• More Fallout from EA Likeness Settlement

    Following the cancellation of a college sports title from EA SPORTS for 2014 - and likely indefinitely - there has been no shortage of news, albeit expected or bizarre. Here is a quick rundown of what has transpired since then.

    Continue on to read the full article.

    - Kotaku: The NCAA Football development team was 'blindsided' by this news and were hard at work on College Football 15 when the cancellation came down. Some NCAA staffers were moved to Madden, while others (from NCAA & Madden) were let go.

    - The lawyers for the plaintiffs never intended for EA to quit making NCAA Football games. Terms of the settlement did NOT include any language preventing EA from publishing the game or future name, image, or likeness usage. The Lanier Law Firm did announce that "based on this settlement and other recent court rulings, EA Sports has agreed to change the way it develops future games featuring NCAA athletes in order to protect the rights to their likenesses."

    - Friday night, TGT's cdj joined pastapadre & Rich Grisham on the Press Row Hangout to discuss the cancellation of NCAA Football.

    - Despite the cancellation, EA SPORTS has continued to be active on the NCAA Football Twitter & Facebook accounts. The company has even begun to market the cancellation, telling customers to "Get It Before It's Gone" via their official product webpage and dynamic banner images in various EA SPORTS titles, including Tiger Woods PGA TOUR.


    - Following the settlement, one of the litigants (Ryan Hart, Rutgers) ceased communication with the legal team and retained new counsel. However, there is concern that some of his requests "would be contrary to law and would breach (their) fiduciary duties to the class as a whole." In the Friday night filing, the legal team stated that Hart "has chosen not to communicate" with them. Instead, they wrote, Hart "has communicated information … through his father-in-law indicating that Hart's narrow personal interests now conflict with the absent class members and that he no longer adequately represents the class as a whole."
    Comments 67 Comments
    1. SmoothPancakes's Avatar
      SmoothPancakes -
      Quote Originally Posted by souljahbill View Post
      If I played online, I may see things differently but when I play NCAA, I'm playing because I like the school, not necessarily the players. Because of the high roster turnover, I don't get attached to players. I definitely appreciate them but I love playing as the school far more than repping some player.
      Quote Originally Posted by jaymo76 View Post
      I absolutely LOVE the ps4 experience. Last night I was imagining watching all you guys stream to twitch and all of us having running commentary about it. It would have been a blast. Count me in as a person who would have been 100% okay with generic rosters. I play a lot of seasons anyways so the rosters will be 100% false within 4-5 seasons. To me this has never been an issue. This NCAA 14 I didn't even wait for rosters I just started playing... it didn't impact me in the least.
      Agreed completely. I essentially already play with generic rosters in my ongoing coaching carousel dynasty, since I'm just simply renaming all of the players in the entire NCAA rosters file, so there is nothing there that is an issue for me. In my dynasty, I'm in season 2021, so it's nothing but fake players for the remainder of my dynasty. Sure, I get attached to my players, but they're all fake, game-generated players. It's a team as a whole that keeps me going.
    1. JBHuskers's Avatar
      JBHuskers -
      Quote Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes View Post
      Yep, just look at college basketball. We had College Hoops (2K) and NCAA Basketball (EA). 2K bailed out after CH2K8, EA eventually bailed out after NCAA Basketball 10. With NCAA Football dead in the water and Madden no longer allowed to be an exclusive license for however long (or whatever the exact terms are), I don't see 2K bothering to lift a finger for those sports/licenses. Hell, 2K is dumping a lot of things. They dumped MLB 2K (which I will say it needed to happen). I can't say for sure, but I think NBA 2K is their only remaining sports franchise. Otherwise, they are moving 100% full focus towards original IPs to develop in the future.
      There are some rumblings that they might be dabbling in golf.

