3d Realms and FreeSpace

[Woolie Wool]

I read in the Apogee FAQ that FreeSpace: The Great War was originally going to be published by 3D Realms but was handed to Interplay. All I have to say is damn you for selling the rights to the game! It and its sequel FreeSpace 2 could have been mega-sellers had it been published by a decent company who would actually advertise the game. After FreeSpace 2's poor sales, Interplay blocked any future development on the Descent and FreeSpace franchises. Earlier this year, it was found that Interplay does not actually own the right to FreeSpace, but neither does THQ, the company that owns Volition, which developed FreeSpace. I don't think even the actual entity that owns the FreeSpace rights knows that he/she/it owns the name (maybe you do, judging from the mention of "non-exclusive" rights being sold). So now FreeSpace is an obscure cult game, loved by its fans, and hated by many fans of the rival game Wing Commander (the WC series hasn't had a new game since 1997).

So bleak are the prospects for FreeSpace 3 and so often is the topic dragged up, that someone actually made a comic about it:

http://nodewar.penguinbomb.com/aotd/Turnsky/bang.jpg

Damn, the FreeSpace games could have been legendary if you didn't pass the ball to Interplay.

[Joe Siegler]

The game Descent was originally ours. Due to monetary issues at the time, we had to sell the rights to that. If I remember right, part of that deal granted us to the rights to their next project, which turned out to be Freespace.

I can't recall now why we sold Freespace - I know it wasn't money this time around. I'll have to ask Scott Miller next time I see him - that kind of thing is his department.

[Joe Siegler]

I asked George about this, my memory wasn't entirely correct on this. We never had rights to make the game, we just got some cash from the Freespace project because of our selling the rights to Descent.

[Woolie Wool]

Oh, that clarifies it. But you basically doomed both Descent and FreeSpace by selling them to a crappy publisher like Interplay, although you probably were unaware of how idiotic Interplay would turn out to be at the time.

[8IronBob]

Yeah, that's the case, I suppose. Look at Terminal Velocity, though, I think that was on the same game engine as Descent, and look how well TV did as a game. I can't complain one bit about any of those games. Just wish that some other games woulda been like that, boy, the short-lived days of the combat flight games, now you rarely hear about Descent or Terminal Velocity anymore. Hope to see other games like these, soon.

[Joe Siegler]

Look at Terminal Velocity, though, I think that was on the same game engine as Descent,

Wrong.

[Woolie Wool]

The FreeSpace engine is based on the Descent II engine.

[Joe Siegler]

The FreeSpace engine is based on the Descent II engine.

That may be correct, but that's not what I was talking about - I was talking about Terminal Velocity.

Well Terminal Velocity's engine is home grown.....as in made by Terminal Reality. And by the way, I thought WC(Wing Commander) clans use Freespace 2, to make WC mods......!