Take-Two Interactive shuts down the Studios behind Kerbal Space Program and Rollerdrome

KSP 2 should have been a huge slam dunk. Take everything from the first one, redo the menus, up the graphics, and add some new stuff. It blows my mind they messed it up so badly.

And optimizations..

fuck it needed optimizing..
- It has gotten better but man still so much undelivered. Im just sad and im tired of being sad. Im fully pledging to never buy a big publisher game unless it absolutely proves itself first and even then im still gunna be hesitant cause vote with your money and all that. Honestly outside of KSP2 Ive already been purchasing and playing mostly indie games for the last 2 years anyways
Its because they fired or otherwise pushed out every single original developer towards the tail end of KSP1.
- To be fair, KSP 1 was pretty bad on the technical side. And they were laymen, creating what they wanted to create.
- Well those execs need to be pushed... out a window.
As far as I'm concerned the inclusion of the "anti-DoTA" clause in their EULA murdered it for me. I was so excited. KSP is one of my favorite games of all times, largely as a result of the vibrant and very technically advanced modding community. Same goes for essentially all of my favorites; Rimworld, Backpack Hero, Factorio. The free labor that expands the games in major ways extends the value of my money and let's me have fun forever in them.

Putting in a clause in a EULA which automatically and irrevocably assumes all ownership and rights to any code or assets that are created for a game is just too far. Assuming rights at all is a huge issue for me, but I can accept that it is beneficial to assume royalty free licenses to the mods, I'll even begrudgingly accept clauses that allow developers to gaffle features and optimizations from mods without giving remuneration or even acknowledgment. But wholesale ownership that revokes all rights and licenses for the independent 3rd party creator. Fuck that. I will never support a game that I find out is treating the people who keep games alive and relevant for decades for free like that.
up the graphics

Add some geology formation algorythm better than mere octaves.
The same could be said of multiple games these days. KSP, payday, cities skylines, etc.
that, and fix some of the spegheti code from KSP 1. I love the game, but no one argued that it wasnt a hack job
- It definitely was a hack job. But it was a little hobby project that a non videogame company decided to be cool about and develop it. It was also an early access for wicked cheap.
  
  The sequel was given way more manpower, experience, and money right from the start.
Wow that is insane, I didn't know they fumbled it so bad. I remember when it was announced and the fan base was so pumped. I played a little of the first game but never got super into it.
- Man I was so excited for KSP 2, I couldn't wait to build a moon colony with friends. Shame they never delivered what they promised
I wonder why developers never put much worth in what people actually want or you know, just talk to them and ask?

Or is this some kind of "users have no idea what they want" situation?
The fact that they released a game with wobbly rockets and then charged $50 for it shows they didn't know what the hell they were doing. It should have been free for early access with a simple way to report bugs. I'm not gonna pay that much to do QA work for them.

I remember the first time I successfully landed on the moon and brought my kerbals back. It was one of my most cathartic experiences.

It's sad to see the sequel get abandoned like this.

I actually was recording when I made the most gnarly mun landing ever in KSP. I ran out of fuel, was going too fast to not explode. I moved Valetina to hang on the outside of the craft, and moments before impact, I had her jump off. The resulting explosion from the module was juuuust enough counter force to prevent Valentina herself from hitting the ground too hard and she lived to plant a flag. To date, it's the most impressive thing I've personally managed in the game.

https://youtu.be/v2CdIZXO0tQ?si=NKeFV52Q5Edqugw5 (skip to about 22:30 for the "landing")
- You did that to recover her later, right? Right?
- Just watched. That was amazing.
It's sad to see the sequel get abandoned like this.

Especially when KSP has had such an active and vibrant community for a decade
I remember the heroic explorer Jebediah Kerman was on the way way back from the moon. The touchdown was flawless landing, the science was beyond value and the moment brought all the world together.

They had doubted sending Jeb but he silenced the doubters to low grumbles.

But then as the rockets were burning for the reentry burn and the orbit was decreasing, but the brain boxes had made a drastic mistake and undershot the fuel. A perfect mission and Kerbin's greatest hero was potentially doomed all is a moment of low delta v.

