Microsoft eliminates 1 vs 100… apparently it was also the weakest link

This is pretty sad news really as I really thought that 1 vs 100 was a nice idea for console gaming, but unfortunately while Microsoft liked the idea the fact that only around 200 000 people played it online has meant that 1 vs 100 will not be returning to our screens anytime soon.

According to a blog post on the official 1 vs 100 blog

As you’ve probably seen by now, we are no longer developing 1 vs. 100 for Xbox LIVE.

We’re sorry to have kept you waiting in suspense before having to deliver this kind of news. We fully understand how some of you may be upset about the announcement. We hope you understand that it wasn’t an easy decision to make and there was a great deal of deliberation.

Our team really enjoyed making 1 vs. 100. Working on it was unlike anything we’d worked on before. Seeing the passionate feedback and interaction from our players was always appreciated. Even though we spent our days at work bringing the game to you, we still enjoyed playing alongside you. Our colleagues on the writing team made us laugh, too.

We knew starting on this project, that 1 vs 100 was completely different and would be an idea we would continue to evolve. We’ve learned a lot from this experience and we’re committed to applying these lessons to the cool, new stuff we’re working on, but can’t yet discuss.

But before we say farewell, some of our fond memories and discoveries from Season One and Two of 1vs100:

Chris Cashman is as powerful as he is mysterious
Felicia Day really is that awesome
There can never be too many questions about ‘Rent’ or soccer
You don’t have to be president to have your face on US currency
Chris Cashman is not a certified network technician

We think we can all agree that 1 vs 100 brought many players many fond experiences and memories. It was truly one-of-a-kind, and none of it would’ve been possible without a dedicated, passionate community fan base playing the game regularly and stepping up as awesome contestants. It was always great to see the message board, Twitter and Facebook light up with supportive and encouraging messages when a "regular" was the One. Being part of something that resulted in new friendships, loyalists like JAriel, the introduction of gaming to "non-gamers" and the humbling success of folks like mutantdog123 and A Patch of Blue was an intangible reward for the team that we’ll miss.

We hope to focus on the fun times playing 1 vs 100 as we look back on the two seasons and the enormous amount of time and effort that the development teams and the fans poured into the game. For now we say goodnight to 1 vs 100. You were truly part of something new, exciting, and unprecedented, and we thank you for all of your support along the way.

If you can’t quite get enough Cashman, you can continue to find Chris at the following locations:

http://www.chriscashmanonline.com/

http://twitter.com/chriscashman

It’s  sad to see it go but hopefully somewhere out there someone has a great new idea on how to make a primetime console game show as I do believe it has potential, especially in the casual end of the market that the console manufacturers crave so deeply.

Never mind the fact that we were once teased with being able to play 1 vs 100 using our upcoming Kinect interface that would have allowed all 4 of to play at once sitting on our couch… something that feels so far away right now.

Source: Kotaku

Last Updated: July 16, 2010