New Sierra Compilations!

[sierrastar]

Hey Guys!

In case you haven't seen or heard about these, check out amazon.com and search for your favourite Sierra series.  Nearly all are due to be released at $20 per compilation on DVD, December 06.

It's nice to see Vivendi actually remembers them.

-Ed

[NewRisingSUn]

Vaporware.

[Ari]

Vaporware?  :?

[Marten]

These compilations appeared in Amazon's listing sometime last year.  They keep getting mysteriously delayed.  Presently there is no evidence that Vivendi will actually ship them.

Though I have no authoritative source to back me up presently, I recall that the person working on the Anthology for Quest for Glory some years ago mentioned that at that time, he (or maybe it was she?) wanted to update the software and fix bugs so that it would work correctly on modern computers, but the person wasn't given the opportunity to try to hack into things and try to fix it that way.  Thus, the last set of collections went out the door "as-is" with little assistance or tools for end users to get the games working.

I know for certain that Sierra had a history of throwing things out when they were "done" with them.  A number of the painted backgrounds for their games ended up in their trash, and some wily collectors salvaged them.  So, I would not be surprised if the original sources for their software (or even just earlier versions of the editors for their software) had also been destroyed or lost in a similar manner.

So.... yeah.  Vaporware.

[Wodball]

Aren't these those same compilations that were supposed to come out last year, but were invariably delayed for mysterious reasons?

I remember that people on the AGDIForums ordered this stuff last year, and they never got it. Personally, I don't think they ever will...

--Woody

[Great Hierophant]

Do you think some people still have it preordered from last year, hoping this time VU will actually deliver? :wink:

I am sure I am not the first person to contemplate the amount of effort it will take to get these games working in Windows XP.  Ordinary graphics modes, emulated Sound Blaster, timer fixes, CPU and memory adjustments.  Not to mention fixing bugs, which in some cases are numerous.

[Alistair]

Heh, I just replied to a topic like this on the SpaceQuest.Net message board.

Who really thinks Vivendi will update the old code, which they have no way of decrypting/accessing? (I can't imagine them working with SCI Studio. ;P )

Who thinks Vivendi has any interest in bothering with this?

Moreover, how can this still be a topic in theSierra community. I thoguht this joke had died 6 months ago.

BTW, I presume "vaporware" = a way to lengthen your hold over copyright?

EDIT: no, it's not. I disagree- vaporware implies they're going to release it. And besides, who actually wants Vivendi to rerelease the games on CD with DOSBOX? I don't get the hype it creates. It's not 'nice Vivendi remembers them', because all their efforts are aimed towards making money and strangling every bit of life out of the old games.

- Alistair

[Ari]

So you think it's better that other people charge rediculous amounts of money for the kings quest collection (it's still got 2 days and it's already going for 64$ at this moment), than Sierra releasing new collections for only 20 bucks?

Or maybe it's you who has an economic interest here?  :roll:

[NewRisingSUn]

So you think it's better that other people charge rediculous amounts of money for the kings quest collection (it's still got 2 days and it's already going for 64$ at this moment), than Sierra releasing new collections for only 20 bucks?

Just buy the games individually instead of the collections, and you won't have to pay that much; you might even get the original documentation.
And of course, just downloading the games is also an option, unless you're a holy roller.

As far as what "Vivendi" should do: just release them to the public domain.

[Tom]

As far as what "Vivendi" should do: just release them to the public domain.

Thankfully, Cinemaware has chosen to do that with their old games, along with all the docs, music, and tips for playing them on today's PC's.  While Vivendi continues an attempt to bleed every penny they can make from  twenty-year-old products.

[Alistair]

Good to hear you saying that, Tom. Sometimes I worry the corporation has you under their wing. (But then I remember that's wacko!)

Ari: No, I don't believe paying 70 Us dollars is great for a KQ collection. But, it's a rare ish item and comes with lots of cool stuff.

I do believe the system of buying off Ebay or downloading is better than paying Vivendi to rerelease and make you pay THEM 40 dollars for nothing new. But, you're entitled to your opinion of course. I just firmly believe it's awful that Vivendi keep asking (for money) with one hand and screw the companies (not just Sierra) they own with the other.

- Alistair

[Ari]

Better for whom? Nobody but the seller profits from this low availability of these compilations. So if there's such a huge demand for them and so little supply, why is it such a bad thing that the company which owns the right to sell the games, actually sell it, and make potential buyers more happy (even if it makes a profit out of it, heaven forbid) than they could be because they're wasting time and money on auctions they'll either lose or pay much more for?

[jbltecnicspro]

So you think it's better that other people charge rediculous amounts of money for the kings quest collection (it's still got 2 days and it's already going for 64$ at this moment), than Sierra releasing new collections for only 20 bucks?

Heh, the Kings Quest Collection cost me $20 at the time of purchase.  And it cost me $15 to get it replaced by Vivendi.  I wonder, do they still offer support for the game?  I got the CDs replaced like four years ago though.

EDIT:  I bought it brand new in 1997.  

