Originally Posted by BrandX
![]() Coming from someone who's avatar made use of the boob slider.
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NCSoft financials Q3 2012 are out.
NCSoft is quite vulnerable on the whole Boobs and Shame front - it's a good angle of attack to hurt them.
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As a matter of fact this type of "attack" inevitably backfires in the face of the morality police as it gets people that would never have even looked at the game to check it out for themselves and invariably attracts more customers because of the taboo nature sex has in Western cultures.
For example
Terry Rakolta led a boycott against Fox Broadcasting's Married With Children because she was offended by an episode that showed the images of an old man wearing a woman's garter and stockings.
Her attempts to boycott the show instead caused a dramatic rise in the shows ratings and led to the show being carried for several more years.
To add insult to injury the shows staff made sure to send Miss Rakolta a gift basket every year thanking her for attempting to get the show cancelled.
Terry Rakolta led a boycott against Fox Broadcasting's Married With Children because she was offended by an episode that showed the images of an old man wearing a woman's garter and stockings.
Her attempts to boycott the show instead caused a dramatic rise in the shows ratings and led to the show being carried for several more years. To add insult to injury the shows staff made sure to send Miss Rakolta a gift basket every year thanking her for attempting to get the show cancelled. |
![](http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y93/Quinsisdos/SMSMacrossQuarter.png)
Oh snap, this thread's getting catty.
Not seeing how it's going to hurt them. They have chosen to focus on the Eastern market. That market finds this topic totally acceptable. So they don't give a rat's patootey what a bunch of Western self-appointed morality police think or say.
As a matter of fact this type of "attack" inevitably backfires in the face of the morality police as it gets people that would never have even looked at the game to check it out for themselves and invariably attracts more customers because of the taboo nature sex has in Western cultures. |
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I haven't watched the videos Father Xmas linked yet but,
Breast facing? alignment? aiming? whatever the appropriate term that's a bit much. Three of those sliders you listed in CO affect things besides breasts. Body mass affects the whole body, the chest sliders work on the whole trunk, just not the breasts. *edit: I wonder if males have sliders to pick which way their bits of anatomy are hanging in B&S. If you can adjust that for the female dangly bits it'd be misandrist to not provide males with the same option. |
While I'm not sure if there needs to be so many sliders for boobs. What I do like about it? MORE CUSTOMIZATION!
Yes, they have starting points that seems to leave people going "OMG!" but they don't bother to check out that they can change all that with the options available to them. This includes leg length, chest, arms, ect ect.
I look at B&S's customization, and wish CoH had it! And if NCSoft didn't shut down CoH, most of the player base would be saying the same thing about it's customization option. Not to mention all that, and have the fingers they were looking for
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BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
Not seeing how it's going to hurt them. They have chosen to focus on the Eastern market. That market finds this topic totally acceptable. So they don't give a rat's patootey what a bunch of Western self-appointed morality police think or say.
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That said, bypassing the ratings system is a pretty sleazy move.
Market it for what it is. Let it tank on its own merits.
I am curious why you feel so strongly about denying the mature orientation of the art when NCSoft themselves admit the entire art direction is very risqué.
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Everything I've seen in B&S, I've seen far worse in CoH, which never got apologized for. Which never got the game a M rating.
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
Everything I've seen in B&S, I've seen far worse in CoH, which never got apologized for. Which never got the game a M rating.
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CoH players could make their own cheese cake. B&S (apparently) has it prepackaged and ready to go off the rack.
@Rien
I am Lord Omi. Now and forever. They can take our City, but they can't take me.
Market it for what it is. Let it tank on its own merits. |
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@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
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BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
It's a sleazy game - it's to be expected.
It doesn't hurt to give it a little push in the right direction though ![]() |
I'm curious, you say sleazy game. Have you even bothered to do more checking up on the game than "Oh! I saw promotional art!"
Because if you're basing it off of promotional art, are we forgetting Desdemona in hot pants and tight leather?
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
One thing to B&S's credit is the outfits are items but they don't affect stats so you can chose your look without having to run around in a micro-bikini just because it has better stats than your full plate armor suit.
That said, bypassing the ratings system is a pretty sleazy move. Market it for what it is. Let it tank on its own merits. |
It's being rated M for Mature. How is that bypassing the rating system?
