NCsoft Brighton to Axe Dev Team
By
Aero_,
Posted on: 2008-09-10 13:53 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
All the best to the unfortunate ones and there loved ones.
Im not sure that there is nething to say... other than im stunned by this and to the few or many all the best and good luck my sympathies are with u
Is not going to remain VIP after Jan 14th 2012, but may remain an active Premium account holder.
See some of you guys/gals in other/new MMOs Soon(tm)
N.B. If you are going to do smt, please do it or GTFO and STFU nab
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Another example (as if we didnt have enough already) that the UK and europe are just too damn expensive to keep a games studio running in. The way that games companies deal with project cutbacks sucks though.
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There are 3 games studios in the UK that i can think of, from the top of my head... Ubisoft (looking for jobs in Newcastle, but also have offices in Chertsey), Electronic Arts (Guildford and London) and also Broadsword Interactive (Aberystwyth, Wales).
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there are a lot of companies, but there were a lot more, the ubisoft chertsey you mention is a purely sales and marketing /distribution arm of the company...
my point being european nations are a lot more expensive to run a games studio from, loads of them outsource to india, china and other such countries because to retain the number of people required to push out the amount of normal content a game requires is untenable, it makes the studios incredibly expensive vs cheaper locations, and the UK is worse than most of them.
@ExtraGonk
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Nothing in there about NorCal? 
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Considering the funds pumped into setting up NorCal I would be very surprised if they are affected in the slightest. As far as I can see this is all about the supporting/publishing structures around the Dev team and shifting to support a reconsidered portfolio of MMOs.
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The Easter event last year was a fantastic piece of work. The vids to build up to the Leipzig event were brilliant.
The community that has been created by these boards has been and often still is, wonderful.
SingStar, my response to your poisonous little postings was a PM to you, as it wasn't fit for public broadcast.
Notify Moderators as you wish, you poisonous little troll.
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1. I will... (edit: Just checked it, nothing bad there, but sure gave me a good laugh. You're so cute)
2. I take it you've decided to think they all suck at NC, since I'm concluding in my post the good guys (and girls, sorry for not pointing that one out) are sure to benefit. Who's "poisonous" really?
When, that is IF, you loose your job (nothing official about that yet) you can feel sorry for yourself, or concider it a new beginning. IMHO there's nothing sad about loosing your job, unless you get stuck without a job. Therefore I'd rather congratulate some of the people.
I don't feel sorry for them, and I hope they don't feel sorry for themselves. If they where sick, getting a divorse or something, I'd say 'soz, man!' even to the ones I really, really, really dislike, but getting away from NCSoft, I'm sure, will be the best thing that's ever happened to many of'em.
The boards: Oh, you mean all those one-liner posters that ruin perfectly good threads. Yeah, they're awesome (ironic remark)! Funny how I rarely see the posters in-game, you know, the real community. You should try it! 
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Nothing in there about NorCal?
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Considering the funds pumped into setting up NorCal I would be very surprised if they are affected in the slightest.
As far as I can see this is all about the supporting/publishing structures around the Dev team.
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But if NorCal aren't part of NC West and NC West are responsible for (at least the community end of) COH....?
I don't know what I'm trying to say there, but there's a concerned tone in my voice when I'm saying it.
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter
okies i get the new start thing, but to be put in this place whihc is not thier own fault IF in need they have. They have brought a lot to this communtiy those who are suspected to have been made redundant. I wish them all the best and go kick some NC hiney with some other company *cough* Cryptic *cough*
Is not going to remain VIP after Jan 14th 2012, but may remain an active Premium account holder.
See some of you guys/gals in other/new MMOs Soon(tm)
N.B. If you are going to do smt, please do it or GTFO and STFU nab
Okay, now that I've had some time to think on this, I think I can say something coherently.
Why does this bother me? Heck, why does it even upset me a bit? Apart from some direct contact at the various shows and meets I've been to (Brighton Comic Expo 05, Bristol Comic Expo 06, Memorabilia 06, NetParma Cafe 07, Memorabilia 07, Omega Sektor 08, Bristol Comic Expo 08), or indirectly through the boards and blogs and such, it's not like these guys are super special dear friends of mine that I interact with and chat to on a regular basis.
But they, through holding their stands at verious shows, and the player meets, have introduced me and gotten me better acquainted with people who became super special dear friends of mine.
As some know and some don't, I have panic and anxiety issues. And the year before the 2005 meet up, I couldn't even leave my own house, let alone go to the nearest town or city. Travelling from Norfolk to Brighton would be unthinkable. Heck, even now I still have issues with travelling and crowds. I went into a panic in front of Wild_Red at Omega Sektor, and some people at the last Memorabilia I went to.
