Creative Assembly is making Halo Wars 2 (Xbox One, Windows 10)

[Sharky]

Yeah, but Sega is more like "parent company" rather than a "owner" in my view. Like many companies under the Sega Sammy umbrella, it is free to do business with other companies as long as it benefits them.

No, Creative Assembly is no less a SEGA studio than AM2. They can't just go and partner with another publisher willy-nilly without SEGA's say so.

[Radrappy]

No, Creative Assembly is no less a SEGA studio than AM2. They can't just go and partner with another publisher willy-nilly without SEGA's say so.

AM2 has never existed independently of Sega.  It used to be R&D#2 for crissakes.  CA had a reputation and major franchises under its belt before being purchased by Sega.  It's not the same situation.

That said you are right, they would obviously need Sega's approval to engage in any kind of business.  Same thing with Atlus. 

 

[Trippled]

Of course, like any business, it needs the parent companies approval.

[Sharky]

AM2 has never existed independently of Sega.  It used to be R&D#2 for crissakes.  CA had a reputation and major franchises under its belt before being purchased by Sega.  It's not the same situation.
 

How does that make a difference though... whether they began outside or inside, they're both simply wholly owned development teams under SEGA. Those are the facts of this situation. Whether you personally feel they aren't True-Blood-100%-SEGA-DNA-Gentlemens-Only-Club is only a matter of perspective.

CA are a much bigger and more robust company than the one SEGA bought a decade ago.

[George]

Trippled you're just labeled them this way because they arent' a Japanese developer....

They have been owned by SEGA for 10 fucking years, for longer than they owned Visual Concepts and no one did this nonsense 'This isn't a SEGA game' with Visual Concepts games...

Just disheartening that SEGA fans dislike quality games that aren't Japanese that they have to go out the their way to create lies and excuses to ignore games.

You can just, you know, not play it because it doesn't appeal to you. But don't say a company that is 100% funded and under control by SEGA that they aren't 'a SEGA company'. Which I also find funny cuz the Total War fans are sure quick to say that SEGA is forcing all this DLC and premature game launches.... but yet when there is a success everyone says "GO CA, YOU DID IT".

Talk about getting shit end of the stick by both sides of the fanbases. Who cares if they existed prior to SEGA's involvement? You know lots of people work on games before they work at SEGA, right? This isn't the 80's, this isn't the start of gaming anymore.

Is Vectorman now not a SEGA game because BlueSky Software made games before SEGA? These excuses are getting more petty every year.

[jonboy101]

Trippled you're just labeled them this way because they arent' a Japanese developer....

They have been owned by SEGA for 10 fucking years, for longer than they owned Visual Concepts and no one did this nonsense 'This isn't a SEGA game' with Visual Concepts games...

Just disheartening that SEGA fans dislike quality games that aren't Japanese that they have to go out the their way to create lies and excuses to ignore games.

You can just, you know, not play it because it doesn't appeal to you. But don't say a company that is 100% funded and under control by SEGA that they aren't 'a SEGA company'. Which I also find funny cuz the Total War fans are sure quick to say that SEGA is forcing all this DLC and premature game launches.... but yet when there is a success everyone says "GO CA, YOU DID IT".

Talk about getting shit end of the stick by both sides of the fanbases. Who cares if they existed prior to SEGA's involvement? You know lots of people work on games before they work at SEGA, right? This isn't the 80's, this isn't the start of gaming anymore.

Is Vectorman now not a SEGA game because BlueSky Software made games before SEGA? These excuses are getting more petty every year.

Well Creative Assembly and Sports Interactive (and I guess Relic now, too) sort of shatter that meme about Sega being inept, don't they? People say Sega is rubbish and don't make good games and blah blah blah. Creative Assembly has been on point pretty much forever, and has expanded an insane amount since they were bought. They're huge if they're making four games right now.

I think part of it is they're still called Creative Assembly, rather than something like Sega R&D #3, or something.

[Radrappy]

Trippled you're just labeled them this way because they arent' a Japanese developer....

They have been owned by SEGA for 10 fucking years, for longer than they owned Visual Concepts and no one did this nonsense 'This isn't a SEGA game' with Visual Concepts games...

Just disheartening that SEGA fans dislike quality games that aren't Japanese that they have to go out the their way to create lies and excuses to ignore games.

You can just, you know, not play it because it doesn't appeal to you. But don't say a company that is 100% funded and under control by SEGA that they aren't 'a SEGA company'. Which I also find funny cuz the Total War fans are sure quick to say that SEGA is forcing all this DLC and premature game launches.... but yet when there is a success everyone says "GO CA, YOU DID IT".

