them out from their home computers? Unless these games Interplay is publishing push the envelope or innovate somehow, which I doubt will happen.

The more you talk, the more it seems you're either an Interplay investor or one of the people making the side scroller, and I appreciate the fact you feel you need to protect your product. However, I wouldn't expect your title to be popular on anything but Xbox Live Arcade, and even then it won't be a barnstormer.

Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 5:02 am

Side scrollers like Braid, Limbo, etc can be seen as pushing the envelope for their unique visual styles, story telling, etc. Point taken on the type of games although there are some good free games available. Certain publishers have also begun releasing certain titles for free through an ad supported model. I still remember playing through The Suffering on PC for the first time thanks to the ad model, great game.

Certain game mods also exist that are pretty well done and depending on the game, could be retail releases with minor changes. Left 4 Dead started as a mod IIRC.

Three posts in I'm flattered but no, I'm neither. I've been lurking on these forums for a few months now but made an account a while ago. Due to a lack of free time I never got around to posting until now.

Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 12:47 pm

I see. Just seemed that you may be involved with this considering all of your posts so far are about.

Posted: Tue Sep 07, 2010 1:10 pm

Duke Nukem Manahttan Project was worth the money.