Re: Loki files for banruptcy protection.

[Steve Baker <sjbaker1@airmail.net>]

br0ke@math.smsu.edu wrote:
> 
> Steve Baker scribbled:
> 
> >
> > Mark Collins wrote:
> >
> 
> <snip>
> 
> > > There is a major flaw in that premise: Linux users have different tastes to
> > > Windows users. I'm sure you remember the email I sent out a while back about
> > > what games people like to play, I think the results showed a slight trend
> > > towards "intelligent" games, not titles such as Deus Ex or UT.
> >
> > Yes - I strongly suspect that's the case - but I doubt that any solid
> > research has been done about it.  And Rule #1 in any business is "Know your
> > market".
> 
> maybe we should try to trick some place with a 'user' audience to run polls on
> this stuff. Like slashdot.org or linuxgames.com or happypenguin.org? We've polled
> this on lgdc, but I don't think that's a fair sample.

...and the answer is...Cowboy Neil!

> I gave up on procuring artists for an open source endeaver and am writing a
> closed source free game as a quick test/codebase builder, with the hope of
> breaking into the commercial side. The guy who goes out and finds people managed
> to find some top notch artists, but there're three big factors that went into
> that I think. A) he knew where to look, something I'd have no clue on. B) I have
> to support windows every step of the way, so I have milestones that I borrow a
> windows 'puter to press out for them to ooh and aah over (a couple have indicated
> that they've been involved in unpaid projects before, and they never saw any work
> the programmers have done. This makes me think that it's pretty important for an
> open source game to provide binary snapshots, as the artists are not programmers
> and probly wouldn't know how to cvs or compile). C) this is probly the biggy, but
> hopefully the next game will be contracted or self-published, so there's the promise
> of money if things take off.

Hmmm - that's interesting.

> yeah, I have to agree with steve, we just don't have the numbers to make a claim
> like that. I, personally, don't warez. I run almost all open source free stuff,
> and paid for those incredibly rare non-free programs I use. Most of my linux
> using friends are the same way, but I can't put any stock in that because it's
> a pretty non-scientific study. :) I have more in common with the "good" people,
> so I'm more likely to become friends with 'em :)

Yep - that's my experience too.  The only commercial program I own or use is AC3D
($40)...apart from games which are all Loki - and again, all paid for.
 
> one complaint I've heard several times is that the people who want to buy the game
> are too young to have a cc. I can buy that, but money orders and "mom and dads card"
> negate the argument :/

IMHO, if you are too young to have a credit card, you are too young to buy games
with an 'M' rating - so Mom and Dad should be involved anyway.
 
>    3) Despite the fact that I have zero commercial games experience
> >      and little desire to get into commercial games, I had to beat off
> >      the game-headhunters with a stick.
> 
> damn, I shoulda gone to siigraph :)

Yes - SigGraph is a *blast* - I wouldn't miss it for anything.  It's simply
the most exciting place on the planet if you are a graphics geek.
 
----------------------------- Steve Baker -------------------------------
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