Talk about getting shit end of the stick by both sides of the fanbases. Who cares if they existed prior to SEGA's involvement? You know lots of people work on games before they work at SEGA, right? This isn't the 80's, this isn't the start of gaming anymore.

Is Vectorman now not a SEGA game because BlueSky Software made games before SEGA? These excuses are getting more petty every year.

You're completely missing the point.  There's a reason why CA is always credited with their high quality games and none of that is tossed Sega's way.  It's because their brand identity was strong before they were even purchsed.  It's going to be the same damn thing with Atlus.  No one is going to be patting Sega on the back for the success of the Persona franchise and no one should be.  Whether a studio is Japanese/Western has nothing to do with this. 


heck it's not even just ignorant fans who feel this way about CA:


http://gamasutra.com/view/feature/169354/how_creative_assemblys_process_.php?print=1


They emphasize their independence numerous times throughout the interview.  CA has retained their brand/identity post purchase which ultimately leaves gamers reluctant to credit Sega with their success.  They basically say everything is awesome because Sega just leaves them alone.  They don't even say "we."  Sega is constantly referred to as a separate entity. 

[Sharky]

But Atlus are quite a separate publishing entity owned by SEGA while CA are a development studio owned by SEGA and published by SEGA, no different than Sonic Team or AM2. The only difference here is in peoples minds.

[Trippled]

Also, Simon Jeffery on CA

Creative Assembly was a very conscious decision to open up a new part of the market for Sega, a part of the market that Sega has not really been associated with at all. It was part of a drive to ensure that qualitatively, we could guarantee every couple of years we would have a triple-A, 95 percent-rated game coming out from a world-class studio. We've pretty much left them alone to build product the way they want to build product. I don't know if you've seen Empire: Total War yet, but it's absolutely stunning.

The purchase was an intent of having a very reliable company.

Over the years Sega has partnered with many western studios under the Sega banner, however Halo Wars does not have that Sega banner. Is Vampire Night by Namco a Sega game (developed by Wow)? Maybe, but I dont see it that way. When Sega pays for it, its a Sega game.

The Sonic Team and AM2 comparision doesn't work either. They are not companies, they are divisions in Sega Japan.

[Sharky]

Creative Assembly is a division of SEGA Europe... if SEGA wanted to rename them 'SEGA AM Fart team' tomorrow they could. They leave them to their own devices out of good will and trust, not because they have too.

[Barry the Nomad]

SEGA AM Fart team would make for an awesome fansite name...

But yeah, CA is SEGA. Who cares if they were an entity before being brought into the SEGA fold? It has been ten years, they have had plenty of new team members and new games developed as a SEGA development studio. Even old team members, who did not receive the mythical SEGA DNA transfusion, are now SEGA employees. I'd probably draw the line at titles made pre-SEGA that have since fallen under SEGA ownership, but thats about it.

[Aki-at]

Also, Simon Jeffery on CA

The purchase was an intent of having a very reliable company.

Over the years Sega has partnered with many western studios under the Sega banner, however Halo Wars does not have that Sega banner. Is Vampire Night by Namco a Sega game (developed by Wow)? Maybe, but I dont see it that way. When Sega pays for it, its a Sega game.

The Sonic Team and AM2 comparision doesn't work either. They are not companies, they are divisions in Sega Japan.

If you think SEGA funding = SEGA game to you than fair play, can't really argue with that.

Creative Assembly is a division of SEGA Europe... if SEGA wanted to rename them 'SEGA AM Fart team' tomorrow they could. They leave them to their own devices out of good will and trust, not because they have too.

If he's talking about a company then he is correct, Creative Assembly is itself a company within SEGA. I'd still consider it "SEGA" but talking about it from a purely legal standing, he hasn't said anything wrong. It's like how SEGA Networks was it's own company within SEGA, rather than a division of SEGA, which developers like Sonic Team or Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio are.

At the end of the day though, yes SEGA could name them The Super Magical Roman Fart Warriors Team if they wanted too, they have 100% control.

[TimmiT]

When you think about it nobody at SEGA is really SEGA cause they all used to not be part of SEGA at one point.

[Sharky]

When you think about it nobody at SEGA is really SEGA cause they all used to not be part of SEGA at one point.

Exactly, this whole 'is it or isn't it SEGA' is absolute nonsense. Like there's something more than simply employees developing games for a publisher.

[Radrappy]

Then what are we even fans of guys.  What is happening here.