Hey ya'll.
Well Criminal Crackdown is no more :(
The TITLE, that is :)
You can see the game's new name up there in the image above.
So what happened?!?
We were in a mad rush to reveal the game at GAMER'S DAY a few weeks back and all the legal checks had not yet come down giving us permission to use that name. Unlike some other companies that seem to have no problem giving their games titles that SOUND pretty darn close to other games, Sony likes to give us as much room as possible between our game names and other game names. Which is nice. But challenging as well because there have been ALOT of video games made over the last 30-35 years so it makes it tough to find a name that is fresh and appropriate and fun, while at the same time being something that will not get you thrown into a court room.
This kind of name changing happens all the time with game makers. It's just somewhat rare for it to happen in the public eye (there's that phrase again!)...
But, for example, TWISTED METAL was going to be called: URBAN ASSAULT...then it was going to be called CARS AND ROCKETS...then it was going to be called HIGH OCTANE.
GOD OF WAR went by the name DARK ODYSSEY for at least 2 years before we settled on the final title.
End of the day, the name really- to me- does not matter. A name (just like the cover of a classic album) takes on value and meaning when it is associated with a product people really love.
I remember lots of folks were like: JET MOTO!?!? What the hell is that supposed to mean? But it was a great game (I think) and the title grew to mean something great to thsoe players who loved the series.
So with ALL that said, Criminal Crackdown is dead. I assume it's because MS has a very sweet looking game called CRACKDOWN coming out and the titles were just too close for comfort...but I am just guessing.
I wonder if we'll also have to change the title of GOD OF WAR 2 to something else since GOD OF WAR 2 sounds a bit too much like GEARS OF WAR? We'll see.
So Criminal Crackdown was rejected. So we struggled with all kinds of names...names like: CRAZY CROOKS; ROBBERS ON THE RUN; FELONY FRENZY, and on and on and on.
We hated them all.
Then Adam- one of the designers on the title- came up with the title that stuck. And I love it. I love it more that Criminal Crackdown. I think it just fits better.
CALLING ALL CARS.
So there ya go. Let us know what you think!
Oh, and Happy Halloween! Be safe and have fun! I can't wait to take the girls out tonite. One is The Cat In The Hat and the other is a pumpkin! I LOVE the fact that my oldest girl is a character in a book versus a character from a movie or tv show. Go reading!
Ok, gotta go work!
See ya!
David
Calling All Cars is a throwback title. It's fitting for what you claim to be a throwback game with a modern soul.
ReplyDeleteI like it.
it's called, "bringing your 'A' game"...
ReplyDeleteThe game titles sounds like an instant classic! lol
ReplyDeleteI must admit it sounds a bit rubbish at first, but really sinks in after just a couple of minutes. It's original, it's catchy - I like it.
ReplyDeleteCrackdown is not only taken by the incoming 360 release, but also an old coin-op/Amiga game. Funny how they let David Jones use it, but it is a very old and practically unknown title...
Nice new title…fits much better! Sounds a little less serious and puts emphasis on “Fun”.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Adam, nice website man! Now if only Jaffe could get his up.
Have a Happy Halloween David and to anyone else who wants a Happy Halloween!
I found your blog again! I totally lost track after modblog & typepad both flipped out :(
ReplyDeleteReally digging the new name, though Criminal Crackdown sounded cool too. As long as the game's fun, I couldn't care less what it's called unless it's something that really goes out of its way to be lame! :D
Tootles,
- Matthew/Liquid Eagle :)
Why not call it "APB - All Points Bulletin"?
ReplyDeleteGood point...does the name make the Game or the Game make the name.
ReplyDeleteI was sitting here thinking of all the old time arcade games I used to love. There were some really silly names in my list.
LOL. hinting for Gears of War, are we, Dave? :)
ReplyDeleteIf you were, then I agree. I think it was called this way for the sole purpose of stealing the meaning of GoW!
dutch degay, I'm under 30 and I understand perfectly well what it means... stop degrading young folks :P
no.fear, the game makes the name, definately. God of War was great, but it wasn't the name that made it great, it was the game itself. if it was called Dark Odyssey, it would still be great.
While we're at it, why not just call it T.J. Hooker? =p
ReplyDeleteGlad to find this blog again Dave, even if its just temporary.
Hey,
ReplyDeleteThis is mostly a comment about the previous post....
I don't think you're quickly becoming one of the most hated people in the games industry at all. Firstly I think most people are indifferent and secondly I think there's more people who like you then hate you.
If you go to the wrong forums or whatever OFCOURSE you're going to see people "hating". That's what the internet is all about. There's always going to be someone whinging about you but I don't think that vocal minority represents the majority.
I think you'd do well to pay less attention to and spend less time addressing angry people who just want to complain and spend more time just concentrating on what's important: the games.
And this comment comes from someone who's followed your blog posts through all three iterations of the blog and read all the supposedly controversial posts and interviews.
So maybe the difference between me and the people who would say "Fuck Jaffe" is that I've simply had the time to learn your personality a bit better. So in that case my advice would still be to just worry about the games rather then negative internet comments and in time those people will eventually learn what you're about.