Friday, October 19, 2007

Status Update

Hi all,
I realize I've refrained from posting on this blogger for quite some time. A lot has happened with 3Dfx Development and our projects. To kickstart, let me copy+paste from our official wiki for the year 2007 (up until now):

2007 found a lot of new talent and newer faces blowing fresh air into the dusty brains of 3dfx, including the inclusion of newer writers and other experienced people. Developers United has survived on its own thus far and continues development on Chaos Factor, even brandishing newer talent themselves. 3dfx once again hit major turnpikes when their title, Splatterhouse, was shut down by Namco-Bandai six months into development. Instead of abandoning the project, it was rechristened Psykotik, and work continues, although it has slowed of late. Because of the legal action that was to be taken against 3dfx, several members (6 in total) left the Splatterhouse project to persue other things, which left a bad taste in all current members (as well as any new hires). Also, to cripple even further, the company's publisher, ATBT, closed its doors and sold itself to 3dfx Development, with Boyd and the rest of the team moving on to other things (and other states). 3dfx once again does not have any publishers or managers for their titles, but the team remains confident that they'll survive without upper management. The move affected both 3dfx and Developers United. Chaos Software is not returning for publishing, either. It's only been 4 months into the year, so hopefully more good news will come to those who wait. The teams are currently working on Psykotik and Chaos Factor, and it is also interesting to note that a project, name "1292", was in active development by ATBT for FPS Creator, but was also disbanded. The game became property of 3dfx Development when ATBT was bought out. In May, it was publicly announced that Keeper, the lead programmer for Psykotik, was accepted into the co-ownership of the company, bringing the ranks to 4 members. In his short time as co-owner, several people have been let go/hired (by either Corbin or by a collective vote), and as a result, a total overhaul of the company was in talks. A few months later, it was known that Boyd was once again interested in ATBT, so the rights were sold back to him under a contract that ATBT/3dfx will remain publisher/developer until the end, and it was agreed. ATBT's game, Project 69, is being developed by ATBT and another company, supervised by 3dfx. Andrew began an overhaul of his game, renaming it BHF and dedicating a lot of time to it, which surpised the other teams. During the Summer of 2007, Corbin became distant from the scene, often relying on his team members for content. Keeper began taking a more active role near the beginning of Summer, but this turned into a loose role due to time constraints. Corbin also became more nocturnal, which began raising questions around his duties performed. Because of lack of progress, 4 team members left 3Dfx, while a couple more were gained. Keeper also became more active in his technical role, shooting down ports that were starting to take off in the world, and Corbin began to realize that things were turning into what they should've always been: Order. During the middle half of Summer, Corbin also got back into the Doom modding scene, taking money that should be alloted for 3Dfx and using it for his side projects, and at the same time bringing back TDG in the process. ATBT is expected to refinance the ailing company once again to help them bring Psykotik mainstream, at no cost or expense to 3dfx or Developers United. The first half of the year has been hard, and they hope to hit back in full force near the beginning of Fall 2007.

So you can see the turmoil that was caused, that almost ended our development team! Do not worry, ongoing fans -- new stuff is coming soon.

Now I must sleep!
-Corbin
3Dfx Development, Inc.
corbin@3dfxdev.net