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Stargate SG-1 Game Finally Canceled
After a long and troubled history, the Stargate videogame has finally been canceled by developer Perception. The company itself is in trouble, according to the Gamasutra report. From the article: "According to the same source, the game has now been terminated for all formats and the development team 'let go'. Any decision as to whether to proceed with the game, which had apparently reached the Alpha stage of completion and has built up a sizeable fan community, will now presumably rest at least partially with license holders MGM. No official comment had been received from Perception as of press time."
When will people understand that game developers are just underpaid contractors? They change companies with every project.
Whatever you want to say about the quality of the show the last few seaons,
you can only applaud JoWood when they said they're weren't going to publish this as just another lousy liscense game. We see time and again it's easy to put out a bad game with a good liscense and sell it effectively to the fans regardless of how the game plays. (See basically any movie tie in game as reference).
It's a shame, I think a game with the Stargate liscense could have some potential; but no game is better than a very bad game as far as I'm concerned.
Make it. Please. MMORPG-style (maybe FPS)... the show even has some nice mechanics that can translate directly into good gameplay mechanics - for intance the way that the gate's controller can deny entry to their world by continually dialing out. The stargate in general makes a great gameplay mechanic by seperating the universe into discrete atomic units that are easily managed.
You can even mirror the shows' plotline - several distinct races with shifting alliances try to carve out a safe place in their world.
Hell, even include Go'auld recruitment - when a player gets infected their character gets a massive boost in stats, can raise an army of (loyal or disloyal) soldiers, access to advanced technology, and a new reward system to encourage them to throw old loyalties aside and become the brutal dictator inside.
Unpopulated worlds get their own dungeons teeming with artifacts. For either single play or squad play with lots of fun puzzles. Some dungeons should have an immovable artifact of great power - get the artifact, it should be easy to get control of the gate and set yourself up a little empire. Or, if you're part of a clan, take the world for your clan and get promoted...
I would play. And I've avoided MMORPG succesfully for a decade. But I would still play.
I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
By that logic, Richard Dean Anderson hasn't left either. I didn't say that the character died, I just said that they aren't an integral part of the show anymore.
:-)
IMHO, that's a good thing. People in real life tend to get promoted, transferred, and otherwise moved around. While we can use Movie Magic to delay such changes (e.g. Riker turns down command, SG1 is the only successful team, "Admiral" Kirk gets demoted, etc.), you can only delay it for so long before the plot goes stale. The constant cycling of SG-1 characters (save for Jonas Quinn, that just didn't work) keeps the Stargate Universe alive and fresh. If Jack was still leading every team into a mission, we (the fans) would have to start wondering:
a) Who he pissed off to keep getting passed over for promotion; or
b) Why a general is leading a single team into the field?
Of course, it would have been cool if RDA had been tasked for a role as, say, a tactical assault coordinator (i.e. As a general he leads multiple teams into major battles), but he (IRL) really wanted a bit of distance from the show schedule.
Besides, you have to keep things somewhat realistic or the U.S. Armed Forces may stop officially endorsing the show. I mean, what other show has featured not just one, but TWO Chiefs of Staff of the USAF as actors on the show? (True story. The episodes were "Prodigy" and "Lost City" which featured Michael E. Ryan and John P. Jumper respectively.)
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
The original regular cast members were Don S. Davis (Gen. Hammond), RDA (Jack), Amanda Tapping, Michael Shanks, and Christopher Judge. True, O'neill and Hammond are no longer series regulars...however, RDA did appear in episodes 1 and 3 of season 9 as a guest star, and his character is still very much alive in the Stargate universe. Davis appeared in episodes 10 and 11 of this season, and his character is also very much alive, he will probably be making future appearances. Amanda Tapping was not present in the first 5 episodes of season 9, but that was not because she left the series...the actress was merely on maternity leave, and she returned to the series starting episode 6. She's been in every episode since then. Michael Shanks was gone for most of season 6 (though he did make a few guest appearances and also provided the voice for Thor). He returned as a regular in the first episode of season 7 and has been with the series since then. Christopher Judge has never left, he's been in every episode AFAIK. So we still have 3 of the original 5 regular cast members, frequent guest appearances by 1, and infrequent guest apperances by the last...I'd hardly call that "most of the original cast is gone". I think Stargate will be fine...it's definitely going into season 10, and the chances for a season 11 are very good. And just because the Goa'uld empire has been wiped out does not mean they're all gone. They aren't the threat they once were, but they are still very much around. Baal in particular, he was the main antagonist in one of the season 9 episodes.