Sony closes Psygnosis

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When Psygnosis was initially bought, I believe they became Sony Studio Liverpool. I always assumed they stayed together, but just got a name change and were then working under direction of Sony.

Obviously "sony studio liverpool" is much prettier and rolls off the tongue easier than Psygnosis.

:picard

When I read about news like this, I wonder if the point isn't how many new (or how popular) titles they had coming out, nor whether it's a legitimate business decision to cut costs. It simply reminds me that the gulf between big fish and little fish is growing as much in business as in so-called 'consumer' society.

Had they not been owned by sony, Psygnosis may have continued to create interesting, quirky, fresh titles and grown in their own right, or at least maintained as a viable software house. Or they might have failed and eventually gone out of business. But it would have been done to their own tune, rather than by being sidelined and eventually deemed surplus to requirements.
 
Psygnosis used to be brilliant, but they've basically stagnated over the years since their glory days... It doesn't really affect me now they're gone as i still have some of their best games to remember them by :).
 
I say let the larger companies run themselves into the floor and let's start supporting indy devs :thumbsup: They at least seem to know what gaming is really about.

With any luck, some of the devs at Sony Liverpool will start a new company. :D

Thats essentially what I've been doing the last two years.
Tired of the so called quality triple A titles that come out from EA and such.
Now I mostly buy through different download services, or direct from the dev company through PayPal if possible, focusing on smaller and indie devs.

And I'm having a great time with these games.


I do the same. Buy less and less "Full price AAA titles" and more indy type games. I've bought more for my mobile phone this year than my PS3. Last game I enjoyed on PS3 was Journey, a Download game. Last Full price game I bought was Uncharted 3 last year.

But even more, I play Retro Games! Neo Geo, PC Engine and Amiga. 80% of my gaming time nowadays is Retrogaming. and i'm loving it, turn on, good times, turn off, no hassles. I have turned my PS3 on to give it a chance, and then i'm bombarded with updates loading times etc. Then can't be assed and turn it off. Its used as a media player nowadays.

PS4 seems to be most likely a generic "PC bits in a box" so not even exciting new hardware which was a draw for me to the PS3. Not bought Vita even though I have intended to since release, my Android Phone brings in the protable gaming at almost zero cost. 6Kr for a game I play alot, or 300Kr for a flashy game I get bored with after 3 hours?

As for the topic, Psygnosis DIDN'T just make WipEout and F1 since Sony took them over, they made just as many good games on PS1 as with the Amiga days. It was as the PS2 rolled in the games coming out dwindled. I think at some point around 2000 Sony said "Right, from now on you are a WipEout and F1 game Franchise house" so then the innovation was killed because Sony probably thought they could make endless amounts of money from the same game with flashier graphics. As soon as Wipeout Fusion was released I could FEEL the love had gone. In my opinion (being a wipeout fanboi), Pygnosis hit the high point with Wipeout 2097, if they'd been independent at that point there would be no more Wipeout. Sony made them pump out more. So I think Sony initially did well for them, then slowly killed them. Which is a damn shame. I hope the devs move over to developing for iOS and Android. Those two systems are the future.
 
it didn't help when Sony lost the F1 rights, no rights no Psygnosis F1 games:(

I say let the larger companies run themselves into the floor and let's start supporting indy devs :thumbsup: They at least seem to know what gaming is really about.

With any luck, some of the devs at Sony Liverpool will start a new company. :D

Thats essentially what I've been doing the last two years.
Tired of the so called quality triple A titles that come out from EA and such.
Now I mostly buy through different download services, or direct from the dev company through PayPal if possible, focusing on smaller and indie devs.

And I'm having a great time with these games.


I do the same. Buy less and less "Full price AAA titles" and more indy type games. I've bought more for my mobile phone this year than my PS3. Last game I enjoyed on PS3 was Journey, a Download game. Last Full price game I bought was Uncharted 3 last year.

But even more, I play Retro Games! Neo Geo, PC Engine and Amiga. 80% of my gaming time nowadays is Retrogaming. and i'm loving it, turn on, good times, turn off, no hassles. I have turned my PS3 on to give it a chance, and then i'm bombarded with updates loading times etc. Then can't be assed and turn it off. Its used as a media player nowadays.

