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Back the future Search Results

Your search for Back the future located the below Back the future Search Results. The Back the future Search Results are returned from stories QJ publishes stories covering Back the future news, Playstation news, Xbox news, PC news, Wii News, Nintendo DS News, Gaming News, Reviews, Downloads, Custom Apps, Homebrew and much more.

Bioware Force Pushes 200 Employees Out the Door

Posted May 23, 2012 at 2:01PM EST by Todd B Listed in: MMORPG Tags: BioWare, EA, Star Wars, swtor, the old republic

Star Wars: The Old Republic is losing subscribers. It’s also losing employees, starting now.


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Counting Down to a Crappy Future

Posted May 15, 2012 at 10:10AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: PS3, Xbox 360 Tags: 4a games, metro: last light, THQ

It's been a while since we heard anything out of these Russians. Now they're back and they're bringing a live action movie with them. Hmmm.


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You've Been Up in Arms About On-Disc DLC, So Capcom's "Re-evaluating"

Posted May 15, 2012 at 9:25AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: PS3, Xbox 360 Tags: Capcom, on-disc dlc

Previously, Capcom refused to back down from fan complaints about on-disc DLC, but now it looks like they may be bending over. Too bad about Dragon's Dogma.


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PoV: Paid MMOs are Dead

Posted May 11, 2012 at 2:21PM EST by Todd B Listed in: PoV Tags: aion, Blizzard, ccp, en masse, EverQuest, Guild Wars 2, lord of the rings online, Star Wars, the old republic

Everyone loves MMOs. No one loves paying for them.


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PSP Homebrew: 6.xx PRO Online Client v0.06 Released

Posted May 1, 2012 at 7:49AM EST by Demonchild Listed in: PSP Tags: adhoc, cfw, Coldbird, Custom Firmware, multiplayer, online client, pro

The genius that is Coldbird has pushed a new update to his online mulitplayer client for PRO custom firmwares.


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Rumour Or Fact? PS3 Bluray Drive Emulation

Posted Apr 28, 2012 at 6:30PM EST by Demonchild Listed in: PS3 Tags: bluray, emulation, Exploit, game backups, hack, homebrew, playstation 3 homebrew, ps3 homebrew

PS3 owners who are looking to get game backups and homebrew going on the latest firmware, you'll have to hang in there a little bit longer... Maybe.


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Max Payne, What Are You Doing On TV?

Posted Apr 22, 2012 at 1:00AM EST by Mr Ham Listed in: PS3, PC Gaming, Xbox 360 Tags: max payne 3, max payne trailer, Rockstar, Rockstar Games

There's plenty of extremely anticipated titles coming, but one of the most hot and imminent is none other than Mr Payne, who's made his way to your TV sets already.


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Did You Know We Have a Twitter?

Posted Apr 18, 2012 at 12:27PM EST by Todd B Listed in: PS3 Tags: follow us duuuude, QJ, Twitter

Do you like video game news? How about snarky comments? Then why aren’t you following us?


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Finally: Desmond’s Story Wraps up in ACIII

Posted Apr 9, 2012 at 4:06PM EST by Todd B Listed in: PS3 Tags: desmond miles, ezio auditore, Ubisoft

The actual protagonist of the Assassin’s Creed franchise is getting his dues in Ubisoft’s upcoming sequel. You know, the guy that has all the dreams.


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Here Are Those Ninja Gaiden Weapons You Wanted

Posted Apr 3, 2012 at 1:30PM EST by Todd B Listed in: PS3 Tags: dlc, ninja gaiden iii, Team Ninja

Upset over the lack of weapons in Ninja Gaiden III? Well, here’s your chance to pay for some new ones.


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Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's Guerilla Mode - Yeah, It's Another Horde Type Thing

Posted Mar 30, 2012 at 1:30PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: PS3, Xbox 360 Tags: ghost recon: future soldier, guerilla mode, Ubisoft

Ghost Recon: Future Soldier's version of the increasingly popular co-op "wave" mode is called Guerilla Mode. Is it more of the same or does it set itself apart from the pack somehow?


