Sega Is Not Keen On A Second Alpha Protocol

So Sega is perfectly content putting out Sonic games no one cares about, but they're not willing to give this another shot. Logic.

its too bad they didn't have enough time to make this more like mass effect 2.

I still want to play this game, but after the Quicklook and Jeff's review, I can understand Sega's thinking.

" @PrimeSynergy: they keep making money, there is your logic. "

I'm curious to know the other side of the story and hear what Obsidian has to say about Sega's role in why the product turned out janky.  I have a feeling Sega's more to blame here then they're letting on.
 
Fuck, I think Obsidian made a huge mistake going to Sega in the first place.  They're just not a good publisher these days and it looks like they were ready to cut the legs from underneath this game from day 1. 
 
It doesn't surprise me in the least that Sega came out and said "well there's your problem" when in fact Sega had a hand in it as well.  Come to think of it, Sega should have died just like Atari did and left this whole publishing games business to people who are better at it.

I actually liked the game.  Would have been nice to see what Obsidian would have done with a second chance.

" I'm curious to know the other side of the story and hear what Obsidian has to say about Sega's role in why the product turned out janky.  I have a feeling Sega's more to blame here then they're letting on.  Fuck, I think Obsidian made a huge mistake going to Sega in the first place.  They're just not a good publisher these days and it looks like they were ready to cut the legs from underneath this game from day 1.   It doesn't surprise me in the least that Sega came out and said "well there's your problem" when in fact Sega had a hand in it as well.  Come to think of it, Sega should have died just like Atari did and left this whole publishing games business to people who are better at it. "

How utterly expected. But still sad. 
As for all the intern hate: Uhm...chill the fuck out? You guys don't like the news stories, don't read 'em. I only come here for my gaming news, so I like that they report stories like this.

Is Mr. Hayes blissfully ignorant of the fact that the PC version was horribly broken at release? They even delayed the game for like 9 months... and yet it was released in such a state.
 
It's not that the game didn't get good reviews and not that it didn't sell well... the simple fact of the matter is that SEGA was never very dedicated to this game in the first place, glaringly obvious for anyone to see.

Eh,... AP never looked great to me.

" @Icil:  You're looking far too into this. It's just a pronoun. Relax, friend. "  

The "freaky shooting mechanics" were just fine in the best PC game of all time, Deus Ex.

" @tiwi said:

" @RE_Player92 said:

" Cool news story bro "

what the fuck is this supposed to mean? "

It means this is a barely-news story that has already been reported exactly the same way all over. Usually the thing that sets GiantBomb's news pieces apart is their unique perspective and strong editorial voice. Not the case here. "

The first mistake was the god awful title. Sure, there has been hundreds, if not thousands of horribly named games out there, but the title of "Alpha Protocol" just comes out as superbly bland. I am aware of the fiction that surrounds it, but again, come on how hard is it really to make a more creative name for an organization?

I _really_ enjoyed AP too; enough to play through it 3 times for different endings. I hope they change their minds on this :\

Multiple delays
No marketing
Shitty reviews.
 
Where did anyone think good sales would enter into this equation? The game was pretty bad, not surprised they're killing the franchise.

" That's pretty fucking lame.  Blame poor sales and ratings.  The game had potential!  Instead of giving up on it, how about making A BETTER FUCKING GAME!  Sega really pisses me off with this shit.  Always putting they're most interesting franchises on the backburner, they can eat a dick.   "

" That's pretty fucking lame.  Blame poor sales and ratings.  The game had potential!  Instead of giving up on it, how about making A BETTER FUCKING GAME!  Sega really pisses me off with this shit.  Always putting they're most interesting franchises on the backburner, they can eat a dick.   "

" This has been the story with every Sega published game for what seems like 6 years. "

though obsidian is good at making sequels, i really don't see a need for another alpha protocol. It got pretty much rapped up at the end. So not a big loss.

Shame. I really enjoyed alpha protocol.

Shame that they're going to be making the same old shit with Call of Duty every god damn year because basically every console owner (and a good portion of the PC gamers) will buy a copy regardless of it's quality, yet when it comes to something I actually care about and that I actually enjoyed thoroughly there won't even be a single sequel any time soon. 
 
Typical.

It's a shame they won't be able to elaborate on the neat ideas from the first game in a sequel that would hopefully be better. Hopefully New Vegas turns out well.

I hate Metacritic. It's not really reliable.

SEGA is sinking, fast. Lucky we never got that Dreamcast 2 everyone was hoping for cause it'd probably end up like it's predecessor !

