5901

This is going to be the greatest mod ever.

5902

Kael. Really?

ITT: Barn doors and horses.

5903

If someone were to ask me how to save Elemental, this is the exact answer I would have given.

5904

And that… is the problem with Stardock. According to Brad’s several apologies, part of Elemental’s problem was a lack of project management–a lack of ability on his part to step back and see the big picture, because he was so intimately involved. If Brad’s going to keep his fingers in all the pies, no producer or project manager, no matter how heroic, will be able to accomplish anything.

EDIT: I’m not trying to be a downer, but that’s why I don’t envy Kael having to manage his superior, particularly this superior.

5905

The reason Kael was hired, according to Brad, is to that he could step back.

He’s going to keep his hands on the AI, which is what he is best at.

The question will be if Brad can keep his hands off when something doesn’t go entirely the way he wants it- the temptation to stay hands on is very strong.

5906

Odd then, that Brad is still calling himself the executive producer.

5907

I think that’s over reacting. Brad’s not going to hire someone in a position above himself, he’s the CEO after all. Brad’s always done the AI work on Stardock games, so of course he’s going to have his fingers in the pie. Every manager has to answer to his superior. Whether Kael has to “manage up” may or may not be an issue depending on the relationship he and Brad form, just like any similar hierarchy in any company.

5908

Executive producer is often the term used for people who are overall in charge of a project, which does not necessarily mean he’s in charge of the design. The Executive producer role is often to assess the financial well-being of the project, to ensure that the various departments are getting along, and to oversee the broader aspects of the project, like marketing, HR, and resource management. Brad is absolutely the executive producer of a project that is still run under Stardock’s funding.

Kael possibly be making a lot of the design decisions from here on out and I don’t doubt Brad will give him a lot of leeway as the lead designer. So I don’t think being executive producer means anything. At the very least, I’d rather Kael deal with game design than all the nitty gritty things like budget constraints and deadlines when he’s there to make the game great.

5909

I guess we’ll know more in six months or so.

5910

God you guys are histrionic. Stardock has a history going back to the OS/2 days, was a hardcore gamer darling for over 15 years, and after two unfortunate incidents (Elemental and the server issues with Demigod) you guys are acting like they’ve suddenly turned into Capstone.

I’m about 160 degrees away from Brad’s politics, but he’s fundamentally a good guy and one of a small remaining breed of non-Eastern-European developers of core, classic games. “Dreading what Brad will do to Kael?” Seriously?

This is awesome news for Kael, great news for Stardock, and it acknowledges that Brad has looked back at the Elemental debacle and is doing the right thing for the company and his customers. But you guys still stay on the attack. Looking for a head on a stake?

I just hope the inextinguishable negativity doesn’t drive Kael away from Qt3.

5911

If Kael goes… I GO!

Not that anyone actually cares that I leave, but… don’t leave us Kael. You’re our only hope.

5912

lolwut?

Sorry for the pre-teen slang, but I think you are reading the wrong posts…out of the couple of pages with people being excited, there’s like 3 people who see’s the end of everything we love in it…it’s the internet after all.

Personally, I think this will go very well, and Kael will end up making Elemental 2 into Fall from heaven 3 ;-)

5913

It’s Denny’s thing. Like Rimbo with terrible webcomics and inanities or jpinard with frops and being a sap.

5914

And I won’t stop until the Internet is a reasonable, civil place, darnit!

5915

Stardock a hardcore gamer darling for over 15 years???
Funny… that’s you being histrionic!

Most people didn’t know Stardock until only a few gamers noticed them with GalCiv I (Windows version, 2003), and until GalCiv 2 (2006) they weren’t known by the majority of hardcore gamers.

5916

GalCiv 1 was not a particularly good game. It was decent, and it got me through a time when I had no internet for 2 years.

GalCiv II was excellent though. Not a classic, but still a very good game.

Really, all I want from Elemental right now is for it to be enjoyable, and tide me over until GalCiv III- some of the changes Brad made in Elemental, I can kinda see a GalCiv influence, and some things could be really good in a new GalCiv game (tech tree and planet building for example)

5917

Something like that.
I’m not saying I believe he will succeed or that Elemental will ever be a great game - but this is more or less the only thing I see having a chance of succeeding and I applaud them for at least trying that.

Doesn’t change that I agree with those that feel that assigning an actual lead designer after release is ass backwards.

5918

Paxton wasn’t actually assigned lead designer. The press release says senior producer. Until Stardock clearly spells it out, we don’t know who will be responsible for game design.

5919

Maybe he will be designer and producer. In small teams as Stardock it wouldn’t be so weird.

5920

Designucer? Awesome.

A title is a title, but that would at least be a pretty cool one :)