Announcement Project M Development Has Come to an End

[ted dorosheff]

R rockmanmegaman dude you are seriously bumming me out with, just, your whole attitude towards the PMDT. How can you sit behind your keyboard, type things like "So really, It's their fault.", about a group of hard working UNPAID developers who gave us something that we will have now forever, and not think you are entitled?

Some people....

 

[rockmanmegaman]

R rockmanmegaman dude you are seriously bumming me out with, just, your whole attitude towards the PMDT. How can you sit behind your keyboard, type things like "So really, It's their fault.", about a group of hard working UNPAID developers who gave us something that we will have now forever, and not think you are entitled?

Some people....

a) I said they're being mean spirit for teasing.
b) "Forever"? Newsflash, the links are gone. They have every intention to get rid of it.

 

[Skailler]

@StupidDiscussionAbove Please, stop. Just ignore him.

Im sad to see the end of this project, especially considering I literally just got into it. Whatever you are planning for the future, Im wishing you the best for it. And while this may sound kinda stupid, but does that include a cancelled PAL version as well?

 

[Cutie Gwen]

I've never played PM and I prefer silly casual fun over competetive play. But goddamn, this is pretty saddening, I was always impressed by the devs' efforts. Shame it had to go. All I can do is hope Team Wavedash make a future game or something which has just as much effort as this

 

[Paquito]

A couple thoughts:

First and foremost, if the dev team really is planning on working on a stand-alone project, I'M FREAKIN' PSYCHED!!! Different people enjoy the Smash series for different reasons, but the reason I chose to focus on PM over all others is because the focus on the stated goals of the PM (fast, balanced, competitive, favoring offense, rewarding edge-guarding, etc) trumps everything else for me. If this team is really going to develop an easy to pick up, hard to master game with similar mechanics, that can also be a fun party game with casual friends (let's keep that item switch!), it's going to be amazing, even without Nintendo franchise characters. I'll be a supporter from day 1.

The abruptness of this announcement does seem suspicious to me. The fact that the download isn't available on the site is a huge red-flag. They probably got a legal letter from Nintendo threatening them. If the language of that letter implies they aren't even allowed to talk about it though, that's beyond ****ed up. I wish they'd fight it, but I understand it wouldn't be worth the expense, (unless some legal advocacy organization volunteered to take the case pro-bono).

Still, if this letter exists, at the very least, leak it to the press. You guys already stopped distribution of the game, there's no longer any legal harm Nintendo can point to to hold you guys liable. If they go after you for simply making the letter public, despite having taken the game down, they're going to get a sh**storm of bad press.

 

[Delta Chae]

@StupidDiscussionAbove Please, stop. Just ignore him.

Im sad to see the end of this project, especially considering I literally just got into it. Whatever you are planning for the future, Im wishing you the best for it. And while this may sound kinda stupid, but does that include a cancelled PAL version as well?

Everything they had planned out is effectively gone now. Unless they decide to put it out as open source for fans to finish up we're not getting it.

 

[Banjodorf]

It's a sad day for sure. I can't say it's overly shocking; we knew eventually Nintendo would grow confident enough to shut it down.

And naturally they have to get rid of their stuff, but I expect some things they had planned to release to "leak" in some variation onto the Internet. (Clone Engine, Lynckles, maybe other stuff)

It's a homegrown dev team and I'm sure they had some members very unhappy with this situation.

All the same, I'm sad to see development stop, but we still have the game and can still play it. I plan to keep doing that, and return to it whenever Smash 4's DLC gets stale for me.

I'll wear my PM shirt with pride, PMDT.

 

[Paquito]

The abruptness of this announcement does seem suspicious to me. The fact that the download isn't available on the site is a huge red-flag. They probably got a legal letter from Nintendo threatening them. If the language of that letter implies they aren't even allowed to talk about it though, that's beyond ****ed up. I wish they'd fight it, but I understand it wouldn't be worth the expense, (unless some legal advocacy organization volunteered to take the case pro-bono).

Still, if this letter exists, at the very least, leak it to the press. You guys already stopped distribution of the game, there's no longer any legal harm Nintendo can point to to hold you guys liable. If they go after you for simply making the letter public, despite having taken the game down, they're going to get a sh**storm of bad press.

Oh, they do have an attorney already. Here's a tweet claiming they received no legal notice from Nintendo. Optimistically reading this: they really have decided to throw all of their effort behind a standalone project, and don't want to introduce undue risk to that new business by continuing to distribute Project M.

 

[T-skjorte Ninja]

3.6 is the current version, but a promised patch will be forgone due to this.

A little unsettling. Wasn't that just a beta?

