408 replies to this topic

[Strig]

In my opinion, the Re-seen designs look better than the Unseen designs (in some cases considerably better).

PGI has (again in my opinion) produced better mech designs for the existing mechs than any versions we have seen before this and I would trust them to make any Unseen, Re-seen or completely made up mechs look awesome.

I am all for keeping as close to canon as possible where it makes sense, so if we could get Reseen then I would be pleased, but I see no reason at all to use the old designs of the Unseen, especially if there is a legal issue.

[Wolf Clearwater]

Just want my Battlemaster. Unseen, Reseen, Redesign......will take any of it

[Alois Hammer]

Don't care. Maybe if there were a shortage of Mech designs, this short list might make some real difference- but one look at Sarna leaves me confident that we won't run short of designs even if not allowed to use the OMGUnseenFAPFAPFAP designs.

Can this be stickied at the bottom of the priority list, right below 3rd-person view please?

-shrug-

[Terran123rd]

verybad, on 24 January 2013 - 10:28 AM, said:

To Hate the Marauder is to Hate Me. How can someone hate the Marauder? People can hate me for my own flaws (there are none, I'm just sayin') but the Marauder? That is unconcionable.

It's the unattractive byproduct of an '80s anime. It's, as a consequence, pretty damned stupid looking.

[Adridos]

Strig, on 08 February 2013 - 07:21 AM, said:

In my opinion, the Re-seen designs look better than the Unseen designs (in some cases considerably better).

Ahem...



Seriosusly, how can anyone take that thing seriously....



Now this actually looks like a mech, even moreso a mech that can be feared.

In the end. however, both could use a facelift and a simple good redsign would help it a lot, like this (yeah, I know the side torsoes are swapped):

[Strig]

@ Adridos

LOL .. ok, you got me on that one. I was specifically referring to the images put up by the OP (and even then, the Warhammer is a toss up) but I agree with you on this. Either way, PGI will add their own design flair though ... so I think we will probably be happy with what we get, visually speaking.

[Black Ivan]

Unseen yes, but please with an entirely new design. The Project Phoenix designs are utterly horrible.
I would have shot the designers on sight.

[buttmonkey]

pgi should just use the unseen and when HG comes to take them to court we all jump em

[Steinar Bergstol]

I just need all the money in the world and I'll take HG to court and keep them there until they're bankrupt. Give 'em a taste of heir own medicine. So, just send me all your money, everyone. It's for the good of the BT franchise.

The sad part is, if I actually _had_ all the money in the world I'd actually consider doing that, that's how much I want my Phoenix Hawk and my Thunderbolt.

[DirePhoenix]

Steinar Bergstol, on 11 February 2013 - 09:38 AM, said:

I just need all the money in the world and I'll take HG to court and keep them there until they're bankrupt. Give 'em a taste of heir own medicine. So, just send me all your money, everyone. It's for the good of the BT franchise.

The sad part is, if I actually _had_ all the money in the world I'd actually consider doing that, that's how much I want my Phoenix Hawk and my Thunderbolt.

If you had all the money in the world, you could just buy them and liquidate them.

But I still believe the franchise in general is better off making their own designs and moving forward with them than trying to keep using art that, regardless of who holds the rights to it, was originally intended to be used as something else.

[Mao of DC]

I got just one word.


BATTLEMASTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Skadi]

Reseen Maurader imo is badass looking, and should be a new mech in its own.

[Koshirou]

I selected the last option (PGI redesigns these Mechs altogether) because let's face it: Unseen are not happening, Reseen don't look very good (especially not my old favorite, the Marauder), and PGI has so far done an excellent job coming up with very nice aesthetics for many old favorites, so I trust their re-imagined Marauder etc. would look excellent as well.

[Mao of DC]

Koshirou, on 18 February 2013 - 03:05 AM, said:

I selected the last option (PGI redesigns these Mechs altogether) because let's face it: Unseen are not happening, Reseen don't look very good (especially not my old favorite, the Marauder), and PGI has so far done an excellent job coming up with very nice aesthetics for many old favorites, so I trust their re-imagined Marauder etc. would look excellent as well.

The Devs MAY not be able to redesign thoses mechs. It all has to do wih the wording of the licensing contract. If they get permission to use the Pheonix Project's images from Fanpro they may have to use them. Otherwise your favorite Marauder might not look ANYTHING like the orginal one OR even be called the same. So far every mech the Dev have released have very little changes made to them when compared to the frist images released for them.

[Stormwolf]

Adridos, on 10 February 2013 - 08:14 AM, said:

In the end. however, both could use a facelift and a simple good redsign would help it a lot, like this (yeah, I know the side torsoes are swapped):

Wow, I want that to be ingame :drools:

[SICk Nick]

I love my Marauder. I have a K2 modeled after it. (Gauss Rifle instead of AC/5 tho ) I originally got into Battletech beacuse of the pic of the Marauder on the cover of Technical Readout:3025 (if I remember correctly). I own 2 Maraduer minatures.

I do NOT want the re-seen. I would much rather stick with the mechs we have that actually represent mechs from the game. I really like what the Devs have done so far and approve of thier mech choices. I don't want some sort of weird abominations to fill the shoes of the legendary mechs that started this whole thing for me.
It sucks. But hey, I just wouldn't wanna see Battlemaster and Wolverine wannabes battling it out with gaudy-looking Archers and Warhammers...ugh...NO WAY.

