SL redundancies and the future [if any] of HD

[ACE-FLO]

Don't lose hope young friend. You got crazy skills and you will work for a top development studio, just don't lose hope. And don't forget, you got the brains, vision and grit to get you there!

[XpanDrome2097]

I hope that everyone who have worked at Psygnosis/SL during all these years will try to found a new exciting game company...
Oh, what a dream!
I think that everyone on this forum will be excited for this, indeed!

[Asayyeah]

I received Stin's SMS this morning and had a shock.
Cannie beleived it at 1st then i pictured on my mind the great weekend we spent at the Studio with my dear mates ( Charlie & Stevie already mentionned it) meeting all the great guys who were working hard to develop at that time the new Wipeout HD. We knew they hadn't time for us but they took a whole afternoon, tchatting & joking with us but also discussing seriously about Wipeout in general over the years. They all shown us their true passion & involvment into Wipeout and eventhough i didn't catched all ( my english listening : my bad ) their eyes were saying more than their words.

This is extremely difficult for me to continue writing.
Sorry

[Koleax]

When I play Wipeout, it feels like the people who made it knew me.

I did not know them, but wherever they go, I hope for them with all my heart.

[Colin Berry]

I remembered something earlier I dont think I ever mentioned on here


Not long after we finished work on WOHD, Paul Tweedle and Tony Buckley, (the producer and game director) received a letter from a soldier out in afghanistan praising wipeout pure and thanking us for keeping him entertained whilst he was out on a tour of duty, saying how he'd actually broken his copy of the game using it so much (or something) but just thanking us and saying how some of the guys out there used psps to keep themselves entertained. Paul and Tony got a goody bag together of wipeout stuff a copy of pulse another of pure and I think they even threw in another psp and then mailed it out to him via the armed forces post service.

I know at times in the past years fans can be frustrated with dev guys, but every single person on those titles worked hard and always tried the best for the game, we may have had the odd delay and may have got a few things wrong now and again, and god knows we had disagreements with each other, but the dedication to quality and the passion and commitment could never be faulted.

I'm just a bit shellshocked about how they've all been treated

[IH8YOU]

I was just reading up on SCE Studio Liverpool before Sony yanked it off their website.

http://www.worldwidestudios.net/liverpool

[PLazarou]

Thanks Colin for your memories. If you're still in touch with the guys from SL who don't normally come to this forum, it would be great if you could encourage them to read these topics. They're probably not in the mood to post how they really feel right now but at least they can see how much they are appreciated.

[Koleax]

What a great story, Colin.

I don't know to what extent you're allowed to talk about it, but since this has been such a shock, I'm guessing that things were going pretty well for Wipeout HD Fury and it had been profitable? That the low price had not impacted the bottom line too greatly? Because I immediately worried for the future of the studio when I first saw Wipeout HD's price. It seemed like there was a very risky strategy behind it. I hope the studio did not come to this fate because of the reckless decisions of some upper level marketer or economist.

[ProblemSolver]

Phantastic story, Colin. And it isn't too difficult to imagine the big smile on his
face. Hopefully this special memory serves him even today!

What I love about you guys and gals is your dedication to quality, it's an
irreplaceable value and has made WOHD and icon for me.

[Dark_Phantom_89]

That story truly touched me Colin.

Although the future of Wipeout is uncertain, there is one thing that isn't - the loyalty of the fans. Thank you so much SL for everything

[Frances_Penfold]

PurE was my first WipEout game, which I bought at the North American launch of the PSP in 2005.

One of the reasons that I spent so much time playing WipEout games since that time was Sony's commitment to the franchise-- three excellent games in a five year period! I also appreciated the relatively open communication that Studio Liverpool gave to its fans. This was very different from what happens with a first-party Nintendo studio, for example.

So Sony's decision to close Studio Liverpool is very disappointing to me. My best wishes go out to all SL employees, and also my thanks for developing such amazing software. I guess the future of the WipEout IP is still unknown... but there is no doubt that the events of the last week will profoundly affect the history of the franchise.

Not long after we finished work on WOHD, Paul Tweedle and Tony Buckley, (the producer and game director) received a letter from a soldier out in afghanistan praising wipeout pure and thanking us for keeping him entertained whilst he was out on a tour of duty, saying how he'd actually broken his copy of the game using it so much (or something) but just thanking us and saying how some of the guys out there used psps to keep themselves entertained. Paul and Tony got a goody bag together of wipeout stuff a copy of pulse another of pure and I think they even threw in another psp and then mailed it out to him via the armed forces post service.

I know at times in the past years fans can be frustrated with dev guys, but every single person on those titles worked hard and always tried the best for the game, we may have had the odd delay and may have got a few things wrong now and again, and god knows we had disagreements with each other, but the dedication to quality and the passion and commitment could never be faulted.

Great story, thank you for sharing this and your other thoughts and insights over the years. The communication of WipEout creators to the WOZ was a special thing and it is very sad to see it lost

I would enjoy hearing other stories (if permitted by NDAs etc. of course!)

[boxman22]

I remembered something earlier I dont think I ever mentioned on here


Not long after we finished work on WOHD, Paul Tweedle and Tony Buckley, (the producer and game director) received a letter from a soldier out in afghanistan...

... the dedication to quality and the passion and commitment could never be faulted.