Should CoH have had the most revealing outfit it could get as it's cover art, so parents knew "Hey! Look! You're kids can make or run with people who WILL make this outfit!"
But, yes, if it tanks, let it tank because people don't enjoy the game for all that it is.
Though, it'd also be nice to have people remember it was NCSoft who kept CoH up longer, when Cryptic was going to shut it down.
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BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
Bypassing the rating system? Because they choose not to have the artwork on the box be the most revealing outfit in the game, makes it bypassing the rating system?
It's being rated M for Mature. How is that bypassing the rating system? |
Due to ESRB guidelines, however, our marketing material must abide by a different set of considerations than the final product. This is why Blade & Soul's rating is listed as "pending." It is NCSOFT West's intention to accurately depict the game in its original, unaltered form, with only minor adjustments for gameplay considerations. |
Sorry to despoil the Soul Blade issues, but in fact the game is, in fact, a fighting game MMO set in a world very similar to Soul Calibur. There are a number of fighting game players in our group and all of them had the same reaction to the name after the initial "expert" had his say. What they got ticked off about is the gross similarities between the two concepts. So to say Brand Recognition isn't there, it is.
Risque in CoH, yes, but it wasn't "in your face" advertised that way. Desdemona and Sister Psyche, ok I'll give you that, but the outfits showcased in the actual advertising for B&S make it part of the marketing. The physics are also on display in the marketing and there are zero physics brought into play in CoH where that aspect is concerned.
As to other MMOs closing, sure, but the sheer number under NcSoft is ridiculous. It warrants caution. As to people losing their jobs, if the game does poorly they will lose said jobs anyway under NcSoft.
Sorry, again, I'm part of a group that plays a LOT of MMOs and we will no longer be giving NcSoft any money. And please don't bring up "You trusted them with CoH" again. We trusted Paragon Studios Devs and they were treated as poorly as we were, in the end. I have zero faith in NcSoft and if they want out of the EU and US markets so badly then they should make the transition and go. They've made it clear and that alone will keep people from trusting anything they put out.
Sorry to despoil the Soul Blade issues, but in fact the game is, in fact, a fighting game MMO set in a world very similar to Soul Calibur. There are a number of fighting game players in our group and all of them had the same reaction to the name after the initial "expert" had his say. What they got ticked off about is the gross similarities between the two concepts. So to say Brand Recognition isn't there, it is.
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They haven't.
Infact, Soul Blade was used *purely* for the 1st game of the series, and even then only in the US/EU and Australia. Sure, that is a lot of potential players, but it looks like they decided on Soul Caliber as the actual franchise name (14 years and counting).
Although, if they *did* try to claim rights over this, then I would actually put them into the same category as Apple who have just managed to get a design patent for a visual display device in the rectangular form with curved corners. And that is as a company that should be shot.
Now, if Namco had decided to use the Soul Blade name for *all* of the EU/US/Australian releases, then I can understand it. However, 16 years has passed....
Sorry to despoil the Soul Blade issues, but in fact the game is, in fact, a fighting game MMO set in a world very similar to Soul Calibur. There are a number of fighting game players in our group and all of them had the same reaction to the name after the initial "expert" had his say. What they got ticked off about is the gross similarities between the two concepts. So to say Brand Recognition isn't there, it is.
Risque in CoH, yes, but it wasn't "in your face" advertised that way. Desdemona and Sister Psyche, ok I'll give you that, but the outfits showcased in the actual advertising for B&S make it part of the marketing. The physics are also on display in the marketing and there are zero physics brought into play in CoH where that aspect is concerned. As to other MMOs closing, sure, but the sheer number under NcSoft is ridiculous. It warrants caution. As to people losing their jobs, if the game does poorly they will lose said jobs anyway under NcSoft. Sorry, again, I'm part of a group that plays a LOT of MMOs and we will no longer be giving NcSoft any money. And please don't bring up "You trusted them with CoH" again. We trusted Paragon Studios Devs and they were treated as poorly as we were, in the end. I have zero faith in NcSoft and if they want out of the EU and US markets so badly then they should make the transition and go. They've made it clear and that alone will keep people from trusting anything they put out. |
And I didnt say people trusted NCSoft. But without NCSoft, we never would've had a Paragon Studios. So they saved it for quite a few years. Without them, that wouldn't have happened.