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Minecraft vs. Angry Birds: Who has more?

Posted Mar 26, 2012 at 11:00AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: angry birds, angry birds in space, minecraft, mojang, notch, rovio

War of the Independents! Minecraft tops 25 million downloads and rivals Angry Birds in sales.


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World of Warcraft Isn’t Free, and Won’t Be

Posted Mar 20, 2012 at 1:59PM EST by Todd B Listed in: MMORPG Tags: aion, Blizzard, f2p, free to play, lotro, WoW

Blizzard dismisses free-to-play as WoW subscriber numbers continue to fall.


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Epic Games Tells You How To Avoid Clones

Posted Mar 16, 2012 at 8:23PM EST by Mr Ham Listed in: PS3 Tags: GDC, Gears of War, indie games, tim sweeney epic games

Ah, GDC talks. They're so much more informative than old press releases.


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Interview with Brandon Cobb - SNES Nightmare Busters developer

Posted Mar 14, 2012 at 6:40PM EST by Harrison E Listed in: Wii Tags: brandon cobb, interviews, nightmare busters, retro, SNES

Harrison E talks to the creator of the first SNES game in over a decade.


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New Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Trailer Starts the Bin Laden Mission Comparisons

Posted Mar 13, 2012 at 10:45AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: believe in ghosts trailer, ghost recon: future soldier, Ubisoft

It was only a matter of time, and Ghost Recon has taken the bait.


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Valve Shoots Down Console Rumors and Hopes of Gamers Everywhere

Posted Mar 12, 2012 at 4:36PM EST by Todd B Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: Steam, steam box, valve

Here’s some rain for that rumor parade.


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Review: Grand Slam Tennis 2

Posted Mar 8, 2012 at 10:45AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS3 Tags: ea games, EA Sports, grand slam tennis, grand slam tennis 2, review, sports games

Is EA swinging with a good back hand or just throwing their tennis racket down and walking away?


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Waggle Your Way To Victory

Posted Mar 7, 2012 at 7:45AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: Game Developers Conference, gdc12, razer, razer hydra, Steam, valve

Get ready to start waggling!


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Who could be throwing their hat into the console ring?

Posted Mar 4, 2012 at 10:15AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: Gabe Newell, GDC, steam box, steam rumors

Valve could be announcing Steam Box at GDC

What in the hell is Valve doing?

GDC is going on at the moment and I have a few friends checking it out, pitching games and showing off their work but with all the rumours flying around at the San Fran convention, I'd hate to be a Valve employee right now.

The great big PC developer and probably one of the only game studios who I respect and will follow till they release Half Life 3 and with the idea of making a console, looks like I better start saving up.

Steam Box is the tentative title that everyone is dubbing it on the interwebs but i tlooks like Valve may throw their hat into the console ring and I think that the only way it will sell is if they make Half Life 3 exclusive to PC and their console...it will be the highest selling console ever.

The rumours were fueled that the company have been toying with the idea of creating a proper set-top console that could pose a threat to not only current-gen but next-gen consoles. Valve co-founder recently told the guys at Penny Arcade that if they had to sell hardware, they will. This could easily just have meant Valve branded graphics cards or just some cool memorabilia like keyboards, mice or even headphones but if they make Steam Box...the world of video games may change forever.

The story was broken over the weekend withG The VergeGFC

Game Developers Conference is on and people are talking...


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God of War director joining new game series

Posted Mar 4, 2012 at 8:40AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS3 Tags: Cory Barlog, Crystal Dynamics, Eidos, god of war, santa monica, tomb raider

From a tough Greek...but what's next for the God of War Director?


