#game studios

'Myst III: Exile'

[VARIOUS] [AUSTRALIA] [MAGAZINE] [2001]

"Myst. The very name evokes a sense of intrigue, the anticipation that new discoveries will emerge from a shrouding haze. It is this sense of wonder that a talented creative team led by two brothers, Robyn and Rand Miller, managed to capture in a game that has now become a legend. Myst created a legacy beloved of fans worldwide. It also introduced a universe as significant to interactive entertainment as Star Wars is to cinema and Middle Earth is to literature. Imagine the honor and responsibility of being asked to create the next adventure in such a groundbreaking and cherished series. For us at Presto Studios, it has been almost overwhelming. Not simply because of what we are following, but also because of the expectation that a new Myst game must once again advance the art. For the last two years we have put our art, our heart, to this goal. There has been wonder and revelation, challenge and struggle, excitement and joy in the adventure of this creation. We hope you discover the same things playing it." ~Presto Studios, forward from the Myst III: Exile Offical Prima Guide.

Something I am really noticing online when it comes to discussions of eventual "behind the scenes drama", "early cancellations" and such things of media, but also "upcoming projects" for media is, that folks clearly do not understand NDAs.

NDAs are Non-Disclosure Agreements. Basically, if you work in any form of big media production, or even so much as a journalist covering this (same when you work in all sorts of other fields), you will be handed an NDA for work. I mean, I worked for a bank for a while, I had to sign an NDA basically saying. "Yo, I won't talk shit about anyone's personal finances." Chances are: If you are working, you have signed an NDA together with your work contract for something.

And the same is true with anything in terms of multimedia production. Basically anyone who works in media will sign an NDA that will cover all sorts of stuff - and might be up for adjustments later on.

So, basically, your NDA will say:

You cannot spoil upcoming projects.

You cannot speak about anything upcoming, until whoever holds to property rights gives the okay and makes an announcement.

You cannot talk about any behind the scenes drama (like beef between people - or illicit affairs happening) - unless something explicitly criminal happened.

Usually there is a script about the narrative media is having about a production, and you gotta stick to that - says your NDA.

This means the following: Just stop annoying people with your questions about the upcoming season or movie for franchise whatever. No, they will not be able to answer you whether XY happens. Because they literally signed a contract saying they owe whoever they work for a whole big bunch of money if they do.

But this also means: If you hear a rumor about someone behaving shitty or about a studio cancelling a project or something along those lines, and you ask people who worked on that about it online and they either are vague about it or deny it, this also does not have to mean anything, because chances are, they have signed an NDA, and yes, this NDA can force them to outright lie, unless they would cover up a crime.

(And let's face it, when it comes to Hollywood, people have absolutely tried to just gaslight folks into covering up crimes by having them sign such NDAs. No, this is not legal. It absolutely is not. But not everyone knows that and if like Harvey Weinstein's army of lawyers tells you, that you cannot talk about Harvey raping you, because otherwise you owe him 10 million, you might think twice about risking it.)

I am writing this, because last year I noticed both a lot. Fans bugging creators with questions about upcoming shows or movies, while the creatives reiterated several times that they could not talk about it because of their NDAs. And also fans just eating up the "official narratives" of studios about cases where probably some really bad stuff happened behind the scenes with the words of: "Well, but producer XY said so, and nobody else disagreed." Yeah, duh, they didn't. Because if that happened, they signed an NDA to not lose a word about it.

I seriously hope the Triple A bubble bursts. Investors and parent companies have been the bane of modern gaming for over a decade now because of their demand for exponential growth, and they're willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish that.

Which, ironically, only causes these studios to go under. These giant studios with thousands of employees only serve to make budgets inflate and development slower.

Tim Cain said it best when what would've taken him a lunch break to do required 4 weeks because of all the bureaucracy and approval it would have to go through.

Funny how the most successful games of the past few years have been independent and double A games that actually treat the player with respect.

Artists I like - 4/??