More fuel for the Rumor Mill

Just saw this little tid-bit on the Facebook page.

http://www.gamerzines.com/mmo/rumour...nterested.html


Don't know if it's been posted as it's three days old, but it brings up some interesting notions of NCSoft possible parlaying CoH for a more profitable offer.

There may be multiple buyers, but that is irrelevant.

What is pertinent is the fact that NCSoft already admitted they "gave up" as they said they have "exhausted all options." If they themselves are already saying they are out of options, then there is not much point in other buyers trying to acquire the IP and all other components.

However, if they are parlaying the game in hopes that they can get more money out of it from said potential buyers than they are offering, then it is a big gamble, since said buyers may not think that the game is worth the money they might end up paying if NCSoft's parlay tactic works out (which it probably won't).

In other words, with the closing only 41 days away, it's very unlikely some kind of deal with come of all of this. When the seller already admits defeat, it's extremely difficult to change their mind.

Even if the game were purchased, I would still see it shutting down for the sake of such a significant transition. A lot of detail would need to be worked out. We assumed the IP would be bought to maintain the game as it is. This may not be the case.

The thing i just dont understand after saying 'exausted all options', why not give a single interview to any gamesite on the planet? If they are so certain its going down, why wont they just go out and tell so in interviews?

One option is to keep everything on a low profile and let the game shut down quietly, 1,5month passed and maybe the big sites wont put any effort anymore to get interviews..

Honestly. I'd LOVE for CoH to be bought and brought back by someone. I would.

But I don't see NCSoft selling. To ANYONE.

Why? ****** if I know! You'd have to ask NCSoft about it.

If they think that, by closing the game, they're somehow multiplying the value of the property, they've been drinking WAYYY too much soju.

If they lock it away in their vault, the value of the property essentially equals zero. They have no community. They have no developers. They have no writing.

Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.

NCSoft isn't interested in selling. The IP is not for sale. They made that very clear with their "exhausted every opportunity" post.

"You got to dig it to dig it, you dig?"
Thelonious Monk

Or, it could just be that NCSoft is done supporting US and/or EU based games so they can shove their grind-fest POS's down our throats.

Honestly, if I wanted to play another Asian grind-fest MMO, I would head over to AeriaGames. They have plenty...And most (if not, all) of them are still in operation now here in the states and over in the EU.

You have got to be kidding me... really, Tony?

Quote:

I hate to be coy about this, but I have heard that multiple publishers and developers have been interested in enquiring about City of Heroes, it isn’t just Paragon Studios at the table. Who? I can’t really say, but if there are they don’t talk to me directly.

Which is saying, to me anyway: "I heard from a friend of a friend of a brother who's married to a certain woman who happens to be from Bangladesh, and her childhood BFF moved to Seoul, and apparently emailed her that he heard from his current girlfriend who works at a Starbuck that there was this guy who was getting drinks for his bosses who worked at this company who is apparently possibly drawing up papers for NCSoft to sell something, which is maybe City of Heroes!... but it's just something I heard, as whoever is doing this negotiating isn't talking to me directly. But hey, somethings happening, so that's awesome, right?!?!"

Quit it Tony. It's disingenuous to say "I don't want to be coy about it..." then proceed to be that exact thing. This isn't how heroes act, continuing rumors that are simply that: Rumors. If not makin' them up right off, which this sounds so very like.

Speak up when someone says "Oh yeah, we're talkin' to them. Hard. We'll get it. Hang on." Until then, just... don't. You undermine your own efforts, and it smells a little like desperation. Keep up the good fight, but doing this is screaming "LOOK AT US, WE'RE STILL RELEVANT!", but what it comes off as "WE AREN'T GETTING ENOUGH ATTENTION!"

Perhaps I'm mistaken. But I would rather know this or that party has NCSoft's ear. And why would it be such a big damn secret anyway? That is the dumb part of this, if it's true, that all the parties are being secretive about it. Why? What *possible* point is that? Keep NCSoft from being embarassed they shut the doors? I believe their actions in doing that, the way they did it, did that plenty enough, so what's a little more? When they sell, if they sell, it'll still be 'embarassing' to have done so, to which, again, the point of being secret is moot.

But what do I know. I'm just a raving, ranting lunatic who's kinda tired of all these rumors, surrounding me every day. Hell, I just heard my best friend heard one about me and the girl next door. Or so he says. Whatevers, she's hot, it'll keep people guessin' about me and how the hell I managed to acquire that target.

Mike

NCsoft won't sell CoH for anything. They'll sit on the IP and let it die, why? so no one else can profit off it. I had a stray thought though, what if someone was to pick up the IP with the promise not to make a profit on it? make it a not for profit mmo? I know kinda weird, money comes in to pay the devs and maintainance, extra gets put into updates.

...which leads us right back to: "Money..... we like money, but not money generated by that particular game. I know! Let's permanently anger a large portion of those people GIVING us that money, with a no-warning, scorched-earth permanent shutdown! That'll teach them to give us money we don't want!"

In what universe do companies NOT like money... I. Can't. Even.

I just have to say one other thing: Tony V in that rumor article had said that he didn't want to divulge the names of the interest groups that were potentially looking to buy City Of Heroes. What point is there in withholding the names? I think he knows that whatever groups he knows of who have offered to buy the IP are not credible or such offers simply could not have been taken seriously.

Paragon Studios was owned entirely by NC Soft and everyone at Paragon negotiating a separation of the studio from NC Soft was subject to a nondisclosure agreement because of his former contract. Other companies aren't subject to that agreement. Why would it hurt any company's image if the company simply stated that it had tried to buy the IP, but NC Soft wouldn't negotiate? The company offering would have nothing to lose in any such statement; there really weren't any bridges to burn in the sales talks.

Whatever offers Tony V knows of seem incredulous at best. A medium to large sized studio would have been free to release some sort of statement when talks fell through or we would have heard something by now through the grapevine. At this point, if Tony's sources are credible, he would have nothing to lose in tarnishing NC Soft's image. Withholding the names of the interest groups just doesn't add up.