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Buy MLB12 for PS3 and get a Nice PS Vita Bonus

Posted Mar 3, 2012 at 4:55PM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS3 Tags: bundle, major league baseball 12 the show, mlb12, mlb12 the show, Sony, sports games, vita ps3 bundle

The Playstation exclusive looks like it might be bundled together for the new MLB


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PoV: Nintendo’s Impending Destruction

Posted Mar 2, 2012 at 12:18PM EST by Listed in: PoV Tags: 3ds innovations, nintendo innovations, wii u innovation

Why the innovative games company is headed for failure.

Nintendo is, by most accounts, one of the most innovative forces in the world of gaming. The company lays claim to breakthroughs like force-feedback technology, motion control, z-targeting and a whole host of other now-standard gaming mechanics. Unfortunately, Nintendo’s days of leading the pack are quickly coming to a close.

Nintendo has always performed well in the games marketplace because of its exclusive titles and accessible technologies. However, games aren’t really the future of the games industry. In 2012 and beyond, it’s not games that sell devices, but their multimedia capabilities. One of the fastest-growing groups of console owners is made up of people who primarily use their devices to watch Netflix, listen to music or rent movies.

Nintendo has failed to keep pace with its competitors in the realm of multimedia. And it has also failed to keep pace when it comes to online gaming (friend codes, seriously?). If the Wii U can’t make some major improvements to the way Nintendo delivers multimedia content and online gameplay, it’s simply not going to be the console of choice.

Consumers always flock to the device that provides them the most value. A large number of PS3 sales can be chalked up to Blu-Ray support, just as a large number of Wii sales can be chalked up to the initial hype concerning motion control. In the next console generation, the device with the most utility wins.

If Nintendo fails to recognize this trend, it’s going to find itself toppled from the throne faster than it can say “3DS Lite.”

Why the innovative games company is headed for failure.


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Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Has Future Tech - Who Woulda Thunk It?

Posted Mar 2, 2012 at 10:45AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: ghost recon: future soldier, ghost recon: future soldier trailer, Ubisoft

The new media released for Ghost Recon: Future Soldier features robots and light-bending camouflage. You know, the usual stuff.


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Bungie Co-Founder Proudly Passes the Torch

Posted Feb 29, 2012 at 1:00PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360 Tags: 343 industries, bungie, halo

Alex Seropian says he's confident that 343 Industries will take the ball and run with it.


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Bethesda Hiring Programmers for 'Future-Generation Consoles'

Posted Feb 28, 2012 at 12:01PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: Bethesda, fallout, skyrim

While the speculation continues about the next generation of consoles, Bethesda is quietly hiring and working on...something.


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The Best Way to Promote Ghost Recon: Future Soldier is to Exploit the Military, Apparently

Posted Feb 24, 2012 at 1:40PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: ghost recon: future soldier, ghost recon: future soldier trailer, Ubisoft

Got a military shooter? Go ahead and make light of real life danger and death to promote it.


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EA Sports Returns to NBA Live

Posted Feb 24, 2012 at 12:55PM EST by Listed in: Xbox 360 Tags: EA Sports, nba elite, NBA Live, nba live 10, nba live 13

Insert basketball-related pun here.

It’s been three years since we last visited the NBA Live franchise. NBA Live 10, released in 2009, was the last chance fans of the Live franchise had to get their LeBron James on. While a new basketball title under the name NBA Elite had been planned, it was scrapped back in 2010 after it turned out to be terrible. Since then, players have had to rely on updates to NBA Live 2012 to keep their NBA fantasies alive.

Well, update no more, basketball lovers. EA has announced that it’s bringing the NBA Live brand back this year, with NBA Live 13. According to EA Sports, Live 13 will be a brand new experience that “captures the future” of basketball. Whatever that may mean. Space Jam, maybe?

Details are relatively scant at the moment, but EA has promised an update on the game’s official Facebook page sometime next week. So stay tuned for more information.

In the meantime, you can keep an eye on the EA Sports NBA Twitter for a steady stream of NBA players playing early builds of the new title.

[Destructoid]

Insert basketball-related pun here.


