EA has killed off a beloved franchise and developers are understandably upset. The third game in the American McGee Alice series was pitched to EA some time ago and turned down, officially ending the franchise.
The third game was supposed to be called Alice Asylum and American McGee, the series creator had a 'bible' of details for the proposed game. However, after taking it to EA, they decided it wasn't a game they wanted to fund. "[EA] have ultimately decided to pass on the project based on an internal analysis of the IP, market conditions, and details of the production proposal," said McGee.
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For those who may have missed the past two games, the Alice series was based on Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, but took players on a much darker path through Wonderland. The first game's brooding, almost gothic tone made it a cult classic and there was plenty more story to tell.
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McGee continued to explain his feelings in a Patreon post saying, "I was emotionally quite destroyed by the fact that our proposal was rejected. Not only because we had invested so much into it as a community, and as creators, but also because I felt quite strongly that it presented a vision for something that was not only achievable but would have been quite beautiful if we had been allowed to pursue it."
Unfortunately American McGee has no direct access to the rights, stating that EA has full control over the IP and this control is "complicated." While McGee appreciates the fans passion and love for the series, the developer has asked fans to "please just move on." There is nothing to be done at this juncture and it's unlikely that EA would relinquish the rights. For now, Alice's story has ended.
Featured Image Credit: EATopics: Retro Gaming