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Eidos Upbeat About Ion
Titles
Meanwhile Tomb Raider III and
Gangsters are done.
November 23, 1998 18:00
Despite last week's departures of some ten employees from John
Romero's game development company Ion Storm, Ion's publisher Eidos
Interactive remains confident that the next two Ion games--Daikatana
and Anachronox--are on track.
Eidos sent us a brief statement expressing confidence in Ion Storm. It
also indicated that Daikatana was entering beta testing and that
Anachronox was still on track for a release next fall. Here is Eido's
statement on the matter:
In light of the recent departures of certain employees
from Ion Storm we remain fully confident in John
Romero and the Daikatana Team's ability in
completing Daikatana according to the current
schedule. Despite the departures, with the game at its
current state the vast majority of the tasks assigned
to those choosing to leave have been completed.
Daikatana is entering a Beta/QA stage and we feel
safe in the knowledge that the remaining 20 plus
members of the Daikatana team will complete this
game with the level of polish and gameplay excellence
expected in a John Romero title. In addition, Tom
Hall's Anachronox is still on schedule for its early fall
release.
"I have personally spent a significant amount of time working with the
staff and can tell you that the wealth of talent that remains on the project
can get the job done," said James Poole, Eidos' director of development.
"In addition, the Eidos and Ion Storm relationship has grown continuously
since inception and we are well aware of and support all decisions made
by Ion Storm management."
Ion Storm employees were also vocal in support of their company.
Writing on the company's home page, a number of them praised the
company and its working conditions.
"Contrary to popular belief, we have not imploded," said Andrew Welch,
lead programmer on Daikatana. "I feel very good about the direction
Daikatana can now take, and I really respect the people here that have
rallied to that purpose."
"I love what I am doing," said Justin Randall, another Daikatana
programmer. "I love working with John and the rest of the people here at
Ion Storm. I am having a lot of fun working on Daikatana --it's playable
and John has (contrary to recent gripes) designed a game that I want to
play. So have Tom and Warren. Every time I look at Deus Ex or Anox I
start getting impatient --I want to play them now!"
Meanwhile the rest of Eidos' lineup is on track, with Tomb Raider III
hitting retail outlets this weekend and strategy game Gangsters: Organized
Crime going to gold master. Gangsters should be in stores no later than
December 7th; you can read our preview here.
--IGN Staff |
