southpeak
Latest
Dementium series developer obtains sequel rights
Developer Renegade Kid has reacquired control of its Dementium series, a horror-focused intellectual property that birthed two frightening games on the Nintendo DS. Renegade Kid co-founder Jools Watsham took to Twitter to announce the deal: I am ecstatic to announce that Renegade Kid now has the rights to create Dementium sequels! EXCITE!! - Jools Watsham (@JoolsWatsham) September 16, 2014 The first game in the series, Dementium: The Ward, was distributed by publisher GameCock, which has since shuttered. Its sequel and the IP was then handled by SouthPeak Interactive, which had published the first game in Europe. Developer Renegade Kid has since gone on to create the Mutant Mudd series and the episodic 3DS game Moon Chronicles. "We have always retained ownership of the Dementium IP," Watsham told me. "SouthPeak used to have first right of refusal on sequels, but that is no longer the case."
TimeGate loses SouthPeak appeal, faces $7.3M in damages
TimeGate Studios lost the latest round in court of its battle against publisher SouthPeak Interactive, which could result in the studio paying $7.35 million in damages and losing the Section 8 intellectual property. Polygon obtained the court documents that SouthPeak recently won its appeal of arbitration handled early last year.The two companies have been fighting in court since 2009, when TimeGate sued SouthPeak for embezzling royalties and SouthPeak took on Timegate for fraudulent misrepresentation in its publishing agreement.TimeGate most recently co-developed Aliens: Colonial Marines and laid off 25 employees. It is currently working on the free-to-play shooter Minimum. Meanwhile, Southpeak is busy... um, looks like it's busy making money through litigation. The publisher hasn't produced a game since Stronghold 3 in 2011 according to its own website.
Timegate wins arbitration dispute against SouthPeak
Texas district Judge Keith Ellison has invalided an arbitrator's ruling that ordered Section 8 developer Timegate to repay the game's publisher, SouthPeak, $7.3 million in allegedly misused development funds. The ruling also rewrote Timegate's publishing contract with SouthPeak, granting SouthPeak a permanent license for Section 8's IP and its sequels.The arbitrator's decision was thrown out on the grounds that the rewritten publishing contract did not match the intent of the original document. Arbitrators are allowed to rewrite legally binding agreements, but only so long as the resulting agreement matches the spirit of the original document. Timegate and SouthPeak's original publishing agreement was very clear that Timegate would retain all IP rights for the brand -- changing this was beyond the scope of the original contract's intent and was therefore inappropriate.This all started back in the neolithic caveman days of 2009, when Timegate sued SouthPeak, claiming that the publisher had altered revenue reports in order to retain royalties meant for Timegate, which is embezzlement.SouthPeak countersued, claiming that Timegate fraudulently misrepresented itself in order to convince SouthPeak (which acquired original Section 8 publisher Gamecock) to enter into the publishing agreement. It also claimed that Section 8's lackluster retail performance was solely Timegate's fault, and that Timegate had failed to contribute a required $2.5 million in development funds, misused the $7.5 million in development funds provided by SouthPeak, and failed to give SouthPeak revenue from Section 8's PC sequel and PS3 port.This tale is likely far from over, however, as SouthPeak still has the ability to appeal Judge Ellison's ruling.
SouthPeak delists itself from the New York Stock Exchange [update]
Update: We got in touch with a SouthPeak representative, who told us that the company was never "properly listed" on the NYSE to begin with. SouthPeak was "an 'over the counter' type stock that was never properly listed and therefore can't be delisted." So SouthPeak shares were traded between two parties via a broker, meaning the company was never officially part of the NYSE. Original post: It's been a rough year for SouthPeak. Not only did the company suffer millions in losses in its latest earnings report, but it also had to settle a nasty SEC dispute. The latest bump in the road for the Two Worlds 2 publisher is a delisting from the New York Stock Exchange. SouthPeak released a statement citing that "given its current financial condition and the current state of the economic environment within the industry in which it operates, the benefits of having publicly registered shares and filing periodic reports under the federal securities laws are outweighed by the associated costs." So, basically, SouthPeak can't afford to be a public company anymore. The publisher's next major title, Stronghold 3, was recently delayed and is currently slated to launch in "late summer." According to some online retailers, that translates to "in October."