 

[Banjodorf]

Oh, they do have an attorney already. Here's a tweet claiming they received no legal notice from Nintendo. Optimistically reading this: they really have decided to throw all of their effort behind a standalone project, and don't want to introduce undue risk to that new business by continuing to distribute Project M.

The abruptness, the fact that they had things in the works, and the fact that they're apparently getting rid of everything makes this suspect, but why the outright answer in this case?

That said, if it isn't a C/D, I DEFINITELY expect SOME version of their unfinished work to leak.

Oh, and I feel like stealthily releasing the bug fix patch would be fine; unless it wasn't finished. This is all very weird.

 

[Paquito]

The abruptness, the fact that they had things in the works, and the fact that they're apparently getting rid of everything makes this suspect, but why the outright answer in this case?

That said, if it isn't a C/D, I DEFINITELY expect SOME version of their unfinished work to leak.

Oh, and I feel like stealthily releasing the bug fix patch would be fine; unless it wasn't finished. This is all very weird.

Like I said, that was an optimistic reading The abruptness of this announcement is definitely suspect.

But here's more optimistic speculation: 3.7 would probably be at least 6 months more of volunteer work on a project they've already spent 6 years of their lives on. If they're willing to quit their jobs to start on a new business venture, and especially if they suddenly got funding for it right now, maybe it doesn't make sense for them to split their time and energy between the two projects, and the legal considerations I mentioned earlier would necessitate this abrupt take down.

 

[ted dorosheff]

a) I said they're being mean spirit for teasing.
b) "Forever"? Newsflash, the links are gone. They have every intention to get rid of it.

I see it's your first time using the internet. On the internet, nothing goes away.

 

[rockmanmegaman]

I see it's your first time using the internet. On the internet, nothing goes away.

And I can see it's also your first time reading.
You know what "They have every intention to get rid of it" means, right?

 

[AuraMaudeGone]

Thank you guys for all the hard work & good luck in your future endeavors!

Now we wait for the inevitable Neo PMDT Team Rocket.

 

[gmBottles]

And I can see it's also your first time reading.
You know what "They have every intention to get rid of it" means, right?

What he means it that, it's the internet. The links might be gone, but the download is not. Mirrors will pop up somewhere, if they haven't already.

 

[ted dorosheff]

And I can see it's also your first time reading.
You know what "They have every intention to get rid of it" means, right?

Lets think about what that means for a second. They would have to ask torrents to stop sharing, they would have to take down 3rd party mirrors. Good luck to them in that endeavor. You know who else has been trying to squash content and enforce copyrights? RIAA, MPAA. How effective have their efforts been in completely removing pirated content? Those are two organizations with resources that make Nintendo seem like a mom and pop shop.

quit being such a doom sayer.

 

[Truerebel]

I've been following/playing PM casually for maybe a year now and I have to say this is a bittersweet announcement. PM isn't gone, nor will it be in the foreseeable future knowing the internet and community here, but it's sad that we will never get to see the *true* final version that was in store. I completely understand the call though. A project of PM's nature is just fundamentally limited, and I'm excited to see what projects the new team creates in the future free from these limitations.

gg wp etc, I'm going to continue enjoying playing/practicing PM for many years to come with friends and family.

 

[Large Dad]

Oh ****.

I feel the game is already pretty well balanced and all but this is kinda depressing that we won't ever see new content...

I just hope no longer developing the game won't kill the competitive community this game has created.

But thank you for everything, guys.

:')

 

[davidvkimball]

A little unsettling. Wasn't that just a beta?

Very unsettling. It's not entirely clear but it seems like that, yeah. They had a bunch of new content ready to go.

 

[Boondocker]

Thank you Devs, still keeping hope alive that this is a joke.

 

[4AM_Jefe]

It's my hope that the community comes together and creates a "Project M 3.6 Final Version"

Implement known bug fixes.

Tie up loose ends.

Agree that all tournaments should now use this.

Let the meta develop.

 

[Y2Kay]

This ain't over..........

 

[WinterShorts]

So Project M ceased development and now announcing no further updates?

MY MAIN MAN GAME AND WATCH BROKEN FOREVER!!!

​

(But in all seriousness, thank you PM for this wonderful mod!)

 

[Zatchiel]

Thank you, for everything. I will never forget what you have done. The entertainment you have brought, the experience you have improved, and the connections you have helped me make as well as the lessons you have helped me learn.

As you have probably guessed, this is not merely a thanks to the dev team for their much appreciated work (bless your hearts, I wish you the best). This is thanks to all. Whether it be staying up all damn night waiting for a juicy update, or training and studying to git gud, I cherish these memories.

Once again, thank you.

 

[Ura]

I don't think C&D is the case here. If it was, there would be no reason as to why they wouldn't be able to disclose it.