He was so close. Getting nearer and nearer to home, but it wasn't to be! Soon he was getting further and further away! Drifting into the darkness yet again.

The agency went into full swing immediately. How much food does he have, how much water, how much air!? How long until we have another rocket that can take off!? We only built one rocket there is no back up. Never before had a two kerbin rocket has ever been flown, never before had a rendezvous been attempted, never before had a rocket flown remotely. PR was there talking to the press was doing their best to save a near hopeless situation.

Then get this! I remember it like it was yesterday. Jeb wasn't bothered at all. Out there all on his own he said he wanted to go on a space walk. It got approved knowing that he might as well enjoy his final moments before the highly likely death. But this is Jebediah Kerman we are on about now. Not for a moment did he believe he was going to die, he get out into space and begins to push the rocket using with his bare hands! The brain boxes can't believe it!!! Its working. The orbit had done just enough to scrap the atmosphere. Jebediah was coming home! Only Jebediah. Then even the doubters had to say of Jebediah, he was truly the greatest of all astronauts.
- Okay I need a KSP blog about various (mis)adventures such as this!
- The one an only Jebediah Kerman, my guy.

Is Kerbal Space Program 2 worth playing for someone who had fun with but was bad at 1?

Reviews are - not good.

Not really, the first one was better in pretty much every single regard.
- I haven't really been following because the first was just beyond me...how did they fuck up part 2?
- Man that's been the case with these sequels to games I really loved. Happened to Cities Skylines as well, and at first it seemed like that's happened with Helldivers but it turns out it was so good it just ruined the servers.
Nope. It's hot garbage and I say that as someone with over 2000 hours in KSP.
- Better last KSP 1 and full-out modding?
- It's absolutely not "hot garbage", but it's definitely not done.
In its current state? Not unless it gets heavily marked down (KSP2 does have better tutorials and a more accessible progression system).

With the studio being shut down, it’s likely that what we have now is all we’re getting.
- Hmm maybe I'll check on it in 5 years. Cos holly hell that price! Priced like a AAA game.

I hope that they will share the source code on some kind of GPL to make this game not dead, shot down studio isn't going to make any update and who will get the money?

Edit: they will still make the updates

Take-Two still receives the proceeds from the sales, depending on employment contracts probably pays royalties to the devs. Also, it's their intellectual property so there could be consequences for leaking the source code.

Well another studio took over from Intercept Games to work on KSP 2 a while ago, right? Star Theory, iirc.

stay theory was shut down and absorbed by intercept games
- Oh yes, I forgot it went that way...
According to the wiki page.... "In May 2024, Take-Two announced it would shut down Intercept Games but continue to update Kerbal Space Program 2 under the Private Division label."
- I wonder how will they manage that logistically. They are firing every single developer from IG. Who exactly in Private Division is going to be doing the updating? I suspect they will just brush a little of the code that is ready, then completely abandon the product in a year or so.

Great, two games I loved (well, I was waiting for KSP2 to get good…)

Rollerdrome was fantastic and KSP1 is legendary. This sucks ass.

They abandoned Linux support. Fuck them. It was one of the only games that did. Linux users were a bug part of their initial success, and they dumped us as soon as the money came in.

Rollerdrome was very solid concept but the difficulty curve was pretty intense. One second you feel like you have the hang of it the next you can't get to the next arena.

Yeah I absolutely adored the concept and would love.to see it picked up. I discovered it after pitching to a friend Tony Hawk's Borderlands 4 and gradually realising the proof of concept existed.

I predicted KSP2 was going to be eventually abandoned and IG closed around the time of the launch, when the first industry layoffs were starting to happen. The mildest thing I was called for suggesting this was pessimist and it only got worse from that term. I suppose I was half right…so far.

Can someone copypaste the article? I'm not making an account.

This is better

Best case scenario, they learn from No Man's Sky with what few devs they have left. Worst case scenario, the game remains shit, and we all continue to enjoy modded to hell KSP 1/Juno/etc.