SouthPeak settles in SEC violation dispute
Two Worlds publisher SouthPeak Interactive ended up in some hot water with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last November, when the government agency announced it would bring a civil injunction against the publisher's chairman, Terry Phillips. The reason for the SEC suit was SouthPeak's failure to properly document a loan given to the publisher by Phillips in early 2009. Rather than drag out the investigation, SouthPeak decided to settle with the SEC earlier this week on unspecified terms. SouthPeak CEO Melanie Mroz explained in a statement that the publisher cooperated with the SEC since it brought the investigation before them last year. She added, "In the end, however, it made the most sense for the company and Terry to negotiate an acceptable settlement that does not require us to admit any wrong-doing and close this chapter as we constantly strive to improve our processes, systems and personnel to meet our obligations as a public company."
Stronghold 3 delayed until late summer
Firefly Studios, the team behind Stronghold 3, has learned some important lessons in all its years of simulated castle building. For one, constructing spiral staircases counter-clockwise makes them easier to defend against right-handed swordsmen. But more practically, Firefly has learned that taking your time is key. The studio's putting that second lesson to good use today, announcing that Stronghold 3 has been moved from an "early 2011" to a "late summer 2011" release window. Apparently, the delay will allow Firefly to implement "a host of great new features" so, needless to say, we're bracing ourselves for the best looking moat physics in the biz.
SouthPeak posts $2.1 million quarterly loss, future uncertain
Despite reclaiming rights to the My Baby franchise last year, SouthPeak continued to decline into potential insolvency during the second quarter (ending December 31, 2010) of its current fiscal year. Net revenue for the quarter was just $7.5 million, down $2.6 million from the same period the year before -- not that the company was profitable then, either. Despite revenues being down, however, SouthPeak's total losses for the recent quarter -- $2.1 million -- were actually an improvement of $500K over second quarter losses in the previous fiscal year. (That's one way to put a kind of positive spin on the company's bleak state of affairs.) As businesses tend to do in desperate times, SouthPeak assuaged investor concerns in its report with forward-looking statements that forecast a bright future for the publisher. Though no specific projects are mentioned, apparently "SouthPeak has also invested in key new titles from which the anticipated profits should help improve its financial prospects." Of course, the report also adds a far more grim disclaimer: "While the Company is committed to pursuing options to continue to address its viability as a going concern, there can be no assurance that the Company's efforts will prove successful." Not exactly confidence inspiring, folks.
Two Worlds 2 marked down to $40 at Kmart, buyers get hammered
If you're looking to try out the sure lock for 2011's "Most Improved Game of the Year" award recipient, Two Worlds 2, Kmart's making a pretty compelling case for your dollars. The retailer has the game for $40 this week, which will also net you a download voucher for the powerful "BattleHammer of Kroll."
Two Worlds 2 review: One world of difference
"Uh, hello, Two Worlds 2 is it? Please, come in, have a seat." "Oh, thank you so much, and please, call me Tee Dub, all my friends do. I can't tell you what an honor this is to even be considered for a Joystiq score, especially considering what an unmitigated disaster my predecessor was." "It's our pleasure, Tee Dub. Now, I'm just going to address the elephant in the room here. I'm looking over your resume, and I keep coming back to this line right here: 'I am, in many respects, not a very good game. In fact, some parts of me are actively bad.'" "Uhh, yes, that's correct." "We try to keep an open mind here at Joystiq, and heaven knows we're suckers for fantasy action RPGs. But I have to ask ... if you'll fully admit to being crummy in many regards, what are you doing in my office?" "One word, Mr. McElroy: Heart." %Gallery-89295%
SouthPeak claims creditors used press to 'paint a negative picture' of the company
Throughout 2009 and 2010, SouthPeak's legal struggles made headlines. From the sweeping claims of unpaid work following the buyout of Gamecock Media Group to the lawsuits brought on by various companies that had done business with SouthPeak, a less than favorable image of the Texas-based game publisher had been created. In a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, SouthPeak chairman Terry Phillips defended his company, claiming creditors "used the press to try to put pressure on us; to try to squeeze a better deal out of us; to try to paint a negative picture of us." "You read a lot of it and you just think we've had a terrible year on the legal side," Terry Phillips added, "but we've not had one single substantive judgment against us whatsoever this year." He cited a French court's ruling in favor of SouthPeak over developer Nobilis, which granted the publisher "all rights on future [My Baby] games." Needless to say, SouthPeak is hoping for a sunnier 2011, as it expands the availability of Two Worlds 2, continues growing the My Baby family, and works with Nvidia to bring Tegra 2-powered games to Android devices.
