Hasbro Opens A New Division To Develop AAA Game Titles

CoffeeHorse

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Just furthering the point, this is why we see game studios invest more on repetitive franchises now, rather than constantly innovating. Franchise games can reuse many of their previous assets, shortcutting development cycles by a significant margin, whereas something new will require most of the work to be done from scratch once again.

Hasbro will be entirely happy to reuse assets like that. These aren't the days when characters get new bodies every season. They get new toys representing the same bodies.
 

UndeadScottsman

Well-known member
Citizen
I'm not sure how you'd make it fun, but I kind want an earth based game where the 'Robots in disguise' element plays a part in the gameplay.
 

mx-01 archon

Member
Citizen
I'm not sure how you'd make it fun, but I kind want an earth based game where the 'Robots in disguise' element plays a part in the gameplay.

Unfortunately, I feel like that's an element that invites a lot of brainstorming, but will eventually go nowhere. It's another one of those burdensome concepts that would ultimately make the game unfun to play.

It's the same reason why Superman makes for a terrible videogame protagonist. See, there's always concepts that surround the character where, to get across his indestructibility when it comes to general workaday rescue ops, that he simply not have a "lifebar" mechanic at all. And instead, your health would be tied to Metropolis's health, as it comes under siege from all sorts of various threats. Which fits very well with Superman's mythos. But in videogame form, the novelty quickly runs thin, and player is more liable to realize that the entire game is just a giant escort mission.

Well, Transformers in disguise runs into the same sort of issue. Why would the need to disguise? Because being spotted by surveilling Decepticons or nosy humans would be bad. So you add some sort of "heat" mechanic like the GTA series, where you come under assault after behaving "suspiciously". But then that just discourages you from tottering around in robot form, which sucks because running around as a giant robot should feel awesome. So, stealth missions instead? How many stealth missions do you need then to make it feel like just existing in vehicle mode feels worthwhile? You'd wear out the concept so fast it feels like a chore.
 

The Mighty Mollusk

Scream all you like, 'cause we're all mad here
Citizen
It's the same reason that most regular fiction doesn't lean much on the "Robots in Disguise" factor. You either end up with a bunch of cars sitting around (not terribly interesting in a visual medium, especially in comic form, since cars can't emote and there's no voice acting to carry the scene), or you end up with a ton of contrivances to justify why the disguises aren't relevant right now, (Hey, the Decepticons are raiding the Abandoned Warehouse District at night!), until suddenly they are for a brief spot of drama (Uh oh, it's the one security guard with a flashlight!).
 

The Predaking

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At this stage I'd take a lazy Overwatch clone for GI Joe. Roll a bunch of wild different designs in there -- obligatory Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, Zarana, Road Pig, Robo JOE, cyberghost Wild Bill, Ninja Force Scarlett, PDD Destro, a BAT with different version skins, Bombstrike, Renegades Tunnel Rat, 86 Sci Fi, Venomous Maximus, etc. Just make it fun and colorful, and lean into the Obvious Ripoff-ness. I don't even care. Just show off how silly and diverse and fun the brand can be.

And a Fall Guys style Botbots game maybe. Make challenge levels out of areas of the mall!

But this should be interesting overall. The Hub was a bold experiment: ultimately unsustainable, but it did give us some nice fiction that they did invest in. Of course, since then their investment in cartoons (sorry, "anime series") has kind of gone off a cliff, so idk what energy they're bringing to this.


Picture this. GI JOE RTS game, RAH style, you train generic soldiers for either side. You can make ground vehicles, air vehicles, sea vehicles, etc, all based on the classic toys. Special hero units are available with classic characters piloting vehicles, that ject for safety when blown up. Classic playsets are midgame, and end game boss battles.
 

lastmaximal

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Picture this. GI JOE RTS game, RAH style, you train generic soldiers for either side. You can make ground vehicles, air vehicles, sea vehicles, etc, all based on the classic toys. Special hero units are available with classic characters piloting vehicles, that ject for safety when blown up. Classic playsets are midgame, and end game boss battles.
I'm getting Command and Conquer: Red Alert vibes, and I love it.

This also seems like something that could be feasible on mobile, which is even better.
 