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Infinity Ward and Treyarch. A Buddy Comedy For the Ages

Posted Feb 23, 2012 at 2:00PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: call of duty, cod, Infinity Ward, Treyarch

What once seemed like a healthy rivalry is now a buddy comedy for the ages.


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Interview: World of BoneCraft

Posted Feb 23, 2012 at 11:40AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: Bethesda, Blizzard, bonecraft, bonetown, d-dub entertainment, d-dub interview, sexuality in games, Starcraft, valve, warhammer 40k, World of Warcraft

Harrison E talks to one of the creators of the popular Bone series and talks about their latest title BoneCraft, sexuality in video games and what's on the horizons for D-Dub Studios.


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In Case You Missed It: Last Night's ME3 Trailer

Posted Feb 20, 2012 at 6:15PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PC Gaming, PS3 Tags: BioWare, mass effect 3, mass effect 3 trailer

For a lot of people, the highlight of last night's Walking Dead was seeing that guy's face getting explicitly chewed off, but for many others the highlight was the debut of the new Mass Effect 3 trailer. Check it out.


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DLC on Disc - Paying for Something Twice or Just Shorter Download Times?

Posted Feb 20, 2012 at 1:00PM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: PoV Tags: dlc on disc, downloadable content on disc, hack consoles

One new trend out there is that more and more developers are putting future DLC on the retail disc. Is this an insidious way to get you to pay for something twice or merely a matter of convenience on everyone's part?


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Assassin's Creed 3 Confirmed for This Fall...But Where WIll it Take Place?

Posted Feb 16, 2012 at 11:45AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360 Tags: ac3, assassins creed 3, assassins creed rumors, Ubisoft

Ubisoft has confirmed that AC3 will be out this October and that it's been in development for 3 years. Sounds good to me, but where exactly will we be doing the killing?


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Skyrim to Revisit Cyrodill and Morrowind? Hey, Why the Hell Not?

Posted Feb 14, 2012 at 9:50AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: Bethesda, morrowind, skyrim

People have dicked around on the maps and found those landmasses, so we know they're there. Now Bethesda has acknowledged that they are indeed there, but they're being coy about whether or not they'll use 'em. Cockteasers.


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Adventure Game funded a million in less than 24 hours

Posted Feb 11, 2012 at 9:26AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: double fine, kickstarter, psychonauts, Ron Gilbert, tim schafer

Jesus Christ! It's February and 2012 has already been changed by one man. Mr. Tim I am a God Schafer


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Harrison E Visits: Sony Sessions

Posted Feb 9, 2012 at 11:05AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PSP, PS Vita, PS3 Tags: BRAVIA, personal 3d viewer, Sony, sony sessions, sony tablet p, storm surfers 3d

Sony are pretty good people despite all the shit people sometimes talk. Especially when they're showing off and want to get you to buy some stuff. Harrison E got a chance to talk with them about their new products in Sydney at Sony Sessions.


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More on Sleeping Dogs from Square Enix

Posted Feb 8, 2012 at 8:20AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: sleeping dogs, Square Enix, true crime: hong kong

What the heck is it?


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Watch: Natural Selection 2: Jetpacks

Posted Feb 6, 2012 at 10:45AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: jetpacks, natural selection, natural selection 2, Steam, valve

The much-anticipated sequel to the HL2 mod finally has a new trailer...and some jetpacks!


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Apple removes copycat App Store Games

Posted Feb 6, 2012 at 9:05AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: iPhone Tags: angry birds, app store, plants vs. zombies, temple jump, temple run, zynga

So you can no longer get fooled by Assassin Fruit Killer, Flowers vs. Aliens or Upset Foul.


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Bungie.net Halo Stat Tracker ending in March

Posted Feb 1, 2012 at 7:00AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: Xbox 360 Tags: 343 industries, bungie, halo, halo waypoint, Microsoft, stat-tracking

As of March 31st...


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GameJam Wollongong 2012

Posted Jan 30, 2012 at 8:14PM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: gamejam wollongong, ggj, ggj12, gjwoll, global game jam, ouroboros

Or How I Spent my Weekend watching 20+ people make games in 48 hours.