Yes. Still sucks they decided to shut it down though
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BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
One thing to B&S's credit is the outfits are items but they don't affect stats so you can chose your look without having to run around in a micro-bikini just because it has better stats than your full plate armor suit.
That said, bypassing the ratings system is a pretty sleazy move. Market it for what it is. Let it tank on its own merits. |
It should be based on the content of the game.
If there are rules and regulations concerning what you can and cannot show for promotional artwork, then that is it. *shrugs*
To be honest, I would be more worried if they were shooting for the "T for Teen" rating and trying to do this by the method that you are suggesting. However, as far as I am aware, they are aiming for the "M for Mature" rating, and if that still has rules and regulations in terms of what you can and cannot show in promotional artwork, then so be it.
Complain to the ESRB board about that problem. NCsoft are just following the rules.
If the game is rated based *purely* on the promotional artwork, then the ESRB rating is *not* doing its job.
It should be based on the content of the game. If there are rules and regulations concerning what you can and cannot show for promotional artwork, then that is it. *shrugs* To be honest, I would be more worried if they were shooting for the "T for Teen" rating and trying to do this by the method that you are suggesting. However, as far as I am aware, they are aiming for the "M for Mature" rating, and if that still has rules and regulations in terms of what you can and cannot show in promotional artwork, then so be it. Complain to the ESRB board about that problem. NCsoft are just following the rules. |
Since they say they're not planning to censor it, it should have the M rating.
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
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The BrandX Collection
Infact, Soul Blade was used *purely* for the 1st game of the series, and even then only in the US/EU and Australia. Sure, that is a lot of potential players, but it looks like they decided on Soul Caliber as the actual franchise name (14 years and counting).
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The reason Soul Edge had to be renamed is thanks to our good friend (read: extremely dishonest crook) Tim Langdell, a notorious trademark troll who persued frivolous lawsuits against anyone who used a name with "Edge" in. Namco decided not to bother with him and just renamed Soul Edge to Soul Blade to avoid problems, and a court eventually ruled that they were totally different and nobody would confuse them anyway.
Mr. Langdell came unstuck thanks to a combined effort between EA (Over Mirror's Edge, iirc), and Future Publishing.
[/Tangent]
![](http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y93/Quinsisdos/SMSMacrossQuarter.png)
[Tangent]
The reason Soul Edge had to be renamed is thanks to our good friend (read: extremely dishonest crook) Tim Langdell, a notorious trademark troll who persued frivolous lawsuits against anyone who used a name with "Edge" in. Namco decided not to bother with him and just renamed Soul Edge to Soul Blade to avoid problems, and a court eventually ruled that they were totally different and nobody would confuse them anyway. Mr. Langdell came unstuck thanks to a combined effort between EA (Over Mirror's Edge, iirc), and Future Publishing. [/Tangent] |
However, this confusion reminds me of the whole Star Fox getting renamed to Star Wing/Lylat Wars all those years ago....
If the game is rated based *purely* on the promotional artwork, then the ESRB rating is *not* doing its job.
It should be based on the content of the game. If there are rules and regulations concerning what you can and cannot show for promotional artwork, then that is it. *shrugs* To be honest, I would be more worried if they were shooting for the "T for Teen" rating and trying to do this by the method that you are suggesting. However, as far as I am aware, they are aiming for the "M for Mature" rating, and if that still has rules and regulations in terms of what you can and cannot show in promotional artwork, then so be it. Complain to the ESRB board about that problem. NCsoft are just following the rules. |
Clearly they do check the content and if one slips through the net then I'm sure some reportage would get NCSoft slapped.
![](http://repeat-offenders.net/savecoh/SaveCOH_Blue_leaderboard.jpg)
Thelonious Monk
However, this confusion reminds me of the whole Star Fox getting renamed to Star Wing/Lylat Wars all those years ago....
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![](http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y93/Quinsisdos/SMSMacrossQuarter.png)
Blame this one for that.
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Btw, there was also a Star Fox game released on the C64/Spectrum a few years later than the Atari version... I seem to remember that at least in the UK gaming reasons they were listing the C64/Spectrum version as the reason for the rename...