The Player Fatwas Vol.1: Franchise.
It's nearly 4PM and I am swamped by work; important things at stake like some dude's life if he gets deported, but everybody needs a break, and I need more than most. Perusing gameindustry.biz mindlessly, as i do, I come across Sierra's Martin Tremblay pontificating about how his company's got the oevas to be different and publish more than its fair share of original IPs. I also notice that Take 2 has started to "float" the prospect of a Bioshock sequel.
What's an original IP to you? The chance for something new, original? A fresh experience which might floor you with its brilliance, rather than that same-but-better affair you tend to buy on a regular basis from GAME, right? Because while we indulge in samey sequels, because while familiarity breeds contempt, it's also, like, familiar. Less effort. Sometimes you need a quickie with your girlfriend who loves you and lovingly pretends to orgasm after just two minutes. That's what girlfriends are for. But you also need excitement every now and then, so you go and cheat on them. That's original IP for me: for when you can be fucked to make an effort.
Erm, anyways. The point, I think, is this: This Tremblay character basically says- "we're the shit at lots of genres". He then goes on, to quote him in full:
On top of these four pillars of genres we're going to create original IP, and I would say we're pretty solid in that direction compared to any other publisher. We're going to be up there with the big guys with regard to creating new franchises.
To people in the games industry, originality means "new franchises". The question for someone doing something new is not "let's make something radical, fresh". No, it's, "okay, we think we've milked Halo Prime Zone Solid for all its worth. We need to come up with some new shit, yo". Other media industries invest in new IP for the specific IP's intrinsic merit. The question might eventually be, "can we franchise this? Can this have a sequel?", but at the outset, they invest in the product. In books, a publisher might invest in the name of a rookie novelist. They won't say, at the outset- okay, we'll roll with it, but only if you can turn this shit into an 18-volume series.
Anyways, I've come to dislike the term. I hereby issue a Player Fatwa, on this word: Franchise. Allah damn us to our very soul if you use it in any context other than scorn. Admittedly, I have consulted no one in "The Team" about this. But if they disagree I'll fatwa their ass too.
PS- the piccie is of me as I read the piece about "new franchises". It makes me mad. Anyhoo, better return to this dude who says he'll die if we kick him out of our country...
