Something Witty Like: SOE’s New Daybreak

5 February, 2015

Breaking News! (Not.) SOE is turning into Daybreak.

I don’t read as much doom and gloom into this news as SynCaine does, but if Daybreak intends to take a more cross-platform stance, it could mean EverQuest Next will end up a lot more controller-friendly than we PC MMORPG gamers might like. You can already sense it with Landmark actually. You’ve got a left button ability and a right button ability and that’s about it.

Not that there’s anything wrong with fewer abilities, if done well-Neverwinter comes to mind. Sadly last I checked-a month or so ago? Did I write a post about that? It’s probably still in my Drafts somewhere-Landmark had a long way to go before the quality of its combat came anywhere near the level of fun and polish in Neverwinter.

On the other end of the controller spectrum would be something like FFXIV, which brings all of the hotbar complexity of your PC MMORPG right to your controller buttons, and does it better than you might think. I’d prefer it if they went that direction for EQ Next. (Honestly there isn’t much that could be stolen from FFXIV that wouldn’t be a solid winner.)

I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what happens after Daybreak. Hyuk hyuk.

(I keep wanting to call them Dawnbreak instead of Daybreak for some reason.)

UPDATE, 4/25/2018

Because of recent events with Daybreak Game Company claiming that Columbus Nova never owned them, I am updating this post today with a screenshot of the Reddit link referenced above.

Below is the text of the announcement, so I can search on it later:

Sony Online Entertainment Becomes Daybreak Game Company

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  Dear Players, Partners and Friends,
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  Today, we are pleased to announce that we have been acquired by Columbus Nova, an investment management firm well known for its success with its existing portfolio of technology, media and entertainment focused companies. This means that effective immediately SOE will operate as an independent game development studio where we will continue to focus on creating exceptional online games for players around the world, and now as a multi-platform gaming company. Yes, that means PlayStation and Xbox, mobile and more!
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  As part of this transition, SOE will now become Daybreak Game Company. This name embodies who we are as an organization, and is a nod to the passion and dedication of our employees and players. It is also representative of our vision to approach each new day as an opportunity to move gaming forward.
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  So what exactly does this mean for you? It will be business as usual and all SOE games will continue on their current path of development and operation. In fact, we expect to have even more resources available to us as a result of this acquisition. It also means new exciting developments for our existing IP and games as we can now fully embrace the multi-platform world we are living in.
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  Our games and players are the heart and soul of our organization, and we are committed to maintaining our portfolio of online games and pushing the limits of where we can take online gaming together.
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  Thank you for your continued support. See you in game!
</p>

<p class="faukuq-10 jmxXXW">
  The Team at Daybreak
</p>

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