Better day

[avevale_intelligencer]

On two out of three counts anyway. Uru Live is still cancelled. In sixty days, everything shuts down.

And part of me is screaming Why, Lord, Why? and part of me is saying Because you didn't deserve it enough, you weren't good enough, you weren't there enough, you weren't supportive enough, you didn't cheerlead for Cyan and drown out the naysayers who kept the numbers down. It's your fault, Charlie.

Which is both true and poppycock. I wasn't as supportive as I could have been, indeed I've been downright critical. But in the end, games like Uru and the Myst series, now that they're no longer startlingly new and the meanest FPS tripe can boast graphics that look as cool (thanks to Cyan leading the way, of course, but who remembers fifteen years ago?) games like Uru and the Myst series are always going to be a minority interest, and big business is not interested in minorities. Even if it can afford to finance them on the back of the popular stuff. If it's not bringing in the money, it's out.

People are talking about cancelling their subscriptions in a "That'll show 'em" sort of way, and it's kind of sweet, but in the end our numbers won't even cause a blip. If there was any chance that they might, Uru Live would be safe. And now I feel really stupid for daring to hope that this time it would work.

But, apart from all this thusness, I am hopefully no longer a card-carrying resident of Jackass County, and I remembered to do pancakes today. So, a better day.

Oh, and......

I made the flyby in Vue, jahura helped me with the Flash coding and the background image. It doesn't link anywhere, but hey, it's something.

Comments

[jahura.livejournal.com]

Why?

I could list lots of reasons but you've heard them before. Why salt the wound?

As for the panel, you can't link anywhere yet. I'm workin' on it.

[hurdle1gal.livejournal.com]

WOW! I like the book! I keep on expecting it to focus in on the castle, like how the games does a similar focus at the end of the linking animation. Well done, both of you! (insert thumbs up smilie)

As for GameTap, it is sad news on them closing it down. I guess I will never get the chance to experience what you, jahura, and so many other people on the forum get to do. I guess I always thought it would be around... I assumed wrong. At least you got to experience it.

[lutos.livejournal.com]

Wait....you two did that flyby? Very cool! I'd love to land though and explore....sigh. ;)

About Uru: As Speedy said, at least y'all had the experience; I could start and blame myself, too, for not buying a PC or MacIntel and do my utter best to be able to join UruLive, but then....I have to admit that I was quite a bit pissed that the Mac-community once again was left out.
I doubt that much FPS-games have such a steady fan community as the Myst/Uru one has. I think it was due to those fans that UruLive re-opened, right? So there really is not much left that one can do (except for sending large amounts of money to keep it open, if you happen to possess them of course...)

Here's hoping that they won't drop it all and maybe will create other Myst/Uru-like games in the future.

[ex-lark-asc.livejournal.com]

Cavern tattle yesterday suggested that Gametap made some dumb marketing decisions too; they were trying to sell UU to the young gamer generation, which was never going to fly. There are no guns, no stats and no easy ways to get "status" quickly (ie. grinding). If Cyan tried to team up with a silver surfers site or something, they might have a lot more luck; people who like crossword puzzles and chess might be much more interested in a community puzzle game.

Me, I'd like to see it go open source, but you'd need a hardcore team of geeks to keep it alive, and there seems to be a remarkably low geek factor in Uru...

[dickgloucester.livejournal.com]

Glad you're feeling better. Nice fly-by...

[do0odlebug.livejournal.com]

"and big business is not interested in minorities. Even if it can afford to finance them on the back of the popular stuff."

Not true. If the majority is in deep financial trouble, business will go for any minority that might still have money.

Watch for a massiver increase in businesses chasing the "Pink Pound" over the next year as the sub-prime mess runs.