Randy/Gearbox fails again to pay royalties!. New lawsuit from Duke Nukem 3D composer.
SidAlpha | Randy Pitchford, Gearbox, AND Valve SUED over Duke Nukem 3D Copyright Infringement:
Jim Sterling | Duke Nukem 3D Composer Sues Randy Pitchford, Gearbox & Valve For Infringement
Duke Nukem 3D composer sues Randy Pitchford, Gearbox and Valve: https://www.pcgamer.com/duke-nukem-3d-composer-sues-randy-pitchford-gearbox-and-valve/
Furthermore, Prince claimed he contacted Randy Pitchford requesting royalties for the music in the 2016 game, and was told he would be "taken care of", but never received any money. Pitchford also "refused to remove the music from the game", Prince's attorneys said.
Duke Nukem Lawsuit Brought Against Gearbox, Valve By Original Composer:
Incredibly, the electronic files for the music within Duke Nukem 3D World Tour include text specifically stating that Mr. Prince owns the copyright to the music and has reserved all rights to the music’s use. Yet Gearbox incorporated the music into the game without ever contacting Mr. Prince and without clearing the rights expressly mentioned in the electronic files.
Mr. Prince is demanding a trial by jury, requesting a judgement in his favor and the maximum statutory damages for the alleged infringement. Alternatively, he's put the offer of "actual damages and Defendants’ profits, plus attorneys’ fees and costs, as well as an injunction prohibiting Defendants from infringing his copyrights" on the table.
Wildroses2009
From the article it looks like Randy doesn’t have a leg to stand on. Whether this is true is for the courts to decide but I will watch with fascination as history suggests Randy will rant about the ingratitude of artists who don’t appreciate exposure unless his lawyers manage to gag him.
It does remind me a little of the whole situation where Claptraps voice artist wanted to be paid after not being paid for the first two. Randy seems to have trouble with the idea that creative people might actually have rights to their work and he can’t just take things he wants for his video games.
EGS nonexistent BL3 "sales" & boycott successful?
Good steam news, it seems the EGS BL3 boycott is working and Take-Two investors/shareholders are not buying the corporate marketing stunt (see below).
Maybe BL3 sold well on console but not PC/EGS (needs more proof to validate Take-Two claims).
As said by other gamers, BL3 "sell-In" doesn't actually really mean "sold".
latest installment in genre-defining, shooter-looter series sold-in more than 5 million units within first five days of launch, making Borderlands 3 the fastest-selling title in 2K history and highest-selling title for the label on PC
Sell-through” and “sell-in” are terms used in a specific type of sales channel. In these transactions, a retailer buys and stocks products from a manufacturer or distributor. The retailer reserves the right to return unsold units to the supplier for a refund or credit.
EPIC CEO stayed suspicious quiet on twitter during this record BL3 "sale" and only making retweets from Gearbox/2K marketing.
Also informed gamers in Europe reported that BL fans who could not wait for steam release are buying on console, not EGS.
The irony here, Steam/Microsoft/Sony all get a 30% cut of the revenue they receive on the digital market sales. EGS so bad it's pushing gamers to buy on console?.
*SNIP*
A bit of perspective on the figures: Take-Two used similar vernacular when describing Mafia III's sales in 2016, which managed to push 4.5 million copies in its first week, making it the then-fastest selling 2K Game on the market
the 5 million shipments (sell-in, not sell-through as in actual sales)
5 million keys have been sold to store fronts in the first 5 days. That number is probably correct and "high" - but a mathmatical fake. No one is "really lying" - they are just brushing up the numbers to look good.
Within its first five days of launch, 50 percent more consumers purchased Borderlands 3 versus sales of its predecessor – Borderlands 2
We also know that BL3 in the first 5 days was actually sold 50% more than BL2 - probably within in the same time frame? Which isn't really impressive, from my point of view. We could repeat what was said over the subreddit again: PC gaming was smaller when BL2 released ... BL2 reached its height with the DLCs and sales ... etc
game failed to beat analyst projection
Yes. It did. Obviously. Because it should have sold 5 million copies instead of just shipped them. And investors are getting paid to look through marketing BS.
Since the announcement, Take-Two's stock has dropped from yesterday's $131.11 high down to $124.91 low during the time of writing, representing a 4.72% dip.
That's a boycott in action, y'all.
Hey u/timsweeneyepic - you had the chance to make a better launcher, but now PC gaming just hates you. I don't really know what your goals are, but I assume Tencent is quite happy that you're disrupting the PC market, and that the general consensus for something like Galaxy 2.0 is generally positive. I assume that you're smart enough to notice that you and the EGS are being exploited to further a cause that is bigger than yourself. I also assume that you facilitate that for your own gain. I really hope all the hate is it worth it in the end for you - because for us it's fucking not. fuck you. fuck epic.
TL;DR:
Randy and 2K/Take-Two released some misleading BL3 sale info. Brushing up the numbers to look good.
Game journos did a poor job on this news story and copy pasted some Take-Two marketing BS.
cardonator
And aside from that, this is stupid. Gearbox doesn't need player investors.
Kreeztoff
It’s Rando Pitchfork get it right.
anisewah
Crowdfunding a game for a large developer that has plenty of money to make this regardless of this campaign. Pretty scummy...
jiom
Future EGS exclusive is almost funded by backers!
Asahoshi
Are people still falling for that scam? The game was funded from the word go.
TheRandomGuy75
Game is already funded, and this doesn't guarantee your preorder.
Don't fall for Gearbox's scam here. You're literally giving them money for nothing.
Kameh_
Yeah no, my hype for HW3 was killed with this Fig thing. Especially since it wouldn't surprise anyone if it came out to be an EGS exclusive farther down the road.
A shame too.
TucoBenedictoPacif
But OF COURSE people gave them money they didn't need, for absolutely no reason.
Can't even complain about "reaching the goal" since the goal was set to 1 dollar as a way to remind everyone "Hey, as if we weren't going to take anything you suckers will throw at us!".
DieDungeon
DW they'll just get Epic money so no need to support it.
spiritbearr
Gearbox is publishing. Why would you want to put your own money where Randy can misappropriate them to his own bank account?
SwineHerald
It's more than just Gearbox publishing. The reason it's on Fig, and the reason the campaign is just preorders rather than actual crowdfunding is that Pitchford is one of the co-founders for Fig.
He is running preorders through a dedicated crowdfunding site that he owns a large stake in, so that he can take home a larger chunk from the sales. Plus, since it's "technically" a crowdfunding campaign (with a $1 goal) if it runs into trouble and gets cancelled he isn't exactly required to refund those "preorders."
Edit: Also, Gearbox (and by extension, Randy Pitchford) owns the Homeworld IP, so the developer/publisher relationship will be even more onesided than usual. The studio could not take this game somewhere else. They're not making their own Homeworld game that happens to be published by Gearbox. They're making a Homeworld game for Gearbox, and really the only difference between this an Colonial Marines is Gearbox is being upfront for once about their outsourcing.
Jace_09
The FIG site is shady as hell, if you read the 'investor' perks the amount of sales they would need to make in order for you to see ANY money is literally 10 million dollars if I remember it right. Even then, they don't even make a commitment to offering the stock option unless they feel like it.
crazygasbag
Per previous Reddit conversations, DOK and HWRM generated good revenue. I really hope this isn't a scam after reviewing Pitchford's history.
Thomas12255
Randy Pitchford is a part of the board that handles Fig, he makes money from people using it, and he's ultimately in control of what Blackbird can do with Homeworld 3. I think that the main reason it was on Fig was just to make extra money for the studio - maybe it will lead to it getting a bit more funding from Gearbox than it would have originally as it is clear there is an audience that will pay money for this even 4 years out from release but I think Homeworld 3 is going to release one way or the other in 2023.
Also, I don't think Fig is really analogous to Kickstarter, it is basically an investment portfolio - you're really buying shares in the game and you get money back out if it is successful.
Setanta68
I really want to support this, but I got burned by another game becoming an EGS exclusive. Can we confirm or deny that it will release on multiple storefronts?
Raelsmar
My biggest reason I have not pledged is because of the possibility of it being epic exclusive. The devs have done nothing to assuage that concern.
SajuuksWrath To be fair though it's set to launch in 2022 last quater. Can we really expect them to announce stores today?
There has been a lot of talk from their staff and rob even saying they love steam mod support so it seems likely they will have it on steam.
Keep in mind I believe 2022 is outside epics planned to continue grabbing up exclusives so also a positive.
Raelsmar
Actually, we can. Epic exclusivity is not in the consumer's best interest. Making a clear and unequivocal statement in favor of consumers by saying that exclusivity deals are off the table helps justify asking fans for a single cent. If you're going to accept a handout from Tim Sweeny, why bother with any of this? That's right, because having a successful crowdfunding campaign is what catches Epic's eye, unless it's made clear from the start that it won't happen, you have every reason to be concerned that it will.
If this campaign was a year ago it would be on both Gog and Steam, kind of like how HW Remastered and DoK are. Epic has proven itself as being a complete dumpster fire lacking minimal storefront features (no reviews, no shopping cart, broken installations, no genre filtering). Take a good look at their Trello, as things are casually pushed off to "when we feel like it." They have also happily announced that there is no longer a roadmap for these features; the money isn't going into improving the user experience, it's going into poaching titles.
Let's talk about what Epic has going for it on the positive end: Giving away free games (some of which have had severe installation-related problems). This doesn't offset putting customers on the back burner. It's also not anything that doesn't happen on any other store.
For the record, it isn't that people think Steam is some perfect platform, either; I've heard that thrown around a lot lately: "If you don't like Epic, you must have ignored everything wrong with Steam!" Valve has had their share of colossal screw-ups (let's not forget giving a platform for Bethesda to force paid mods from years back). They acknowledged that it was a bad move and reversed course. What contributed in a major way to that? Using the review system and the mod workshop to protest it.
Whenever Epic finally gets around to implementing reviews, they are planned to be developer "opt-in" which means if it's not what they want to see, they get turned off. It's not the same as getting a bad review on Metacritic when you have a bad review right where sales happen. This alone is objectively bad for consumers.
If you're looking for something that is actually trying make its mark by deliberately cornering a market, it's Epic. They've made it crystal clear that the consumer is a non-priority by courting developers for exclusivity deals on a platform with objectively worse features. That isn't competition. That's bullshit.
I would change my tune about Epic if they fixed the above issues, stopped pursuing exclusivity, and ensured reviews were a standard feature.
Randy Pitchford joins Fig advisory board, 8th March 2018:
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-03-08-randy-pitchford-joins-fig-advisory-board
*SNIP* "Randy brings a very unique set of industry experiences to Fig," said Fig CEO Justin Bailey. "He has had a massively successful career of developing monster AAA hits for some of the largest publishers in the world, as well as helping small studios bring their passion titles to market. Adding his knowledge to our advisory board will level up the Fig platform, benefit our developers, and allow us to bring the most ambitious titles to-date to our platform."
https://www.pcgamesn.com/homeworld-3/crowdfunding
The thing is, that campaign was little more than a technicality. Gearbox was asking for only $1 in funding in order to meet its goal, suggesting that it’s already secured funding for the game and is confident in the community’s interest. In fact, pledging to the fund offered potential players the opportunity to help shape the game by partaking in backer-only surveys over the course of the development process.
Unsurprisingly, Homeworld 3 hit its funding goal. Perhaps a little more surprising is the extent to which it did so – with just a few days to go before the campaign draws to an end, Homeworld 3 has already drawn in $1,045,910, which Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford says is a record-breaking success. Let’s examine that claim, shall we?
The most successful crowdfunding campaign ever was for EOS, a blockchain operating system which earned more than $4 billion last year. If you narrow down that field to videogames, then Star Citizen, which has raised more than $230 million through both Kickstarter and its own fund, takes the crown.
Limit the pool to Fig’s most successful campaigns, and several titles come in ahead of Homeworld – Psychonauts 2, Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, and Wasteland 3 all made in excess of $3 million. So what exactly does Randy mean?
Well, in a tweet last night, the CEO said that “records were broken with one-hundred-million-percent of the goal achieved.” Technically, that’s completely true, although I’d suggest that he’s being a little generous with those figures. Hopefully it’ll lead to a successful development, although all accounts suggest Homeworld 3 is still in pre-production, so fans will likely be waiting a few more years for the new game yet.
*SNIP*
Vince McMullin is ready to pick a fight with Steam. And the Epic Games Store. And just about every other PC gaming storefront that isn't, as he put it, giving gamers what they want.
"We have a lot of developers that are very concerned about what's going on with the Epic Games store," he said. "The exclusives are creating quite a closed market. And anybody that's been around the industry for as long as I have would know that eventually that's going to become problematic. We're going to be completely non-exclusive."
What a glorious video. Maybe the industry will check itself with all of this pay-to-win microtransaction bullshit.
Money talks. Just look below at what Activision executives are telling investors right now about "fans/whales embracing new in-game content".
AAA gaming is going to get worse along with more lying/false advertising (such as bait and switch marketing).
The PC/console gaming community has to grow a backbone and fight back. Fallout 76 should be dead on arrival yet thousands failed voting with their wallet. This greed (Fallout 76/FIFA/CoD etc.) is creeping over into other games.
Fallout 76 Live Player Count:
30,843 Players Online https://playercounter.com/fallout-76/
During Activision Blizzard investor call today, the company revealed that they are continuing to make staggering amounts of money from microtransactions from their entire library of games.
They stated that they earned $800 million in the last three months from in-game items across their franchises.
Activision also stated that their new “initiatives” that they are implementing in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 has lead to stronger engagement from the community, and that they have seen a higher microtransaction revenues from Black Ops 4 than Call of Duty: WWII.
*SNIP*
The core gaming communities that have interacted with the company for years have started to hate on them to new levels because of the lack of care for their feedback. Activision executives continue to show that the community feedback for their games, especially Call of Duty, is going on deaf ears.
Black Ops 4 has one of the worst MTX systems the franchise has ever seen, but according to Activision, it’s a model that is being ’embraced’ which is very worrisome as we look towards Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. The company continues to embrace the RNG system with game changing items locked by supply drops even as lawmakers around the world are looking to ban such models going forward.
Activision Caught Lying, Steals Artwork & Betrays Modern Warfare Fans With Exclusivity Deal & Greed:
A Call of Duty insider has revealed that Infinity Ward is lying about the PS4 exclusivity plans & are planning horrendous loot boxes!
Allegedly, Wade Callender's attorney Blake Beckham is one of the best in Texas and has never lost a jury trial..
Blake L. Beckham, co-founder of The Beckham Group, is an accomplished Texas business litigation attorney with one extraordinary and formidable distinction: Beckham has never lost a jury trial.
Blake Beckham seems confident Wade Callender will win this 'money fight' that likely can cost Gearbox/Randy millions of dollars.
Also, NRA just hired Wade as new top lawyer & general counselor.
Below a new quote from Blake Beckham in response to NRA hiring Wade Callender.
NRA Hires Former Gearbox Software Attorney:
Hazard:
Mold can be present on the fabric insert inside the helmet, posing a risk of respiratory or other infections in individuals with compromised immune systems, damaged lungs or an allergy to mold.
Remedy:
Refund
Recall date:
September 19, 2019
Units:
About 20,000
True story. Not one, but two Soviet officers saving the world from Nuclear WW3.
Vasili Arkhipov (Cuban missile crisis, WW2 soldier and later submarine Captain) and Stanislav Petrov.
Had Stanislav Petrov/Vasili Arkhipov just went with military protocol many of us wouldn't be here today.
Vasili Arkhipov:
The Man Who LITERALLY Saved The World From Nuclear War:
If you were born before 27 October 1962, Vasili Arkhipov, a Soviet Navy Officer, saved your life. The story of his role in the Cuban Missile Crisis deserves to be more widely known, because of what it tells us about nuclear weapons.
In this video:
In 1962, the U.S. and the Soviet Union were on the brink of possible mutual destruction- the world as a whole was facing a possible nuclear winter and all the devastation that would come with it. The Cold War had been escalated to “tepid” and was close to becoming hot with the failure of the Bay of Pigs in 1961 and the ensuing Cuban Missile Crisis.
Stanislav Petrov:
The Man Who Saved the World Trailer 1 (2015) - Stanislav Petrov, Kevin Costner Documentary HD:
Few people know of him... Yet hundreds of millions of people are alive because of him. The actions of Stanislav Petrov, a retired Soviet military officer, prevented the start of a worldwide nuclear war and the devastation of much of the Earth.
The former Soviet military officer credited with saving the world from nuclear destruction has died at the age of 77. Stanislav Petrov, a lieutenant colonel in the Soviet Air Defence Forces, was the officer on duty at the Soviet Union’s early warning centre when malfunctioning computers signaled the United States had launched missiles at the country in September 1983.
His decision to ignore warnings is credited with averting nuclear armageddon.
My CoH2.org message has been clear, say yes to Company of Heroes, not Company of Villains..
I have highlighted German WW2 “heroes” in previous posts such as Luftwaffe ace, Franz Stigler.
This is not me being biased to any side, I want what is best for CoH3.
Warren Chambers:
“As a veteran of war I can tell you the worst possible thing for us who survived whether at home or in the war zone is for us to be forgotten. Never forget the sacrifices made or it will have been for nothing”.
Denmark
SturmTigerCobra
ihitto(wwU)
PanzerGrenadierAngreifen
TheMachine
Relic Entertainment
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