What would you think of a free-to-play Wipeout game??

[meldarion]

Been a fan of the Wipeout series and for me it is the best racing game and one of the only reason why I choose Playstation over any other console/PC and the only reason why I bought the VITA on day 1. However I have to admit that the games are a not for the casual gamer and one must invest a lot of time and dedication to master the game mechanics.

That being said, I do believe that Wipeout could be more popular if it is sold at a cheaper price point in the 10 sterling range and be supported with new tracks each month or so on. Another possibility is to become a free-to-play game because generally it is the hardcore and real fans of the series to play the game.

It is my hope that we see Wipeout on the Playstation 4 in some way or another

[Synergy2048]

WipEout HD is free to download on the Playstation Store, including the Fury expansion. 2048's price has gone cheaper too, but they should have released it for the PS3 since most of us can't afford a Vita, at least I cant afford one yet, but I want this game so much.

What was Sony thinking? including closing down SL? I cant get over it.:brickwall

On top of it, why don't they release WipEout 2097 and Wip3out on the PS Store also??

But other than that, I also do hope for a comeback on the PS4, despite me won't affording the console either.

[Xpand]

....Wipeout could be more popular if it is sold at a cheaper price....

This was exactly why SL was dissoluted. Not even by having Wipeout HD Fury for free made them bounce back. The problem with Wipeout was that it was always a niche game, not really for the casual gamer. People might play it at first just out of curiosity, but they give up quickly because the learning curve is too steep compared to most arcade racers.

[AGSys]

...And that's what made it so great. Sony and other major corporations now only care about the main chunk of people. They have virtually no respect for the people who literally made them who they are now. All they care about is money and profits (and while that is understandable, it still doesn't justify the closing down of such a phenomenal company with quite a lot of untapped potential for new projects and furthermore just stopping the series so abruptly). I really wish I could buy the WipEout IP from Sony somehow and just 'give' it to SawFly and have them take requests from us over to make a WO game of our dreams. I just wish I knew how to contact Sony's corporate businessmen to buy franchises from them. I know, it would be a lot of money but I'd spend quite a bit of time in my life saving up for it, just so Sony doesn't waste it away over the years to come.

[sctm81]

...And that's what made it so great. Sony and other major corporations now only care about the main chunk of people. They have virtually no respect for the people who literally made them who they are now. All they care about is money and profits (and while that is understandable, it still doesn't justify the closing down of such a phenomenal company with quite a lot of untapped potential for new projects and furthermore just stopping the series so abruptly). I really wish I could buy the WipEout IP from Sony somehow and just 'give' it to SawFly and have them take requests from us over to make a WO game of our dreams. I just wish I knew how to contact Sony's corporate businessmen to buy franchises from them. I know, it would be a lot of money but I'd spend quite a bit of time in my life saving up for it, just so Sony doesn't waste it away over the years to come.

As much as I felt emotionally hurt when Studio Liverpool shut down I have to disagree with you on what you said about Sony. As you might know they incurred a great loss during the last generation thus rendering them unable to afford to put out niche products, forcing them to narrow down their focus on what they can invest. They simply don't have the money to throw around as they used to. If you want to blame anybody for the closure, it has to be this generation of gamers that isn't willing to invest time to master this amazing game. Or (with all due respect) even Studio Liverpool for failing to create a game that appeals to more people. While Wipeout HD and Wipeout 2048 were without any doubt some of the finest productions of their generation, they just didn't generate enough money to justify the investment into a large team of developers. As you might know, Sony has been in financial trouble for a while. They used to do amazing and crazy things back in the nineties, just because they could, but not anymore. As much as I am hoping for another next Gen Wipeout I have my serious doubts that will happen for the exact same reason that made them close Studio Liverpool in the first place.

[DDD113]

Sony still mainly consists of pocket-book minded corporate figureheads who think about the profit above all else. In these days, in everything in the world that's even remotely important, the minority is forgotten. This is just how it's gotten. :(

PS sctm81, don't quote the post directly above you unless it's a long post and you're only quoting part of it. Sometimes it never hurts to read the guidelines before posting. ;)

[dreadofmondays]

this generation of gamers that isn't willing to invest time to master this amazing game

Bzzt okay gonna have to stop you there
firstly
> this entire forum
secondly I'd struggle to name any AAA release coming out this year or last year that /isn't/ going to be amazing. From the perspective of a dev, we're getting to the point where you've got to royally **** up before the game starts being anything less then amazing. A game will be incredible so long as the devs stick to their ideals and concept.
Moving along with that is a generation of gamers that now, more than ever, appreciate fantastic games. We've got forums for /everything/, full of devoted fans. Look at this board! look at the journey/TGC boards! Look at any ubisoft release! And more to the point, the market has changed. Pirating is a movement that prevents publishers from holding a game to ransom from consumers - remember the quote 'pirates are dissatisfied customers'? People pay with their hearts now. Teams are more transparent then ever, and people give money to groups they support because of the amazing games that are being made.

As for sony, sony can say what it likes about why it shut wipeout down. Ultimately, it doesn't matter why. The fact is it happened, and as a fan of wipEout, I am disappointed and dismayed that it happened. Explaining the reasoning behind it isn't going to change the fact that a number on a worksheet was a minus instead of a plus, and so sony tossed aside a HUGE, LEGENDARY developer that launched every one of their consoles, is staffed by amazing incredible people, and made or published hundreds of fantastic games over an unforgettable career of two decades (at least!).

Finally, don't ever, ever admonish SL for 'failing to create a game that appeals to more people'. This is complete ass and there are many people here that can explain why, including one Hellfire_WZ. Stuff like this is practically insulting to the devs themselves. Please check yourself before you spout stuff like this.
Actually, I'm fetching a quote to set this straight, hold onto your pants

[DDD113]

Pants are being held ;)

[dreadofmondays]

And personally I think it is really unfair to bash 2048 for having the sheer audacity to appeal to more players. Their games weren't pulling the cash anymore - and you can say what you like about Studio Liverpool 'only caring about money'. I bet you anything that they possibly cared more about the survival of their own STUDIO, which would be shut down if they didn't improve profits. So they made the games more appealing to casual players. What were they supposed to do in that situation? What would YOU have done? Edit: And hell, refusing to dumb it down further is what killed them.
This. This. THIS x1000

Some of you seriously have no idea of that side of what they had to deal with, because if you did, there's no way you would be saying what you are. At the end of the day, the game had to make money and SL were at the mercy of Sony, not to mention the studio was a mere fraction of the size it was for HD. If you think they had total freedom to make this game then you couldn't be more wrong. I will not have this topic turning into yet another ill-informed rant on this.

And this is the calm version of my reply. I had to take a long time to let the red mist clear after reading some of these accusations.

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[DDD113]

Someone's on the ball, with the double quotes and all! ^^ Shoot, just realized that rhymed, it wasn't supposed to, but oh well! :D

Damon's got a good point though, SL was at the mercy of Sony, under totalitarian control. The lack of that control was the great thing about Psygnosis before Sony acquired it, and now is the great thing about Firesprite. :)