Two Worlds 2 coming to America Jan. 25, has sold a million in Europe
TopWare and SouthPeak's double-delayed RPG, Two Worlds 2, has finally received a North American release date of January 25, 2011. Later that week, the game will arrive in the U.K. and Ireland, where Topware will take over as sole distributor, allowing SouthPeak to focus on promoting the game in North America. That sounds like a decent strategy, but we're not sure the extra attention is necessary -- it's always been our experience that games with perfectly symmetrical titles practically sell themselves. Two Worlds 2 has already been received with moderate success in Continental Europe, with the Xbox 360 and PC versions selling over one million copies combined since their releases in early November. (The PS3 version, remember, was held up due to a Blu-ray printing delay.) There's no telling how well the game will be received in new regions next month, but if its critical reception remains positive, we're guessing it'll do a great deal better than its predecessor.
Stark SouthPeak Q1 financials due to My Baby issues
SouthPeak's first quarter results saw the shaky publisher report a net loss of $1.2 million, compared to the $687K profit it reported during the same time last year. Revenues during the period were $1.4 million, a steep drop from the $16.7 million reported in the previous fiscal year. The publisher claims sales during the quarter were "largely impacted" by the My Baby mama-drama currently going on in the courts. SouthPeak is hopeful that a summary judgment granting the company the rights to resume production of My Baby: First Steps and "reinstate the contract with Nobilis" for future My Baby sequels will be upheld on December 2. Beyond praying that it gets My Baby back and sequels popping out, SouthPeak also spent time, and the bulk of its marketing costs during the quarter, promoting Two Worlds 2 -- which will arrive in the UK and US in January -- and getting the hype machine rolling for Stronghold 3.
Noah's Ark is first game in SouthPeak edutainment line
With My Baby in a corporate custody battle, SouthPeak will try to tap the eager-to-learn demographic with a new line of educational products -- the first of which will be the biblically-inspired Tap and Teach: The Story of Noah's Ark for DS. Setting sail, er, floating through retail waters this November, the game is, according to SouthPeak CEO Melanie Mrox, part of a strategic initiative "designed to capture share of the rapidly expanding educational gaming sector." SouthPeak's Noah's Ark -- not to be confused with Noah's Arc or Super 3D Noah's Ark -- is an interactive storybook designed to help kids ages 3–6 with their reading skills. The Tap and Teach franchise is marketed as "wholesome fun" -- the kind that parents can "trust." Rest assured, any minigame about "the birds and the bees" will be strictly about birds and bees.
SouthPeak to stop selling 'My Baby' during legal issues
While SouthPeak continues its legal dispute with My Baby developer Nobilis and publisher Majesco over the rights to the franchise and My Baby 3, the publisher will discontinue selling My Baby Girl and My Baby First Steps. SouthPeak Chairman Terry Phillips stated in an investor call today, "We firmly believe we are the rightful holder of the intellectual property to this franchise." He continued that the company is currently in court proceedings to resolve, what he calls, the wrongful termination of its agreements with Nobilis and is seeking damages for the developer soliciting the My Baby 3 rights to Majesco. He concluded that the company plans to "vigorously" defend its position. The My Baby franchise has been a "significant" part of the company's revenue, according to Phillips. So, missing My Baby 3 -- along with the other titles -- from the portfolio isn't helping SouthPeak's already glum financials.
