Allard: "Rare Xbox to Xenon Conversion Within Three Weeks"
Kameo likely to miss current gen.
It is thought likely that Kameo, the ill-fated adventure game from Rare, will end up as an Xbox 360 title, the third platform to house the title in the past four years.
What is of more interest is the time it took for UK studio Rare - an outfit coming under increased criticism for its inability to release games on time and to expected standards - to port the game.
“Several months ago I gave a Xenon kit to a team at Rare,” said Xbox lead J Allard. “They had an Xbox game in development, and they converted it to Xenon in six weeks. It was up and running in six weeks. With the updates we're giving developers now, that same game could easily be transferred in half that time. Xenon is absolutely easier to develop for than Xbox, no question.”
This impressive assertion from the upper echelons of Microsoft Games Studios claims that the Xenon, the development kit for the 360, can take in Xbox code and spew out next-generation code within three weeks, truly an unprecedented development ability if true.
All of which brings us to the question: which games at Rare are likely to make this jump? Perfect Dark Zero is something of a given, leaving Kameo as the only serious contender. As you may well know, Kameo had its release date removed by Rare back in November and no revised date was offered.
Given the reaction by the gaming press and gamers to Grabbed by the Ghoulies, it will be interesting to see the quality of Rare’s offerings, especially if they have been converted to 360, which in some cases will be the third host platform for the code.
We’ll keep you updated.
What is of more interest is the time it took for UK studio Rare - an outfit coming under increased criticism for its inability to release games on time and to expected standards - to port the game.
“Several months ago I gave a Xenon kit to a team at Rare,” said Xbox lead J Allard. “They had an Xbox game in development, and they converted it to Xenon in six weeks. It was up and running in six weeks. With the updates we're giving developers now, that same game could easily be transferred in half that time. Xenon is absolutely easier to develop for than Xbox, no question.”
This impressive assertion from the upper echelons of Microsoft Games Studios claims that the Xenon, the development kit for the 360, can take in Xbox code and spew out next-generation code within three weeks, truly an unprecedented development ability if true.
All of which brings us to the question: which games at Rare are likely to make this jump? Perfect Dark Zero is something of a given, leaving Kameo as the only serious contender. As you may well know, Kameo had its release date removed by Rare back in November and no revised date was offered.
Given the reaction by the gaming press and gamers to Grabbed by the Ghoulies, it will be interesting to see the quality of Rare’s offerings, especially if they have been converted to 360, which in some cases will be the third host platform for the code.
We’ll keep you updated.
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Comments
westerhive5 4 Apr 2005 15:10
1/17
Now you see why Nintendo passed on these guys 2 years ago. Hows that big hole in your pocket feeling M$?
shediesinred 4 Apr 2005 16:31
2/17
I agree, Rare is not the power house developer it once was, The golden eye team left a long time ago to start Free Radical, and the guys who worked on Donkey Kong Country and Banjo are also long gone. Only a few remain who were on the original staff, and they have become a lackluster 3rd party developer in my opinion, The only reason Microsoft acquired them was because of the few measly IP’s they still claim the rights to ( Perfect dark, Banjo Kazooie, Killer Instincts), as well as the nostalgic factor that will surley draw a few fans towards Microsofts side. But I think Nintendo did the right move by ending the relationship.
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shediesinred 4 Apr 2005 16:34
3/17
I agree, Rare is not the power house developer it once was, The golden eye team left a long time ago to start Free Radical, and the guys who worked on Donkey Kong Country and Banjo are also long gone. Only a few remain who were on the original staff, and they have become a lackluster 3rd party developer in my opinion, The only reason Microsoft acquired them was because of the few measly IP’s they still claim the rights to ( Perfect dark, Banjo Kazooie, Killer Instincts), as well as the nostalgic factor that will surley draw a few fans towards Microsofts side. But I think Nintendo did the right move by ending the relationship.
Ditto 4 Apr 2005 16:49
4/17
I totally agree.
The current situation with Rare has kinda finished them off as a gaming superpower.