Shadewing

Well-known member
Citizen
Well, Transformers in disguise runs into the same sort of issue. Why would the need to disguise? Because being spotted by surveilling Decepticons or nosy humans would be bad. So you add some sort of "heat" mechanic like the GTA series, where you come under assault after behaving "suspiciously". But then that just discourages you from tottering around in robot form, which sucks because running around as a giant robot should feel awesome. So, stealth missions instead? How many stealth missions do you need then to make it feel like just existing in vehicle mode feels worthwhile? You'd wear out the concept so fast it feels like a chore.

I think the best way to do this is to have something like RAAT/Sector 7/MIB-ish organization exist, but also take some stuff from Cyberverse with how Transformers became something of an internet sensation as humans record everything with smart phones. It would HAVE to be a 'first contact' story, start of a continuity. That's about the only way I really see it working, and even in fiction the disguse element only matters in the 'origins' phase and slowly becomes less important. Maybe implement the 'hard light holograms' from early IDW for stealth missions so you have an extra option beyond 'car or robot'. Make the times you can really go all out in robot mode feel special at first. As the story goes those become more frequent, as the Autobots gain fame from humans they meent and through the internet. It should be the story of how foriegners afraid of revealing themselves to the public due to persecution, end up becoming accepted by the public when people learn who they are and what makes them special to the point of being heroes. A bit of 2007 Movie/Bumblebee, a bit of Cyberverse, a bit of Animated's opening movie wrapped up in a very human element of fear and acceptance.
 

Dake

Well-known member
Citizen
What I'd really love is a lightly story-driven, Bethesda-style Skyrim/Fallout-like game, that lets you begin as a NAIL and gradually upgrade your alt-mode and abilities. Eventually you could choose to join the 'Bots or 'Cons or stay on the outside as a merc or pirate.

A similar pattern could be used for a Joe game too. Heck in GIJOE you have a while bunch of other organizations you could join if you wanted.

I can't imagine they'd invest the money in that though.
 

CoffeeHorse

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I don't think stealth is the thing to do with a Transformers game.

I think the Armada game had it right. Giant Tidal Wave was cool, and that's not a scene you're going to get in this year's generic looter shooter #347.
 

Steevy Maximus

Well known pompous pontificator
Citizen
Picture this. GI JOE RTS game, RAH style, you train generic soldiers for either side. You can make ground vehicles, air vehicles, sea vehicles, etc, all based on the classic toys. Special hero units are available with classic characters piloting vehicles, that ject for safety when blown up. Classic playsets are midgame, and end game boss battles.
I was thinking something closer to X-Com, myself. Something focusing on a smaller team (so character can shine better than in the army-focused RTS genre). Start the game with a selection of "Commanders", with the option of recruiting other heroes and specialists as the game progresses. Use "Steel Battalion" troopers as generics that earn XP and eventually be promoted to certain "named heroes". Be able to use resources and XP to expand and modify the PITT with new areas for training, research, recruitment and even defenses (because you KNOW Cobra is going to try and attack at one point!). This may limit units like Snake Eyes and Helix to "limited missions" and you won't see the ENTIRE roster in a single playthorugh, but that just gets you to play again.
Vehicles can be utilized as a mix of support units and "super units" in select missions.
 

The Predaking

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I was thinking something closer to X-Com, myself. Something focusing on a smaller team (so character can shine better than in the army-focused RTS genre). Start the game with a selection of "Commanders", with the option of recruiting other heroes and specialists as the game progresses. Use "Steel Battalion" troopers as generics that earn XP and eventually be promoted to certain "named heroes". Be able to use resources and XP to expand and modify the PITT with new areas for training, research, recruitment and even defenses (because you KNOW Cobra is going to try and attack at one point!). This may limit units like Snake Eyes and Helix to "limited missions" and you won't see the ENTIRE roster in a single playthorugh, but that just gets you to play again.
Vehicles can be utilized as a mix of support units and "super units" in select missions.
Not a bad idea! I was imagining a War Hammer 40K Dawn of War style game. I think it would work, as it used a different resource system where you gain resources by capturing and holding points on the map. I think that works better for GI Joe for an rts than sending Snake eyes to chop wood or haul minerals.
 

Cradok

Active member
Citizen
The Cyberverse game was a bit like that, small squad turn-based tactics. It's problem was that it didn't come out on the one platform best suited to those types of games and, more damningly, that it wasn't very good.
 

Shadewing

Well-known member
Citizen
The Cyberverse game was a bit like that, small squad turn-based tactics. It's problem was that it didn't come out on the one platform best suited to those types of games and, more damningly, that it wasn't very good.

I thought it was good, but then I only paid $9 for it.
 


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