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Netflix dropping gaming rentals

Posted Jan 28, 2012 at 11:30AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS3 Tags: GameFly, mail order games, Netflix, qwikster, streaming

The big streaming and rental company has dropped service to send games to people via mail.


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PoV: No Used Games on Xbox 720?

Posted Jan 26, 2012 at 2:06PM EST by Listed in: PoV Tags: online pass, xbox 720, xbox live

Why Microsoft’s plan to block used games may not be such a bad idea.

Rumors surfaced yesterday, thanks to an insider source, that the next-gen Xbox system currently in development might contain some sort of anti-used game technology. We’re not exactly sure what that means, or how it would be implemented, but the basic gist is that the new Xbox may not play used games at all.

News of this function fired off a massive Internet backlash, with countless commenters railing about how they’d never buy an Xbox 720 (or whatever) if they can’t play used games. And while I certainly agree that limiting your customers’ choices is a very dangerous way to move forward in business, I think that Microsoft may actually be doing the right thing here.

Put aside, for the moment, the arguments against publishers getting cash for used sales. We all know it doesn’t make sense for used games to be treated differently than used cars. The bottom line, however, is that publishers want a slice of that pie, and they’re going to do anything they can to get it. The current solution is the Online Pass, which most gamers would agree is a complete disaster.

Online Passes are engineered to ensure that publishers get a taste of any after-market sale of their games, but mostly serve as enormous headaches to the people that bought the game new. Anyone that had to suffer through Battlefield 3’s ridiculous registration process will know what I mean. And as we move forward, more and more publishers are going to slap Online Passes on their games.

The way I see it, we have two potential used game futures: In the first, every game we buy will have an Online Pass from whatever publisher owns the game, requiring an obnoxious registration code and all the trappings we’ve already encountered. In the second, used games are blocked at the console level, and you purchase your Online Pass directly through Xbox Live or PSN.

Having the console deal with used game access eliminates the need for cumbersome Online Passes, and ensures you have access to Xbox’s support network instead of some random person at whatever publisher happened to make your game. It’s not ideal, but it’s certainly better than what we have at the moment.

I don’t agree with the concept of preventing players from accessing used games, but it’s not like Online Passes are going to fade away. One way or another, we’re paying that money to the publisher – would you rather do it through Xbox Live or a dozen different registration websites?

Why Microsoft’s plan to block used games may not be such a bad idea.


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Move! Johann Sebastian Joust Interview

Posted Jan 26, 2012 at 9:30AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS3 Tags: die gute fabrik, johann sebastian joust, jsj, playstation move, ps move, Sony, The Game Factory

An interview with the 2012 IGF nominated creators of Johann Sebastian Joust, Die Gute Fabrik with one of the best games you will see all year for the PS Move.


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Preview: Soul Calibur V

Posted Jan 26, 2012 at 9:06AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: Xbox 360, PS3 Tags: gamespot australia, Namco, Namco Bandai, scv, soul calibur v, vmax

Harrison E got to check out the new Soul Calibur title from Namco Bandai. Does it hit in all the right places or flail all over the place with button-mashing?


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Letter from Alleged THQ Staffer Calls Out Management, CEO

Posted Jan 25, 2012 at 3:30PM EST by Listed in: PS3 Tags: saints row the third, THQ

THQ hasn’t been doing great over the last few months, and this nasty letter from a former employee doesn’t make things look any better.

THQ, the company behind Saints Row: The Third, had a tough 2011. The company was in such dire straits that rumors floated around about it canceling its entire 2014 lineup, rumors the company vehemently denied. This morning we received word that THQ was shifting its strategies yet again, this time focusing more on its core franchises over third party licensing.

It’s hard to get a bead on exactly what’s happening with THQ. Rumors and sales indicate the company is in serious trouble despite the success of Saints Row, but the company refuses to admit that they have any sort of problem. Only one person seems to be willing to comment on the state of the company – an alleged former employee with an obvious bone to pick.

