The Silver Lining - Cease and Desist

[waltzdancing]

It is a hard time for everyone, we all feel the teams pain on this. I was not present on the forum for the last C&D but we will beat this one just like the last one. Save TSL is alot of hard work but it it is also very satisfying, knowing I (as a fan) can help this time around.

(Posted on: March 18, 2010, 05:32:12 PM)

Mailed Petition Update!!!

Status: Delivered

Your item was delivered at 11:13 AM on March 18, 2010 in SANTA MONICA, CA 90405.

[Yonkey]

Apparantly, there were 9 chapters, distributed between 5 parts and the content that was produced before the C&D was the first part holding chapter 1 and 2.

Actually, I should clarify this.  Chapters 1 & 2 were merged into one season and then reorganized into 5 episodes.  The season as a whole was comparable in length to Tales of Monkey Island (yes, they were that large).

[Delling]

Apparantly, there were 9 chapters, distributed between 5 parts and the content that was produced before the C&D was the first part holding chapter 1 and 2.

Actually, I should clarify this.  Chapters 1 & 2 were merged into one season and then reorganized into 5 episodes.  The season as a whole was comparable in length to Tales of Monkey Island (yes, they were that large).

*is left having to ask and wonder*
Dear Lord, HOW LONG WAS THIS GAME!? (and I still want to PLAY every minute of it!)... I mean, overall, that means that it was about 4X as long as Tales of Monkey Island...

[Erpy]

Wait, so chapter 1 and 2 were turned into one whole, which in turn was split into 5 separate parts, right? If I understood correctly, chapter 1 and 2 were what was about to be released, so where is the added benefit of splitting it into pieces if all pieces were already finished? To make it easier on dial-up users?

[Yonkey]

Episodic Games

There are several advantages to following an episodic business model.  The largest is that it allows for games to be developed and released faster.  In essence, it would make it far more realistic for the remaining Chapters of TSL to see the light of day.

[Erpy]

Ah, so if I understand correctly, the shuffle-and-split thing was done not so much for the sake of the currently-finished content itself, but to be consistent with your vision of the handling of theoretical future releases.

[Yonkey]

Exactly.  The storyline itself was originally built to be nine Chapters, and the decision to reduce it to 2 was not one we made lightly, especially knowing all that we would be losing in doing so.  When the opportunity came up to restructure the game in a way so that there could be a future, we jumped on it.  Of course, it is still highly dependent on how well received Season 1 is (which is something I've said many times), but at least from a development-standpoint, it puts us in a place where we can release games much quicker than every 2-4 years.

[waltzdancing]

I think you guys will have a very popular season 1. Just look at how much support you all have received in just a short time. Keep your chins up, you have a future in the gaming community. I am already going to be a loyal customer

[Erpy]

When the opportunity came up to restructure the game in a way so that there could be a future, we jumped on it.

This is getting kind of abstract. You say the opportunity came up to restructure the game. You're suggesting something happened between the release of the dreaded developer's journal #12 and the release of the press statement that is currently on the front page that created an opportunity that wasn't there before. What happened exactly and in what way did it create "an opportunity"?

[Yonkey]

Cez got a job with Telltale.   He basically explained to us how they're successful at making games, and how applying the same episodic business model to TSL could facilitate the game having a possible future.

[KatieHal]

Perhaps the better word choice would that the idea of restructuring came up moreso than the 'opportunity'.

[blahmoomoo]

Wait... are you saying that chapters 1 and 2 were being split into five episodes?

Just want to make sure you didn't mean that all nine chapters were split into five releases instead of... what was the original plan, four?  I guess that doesn't make much sense now that I think about it though...

[liggy002]

It seems that 100,000 is the goal for the petition.  I would get everyone you know to sign it regardless of whether or not they are a fan.

[Yonkey]

Wait... are you saying that chapters 1 and 2 were being split into five episodes?

Just want to make sure you didn't mean that all nine chapters were split into five releases instead of... what was the original plan, four?  I guess that doesn't make much sense now that I think about it though...

Yes, Chapters 1 & 2 were the ones being split up.  The plan in 2004 was to split the game into three parts, each part containing 3 Chapters.  But that was before we knew how massive each Chapter would be to develop.

It seems that 100,000 is the goal for the petition.  I would get everyone you know to sign it regardless of whether or not they are a fan.

I'm actually planning on signing it once it passes 2000.

[waltzdancing]

I liked the episode idea. It took me a while just to get through the Monkey Island tales. Imagine Kings Quest as a episode and the speculation between releases.

[Baggins]

I feel sorry for everyone involved in the game, that you lost all your hard work.

I have to say though a little over a year ago, just after Activision and Blizzard merged, and Activision gained access to most of VU's assets, I predicted that it wouldn't bode well for TSL. I had a little arguement with Yonkey about it... He thought everything would be fine. I warned that things could easily change, since it was a different company.

I'm sorry that my prediction came true...

I hope that like the first time the Phoenix can raise from the ashes, and make a deal with Activision. But if Activision doesn't change their mind. Thank you for all the fun and interesting discussions you have brought over the years. Your game will be remembered.

[Haids1987]

Ye of little faith.

[Yonkey]

I remember back when we received the C&D from Vivendi, many people on many websites were sceptical that we would change their minds.  They wondered how signing a petition, sending an e-mail, or writing a letter could sway a massive corporation, that legally had every right to do whatever they wanted with their intellectual property.

But there were also people that believed in our game, and in us as a team.  They understood our company mission and our team's goal.  They knew that despite the improbable odds and enormous uphill battle we'd be facing, their support and faith would carry us through.  That is basically what it all boiled down to -- one person changing their mind.

So yes, Activision may be a different company, with different management and different policies, but at the end of the day, it's still just a matter of the right person listening and understanding what we're trying to do.  Once this happens, things could easily change yet again, and TSL will be able to be released.

[Baggins]

I think the difference though, but Activision is pretty notorious for not only sueing other companies to protect their patent and IPs, but also being sued for stealing patent information from other companies. I know VU had its own lawsuits but I seem to recall they usually turned out to be the underdog, and lost.

Activision on the other hand has always seemed to be pretty hard corp and militant about their lawsuits, willing to pay out alot to win at all costs. So it will probably be a difficult uphill battle, perhaps even more difficult than it was with VU.

If you win, it will hopefully send a powerful message to other litigation happy 'evil empire' gaming companies ("Square Enix", "Lucasarts", i'm pointing at you), that have destroyed other fan communities projects.

[Yonkey]

True, but that doesn't really apply to our situation.  They already know that they stand nothing to gain financially or otherwise from suing us, and by abiding by their C&D, they have no real cause for litigation either.  Our game doesn't harm the Sierra IP or their company.  If anything, they could really stand to benefit from working out an arrangement with us.  Especially considering they had said one of their company goals was to improve their relations with indie developers.

That's why I strongly believe it's just a matter of the right person within their company needing to understand.