Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?

[Shatter]

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mtv-networks-asia-and-gigamedia-to-co-develop-worlds-first-spongebob-squarepants-massively-multiplayer-online-game-mmog-95919844.html

SINGAPORE, HONG KONG, SEOUL, South Korea, TOKYO and NEW YORK, June 8 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- MTV Networks Asia, a division of Viacom Inc (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), and leading Asian online games company GigaMedia Limited (Nasdaq: GIGM) today announced plans to co-develop and jointly publish the first Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) based upon Nickelodeon's global smash hit, SpongeBob SquarePants. The game will be the first Nickelodeon television property to be developed as an MMOG, and Viacom's first to be developed outside of the United States. The SpongeBob SquarePants MMOG will launch in 2011 in multiple languages for players in China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia and India.

The SpongeBob SquarePants creative team at the Burbank-based Nickelodeon Animation Studios will work closely with GigaMedia to develop the online environment and SpongeBob SquarePants avatars, allowing millions of players throughout Asia to create, customize and personalize the world's first MMOG version of Bikini Bottom.

"Partnering with GigaMedia on the development of a SpongeBob SquarePants MMOG allows us to bring the residents of Bikini Bottom into a whole new world -- one that is tremendously popular in Asia and presents unlimited creative and business opportunities for the franchise," said Jihee Nam, Vice President of Digital for MTV Networks Asia. "SpongeBob SquarePants is Nickelodeon's best known property within Asia and we're extremely proud to oversee the development of the MMOG with local business partners. We look forward to working hand in hand with GigaMedia on bringing SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Gary and Sandy Cheeks to life in an entirely new and incredibly popular online world."

"We are thrilled to join forces with Nickelodeon and MTV Networks International to bring the joy and delight of SpongeBob SquarePants to online game players around the world," stated GigaMedia CEO Arthur Wang. "SpongeBob SquarePants is unquestionably one of the world's most popular animated television series, and we look forward to bringing SpongeBob and his friends to life in the virtual world for millions of online game players."

GigaMedia's leadership in Asian online games and Nickelodeon's position as a global leader in family entertainment enables the strategic partnership to tap into enormous creative and business resources around the world. As the first MMOG to be developed for a Nickelodeon television property and the first Viacom property to be developed outside the United States, the SpongeBob SquarePants MMOG will be designed to appeal across various demographics within Asia, where online casual games are the most popular pastime for tweens, children and adults.

The free-to-play model will offer an online store where users can purchase a range of bespoke items to populate and customize their experience, and will also feature a wide range of video and simple Flash(R)-based games allowing users of all skill-levels and ages to interact and share their SpongeBob SquarePants experiences online. Further details will be announced closer to the 2011 launch.

[Mrbloodworth]

 

[tgr]

 

[Morat20]

I've had to watch a lot of SpongeBob in my time. I'm surprised it took them this long. (My kiddo LOVED their PS2 games, when he was younger).

[LK]

First completely underwater MMO?

[Falconeer]

I hate SpongeBob. It gives me rabies.

[dusematic]

SIGN ME UP

[01101010]

As long as there are Murlocs, I'm in... otherwise, NO

[Mrbloodworth]

Edit: thats better.

[Morat20]

I hate SpongeBob. It gives me rabies.

You are wrong, and stupid, and should die of shame.

Spongebob is the sort of awesome I wish I'd had to watch as a kid. ANd thanks to reading that, I'm going to be having the theme song running around in my head all freaking day.

As for the MMO -- sadly, since it's more Puzzle Pirates than WoW, there is no chance of playing a Sponge Tank.

[IainC]

The only surprising thing about this announcement is that Cryptic aren't involved somehow.

[Falconeer]

You are wrong, and stupid, and should die of shame.
Spongebob is the sort of awesome I wish I'd had to watch as a kid.

I am not questioning the content. Anything that makes religious fanatics angry is good to me. And bonus points for the ambiguity.
It's the visual style that gives me rabies:





That's just looks revolting to me.

[01101010]

As for the MMO -- sadly, since it's more Puzzle Pirates than WoW, there is no chance of playing a Sponge Tank.

Don't be silly... Krabs is the tank.

And I think my generation had awesome cartoons growing up... (early to mid 1980s)

[Soln]

gameplay will involve working as a fry cook flipping burgers for hours on end?  Running around screaming and jumping in the air?  Sounds like every other MMO.

[Mrbloodworth]

Today's cartoons are a vat of disjointed gibberish.

Exhibit A:

[Sky]

Don't be silly... Krabs is the tank.

Krabbie can't soak up damage like SB can.

[Merusk]

Today's cartoons are a vat of disjointed gibberish.

Exhibit A:

Flapjack makes infinitely more sense than Fanboy and Chumchum or Adventure Time.  I rather enjoy it, along with Spongebob and Phineas and Ferb.

All adults eventually find kids cartoons stupid and banal, pining for the days of the "good" entertainment.  Looking back on YouTube and watching some of the 80's pablum I enjoyed vs Loony Toons, at least my parents had a valid argument.   Calling today's cartoons crap while pining for the horribly drawn and voiced 30 min commercials of He-Man, G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K, and Thundercats is damn near crazy town.

