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Alpha Protocol delayed

It looks like this game may be delayed--and not just by a month or two.

http://forums.obsidian.net/index.php?showtopic=53168&view=findpost&p=974740

lastearth said:
So apparently the leaked minutes from a Sega internal meeting has this snippet about AP:


Alpha Protocol
Michael Foster, product evaluator, said AP felt barely RPG. Initial level too challenging for players. “Mass Effect felt more RPG.”
Review notes sent to John Merlino a few weeks prior. After meeting Gerald mentioned AP is a high priority for his team.


The meeting supposedly took place in early August.

But this might have something to do with the delay. Sega is asking Obsidian to make changes to the game and won't let the game be released until they are happy with the changes. So they won't commit to a date until they are happy with the tweaks to gameplay.

Initial level too challenging for players???? lol
I'm wondering if Mr. Foster, Sony Product Evaluator, got his butt handed to him early on while playing the game. :D


This entire thread may be worth reading:
http://forums.obsidian.net/index.php?showtopic=53168&st=15
 
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Yea, I'm interested in this game but the latest news isn't looking so good. I may hold off until I see some initial feedback from the gaming community after it's been released.
 
Well, what did you expect them to say? :) I'm not pre-ordering this one. I want to see real world reactions to it.
 
Well, what did you expect them to say? :) I'm not pre-ordering this one. I want to see real world reactions to it.

I'm pretty sure I'll buy it no matter what, but as to the real reason why this game appears to be pushed back, I have no clue. Sega likely has a gag policy on Obsidian Entertainment with respect to the real release date.
 
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Somone made some comparisons to what's been going on recently with respect to Alpha Protocol release date and Michael Thorton's (game character's) twitter feed.

http://twitter.com/mikethorton

Michael Thorton's Twitter Feed said:
Been in infirmary all week, should be out tomorrow if the doctors sign off on the release. We'll see how the tests go.

So, Alpha Protocol was supposed to be evaluated and signed off on, I guess?

Then Michael Foster, Sony product evaluator, is attributed to expressing the view that in Alpha protocol the "initial level [is] too challenging for players."

http://twitter.com/mikethorton

Michael Thorton's Twitter Feed said:
Looks like the initial level of tests were more challenging than the doctors thought, so medical's keeping me for another day."


"Michael Foster (SCEA), product evaluator, also said AP felt barely RPG." “Mass Effect felt more RPG.”

http://twitter.com/mikethorton



Michael Thorton's Twitter Feed said:
"One doctor said my symptoms are "even less of an illness than the traditional version of the illness" - whatever that means.

Coincidence?
 
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Michael Foster, product evaluator, said AP felt barely RPG. Initial level too challenging for players. “Mass Effect felt more RPG.”


Michael Thorton's Twitter Feed said:
The usual, making up jack*** nicknames ("So... Mikey."), establishing pecking order ("*I'm* the one doing your eval"), etc.
 
Alrighty then. I'm not sure what to make of all that. Maybe I'll just wait for you to buy it and let us know if it's any good. :D I can't afford to be buying games that I may not fully enjoy.
 
My thoughts concerning Alpha Protocol and gaming in general:

  • From what has already been released to the public in terms of trailers and such shows that the game does not have top notch graphics. Not all games need top notch graphics, mind you, especially if the story is good enough.
  • An 8 month delay in game release right now means an enormous difference in game engine technology. For instance, a game that has been in development for the past few years might be released using the old Unreal engine. Batman Arkham Asylum uses the new engine. A game released 8 months from now should not be using such old technology, IMHO.
  • A game with antiquated graphics does lose public draw when it comes to interest generated. It's a simple fact. There are a lot of games out there that are so graphically mindblowing that people are in awe. There are other games that are great and solid games but you kind of wish the graphics were better. My impressions of what I have seen from Alpha Protocol were that the graphics seemed pretty lacking when it comes to modern games and I hoped the story was enough to make up for it.
  • Wars between publishers and game studios will only get worse and, frankly, I'm really not a fan of a publisher owning a studio. This period of publishers gobbling up studios will end up harming games, IMHO. There are delays when they shouldn't necessarily be and there are games pushed out the door that shouldn't necessarily be.
  • I believe that porting the PC version of a game from consoles is a cost saving measure that doesn't do a game justice and does, in fact, spit in the face of PC gamers. Sure, the publisher and studio can say, "Would you prefer we not release a PC version at all?" Frankly, yes.
  • A 2-3 month delay in a game release is acceptable. An 8 month release with no real explanation is not. "The game was too hard." doesn't tell me enough. It will take 8 months to rectify this? If they plan on delaying 8 months then I want them to use a newer graphics engine. The game will look old the day it is officially released. People will be disappointed.
  • I fear that the combination of the delay, the older generation graphics, the total silence on the part of Sega and the gagging of Obsidian, and the lack of big marketing, this game will be released and forgotten and that's if something doesn't come up and the game is dropped and just never released to begin with.

