No Sequel for Brilliant Spec Ops the Line

[OmegaFenix]

Saw this on IGN:

The developers of 2012's Spec Ops: The Line said that the narrative-driven third-person shooter will likely never see a sequel, according to a recent interview with German website Gamestar,

This was due to lower-than expected sales, as reported in Take-Two Interactive's fiscal report. According to Take-Two, the game actually hurt the overall earnings of the company during the first quarter of the fiscal 2013 year.

Although the game under performed, it was received well by critics and fans alike due to its bold anti-war narrative. Positive reception, however, didn't make up for the fact that it didn't make the money it needed, meaning that the chances of a sequel ever happening are very, very low.

The team at Yager spoke about the game's lack of a future sequel, expressing that they were actually okay with it being a standalone experience.

In a market saturated with military shooters, Managing Director Timo Ullman explains that it's too risky to return to the formula once again. "If you can't compete with the big ones [military shooter franchises], the risk is too big. The market for 'smart' or 'intellectual' games is too niche. Elitist, almost."

Art Director Mathias Wiese is also okay with Spec Ops' lack of a sequel, stating that the game was challenging to work on on an emotional level. "You can imagine what kind of reference material you have to review. That's not fun," he says. "You're happy when you can do something else after that."

Currently, the team at Yager is working concurrently on the space shooter Dreadnought and Dead Island 2. Dreadnought is targeted to begin beta testing in 2015, while Dead Island 2 was recently announced at E3 and is still early in development.

Source

While I am not necessarily sad about this, lightning like this rarely strikes twice.

This line however depresses me:

The market for 'smart' or 'intellectual' games is too niche. Elitist, almost.

 

[Ser_Bunnylot]

These chops don't understand how niche markets work. There's lots of money to be made operating in niche areas and I'd actually say that's the best area to operate in as a business in almost any industry.

Their problem is that their limited imaginations can only think of "big budget AAA" that needs to sell in the millions in order to break even, let alone turn a profit and warrant a sequel.

And when they think of making smaller budget titles they completely butcher the game by trying to make it appeal to a wider audience which defeats the whole niche philosophy

 

[Graal]

AAA publishers gonna AAA.

In my opinion, their time is limited. There are too many ways for developers to make brilliant games and still make loads of money. Divinity: Original Sin has been in the Steam top-sellers list since shortly before its release and it was developed for a fraction of the cost that most of these AAA games cost.

At some point the penny will drop and casual gamers will realise that there are alternatives to games that seek to milk them of every last cent and then these publishers will be in deep shit as they scramble to adapt their business practices.

 

[bradbear117]

I think a lot of casual gamers turn into fully fledged gamers eventually. I've seen a few cases in the last year already. Games on tablets and smartphones are getting loads of people into gaming. Eventually their interests grow and they explore just how far the medium can go.
The market for smart, intellectual games is the same as its always been, maybe a little bigger. It just pales in comparison to the casual market these days.

 

[Graal]

And in other news, The Sims 4 will have Premium.

Just in case you weren't sad enough already.

 

[czc]

This line however depresses me:

The market for 'smart' or 'intellectual' games is too niche. Elitist, almost.

Tell that to Paradox.

 

[Tsar]

Tell that to Paradox.

100% love paradox games.

I thought spec ops was the best video game to portray war. What it does to people. First and only game that made me feel "shell shocked" That game was brilliant.

It went over most peoples heads though.

 

[BeoTeK]

Hmmm... I've heard good and bad things about this title (mostly bad) and thus never picked it up, though tempted every time I saw it on special. Maybe next time I will. Sad I missed it now.

 

[Kwaai]

Hmmm... I've heard good and bad things about this title (mostly bad) and thus never picked it up, though tempted every time I saw it on special. Maybe next time I will. Sad I missed it now.

https://www.humblebundle.com has it in its 2k bundle.

 

[Tsar]

Hmmm... I've heard good and bad things about this title (mostly bad) and thus never picked it up, though tempted every time I saw it on special. Maybe next time I will. Sad I missed it now.

You should. The shooting part isn't bad but thats not the reason you play it.

 

[Wlad]

I loved this game and I'm kind of glad it's not getting a sequel. It really doesn't need one, maybe another Spec Ops game with different characters, setting, etc. would be good, but I felt the game was perfect as it is, no need to mess it up with an unnecessary sequel.

Also, bring on Dead Island 2!

 

[Mister 44]

I seems to me that for the past year or two there is a shift back to the attitude of the late 80s/early 90s where games in the "adventure" genre catered for the player looking for more intellectual entertainment and action games were aimed at those interested in mindless fun.
This is not necessarily a bad thing. The wheel will keep turning and I think it is a driving force behind innovation. A few years from now we may even see a CoD worth playing in single player again (like the first Modern Warfare) when intellect and story meets shooting.
In the interim, there are some excellent indie developers out there that are more than willing to serve the small(ish) community looking for both action and IQ.