Support NeoGAF

[Slo]

So.....you buy the Mod studio that did Desert Combat, wait until BattleField 2 goes gold, and then shut the fucker down?

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/37305

Digital Illusions CE today announced that it is closing its New York office, which employed former members of Trauma Studios after DICE had purchased the Deset Combat developer last September. All 12 people have been offered employement at the Sweden office. DICE's Canadian studio will remain open, and focus mainly on expansion packs. Closing DICE New York allows the company to save some money

Digital Illusions will not pay the supplement payment of 200,000 USD as agreed upon at the time of the acquisition of Trauma Studios. The total payment is thereby 300,000 USD. Following the adjustment for the default of payment of the additional supplement payment, the SEK 1.3m remainder of the value of goodwill is written down during the second quarter of 2005. Other costs of liquidation are diminutive.

So why buy Trauma Studios at all? "The deal contained value in form of rights to trademarks as well as a new game concept".

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

So.....you buy the Mod studio that did Desert Combat, wait until BattleField 2 goes gold, and then shut the fucker down?

http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/37305

Sounds like they are in good company with EA, huh?

 

[SantaC]

All 12 people have been offered employement at the Sweden office.

Atleast the swedish studio (which all the big games come from) gets bigger and better.

 

[bitwise]

shiiit I wish my office would close with a job offer in sweden. that would be the most interesting diversion ever.

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

Atleast the swedish studio (which all the big games come from) gets bettera nd bigger.

Swedes deserve no fame or fortune

 

[MassiveAttack]

And the sorry state of game development in New York City takes another cruel blow.

 

[SantaC]

Swedes deserve no fame or fortune

12 people in 1 studio is not a lot. It's better for them to come to a big team.

I doubt they could afford to keep an office in NYC for just 12 employees, but damn this seems like they consumed the talent and shat it out.

Isn't desert combat the BF2 console game? The real BF2 is being made in Sweden. This is where the real talent is.

 

[Slo]

I doubt they could afford to keep an office in NYC for just 12 employees, but damn this seems like they consumed the talent and shat it out.

 

[The Faceless Master]

wonder how many of the 12 will move

 

[Koshiro]

Chew em up, spit em out.

 

[nubbe]

wonder how many of the 12 will move

Why wouldn't they? Our government takes care of its citizens.

 

[Slo]

Honestly I'd be VERY suprised if any of them moved.

 

[GameCat]

Why wouldn't they? Our government takes care of its citizens.

:lol
You know as much as I love Stockholm, it really doesn't compare to New York. Besides, they'd have to take a pretty big pay cut to come work in Sweden, even though living expenses are much lower here than in NY obviously.

 

[Doc Holliday]

Well there goes one possible job if i ever get laid off this one in NYC

Come to NYC you f-ing devs! Calirfonia and texas are GAY!

 

[Gek54]

Steers and queers

 

[Chi-Town]

Isn't desert combat the BF2 console game?

Nope, the console game is Modern Combat.

 

[MassiveAttack]

Well there goes one possible job if i ever get laid off this one in NYC

Come to NYC you f-ing devs! Calirfonia and texas are GAY!

NYC is the Siberia of game development. Sad but true.

 

[SantaC]

Honestly I'd be VERY suprised if any of them moved.

um why? DICE Stockholm is a top notch developer. Living expenses are worse yes, but the experience would probably be worth it.

 

[Slo]

SantaCruzer: Well, nothing against Sweden, but I have a hard time believing that many Americans living in NYC would be willing to spontaneously relocate to the other side of the ocean, escpecially right after they've been fired. Hell, if I were fired today, I'd think twice about even leaving my state unless I really fell on hard times. People have roots.

I'd question how sincere the offer was, offering people the opportunity to relocate technically means the difference between quitting and being layed off. Not sure what that means in terms of severance pay.

 

[blackadde]

Pumped and dumped.

 

[Nate405]

I'd question how sincere the offer was, offering people the opportunity to relocate technically means the difference between quitting and being layed off. Not sure what that means in terms of severance pay.

Exactly. An offer to relocate to the Ontario studio would make more sense if DICE were actually interested in keeping them.

 

[Razoric]

Why would they relocate? The went from a strong 12 man operation to being assimilated with a big dev house in fucking sweden. even if they did move they'd probably just be coding bullshit for the next 5 years.

 

[Shompola]

Haha yah they wont take the job offers and this is exactly what DICE/EA wants. Cruel but effective I guess, the way of EA and MS and now DICE.

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

um why? DICE Stockholm is a top notch developer. Living expenses are worse yes, but the experience would probably be worth it.

The experience of working for DICE could in no way offset the horrors of living in Sweden. Sweden is filled with pretentious, self-righteous and overly p.c. assbags. And to whoever said that Sweden takes care if its people... yeah right. It takes care of all the bums and promotes laziness, and that's about it. I give it ten years before the beloved free healthcare is but a memory.

 

[ChrisReid]

So.....you buy the Mod studio that did Desert Combat, wait until BattleField 2 goes gold, and then shut the fucker down?

