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Revision as of 00:43, 22 February 2019

298 bytes removed ,  22 February 2019
re-structured "Post-release" into two separate sections, as they really aren't that related, and replaced pic of cell phone prequel with screenshot from cancelled sequel
(→‎The future of the property: updating count of Oni staff at Bungie -- no change; removing sentence about Destiny because it will be incorporated up top)
(re-structured "Post-release" into two separate sections, as they really aren't that related, and replaced pic of cell phone prequel with screenshot from cancelled sequel)
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Oni was originally expected to be released in the fourth quarter of 1999<ref name=advert>[http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4570 OCF post by Matt Soell, "Re: Matt- could you address this?"].</ref>, but as that date approached, the release date was pushed back. This occurred repeatedly, until finally the rumored release date was as late as March 2001<ref>Discussions on [[OCF]] of: a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=2533 fall 1999] release date, a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=1129 summer 2000] release date, a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4084 fall 2000] release date, and finally a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4699 spring 2001] release date. These "release dates" were generally rumors, ephemeral dates used by online stores for pre-orders, or vague estimates by Bungie PR, not official statements. Nevertheless, it was clear that Oni was taking longer than planned to finish, which was a cause of some concern among Bungie fans.</ref>. Much of the uncertainty over Oni's status came from Bungie's well-known reluctance to disclose or adhere to fixed release dates. Some of the delay may have come from staff turnover and development issues; a Design Lead position was created in the summer of 1999 for newcomer Hardy LeBel, who immediately began rewriting the story. Pease left at the end of 1999 (with his Project Lead title being passed to Michael Evans) and Bungie West also lost one of their two level designers and replaced the AI programmer in the same six-month period between the summer and the end of 1999.
Oni was originally expected to be released in the fourth quarter of 1999<ref name=advert>[http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4570 OCF post by Matt Soell, "Re: Matt- could you address this?"].</ref>, but as that date approached, the release date was pushed back. This occurred repeatedly, until finally the rumored release date was as late as March 2001<ref>Discussions on [[OCF]] of: a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=2533 fall 1999] release date, a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=1129 summer 2000] release date, a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4084 fall 2000] release date, and finally a [http://carnage.bungie.org/oniforum/oni.forum.pl?read=4699 spring 2001] release date. These "release dates" were generally rumors, ephemeral dates used by online stores for pre-orders, or vague estimates by Bungie PR, not official statements. Nevertheless, it was clear that Oni was taking longer than planned to finish, which was a cause of some concern among Bungie fans.</ref>. Much of the uncertainty over Oni's status came from Bungie's well-known reluctance to disclose or adhere to fixed release dates. Some of the delay may have come from staff turnover and development issues; a Design Lead position was created in the summer of 1999 for newcomer Hardy LeBel, who immediately began rewriting the story. Pease left at the end of 1999 (with his Project Lead title being passed to Michael Evans) and Bungie West also lost one of their two level designers and replaced the AI programmer in the same six-month period between the summer and the end of 1999.


Possible additional factors in the delay were the introduction of a PS2 port to be released in tandem with Oni for Windows/Mac, part of a deal struck with Take-Two Interactive in August of 1999, and the acquisition of Bungie by Microsoft, which was announced in June of 2000 and which led to the acquisition of the Oni IP by Take-Two just as the game was finishing development. The details of the acquisitions are explained in the "Post-release" section below.
Possible additional factors in the delay were the introduction of a PS2 port to be released in tandem with Oni for Windows/Mac, part of a deal struck with Take-Two Interactive in August of 1999, and the acquisition of Bungie by Microsoft, which was announced in June of 2000 and which led to the acquisition of the Oni IP by Take-Two just as the game was finishing development. The details of the acquisitions are explained in the "Change of ownership" section below.


''Further reading:'' [[Oni/Early Story|Early Story]], [[Oni/Positioning|Positioning Statement]].
''Further reading:'' [[Oni/Early Story|Early Story]], [[Oni/Positioning|Positioning Statement]].
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Due to the delays in Oni's development, Bungie suspended the advertising of the game for a time, so as not to expend their budget before the game was even released<ref name=advert />. In the meantime, the game under development at Bungie's HQ in Chicago, which was previously known only by its code name "Blam", came to be known as Halo and slowly drew attention away from the oft-delayed Oni as images and trailers for it began to appear.
Due to the delays in Oni's development, Bungie suspended the advertising of the game for a time, so as not to expend their budget before the game was even released<ref name=advert />. In the meantime, the game under development at Bungie's HQ in Chicago, which was previously known only by its code name "Blam", came to be known as Halo and slowly drew attention away from the oft-delayed Oni as images and trailers for it began to appear.


