Them's Fightin' Herds

[gyashaa 252]

Hey, maybe there will be mods out there to turn the characters back into their pony counterparts.

 

I don't mind the low number of characters. As long as they're fun to play, cool, cute, etc. It's not about quantity. It's about quality.

Edited October 17, 2015 by gyashaa

[Jinxie Umbra 149]

Seems to be a lot of shade being thrown at Lauren Faust here. I don't get it.

 

It's a risk you take as an artist to get emotionally attached to your work knowing that the IP owners may alter it in a way you don't like. But such attachment is also what brings out your best work in most cases. 'Tis a hazard of the industry, but that doesn't make her being upset any less reasonable. She's only human.

 

And speculating that she helped Mane6 simply to spite Hasbro seems a bit harsh. I just don't see her as the vengeful type, and evidently she's still good friends with the cast and crew. More likely she took the remaining inspiration she had from MLP:FiM and used it to create a new, similar world that she has more control over. Which, in my opinion as an artist, is a great idea.

 

 

 

Hopefully the crowd-funding campaign will pull through; I've done my part. If successful, Them's Fightin' Herds may be just what Lauren needs to restore her confidence.

[Limeblossom 482]

Seems to be a lot of shade being thrown at Lauren Faust here. I don't get it.

You're right.

 

I also hope they get their project done (they're already over the 80%). But then comes the funding system, since Indiegogo projects tend to get problems with PayPal and their freezing habit.

[Steel Accord 6,660]

Oh yeah, I'm all over this! I love the new characters and lore and I like fighting games in general. Plus it's unique in that it is the only fighting game with an all quadrupedal cast.

 

 

Nobody is suggesting that Hasbro thinks this way.  I'm merely speaking on behalf of a portion of the fanbase who believe that Lauren Faust's involvement with MANE6 may be due in part to spite.

 

Why?

 

She liked the original project and played it, so when they decided to take it in a new direction with the C&D, she saw an opening to help. Why would one assume that to be spite and not enthusiasm? 

[J. Brony 313]

I don't need to accept both because to assume a reason for her involvement is to stick it to Hasbro is ridiculous. Consider the fact that Faust values the ability to inspire others; to act out of spite is out of character of her.

 

 

She liked the original project and played it, so when they decided to take it in a new direction with the C&D, she saw an opening to help. Why would one assume that to be spite and not enthusiasm? 

 

I will repeat myself once more; I do not ascribe to conspiracy theories.  What I do believe in is human nature and my intuition when it comes to interpreting the words and actions of others.

 

Faust's relationship with Hasbro is strained at best and there is no doubt some tension between both parties.  To believe that she is assisting MANE6 purely out of the kindness of her heart with no ulterior motives is just as naive as to believe that she is doing so out of spite just to stick it to her former employees.

 

Again I say that her decision to help with the development of Thems' Fightin' Herds is a mixture of both.  Why is it so unreasonable to think that she wouldn't want to put her talents to use again while passively-aggressively thumbing her nose at Hasbro?  Anyone in her situation would act exactly the same way.  I'm not saying that Faust is wrong.  I'm just being realistic.

 

Others may believe that Lauren Faust is some sort of modern-day saint who can do no wrong.  But as @@Jinxie Umbra mentioned; "She's only human." and that is how I view her.  

Edited October 17, 2015 by J. Brony

[Chara 1,565]

So basically this game is a Mortal Kombat style game?

[Steel Accord 6,660]

@@J. Brony,

 

Yeah, and she's a good human. Not saying that wasn't part of it, but why does her primary motivation HAVE to be something negative and spiteful when she behaves nothing like that in interviews or how I saw her at bronycon? 

 

So basically this game is a Mortal Kombat style game?

 

Well I'd say it is more akin to Street Fighter than Mortal Kombat.

Edited October 18, 2015 by Steel Accord

[Dark Qiviut 22,464]

And speculating that she helped Mane6 simply to spite Hasbro seems a bit harsh. I just don't see her as the vengeful type, and evidently she's still good friends with the cast and crew. More likely she took the remaining inspiration she had from MLP:FiM and used it to create a new, similar world that she has more control over. Which, in my opinion as an artist, is a great idea.

I have to disagree with you here. The anti-Faust conspiracy theory isn't "a bit" harsh. It's so ignorant, you can place it on Fox News and not feel out of place.

 

Let's call it like it really is. Faust didn't want what was the fandom project to go to waste. In early-2013, FiM was the most anticipated project because it was really good despite its limitations. It was so big, GameSpot headlined it. The C&D caused a major ripple effect in the fandom; if you weren't in the fandom at the time, you have no idea how upset the fans were. They were arguably more upset at the C&D than Derpy during Roundup being whitewashed. Faust decided to help out because she liked it, encouraged the development, and didn't want two years' worth of hard work to be left forgotten. If anyone actually looks at her actions objectively, it's a very risky, yet very bold, thing to do. If done well, rewarding. Faust's involvement saved Fighting Is Magic; and the C&D becomes a blessing in disguise.