In a letter written to THQ’s Board of Directors, CEO Brian Farrell as well as the general public and a collection of gaming news sites, this “Formerly Mismanaged” employee rattles off a laundry lists of complaints about the company.

The letter essentially claims that THQ’s problems stem from mismanagement and a Board of Directors that has no clue how to strategically run a gaming company. It gives examples like acquiring game studios with no plan on how to utilize their talents (then later shutting them down), investing money into shrinking niche markets, the company’s refusal to dump a CEO that has tanked its stock price and high-paid executives making enormous mistakes that call their competency into question. The disastrous uDraw tablet also makes an appearance.

These allegations of management incompetency surface just a few days before THQ announces its current financial standing on February 2, and things certainly don’t look good. One analyst has gone on the record by stating that THQ, without some sort of financial windfall, with run out of cash near the middle of this year.

You can read the letter in its (extremely long) entirety below:

[JoyStiq]

"To:

THQ Board of Directors

Lawrence Burstein

James Whims, Gigex, Inc.

Henry DeNero, Arcturus Capital

Brian Dougherty, AirSet, Inc.

Jeffrey Griffiths , Lumber Liquidators

From:

Current and Ex-Employees, Shareholders, and The Public

Dear THQ Board,

I am an ex-employee at THQ. I saw the tweet-started headlines over the past week from an "industry expert." This expert is one who I and my friends and co-workers in the industry have never heard of after a long time in the field. I had been reading the various following articles and accounts and it generated sympathy for friends both recently laid off and currently still there. I thought it would be a good idea to send a note with their input. This note has honest facts and thoughts about THQ and the current problems there. Most of these facts are public knowledge and they have been confirmed by public records or can be confirmed by current and former THQ staff there both before and after my and their time.

I have long felt the need to explain to outsiders how this beaten-down company has wound up in this position. It is to the point where having it on your resume is not a point in your favor. And that shouldn't be the case. I'm/We're sending this note anonymously because some of us are still awaiting final checks and others know how little corporations like employees who air their dirty laundry. We feel the need to say something to combat the partial misinformation being written.

THQ had been known through the years for having a formula. They find a hot license, make a cheap game, barely advertise it, and make money. This formula worked during the Playstation and Xbox and Gameboy days and made the company a lot of cash. Unfortunately, THQ's old guard executives seem to be stuck trying to manage the company the same way they did back then and haven't realized the industry has changed.

The beginning of the end came years ago as Brian Farrell lead an executive team to acquire a large number of studios. A large amount of cash was used in the acquisition or setup of game developers with different degrees of talent. The problem was they were bought without strategic reasoning or specific plan on to use them. So after awhile another large amount of money was spent as those studios failed and were sold off and shut down. The executive team at the time were an entirely different group of people with one key exception in the CEO. The CEO/the then executive team wasted the cash that the company had built up with these massive investments and selloffs.

The studio purchase errors were not helped by the mistakes in the licensing deals that were signed by the same CEO. Millions and millions of dollars were wasted on acquiring licenses at the same time the kids, family, casual business was declining at a rapid rate. Instead of slowing those acquisitions he overpaid for more of them until again cash was wasted in paying for brands that didn't sell well anymore.

The mistakes in decisions and cash losses triggered wave after wave of layoffs. In the most recent wave, about 40 people lost their jobs this past December through no fault of their own. The reason why is the chronic and constant mismanagement of their company. The fact is that the CEO and executive committee were so focused on trying to hit an unrealistic financial goal that they bet everything on an extremely risky proposition in the uDraw tablet. When they lost, they further displayed their lack of management skills by not having a contingency plan. Three weeks after the game launched, an entire business unit was wiped out when it didn't meet its goal due to relying on that one product to hit an unrealistic target.

After the layoffs many ex-employees walked around shell-shocked and trying to figure out who was responsible. They came to the understanding that most of us do after leaving the company. The issue with THQ has never been one of lack of staff creativity, intellect or business intelligence. It all rests of the failure of its management team and you the Board of Directors.

