Bethesda vs Interplay on Fallout Online

13pm

13pm

Water Chip? Been There, Done That
As many of us have supposed, Interplay seems to had launched Fallout Online website without agreement with Bethesda. Firstly, the footer on the website has been changed. Originally it stated:<blockquote>Fallout® is a registered trademark of Bethesda Softworks LLC, a ZeniMax Media company, in the U.S. and/or other countries, and is used by Interplay under license from Bethesda Softworks LLC. All Rights Reserved.</blockquote> Then it was changed to this one:<blockquote>Fallout® is a registered trademark of Bethesda Softworks LLC, a ZeniMax Media company, in the U.S. and/or other countries. All Rights Reserved.</blockquote>As you can see the sentence about license has been removed.

And today the topic about Fallout Online at Bethesda forum board has been locked by Bethesda community manager Matt Grandstaff with the following note:<blockquote>As this relates to an ongoing legal matter for our company, discussion on this topic will remain closed.</blockquote>So now we can make even more guesses on what's happened. Have Bethesda and Interplay reached an initial agreement? Or it's just a huge Interplay gamble? Now we have to wait for the official statement or for some news on this legal case. At the moment it looks like Interplay is going for the vole.
 
Wait... I thought that this was solved, that Iplay was allowed to work on V13/ FOOL, damn, I even remember reading a newspost about that...

Not a big fan of the whole MMO idea, but still: give Chris a break. Right? Bethesda really has these nasty tactics, one even starts to sympathize with all the Iplay amateurism.
 
Ausir said:
Looks like there's no agreement, given that the Beth forum thread was closed.
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Yep, it turns out like you've predicted. But it's still strange that they've let so much time to pass before closing the thread. And this footer changing thing also.
 
We'll see how Bethesda and Interplay will rule that out, but it's just normal how Bethesda is acting, everyone would be careful about their own IP, even if it was once that of Interplay.

But even if I don't like how the first Screens looked and I'm unsure if such a rather small company can make a big MMO out of it they should at least get a chance to do it.
 
mor said:
btw in your opinion what MMO style would best fit FO MMO?
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A survival one with the Fallout 1 and 2 interface look-a-like. Seriously, if i see that fucking WoW interface implemented here, i am out. O-U-T, out.

I don't care that much about where the camera will be and if it's going to have turn-based combat. Just no fucking WoW interface.
 
Ausir said:
Looks like there's no agreement, given that the Beth forum thread was closed.
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That doesn't really mean anything. It's not like the community manager would be the first to know about this sort of thing, and Bethesda wouldn't break this sort of news in a response to a messageboard thread.

Kradath said:
But even if I don't like how the first Screens looked and I'm unsure if such a rather small company can make a big MMO out of it they should at least get a chance to do it.
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They can't make an MMO, which is why they got Masthead to help. Of course, Masthead is having enough trouble getting their first MMO out the door.
 
That doesn't really mean anything. It's not like the community manager would be the first to know about this sort of thing, and Bethesda wouldn't break this sort of news in a response to a messageboard thread.
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It wouldn't mean much if he closed the thread right away, but looks like he had enough time to check with the right people. Or perhaps he was told by the right people to close it.

They wouldn't break this sort of news in a forum thread, but if there was a settlement they wouldn't close the thread either, they'd just ignore it for now.
 
Ausir said:
They wouldn't break this sort of news in a forum thread, but if there was a settlement they wouldn't close the thread either, they'd just ignore it for now.
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I don't know, they aren't shy about closing threads over there.

But I wouldn't read much into any of this. There's no reason to think that IP isn't just going ahead without Beth's permission. I don't think they have anything to lose at this point.
 
Khan FurSainty said:
mor said:
btw in your opinion what MMO style would best fit FO MMO?
Click to expand...

A survival one with the Fallout 1 and 2 interface look-a-like. Seriously, if i see that fucking WoW interface implemented here, i am out. O-U-T, out.
I don't care that much about where the camera will be and if it's going to have turn-based combat. Just no fucking WoW interface.
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i am not sure what you mean by "WoW interface" as far as i know most MMO has the same minimal interface.