So, after some pretty fast talking to my parents to meet people from The Internet at this show, I was on my way to Brighton with the folks. I got there, looked around the stands. And was terrified. I saw people but didn't speak to them, and waited until people I knew turned up. I got to know those people better, and my parents discovered it's okay to meet people from the internet without me getting snatched away.
So I started travelling more and meeting my friends I'd made in game, because of that event and getting to know them more, and getting the confidence to do so. Ravenswing and FFM can attest to how I locked up on that evening in the bar at the Hilton Metropole, locked into a panic that, like fear on a minion, made me want to get away and flee to safety from the whirling mass of people. And yet I took a few minutes to compose myself, and drew in the strength of will to march back down to meet up with them for dinner. Could I have done that if the community team hadn't put on that event? No.
And it's gone on from there. I've spent around... getting close to a thousand pounds now getting to these various events. I've travelled the length and bredth of the country by myself, fighting off panic at every turn to get to these events, made to feel welcome, meeting friends, heck, even had dinner with Bridger one time with a group of players.
It's been the community and the team behind it that have made me keep on playing, and getting closer to other members of the community through events they've had parts in. Heck, most of the shows I've been to, I've only gone to see the NC Soft guys, really, and of course the friends I've made through this game.
There was even the memorable time at the Bristol Comic Expo this year where I got a bunch of trial CD's, wandered out into the halls and started handing them out to people. Not only to try and get people interested in the game, but to try and push those flaws and weaknesses of mine further.
The people behind this game in Brighton have given me something more fun and more effective than a couple of years of therepy. I go to the shows and try and work through my shyness, have fun, meet people and grow closer to friends I've made.
And when I hear that the team's facing redundancies and drastic cutting back? Then yeah, I think it's pretty natural for me, as a human being, to feel sad about it, to wish people the best of luck, and to wonder what can I do, or could have done, to help.
We've had people behind the EU version of this game who aren't afraid to talk with us, joke with us and generally meet us and talk about something we all enjoy, and then many tangents and off topic subjects too. That's something that a lot of other MMO's don't even get a quater of. So now, I'm waiting for that further announcement with baited breath. To expect the worst, and hope for the best.
That's optomistic pessimism for you.
Zortel paid $0.02
A more than slightly impassioned post, but hey, what are we without passion?
.... Bravo, Z! Bravo! 
@FloatingFatMan
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
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my point being european nations are a lot more expensive to run a games studio from, loads of them outsource to india, china and other such countries because to retain the number of people required to push out the amount of normal content a game requires is untenable, it makes the studios incredibly expensive vs cheaper locations, and the UK is worse than most of them.
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Erhm, Sweden is usually concidered to be the worst adn this little, loong country has such a rediculous amount of studios I can't even keep track of'em anymore. Just in my little town, three major console game developers have their HQ's. I don't think people realize how many fairly small studios there are, and that's just game studios. Add in the amount of exciting IT companies doing all sorts of things there's a huuuge shortage of people pretty much everywhere in Europe... ...with the right skills that is.
A guy like GR should have no problem finding a well payed, interesting job. If they've made som good friends at NC, good, stay in contact and get some more, new friends.
You may find my postings provocative, but never ever pity someone that's lost their job or is about to, you're only helping them develop a major depression. Pity has never helped anyone, but a kick in the soft parts might.
The major danger here is that someone might end up working on "that other MMO we all hate".
Come to think of it, wouldn't that give us all a really good laugh?
I wanted a merger with the US servers. And who knows I might get it.
But I hate to see good people fired because of this. You know what they say about wishes coming true. 
For what it is worth. I feel saddened by this and hope you guys get new opportunities soon. I am gratefull for everything you have done so far for us even if I haven't been to any convention.
I think it's a tremendous shame when anyone loses their jobs via redundancy as its like being sacked but for no real reason. I myself was laid off by an employer a few years back and I can honestly say it was one of the most negative experiences of my life. The shock, fear and anxiety is truly awful. Unfortunately this is something I kinda wondered about a long while when NC announced a 42% net fall in income and that was announced back in August. Sadly NC it seems have had to do what they need to as an organisation. Personally, my heart goes out to all the families affected by this directly.
I joined this game 2 years ago and I myself was in the deepest state of depression I'd ever had after breaking up with my partner of 6 years. Its the glorious people in this game that actually said some of the most heart felt things I've ever been told. I never thought that a series of strangers distributed widely all over europe would be the ones to help me more than even my family could. The sheer possibility of these people reducing me to tears with their kindness is a testament. At my worst I had trouble even getting up in the morning let alone smiling. Its the people and players that have made this game, backed by the people who brought the game to us.
