So the empire that Lucas built is being dismantled. I'm not sure what to make of it, but I feel sad that more has not been done with the franchise.
Disney is shutting dow LucasArts.
- Thread starter Aspiring Mogul
- Start date
Yeah, well... that was a rather pithless article.
More of a derisive comment about that writer's ability to report news than about Disney.
Lettuce take a look at the source material: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323916304578400962825215302.html
"But LucasArts has shrunk significantly in the past few years. The last internally produced game that it released was 2010's "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II" and it has been without a president since August of 2012.
Sales of LucasArts games in U.S. stores dropped to $55 million last year, from $173 million in 2006, according to NPD Group."
2006 = $173M game sales
2012 = $55M game sales
Are these games sustainably popular? Yes/No? Pass/Fail?
No. Fail.
Makes good business sense to d/c them.
However... !
"Any future games based on "Star Wars" or other Lucasfilm properties will be made by other companies under license, a spokesman said. Production on "1313" and "First Assault" has stopped and those games will be released only if another publisher signs on to complete them."
So... if consumers WANT them enough someone somewhere will pony up the cash to get these games made.
But if insufficient consumer interest manifests then... capitalism prevails.
Maybe tax dollars via PBS could... nah, never mind.
Interesting.
"The videogame business has been particularly challenging lately. Industrywide sales of new game discs plummeted 23% in the U.S. last year, according to NPD. The chief executive of Electronic Arts Inc. resigned last month after saying the company had fallen short of its internal operating plan. In January, smaller publisher THQ Inc. sold off its assets in bankruptcy."
More of a derisive comment about that writer's ability to report news than about Disney.
Lettuce take a look at the source material: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323916304578400962825215302.html
"But LucasArts has shrunk significantly in the past few years. The last internally produced game that it released was 2010's "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed II" and it has been without a president since August of 2012.
Sales of LucasArts games in U.S. stores dropped to $55 million last year, from $173 million in 2006, according to NPD Group."
2006 = $173M game sales
2012 = $55M game sales
Are these games sustainably popular? Yes/No? Pass/Fail?
No. Fail.
Makes good business sense to d/c them.
However... !
"Any future games based on "Star Wars" or other Lucasfilm properties will be made by other companies under license, a spokesman said. Production on "1313" and "First Assault" has stopped and those games will be released only if another publisher signs on to complete them."
So... if consumers WANT them enough someone somewhere will pony up the cash to get these games made.
But if insufficient consumer interest manifests then... capitalism prevails.
Maybe tax dollars via PBS could... nah, never mind.
Interesting.
"The videogame business has been particularly challenging lately. Industrywide sales of new game discs plummeted 23% in the U.S. last year, according to NPD. The chief executive of Electronic Arts Inc. resigned last month after saying the company had fallen short of its internal operating plan. In January, smaller publisher THQ Inc. sold off its assets in bankruptcy."
As ray said, it makes a lot of business sense. I haven't kept up with them over the years, but it's my understanding that most of the decent Lucasarts games have been developed by others, with Lucasarts serving as a publisher. And Disney already has their own game publishing imprint, so no big deal there (well, other than to the folks who lost jobs).
But back in the day, for PC gaming, Lucasarts was one of the best. Lots of fond memories of the X-wing/Tie Fighter games, and of course the adventure games (Monkey Island, Sam & Max, Grim Fandango, etc). These days some of their properties (and some of the original developers) have been snagged by Telltale Games. The new Sam & Max games have been great. And not Lucasarts (but adventure game related) they recently got the rights to do a new King's Quest game. These days that's definitely niche gaming, but in the 90s that was a very popular style of game, and Lucasarts were at the front of the pack.
So makes a lot of sense, but can't help but feel a little sad.
But back in the day, for PC gaming, Lucasarts was one of the best. Lots of fond memories of the X-wing/Tie Fighter games, and of course the adventure games (Monkey Island, Sam & Max, Grim Fandango, etc). These days some of their properties (and some of the original developers) have been snagged by Telltale Games. The new Sam & Max games have been great. And not Lucasarts (but adventure game related) they recently got the rights to do a new King's Quest game. These days that's definitely niche gaming, but in the 90s that was a very popular style of game, and Lucasarts were at the front of the pack.
So makes a lot of sense, but can't help but feel a little sad.
Rayw, I agree with you about capitalism and especially about tax dollars v PBS. 
I think the global economy has room for another space opera franchise.
I think the global economy has room for another space opera franchise.
Disney is also laying off staff at its movie studios, and this is unrelated to the closing down at LucasArts.