Take THAT EA (Take Two fights back)

K

KarishBHR

Member
Rumors are circulating that the Take Two/Visual Concepts team is in negotiations to buy the exclusive MLB license, and negotiations are almost final. Visual Concepts is the company I had mentioned in a previous column as the ones who went out and locked up a long term deal with Major League Baseball after the NFL exclusive was announced, and now it looks like they were not only granted a long term deal, but are about to make it an exclusive. Word is, it could be an exclusive third party contract, meaning first-party publishers like Sony (989), Microsoft, and Nintendo will still be able to publish games using the real players and teams, but surprisingly, it's mega power EA who will be cut out of the loop.
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And news from the NBA side

On the NBA front, rumors are spreading throughout the industry that the league is now looking to sell genre-specific exclusives once current deals expire, meaning they want one company to publish sims (NBA Live, NBA 2K5), one to publish street-style games (NBA Street V3, NBA Ballers), and one to publish portables. Sources tell IGN Sports that there is already some major money on the table for each deal, and it will be interesting to see how it all shakes out. The NBA has rejected initial bids for the all-encompassing exclusive, taking the competition from the courts to the negotiating table.
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This is all from IGN, discuss
 
Funny thing is,VC could get the exclusive rights for MLB and more people would still buy MVP :lol

And as far as the NBA goes,I could really give a shit less,there hasn't been a good basketball game in years,if ever in my opinion.Just give me NBA Street...
 
If this happens EA will just buy Visual Concepts, order up the paperwork for the license, and then liquidate VC. Done deal.
 
I am all for this!
Of course, what EA could do is start their own sports league and buy out every major player currently in the MLB and start the EALB.
 
EA dropkicks TTWO in the balls with steal toe spiked boots....

TTWO eggs EAs sidewalk....

I dont call that fighting back....
 
RaidenZR said:
If this happens EA will just buy Visual Concepts, order up the paperwork for the license, and then liquidate VC. Done deal.
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That's only if VC or its shareholders are ready and willing to sell majority stake AND the FTC permits the purchase (which they wouldn't). Hostile takeovers are actually pretty difficult to pull off as most companies have MANY things in place to prevent it.
 
Give the street Basketball games to EA
Give the simulation basketball games to Sega
Give the portable basketball games to Midway
 
On the NBA front, rumors are spreading throughout the industry that the league is now looking to sell genre-specific exclusives once current deals expire, meaning they want one company to publish sims (NBA Live, NBA 2K5), one to publish street-style games (NBA Street V3, NBA Ballers), and one to publish portables.
Click to expand...

Why would I not put it past EA to "encourage" some of its devs split off and start another company, have them get the rights to one of the NBA deals and then turn around and buy the company?
 
You all laughed at me when I brought this up some months ago, but why can't the government step in? This Borg-esque assimilation sh!t they got going on is very unfare and limits competition something serious.
 
Because sports games can't be fun without franchises and big name players.

Or can they...

icehockey.jpg


:bow
 
This exclusivity trend is really, really not the way the industry should head. :-\

That said, with EA on streetball, Sega/Take-Two/VC on sims, and Midway doing portable games, I suppose I could be alright.
 
akascream said:
Because sports games can't be fun without franchises and big name players.

Or can they...

icehockey.jpg


:bow
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Woo hahahahaha.

Lets take another step back too. If sports games don't need franchises and big name players, they also don't need next gen graphics and gameplay. Lets hope these non league sanctioned sports games which come out over the next couple years use NES style graphics and gameplay.
 
Mrbob said:
Woo hahahahaha.

Lets take another step back too. If sports games don't need franchises and big name players, they also don't need next gen graphics and gameplay. Lets hope these non league sanctioned sports games which come out over the next couple years use NES style graphics and gameplay.
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fun > *

=)
 
Mrbob said:
Woo hahahahaha.

Lets take another step back too. If sports games don't need franchises and big name players, they also don't need next gen graphics and gameplay. Lets hope these non league sanctioned sports games which come out over the next couple years use NES style graphics and gameplay.
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...y'know, if that means Tecmo Bowl, then fuck yeah.

Bo Jackson > *, muhfuggas.
 
All you people saying give VC the sim rights,have you even fuckin played ESPN NBA?Not that Live is any better really,but damn.
 
Explain to me why this is good for the sports leagues? Or for gaming? Oh wait, it's all about the .... well you get the idea.

It's so reeeeeaal.
 
Well, for my pocketbook, these exclusive deals aren't a bad idea.

Instead of buying two different sports games in the same genre (I.E. ESPN2K5 and Madden 2005) I'll just buy the official game.
 