[Dusty Sandals]

A set of PGI original design is welcome. Load-out and tonnage kept the same and a brand new look on the chassis. This game is based on a board game. BASED. It shouldn't include direct copies of whatever 'mech comes forth. I prefer every single redesign of every 'mech included or designed so far. Let the old designs stay with the tabletop and get some different designs in the game. Rifleman IIC preferably.

[DirePhoenix]

Mao of DC, on 18 February 2013 - 03:56 AM, said:

The Devs MAY not be able to redesign thoses mechs. It all has to do wih the wording of the licensing contract. If they get permission to use the Pheonix Project's images from Fanpro they may have to use them. Otherwise your favorite Marauder might not look ANYTHING like the orginal one OR even be called the same. So far every mech the Dev have released have very little changes made to them when compared to the frist images released for them.

PGI currently does not have the license to use the art from ANY existing sourcebook. Topps has the license for everything BattleTech in Print media. Catalyst licenses from Topps. The only video game company I know of that is licensing from Topps is the one that made MechWarrior:Tactical Command for the iPad (which I doubt many people are playing because, well, it's only on the iPad... and I don't expect Apple users to know the difference between BattleTech and AngryBirds with the exception that one's "cuter" than the other).

The Commando, Raven, Spider, Jenner, Cicada, Centurion, Hunchback, Trebuchet, Dragon, Catapult, Cataphract, JagerMech, Awesome, Stalker, Highlander, and even the "iconic" Atlas that appears in MWO are all new and unique (art) designs made exclusively for MWO. They have to be. PGI cannot use any other art than their own.

And with that being the case, there is no reason PGI can't make their own art for the Marauder, Warhammer, BattleMaster, Wolverine, Griffin, ShadowHawk, PhoenixHawk, Wasp, Stinger, Locust, etc. The 'mechs themselves are not in contention, only the art used in the original BattleTech(BattleDroids) game and TRO3025 are. So, easy solution: make new art. PGI already has to make new art for all the other 'mechs. These are no different.

Edited by DirePhoenix, 20 February 2013 - 11:40 PM.

[Koshirou]

Mao of DC, on 18 February 2013 - 03:56 AM, said:

The Devs MAY not be able to redesign thoses mechs. It all has to do wih the wording of the licensing contract. If they get permission to use the Pheonix Project's images from Fanpro they may have to use them. Otherwise your favorite Marauder might not look ANYTHING like the orginal one OR even be called the same.

If it doesn't look like the original, that's not a problem. The Reseen version doesn't. And more importantly it looks bad. The Marauder is my favorite Unseen, and my least favorite Reseen.

Judging from what we have so far, I do trust PGI to do a better job at reimagining my old favorites than FanPro did.

Edited by Koshirou, 23 February 2013 - 12:10 AM.

[CharlieV]

There are few interesting things about Marauder:
FASA itself wasn't sure how Marauder looks - when you look at front page of TR:3025, you see Glaug, also many of artworks in original novels features MAD-3R with visuals exactly the same as Glaug, but official art looks slightly different - MAD is without that one eyed thing on front hull and different upper part of legs - and yet they features internal schematics again with cyclop eye. Also - vast majority of Unseen are more or less different from their originals in Macross (Robotech). This is (in my opinion) one of the biggest argument they give to hands of HG lawyers.

Second thing that came in my mind - many people here claimed that they will buy Unseen for real money in case PGI buy license to them from HG and many stated that they are better without them than pay HG single penny (or cent). But I think HG never want sell these rights, even if they can.

Pont is (this is only my theory, but it makes sence) HG wants MONOPOLY to all Robotech designs and that way they achieved several things, one of them no competition in miniatures or other figures, so they can dictate the prices. Just imagine - you have two almost identical designs on the market. As customer you can go and buy cheaper one, or you can say something like "Hey, this is interesting, what is this Warhammer thing, I should go and look at that game." and in this way you can make sells of your competitor bigger. If you are only one who make these, you are without problems like this and only other opinion for people unwilling to pay you is buy toys directly from Japan (and there are only few people who'll do this).

So I think HG has something like Echelon and every time they catch word like Marauder and Mech, they mobilize their law department. No matters if design is completely different (maybe if you show tank with same name, they wont). They achieved one huge victory - no one want to go to trial with them, because they remembered what happen to FASA. Even if you have rights to those designs DIRECTLY FROM THEIR JAPAN MAKERS, you can be sure they court you and on other side you can't be sure how long that trial goes and how much money it will cost you. Even Microsoft (and they can make tomato juice from whole HG, or even buy them) don't wanna go to lawsuit with them. They even fingered japan makers (as was posted before). To me they sticks to polici "if you have bigger stick, doesn't matter if youre right or wrong."

In this point of wiew if PGI makes original arts for MWO, once they named them Warthammer or Marauder (etc.) they have HG lawers on their neck. And if you add that HG wants go out with completely remastered Robotech to US market, they be now more agressive.

Only possible solution is move MWO to different country, where HG can't suit you, but that is impossible at all.