According to Mongoose Publishing's 11/12 announcement, they were in negotiation to acquire the Star Wars game license but another company got there first. The exact quote is this:
In other A Call to Arms news, I can now report that we did not manage to grab the licence we were chasing for the game - Star Wars. We weren't really expecting this one to happen (we made a sideways reference to it in the State of the Mongoose), but we got much further along than we thought we would.
The interesting thing is why our negotiations ended - another company beat us to it. We are not going to reveal who this is (you have heard of them), as that is their fanfare to blow. However, I am sure many will find it intriguing that the licence covers card games, RPGs, and... miniatures. Now, the company concerned is not known for its miniatures lines, which will probably put paid to my dream of 28mm multipart/multipose Stormtroopers.
Um...really? Because there's been no such announcement at starwars.com that I could find.
Not that it matters a whole lot to me...my own space opera game won't require a license, being a conglomeration of multiple space fantasies. But I am curious. After all, it's one thing to SAY the license has already been acquired...but perhaps that's just a little something-something to throw other companies off the scent while Mongoose puts together the scratch/financial plan needed to pick it up themselves.
Actually, I wouldn't be too surprised to see someone purchasing a "bundle" license just to do a collectable card game. But WotC already had their shot and dropped it...who else is really that big a player in the card market?
Welp, I'm sure someone will make a real announcement in the near future....
; )
Green Ronin could be a contender. They have worked with Bioware, who is developing the Star Wars:The Old Republic online game. They also have the DC Adventures license, which proves they can get big deals.
ReplyDeleteJust wild speculation.
Business deals like this won't be announced until everything is signed and the deal is complete. I bet the lawyers are still reviewing everything.
ReplyDeleteGreen Ronin is a good pick. They've created a house ruleset, and so far only one game -- Dragon Age -- is using it. I could see Star Wars working quite well with the AGE system.
ReplyDeleteChris Pramas posted on his blog about this earlier today. He didn't have any interest in acquiring the SW license for Green Ronin. http://freeport-pirate.livejournal.com/136575.html
ReplyDeleteHuh...I actually thought Green Ronin might be the guys, too. I mean, when you start thinking about the bigger game companies that are out and about the list sounds pretty crazy: White Wolf? FanPro? Steve Jackson? Palladium? Pelgrane? Chaosium?
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand...I can think of one outfit that's all about buying up little game designers and stuffing 'em under their umbrella; maybe THEY are taking a stab at the license.
I don't it'd be Palladium. While Kevin did reacquire the Robotech license, that has more to do with the fact that he has a pretty good relationship with Harmony Gold. And, also, it's essentially just continuing what they've done in the past.
ReplyDeleteKevin really doesn't like the hassle of licensed properties.