Phoenix said:
That's only if VC or its shareholders are ready and willing to sell majority stake AND the FTC permits the purchase (which they wouldn't). Hostile takeovers are actually pretty difficult to pull off as most companies have MANY things in place to prevent it.
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Oh, I was being over-the-top deliberately.
 
I'm pretty much done with sports games right after I got interested in them if they all become exclusive. I don't care if it's EA, Sega, Take Two, doesn't matter... exclusivity means stagnation. Sega made me a sports gamer again with ESPN NFL and NHL this year. Now EA has started a snowball that won't stop and I refuse to support it in any way.

Plenty of other games for my time and I can still watch the real thing or go play it outside.
 
Sims style b-ball - too close to call, sales wise, even before the price drop, this was the most even. Every year, collective scores at Gamerankings.com, Live has never beaten the 2K series.

Arcade style b-ball - again, too close to call, plus Midway has extreme history with the NBA, going back to NBA Jam. Jam made a billion dollars in quarters before the games were made for the consoles

Portables, I don't give a fuck

Also, what are sales figures on NBA Ballers?
 
Sims style b-ball - too close to call, sales wise, even before the price drop, this was the most even. Every year, collective scores at Gamerankings.com, Live has never beaten the 2K series.
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Sports gaming reviews are probably the worst way to decide on a game. Considering ESPN Basketball 2K4 was probably the worst basketball sim this generation, it somehow has an 86% on Game Rankings. Websites really need to stop releasing these crappy PR copy and paste reviews for sports games and start actually playing the games for more then 20 mins.
 
I'm waiting for the inevitable court challenge if T2 gets the MLB exclusivity, as I believe that MLB is the only sports league to have been granted a monopoly (if only limited) by the US Government. I'm sure that the argument that MLB is abusing their 'monopoly powers' will come into play somewhere.
 
Wow VC made a great move. I know some people don't like it, but no company should have a monopoly and this prevents that. EA can eat it as far as I'm concerned, they started this mess. Not looking so great now I bet, the money they'll add in having the sole rights to football they'll lose in VC locking up babsball and possibly Baskeball :lol

The fact that other first parties can still make games is the kinda EA spite I'm lovin.

Allthough I don't hate EA they deserve to get slapped around a bit.
 
I don't like this trend at all. I really don't like EA... This move by VC isn't something I'm going to sweep up the rug just because it may hurt EA. They're doing the same thing the 'big, evil empire is doing' and killing off the competition won't be good for the genre in the long-run.
 
kevm3 said:
I don't like this trend at all. I really don't like EA... This move by VC isn't something I'm going to sweep up the rug just because it may hurt EA. They're doing the same thing the 'big, evil empire is doing' and killing off the competition won't be good for the genre in the long-run.
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Yeah, but EA wouldn't have allowed anyone to make baseball games. I think it's a bad trend no doubt, but I'd rather see other companies come out fighting instead of letting it devour the industry. We must keep the ring...I mean industry out of EAs hands :)
 
hy·poc·ri·sy Pronunciation Key (h-pkr-s)
n. pl. hy·poc·ri·sies

1. The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness.
2. An act or instance of such falseness.


Hate all the exclusive or like em all.. but take a solid stance dammit. ;)
 
DarienA said:
Hate all the exclusive or like em all.. but take a solid stance dammit. ;)
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I particularly like the new response I'm seeing form those that called for EA boycotts, and assailed EA as the Great Satan over the NFL deal:

"Take Two getting the exclusive MLB license .... it's EA's fault! Damn EA! It's all their fault!"

Though I think there's next to no chance the MLB deal happens, I would love see all the EA boycotters backpedal like Lance Armstrong if it went through.
 
Noo, why couldn't they have taken the slightly higher road and not gone for any exclusive rights....!

But then again, some would call that bad business.

Not me, but some.

You know who you are.

Yes you do.
 
Raw64life said:
Give the street Basketball games to EA
Give the simulation basketball games to Sega
Give the portable basketball games to Midway
Click to expand...

I'd give street to Midway (Ballers > Street and it's stupid AI), and let EA have portables since they can recycle their old games.
 
EA paved this road though, so if they suffer a couple setbacks, then, that's all well to the good. They define the phrase "evil corporation", they make Microsoft seem nice. Also, was just about to call some folks out, but if you really need an explanation why the so called bball sims just give the illusion of a sim, you'll never get it (or grow up for that matter). Things are unlikely to change, regardless of who owns the license for known, common sense reasons. I have to live in this world with George Bush as president, so you can live with the fake sim basketball sim games, without the goddamn whining!
 
BlackClouds said:
EA paved this road though, so if they suffer a couple setbacks, then, that's all well to the good. They define the phrase "evil corporation", they make Microsoft seem nice.
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You MUST be high.
 
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