The current situation with Rare has kinda finished them off as a gaming superpower.
config 4 Apr 2005 18:34
5/17
Maybe it's because Rare has, in the last four years, only managed to write a couple of thousand lines of code for Kameo.
A blind quadriplegic could "manually" complete the conversion in that time. Prolly could play a mean pinball, too.
A blind quadriplegic could "manually" complete the conversion in that time. Prolly could play a mean pinball, too.
shediesinred 4 Apr 2005 19:05
6/17
I agree, I think the problem with Rare is that they take SOOOO long to finish a game that by the time they finally do people have completely lost intrest, maybe a bigger staff would be a solution.. Perfect Dark for example, was a pretty good game, but by the time it was done the Nintendo 64 had long been “dead” and obsolete. The same happened with jet force Gemini, that game was delayed for years, and by the time it was finished nobody cared, they had moved on to bigger and better things. I think its funny how the only thing people want to see from Rare is a new perfect Dark, but rather then focus on system selling killer aps, they pump out titles like that grabbed by the goulies, and kameo.. although the later kind of looks like it may be somewhat entertaining. Its not what we want to see. I applaud them for trying new things, but they should stick with what they are good at. Its just disappointing that developers take so long to release triple A games.. if Nintendo had released the “new” Legend of Zelda game earlier in the systems life, and Resident Evil 4 would have been a launch title instead of all those remakes we got I think Nintendo’s Gamecube would be in a much, much better position then its in.
westerhive5 4 Apr 2005 19:51
7/17
Ummm, they did release a new Zelda at the perfect time in the GCN's life, called Wind Waker. Maybe you didn't enjoy it, but just like any other Zelda game, by frocing yourself through one or two rough patches, the experience of the game is made even better because of your installed determination. And if Resident Evil 4 was released earlier, it would still be about ghosts and guys with hooks, and would lack the thrill and polish that has made it one of THE best games this generation, totally owning the Halo twins and Grand Theft Auto: Rehash. Your desire for instantaneous gratification is the difference in wanking yourself, and getting some real b00ty, you want something great, you work and wait for it, you want it now and you'll be laying all alone with a sticky hand. Or something...
Pandaman 4 Apr 2005 21:04
8/17
The problem with Rare is not that they arn't operating well, but that their entire staff and management is in complete shambles. I look forward to seeing a "behind the scenes" coverall about Rare sometime in the future. The Stamper brothers have completely destroyed the company.
shediesinred 4 Apr 2005 21:11
9/17
That’s not what I meant, what I meant is that the gamecube lacked a killer ap on day one, and it frustrates me. Because that system is so overrated. The game cube is so much faster and more technologically advanced then Playstation 2 , but you’d never know if because the developers put half assed ports on it left and right. The Wind Walker to me was not worthy of the Zelda name.. Don’t get me wrong. It was good, but not great; traveling back and forth to all the different islands was monotonous. That’s why I said the “NEW” Zelda in my previous post, something that will make the masses remember that Nintendo is probably the best game developer on the planet, something that makes grown men weep. That’s what Nintendo needed at launch. Just like Microsoft, they had Halo, Dead or Alive 3, and Project Gotham, one day ONE. And that’s why they are second place right now, and Nintendo is lagging behind (in America at least).
kid_77 4 Apr 2005 22:08
10/17
westerhive5 wrote:
And if Resident Evil 4 was released earlier, it would still be about ghosts and guys with hooks, and would lack the thrill and polish that has made it one of THE best games this generation, totally owning the Halo twins and Grand Theft Auto: Rehash.
Resident Evil 4 is the first game I could be bothered to complete since Fable. I've put countless hours into Halo 2 online, because the maps and weapon balance is outstanding, and the human element adds that random factor. But single player just bored me after a couple of hours. RE4 was (is, Pro level next) just so invloving and satisfying. The way set-pieces vary each time, with enemies attempting to get at you in varying ways, really blew me away.