[Fordel]

The Best Cartoons came from the 90's and early 2000's (what the shit do we call the 2000-2010 era anyways?).

It's the era when the studios put real money, animation and quality writing into the cartoons and it's before they all got taken over by Anime.

[01101010]

http://www.schoolhouserock.tv/

 

[Lantyssa]

I grew up with Robotech.  Macek aside, it was still a great series.

Calling today's cartoons crap while pining for the horribly drawn and voiced 30 min commercials of He-Man, G.I. Joe, M.A.S.K, and Thundercats is damn near crazy town.

YOU SHUT UP NOW.  SHUT YOUR DAMN FILTHY MOUTH!

[UnSub]

Guess we can add this to the Tom and Jerry MMO and Ben 10 MMO that have been announced.

[apocrypha]

(what the shit do we call the 2000-2010 era anyways?)

The Noughties.

[Rasix]

The Best Cartoons came from the 90's

"Batman: the Animated Series" is all you really need to say. 

[Sheepherder]

I rather liked Batman Beyond.

[Righ]

Spongebob is the sort of awesome I wish I'd had to watch as a kid.

You don't have to be a kid...



Meanwhile...

[schild]

Flapjack makes infinitely more sense than Fanboy and Chumchum or Adventure Time

Adventure Time is AMAZING, or at least the first 10 minute one-off they did was.

[Bokonon]

So is this, um, the best day ever?

[Sky]

"Batman: the Animated Series" is all you really need to say. 

I think of that more as what it is titled: an animated series. That's the stuff that started with the GI Joe/etc stuff in the 80s, when cartoons weren't really schtick anymore, but srs bznz. I can appreciate the more well-drawn stuff like Batman, though.

But I'm a die-hard Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies guy (Clampett Avery and Jones  ). Hated Hannah-Barbara, it was so schlocky and poorly done compared to the WB stuff (for the most part, there were some exceptions). The 90s was also a resurgance of the classic cartoon style, thanks to John Kricfalusi.

[Azazel]

The Best Cartoons came from the 90's and early 2000's (what the shit do we call the 2000-2010 era anyways?).

It's the era when the studios put real money, animation and quality writing into the cartoons and it's before they all got taken over by Anime.

You seem to be missing the classic era of WB cartoons. And I'm sorry. Nothing tops those.

[Fordel]

The Best Cartoons came from the 90's

"Batman: the Animated Series" is all you really need to say. 

Yea, that is definitely the biggest one. It was one of the (if not The) first Cartoon where they told the voice actors to actually play their roles straight. It had the writing/music/animation to match as well. The show spawned the entire DCAU basically, which is the best portrayal and handling of the DC universe to date still.

I would put the first few seasons of Gargoyles up there as well, though that one went really retarded near the end. Disney had a bunch of well animated shows based of their cartoon movies.

You also had things like the Animaniacs and all their Spin-offs. WB stuff in general is almost always well done, but it had a big come back during this era.

Reboot and BeastWars were just starting up then as well.

Nickelodeon had a bunch of nice shows. Shit, this is when Ren and Stimpy start up too.

Even the "this show is really just a commercial" cartoons were actually very well drawn and had semblances of story and continuity.



The Looney Tunes are awesome and all that, but the 90's into early 2000's were definitely the renaissance of western animation.




What the shit is this thread about again, some MMO? 

[Rasix]

You don't really expect us to actually talk about Sponge Bob do you?

Gah, this thread made me think of the show "Gummi Bears".  Now I have the theme song for that running through my head.

[WindupAtheist]

The last few years have perhaps been a bit of a lull, and the first part of the nineties a high point, but on the whole western animation has been improving fairly consistently since perhaps the late seventies, having previously descended into shit after the golden age of the forties and fifties. Certainly as far as western feature animation goes, the Pixar/Dreamworks rivalry represents an all-time high-water mark.

So, opinions, what was the best DC animated show besides BTAS?

[koro]

So, opinions, what was the best DC animated show besides BTAS?

I'd probably say Justice League, followed by JL: Unlimited, then Batman: The Brave and the Bold.

Teen Titans felt like it was trying too hard and I largely stayed away from The Batman.

Edit: Superman: TAS was okay too, I guess, but it just lacked the kind of soul Batman: TAS had.

[tgr]

You don't really expect us to actually talk about Sponge Bob do you?

Gah, this thread made me think of the show "Gummi Bears".  Now I have the theme song for that running through my head.

Let me help you with that: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd12hR68sWM

[Fordel]

So, opinions, what was the best DC animated show besides BTAS?

Justice League Unlimited. They managed to keep dozens of characters in a consistent and on-going story arc, all the while remaining awesome while doing it. They always managed to keep the spirit of a comic character or specific comic book story, without taking in any of the associated suck of said comic.

To the point where I just pretend the actual DC Comic universe doesn't exist anymore, and just base everything off of their DCAU instead.


Honorable mention to the first Batman+Superman cross over mini series thing, where the Joker goes to Metropolis and teams up with Lex. The way they handled the relatively 'low power' of Batman and The Joker in the super powered venue of Superman and LexLuthor was brilliant.