• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Saudi Arabia is Making a $38 Billion ‘Gaming Hub’

Status
Not open for further replies.

HoodWinked

Member
The closest thing to "spread their culture and ideals" in SNK games so far has been Najd in KOF

498308-AA1.jpg

it's not always what they put in a game but what they prevent from putting in the game.
 

Bo_Hazem

Banned
Its such a shame you guys never got to play Atari and things like that back in the day

Thank goodness Jimmie brought you guys out of the stone age

Atari 2600 was our first console in the late 1980's. I was 3-4 years old when started playing that pile of shit in 1988.:lollipop_tears_of_joy:

Jimmie had no internet access to know about it, but it was there though most people were struggling with the language, especially with Nintendo Family Computer as most of the games were in Japanese and I managed to beat nearly all of them somehow.:lollipop_wink_tongue:
 
Last edited:

Dick Jones

Gold Member
Atari 2600 was our first console in the late 1980's. I was 3-4 years old when started playing that pile of shit in 1988.:lollipop_tears_of_joy:

Jimmie had no internet access to know about it, but it was there though most people were struggling with the language, especially with Nintendo Family Computer as most of the games were in Japanese and I managed to people nearly all of them somehow.:lollipop_wink_tongue:
Jimmy is saying, was it really gaming before the PlayStation 1
Yes it was
 
Atari 2600 was our first console in the late 1980's. I was 3-4 years old when started playing that pile of shit in 1988.:lollipop_tears_of_joy:

Jimmie had no internet access to know about it, but it was there though most people were struggling with the language, especially with Nintendo Family Computer as most of the games were in Japanese and I managed to people nearly all of them somehow.:lollipop_wink_tongue:
When I saw Jimmie made those comments I was like

Wait What GIF
 

Bo_Hazem

Banned

It was so shit only that thief chase game was barely passable. Family Computer was shit as well but had some good games like GOAL III, TMNT, Mario. Sega was mostly shit as well. PS1 things started to get interesting way more, but things keeps getting better until we are now at PS5. The best gen is now, and the next one will be better.

Nostalgia is served with few minutes on youtube, but most old games, even most PS4 now, are unplayable to me.
 
It was so shit only that thief chase game was barely passable. Family Computer was shit as well but had some good games like GOAL III, TMNT, Mario. Sega was mostly shit as well. PS1 things started to get interesting way more, but things keeps getting better until we are now at PS5. The best gen is now, and the next one will be better.

Nostalgia is served with few minutes on youtube, but most old games, even most PS4 now, are unplayable to me.

You didn't like games like Dig Dug, Pac-Man, River Raid, Q*bert, Space Invaders, Pitfall back then? I can still play and enjoy those today.

Damn, PS4 games unplayable due to age and nostalgia? Tough mate.

I love retro games. I can play SMB in various releases to no end. Kids and I loved Zelda on the NES mini etc.

What do you think of a Savvy backed console or handheld entry? The sort of coin/hub they're dropping they could easily start a platform long term too.
 

Bo_Hazem

Banned
You didn't like games like Dig Dug, Pac-Man, River Raid, Q*bert, Space Invaders, Pitfall back then? I can still play and enjoy those today.

Damn, PS4 games unplayable due to age and nostalgia? Tough mate.

I love retro games. I can play SMB in various releases to no end. Kids and I loved Zelda on the NES mini etc.

What do you think of a Savvy backed console or handheld entry? The sort of coin/hub they're dropping they could easily start a platform long term too.

My standards/taste in games keeps rising. The very first real extreme satisfaction in gaming was MGS1, and it was the very first game ever to make me tear. Before that, there are good games, but always felt something missing. Games felt more complete since PS4 era. Heck, The Witcher 3 was 12 out of 10 back in 2015 and was my best game ever, now it won't make it in the top 10.

This nostalgia mindset is something I can't comprehend, but I respect, barely.

Savvy starting a console? Not sure, if anything it'll be something like Steam Deck, something open. You can't just shortcut the market. They can easily beat Xbox as Microsoft has no taste nor soul as the great Steve Jobs once said, but Sony is just too good to beat due to their prowess in many fields that serve gaming very well.
 

StereoVsn

Gold Member
The gaming hub will be built on the Line. No alcohol, sorcery, women without hijab, definitely nothing gay, and perhaps a bit of dismemberment of journalists on a side. Mmm... now, that's a gaming paradise.
 

GHound

Member
Will monitor all communications and request a Saudi death squad be sent to cut you into little pieces if you dare speak out against the Dark Lord.
Turbo based. I'd buy one for all of the current industry jannies on that premise alone.
 