PS4 seems to be most likely a generic "PC bits in a box" so not even exciting new hardware which was a draw for me to the PS3. Not bought Vita even though I have intended to since release, my Android Phone brings in the protable gaming at almost zero cost. 6Kr for a game I play alot, or 300Kr for a flashy game I get bored with after 3 hours?

As for the topic, Psygnosis DIDN'T just make WipEout and F1 since Sony took them over, they made just as many good games on PS1 as with the Amiga days. It was as the PS2 rolled in the games coming out dwindled. I think at some point around 2000 Sony said "Right, from now on you are a WipEout and F1 game Franchise house" so then the innovation was killed because Sony probably thought they could make endless amounts of money from the same game with flashier graphics. As soon as Wipeout Fusion was released I could FEEL the love had gone. In my opinion (being a wipeout fanboi), Pygnosis hit the high point with Wipeout 2097, if they'd been independent at that point there would be no more Wipeout. Sony made them pump out more. So I think Sony initially did well for them, then slowly killed them. Which is a damn shame. I hope the devs move over to developing for iOS and Android. Those two systems are the future.
 
Aye Justin, that was a killer when Sony "lost" (wouldn't pay up) the F1 license.

[wipeout fanboi rant snip] :p

I hope the devs move over to developing for iOS and Android. Those two systems are the future.

Sheesh, I hope not! :wooha:

:D

If the types of indy dev games appearing of late are anything to go by, I think they are. I never thought i'd say that for these mobile touch screen only OS'es.
 
Aye Justin, that was a killer when Sony "lost" (wouldn't pay up) the F1 license.

[wipeout fanboi rant snip] :p

I hope the devs move over to developing for iOS and Android. Those two systems are the future.

Sheesh, I hope not! :wooha:

:D

If the types of indy dev games appearing of late are anything to go by, I think they are. I never thought i'd say that for these mobile touch screen only OS'es.

I think a more open console / pc platform would be a much more viable future. 90% of ios and android games are developed on those frameworks because it's the easiest way to get your game out, but 90% of said titles are crippled by the medium. Everybody knows this, except 90% :lol:


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
Minecraft forever ! Mojang is the new Psygnosis !

http://www.mojang.com/

seriously, I haven't played a game from a enterprise game dev since halflife 2 (that's like ... 8 years ?) they're all recycling same old ****. (ok, I lied, I played Civilization IV)

indie devs are the way to go. they do what they want, regardless of 'market demands', 'income projection'. Games like minecraft and legend of grimrock are milestones because they show indie devs can make good games and be successful on the business side as well, without giving in to demands of some corporate ass who's in it for selling same old **** to people for 15 years. also iOS and Android are big chances for indie devs, because they provide a great distribution channel for them.

soo, I really expect a indie game boom in near future with start ups trying to achieve what mojang did.
 
I think a more open console / pc platform would be a much more viable future. 90% of ios and android games are developed on those frameworks because it's the easiest way to get your game out, but 90% of said titles are crippled by the medium. Everybody knows this, except 90% :lol:
Amen to that. The most annoying thing to happen over the past couple years has been the redefinition of "indie gaming" to mean "anything released on iOS or XBLA." PCs still exist and are still an open platform, dammit!
 
Minecraft forever ! Mojang is the new Psygnosis !

Striking gold once does not make them anything remotely like our Psygnosis of old.

soo, I really expect a indie game boom in near future with start ups trying to achieve what mojang did.

The indie boom has been here for years. Trouble is to do what minecraft and angry :censored: did, you have to strike the exact right note at the exact right time. One is essentially just a level designer with a few baddies tucked in for good measure and the other is just bowling with gravity :roll:

Yes, more people are getting into iOS and XBLA games, but the indie game developers are falling into the same trap as the major publishers. Endlessly copying each other. An indie developer is just someone releasing a game independently of publishers. Indie developers make even more crap than AAA studios, hence the term shovelware. There are shining examples of the opposite, but same can be said for AAA studios.

What I DO enjoy seeing is a return to how it was in the C64/Amiga days, where a game doesn't need a major publisher behind it, to get into our hands. Judged on merit, not on publisher it. We have hundreds of new games each month, so it's up to us (players of games) to pick and choose :thumbsup:
 
Minecraft forever ! Mojang is the new Psygnosis !

