Fight For Life - A Case Of Sabotage?

[A Sprite]

Is it true that the Fight For Life prototype is a better game than the released code? Or that the people who made it broke it when Atari didn't live up to it's promises? Not that I don't believe it's possible (It sounds like human nature at work), but I'd like to hear more about it from people who'd know...

[Gorf]

Is it true that the Fight For Life prototype is a better game than the released code? Or that the people who made it broke it when Atari didn't live up to it's promises? Not that I don't believe it's possible (It sounds like human nature at work), but I'd like to hear more about it from people who'd know...

 

 

The proto I have Does not seem to be any faster. Its pretty much the same game.

The game runs like ass because the logic and AI are done mostly on the 68k.

There is ZERO reason FFL could not have run at a normal 30-60 FPS other than

that 68k doing too much(anything at all really.)

[BuddyBuddies]

the protos i have seem to be better

[A Sprite]

the protos i have seem to be better

 

How so?

[Willard]

The beta version plays much faster, but you can't do anything when you jump or crouch, unfortunatelly. A fair trade, at least it's playable (think of it as a good kickboxing game). The characters models seem to be different too- for better or worse is subjective.

Edited July 13, 2007 by Willard

[+doctorclu]

Too me the faster and smoother meant better.

[Gunstar]

Is it true that the Fight For Life prototype is a better game than the released code? Or that the people who made it broke it when Atari didn't live up to it's promises? Not that I don't believe it's possible (It sounds like human nature at work), but I'd like to hear more about it from people who'd know...

 

 

There are several different things to note here. First off, the proto that has been "released" is what Fight For Life was going to be originally, but still it's a beta version, so if it THAT version had been released it probably would have been a bit different than the proto is now, but it gives you an idea of what it WAS to have been ORIGINALLY. Now, second, when Atari sent out this original proto to gaming mags, it got bad reviews, so Atari decided to pull it (It was also originally developed by HIGH VOLTAGE SOFTWARE, of NBA JAM, WMCJ, Ruiner Pinball and VIDGRID fame) and THEN brought it in-house to Atari and got the main guy behind Virtua Fighter to come in and completely revamp and retool it, and during this development time it was coined by testers as "Fight for Life Extreme." Now, the story behind the sabotage of this REWRITTEN version is that the dev. team hadn't been paid and didn't think they were going to be payed, so after showing Atari the REAL FINISHED version and then Atari asked for the master rom or whatever to send it to production, the dev. team pulled a fast one on Atari and sent in an earlier Beta version that was supposedly very inferior to what the REAL final version was. So the REAL Fight For Life, that would have been much better and much more polished than the released version is "lost." THAT was the whole "sabotage" story behind it. So really, there is the original High Voltage beta version that was released a year or so ago in limited quantities, the original ATARI release that was "the last published game from Atari," and then there is the REAL finished version that is "lost." I'm still waiting for the REAL FINISHED version to show up someday, and it will be better than either the High Voltage Software Beta version or Atari's released version. So, technically, BOTH versions we have are BETAS by tow completely different development teams.

 

Of course this isn't to say that Gorf's not still right about it could have been a lot better anyway if, once again, the 68000 hadn't been used as the main processor, but the verdict is still out on just how good the REAL FINISHED version that is "lost" really is...

 

That's the whole twisted story behind this game. One of the MANY twisted stories of games that could have been great, if not for Atari.

Edited July 13, 2007 by Gunstar

[Pete5125]

Seems to me that would explain alot of the Jags missfortunes, was Atari was out of money and they did alot of programers/retailers dirty, by not paying $$ that was promised. So the programers got back at Atari by giving Atari 90% or so finished games, Atari needed cash so rather than paying the extra $$ to fix the games problems Atari released the games as is. Consumers were upset and bought less product making Atari less $$, making Atari skrew over developers caussing themselves to go further down the hole..