I had pre-ordered the game. I won't be waiting 8 months. Unless I hear that they've made major changes in the next 8 months that make the wait worth it then I will not be keeping my pre-order status and may not buy the game at all. I really was enthusiastic about this game but not enough to get jerked around and have it come out that it feels that it will be. My money will likely be spent elsewhere.
 
[*]From what has already been released to the public in terms of trailers and such shows that the game does not have top notch graphics. Not all games need top notch graphics, mind you, especially if the story is good enough.
[*]An 8 month delay in game release right now means an enormous difference in game engine technology. For instance, a game that has been in development for the past few years might be released using the old Unreal engine. Batman Arkham Asylum uses the new engine. A game released 8 months from now should not be using such old technology, IMHO.

In my opinion, the graphic quality stuff tends to be fodder for teenage boys.
Eye candy is nice, sure. Eye candy can't fix a crappy movie. And it can't fix a crappy game either.

If I had never played Baldur's Gate II, Planescape: Torment, etc., would I still buy them and play them today? Yes. They were that good.

The problem I see with an 8 month delay is that something is being changed. And it's probably being changed at the behest of the publisher, Sega, and not because the developers, Obsidian Entertainment, wanted that change. So, I'm not sure that we will ever seen the original intent, which would be disappointing.


A game with antiquated graphics does lose public draw when it comes to interest generated. It's a simple fact.

Agreed. But I couldn't care less, provided the story and game are engaging. I rarely represent the majority.

A 2-3 month delay in a game release is acceptable. An 8 month release with no real explanation is not.

A delay without any explanation is not acceptable. An 8 month delay with no explanation is pretty much spitting in the face of pre-sale customers. And if we do get an official explanation, it'll probably just be a marketing spin.

I fear that the combination of the delay, the older generation graphics, the total silence on the part of Sega and the gagging of Obsidian, and the lack of big marketing, this game will be released and forgotten

That could be, yeah.

and that's if something doesn't come up and the game is dropped and just never released to begin with.

I doubt that's going to happen. I can almost guarantee it won't. The game is pretty much completed. Sega wouldn't invest a lot of money and then just completely drop a finished product. That would be a pretty bad business decision for a publisher. The publisher would have invested a lot of money into the game's development by this point.

Really wish we knew what was going on . . .

With a Sony product tester involved, the problem could be a certification issue. I have no idea though.

http://forums.obsidian.net/index.php?showtopic=53316&view=findpost&p=977492

and

http://forums.obsidian.net/index.php?showtopic=53316&view=findpost&p=977497
 
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A common definition is the "code of silence"

Matthew Rorie Obsidian Marketing and PR Producer said:
Sorry that we've been quiet this week. Hopefully everyone understands that we (Obsidian) can't talk about this much at this point, one way or the other. Just wanted to say that we appreciate your patience, and that hopefully we'll be able to talk about all this at some point soon.

Yup, can't talk.
 
Let's see....will Alpha Protocol or Alan Wake come out first....place your bets! :D
 
Well, here's the official press release on the delay:

http://www.gamezone.com/news/10_15_09_12_31PM.htm

“Alpha Protocol is a new take on the RPG genre and from day one the team has been working to make Alpha Protocol a truly unique game for players to experience.” says Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian Entertainment. “We’re very happy that SEGA has made the decision to hold back the shipment of the game in order to give it the best chance at becoming the publishing success that we at Obsidian and our partners at SEGA are striving for”.

“Since the inception of Alpha Protocol, SEGA has recognized the potential for the game to establish itself as an AAA title.” says Masanao Maeda, President and COO, SEGA of America, Inc. “We’ve worked in conjunction with Obsidian Entertainment in making the decision to move Alpha Protocol’s ship date to spring 2010 to ensure that we have the best game possible at launch.”


I notice Obsidian Ent says "in order to give it the best chance at becoming the publishing success", while Sega says, "to ensure that we have the best game possible".

I think a "publishing success" would mean it's not released in the same timeframe as Dragon Age, Borderlands, and Risen.

If, however, "best game possible" means the game is being pushed back to dumb the game down even more for console players, then that's not good . . .

If the game is actually being pushed back due to a lack of polish, then the delay is good, but it seems to me people would have mentioned something about that in their previews.
 
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