This Board has allowed the Brian Farrell, the CEO, the ongoing ability to take a cash-rich profitable company and drive it from a $30 share price down to around $.70 without acting despite numerous mistakes that even for those lacking business training, could see were errors. Even without glaring mistakes how can the same CEO stay in charge after a 99% share price loss? Aside from the board, who is responsible for the current situation and who is accountable for the current and future job losses at the company? When you ask the recently departed who are a good source of information, you get the same answers. This uDraw failure is the largest and most recent one in a string of them that were hushed over and hidden. The answer aside from the Board is the current executive team that allowed this uDraw implosion to happen.

Brian Farrell, CEO with a 2011 salary of $1,289,558, for a lack of business intelligence or fiscal accountability. A vocal inside group pointed out the mistake of trying to launch a year-old product that received almost no software support in the last 12 months. Instead of listening and having a back-up plan, he went ahead and invested a ridiculous amount of money in the manufacturing and advertising of the product and failed miserably. It is passed time for him to go. We are wondering what is taking so long for you to act. We have been wondering this same question for a long time.

Martin Good, EVP and head of Kids, Family, Casual with a 2011 salary of $1,198,023, for bringing no strategic thought or business sense to the role. He was brought out from Australia sales to replace an outgoing head of the business unit and rapidly displayed a complete lack of leadership skills, vision, and any sort of analytical sense. Looking at his compensation package, he is an excellent negotiator as his salary is higher than anyone's except for the CEO. On the plus side he lost his job with the rest of those laid off. On the minus side, he will be floating down on a golden parachute while the rest of the former employees scramble to look for jobs in this challenging environment. Most of those jobs will be at studios in other parts of the country, so they will be forced to relocate their families in the middle of their childrens school years. It is incredible that he made this level of income while doing such a poor job, but it serves as a reflection of the lack of Brian Farrell's ability to staff well and manage.

Paul Pucino, CFO with a 2011 salary of $674,855, for not planning for this possibility and having a safety net or a plan to cover THQ just in case of failure. We have a line of credit that we likely used to buy the plastic that is not selling to customers. It is like taking a cash advance to buy THQ stock and just as worthless of an investment. Paul is known as an absentee executive who is missing when business situations gets complicated. While he was in the loop at the point of the risk, with the following failure he has been clearly unavailable. It is another example of Brian Farrell's inability to staff.

Ian Curran, EVP and head of global publishing with a 2011 salary of $1,037,047, for not flagging an unrealistic sales goal to the CEO or the Board when a big part of the corporation felt the numbers were unrealistic. He blindly held up an unachievable target and didn't act when multiple people told him he was aiming to high and out of step with the marketplace. If a sales executive's job is to anticipate the market, he has done a poor job of it. Another example of Brian Farrell not being able to find the right people for the right job.

Ed Kauffman, EVP of Legal and Business Affairs who clearly was signing bad deals on licensed products, not factoring in the changes in the business and being more critical with financial terms with partners. uDraw by itself cannot possibly explain the companies poor financial health. It is a combination of that product and a string of bad licensed deals that the company took on against better judgement. While Brain Farrell would logically be the final decisionmaker for deals, Kauffman is either unpersuasive in his arguments to not do them or supported them. Either situation equates to another example of poor staffing choices by the CEO.

uDraw was failure and the only people to blame are the people listed above. THQ and its current financial situation is also their responsibility. And they were paid around $4.5 million dollars for their poor decisions. If there is any doubt we would recommend talking to current and former staff to get the straight story. Don't read this note as bitterness on their part, but more as long overdue truth.

So, Board, it is time. Passed time for you to act and passed time for you to do something about the mismanagement that has gone on for too many years. We've watched the stock from the outside and read the comments and the reason why the company is valued so low despite its sales is because of this underqualified management team.

Board it is time for you to act before your names are added to the list above of things that must change.