Dionysus said:
Kradath said:
But even if I don't like how the first Screens looked and I'm unsure if such a rather small company can make a big MMO out of it they should at least get a chance to do it.
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They can't make an MMO, which is why they got Masthead to help. Of course, Masthead is having enough trouble getting their first MMO out the door.
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masthead? correct if i am wrong but isnt this cooperation is a real old story, which ended with Masthead starting its own IP MMO and ending with exactly like you said unable to deliver ?
 
No, Masthead has been working on Earthrise for a while. Their involvement with IP is a newer development, and it's ongoing as far as I know.
 
The interface is not important. It's the question if you can combine an open world sandbox setting with massive groups of people raiding around for better gear.

It is possible to do a great fallout MMO, but it wouldn't be one for the masses but MMO's only work for masses, there's the problem.
 
WorstUsernameEver said:
Khan FurSainty said:
mor said:
btw in your opinion what MMO style would best fit FO MMO?
Click to expand...

A survival one with the Fallout 1 and 2 interface look-a-like. Seriously, if i see that fucking WoW interface implemented here, i am out. O-U-T, out.
Click to expand...

So you want a shitty interface? 8-)
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You say shitty, I say classic. And functional. And memory reconsolidating.
 
Kradath said:
The interface is not important. It's the question if you can combine an open world sandbox setting with massive groups of people raiding around for better gear.

It is possible to do a great fallout MMO, but it wouldn't be one for the masses but MMO's only work for masses, there's the problem.
Click to expand...

any MMORPG will have a mix of the usual "single player experience" quest line up, misc quests, dungeons etc etc...

there will also must be factions, anyone who disagree with the above in my opinion is delusional in regard to what Fallout Online will ever be

so obviously the lone survival in the sense of FO1/2 is out of the question, you'll have to compromise fro being some lone hero from the NCR, BOS, etc and save the world :roll:


what i'd like to see is a nice mechanic, i heard of in age of conan, where beside the usual core areas there is dynamic zones in between, that you can fight over them...

i think its can be nice to have a few rare outpost and let the different factions to fight over them or just form some gang, which will give you a huge advantage when you stuck in the middle of no where...
 
The WoW interface from a usability standpoint did a lot of things right. It was simple, customisable, easily understood though multiple languages, and everything worked within a drag and drop grid system. That isn't to say WoW's interface is perfect or anything, they just utilized some good techniques.

I think the thing up for debate is the interface's aesthetics, FOOL should definitely have the look and feel of the original Fallout. However, as much as I love Fallout, the interface is clunky and doesn't utilize a lot of user interface standards or methods that are accepted and understood today. It worked back in the late 90's just fine, it was a functional interface, but it was far from perfect. User interface in video games have evolved so much since then, I think it's a interesting challenge to use good UI techniques while incorporating the classic and retro feel of Fallout.
 
Clunky? I feel that the Fallout 2 interface is the closest to interface perfection one can get. Every information accessible through just two or three clicks. No wasted space. Extremely comprehensive character sheet and inventory screen.

I keep hearing that it's "clunky" and "unintuitive", but is it really so?
 
I think people only say that, because the cursor mode (move, pick up, use,..) doesn't change automatically. :>

I like the interface, but I agree that it could use some improvements here and there. But for a Fallout 1 / 2, I wouldn't change it.
 
Tagaziel said:
Clunky? I feel that the Fallout 2 interface is the closest to interface perfection one can get. Every information accessible through just two or three clicks. No wasted space. Extremely comprehensive character sheet and inventory screen.

I keep hearing that it's "clunky" and "unintuitive", but is it really so?
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you forget its wont be FO1/2 , MMO will bring ton of other interfaces like chat, friend list, trade system, quest list, bla bla bla ...
most areas will inherently be bigger so they may stick a map there, load of stats, better Pipboy etc etc etc etc

this why basically every MMORPG i know of, use very similar to wow system.

you dont have to like it but anyone thinking that anything done by Bethesda or Interplay on FO IP will be far off the above is not in touch with reality.
 
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