      Sent from my DROID RAZR Maxx since I'm too lazy to get to the CPU using Tapatalk 4
    1. SmoothPancakes's Avatar
      SmoothPancakes -
      Quote Originally Posted by JBHuskers View Post
      There are some rumblings that they might be dabbling in golf.

      Sent from my DROID RAZR Maxx since I'm too lazy to get to the CPU using Tapatalk 4
      Really? Interesting.
    1. JBHuskers's Avatar
      JBHuskers -
      Quote Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes View Post
      Really? Interesting.
      Might be Links related too. Just rumor at this point.
    1. gigemaggs99's Avatar
      gigemaggs99 -
      Quote Originally Posted by JBHuskers View Post
      Might be Links related too. Just rumor at this point.
      That would be sweet, Links was a great game on the PC.

      Maybe it's hard to create a golf game as the audience isn't that big. I enjoy playing golf in real life, I'm no pro, best score this year is a 75, normally in the low-mid 80s holding a 10.7-11 handicap. I enjoy playing TW on simulation, makes it seem more realistic. I'm fine with shooting even par or worse, playing on the easy setting and shooting -26 under through 18 holes is a bit much for me. But I can see where they need to market the game that way to keep people playing...I enjoyed the fishing games on Sega Genesis, but I wouldn't have enjoyed them near as much if they were like real life fishing, sometimes I go out and catch fish, other days I sit there and wonder what I'm doing wrong. You could always catch multiple fish on the video game.

      I'd like to see a golf game that put more into the courses, graphics, true golf stuff, the spin after the fact, putting preview, all those make-believe things in my opinion could be removed for game space or development of more real life golf stuff. I.e. if there is just a wind sock, no meter telling you how hard the wind is actually moving it would be cool if you could reach down and throw grass clippings, maybe even no wind sock, if you just had to look around the course and read the trees or flags on nearby greens to get an idea of the wind, that would be cool!

      When I play TW on simulation it's amazing how with no putting grid the putts don't break like crazy. When the putting grid is turned ON putts will break 3 feet or more, maybe they could do something for future games, put more detail into the greens so you could still have breaking putts without the green grid showing the break, but with the enhanced details be able to see the breaks.

      I'd also like to see all the major manufactures be in the game. I don't know if it's b/c it's Nike vs Titleist or if Titleist just doesn't want their name used, but it would be cool to have Titleist equipment in the game, along with Nike, Odyssey, Callaway, Taylormade, etc...etc.. if Titleist is the number 1 ball in golf it would be cool if you could use them in the game. TW 11 shows Rory on the cover of the game wearing a Titleist hat, a footjoy glove and a Titleist Vokey wedge I assume he's hitting a Titleist golf ball but none of those brands are in the game to use with your golfer.



      Can't wait to see what they come out with for the PS4 and Xbox one. I'm leaning towards a PS4 but I think I'm going to wait until they have more sports games out. I've read reviews on both Madden and Fifa for PS4, they sound great but they don't sound 1000 times better than PS3, maybe in a few more years there will a big difference. Those screen shots that were posted of EA's golf game for PS4/Xbox1 look really good, I can see buying a PS4 for that, maybe by that time someone else will be making a college football game....maybe...but if not Madden will probably be strides better than the same game for PS3.
    1. jaymo76's Avatar
      jaymo76 -
      Quote Originally Posted by SmoothPancakes View Post
      Agreed completely. I essentially already play with generic rosters in my ongoing coaching carousel dynasty, since I'm just simply renaming all of the players in the entire NCAA rosters file, so there is nothing there that is an issue for me. In my dynasty, I'm in season 2021, so it's nothing but fake players for the remainder of my dynasty. Sure, I get attached to my players, but they're all fake, game-generated players. It's a team as a whole that keeps me going.
      Would be nice to dream though. Imagine seeing a Choops game again? Man that would be sweet.
    1. psusnoop's Avatar
      psusnoop -
      Quote Originally Posted by jaymo76 View Post
      Would be nice to dream though. Imagine seeing a Choops game again? Man that would be sweet.
      Man just reading these last few posts and the thought of NCAA football or hoops would be so much fun! I wish they were always generic from the start, son of a gun!!
    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      NCAA holds firm: No pay for play