 

The conspiracy theorists claim Faust is being passive-aggressive. Well, in reality…

 

Edited October 18, 2015 by Dark Qiviut

[Steel Accord 6,660]

I mean that Hasbro put a stop to Mane6, and Faust helped them get around that by changing it to OCs. Let's be honest, they are HEAVILY marketing the game based upon the fact that they are the people behind Fighting is Magic and that Faust is helping them. They are more or less using MLP to get sales.

 

And there is something wrong with that? From what I've read of the lore and characters, it's cut from the same cloth as Friendship is Magic but also interesting in its own right. If I like Ip Man is it not a safe bet that I would also like Ong Bak?

 

@@Dark Qiviut,

 

I agree with almost everything and I would say I'm on your side but there is no need to name call. 

Edited October 18, 2015 by Steel Accord

[Time Shield 402]

I will repeat myself once more; I do not ascribe to conspiracy theories.  What I do believe in is human nature and my intuition when it comes to interpreting the words and actions of others.

 

It sounds more like you believe that all people are cynical, which is not a good intuition to trust, nor is it healthy to project your own faults onto others (i.e., just because you're cynical, it doesn't mean everyone else is).  Having actually met Lauren Faust, I can say that she is an optimist and has never struck me as being the spiteful type in any way.

[Adachi 772]

I'm thinking 6 characters might be the kickstarter amount, but they will add more characters bit by bit later. Like someone else said, Skullgirls started with 8, now they have 14 (I think). Although tbh, I think Skullgirls is a bit higher quality, but we shall see.

Edited October 18, 2015 by Adachi

[EquestriaGuy 1,074]

This thing is running out of time. What are the plans if the goal isn't reached?

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

I looked all around...Tumblr...they say that it's struggling to meet it's deadline. 

 

What started out as an amazing fan game...which got crushed by hasbro...has become this...hanging on almost a thin line. Shame that it was leaked early...that was the thing that really shut it's doors...

[Limeblossom 482]

This thing is running out of time. What are the plans if the goal isn't reached?

I hope they reach their goal. Now they only need 7%.

[Dark Qiviut 22,464]

This thing is running out of time. What are the plans if the goal isn't reached?

  

I hope they reach their goal. Now they only need 7%.

The game has a good shot. Last night, the two remaining spots of the $2,750 pledge were picked up. At the time I'm writing this, $25,384 remain.

[Guest]

 

 

I have to disagree with you here. The anti-Faust conspiracy theory isn't "a bit" harsh. It's so ignorant, you can place it on Fox News and not feel out of place.

 

 

Seriously you need to be more respectful in your criticisms. Also It is not a conspiracy theory, it's a theory based upon what we have in front of us. I'd go over it, but it looks like you've already decided that any evidence presented to you will not be good enough to even suggest a theory as a possibility. You're being very mean spirited about this. She's just a show creator, she is a big girl who can take criticism and you defending her like this isn't making her life any easier or harder. You need to stop taking every disagreement you have so personally.

 

 

 

Let's call it like it really is. Faust didn't want what was the fandom project to go to waste.

 

Except there is no certainty that is her intentions. We can not read her mind.

 

 

 

in early-2013, FiM was the most anticipated project because it was really good despite its limitations. It was so big, GameSpot headlined it. The C&D caused a major ripple effect in the fandom; if you weren't in the fandom at the time, you have no idea how upset the fans were. They were arguably more upset at the C&D than Derpy during Roundup being whitewashed.

 

I was there, and I have to say the uproar was not as big as you claim. Most sites I saw more or less accepted it because after the derpy censorship many of them had just come to expect this would happen eventually. The general consensus was more or less "we saw this coming".

 

 

 

If anyone actually looks at her actions objectively, it's a very risky, yet very bold, thing to do.

 

Which is not what you're doing. Objectively one can look past the "oh so nice" thing she did for fans and see that it wasn't the most professional move to make. So if anyone is looking at things with rose tinted glasses, it would be you. You just don't want to believe that there is even a possibility that Faust did something unprofessional, and just took the opportunity to get paid. I mean let's not even pretend that she isn't going to be paid for Them's Fighting Herds. Let's not pretend that the discussion of how they would profit off of Them's Fighting Herds did not happen between Faust and the dev team. This wasn't a "Oh my goodness, so nice!" thing she did for the fandom, this is about getting paid. Faust saw people who would value her work, and she saw the opportunity to capitalize on it. And there is NOTHING you can say that will prove otherwise, so you have no choice but to accept that as a possibility, Mr. Objective. There is literally no evidence to suggest otherwise.

