More Industry Layoffs, as Project Motor Racing and Wreckreation Devs Put Staff on Ice

[Terronium-12]

This is the discussion thread for an article on GTPlanet:

More Industry Layoffs, as Project Motor Racing and Wreckreation Devs Put Staff on Ice​

While the month of December began with quite a bang with new content releases for Assetto Corsa EVO, Gran Turismo 7, and RaceRoom Racing Experience, it has quickly turned into a sour note for Straight4 Studios and Three Fields Entertainment...

 

[MisterWaffles]

At least in Project Motor Racing’s case, their misfortunes are deserved for making and launching a broken mess of a product built on hype and occasional outright lies, which is Ian Bell’s usual strategy.

PMR is the kind of game that should be issuing refunds even past the specified playtime on any specific service. Anyone who was in it for the long haul and was hoping on those later updates and DLCs might have just been rugpulled if the studio is on its way to closure.

I’d feel more bad for the devs loosing their jobs but most of them are Bell’s buddies and they should all collectively know better by now. But they keep making the same mistakes over and over again.

 

[MagpieRacer]

At least in Project Motor Racing’s case, their misfortunes are deserved for making and launching a broken mess of a product built on hype and occasional outright lies, which is Ian Bell’s usual strategy.

PMR is the kind of game that should be issuing refunds even past the specified playtime on any specific service. Anyone who was in it for the long haul and was hoping on those later updates and DLCs might have just been rugpulled if the studio is on its way to closure.

I’d feel more bad for the devs loosing their jobs but most of them are Bell’s buddies and they should all collectively know better by now. But they keep making the same mistakes over and over again.

I don't think losing your job is ever deserved. Plenty of Devs involved were frustrated with how Ian was speaking about the game, they have to work to the confines of what they are given, deadlines they are set and I'm certain none of them will have been happy with how the game launched.

 

[Voodoovaj]

The industry is bloodbath mode.

 

[MisterWaffles]

I don't think losing your job is ever deserved. Plenty of Devs involved were frustrated with how Ian was speaking about the game, they have to work to the confines of what they are given, deadlines they are set and I'm certain none of them will have been happy with how the game launched.

I at least feel bad for the new guys working on the game. But I feel like even they should have done a bit of background research about who they were applying to work for and his track record. Especially if they’re fans of sim racing themselves.

But pre-launch Bell did boast a lot about how many industry veterans and returning devs from Project CARS were on the team, so I think the number of “new hires” was fortunately pretty small.

 

[matrix_gt1]

I at least feel bad for the new guys working on the game. But I feel like even they should have done a bit of background research about who they were applying to work for and his track record. Especially if they’re fans of sim racing themselves.

But pre-launch Bell did boast a lot about how many industry veterans and returning devs from Project CARS were on the team, so I think the number of “new hires” was fortunately pretty small.

project cars 1 and 2 was very much well received. People loved those games... to work with people who worked on them would be a dream to many.

 

[RX-7_FD3S]

The industry is bloodbath mode.

Not really no, PMR was never gonna work after pcars3. Ian Bell showed his hand and he proved incapable of doing another game as good as Pcars 1 and 2, I personnaly never believed his crap. If he really hired part of his old team, he surely didnt got the one that did the engine, god that game is ugly and very heavy in ressource too and it's weird cause PCars 2 was amazing. Day-Night cycle looked so good (if you had the comp). I mean look at that :



I think it's so bad that if I show Pcars2 and PMR to someone and ask which is the oldest game, 99% of the people gonna reply the 10 year youngest game.

As for Wreckcreation, its just a worst Forza Horizon, why would anyone buy that ? The game looks like a mobile game too. Racing games aren't like action games, there's a lot fewer people playing them and when you take out the sims, even less and most are playing Mario kart or the likes or FH.

Good title will find their way, look at AC Rally.

 

[matrix_gt1]

Not really no, PMR was never gonna work after pcars3. Ian Bell showed his hand and he proved incapable of doing another game as good as Pcars 1 and 2, I personnaly never believed his crap. If he really hired part of his old team, he surely didnt got the one that did the engine, god that game is ugly and very heavy in ressource too and it's weird cause PCars 2 was amazing. Day-Night cycle looked so good (if you had the comp). I mean look at that :



I think it's so bad that if I show Pcars2 and PMR to someone and ask which is the oldest game, 99% of the people gonna reply the 10 year youngest game.

As for Wreckstation, its just a worst Forza Horizon, why would anyone buy that ? The game looks like a mobile game too. Racing games aren't like action games, there's a lot fewer people playing them and when you take out the sims, even less and most are playing Mario kart or the likes or FH.