That's exactly what they've done with 20 other companies, why would it be any different here?

 

[Vormund]

It takes care of all the bums and promotes laziness

*packs luggage for sweden*

That said I'll probably go there soon, I have an Aunty there.

 

[Bog]

um why? DICE Stockholm is a top notch developer. Living expenses are worse yes, but the experience would probably be worth it.

The same reason only 2 out of 35 people moved when the Internet company I work for shut down its NY office a few months ago... and the job offer was only 2 hours away in PA.

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

Moving to Sweden from the U.S. to work also requires you to get a work permit, which is nowhere near a sure thing, let alone instantenous.

 

[Forsete]

The experience of working for DICE could in no way offset the horrors of living in Sweden. Sweden is filled with pretentious, self-righteous and overly p.c. assbags. And to whoever said that Sweden takes care if its people... yeah right. It takes care of all the bums and promotes laziness, and that's about it. I give it ten years before the beloved free healthcare is but a memory.

Be aware of the polar bears roaming the streets, or the packs of wolves that attack our houses made of logs!

 

[Kiriku]

The experience of working for DICE could in no way offset the horrors of living in Sweden. Sweden is filled with pretentious, self-righteous and overly p.c. assbags. And to whoever said that Sweden takes care if its people... yeah right. It takes care of all the bums and promotes laziness, and that's about it. I give it ten years before the beloved free healthcare is but a memory.

Wow...you must've had really bad experiences over here. I'm sad to hear that (but then again, you were in Stockholm which might explain it *runs from Sthlm crowd*).
I know plenty of nice, caring people in Sweden, but I've only lived here for 24 years...so what do I know. And about the healthcare system, nothing is perfect and it does a lot of good as well. And I don't think the healthcare system is going away anytime soon. It's not like we started using it last year or something, though I believe it constantly will be refined.

 

[CrimsonSkies]

I'd go to Sweden. Those chicks are hot.

 

[Porridge]

Hey, at least Majesco's still on the East Coast. But I wonder when that'll change...

 

[Ryo]

Forsete's avatar is maybe one of the greatest on all GAF =)

Seriously though, why all the hate for Sweden?

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

Wow...you must've had really bad experiences over here. I'm sad to hear that (but then again, you were in Stockholm which might explain it *runs from Sthlm crowd*).
I know plenty of nice, caring people in Sweden, but I've only lived here for 24 years...so what do I know. And about the healthcare system, nothing is perfect and it does a lot of good as well. And I don't think the healthcare system is going away anytime soon. It's not like we started using it last year or something, though I believe it constantly will be refined.

I lived in Sweden for 19 years straight, and on-off for 7 additional years. I'm Swedish, and I absolutely loathe the nation, or rather the mentality and the effect of that mentality on the population. I don't live there these days, and for good reason. Damned good water, beautiful nature and reasonable portion sizes, but that's right about where the positives end.

The healthcare system... it's becoming Americanized, which is a shame. I doubt the free healthcare system will hold up much longer, not with the pressure from national and international insurance firms swaying governmental decisions; the Swedish government being the festering filthpit of cowardice and general spinelessness that it is, solid assreaming by way of EU and commercial interests is always the order of the day.

Anyway, I still don't think this sounds like a reasonable offer for these guys. Aside from Sweden being filled with Swedes, the immigration system is not a cakewalk.

That said, Gothenburg is pretty sweet.

 

[ratcliffja]

All I have to say is....

No dice.

 

[B E N K E]

The experience of working for DICE could in no way offset the horrors of living in Sweden. Sweden is filled with pretentious, self-righteous and overly p.c. assbags. And to whoever said that Sweden takes care if its people... yeah right. It takes care of all the bums and promotes laziness, and that's about it. I give it ten years before the beloved free healthcare is but a memory.

True, but we don't carry guns and shot each other all the time... :lol

 

[FitzOfRage]

True, but we don't carry guns and shot each other all the time... :lol

You also have a higher suicide rate.

 

[AltogetherAndrews]

True, but we don't carry guns and shot each other all the time... :lol

You know, in all seriousness, I feel less secure in downtown Jonkoping than I do in Chicago. Shootings occur (often) around where I live, but there doesn't seem to be as much of this random and utterly pointless fighting mentality that is so prominent in Sweden. Drink heavily, start fights because you've got nothing better to do, and then kick while the victim is on the ground.

As much as I dislike the gun laws here (I can own an assault rifle but not a bag of weed?), I can't help but wonder if it has at least one good quality in that is makes people less likely to start serious fights over petty (or often imagined) insults. You never know who's packing heat, or something like that.

Then again, the news channels are always reporting some bystander being gunned down in crossfire here, so far be it from me to defend that crap. Sweden definitely has the edge in weapon control.

 

[Sho Nuff]

I have a lot of friends, a stocked apartment, and nice things. If you told me that my job would require me to move halfway across the globe, I would reply with a big fat middle finger.