I got a sneaky suspicion if it was due to something else...

 

[Quintessence]

I don't think C&D is the case here. If it was, there would be no reason as to why they wouldn't be able to disclose it.

I got a sneaky suspicion if it was due to something else...

Most likely a gag order and a deal was brokered to keep things "civil". Otherwise there would be no reason to tear everything off of the site and instantly stop all production.

 

[S_B]

Sad to see PM go. You folks were literally the only ones to ever do Bowser justice in a SSB game.

Good luck on your future ventures!

 

[zpxociv]

I just hope one of the PM devs does the right thing and leaks the new characters. This is PM's Apocalypse, where's the revelation show we're entitled to?

 

[Kabutops]

I imagine it must be an unnerving experience to constantly have to worry about a company as powerful as Nintendo breathing down your neck day in and day out. I strongly believe Nintendo had a hand in this, but maybe it was for the better. These devs are probably better off leaving the project behind to start work on less aggravating projects - ones that don't reside in a legal grey area. I'm surprised Project M lasted as long as it did given it's circumstances. These guys have passion and will probably do great at just about anything they set their minds to. I look forward to what happens next.

 

[Pwnz0rz Man]

I just hope one of the PM devs does the right thing and leaks the new characters. This is PM's Apocalypse, where's the revelation show we're entitled to?

Don't look at things like that as things that we're entitled to. We're not entitled to anything at this point. If anything, I would say that the project itself deserves a real sendoff though, not an abrupt message on a blog saying it's over. Production went out with a whimper and it's maddeningly disappointing.

 

[Quintessence]

I just hope one of the PM devs does the right thing and leaks the new characters. This is PM's Apocalypse, where's the revelation show we're entitled to?

I think that would be a horrible mistake, Nintendo would destroy them if that happened.

 

[Banjodorf]

I think that would be a horrible mistake, Nintendo would destroy them if that happened.

If Nintendo actually had no hand in this, then they won't lift a finger because it's not their problem.

And even if they did, some ex-dev "leaking" things into BrawlVault or some other site isn't going to send Nintendo overboard. The Project is shut down and that's what matters.

A bit like that fanmade sequel to Chrono Trigger.

Don't look at things like that as things that we're entitled to. We're not entitled to anything at this point. If anything, I would say that the project itself deserves a real sendoff though, not an abrupt message on a blog saying it's over. Production went out with a whimper and it's maddeningly disappointing.

I agree wholeheartedly with this. It's fine if 3.6 is the final release because it's extremely well polished, even if there are a few bugs (what doesn't have them?) but it's such a sudden end that it feels like we didn't get to say goodbye. Obviously the community isn't dead because people still love to play the game, but something about this feels so hollow.

 

[roymustang1990-]

Well,this sucks. Now I'll never get to experienced project M.

This outcome is probably relevant as to why gimR had removed all the project m content from his youtube channel about a year ago. :/

 

[OrangeSodaGuy]

'Tis a sad day indeed. It's been a whirlwind over these last six years, and I'm awed at how this project has grown and what it's managed to pull off in terms of gameplay, balance, new stages and costumes, and even bringing Mewtwo/Roy back.

I'm going to miss hearing about updates and looking forward to every next version of the game, but it still means a lot that we're able to enjoy this in the first place.

Thank you so much for all of your hard work, PMDT! Best of luck on all of your future endeavors!

--and if you'll excuse me while I...

 

[TeddyBearYoshi]

I think that would be a horrible mistake, Nintendo would destroy them if that happened.

It's been too late for a while, the build has been out for a few hours now from 4chan...

 

[Banjodorf]

It's been too late for a while, the build has been out for a few hours now from 4chan...

WHAT?! ****, I'm at work, I need this!

 

[Cutie Gwen]

The worst part for me, is that the PAL release never got done. Such a shame, maybe I'll just use an emulation or something when I get a good PC, I stillown Brawl after all

 

[tasteless gentleman]

WHAT?! ****, I'm at work, I need this!

link?

 

[TheRealSkid]

No, Tink. T tasteless gentleman
(I'm just kidding. A link would be great!)

Edit: I forgot to mention that Project M is probably the only reason why I would ever loved Smash as much as I do. Watching Emukiller, Frozen, Professor Pro, Junebug, and many others push the limits of this game inspired me to get competitive and one day become as good as them in a game where Mewtwo was viable for once. Thanks so much to the PMDT for all their hard work and dedication as well as those that have made it such a popular and successful game! I hope the fun, the tournaments, and the hype truly never end even when development does.

 

[NXero]

I don't know why they keep saying there was C&D though, they shouldn't even respond instead of lying like that... At least I know who the coolest PMDT member is now. You know who you are, you sly dog, you!