CGNoire

Member
Saudi just shot themselves in the foot.
I don't know how much the rest of you know about American culture (I'm an expert), but honor and shame are huge parts of it. It's not like it is in the Europe where you can become successful by being an asshole.

If you screw someone over in America, you bring shame to yourself, and the only way to get rid of that shame is repentance.

What this means is the american public, after hearing about this, is not going to want to purchase games for either system, nor will they purchase any of Saudis games.

This is HUGE. You can laugh all you want, but Saudi has alienated an entire market with this move.

Saudi, publicly apologize and cancel all games or you can kiss your business goodbye.
This sounds o
So familar. Where is this from?
 

Vognerful

Member
It was so shit only that thief chase game was barely passable. Family Computer was shit as well but had some good games like GOAL III, TMNT, Mario. Sega was mostly shit as well. PS1 things started to get interesting way more, but things keeps getting better until we are now at PS5. The best gen is now, and the next one will be better.

Nostalgia is served with few minutes on youtube, but most old games, even most PS4 now, are unplayable to me.
A guy who doesn't even admit the glory of Captain Tsubasa on NES

*spit!
 

wolffy71

Banned


Bo_Hazem Bo_Hazem

Denzel Washington GIF


Bloomberg has published an article detailing the Saudi Arabian government’s intention to spend a whopping $38 billion building a ‘gaming hub’ in the heart of the country. It’s an effort to become an industry leader and to diversify the country’s economy, which up until now has been almost entirely centred around oil.

This venture will reportedly be led by Savvy Gaming Group, and one of the first actions on the docket is to acquire or create a firm that could enable ‘new IP’ to be created in-country. Not only that but through heavy investment, Savvy seeks to increase stakes in companies like Nintendo and flesh out a thriving esports ecosystem in Saudi Arabia.

Will Saudi Arabia Become a Gaming Nation?​

Savvy has been making massive waves in recent years, acquiring iconic esports firm, ESL, in 2022, securing one of the most steadfast footholds in the competitive gaming community. It’s tough for the esports industry at the moment, and almost every organisation in the space operates at a loss – the road to profitability is a tough one, but Savvy is poised to face that road with a smile on its face.

In a statement to Bloomberg, CEO of Savvy, Brian Ward, explained what’s on the cards for the months ahead:


Ward himself is a veteran of the industry, and his lengthy career has taken him through the doors of Activision and Electronic Arts, among other firms. Reportedly, Savvy boasts a $13 billion fund that it can use to invest in – or acquire – a game publisher, but on the subject of Electronic Arts, Ward claimed that the California-headquartered firm would be ‘too big’ for them to pick up.

In Bloomberg’s article, it was suggested that Riyadh-based Savvy is turning to game development because of a lack of traction in the esports space. No big esports backers are looking to sign up with Savvy – including Riot Games and Activision Blizzard, and that’s likely a geographical and political issue.


It’s no big secret that Saudi Arabia’s base nature has caused countless controversies over the years, and some developers, publishers, and tournament organisers have made active, targeted efforts to avoid operations there. However, speaking to Bloomberg, Ward stood firmly and claimed that he’d ‘hire an LGBTQ or Jewish person to lead a game studio in Saudi Arabia.’

Ok well they would have to be lunatics to live there
 

hemo memo

You can't die before your death
If you think that the post, "No thanks," is awful, I don't think you belong on the internet. You know that censorship is a real thing in Saudi Arabia, right? This is a heavily Islamic nation, and its government has strict control over all content. That is not a place for the video game industry to thrive.
Cristiano Ronaldo is living here happily with his family and we still get posts like this. Stop reading the propaganda news.
 

Bo_Hazem

Banned
A guy who doesn't even admit the glory of Captain Tsubasa on NES

*spit!

Sorry, it was my most played game on Famicom (NES), and in Japanese! Still listen to the soundtracks as they're simply legendary! With so little hardware those fucking shots felt so impactful with the SFX they made.
 

Mr.ODST

Member
I know alot of esports peers being hired by alot of Saudi and middle eastern entities to build their esports projects, I was asked once and I refused, the money was crazy amounts though
 

John Wick

Member
Please tell me more as you are an expert more than me in the country I CURRENTLY LIVE IN. Go ahead.
He can't because his knowledge is based on propaganda and what his government has selectively told him.
That's why it's OK when the USA led west commit war crimes, invade sovereign nations and steal their resources. But it's not on when the Russians defend ethnic Russians in Ukraine and don't allow NATO on their border.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom