Fandom Unlimited Appearance and Courtroom Drama ToddMitchell, August 28, 2020July 11, 2024 Todd appeared on Fandom Unlimited’s live Facebook stream to talk about Epic and Microsoft vs. Apple and Google, then we dive into an equally troubling lawsuit between a studio and publisher that you might not have heard about. Epic (with Microsoft) vs. Apple (and seperately) Google Important concepts Microsoft xCloud – Announced at E3 2018. A service that will let you play Xbox games from a certain library they maintain and you can stream them to a bunch of devices and play them with an xbox controller. Laptops, phones, tablets, you name it. Launches September 15th and will be included with Game Pass Ultimate for $15 per month – includes Live, Game Pass, and xCloud, making it a great deal Timeline Microsoft announced xCloud at E3 2018 and suggested you’ll be able to play on many devices, including smartphones Apple came out and clarified xCloud will not be approved for iOS After Fortnite attracted many mobile players, Tim Sweeney insisted on a special deal with Apple Apple flatly rejected Epic Epic put out an update on mobile platforms, Android and iOS, that optionally circumvents app store microtransactions and just takes money directly from players Both platforms kick Fortnite out of the store Epic filed simultaneous lawsuits against Apple and Google Apple advised Epic it was cancelling all licensing agreements, including Mac and iOS support in the Unreal engineMotions are being filed back and forth, the judge is already treating these motions in a way that seems to favor Apple This week, Microsoft entered a court filing on behalf of Epic Frogwares vs. Nacon Important Concepts Frogwares – Ukranian game studio with offices in Dublin, Ireland. They created the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series, which are really cool games.Nacon, Formerly BigBen – French game publisher established in 1981. Their main markets are France, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Timeline This all comes from a statement from Frogwares, released on Twitter. They say this is all made public in a filed lawsuit so they’re allowed to discuss it. This is strictly Frogware’s side of the story. Frogwares announced that The Sinking City, which is not a Sherlock Holmes game, but something else they’ve been working on, has been taken down from Steam and most other storesThey say this is because they were forced to terminate the agreement with their publisher due to breaches of the agreementThey say they signed with Nacon, the publisher, in 2017. The deal was Frogwares would develop the game, Nacon would contribute financially, then Nacon would have the right to sell the gameFrogwares says that during production, Nacon fell hundreds and hundreds of days behind in paymentsFrogwares says that Nacon at some point bought a competing studio working on a similar game and ordered Frogwares to turn over their source code to the other studioFrogwares says Nacon wouldn’t provide consistent figures about sales forecasts and other business plan itemsFrogwares says that once the game was released and made available in game stores, Nacon sent a letter saying that previously approved milestones are being cancelledFrogwares filed a lawsuit against Nacon in August 2019Frogwares says Nacon is creating a perception that it was not Frogwares who owns the IP. They say their logo was removed from some game covers. Frogwares says dozens of Sherlock Holmes and Sinking City domains were bought by Nacon and a tabletop Sinking City RPG was createdNacon went public and suggested that they owned The Sinking City intellectual property outrightWhen Frogwares finally notified Nacon that they were terminating the contract due to all of these unresolved complaints, Nacon said Frogwares couldn’t terminate it because of emergency laws passed in France to protect businesses during the Covid pandemic Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Game Development Podcasts Epic LawsuitEpic vs AppleFortnite Lawsuit
Game Development Thimbleweed Park Developer, Terrible Toybox, May Be Ramping Up Development August 18, 2020July 11, 2024 Are you a versatile art director seeking remote employment with a legendary team? That’s nice. Good luck! Everyone else rejoice, the Thimbleweed Park team rides again! Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More
Game Development Anger is Optional October 3, 2019July 11, 2024 Todd provides an update on the studio, the state of the podcast, and thoughts on managing gaming’s impact on our attitude. Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More
Culture The designers behind Crumbs and Clash of the Genres December 28, 2020July 11, 2024 Following their appearances at Virtual Indie Games Expo 2020, the designers behind the Crumbs and Clash of the Genres board games call in to discuss inspiration, pandemic survival, and in one case, getting cut off on Fox News. Share this:FacebookXLike this:Like Loading... Read More