thicc_girls_are_teh_best
Member
No, there are some mechanical differences aside from lore, like how Estus Flasks work vs. the healing grass from Demon's Souls. A lot of the difference (which ones are present) are small in nature but do present some points of divergence between Demon's Souls and Dark Souls.
There are videos like this which go into some of the not-strictly-lore differences between them. You should probably also check out places like this which go into differences as well.
But it's different if Activision (well, now MS Gaming) went to Harmonix and paid them to develop a Rock Band game, now is it?
Yes, they don't need it. But if Bandai Namco were willing to offer them money to develop a game (or co-develop one) through one of their studios in return for Bandai Namco publishing it, I could see Sony or even SIE being okay with that, depending on the game and what studio.
I didn't say anything different? Why are you so strongly against the idea that Sony & SIE might be okay with letting From Software develop a new Dark Souls that Bandai Namco goes on to publish? It's a publisher-to-publisher thing at that point and not much different than when SEGA lent Nintendo IP rights to Bayonetta.
Except here, it's not anyone lending IP rights to Dark Souls; it's SIE lending From Software to Bandai Namco for development (solely From, or co-development maybe with some Bandai Namco studio) of a new Dark Souls and Bandai Namco paying Sony & SIE money to allow it.
Like you said, just business opportunities.
Didn't say or imply that, either. I'm just saying, in the off-chance SIE and/or Sony decided to greenlight a new Dark Souls, if for example because Miyazaki & From Software wanted to make a new one, then they'd work out a deal with Bandai Namco since they're the ones who own the publishing rights (and full IP rights IIRC) to Dark Souls.
And that deal would likely be Bandai Namco paying SIE and/or Sony Corp to cover costs for From Software to make the game, while Bandai Namco retain publishing rights. If that means From Software making PC and Xbox versions, then Bandai Namco would pay the required amount for those versions, and they'd be the ones responsible for marketing the game (tho that is where I'd see SIE putting clauses to prevent, say, Microsoft, from doing a Game Pass deal or pushing Western marketing that omits PlayStation from being mentioned). SIE'd probably also get right to first refusal on any marketing deal with that Dark Souls game so should it get made, even if it's multiplatform.
On the other hand, IF From Software want to make a new Demon's Souls instead, well, Bandai Namco doesn't matter in that scenario since they don't own any of the IP rights. SIE and From Software could do whatever they want with a new Demon's Souls, including (and would be smart of them to do) make it exclusive to their console and (if it happens) their own PC launcher.
A whopping 3 games out of their entire catalog of titles doesn't mean they were associated as a multiplatform studio. And the only one out of that stint anyone remembers is Sunset Overdrive. Fuse came and went; no one really remembers it. Edge of Nowhere? Slow Down, Bull?(?) No offense I had to look these up but not ashamed because 99.9% of everyone else doesn't remember those titles. Oddball early releases of theirs like Disruptor are much more well-known than all of multiplatform stuff they pushed, easily.
But as to your question, yes IF Insomniac showed an interest in working on some EA IP and SIE could afford a team to do it without sacrificing work capacity on some game they wanted Insomniac on like Spiderman...they yes, why not let them work with EA? But that's just the point: it'd have to be an IP EA own the rights to! You're not listening to that part. If it's a brand new IP, then EA has no place in the picture. That'd be 100% Insomniac & SIE. If it's an IP Insomniac have but EA don't have publishing rights ownership of...then EA is a non-factor. Again, that just becomes wholly an Insomniac & SIE thing.
It's the exact same here with From Software hence why I've been stressing IP like Demon's Souls, King's Field, Echo Night, Evergrace etc. Bandai Namco have no ownership over any of those IP and what's more, none of them really have any history outside of PlayStation systems. So they'd be 100% between Sony/SIE & From Software and, ideally, exclusive to PlayStation consoles and some hypothetical PS PC launcher if that ever happens.
However something like Dark Souls is different because Bandai Namco own the publishing rights, and there's a chance From Software might want to keep it and Demon's Souls divergent or even more divergent in the future from a mechanics & lore POV. So either Sony buys out the publishing rights for Dark Souls, or they partner with Bandai Namco and let them publish future Dark Souls games. The only way I see Sony buying the publishing rights for Dark Souls is both if From Software don't want to return to Demon's Souls AND SIE want to make future Dark Souls games exclusive to their console & (hypothetical) launcher. The likelihood SIE drop Steam for future Elden Ring games is 0%; those are going to be on Steam Day 1 just like the first game. Likelihood they drop Xbox versions of future Elden Ring games is 50% but I still think they might keep them there, just maybe they aren't Day 1 releases on Xbox anymore and come a year later? Who knows.
That all said I don't think SIE would want to deal with the messiness of making Dark Souls exclusive in any way to their console, so they'll probably let Bandai Namco retain publishing rights to it so if From Software decide they want to make a new Dark Souls, Bandai Namco pays SIE to have From develop it in a co-funding partnership, From develop the different versions, and Bandai Namco publishes them. I could see SIE agreeing to co-fund or fully fund the PlayStation version of a future Dark Souls game in return for getting publishing rights to the PlayStation version of that game, while Bandai Namco retain publishing rights to the Xbox & Steam versions and, again, stipulating that Bandai Namco can't do a Game Pass deal with Microsoft on it (both console & PC) or worm around with other loopholes.
I agree in concept, which would also suggest that Bandai Namco would have nowhere near a problem with Sony buying Kadokawa as some people are trying to say. After all, if that were such an issue for them...why sell the Elden Ring IP rights back to From Software to begin with?
Even if From Software were going to go fully independent, it'd mean them acting as their own publisher with that IP, so Bandai Namco are still out of the loop going forward with Elden Ring. They had to of foreseen the likelihood of Kadokawa & From Software getting acquired down the line, but choosing to sell the ER IP rights anyway indicates to me that they were fine with that possibility.
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