SECOND VIEWING of Mitch Plays to Win and FIRST VIEWING of Paradox Interim Report (01JAN2019 - 30JUN2019)...
on a lazy Saturday morning... : )
And in the dark of a stormy and unseasonably warm Saturday morning in Anthracite Appalachia, some items are better coming to the Light of yet another Big and Stompy Day:
DIFFICULTY SETTING ADDED - For Career Mode Only, under Update 1.9 there will be a new Difficulty Setting for “Half Priced ARGO Upgrades.” This price cutting will impact both Upfront Costs and Recurring Costs.
NO LIVESTREAM NEXT WEEK - Mitch will be out-of-pocket next week. He’ll be in Stockholm Sweden answering for his timidity in going forward with the next entry on this list. : )
QUAD MECHS - I spent the last 2-days in denial that this following exchange ever happened:
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/540789821?t=505s
*moment_of_silence
Yes, I made reference to it Mitch’s mention of Update 1.9:Quad Mechs in an earlier post above, but only in passing and as more of a “Warning to Others” kind of thing. But let’s break it down a bit more here, Ben and Mitch had clearly planned this before hand and MOAR Power to them both for trolling me and others before we could troll them this week. : ) :bow: Well played Gentlemen, well played indeed, : ) :bow:
Ben (aka
@HBS_L8Knight) played the part effortlessly and his, “I think the Art Department really nailed it on this one. So Players are going to have...” nearly, NEARLY sent me into stunned disbelief! : )
Of course Mitch was the first one to break character and tell Quadist to “Bell-Ringing” OFF, yet again. : )
It is moments like this one that although painful, endear HBS to me all the more.
Here’s to hoping Hollie (
https://hollisketch.tumblr.com/), Czarina of QUADs, will deign to join Mitch (in two weeks when Mitch returns from Paradox HQ) and grace him with the odd bit of Tactical Advice. :bow:
In all seriousness, I believe next week just might be Paradox’s Interim Report for 01JUL2019-31DEC2019. In a good move, Paradox moved from Quarterly Reports to Six-month Interim Reports with:
https://www.twitch.tv/videos/466549817?t=612s
While we are not likely to see Mitch join Ebba and her CFO for such a Livestream, it will cover down on HBS indirectly and depending on the topics covered and their bullet points, maybe even directly.
I could be wrong in this estimation, but the dates fo line up quite nicely and as HBS Founder (Co-Founder) having Mitch on Site makes a world of sense to me,
PARADOX INTERIM REPORT - most current (01JAN2019 - 30JUN2019)
There is a lot to unpack here, so please bare with me and add whatever details or correction where needed.
BUSINESS 101: Watching the above linked Paradox Interim Report, we learn that Paradox Games takes new game releases as Capitalization. Paradox does not take it as a Cost until the Game’s Release, when it is then linearly depreciated over its first 18-months of being released into the WILD.
AGGRESSIVE INVESTMENT - for a number of Quarters now Paradox has invested heavily in Games in Development.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BATTLETECH and HBS: Of course I could be wrong but this would seem to me that during this past Interim Period for Paradox, BATTLETECH passed into its 19th month since release, therefore according to Paradox Accounting Practices, it is now fully depreciated, with all attendant Base Game Costs now being fully realized. While BATTLETECH has long been successful in our Hearts, here’s to hoping it has been successful according to Paradox Accounting Practices too!
Secondly, this better explains HBS’s “Secret Projects” to me. Again I could be wrong, but the cost of development for these is being treated Capitalization by Paradox with Costs not to be realized until these Secret Projects are released.
Yes, I want HBS to focus on BATTLETECH...
...
but...
...I am very much in support of HBS’s pursing additional titles given the realities of Paradox Business Practices. And while nothing from Shadowrun may be in the HBS Development Pipeline at the moment, I sincerely hope HBS returns to turn-based Shadowrun development as I think it could be a
MAJOR success for both HBS and Paradox.
INTERESTING FACTS
1.) HBS’s new digs in Seattle were part of a 500-pax Construction(s?) for Paradox Seattle Officespace. HBS and Hardsuit Labs (Bloodlines 2) are located across Lake Washington from one another. (Paradox acquired a 33% Interest in Hardsuit Labs in JN2018.)
2.) Being located just across Lake Washington from Hardsuit Labs, the Developing Studio for Vampires 2 may (
or may not) shed something light on early HBS Job Announcements for those experienced in the Horror genre of Computer Gaming. Especially seeing as how some level of collocation between such geographically colocated Paradox Subsidiaries, would make sense.
3.) Paradox’s Business Model Places a Premium on cancelling game development before the game’s announcement if the game proves to be non-viable for any number of reasons. Approximately 40% of Paradox Games are cancelled prior to Announcement. IIRC in 2nd Quarter 2019, two games were canceled prior to announcement.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BATTLETECH and HBS: It now makes a world of sense why Mitch and Team HBS have made reference to multiple Secret Projects (plural) at a few points over the past six months or so. It is just plain good business sense to have multiple irons in the fire under this manner of Business Model.
4.) OCTOBER 2019 would have been the last month that BATTLETECH Game Development was depreciated against its costs of development, if indeed this model was applied retroactively for the purposes of Paradox Accounting and Swedish Tax Requirements. Alternately, The cost of HBS’s Acquisition may or may not have completed its 18-month depreciation in OC2019 - while it is true that for HBS/Paradox there is a 5-year period of Profit Sharing, the accounting for the purchase cost of new studios was touched upon by Paradox’s CFO during the above Paradox Interim Report, and may or may not apply to HBS.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BATTLETECH and HBS: the timing of HEAVY METAL’s Release in November, can Now be held against a fully depreciated cost to have developed BATTLETECH in the first place. Similarly Free Update 1.9 may cause just enough Marketing buzz and Sales interest in BATTLETECH and its DLCs to help generate a Revenue Spike for HBS and BATTLETECH.
This is to all our benefit because as
@HBS_HighCommand has long made known to us, “In Success, ALL is possible.” And now that BATTLETECH’s initial development costs are possibly depreciated, bumps and spikes in sales are held as more purely profit and against HBS Ongoing Operating Costs, rather than Operating Costs and a 1/18th of Depreciating Game.
See I knew I could wring some BATTLETECH-benefit from my retuning to University for my MBA! : )
To me it is important to understand HBS in the larger context of Paradox’s Business Model and Practices. I am not saying there are any epiphanies to be found here, but “apparently loose ends” that have been niggling at me for more than a year now, do fall into place and my patience and understanding of Mitch’s and HBS has increased and expanded respectively. :bow:
Again, all question, comments or constructive criticisms are welcome.