 

 

 

The conspiracy theorists claim Faust is being passive-aggressive. Well, in reality…

 

You're quite passive aggressive yourself. 

[gyashaa 252]

It's at 95% with 4 days left. It's gonna happen.

[Guest]

It's at 95% with 4 days left. It's gonna happen.

Which I'm okay with. Sadly though I have basically been under the thought of "if it IS going to happen, it needs to generate enough for console release". The minimum is just not enough to justify a buy from me. 6 characters, no console release? It more or less boils down to the game needs to sell well for the devs to be willing to add more content to the game. That's my concern is that the IndieGoGo campaign is a representation of all we're going to get.

[Aleh 481]

Which I'm okay with. Sadly though I have basically been under the thought of "if it IS going to happen, it needs to generate enough for console release". The minimum is just not enough to justify a buy from me. 6 characters, no console release? It more or less boils down to the game needs to sell well for the devs to be willing to add more content to the game. That's my concern is that the IndieGoGo campaign is a representation of all we're going to get.

Would be 7 at the start if there was more funding. Character creation is pretty expensive (From what I saw with skullgirls its a quarter of a million per character. Which is why the whole "WHY DON'T YOU HAVE 30 CHARACTERS" thing seemed dumb to me with such a small company >.< No real way they'd get the kickstarter with an extra 250 k [possibly more, since 250k is on the cheap side of fighters]fund requirement). Best to wait for it to come out with dlc depending on how successful it is.

 

Console release is planned if they become successful as well

Just will have to see I guess

[Guest]

Would be 7 at the start if there was more funding. Character creation is pretty expensive (From what I saw with skullgirls its a quarter of a million per character. Which is why the whole "WHY DON'T YOU HAVE 30 CHARACTERS" thing seemed dumb to me with such a small company >.<). Best to wait for it to come out with dlc depending on how successful it is.

 

What irritates me is the 7th character is listed as it will be DLC so it's more or less that all additional characters are going to be DLC. Which would be fine if your roaster was more than 6 characters. See now if they release even 3 characters, they have no choice but to give them away for free because if they don't they have locked away 30% of the roaster behind a DLC wall. Do you see the issue now with 6 characters? They are now going to be OBLIGATED to release more characters for free down the road or suffer HUGE backlash.

 

Not many people like buying a fighting game to find that 30%+ of the characters are locked behind DLC paywalls. 

 

30+ characters, yeah that's unreasonable. But I think 8 should be aimed for at MINIMUM. 8 is not that far of a stretch. Delay the game another 6 months and pump out 8 and make the goat the 9th. At least then people will feel there is enough varity. Then if you make DLC characters you could bump the roaster up to a respectable 12 without a huge chunk held off as DLC, especially if you gave one of the new ones away as like a loyalty thing. In essence:

 

8 base characters, the Backer DLC character, 1 free character DLC, and 2 paid DLCs. A respectable 12 character roaster, without having to milk people dry and locking out a huge chunk of the game.

 

Also making a fucking giraffe. I want a giraffe, I will pay to play as a giraffe.

[J. Brony 313]

It sounds more like you believe that all people are cynical, which is not a good intuition to trust, nor is it healthy to project your own faults onto others (i.e., just because you're cynical, it doesn't mean everyone else is).  Having actually met Lauren Faust, I can say that she is an optimist and has never struck me as being the spiteful type in any way.

 

So let me get this straight.  You're taking me to task for suggesting that Lauren Faust may be acting, at least in part, out of spite and yet you don't seem to have any qualms with accusing me of projecting my cynicism onto others?  

 

I think this might also apply to this situation:

 

 

 

[Guest]

I think a lot of people are ignoring the fact that Faust is getting paid for this because it will delude their fantasy that she is a perfect goddess who came down and delivered a TV show that changed their lives. They are unable to see past the fact that money talks and this had nothing to do with fan integrity, it has to do with collecting a paycheck. Look at their numbers: they are dedicating over 30% of the budget to art and design. Faust is their lead character designer.  A huge chunk of that 30% is going to her.

 

Do you guys honestly believe she is voluntarily offering her characters without getting paid? So for the people out there saying that those of us who are skeptical of her motives are "conspiracy theorists" you need to look at things more objectively and take the fact that Faust created the generation of MLP you love so much out of your head for a minute. This is not about showing the fans love, it's about getting paid. Faust I am CERTAIN will not volunteer to pay for the funding out of her own pocket or even offer to donate some of her own money to meet the stretch goals. I am certain she is not going to do anything without getting paid either. If she was, there would not be a crowdfunding, she would be just helping make the game for nothing and offering her own money to get the game finished. They were going to make FiM on a zero budget, so they could have done the same for this.

 

I think people just don't want to accept the fact that Faust is about getting paid just like the rest of us, because that would mean accepting she is human and capable of making mistakes and poor decisions.

 

Not to mention her lack of creativity is showing just based upon the characters.