Good title will find their way, look at AC Rally.

Wreckreation had potential, They were making it better and better and boom it's gone. "Why would anyone buy that?" A spiritual successor to Burnout Paradise? There really isn't something like out right now.

I do agree games often get released or given to the public way too early. But I don't agree that these games were destined to be cancelled. Small teams and big ambitions. It's alot harder these days to make a cheap game that matches the quality of AAA titles.

 

[Veinz]

I'm perfectly fine with seeing bad products fail, but laying people off right before Christmas is a disgrace.

 

[RX-7_FD3S]

Wreckreation had potential, They were making it better and better and boom it's gone. "Why would anyone buy that?" A spiritual successor to Burnout Paradise? There really isn't something like out right now.

I do agree games often get released or given to the public way too early. But I don't agree that these games were destined to be cancelled. Small teams and big ambitions. It's alot harder these days to make a cheap game that matches the quality of AAA titles.

I used to love Burnout, it was amazing, I bought them all until they did an open word and lost all the interesting things (for me).

I didn't play Wreckcreation but from the trailers, I haven't seen anything different than FH but worst. So yeah.

Had they release a game closer to the og burnout with all the destruction you could do, I might have bought it because I've spend hours trying to get the biggest bill against my friends and with modern graphics it would have been awesome, yet they tried to do a game that look like FH or The crew but in worst.

And again look at AC Rally, small team, yet the game is a banger. If you do things properly you are rewarded. Nowadays a bad game will crash you hard, especially if you spend millions on it.

 

[Voodoovaj]

Not really no,

Yes really, yes. Development studios are announcing closures and/or layoffs on a seemingly daily basis. Tens of thousands of developers are sitting at home, competing for precious few openings, wondering how they'll make ends meet.

PMR could have been better with proper funding, but this isn't the climate for that.

 

[matrix_gt1]

I used to love Burnout, it was amazing, I bought them all until they did an open word and lost all the interesting things (for me).

I didn't play Wreckcreation but from the trailers, I haven't seen anything different than FH but worst. So yeah.

Had they release a game closer to the og burnout with all the destruction you could do, I might have bought it because I've spend hours trying to get the biggest bill against my friends and with modern graphics it would have been awesome, yet they tried to do a game that look like FH or The crew but in worst.

And again look at AC Rally, small team, yet the game is a banger. If you do things properly you are rewarded. Nowadays a bad game will crash you hard, especially if you spend millions on it.

"if you do things properly you are rewarded." It isn't so simple. No team goes in to make a bad game.

 

[evldave333]

Capitalism is gutting out the business with the usual shortsighted greed. Why should the few richest folks in the world consolidate at the expense of creativity? My heart goes out the folks who actually make the games, thanks for everything you do.

 

[Bogie 19th]

This seems a bit hypocritical coming from Ian now.

 

[kjb]

I at least feel bad for the new guys working on the game. But I feel like even they should have done a bit of background research about who they were applying to work for and his track record. Especially if they’re fans of sim racing themselves.

But pre-launch Bell did boast a lot about how many industry veterans and returning devs from Project CARS were on the team, so I think the number of “new hires” was fortunately pretty small.

Sometimes you don't have choices and you take what you can get.

I'm perfectly fine with seeing bad products fail, but laying people off right before Christmas is a disgrace.

I have been laid off before Christmas and it sucks but sometimes it has to be done to keep the business afloat. When I got laid off we just had our first child and just got a house so it was rough. My boss at the time sat me down and explained to me tried everything he could to keep as long as he could but he wasn't able to do it anymore.

 

[RX-7_FD3S]

"if you do things properly you are rewarded." It isn't so simple. No team goes in to make a bad game.

No one had a knife under their throat saying release the game in this state now ! PMR at least could have been developed further, lots of reviews said it had potential, but now with the layoff it's dead.

Well it is that simple, check Expedition 33, Hades 2, Silksong, Balatro, Absolum, all indies games and all had success because they are good games. There's is so much choice now, that bad game or game that aren't bringing anything new don't really work. and neither of the game in this thread were particulary good or innovative. Just same old same old but worst than all of their competitors or even for some, some of their previous games. I don't know what they expected.

 

[Gerarghini]

This seems a bit hypocritical coming from Ian now.

Not me defending the fraud Ian Bell, but he has a point (or maybe not really; EA did get sold for like 100 trillion billion dollars to the Saudis so maybe they were broke after all which is absolutely insane)