Double Fine Studios - Project Cancelled - Layoffs

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A yet undisclosed project fell through so that the developer had to let 12 people go from the company. A quote from Tim Schafer:


"One of our unannounced projects was unexpectedly cancelled by its publisher, forcing us to reduce our staff by 12 people," Double Fine founder Tim Schafer said in a statement to GameSpot. "Our remaining projects -- Broken Age, Massive Chalice, and Grim Fandango Remastered, were unaffected." Double Fine did not disclose the nature of the project or the publisher who canceled it.
More information.
 
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I hope all their projects get cancelled and all team members of DF responsible for any Kickstarter will sent to a Siberian work camp for the same duration they have been developing KS projects with donors stolen money.
 
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I can't remember how did Double Fine mess up? I don't think I have played any of their games and did not donate to their Kickstarter.
 
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I can't remember how did Double Fine mess up?

Where do I begin?First of all their first kickstarter Broken age promised true old school adventure and got $3.3m + preorders instead backers got short cutesy adventure split into 2 parts that indie devs make with 100k budget.For comparison most of Daedalic's adventures are made with less that $500k budget.
Second Spcebase DF-9 was on early access and they run out of funds and stoped development leaving payers with only tutorial+mod tool.
I don't think I have played any of their games and did not donate to their Kickstarter.

There is probably reason for that.While they had some funny and creative games most of them where small cutesy ones.They haven't made great or even "big" game since Brutal legend (2009 and FYI I don't conisder it this game great either but lot of people seem to do) and before that Pyschonauts(2005 last Schafer's masterpiece).
 
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When I first read this, I kind of got the impression that DF has management problems, but I after further thought I am amending my view. Video game projects, even big ones that are far into production, get canceled all the time, but it is usually something that happens behind closed doors and we don't really hear about it. The early access and kickstarter stuff has made the game development process a lot more public, so when these projects get canceled we know about it. It is common sense that something like a kickstarter or early access project might not work out, and people need to approach it with caution and accept the risks. Also, this could have really been more of a publisher's issue than DF's.
 
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For comparison most of Daedalic's adventures are made with less that $500k budget.

Do you have some info about it?


Second Spcebase DF-9 was on early access and they run out of funds and stoped development leaving payers with only tutorial+mod tool.

How could they run out of funds when they have still several on-going projects? Its playing with words. I think that DF9 was minor project so they used very small potion of the company's budget for it. It was a plan to start it and get most funds from EA. It blew up because sales werent big enough. This kind of fraud (first test interest/profit via EA, then decide if you are going to finish development) is not a way how games should be made. They work on other projects so they have funds. They abandoned it because they find out there is not enough interest (profit). So people who already bought it served as "test subjects" here.
 
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Do you have some info about it?

I read it here on Watch.IIRC Gorath posted that information but it was some time ago so I might have been mistaken(about original poster I am sure budget of $500k was involved)


How could they run out of funds when they have still several on-going projects?


They had investor with $400k so they had initial non-studio funding.Yes it would be more accurate to say they didn't raise enough funds to continue but however you put it it was huge mess up.
 
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This company is ran very badly.

DF 9 is an awful example of ineptitude.
 
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They never had the funds to fully develop DF-9 to live up to their design documents. They had planned on funding development through early access purchases, which didn't work out. They ceased development far before it even remotely resembled what they were marketing. RPS has a thing about it here.

Edit: Something more about early access specifically needed for funding here.
 
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It shows that Kickstarter and Early access are both business models gamers should steer clear from because it's far from enough to fund mid-sized developments. Also beware of anyone who has an "artistic" vision.
 
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u can usually see it in their faces.
their fat unhealthy faces ) using their fat words, promoting an random flashy product like a big fat cheeseburger
 
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It shows that Kickstarter and Early access are both business models gamers should steer clear from because it's far from enough to fund mid-sized developments. Also beware of anyone who has an "artistic" vision.

I've helped fund a bunch of games in kickstarter and so far I haven't been disappointed in any of them (except for delays).
 
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It shows that Kickstarter and Early access are both business models gamers should steer clear from because it's far from enough to fund mid-sized developments. Also beware of anyone who has an "artistic" vision.

No, it doesn't. It just means you have to do your research before randomly clicking something.
 
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Presumably the publisher is a different company than Double Fine, so it is unclear to me how this cancellation amounts to ineptitude on the part of DF. Other companies such as Obsidian have had projects cancelled while in development; it happens.
 
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No, it doesn't. It just means you have to do your research before randomly clicking something.

Doing research is all well and good but you can't do much if the editor moves the goalposts in the middle of development and reneges some of its promises or delivers something half-assed or incomplete. It actually happened to most of the high-profile projects, such as Original Sin which cancelled most of its stretch goals, or Plannetary Annihilation which is still very incomplete. It simply creates all sorts of bad incentives and you have no recourse if you've been fleeced.

It's no wonder why these studios have to do all sorts of shenanigans to keep their doors open, it's because even the biggest projects cannot allow them to pay for their employees for more than a few months or a year to a year and a half max, unless you work with people from the second or third world, or college students who work for almost nothing. Since for professional studios this isn't an option you're going to see things like these repeating continuously.
 
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Not really. You just have to keep in mind that Kickstarter is not preordering and that some projects will fail (specially if you don't choose wisely what to support).

A lot of projects are sucessful though even if they can't keep 100% faithful to their promises, and in these cases, you must rejoice because you are getting games and type of games that wouldn't be possible at all without kickstarter or early access.
 
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