      http://espn.go.com/college-sports/st...y-model-coming


      Well that leaves two options: (1) NCAA Collapses and new organization allows it OR (2) Big Boys leave NCAA and form new Pay For Play Conference permitting college sports to return to video games should a publisher decide it is worth it.
    1. souljahbill's Avatar
      souljahbill -
      Quote Originally Posted by CLW View Post
      NCAA holds firm: No pay for play

      http://espn.go.com/college-sports/st...y-model-coming


      Well that leaves two options: (1) NCAA Collapses and new organization allows it OR (2) Big Boys leave NCAA and form new Pay For Play Conference permitting college sports to return to video games should a publisher decide it is worth it.
      You know schools don't wanna pay so option B is out.
    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      Quote Originally Posted by souljahbill View Post
      You know schools don't wanna pay so option B is out.
      Actually I think SOME schools would love to just get it out in the open and pay the players the same amount or more than they are already giving their top athletes.
    1. souljahbill's Avatar
      souljahbill -
      Quote Originally Posted by CLW View Post
      Actually I think SOME schools would love to just get it out in the open and pay the players the same amount or more than they are already giving their top athletes.
      The Big 10 has already said that if they have to start paying that they're dropping levels. Who in their right mind is gonna start paying kids?
    1. Stan HAMsen's Avatar
      Stan HAMsen -
      Quote Originally Posted by CLW View Post
      Actually I think SOME schools would love to just get it out in the open and pay the players the same amount or more than they are already giving their top athletes.
      If you get it out in the open, Title IX will come into play.
    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      Quote Originally Posted by Stan HAMsen View Post
      If you get it out in the open, Title IX will come into play.
      Shhhhhh the pay the athletes crowd doesn't know that. I cannot wait until that lawsuit happens.
    1. Rudy's Avatar
      Rudy -
      The NCAA is getting killed in court today. Read SI's Stewart Mandel's tweets. Good stuff.
      https://twitter.com/slmandel


    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      lol no shocker they are in Federal Court in San Fransico. The jury pool will only be slightly better. NCAA's only hope is SCOTUS as the 9th Circuit isn't any different. I love how the media pretends to be surprised that a FAR-LEFT judge on the bench wants players to get paid and wants to stick it to the evil rich man (NCAA). The "journalism" in this country is an absolute joke. I've said it from day one NCAA (and when EA was in the lawsuit EA) would have to go all the way up to win. If only we could just save the time and ask SCOTUS if they want the case now or not.

      Alas, formalities in law must be followed so the media can act like this judge is some middle of the rode and blind jurist faithfully following the law.
    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      SHOCKER OF THE CENTURY! liberal judge permits lawsuit against The Man to go to trial. /sarcasm


      http://espn.go.com/college-sports/st...-ncaa-go-trial
    1. souljahbill's Avatar
      souljahbill -
      NCAA was gonna let players' names and numbers be in the game.

      Link
    1. TIMB0B's Avatar
      TIMB0B -
      What will the impact of player unions have on the future of the game?


      Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
    1. CLW's Avatar
      CLW -
      Quote Originally Posted by TIMB0B View Post
      What will the impact of player unions have on the future of the game?


      Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
      None necessarily. The NCAA has to either: (1) cease to exist; or (2) cave on the issue of players getting paid for the use of their "likeness" in the game.

      If (and ONLY if) 1 or 2 happens then a national Union (assuming it gets that large) could negotiate the price EA/Another Company would have to pay to use the players' "likeness" in the game (just like the NFLPA etc...).
    1. souljahbill's Avatar
      souljahbill -
      Man, I wish the players were always generic in terms of appearance from the beginning. I want a new game.