" @Deathpooky said:

" @tiwi said:

" @RE_Player92 said:

" Cool news story bro "

what the fuck is this supposed to mean? "

It's called generic first post for the quest without getting banned. "

kind of got that quest months ago by accident and I couldn't care less about quests... all I meant was this is a cool news story and I consider Brad N, and the rest of the GB staff, bros "

When I showed my friend the game he said "It has a very Sega feel to it" and I replied "Yeah, namely, an unfinished game."
 
They've been churning out these half-assed games for years now. Most of them have some very cool aspects, often really good graphics, but they seemingly cut corners and get lazy and don't bother play-testing the hell out of the games. If they do playtest there's no way they can miss the little issues that bother everyone who plays them, so they must just not bother, or ignore them and assume it'll be ok.
 
I actually liked Alpha Protocol and forgave it of it's little issues. I still think the idea in another developer's hands would have been better, because it was only execution of their fantastic concept that was the downfall.

Their high concept was broken to begin with. NEXT.

I love how these developers blame poor review scores for why their game doesn't sell.  Maybe if you produce a game that people like.....you would...I don't know...receive a higher score?  I think they all miss the days of NES gaming where you had to rely on a monthly magazine to get any insight into a game, so most people just plunked down $50 and bought games without reading reviews.

Mediocre ratings to blame...really...if they learned to make a half descent game then maybe they would not have mediocre ratings. Sega is known for crappy games to be honest they put a small budget on a game and expect it to be a hit.
 
Just stick to Sonic....and yet you manage to make that game a shadow of its former-self.

Someone get Rorie on the phone. 
We need to know the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. 
Did he order the code red?

" Giantaku? "

" Giantaku? "

Whatever. Alpha Protocol sucked anyway, who needs another one.

Judging by the technical catastrofuck that was Alpha Protocol, I don't want a sequel.

" I really enjoyed AP, and didn't really encounter any of the many problems a lot of people talk about.  I've only played it through once on a mostly stealth build but plan on going back to it before too long.  SEGA has just been doing a terrible job as a publisher lately.  The AP problems have been well noted, but Resonance of Fate was a very good game by an established RPG maker and SEGA sacrificed that to the wolves by releasing it during the onslaught of FFXIII press, guaranteeing that it would be passed over and forgotten about.  SEGA hasn't had good marketing since the days of the Genesis.  They were always had good ideas which were executed poorly for some reason or another (except their arcade division which was amazing), so I guess that continues even now. "

I kinda liked it, sure the gameplay was a bit janky. but i really enjoyed the game.

I feel sorry for Obsidian, they cant seem to catch a break.  They have some genuinely great ideas but always seem to get a bad rap.  I for one am enjoying my time with AP.

not surprising, seeing as the game was horrid

Hooray for reviewers killing original games with unique gameplay elements. Give me an Alpha Protocol; unique yet buggy experience, over a Mass Effect; overly produced, uninspired experience, any day of the week!

That's what makes the gaming industry go round. I would be amazed if there is another Mirror's Edge game for the same reason.

This is the logical path of  "Squandered Potential" 
1. Come up with new IP and a great concept for unique gameplay.
2. Design it to similarly to successful already existing franchises.
3. Hype it.
4. Execute your plan for unique gameplay in the worst way possible.
5. Push back deadlines as far as you can.
6. Continue to implement terrible gameplay.
7. Hype it again, deny anything is wrong.
8. Release it and hope for the best.
9. Admit that you're mistake was making an interesting and original IP, and bury it quickly.
10. If Sega, announce new Sonic game with added gimmicks and characters.
 
I see this happen way too often. A brand new IP shows up receiving lackluster support from its own developers or publishers, and is minimally successful. Sometimes it gets abandoned almost immediately, rather than fixing some of the original problems. It is possible to fix poor implementation in a proper sequel rather than giving up. Look at Assassin's Creed. It had its share of problems, enough that some people and critics despised the game. However, instead of leaving it to die, they decided to fix some of the problems and improve the best parts. Low-and-behold, they created a highly commercially successful sequel.
 
This can even work with completely garbage games. I give you, Army of Two. The original was total crap and everyone new it. The sequel fixed some of the original issues, tried improving on what worked, and the sequel was modestly successful. I'm willing to bet that we might even see the same thing happen to Kane and Lynch. You must put a coordinated effort and dedication to your IP's if you ever want them to be commercially successful.

maybe someone can answer my question of: 
 
"doesn't anyone play this shit before it gets released?" 
 
or maybe:
 
"doesn't anyone play this shit at the publishers before printing a million copies?"

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

No Beta Protocol. Sad day.