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3DO Files For Bankruptcy

Posted by simoniker on from the three-times-doh dept.

Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to a Reuters report via Yahoo News announcing that game publisher and developer 3DO has filed for bankruptcy. As the article indicates, the former console hardware creator "..has struggled to gain a foothold in the competitive games business and has relied on Chief Executive Trip Hawkins for recent funding." Even a recent attempt to buck their reputation for bad quality games by funding higher-budget titles such as 'Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse' seems to have ended in failure, since industry sources are indicating all except 20 employees have been laid off, effective today, as the company looks to sell its properties.

4 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. Did they ever move anything? And shake it? by TwistedKestrel · · Score: 5, Interesting

    This sums up everything I remember about 3DO recently. I mean, I do find it rather remarkable that they held on for so long after that console with their name on kind of didn't do so well ... but between then and now, have they done anything interesting? Remarkable? Something that makes this death tragic? This is not a rhetorical question, I really wanna know.

    1. Re:Did they ever move anything? And shake it? by chota · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Actually, you make a very good point.

      I'm reminded of the article a little while ago where the "indy artist" released his album as mp3s on a website and nobody wanted to buy his album (or even download most of the songs)...

      It wasn't because of "the big bad market." It was, quite simply, because they sucked.

      Imagine -- a game company that doesn't make good games... I chalk this one up to good ol' economics. People don't buy games that suck, company that makes games that suck doesn't get money, company goes under.

      Any questions?

  2. Re:A mismatch? by Babbster · · Score: 4, Informative
    When did 3DO ever make a lot of money in the arcade market? I'm not even aware that they were ever in the arcade market, unless they licensed some of their lousy console games to someone for the purpose of making machines.

    3DO started as a console company by designing the 3DO game system with the plan of licensing the architecture to other manufacturers (most notably Panasonic) who would build the actual machines. Once that failed (after many attempts and some spectacularly expensive machines), Trip and the gang tried to restyle themselves as kind of "the fresh, new EA" (presumably he felt that he was the reason EA was successful and so he should be able to easily do it again). Instead, they ended up becoming a company of hacks (or at least run by hacks) trying to capitalize on their very few successes by turning out bad sequel after bad sequel (see "Army Men"). They've always been the slowest to catch up with the technology curve (if they ever did) and their game designs did nothing to redeem that deficiency.

    Anyway, no, 3DO had little or nothing to do with arcades. Instead, they're a PC/console game developer that's managed to destroy itself despite the fact that video gaming is more popular than ever...Something even Acclaim hasn't managed. Nice job, Trip.

  3. No Sympathy Whatsoever by Netbrian · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I should try and work up something vaguely resembling sympathy for this company, but quite frankly, I find it impossible. They've had it coming for a long time, with the string of bad Army Men titles, and the implosion of the Might and Magic series, both of which are their own fault. 3DO serves as a perfect study for the case against firing the highly skilled designers and programmers in order to cut costs.

    My heart does go out to those displaced by the meltdown though. I wish the industry was at the point where they could find work at somewhere with better treatment of their employees.