The old adage of "It's worth buying the console for" is usually bullshit. But in this instance, quite possibly.
neocarrillo 5 Apr 2005 03:58
11/17
I agree rare has been slipping since they went with microsoft. I mean when they were with nintendo from snes to n64 they made killer instinct, donkey kong 1-3 (not 64 that was crap), perfect dark and conker's bad fur day (greatest M rated game since gta). Since joining the big M they have had their creative freedom taken away. Microsoft loves to control everything, nintendo on the other hand let rare do anything they wanted. They should leave micorsoft and be multiplatform.
Ditto 5 Apr 2005 07:48
12/17
shediesinred wrote:
The Wind Walker to me was not worthy of the Zelda name.. Don’t get me wrong. It was good, but not great; traveling back and forth to all the different islands was monotonous. That’s why I said the “NEW” Zelda in my previous post, something that will make the masses remember that Nintendo is probably the best game developer on the planet, something that makes grown men weep.
Is the Wind Walker a new hack?
*Adam M switches into OoT bashing mode*
You may have found the sailing in The Wind Waker monotonous, but I found walking around a bloody field with nothing at all to do much more boring.
The Wind Waker was the closest Zelda game to A Link to the Past, it had innovative graphics, excellent controls, good dungeon design and above all a SENSE OF HUMOUR and a plot - two things they left out of OoT that make games for me.
*Adam switches out of OoT bashing mode*
Well, anyway, back to the real subject matter.
With the number of staff Rare employ and the amount of resources, including an R&D lab, that Rare have it's amazing that hey still haven't produced anything of note. It wouldn't surprise me if, in the coming few years, they're closed down or aquired by the likes of EA.
kid_77 5 Apr 2005 08:15
13/17
neocarrillo wrote:
nintendo on the other hand let rare do anything they wanted.
Not sure that's entirely accurate. I imagine a company of Ninty's high standing have very tight development and QA standards.
Ditto 5 Apr 2005 09:28
14/17
kid_77 wrote:
neocarrillo wrote:
nintendo on the other hand let rare do anything they wanted.
Not sure that's entirely accurate. I imagine a company of Ninty's high standing have very tight development and QA standards.
I read an interview with Miyamoto a couple of years ago before Rare were bought by Microsoft, he said that Nintendo trusted Rare and that they were a secrative developer that prefered to do their own things.
The gist of it was while Nintendo monitored the output and checked their franchises were being used correctly, they didn't have that tight control over Rare's activities.
kid_77 5 Apr 2005 09:56
15/17
Adam M wrote:
I read an interview with Miyamoto a couple of years ago before Rare were bought by Microsoft, he said that Nintendo trusted Rare and that they were a secrative developer that prefered to do their own things.
The gist of it was while Nintendo monitored the output and checked their franchises were being used correctly, they didn't have that tight control over Rare's activities.
The gist of it was while Nintendo monitored the output and checked their franchises were being used correctly, they didn't have that tight control over Rare's activities.
Yeah sure, in terms of game design I'm sure Rare had free reign (within reason). But Ninty would never published a game unless it was solidly built, and thouroughly play-tested to their own standards.
BustyKrusty 5 Apr 2005 11:35
16/17
I think you're right.If Nin was to control them that much it'd be the same as with EA's branches right now..not so great content, halfheartedly made,you name it.Clearly with Nin they walked at their own rhythm(even though it goes in contradiction with Nin being a burden to developers in recent years)which then translates into better games.And with those at Rare unhappy of buy-out i see M$ unsure of whether to press or loosen it up...a pretty much f**ked up marriage to say the least.
neocarrillo 5 Apr 2005 15:39
17/17
BustyKrusty wrote:
I think you're right.If Nin was to control them that much it'd be the same as with EA's branches right now..not so great content, halfheartedly made,you name it.Clearly with Nin they walked at their own rhythm(even though it goes in contradiction with Nin being a burden to developers in recent years)which then translates into better games.And with those at Rare unhappy of buy-out i see M$ unsure of whether to press or loosen it up...a pretty much f**ked up marriage to say the least.
Definitely true, M$ is a bunch of corporate dicks that want control of everything including when you take a s**t & piss.