Without the assorted people who are now facing redundancy all over the world I would not have got back to being me. The real me, not that bastardised shell I was when I bought the game. 2 years later and I've made some truly great friends for life from this community, hence the sheer volume of PMs, offline global tells, emails, forum posts and even phone calls from the community when I recently was taken into hospital and almost died was staggering. The sheer strength of this games collective community has had a profound affect on me directly and I love that this level of spirit can exist in an environment such as this.
None of this would even be remotely possible without the staff of NC.
My thoughts and hopes are with you all and I sincerely hope there is some silver in this otherwise dark cloud. Blessed be.
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Octavian Vanguard
@ohmsEU and @ohms 2
Badging character: Bimble on the Union server, Badgehunter.com and City Info Tracker.
You know, it really is a testament to a games community spirit when this kind of news directly affects the members of it in such a profound way. I know that I've often been (perhaps overly) critical of CoH's players, but there is no other game (let alone MMO) that I've ever played where there is a genuine feeling of loss when something like this happens.
I am personally not affected by this news because I've never really chatted to RJ or the others at Memorabilia and such like (even though I've lurked by the NC stand now and then 
), but I know what a good community can do for people that do have social confidence issues, and what it means to the individuals affected when something like this happens to the driving force behind their "recovery", be it direct or indirect.
However callous Sings post appears, in some ways I can understand the message behind it. The skills that have made our community as good as it is will surely sell themselves for any prospective employer, and so people like RJ really don't have anything to worry about in the long term.
I would like to echo the well wishing though, and hope that this is the start of another series of glittering doors opening for the guys affected, rather than a big black closing one.
@SteelRat; @SteelRat2
"Angelina my love, I'm a genius!"
"Of course you are darling, that's why I married you. Physically, you're rather unattractive"
http://faces.cohtitan.com/profile/SteelRat
*Applauds Zortels and SS's impassioned posts*
Yeesh, this was the last thing I expected to happen today. This is a real shame and a great loss. RJs done a great amount of work for this community and its a tragedy that hes been given his marching orders. From his bizarre, self-deprecating and laugh out loud presentation on how to get into the gaming world to chatting about comics and movies over lunch, hes been great for the game and the people it attracts to it. Player events just wont be the same without his bizarre sense of madness about the place. All I can hope is that someone, somewhere snaps him up soon as hell be a real asset to them.
As for what it means for us, Im waiting to see what the merger entails and what impact it will have on the EU community. At the moment, it doesnt seem too earth shattering but Ill be hovering nervously for the rest of the week probably. This game has an excellent community compared to other games and some of that undoubtedly is due to the staff who put up with us/support us on these boards and at events. I certainly hope that this news does not bode badly for the rest of the NCSoft staff. Hang in there guys (and gals).
@Dante EU - Union Roleplayer and Altisis Victim
The Militia: Union RP Supergroup - www.themilitia.org.uk
The way some of these post go you would think someone had kicked the bucket, the fact is some have lost jobs yes its not nice BUT at this time in most of the weastern world loads of people are loosing there jobs due to factors beyond there control, maybe instead of the down hearted posting thats going maybe everyone should just wait and see what happens and if its the worse then those people who have meet the EU team could remeber the good things they have done for them and what a loss they will be to there game.
Ummmm why haven't we been given an official announcement on this?
I think we deserve one!
Hi all. Just wanted to pop in and thank everyone for the messages of support. I won't go into detail about anything, as that's going to be GhostRaptor's job (yes he's still going to be around - you can't get rid of him that easily I'm afraid). At the time I came to NCsoft I had been a CoX player for some time, and will still remain in game. In fact now I might have some time to play it(!!) so hopefully I'll see some of you in the skies over Paragon City.
/em bows out.
PS - Dante, give me a ring if there's any jobs going over the road will you?!?!?
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PS - Dante, give me a ring if there's any jobs going over the road will you?!?!?
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They got you too!!? Nooooooo!!!!
@Dante EU - Union Roleplayer and Altisis Victim
The Militia: Union RP Supergroup - www.themilitia.org.uk
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Ummmm why haven't we been given an official announcement on this?
I think we deserve one!
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Cause there's no one employed left in the office?
Edit:
Well, apart from Ghostraptor, it seems.
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/em bows out.
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Best of luck man, hope everything works out for you.
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter
Sad to see you go man -_-
Hope to see you in game.
If Aero can organize a bunch of unruly congoers all clamouring for DtWT sketches, I'm sure there's all kinds of places that could use his logistical skills.
Like cat herding.
Have you ever considered cat herding? It's all the rage.
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Have you ever considered cat herding? It's all the rage.
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I hadn't, although I'm currently exploring my options!
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Have you ever considered cat herding? It's all the rage.
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I hadn't, although I'm currently exploring my options!
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Rough on the skin, or so I've heard.
Nothing in there about NorCal?
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter