Author Topic: All IE games to go out of print?  (Read 4469 times)

Offline jcompton

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All IE games to go out of print?
« on: May 02, 2004, 11:31:48 PM »
It would appear that the staggering shell of Interplay has lost the rights to all D&D-licensed titles, as everything--ranging from the newest Dark Alliance title to BG1--has disappeared from the site.

Those of us interested in encouraging more people to discover and enjoy these games can pretty much only hope that whoever ends up with Interplay's assets is able to work out an arrangement to put them back on the shelves.
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Offline Ghreyfain

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #1 on: May 03, 2004, 12:15:23 AM »
In that case I guess I'd better burn a backup or two.

(No seriously, I do mean as backups)
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Offline Caedwyr

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #2 on: May 03, 2004, 03:27:59 AM »
Yep, backups are good.  My original BGII cds went kinda funky, but luckily I had a couple of backups.

I hope the IE games get picked up by some other company who is interested in a decent size release.  Possibly as one of the 'classics' releases that seem so popular in the gaming industry these days.
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Offline jester

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #3 on: May 03, 2004, 05:20:09 AM »
It would be very sad, if the games were shelved as not viable products, not sold off cheaply for some reason that comes out of a murky spreadsheet. Trust me lawyers and financial controllers are a deadly combination.

PST seemed to have met that fate. :(

...or they decide on something like this (ok I am a dreamer): http://creativecommons.org/
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Offline discharger12

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2004, 06:48:22 AM »
Its a good thing I just recently found out how to burn on these things :)

Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2004, 09:16:32 AM »
PST went out of print earlier because, yeah, Interplay lost the rights to the Planescape universe individually first. But it looks like it's all gone now.

And yes, it would be awfully nice to see the series get picked up and repackaged as, say, a two-DVD trilogy pack.
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Offline Mongoose87

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2004, 03:53:20 PM »
Maybe there's some a member of the forums who's secrectly a rich old coot who will purchase the rights to the IE.   :D :D

Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2004, 03:59:47 PM »
The problem isn't the rights to the engine, the problem is the rights to the _gameworlds_. (Although as the Infinity Engine is so closely tied to D&D game mechanics, it's a related problem.)
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Offline Alarielle

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #8 on: May 03, 2004, 04:02:50 PM »
presumably though (correct me if I'm wrong), the owners of D&D will be making a hefting sum from the sales of D&D based games, so you'd think they'd be happy to give out rights to game developers
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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #9 on: May 03, 2004, 04:25:41 PM »
...wouldna surprise me if'n BIOweenia picked up the rights, as theys know that money will still be made from 'em... :'(


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Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #10 on: May 03, 2004, 04:35:00 PM »
Bioware isn't a publisher. Unless they bought them to resell them, it wouldn't do Bioware any good.
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Offline Alarielle

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #11 on: May 03, 2004, 04:36:10 PM »
anyway, Bioware aren't doing that kind of game anymore, are they?
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Offline neriana

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #12 on: May 03, 2004, 06:22:34 PM »
anyway, Bioware aren't doing that kind of game anymore, are they?

Bioware isn't making D&D games any longer. Considering the Humongous Hasbro Hassle, I can't blame them.
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Offline discharger12

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #13 on: May 03, 2004, 07:50:45 PM »
anyway, Bioware aren't doing that kind of game anymore, are they?

Bioware isn't making D&D games any longer. Considering the Humongous Hasbro Hassle, I can't blame them.

The humongous hasbro hassle? That's quite new to me.

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #14 on: June 27, 2004, 07:37:55 AM »
Isn't NWN + Star Wars based in-part on the Humongous Hasbro Hassle?

Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #15 on: June 27, 2004, 09:35:25 AM »
Isn't NWN + Star Wars based in-part on the Humongous Hasbro Hassle?

Can you be a little more specific?

Nothing Star Wars related would have much, if anything, to do with Hasbro. (Yes, Star Wars uses D20, etc, but it's Lucas who controls the content... unlike in D&D, where it's Hasbro who does.)
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Offline Perdita

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #16 on: June 27, 2004, 05:53:15 PM »
In that case I guess I'd better burn a backup or two.

(No seriously, I do mean as backups)

I tried to make backups once, but they were unplayable.  Any special thing I should do to make sure they work?
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Offline Ghreyfain

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #17 on: June 28, 2004, 12:07:23 AM »
I haven't tried copying BG2, but neither BG1, IWD, or HoW seem to have copy protection on them.  Or the program I used automatically detected it and then worked around it.
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Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #18 on: June 28, 2004, 12:18:07 AM »
I've made backups of the TOB disc without any problem at all using Nero. I think the Euro versions used copy protection but the US version was clean.
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Offline mcruz

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #19 on: June 28, 2004, 12:58:59 AM »
should be able to make a backup copy of the BG, BG2, IWD CDs with a program like Nero no problem (and it's always best to use a relatively newer version of the burning software) either directily or indirectly by making an iso file of the cd contents and then burning it into a cd......you can use these cds to install the game but the problem is that these cds won't be recognized when the game asks you to insert it into your CD-rom......I have heard that if your CD burner supports writing subchannel data and you use CD Clone as your software to burn the required cd then inserting the cd into a CD ROM or DVD drive (NOT a CD-R, CD-RW, or DVD recorder drive) should work like the real thing...
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Offline Sarah

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #20 on: June 28, 2004, 10:47:09 AM »
To be honest, I thought they were all out of print already, except IWD2 andthe newly packaged IWD1+How+IWD2. The only time I've ever seen the older games in the past couple of yeards has been in the pre-owned sections of gaming shops or ebay.

Offline jcompton

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Re: All IE games to go out of print?
« Reply #21 on: June 28, 2004, 10:51:48 AM »
I don't think BG1 has been run since the Original Saga pack, but there was a US budget reissue of SOA+TOB late last summer.
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