Interview CliffyB up!

[ShadowGPW]

http://clanbase.ggl.com/news.php?nid=278915

Tried to bring in some Jazz Questions, but not everything got a satisfied Answer. Infact it was just the typical: "No comment"...

Got soon some goodies to give away, I hope they included some Jazz stuff. :)

...But enjoy anyway...

[Sacrush]

I guess Jazz is officially dead now, unless they give him a chainsaw and make Jazz3 really bloody. }>

[n00b]

I agree with him on the Co-op deal. Not enough games have them and when they do it sometimes ends up unsatisfactory (I'm looking at you Mario Galaxy).
Really interesting stuff especially the bit on Dare to Dream since I was rather fond of that game back in the day.

[Slaz]

Interesting interview indeed. It doesn't actually prove that Jazz is dead, it proves that Cliffy has currently no interest in creating a new Jazz game. That doesn't mean another developer woudn't have future interest in a sequel, as happened with World Tree Games in the past..

[n00b]

Or perhaps a small team at Epic.

[sonicnathan 1]

That doesn't mean another developer wouldn't have future interest in a sequel

*cough*cough*Amboseoftware*cough*cough*

[Raven aka StL]

That's most interesting. Good job John.

[DoubleGJ]

Cool stuff, really. I liked the part about his game favorites.

[Tik]

Cool, Shadow. I don't blame Cliffy for passing some on the Jazz related questions, he obviously has bigger fish to fry and there isn't much incentive to please our little community if there won't be a big return for Epic. Still, it's some nice publicity.

[KRSplat]

Nice work, Shad. We can always keep the JJ3 dream alive.

[ShadowGPW]

....... I don't blame Cliffy for passing some on the Jazz related questions, he obviously has bigger fish to fry and there isn't much incentive to please our little community if there won't be a big return for Epic..........

wise words tik... wise words.

[Krezack]

Cool, Shadow. I don't blame Cliffy for passing some on the Jazz related questions, he obviously has bigger fish to fry and there isn't much incentive to please our little community if there won't be a big return for Epic. Still, it's some nice publicity.

CliffyB has stated, fairly recently, that he is personally very interested in making a JJ3, but that it wouldn't be anything to do with the old Jazz 3D.

So it's possible that his no comment was due to an NDA or a desire to keep any current projects or future projects a secret or surprise.

I mean, I don't know about you guys, but I find it kind of odd he'd opt for "no comment" rather than "it's dead." or "it was fun at the time. But I've moved on". :)

[Nonomu198]

CliffyB has stated, fairly recently, that he is personally very interested in making a JJ3, but that it wouldn't be anything to do with the old Jazz 3D.

So it's possible that his no comment was due to an NDA or a desire to keep any current projects or future projects a secret or surprise.

I mean, I don't know about you guys, but I find it kind of odd he'd opt for "no comment" rather than "it's dead." or "it was fun at the time. But I've moved on". :)

Stop giving hope :(

[n00b]

Guys! I think judging by this interview, a character in UT3, and Cliffy's concepts for a Super Pimp Jazz, its safe to say Cliffy has a desire to be black.

[Tik]

wise words tik... wise words.I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not, but thanks either way.

[Krezack]

Guys! I think judging by this interview, a character in UT3, and Cliffy's concepts for a Super Pimp Jazz, its safe to say Cliffy has a desire to be black.

I wanna know... have you ever seen the rain coming down on a sunny day?

[Slaz]

If you want to see Jazz back, create Jazz related characters/mods for UT3/GoW and announce them the way Cliffy said.. :p

[ShadowGPW]

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not, but thanks either way.

i'm not.

[[GpW]Urbs]

well i never really blamed epic, but i have to be at least a little bit critical. Maybe not so much of their character, but of their vision. Sure they're very successful and stuff (gears of war), but they are making cliche games only. Sure people here will tell me thats demand for you. ok, how come then, does the Wii sell so well? I mean guys if there ever was a time for a jazz game it is like 3 months ago. The wii is hot and is IDEAL for a fluffy green bunny with a gun. So the only blame i'll put on epic is that they dont have the balls of say Nintendo or some other studios to actually go for somehting different. Sure there is risk, but if Wii has shown anything is that its a risk well worth taking.
Of course in my view money is not the only award for daring to be different and original. you can disagree. But you can't disagree with 20 millions of Wii's out there, which means there is money in the game. So if despite these facts they decide to stick to the ring filled with blood instead of learning a bit of ancient japanese wisdom is their own conscious decision and I can be critical of it.

