NCAA's exclusivity ends in a year or two according to wiki

[DonkeyJote]

Quote: Originally Posted by Cryolemon

Without knowing the ins and outs of 2k's business model I think it's speculation at best whether they can afford it. Whether it would be profitable or not is an easier question, but it might not need to be profitable in year one if they are willing to take a risk that it will get better in year two and three (which seems possible, given the general economic situation, and that a game would naturally improve, especially if there was a competition). This is ignoring the fact that a game might only need to sell a small percentage of NCAA 12 to be profitable, if it was made relatively cheaply.

There's no way the game could be made cheaply however. EA's NCAA is cheaper to make than most games because they just build on the game every year, and they share most of their gameplay developments with Madden. 2k's game wouldn't have that. They'd have to build from the ground up. They'd have to do artwork for 120 teams and all their various uniforms, 120 home stadiums, which is expensive, come up with a good recruiting and dynasty system and implement that, massive advertising to get a new game out there, and that's without touching with the on the field stuff. There's no way that game makes money in year one, and there probably looking at a 3-4 year commitment until it takes any kind of significant chunk out of EA. All Pro did .4m in sales, and that wasn't enough for 2k to keep making it. I think it's just a pipe dream for people to think that 2k is going to make an NCAA game if or when the rights expire. 2k already dropped College Basketball, and I really don't see how college football would do too much better, especially early.

[Anarchy666]

EA and NCAA will extend the exclusivity deal between now and the current deal expiring.

[KG]

Quote: Originally Posted by DonkeyJote

There's no way the game could be made cheaply however. EA's NCAA is cheaper to make than most games because they just build on the game every year, and they share most of their gameplay developments with Madden. 2k's game wouldn't have that. They'd have to build from the ground up. They'd have to do artwork for 120 teams and all their various uniforms, 120 home stadiums, which is expensive, come up with a good recruiting and dynasty system and implement that, massive advertising to get a new game out there, and that's without touching with the on the field stuff. There's no way that game makes money in year one, and there probably looking at a 3-4 year commitment until it takes any kind of significant chunk out of EA. All Pro did .4m in sales, and that wasn't enough for 2k to keep making it. I think it's just a pipe dream for people to think that 2k is going to make an NCAA game if or when the rights expire. 2k already dropped College Basketball, and I really don't see how college football would do too much better, especially early.

They would probably have to come up with some kind of gimmick mode to sell it while they build up the stuff you mentioned. A company like 2K could definitely get advertisers though.

[canes21]

2k dropped the NCAABB license for the sam reason EA did. The NCAA was asking for too much money for either company to take seriously. 2k also didn't make another All Pro because 2k8 was just a tribute to the fans, 2k has already stated that.

I think 2k could make a college football game and not suffer. They already have loads of money from other Take Two franchises. They have an engine built already. They have a known name. They have career modes to build off of from both 2k8s. And its possible they could have casually worked on the football engine over the years. They wouldn't have to hire a new team either.
I really think 2k football is a possibility.

[Cryolemon]

Quote: Originally Posted by DonkeyJote

There's no way the game could be made cheaply however. EA's NCAA is cheaper to make than most games because they just build on the game every year, and they share most of their gameplay developments with Madden. 2k's game wouldn't have that.

2k do have a football engine though, so they can use a tweaked version of that.

Quote:

They'd have to build from the ground up. They'd have to do artwork for 120 teams and all their various uniforms, 120 home stadiums, which is expensive, come up with a good recruiting and dynasty system and implement that, massive advertising to get a new game out there, and that's without touching with the on the field stuff. There's no way that game makes money in year one, and there probably looking at a 3-4 year commitment until it takes any kind of significant chunk out of EA.

Like I said, it would probably be a risk, but as others have said, 2k as a whole isn't particularly short of cash, and whose to say that they aren't willing to make a 3-4 year commitment? The art assets are certainly an issue, but if you look at the stadiums that were made for 2k8 I would imagine they have a decent design team. The recruiting and dynasty systems could be based on College Hoops 2k8 if necessary.

Quote:

All Pro did .4m in sales, and that wasn't enough for 2k to keep making it. I think it's just a pipe dream for people to think that 2k is going to make an NCAA game if or when the rights expire. 2k already dropped College Basketball, and I really don't see how college football would do too much better, especially early.

All Pro was a different thing altogether though, it required 240+ individual licenses for one, which was stupidly expensive (probably more than a single non-exclusive NCAA license). Also, they over-estimated how many people wanted a game which didn't allow them to recreate the NFL. It didn't have a franchise mode either, which hurt it. As was said already, College BBall was dropped not because it was doing badly but because the license was too expensive. A college football game would probably be viable, maybe only just, but I think it would be viable.

[NoDakHusker]

Quote: Originally Posted by Buckeyes_Doc

I agree with competition. But people are living in a fantasy world if they think 2k or any other company is going to deliver a game on par with NCAA football right away IF the deal ends. Hopefully 2k does make a college football game, but I just don't see it getting the sales to justify them continuing the series. I hope I'm wrong, because competition is the best thing for us consumers. It's all about the sales. 2k and other companies will focus more on the NFL whenever and if that deal ends.

Exactly. It's all about the $$$ at the end of the day...that sucks but it's the truth.
Competition could do wonders for everyone - the consumer, EA, and 2k or another company. Maybe someday...

[canes21]

Quote: Originally Posted by ndhusker90

Exactly. It's all about the $$$ at the end of the day...that sucks but it's the truth. Competition could do wonders for everyone - the consumer, EA, and 2k or another company. Maybe someday...

Take Two is loaded, and since 2k sports has the base for the football game completed already, they wouldn't need to spend that much money really outside the license.

[DonkeyJote]

Quote: Originally Posted by canes21

Take Two is loaded, and since 2k sports has the base for the football game completed already, they wouldn't need to spend that much money really outside the license.

Having the money doesn't mean they're going to make the money. My point was that the game isn't going to post a profit early on, and may never do so. And if the NCAA wanted so much for the basketball license, who's not to say they wouldn't want a ton for the football one? 2k could afford it, but they are not going to invest in this unless they think they can post a profit. It wouldn't really make for great job security to start making a game you think can make a profit at some point when you have shareholders to please. And 2k does already have the football engine, but improvements cost money. Let's be honest here. If it weren't for Madden, NCAA wouldn't have things like the procedural awareness, pro-tak, selecting unis individually, etc. These were all made for Madden, and thrown on NCAA because it was basically no extra cost. 2k wouldn't have that benefit. Their college football game wouldn't have a big brother NFL game to help support it. The costs for a 2k NCAA game would be higher than for EA's, especially early, and in the end, if costs > revenue, there's no chance of that game getting made.