[Wodball]

Well, with Vivendi, I'd feel better with them letting some of their adventure game properties die honorable deaths than letting them do stuff with them.

Those that disagree with me, I have three words for you...

Magna... Cum... Laude...

C'mon, that had to be one big violation of the spirit of what Leisure Suit Larry was. They were understandably pandering to the lowbrow FPS fans who buy oodles of Half-Life materials, but to "idiotize" to idea of Leisure Suit Larry, then giving Al Lowe the cold shoulder despite the fact that he's still a funny man. We know you can breathe new life into a series by adding things that don't compromise the principles of the game. The Prince of Persia series, for instance.

It could be easier for Vivendi to sell the original versions (online download for instance) of the games (rather than updating them) and giving tips on how to run them for newer PCs. Or, they could just point people to the excellent fan support who have experience in making this stuff work. From my point of view, it would be easier. But I'm sure Vivendi would not want to go down that approach since they may think they are encouraging piracy.

But still, the duty of any company is to make money, no matter how altruistic the motives are. That's just how capitalism works.

--Woody

[jbltecnicspro]

I think they should release them to the public domain.  Honestly, the gameplay isn't that great anymore (I still love it), and most people don't like them when they play them.  For example, every friend that I sent a Kings Quest game to, hated it - absolutely hated it.  Kings Quest V, Kings Quest VI - it doesn't matter which one, they hated it.  It seems that today's generation of gamers are extremely spoiled, in which the devlopers do everything to entertain the player, and leave the player without the use of his or her imagination.

One common gripe I hear about old Sierra games are "Dude, the graphics are bad."  Or "what else do you do with it?  You just solve stuff, that's kind of gay..."  Vivendi, get a frickin clue - your 20-year-old games just aren't popular to the masses anymore!  Release the games!

[Alistair]

They know that, and they don't care. Capitalists like Ari Stone will be glad to tell you why Vivendi are still bothering with selling them- money. Vivendi Universal holds I think 40% of the world's "intellectual proeprty" rights at the moment, and why do you think that is? Simple. Bleed companies you ow nfor profit, whatever the cost. They don't know what Sierra is/was, and of coruse they don't care. As long as we have people like Ari who believe companies can do what they feel like doing with their 'property', regardless of whether it's just legally right or whether moral complications come into the foray as well, we'll keep having giants like Vivendi who walk all over the little guy.

Yes I think it's wrong Vivendi should profit from this. How do you know there's an overdemand and undersupply? I grant you, it's likely, given their actions to rerelease (albeit, purportedly).

But then our opinions would differ once more- I strongly believe they should be brought forth into the public domain. Hoarding intellectual property  like such awful game company examples like Apogee (now 3DRealms) for example is just disgraceful.

Yes, it is a bad thing. it's great that people can buy them and not pay Ebay prices, but it'd be better, using that logic, that the big multinational didn't profit from their bleeding-dry of Sierra's dark corpse, and not making Joe Consumer pay anything at all and have even more fans enjoy it.

- Alistair

[Ari]

Let me ask you a question, Alistair. Do you give away stuff in your store for free? do you release 20 year old MIDI hardware which is considered primitive  by today's standard to public domain? I don't see you refraining from capitalizing on other people's hard work. Just out of curiosity, how much did you sell your last MT-32 for?

You use terms like "bleed dry" and "dark corpse" and "walk all over the little guy" and the likes, as if Vivendy were paying 1$ a day to it's workers, or as if they were some sweatshop in southeast Asia. But the fact is, they paid good money to own those companies, and whoever they bought is most definitely sitting pretty with a nice sum of money in his bank account. Vivendi paid 770 million dollars for Sierra and other companies. What did you expect them to do with those companies exactly?

I have nothing against the idea of releasing software into public domain, and personally, I'd prefer it, but since it's their's to with as they please, I can't see anything wrong with making those games available again commercially. If they decided to hold on to the stuff and not release it at all just to spite gamers, I'd get pissed off at them, but I can't blame them for seeing profit in reselling the games and going for it.

[NewRisingSUn]

One common gripe I hear about old Sierra games are "Dude, the graphics are bad." Or "what else do you do with it? You just solve stuff, that's kind of gay..."

Don't take it personally, but your friends are idiots... on multiple counts.

Vivendi Universal holds I think 40% of the world's "intellectual proeprty" rights at the moment,

How do you figure that?

If they decided to hold on to the stuff and not release it at all just to spite gamers, I'd get pissed off at them, but I can't blame them for seeing profit in reselling the games and going for it.

They're not reselling the games for profit. They're announcing releases that keep getting pushed back but will never get delivered, just in order to deny the "abandoned product" argument.

[Ari]

How do you know they won't deliver?

[NewRisingSUn]

Something's wrong here. My post disappeared, and someone else's post appears as mine.

Edit: restored my original post. If you're a moderator, reply using the reply button, rather than editing your reply into my post. :evil:

How I know they won't deliver? Because Vivendi doesn't even confirm the releases, no representative knows anything about them, and the purported release dates keep getting pushed back.