All in all this is the best game that has been released in years imo. On top of that it was also cheap and i could easily have paid full price for such a excellent game. All games have their occasional bug or annoyance anyways and there is always someone who will be unhappy no matter what.

Edit: Also does the people who are responsible for the layoff have some email address? I really want to tell Sony how i feel about this whole situation.

[AurigaAB]

I'm shocked after this news. To everyone involved in Psygnosis / SL over the years, thank you for building the string of titles that brought so many hours of fun to so much people all over the globe, who continue to play to this day. I don't think it's irrelevant to note that I came today to the site to learn about this, only a few minutes after receiving in the mail a copy of Wipeout 3 to replace a worn-out disk.

It's very sad to learn of the treatment some of the staff has received. Your accomplishments on HD won't be surpassed by any racing game on this console generation. I wish you the best recovery.

[LOUDandPROUD]

*posted this in the other related thread, before realizing that this is the main thread for this, so reposting here.

Wow, this is depressing news. Thanks to SL/Psygnosis and I wish you all the best of luck. I may not be playing WOHD as much as I used to, but my love for it is, and always will be, strong.

Selfishly, I find myself imagining a world with no future iterations of WO and the day that the WOHD servers finally go offline. It's...unthinkable...and will effectively disconnect an entire community of gamers/friends from all over the world. That would be a sad, sad day...

I'll never forget all the amazing folks I've gotten to know, thanks to WO.

Sony =

[JJPAP]

and the day that the WOHD servers finally go offline. It's...unthinkable...and will effectively disconnect an entire community of gamers/friends from all over the world. That would be a sad, sad day...

Really agree w/ you L&P

Feel really sad (also) for all the good guys at SL

But hopefully - like Rock´n Roll - WO will never die ..... We yet have to hear if WO in some way will continue ... Not too high hopes, I must admit - BUT BUT BUT .....

Let´s all keep racing and be friends in speed

[AG-wolf]

maybe by then, people will have figured out how to crack some code and do their own online servers like someone did with Phantasy Star Online back in the day for Dreamcast... PSN games don't have a constricted network like Xbox Live, so technically if you could just tell the game to connect to a different IP when it looks for the WOHD online servers- as long as it gets the right response, maybe it would work.

[GTAce]

It almost feels like a good friend died...

I wish everyone who worked at SL and the WipEout series all the best for the future and hope HD wasnt the last game i could play from you.

Playing videogames is one of the very few things i can do due to my Spinal Muscular Atrophy and great games like WipEout helped me to get through a lot of bad times in the past. I have a lot of respect for you developers.

[Rapier Racer]

.....................

Just came back from my friends house after watching the Royal Rumble in a fairly good mood, until I logged in here and saw that on the front page.

My first thoughts were also images of the studio flashing through my mind like Stevie, Charlie and Arnaud when we got the once in a lifetime chance to see the place, I still remember all the Wipeout posters, computers and big screens everywhere. (I won't thank you Mister Hellfire for digging up those out dated pictures of me lol

Very sad to see such talented people put out of work after producing such quality and entertaining products, rest assured we all wish you the best.

What does the future hold now? I certainly hope Wipeout isn't canned whilst a piece of crap like Motorstorm lives on, no doubt the chances of that are high. Lets not forget to slap Phill Harrison whilst we're at it if I recall correctly he couldn't push Evo enough, he also couldn't NOT mention SL enough.

I'll be watching the scene closely. If it becomes apparent Wipeout is going to become WipeoutStorm Pacific Rift or indeed, gone forever then so will my support of anything with a PlayStation logo on it, never thought I'd say that. Might get some use out of my 360 besides Mass Effect 2 after all....

To borrow a line from a song, which I think sums up the way we feel towards Wipeout: Even through the darkest days, this fire burns, always.

[judus]

Noooo There goes my childhood memories, playing Wipeout2097 after school on a grey winter day. The thunder and lightning of GareDe Europa... It felt good knowing that what it was then is still relevant today.

Thanks for the memories SL (psygnosis), feel proud in acknowledging that you guys shaped and imbuned countless individuals with great imagination. I wish you all the best in your future endeavours.

Its just too sad to take in...

[Alejess]

Haven’t been able to play much Wipeout at all over the last 6 months or so, or even been on the PS3 during that time. But when I read the rumours about jobs cuts at Studio Liverpool, I felt compelled to come here and express my views.

Wipeout is the most enjoyable game I have played on a console – bar none. It is quite literally the only reason I purchased a PS3 over an Xbox: without Wipeout, I would definitely have chosen the latter. The game just exudes quality, and has done so since the very first Wipeout was released.

So a big thank you to all those talented individuals involved in making the game: you’ve given me and countless others so much enjoyment over the years. I really hope those guys who have been made redundant get back in employment as soon as possible: I’m sure having “worked on developing Wipeout” etc on your CVs will be a massive positive for you all.

As for Sony: well, I don’t know the exact whys and wherefores behind this decision: all I can say is that on the face of it this decision could well backfire. Butchering a studio with such talented people working in it, and one with such a fantastic reputation for quality, seems very short-sighted indeed. Even if times are tough, or when you can’t avoid the need to ‘re-structure’ or make cuts, you should always take steps to make sure you don’t lose your prize assets. I’m afraid to say that Sony appear to have done exactly that.