 

Arizona - An honest country girl.

Velvet - A ritzy upper class girl.

Paprika - A goofball that likes singing and smiling.

Oleander - A magic user who insists that others do not understand the powers of dark magic.

Pom - A shy girl who likes animals and has many pets.

Tianhuo - A pride driven girl who considers herself greater than others.

 

 

These characters sound familiar... Oh that's right, they are ripped right out of MLP. Shy of Oleander being more like Sunset Shimmer than Twilight and Tianhuo being an exaggeration of Dash's arrogance, they are more or less carbon copies. Arizona is almost a blatant naughty rip off of AJ. No one wants to admit that Faust is not that amazing of a designer and that she isn't really that talented. She is far from the greatest creator to ever exist and I think a LOT of people forget that Faust had a LOT of help when making MLP. She didn't just come up with the entirety of the show as we knew it when it first aired. She had advisers, people from DHX who helped her mold the script and the characters who seem to never get any of the credit.

 

This game is being sold almost entirely on Faust being involved and naturally she is collecting a paycheck. People seem to not want to admit she is collecting that paycheck and that she wants to make a profit. They all would rather believe this is solely a labor of love and that she is doing it all out of complete goodwill, but in reality there is a paycheck involved. No one can deny that money could be a factor here. That is not to say that it is the only factor, but the fact remains: there is a paycheck to be collected, so I would say it's not conspiracy to suggest that Faust's involvement is not solely to show the fans that she loves her fans. Hell at the last convention she was at she said she felt the fans have forgotten about her and moved on. Faust could in fact just be doing this because it's a kill two birds with one stone tactic: it's a good PR move for fans, and it's a paycheck. There is no way for us to know with certainty that she legitimately is only doing this because she loves her fans.

 

She has mainly been going after the "big" stuff that happens that is easy PR wins such as when that kid's "letter" was destroyed by Hasbro. It was already widely known by bronies before she commented. This fighting game? It was already widely known by bronies when she offered to help. I am not seeing Faust extending a hand to help struggling MLP fan artists who are not well known and barely making enough to pay rent. Why? Because there is no publicity in that. All of this crap could EASILY just be a publicity stunt. Now that is not to say it is beyond any level of certainty, but it is a possibility. The evidence definitely could suggest that.

 

People who are dismissing these legitimate concerns and points by calling the "conspiracy theories" are simply looking for any and all excuses that they can to look at the situation objectively and consider even the possibility that Faust is not as great as they believe she is. To even humor the idea that perhaps this is more about collecting a paycheck than people are letting on. I mean come on, if you did this much work and you had a resume like her's wouldn't you want to get paid? And I already know I'm going to get a couple of people INSISTING that they would just do it "because they love the fans", but I am almost certain that most of you are lying through your teeth and that if you were put in the same situation, you'd want to make money. It's so freakin' easy for people to claim they would do things differently when they never are going to be in the situation, but when the situation presents itself, I have seen people do a complete 180. I don't get why people are willing to deny that Faust wants to get paid. She has a family to feed, she can't be working for free.

 

To quote Harlan Ellison:

 

"I sell my soul, but only at the highest rates."

 

Face it, your precious Lauren Faust likes getting a paycheck and subject to the possible motivation by a paycheck like the rest of us. I certainly don't go to work for Best Buy because I love phones (I do love them, but I don't go in because of my love), I do so because I like a paycheck.

[Time Shield 402]

So let me get this straight. You're taking me to task for suggesting that Lauren Faust may be acting, at least in part, out of spite and yet you don't seem to have any qualms with accusing me of projecting my cynicism onto others?

 

I think this might also apply to this situation:

Intuition is not the same as experience. My direct experience with Lauren is that she isn't the way you describe her, while your assumption is based on your experience with OTHERS, not her.

[J. Brony 313]

Intuition is not the same as experience. My direct experience with Lauren is that she isn't the way you describe her, while your assumption is based on your experience with OTHERS, not her.

 

And until you have direct experience with me, I'd appreciate it if you didn't make any further assumptions about what I think.  You're straying too far away from the topic at hand and coming dangerously close to making this a personal issue.  This thread isn't about me and I'd appreciate it if we all kept it that way. 

[Guest]

Intuition is not the same as experience. My direct experience with Lauren is that she isn't the way you describe her, while your assumption is based on your experience with OTHERS, not her.

You've met her all of what? Once? Twice? Did you work with her? Do you call her up for tea on Tuesdays? 1-2 meetings does not mean you suddenly know her. Your "experience" is about the same as everyone else who hears about her online. You met her when? At a convention when she's going to be putting on the best face for the sake of good publicity? Does she call you up on the weekends and discuss her life with you? No.

 

So please do not assert your experience as if it has any actual value or ability to somehow make you more qualified to talk about her than the rest of us. We're all the same people speculating over the internet.