Striking gold once does not make them anything remotely like our Psygnosis of old.

soo, I really expect a indie game boom in near future with start ups trying to achieve what mojang did.

The indie boom has been here for years. Trouble is to do what minecraft and angry :censored: did, you have to strike the exact right note at the exact right time. One is essentially just a level designer with a few baddies tucked in for good measure and the other is just bowling with gravity :roll:

Yes, more people are getting into iOS and XBLA games, but the indie game developers are falling into the same trap that the major publishers do. Endlessly copy each other. An indie developer is just someone releasing a game independently of publishers. Indie developers make even more crap than AAA studios, hence the term shovelware.

That kind of behaviour may only weed out the ones that cant be creative from the ones who can though. I remain faithful that a few of them will rise up as creative devs and the ones that copy the successes of others wont get very far unless they happen to do an amazing job of it.
 
Yeah the PC is king of indie, but as far as mass consumer level is concerned (making more than a few pence) iOS and Android are where indie Devs have a better chance with security against piracy. And really, the PC is not as popular as it once was for gaming.

The average Joe see's something like the new Nexus 7 for a very cheap price, looks nice, works fast and fluid, awesome screen quality and that's enough. Even myself as a bit of a techie get excited too because I know whats inside the machine, and its mighty impressive cutting edge tech in these tabs now!

And although I used to loathe it, touch controls are really becoming very intuitive in many of the newer games. You don't feel like you need buttons anymore to play. Developers are moving away from the "virtual" joypad and making games control in a very different way, a way which allows non-gamers to play and enjoy too as well as old gamers like myself.

Anyway, I really do hope to see some of the Psygnosis guys working on iOS and Android at some point regardless the point of if these OS'es are the future of gaming or not :)
 
And although I used to loathe it, touch controls are really becoming very intuitive in many of the newer games. You don't feel like you need buttons anymore to play. Developers are moving away from the "virtual" joypad and making games control in a very different way, a way which allows non-gamers to play and enjoy too as well as old gamers like myself.

As long as the game is really meant for touch, then it can shine, like Infinity Blade (love that one :D)

Anyway, I really do hope to see some of the Psygnosis guys working on iOS and Android at some point regardless the point of if these OS'es are the future of gaming or not :)

I don't, but best of luck to you on that hope :p

Yeah the PC is king of indie, but as far as mass consumer level is concerned (making more than a few pence) iOS and Android are where indie Devs have a better chance with security against piracy. And really, the PC is not as popular as it once was for gaming.

That's just because no one properly consolized it. With a proper game/tv friendly UI, etc. it could wipe the floor with all other setup boxes. It's what apple is intending with their mini's and whatnot and let's face it - a mac is just a pc these days. Missed opportunity by MS there.
 
And although I used to loathe it, touch controls are really becoming very intuitive in many of the newer games. You don't feel like you need buttons anymore to play. Developers are moving away from the "virtual" joypad and making games control in a very different way, a way which allows non-gamers to play and enjoy too as well as old gamers like myself.

As long as the game is really meant for touch, then it can shine, like Infinity Blade (love that one :D)

Thing I hate about touch is that you have to cover the screen with your hands to control anything... Kind of defeats the object in a lot of applications. Especially ports. I really prefer to feel the buttons too. I've had a hard time controlling emulators on my phone for example because my thumbs miss the controls a lot, or rest on the screen as I normally would rest my thumb on a pad button given it takes a little bit of force to press.
 
Thing I hate about touch is that you have to cover the screen with your hands to control anything... Kind of defeats the object in a lot of applications. Especially ports. I really prefer to feel the buttons too. I've had a hard time controlling emulators on my phone for example because my thumbs miss the controls a lot, or rest on the screen as I normally would rest my thumb on a pad button given it takes a little bit of force to press.

Yes, touch ports/emulators must die :whistle:

No one would ever dream of porting a touch game to a proper console, now would they. Would they?

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-08-28-angry-birds-trilogy-will-be-getting-dlc :double

Publishers and indie devs combined, at their finest...
 
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