As Oni finally neared completion, Bungie resumed their advertising, now partnered with Take-Two, who were in the process of taking over the Oni [[wikipedia:Intellectual_property|IP]] as Bungie prepared to join Microsoft (see "Post-release" section below). Promotional artwork was produced by [[Lorraine|Lorraine Reyes McLees]] and a four-issue comic book was produced under Take-Two's supervision and published by Dark Horse. Take-Two's PR efforts, however, seem to have been focused mainly on the PS2 version of the game.
As Oni finally neared completion, Bungie resumed their advertising, now partnered with Take-Two, who were in the process of taking over the Oni [[wikipedia:Intellectual_property|IP]] as Bungie prepared to join Microsoft (see "Change of ownership" section below). Promotional artwork was produced by [[Lorraine|Lorraine Reyes McLees]] and a four-issue comic book was produced under Take-Two's supervision and published by Dark Horse. Take-Two's PR efforts, however, seem to have been focused mainly on the PS2 version of the game.


''Further reading:'' [[Trailers]], [[History of the Oni community]], [http://oni.bungie.org/special/ Oni Central interview with Bungie West], [http://web.archive.org/web/200012061625/http://www.insidemacgames.com/features/00/dunn/ IMG interview with Dave Dunn], [http://web.archive.org/web/19990824063223/http://avault.com/previews/preview_temp.asp?game=oni&page=1 Adrenaline Vault interview with Doug Zartman], [[Dark_Horse_comics|Dark Horse's "Oni" comic]].
''Further reading:'' [[Trailers]], [[History of the Oni community]], [http://oni.bungie.org/special/ Oni Central interview with Bungie West], [http://web.archive.org/web/200012061625/http://www.insidemacgames.com/features/00/dunn/ IMG interview with Dave Dunn], [http://web.archive.org/web/19990824063223/http://avault.com/previews/preview_temp.asp?game=oni&page=1 Adrenaline Vault interview with Doug Zartman], [[Dark_Horse_comics|Dark Horse's "Oni" comic]].
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''Further reading:'' [[Mac betas|Leaked beta]], [[Gameplay]], [[Chapters|Plot summary]], [[Quotes/Consoles|Console text collection]].
''Further reading:'' [[Mac betas|Leaked beta]], [[Gameplay]], [[Chapters|Plot summary]], [[Quotes/Consoles|Console text collection]].
{{clearall}}
{{clearall}}
==Reception==
==Reception==
[[Image:ManPlant12.JPG|thumb|This environment once had much better lighting [[:Image:Ch._2_dynamo_room.jpg|than it does now]].]]
[[Image:ManPlant12.JPG|thumb|This environment once had much better lighting [[:Image:Ch._2_dynamo_room.jpg|than it does now]].]]
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''Further reading:'' [[Pre-beta content]], [[Pre-beta features]], [[Reviews]], [[Multiplayer]].
''Further reading:'' [[Pre-beta content]], [[Pre-beta features]], [[Reviews]], [[Multiplayer]].
{{clearall}}
{{clearall}}
==Post-release==
==Change of ownership==
''Oni and the makers of Oni went their separate ways. First we look at the direction Bungie took, then we come back to the game.''<br>
===Bungie===
{{Quotebox|title=Take-Two 10-K (1999)|width=365px|quote="In November 1999, we acquired 19.9% of the outstanding capital stock of Bungie Software Products Corporation for $5 million, of which $4 million was paid and $1 million is payable in May 2000. Bungie is a leading developer of software games for the PC platform."}}
{{Quotebox|title=Take-Two 10-K (1999)|width=365px|quote="In November 1999, we acquired 19.9% of the outstanding capital stock of Bungie Software Products Corporation for $5 million, of which $4 million was paid and $1 million is payable in May 2000. Bungie is a leading developer of software games for the PC platform."}}
{{Quotebox|title=Take-Two 10-K (2000)|width=365px|quote="In June 2000, the Company sold its 19.9% equity interest in Bungie Software (“Bungie”) to Microsoft Corporation for approximately $5,000[,000] in cash. The Company did not realize any gain or loss on this transaction. Separately, the Company sold its exclusive Halo publishing and distribution rights to Bungie for $4,000[,000] in cash, a royalty free license to Bungie’s Halo technology in connection with the development of two original products and all right, title and interest to the Myth franchise and the PC and PlayStation(R) 2 game,  
