adam-orth

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  • 505 Games publishing Adrift, Three One Zero's trip to space gone wrong

    by 
    Thomas Schulenberg
    Thomas Schulenberg
    04.05.2014

    Developer Three One Zero's first-person hardship simulator in space, Adrift, sounds less than forgiving. Unlike its protagonist however, Three One Zero will have company in the form of publisher 505 Games when Adrift launches into orbit in mid-2015, both on PC and to-be-determined consoles. With no memory, a damaged suit and the surrounding clutter of a space station's remains, Adrift's protagonist doesn't have a ton of leisure time. In their push to fix an escape vehicle and return to Earth, players will guide their astronaut's gathering of resources and their search for clues to what caused the former shelter's demise. Players will also lead their character through the act of not dying in space. Adrift will be Three One Zero's first title, a studio formed last September by Omar Aziz and Adam Orth. Previously a creative director at Microsoft's video game division, Orth's comments regarding always-online consoles sparked a strong backlash last year, leading to Microsoft apologizing for the "inappropriate comments." Reports of Orth's departure from Microsoft followed several days later. [Image: 505 Games]

  • Report: Microsoft Studios creative director Adam Orth no longer with company

    by 
    Jordan Mallory
    Jordan Mallory
    04.10.2013

    Adam Orth, the Microsoft Studios creative director who caused a stir among consumers last week by tweeting his opinions on "always-on" devices, is no longer a Microsoft employee, according to "two sources" speaking with Polygon.Last week, Microsoft publicly apologized for Orth's comments, saying that "this person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views do not reflect the customer centric approach we take to our products or how we would communicate directly with our loyal consumers."We have reached out to Microsoft for a statement on the situation and will update this story if we learn more.

  • Microsoft responds to creative director's 'always-on' console comments

    by 
    Jordan Mallory
    Jordan Mallory
    04.05.2013

    Microsoft has issued an official missive (via Major Nelson) in response to the comments made yesterday by Microsoft Studios creative director Adam Orth's tweets regarding his opinions surrounding what he called "the drama around having an 'always on' console.""We apologize for the inappropriate comments made by an employee on Twitter yesterday," the response reads. "This person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views do not reflect the customer centric approach we take to our products or how we would communicate directly with our loyal consumers.""We are very sorry if this offended anyone, however we have not made any announcements about our product roadmap, and have no further comment on this matter."Yesterday, Orth took to Twitter to publicly dismiss criticisms of always-online consoles, likely in response to rumors that the next-generation Xbox will require an online connection to play games. As of press time, Orth's Twitter account remains under lock and key.

  • Microsoft Studios creative director dismisses 'always-on' console concerns

    by 
    Sinan Kubba
    Sinan Kubba
    04.05.2013

    Adam Orth, creative director at Microsoft's video game division, doesn't "get the drama around having an 'always on' console." Orth took to Twitter yesterday to publicly dismiss criticisms of always-online consoles, likely in response to Kotaku sources recently saying the next-generation Xbox will require an online connection to play games.While Orth has since protected his account, his tweets were screencapped on Reddit and NeoGAF. Orth, who's been with Microsoft for 15 months having previously worked at LucasArts and PopCap, kicked off heated discussion by tweeting, "Sorry, I don't get the drama around having an 'always on' console. Every device now is 'always on.' That's the world we live in. #dealwithit" Orth went on to say he wants every device to be 'always on.'Orth's comment caught the attention of BioWare's Manveer Heir, who tweeted back, "Did you learn nothing from Diablo III or SimCity? You know some people's internet goes out right? Deal with it is a shitty reason."Orth responded, "Electricity goes out too." He later reiterated his 'deal with it' comment.While Orth made it clear he was expressing his personal opinion, his comments drew a sizable backlash from online communities; his conversation with Heir made it to Reddit's front page. It all follows continued speculation the as-yet-unannounced next Xbox, believed to be codenamed Durango, will feature an always-online Internet connection as a barrier to second-hand games. In contrast, Sony Worldwide Studios chief Shuhei Yoshida said the PS4, expected this year, doesn't need to be always online.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]