Loinhead

The magazine 360 interview Lionhead and a few other British game studios. Via Develop. Part 2 is here.

How are UK developers placed in the competitive world of the games industry?

Peter Molyneux: The merger of Activision/Vivendi, and the continual shrinking of the development pool with companies like BioWare/Pandemic, Travellers’ Tales and Bizarre Creations all being snapped up (and if the rumours are true a few more announcements to come) mean the landscape of developers is changing more rapidly than ever before. UK developers need to increase their ability to be competitive and there is a lot of talk about developers in Canada and the Far East who are treated far more sympathetically by their governments in terms of subsidies and tax breaks. Where British developers can still compete is in terms of originality and innovation.

Is there any concern that cheaper production costs abroad will push publishers away from the UK? What can British developers do to make sure they offer more than just cost effectiveness?

What can British developers do to make sure they offer more than just cost effectiveness? I kind of answered this above but we can’t compete on production cost so we have to compete on quality and what UK developers are good at is uniqueness and our ability to solve design problems – UK developers still have a lot to offer.

- Read on »

Latest stories suggest there’s chaos at the old Loinhead website. Our Senior Correspondent is now at the old Loinhead website; Orcid, can you tell us what’s going on there?

fel, there’s chaos!

As announced on the Lionhead blog, Lionhead are donating a bunch of mostly Fable 2-related stuff to be auctioned away at a fancy dinner for Child’s Play, the charity from Penny Arcade that gives toys to sickly kids in hospitals. Notably, to be auctioned off is some signed underwear (signed, of course, by Peter), having your name in Fable 2 and some Fable/Fable 2 t-shirts and posters.

and wants to get rid of some - with your help! Posting on the blog, Sam explains their predicament. It’s fairly urgent; they need a whole bunch of questions before November 19th. Questions should be about the World of Fable 2, their upcoming Fable 2-based MMORPG (or whatever you think that means). The questions will be answered by Fable 2 devs in the next video diary.

Hello Lionhead Community, fans and Fable Fanatics! The creation of the fourth Lionhead Video Diary is well under way; I’ve picked the topic of our next episode after careful consideration and taking all your feedback into account. Please remember these are called Lionhead Developer Video Diaries and not just Fable Video Diaries, but I take your point that you want to see more Fable 2 G o o d [Good]ness and so, the subject of the next episode will be the World of Fable 2! Normally I wouldn’t disclose the subject of the next episode as the surprise factor is half of the fun but on this occasion we want to hear from you!

We want all of you to submit your questions for the team.

Come on people, do it for the team.

That’s part two (p1) of Peter Molyneux’s interview with Gamesindustry.biz in four words for you (it’s these time-savers that make all the difference). If you’ve got time for an additional seven: Peter is pleasingly glib about silly questions.

GamesIndustry.biz: You’ve always been outspoken in your beliefs about what games have the potential to offer and where they could go. What’s your view on the question of whether games are an art form?

Peter Molyneux: Of course they are.

Why would you say that is?

Why would you say they weren’t? I’m very glib about that because this is a philosophical question. - Read on »

Meet the “Geeky” and Extremely Funny Central Technology Group (CTG) at Lionhead Studios, Responsible For Creating the Unique Tools that Produce and Enhance the Gameplay in “Fable 2″.

Video Diary Three is out! It Is Full Of Laffs.

Gamasutra chats to a bunch of artists, one of them being Mike McCarthy (he did that ol’ sketch, you remember). It’s a good read if you’re interested in artists generally (or Mike specifically). - Read on »

From USAToday:

Halo does “what a truly good book or film or TV show does,” says Peter Molyneux, a pioneering game developer (Populous, Black & White) and founder of Lionhead Studios, which like Bungie was acquired by Microsoft. “Halo delivers it in a way that more than ever before is emotionally engaging. In our industry, Halo represents pretty much the top of the game of what we are able to do with our dramatic content.”

Lionhead’s having a Jam Night tonight and you can see it on the webcam live now (cheers Sam for the tipoff and cam!). The guys are still setting up but it’ll probably kick off soon, watch those cams!

This link has been recently brought to my attention from an individual who shall remain annonymous. Apparently a new Lionhead News site has appeared recently. Or should I say, “News”. Whatever the case, it is mildly amusing and seems to be at least worth a visit.

The Lionhead Review

 Whatever it’s nature, its good to have a new LH fansite.