'Get Fit with Mel B' among highlights in shaky SouthPeak financial report
When Get Fit with Mel B is name-dropped no less than three times in your annual fiscal year report as a positive indicator, it tends to raise a red flag. SouthPeak Interactive today shared the financial results of its fiscal 2010 year (July 2009 – June 2010) and did its best to paint an optimistic picture for the current fiscal year. But even fervor over a Spice Girl comeback "this fall" (a firm release date has yet to be locked down) couldn't cover up the bottom line: SouthPeak recorded a net loss of $5.8 million last fiscal year. At least the company has "improved" upon fiscal 2009's $13.3 million loss ... Anybody? Other highlights from fiscal 2010 include an increase in total units sold to 2.6 million from 2.4 million in fiscal 2009; and the release of 29 titles compared to 18 in fiscal 2009. Read that again -- it seems two "highlights" can combine to form a low point: Average unit sales per title fell from 133.33K in fiscal 2009 to 89.66K last fiscal year. "While fiscal 2010 was a challenging year, we made critical improvements to our infrastructure and carefully controlled our costs to better align our operations with our revenue stream," SouthPeak CEO Melanie Mroz said in a conference call today. "Fiscal 2011 will be a continuation of controlled expense and a carefully managed title release schedule. Our focus remains on increasing sales with new titles that address gaming in a way that separates us from our competition."
TopWare says Two Worlds 2 is done, disputes SouthPeak's delay claim
Awwwkward. Two Worlds 2 was recently delayed in North America until January 2011 because, according to regional publisher SouthPeak, it planned to take the extra time for "heavyweight quality assurance," so the game was "absolutely flawless" for launch. TopWare Interactive, a subsidiary of the game's European publisher Zuxxez, apparently didn't appreciate that messaging and called it "factually incorrect." Speaking to Gamespot, TopWare's managing director, James Seaman, said the delay was made because of the "exceptionally crowded" holiday season. The company (which oversees Two Worlds 2 developer Reality Pump) allegedly finished all "production, bug testing and localization" work in mid-September and plans to release the game in a few territories on October 21. The January launch in North America will feature the same content as the European release, except for the expected patch updates. This whole messaging debacle gives us an Alpha Protocol vibe. Hopefully, it'll have a more positive outcome.
Two Worlds 2 receives second delay in two weeks, begins quest in January 2011
Two Worlds 2 was supposed to launch ... well, it was originally going to release the same same week as Halo: Reach, but then it wised up and moved to October, and now it seems publisher SouthPeak feels it best to just move it to January 2011. The publisher plans to take the extra time for "heavyweight quality assurance" so that the title is "absolutely flawless" for its launch. The new date is officially only for North America, with an updated release date for the UK, Australia and New Zealand coming "in the near future."
Two Worlds 2 takes scenic route, now launching October 5
So, we thought Two Worlds 2 was supposed to launch this week -- and we were not alone in this thinking -- but it turns out the game's release date has been quietly moved. A representative for Southpeak told Joystiq today that Two Worlds 2 is scheduled to make its retail appearance on October 5 in North America. (Although we asked, no new European date was provided.) Guess someone figured out launching the same week as Halo: Reach probably isn't the best move ... right, Cabela?
Two Worlds 2 continues Sordahon's Journey
We can't blame you if you immediately glaze over when you see the words "Two Worlds," but if so, you've been missing one of the funniest and most honest advertising campaigns in the the history of video games. We're not sure if the self-effacing "Sordahon's Journey" is going to convince us to buy Two Worlds 2, but it's certainly helping us to forgive SouthPeak for Two Worlds 1. The fourth installation of the series is upon us just after the break -- and you can only find it on Joystiq! Here are parts one, two and three if you need to catch up.
Southpeak Games bringing Nail'd, Two Worlds 2 and more to PAX
Worried you weren't going to get Nail'd at this year's PAX Prime? Southpeak Games wants to assure you that you absolutely will -- more to the point, you can stop by the publisher's booth to get some hands-on time with upcoming MX/ATV racer Nail'd (you see what we did there?). Southpeak is also bringing Two Worlds 2, Battle Vs. Chess, and previously unheard of motorcycle racer SBK-X for attendees to check out. Also, if you're over 10 years old, you could try your hand at some Nail'd speed trials for a chance to win the 70cc Mini-Motocross Pit Bike pictured above. While it might not put you in the running for "Toughest Motocross Dude Ever," it's a totally adorable little motorcycle. Who could say no to that? A monster, that's who. And you're not a monster, right?