{{Quotebox|title=Take-Two 10-K (2000)|width=365px|quote="In June 2000, the Company sold its 19.9% equity interest in Bungie Software (“Bungie”) to Microsoft Corporation for approximately $5,000[,000] in cash. The Company did not realize any gain or loss on this transaction. Separately, the Company sold its exclusive Halo publishing and distribution rights to Bungie for $4,000[,000] in cash, a royalty free license to Bungie’s Halo technology in connection with the development of two original products and all right, title and interest to the Myth franchise and the PC and PlayStation(R) 2 game,  
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This deal didn't seem to change business much for Bungie, especially since Take-Two was having the PS2 port performed by another studio. But considerably more shocking news was revealed on June 19, 2000, when Bungie announced its acquisition by Microsoft. It turned out that Bungie's monetary woes had not been solved by Take-Two's influx of cash, and so MacSoft founder Peter Tamte had been hired by Bungie to find a buyer for the company. Take-Two acquired (among other things) all rights to the Oni and Myth IPs in exchange for its stake in Bungie and its publishing rights for Halo. Take-Two valued the Oni IP at $2.8 million, and the Myth IP at $1.5 million.<ref>[http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/946581/000112528202003845/b320556.htm SEC 10-K filing for Take-Two Interactive, 10/31/02].</ref><ref>The sale of Bungie to Microsoft has an interesting historical footnote: according to Ed Fries, who was VP of game publishing at Microsoft, Steve Jobs angrily called MS CEO Steve Ballmer immediately after the Bungie acquisition was announced; sources within Bungie have stated that Apple themselves had been close to offering to buy Bungie at the time. In order to appease Apple (a business partner of Microsoft) over the loss of a major Mac game developer, a new company was formed to port Windows games to the Mac, named Destineer, and headed up by none other than Peter Tamte of Bungie. Destineer would go on to publish a port of Halo for the Mac in 2003. ([http://www.develop-online.net/news/36173/Steve-Jobs-raged-at-Microsoft-over-game-studio-sale], [http://www.develop-online.net/news/36183/Ex-Bungie-dev-Apple-got-close-to-buying-us], [http://www.insidemacgames.com/features/view.php?ID=173])</ref>
This deal didn't seem to change business much for Bungie, especially since Take-Two was having the PS2 port performed by another studio. But considerably more shocking news was revealed on June 19, 2000, when Bungie announced its acquisition by Microsoft. It turned out that Bungie's monetary woes had not been solved by Take-Two's influx of cash, and so MacSoft founder Peter Tamte had been hired by Bungie to find a buyer for the company. Take-Two acquired (among other things) all rights to the Oni and Myth IPs in exchange for its stake in Bungie and its publishing rights for Halo. Take-Two valued the Oni IP at $2.8 million, and the Myth IP at $1.5 million.<ref>[http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/946581/000112528202003845/b320556.htm SEC 10-K filing for Take-Two Interactive, 10/31/02].</ref><ref>The sale of Bungie to Microsoft has an interesting historical footnote: according to Ed Fries, who was VP of game publishing at Microsoft, Steve Jobs angrily called MS CEO Steve Ballmer immediately after the Bungie acquisition was announced; sources within Bungie have stated that Apple themselves had been close to offering to buy Bungie at the time. In order to appease Apple (a business partner of Microsoft) over the loss of a major Mac game developer, a new company was formed to port Windows games to the Mac, named Destineer, and headed up by none other than Peter Tamte of Bungie. Destineer would go on to publish a port of Halo for the Mac in 2003. ([http://www.develop-online.net/news/36173/Steve-Jobs-raged-at-Microsoft-over-game-studio-sale], [http://www.develop-online.net/news/36183/Ex-Bungie-dev-Apple-got-close-to-buying-us], [http://www.insidemacgames.com/features/view.php?ID=173])</ref>


The acquisition of Bungie by Microsoft also meant the dissolution of Bungie West as Bungie moved their employees to Redmond, Washington. Some Oni developers stayed with Bungie and went on to contribute to the Halo series, such as LeBel, while others ended up at independent game studios, such as Giant Bite (co-founded by Chu & Evans).
The acquisition of Bungie by Microsoft also meant the dissolution of Bungie West as Bungie moved their employees to Redmond, Washington. Some Oni developers stayed with Bungie and went on to contribute to the Halo series, such as LeBel, while others ended up at independent game studios.
[[Image:WAP_Cell_Oni_-_Konoko.jpg|thumb|100px|Nobody expected Oni for the cell phone!]]
 
