Home » Technology » Computer Game Companies » Ground Control to Major John........

Ground Control to Major John........

© Dan Caines

"Ground control to Major John....." "Your circuit's dead, there's something wrong!" "Can you hear me Major John? Can you hear me Major John?". So go the opening lyrics to Romero, Romero, Wherefore Art Thou Romero? (D.Caines, based on "Space Oddity" by David Bowie). I will start my round up of all the latest and coolest computer company news with that hot topic of the moment, Ion Storm. Their lead project Daikatana, again failed to make its deadline, this time of Christmas 99. This was made all the weirder when you take into account that a couple of weeks before the Yuletide festivities began, Romero and his crew were swearing blind that it would be ready. In the corporate reports they have just released, we can also see that Eidos have been doing some deals behind the scenes as well, increasing their stake in the ailing company to a controlling 51%, ostensibly "to give Ion Storm a strong base. Yadda, yadda, yadda. Ten bucks say that something major will happen in the first half of 2000. Also noticeable to the eagle-eyed observer was that the first set of advertising posters for Daikatana announced the game as "John Romero's Daikatana". More Alan Smithee film than Bram Stoker's Dracula, we think. Using Romero as a scapegoat for the game's failing would be cruel to him, but maybe not totally unjustified. And if it lets Ion Storm survive in one guise or another, albeit at his expense, then it has to be worth it. But for now at least, he should just keep his mouth shut and finish the game. "Oh Johnny, Johnny be good".

Lets get ready to rumblllllllle. Stand back to back, take ten paces, and turn. The duel of the year is shaping up to be in the online arena, as Hasbro and Ubisoft / Guillemot both announce major games websites. At first glance, Hasbro appears to be the biggest enchilada in this appetizing tortilla, as they have the prestigious games.com moniker, and, to quote one industry insider, "godzilla-like brand leverage in the states". It is not entirely certain what this site will offer, however, whereas Ubisoft have taken the information dump approach to publicity. We know that gameloft .com will offer "multiplayer support for over 300 titles", backed up by a $10 million investment. Handbags at dawn coming up....

Sony, a bow as this years grinch who stole Christmas. Twas the night before Christmas, and all round the house: gamers were hoping to get the Sony/Polyphony Developments game Gran Turismo 2 the next day. You know the game : "Most awaited sequel of all time" "If it's half as good as the first one it will blow your mind" etc. Gran Turismo is arguably the finest driving game of all time, even though there had been very little hype prior to its launch. And maybe that was a good thing. The sequel was endlessly hyped by Sony, who set a concrete Christmas release date in order to appease the fans and the baying press corps. But unlike the first game, which was polished beyond compare, this one is not even finished! Avid gamers have worked up to what the game tells them is "98.6 % completeness", and then cannot get any further. Sony has since confirmed that you cannot get any further than this. And mystified gamers think they know what went wrong as well: "At a late stage in the games, you discover some drag race vehicles, yet there is nowhere to use them properly! To me it seems that they have cheated us, and due to a rush to make Christmas profit they have just not finished the game! They'd better exchange it....". If anyone at Sony is reading this, we'd love a proper explanation.....

The copyright of the article Ground Control to Major John........ in Computer Game Companies is owned by Dan Caines. Permission to republish Ground Control to Major John........ in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.