[Nonomu198]

But they don't WANT to make a Jazz Jackrabbit game. I don't think that Epic even thought about the green rabbit for the last 8 years.

[n00b]

There are various flaws in your critiques, Urbs.
<s>1)Nintendo was the only console giant to make a ton of money last generation (many at the time labeled the big N as a profitable third). They weren't making sales, but they were making money. If the Wii failed, Nintendo would have been able to cover it. Epic currently is in a bit of a monetary rut. UT3 isnt doing all that well, and Gears AFAIK hasn't been selling that much passed its initial boom upon release. Epic has a lot more to lose if they take a risk.
2) Aside from Mario, platformers don't seem to be doing that well on the Wii. Some do marginally well, but their sales tend to be more based off of name recognition (Sonic, Crash, and Spyro are still ever so slightly relevant enough to get decent sales) or based off of a movie. The genre itself is in a bit of a rut, and aside from heavy hitters (Mario, Ratchet, more than likely Banjo) platformers don't perform amazingly well on the market. That doesn't exactly bode well for Epic. Also, while I do prefer platformers on the wii they tend to have hard to manage cameras, and rarely make good use of the motion controls (the sole exception being Crash of the Titans, and even then its really only used to pull off special moves). if there was a game made with the Wii in mind, it was Zak and Wiki. Jazz however would play essentially the same on any system.
3)The Wii has done well. Nintendo games have done well. Third party games, however, have not exactly done well. Those third parties that do tend to fill the system with Shovelware (See: Ubisoft. For every good game like RRR they have about 5 terrible ones like GT Pro series.) Again, for a company that is in a bit of a financial bind, this isn't a good option. The PS2 would be a better choice than the Wii tbh.</s>
Just remembered that Epic gets tons of money by licensing its engine forget the above.
4)Jazz Jackrabbit 2 is the most cliched platformer ever made. The character is not this bastion of originality that you make it out to be. Cliffy B might as well just rolled a katamari over other popular platformers at that time and called it JJ2. From the movesets, to the scenery JJ2 is essentially various platformers rolled into one coherent whole. The most innovative aspect about it (the online multiplayer) is essentially UT2d. The thing is however, JJ2 is extremely well done. Thats what Epic does. They make games that are cliched, but very, very well done so you really don't care that the character hovers like Earthworm Jim or that the game takes place in a dystopian future.
5) For some reason Epic only wants to use one house engine at a time. Their current engine does not work on the Wii unless they considerably cut it down. Epic has previously stated that it does not want to spend the time fiddling with that as it could end up being more work than its worth.

[Nimrod]

Rumour going round the interwebs at the moment is Microsoft may be purchasing Epic Games.

If thats the case, its most likely the end of any chance of a new Jazz, but could mean some form of Jazz Jackrabbit on Xbox Live Arcade.

Just thought id throw that in.

[Slaz]

If Microsoft Purchases Epic Games, they will get all of their licenses including the (never used for years) Jazz license.. Normally I don't rely on rumours on the internet as they're most likely to be false. But true or not, I can see why Microsoft would be interested in buying Epic Games, the license of selling the Unreal Engine. Unreal Engine 3 has received the best engine award and it's also the most smooth and stable engine for Xbox360 games. I don't think it will happen though, but it surely won't increase the chance for a Jazz3.

[n00b]

I disagree Nimrod, if it is the case it means we have a better chance of a new Jazz. Microsoft has been pushing for some more family friendly titles as of late with their only reputable source being Rare. Although if Banjo doesn't do well, Jazz's fate is probably sealed.

[Nonomu198]

Wha I thought about a Xbox Live Jazz yesterday.. you know they just might do it.

A new Jazz Jackrabbit game will probably end up as a lame game for kids with nasty 99' 3D graphics for 10 dollars anyway.
family friendly

Roasting rabbit for fun?! 18+ dude.

[FreeFull]

People have been roasting and eating rabbits for ages.

[Nonomu198]

They also had sex. You don't see that in family friendly games.... I hope.