In October of 2007, Bungie separated from Microsoft and moved from Redmond to the nearby city of Kirkland, and then moved to nearby Bellevue in 2010.
''Further reading:'' [[Rights]].


===Oni===
==Additional development==
[[Image:Oni 2 - Initial Attack.JPG|thumb|An uncompleted level from Oni 2.]]
Clearly Take-Two expected big things from Oni (see their valuation of Oni above, as well as their promotional efforts under the "Hype" section). They had assigned Rockstar Canada (later known as Rockstar Toronto) to work on a PlayStation 2 port of Oni around the end of 1999, and released it alongside the Windows and Mac versions of Oni; however, the port has been considered to be an inferior version of the game due to technical limitations and control issues.
Clearly Take-Two expected big things from Oni (see their valuation of Oni above, as well as their promotional efforts under the "Hype" section). They had assigned Rockstar Canada (later known as Rockstar Toronto) to work on a PlayStation 2 port of Oni around the end of 1999, and released it alongside the Windows and Mac versions of Oni; however, the port has been considered to be an inferior version of the game due to technical limitations and control issues.


At first, Take-Two seemed intent on investing in Oni as a franchise. Shortly after Oni's release, a simple game billed as an Oni prequel<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20020221045402/http://www.fgnonline.com/pc/news/17352.html Fastest Game News Online, "Oni Prequel Announced"].</ref> (developed by Quantum Sheep) was released for [[wikipedia:Wireless_Application_Protocol|WAP]]-enabled cell phones. More significantly, it was rumored<ref>[http://oni.bungie.org/newsarchives/2001/apr01.html Oni Central News Archives, Apr. 2001].</ref> that Take-Two had put Oni 2 into production; however, no sequel was ever officially announced. In 2016, an actual development build of the cancelled game was leaked<ref>Documented by the game preservation YouTube channel PtoPOnline [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZItobLIJJMY here].</ref>. Interviews with former employees of Angel Studios revealed that the game had been in development for as long as two years without getting close to completion, and the troubled project was finally cancelled when Angel Studios was acquired by Rockstar in 2002.
At first, Take-Two seemed intent on investing in Oni as a franchise. Shortly after Oni's release, a simple game billed as an Oni prequel<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20020221045402/http://www.fgnonline.com/pc/news/17352.html Fastest Game News Online, "Oni Prequel Announced"].</ref> (developed by Quantum Sheep) was released for [[wikipedia:Wireless_Application_Protocol|WAP]]-enabled cell phones. More significantly, it was rumored<ref>[http://oni.bungie.org/newsarchives/2001/apr01.html Oni Central News Archives, Apr. 2001].</ref> that Take-Two had put Oni 2 into production; however, no sequel was ever officially announced. In 2016, an actual development build of the cancelled game was leaked<ref>Documented by the game preservation YouTube channel PtoPOnline [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZItobLIJJMY here].</ref>. Interviews with former employees of Angel Studios revealed that the game had been in development for as long as two years without getting close to completion, and the troubled project was finally cancelled when Angel Studios was acquired by Rockstar in 2002.


''Further reading:'' [[Rights]], [[Oni 2 (Angel Studios)]].
''Further reading:'' [[Oni 2 (Angel Studios)]].
<br clear="all" />
{{clearall}}
 
==The future of the property==
==The future of the property==
[[Image:Kon_valentine_print_art.jpg|thumb|Many players still fondly remember Oni.]]
[[Image:Kon_valentine_print_art.jpg|thumb|Many players still fondly remember Oni.]]
Take-Two has sold off some dormant franchises to outside developers, although there is no evidence that Oni is one of them. Upon the separation of Bungie from Microsoft, there was fervent speculation about Bungie returning to their older franchises. In an interview, Bungie's CEO at the time, Harold Ryan, was asked specifically about Oni:
Take-Two has sold off some dormant franchises to outside developers, although there is no evidence that Oni is one of them. Upon the separation of Bungie from Microsoft in 2007, there was fervent speculation about Bungie returning to their older franchises. In an interview, Bungie's CEO at the time, Harold Ryan, was asked specifically about Oni:


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