14 DAY TRIAL // Something is happening with the games industry today: more and more companies start thinking about creating original IPs (which is a great thing) that can be easily turned into multi-platform moneymakers (which is not necessary a good thing). We first heard about Capcom who plans to create films in order to promote video games (like full Hollywood movies!) and now Disney has announced its plans to expand a little bit and grab a bigger piece of the pie.
In other words, Thierry Braille, VP and GM of Disney Interactive Studio EMEA, said to website gamesindustry that Disney hopes to re-create the success of the Pokemon franchise by using its studios to create 20 percent of its own stories, characters and stuff - all with only one idea in mind: these will be later used in TV shows, films or other forms of media entertainment.
"The idea is that these new stories and franchises could resonate in other divisions... going from games to TV, from games to movies, from games to publication," said Braille. "The goal is really to systematically make sure they have a potential to expand," he added.
This decision came partly because of the success of their DS title called Spectrobes, which has already been turned into comic books and it seems that the same is going to happen with the upcoming Pure. At least one thing is good to know: games are first.
And even though we do understand that all these make sense, we can't help but wonder what happened to the "let me create something revolutionary first and we'll see what happens" type of thinking? As long as original IPs are developed with huge profits in mind and crossplatforming now, there are absolutely no chances we'll receive any original material because they are never risk free: they could be either appreciated or hated. But somebody has to take that risk, too. And it seems it ain't going to be Disney. Or Capcom.