Well that's just shitty. Going from a renowned, individual name to a corporate one that gives the impression of being nothing more than a studio producing cookie-cutter games - not something Irrational deserves.
Balls.
http://home.businesswire.com/portal/...00&newsLang=en
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), announced today the name change of industry leading development studio Irrational Games to 2K Boston and 2K Australia. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts and with offices in Canberra, Australia, Irrational Games is an internationally renowned developer of story-driven, genre-defining games with award-winning hits like System Shock 2, Freedom Force, Tribes: Vengeance, and SWAT 4. The name changes to 2K Boston and 2K Australia symbolize the studios’ further integration into the 2K Games family following their outstanding performance on BioShock™, the upcoming blockbuster available exclusively for the Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system and Games For Windows on August 21, 2007 in North America and in Europe beginning August 24, 2007.
“Irrational Games is widely recognized as one of the most innovative development studios in the world,” said Christoph Hartmann, President of 2K. “Following their incredible efforts in bringing BioShock to life, we are proud to make the newly renamed Irrational Games studios a cornerstone of our game development family.”
Recognizing the exceptional talent and creative vision that have made Irrational Games one of the industry’s premier developers, 2K Games has fostered the studio’s growth by substantially investing in its people, allowing Irrational Games to almost double in size since the studio’s acquisition by 2K in 2005. With the upcoming release of BioShock – one of the year’s most hotly anticipated titles – 2K Boston and 2K Australia, with the backing of 2K Games, are raising the bar for forward-thinking game design.
“We’re proud to be part of the 2K Games family and enjoy the new opportunities and artistic freedoms this strengthened relationship provides,” said Ken Levine, President and Creative Director of 2K Boston. “The name change signifies our growing position as a central part of 2K Games, and we plan to ensure our future titles continue to set new standards of quality and innovation for the industry.”
For more information, visit the 2K Boston and 2K Australia websites www.2kboston.com and www.2kaustralia.com.
Well that's just shitty. Going from a renowned, individual name to a corporate one that gives the impression of being nothing more than a studio producing cookie-cutter games - not something Irrational deserves.
Balls.
That's very sad...
What happened to building a brand name? The reputation we associate with "Irrational" isn't good enough?
If we got through dropping the "looking glass" brand we can get through this, but not only is this sort of insulting, it's also weird.
I don't really see 2K Games as the faceless evil corporation that we tend to see the big publishers, I think they have a great set of developers under their belt and back some great games. However like Dave I feel that Irrational has lost some of its individuality, and the reputation behind their name, even if this is just a name change. The old name was fuckin' cool!
A part of me just died inside.
It's taken Irrational so long to finally release a game that's going to be a guaranteed huge success, and now they're going to destroy the name that has made them famous and became synonymous with their high quality games and culture of development.
BioSock is still going to be fantastic, and all the credit for it should be given where it's due for the great folks that worked on it to make it what it is, but I'm very disappointed in both 2K and Irrational right now.
Totally, completely stupid.
What a dumb decision.
The people in charge may have wanted to more strongly associate Irrational to 2K with the name change (probably because of all the huge praise Bioshock is getting from the press), but in the process they take away exactly what everyone identifies with: the name Irrational.
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.
Weaksauce. I wonder how the team feels about this. Hopefully the studio will retain its individuality.
On the other hand, it could be seen as a nice display of 2K's belief in the strength of the studio.
True, but it's much better to refer to it as a rose than a flower thingy.Originally Posted by Matthew
2K Flora.
weeeeeak
2K Flora: Red, 2K Flora: White.
Lol, nice.
Even Activision and THQ let the studios keep their names.
I really don't understand the reason for this.
That's quite the "reward." I will continue to refer to them as Irrational. Why would they want to choose such a generic name for such a renowned studio? Completely stupid.
That sucks. What made 2K and IG want to go forward with this decision? It's stupid in every way.
oh for fuck's sake.
QFT.
well, I just loved the name "irrational games". As long as they keep on making great games I don´t care much but sure it sounded much better than 2k boston.
A fellow over at voodooextreme posted a nice edit:
"Irrational Games is widely recognized as one of the most innovative development studios in the world," 2K president Christoph Hartmann said in a statement. "So we thought it would be a great idea to piss in their faces and throw their name in the shitpile. I'd like to give a big shout-out to the Irrational Games team, followed swifty by a big 'fuck you'."
http://ve3dboards.ign.com/Message.as...start=27284944
If you're not too lazy, tell them they're stupid, i did so: inquiries@2kgames.com
jj
Oooh...ahhhh...that's how this all starts...but then there's running...and screaming...
Just a guess: Because BioShock is apparently going to be a big seller, 2k wants it closer associated. While Irrational may be known to fans and critics, remember they're going for the broad audience this time. So maybe 2k wagers the credit gained will be bigger than the loss of the brand.
boo
Honestly, I was thinking something along the same lines after reading Hartmann's statement. So, yeah, this post is like yet another QFT from me in this thread.
Hm, will Bioshock now get published with 2K Boston/Australia on its credits sequence? Or will it still be signed Irrational? Just trying to figure out why Take Two pulled this stunt like... now.
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