Sincerely,

The Formerly Mismanaged"

THQ hasn’t been doing great over the last few months, and this nasty letter from a former employee doesn’t make things look any better.


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Street Fighter X Tekken Getting a Tournament Support Mode

Posted Jan 25, 2012 at 11:00AM EST by Brett Huffman Listed in: PS3 Tags: Capcom, street fighter gems, street fighter x tekken

People were worried about the gems mechanic as it relates to tournaments, so Capcom's trying to alleviate their fears.


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Rumor: Battlefield 3 Hackers Banning Innocent Players

Posted Jan 24, 2012 at 3:48PM EST by Listed in: PC Gaming Tags: battlefield 3, DICE, PunkBuster

A group of BF3 cheaters has a bone to pick with Punkbuster, and they’re doing it at the expense of regular joes.

The beating heart of Battlefield 3 is its intense online multiplayer. And whenever you have online multiplayer in a game, you have to find a way to protect it from cheaters. On PC versions of the game, this function is performed by software known as Punkbuster.

Punkbuster is an automated program that analyzes every player on a particular server and looks for known cheats and other exploits. If it catches someone in the act, they are immediately banned from EA’s Battlelog service. According to Kotaku, some of these cheaters are unhappy with the way Punkbuster affects their game, and have elected to take their frustrations out on the regular BF3 populace.

It seems that somehow, these players have managed to compromise Punkbuster on certain servers, and are using the service to ban innocent players. The group claims to have dumped over 150 players to date, and the official BF3 forums are awash in complaints of unwarranted bans. Essentially, this small selection of players has chosen to protest Punkbuster by using it against non-cheating individuals.

Posting to a bots and exploits forum, one user had this to say about Punkbuster:

“We are bringing back the unerring of punkbuster back for a 3rd season. We have selected ggc-stream as the target since they have the most streaming bf3 servers and makes it very easy to add fake bans. In 2011 we hit them with a mass ban wave and now were are banning real players from battlelog while ggc-stream is totally unaware. We have framed 150+ bf3 players alone.”

This story is still developing, and there’s been no official word from either DICE or Punkbuster on what may be going on, so the news should be taken with a grain of salt. Look for future updates as information is made available.

What do you think of Punkbuster?

A group of BF3 cheaters has a bone to pick with Punkbuster, and they’re doing it at the expense of regular joes.


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PS Vita only really worth $159

Posted Jan 22, 2012 at 9:00AM EST by Harrison E Listed in: PS Vita Tags: 3G, ps vita teardown, Sony, vita pricing, vita teardown

When it all comes down to it I doubt you could make it yourself...but let's see what it all costs inside?


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SOPA Shelved, PIPA Lives On

Posted Jan 20, 2012 at 2:39PM EST by Listed in: PS3 Tags: harry reid, lamar smith, pipa, sopa

The Stop Online Piracy Act is off the table, but the Senate’s version may still have a chance.

Hell hath no fury like an Internet scorned – or at least that’s the lesson Congress learned on January 18th. Fueled by the blackouts of dozens of popular sites, the SOPA protests resulted in millions of phone calls and emails aimed at Congressional Representatives, which in turn led to SOPA and PIPA being postponed for further review.

Today, Senator Harry Reid announced that PIPA, essentially the Senate’s version of the Internet blacklist bill, would be pushed back until further notice. Additionally, Representative Lamar Smith, the primary author of SOPA, has issued a statement indicating that SOPA needs revisiting, but for the time being is off the table.

The threat is far from over – as long as members of Congress are willing to take pressure from entertainment industry lobbyists and sign bills they apparently don’t understand, the current freedom of the web will be at risk. In the meantime, it appears that the Internet has at least won the first round. We’ll just have to wait and see how the story develops in the future.

Did you do anything in protest to SOPA or PIPA?

[Destructoid]

The Stop Online Piracy Act is off the table, but the Senate’s version may still have a chance.


EMAIL STORY! \| COMMENTS [9]	READ FULL STORY!

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