STOP IT: EA wants to acquire TakeTwo :(

[Kalah]

I personally don't mind if a big company buys a small one; in itself, that can be good for game development. It means there's a carrot out there for small developers who make games in their garage old-style: make good games and the big coorporations will take notice, and you'll make lots of money.

What I do mind is if the bigger company buys up a smaller one, and then starts telling the geniuses what to do. Setting unrealistic deadlines, dictating contents of the games etc... that's the moment when business takes the driver's seat away from developing a good game, and the result is usually not good. As Riccitiello admitted some time ago, the old "Command & Conquer" model doesn't work any longer, and it is better to get hold of some good people, "give them the keys" and let them do everything the way they want.

[Kristo]

The business getting in the way of the games is definitely a problem. Apparently one effective way to make lots of money in the industry is to "ship now no matter what" and slap a big corporate name on the box.

I look at Stardock as a great example for how to solve that problem. They make great games, but their core business is Windows desktop customization. CEO Brad Wardell has said before that it won't matter if the games never make another dime. The Windows business earns enough to cover them. They makes games because they love it and because they can afford to. And when you think about it, this makes good business sense. They're diversifying instead of risking the entire company on one title.

[Milla aka. the Slayer]

What's wrong with EA?! EA are responsible for one of my all time favs: The Sims 2

[Muszka]

Some of the leaders are profit oriented and don't care for fans etc. - But I care little about them and their games.

[Kristo]

And then there were the rumors about them buying a controlling stake in Ubisoft...

[Kalah]

Basically, they're "the big, bad wolf", aren't they...

[blacktrance]

The problem with the gaming industry these days is that games just cost too much to develop - and that too much effort is put into graphics.

[Muszka]

Basically, they're "the big, bad wolf", aren't they...

Sometimes the "sheep" is the same bad, and the wolf had good intentions too.

[Borsuc]

The problem with the gaming industry these days is that games just cost too much to develop - and that too much effort is put into graphics.

Well said

[Milla aka. the Slayer]

Hmm, it's a shame when the only interest in the games is turning them into money pigs. Games lose some of their personality.
I bet the big companies are in league with the people who develop stronger computers hence making it difficult for you to spend money on anything else but updating your computer. Bastards

[Kalah]

Hey - the guys who developed X3:reunion made the graphics so stunning I need a new video card to run it properly... but man is it beautiful...

[Kristo]

It remains to be seen whether the choice to defeat EA's takeover bid was a good idea.

It's not looking too good right now. TTWO closed on Friday at $8.43 a share. The offer they passed up from EA was $25 a share.

[ThunderTitan]

As a studio that doesn't mean all that much as EA isn't doing that well either, no one is.

It's the guy/s who would have gotten the money that might have gotten a raw deal (selling it might have lead to EA closing it because of the crisis etc, and then their future income would be threatened... life's complicated)

[Kalah]

Why do people put their companies on the stock markets anyway, if they're so worried about being taken over by competitors?

[ThunderTitan]

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[Kristo]

The companies themselves aren't worried. It is we the consumers and media types who like to fret about it. In the case of Take Two, I have to think that their board of directors truly believes they can do a better job with their brands than EA can. Why else would you block an offer for almost double your market cap (now almost 4x) when you're supposedly serving in your shareholders' best interest?

[ThunderTitan]

As long as tehy're in the green they're fine... the stock holders might be miffed though.

We worry because we don't have access to their real figures, so we don't know if they're not going under but hiding it...