Fri, Apr 20, 2012 | 03:39 BST
Dragon’s Crown to be published by Atlus, $30 a “logistical impossibility”
Atlus has picked up Vanillaware’s brawler, Dragon’s Crown, but is delaying it into 2013 with an increased price tag.
In a post on the PlayStation blog, Atlus seemed to suggest that Ignition had overreached in its ambitions for the delayed title.
“When we took over the reins, we realized that a lot of the information made available to the public was ambitious and unfounded conjecture. The release timing, the pricing, and many of the features detailed for fans and members of the press were simply unknowable at the time they were disseminated (and frankly we were quite shocked to find out that many of the details were made public unbeknownst to even the developers),” the publisher revealed.
“It’s still way too early in development to be talking about specifics, but we can say that the game simply cannot retail for $29.99. We don’t know where that price point came from, but it is a logistical impossibility. We’re all gamers and we all wished it could be so, but it would have essentially destroyed any chance for profitability.”
In a statement, Ignition confirmed it has stepped back entirely from the “internal development” of Dragon’s Crown,
“While we are saddened to no longer be associated with the Dragon’s Crown project, we are very confident that the title is in excellent hands with Atlus,” senior vice president Lokesh Dhar said.
“Since the initial announcement, information on timing and features in the game have changed and other details regarding design and functionality are yet to be determined. We are confident that Atlus and Vanillaware will deliver the finest game possible.”
Dragon’s Crown was announced as an Ignition effort in June last year, but the title’s future seemed to be in some doubt when retailers began cancelling pre-orders. It features lovingly animated 2D graphics, boasts a number of Persona veterans on the development team, and has four player co-op.
Disney has a majority stake in Ignition; the effects of the acquisition on the media group’s troubled games publishing arm have not yet been detailed.
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Posted in: Action, Atlus, Ignition, PS3, Vita
Tags: Dragon's Crown, Vanillaware
7 comments
#1
Brenna Hillier
20/04/12, 3:39 am
Updated with Ignition’s statement.
#2
Clupula
20/04/12, 6:51 am
it does clear up the canceling of pre-orders, though, since now Amazon no longer has to honor any of the $30 pre-orders.
#3
The_Red
20/04/12, 8:34 am
Nice. Now bring it to Vita ASAP.
#4
Clupula
20/04/12, 8:52 am
@3 – It is coming to both PS3 and VITA, but as the article said, not until 2013.
#5
Hooded
20/04/12, 9:51 am
Forgive me if I’m blind, but your article doesn’t say which consoles the game is out for, you may wanna update it
#6
Gekidami
20/04/12, 9:55 am
^ The bottom bit where it says “Posted in” followed by “PS3, Vita” might be a clue.
#7
Hooded
20/04/12, 10:39 am
^ Yeah but in the whole body of the text, it not once says which platforms. It isn’t that hard to write it. It’s called constructive criticism my friend.