Meat Boy dev attacks Microsoft support

By Fred Dutton Published 1 March, 2011

"It totally f****** hurt my feelings."

Team Meat, the indie studio behind hit platformer Super Meat Boy, has launched a bitter attack on Microsoft for not following through on marketing promises it made for the game's Xbox Live Arcade launch.

Speaking at the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco today, co-CEO Tommy Refenes explained that, as part of the platform's Game Feast promotion last October, Super Meat Boy had been promised the release schedule to itself for the week.

However, as it turned out, Double Fine's Costume Quest was added to their launch week at the last minute.

"We were just like 'what the f***? Everyone else gets a free week except for us?'," recalled co-founder Tommy Refenes.

When Refenes turned on his 360 on launch day, things got worse. Team Meat had been told the game would get top billing in the Spotlight feed on the Xbox 360 dashboard, but there was no sign of any promotion for the title whatsoever.

In a state of panic, he immediately fired off an email to the studio's producer at Microsoft.

"I was like 'What's the deal? Are you guys pulling out? Where's our stuff?'," he explained.

"It finally went up half way through our launch day. It was the number four spot; it wasn't number one. The 'spooktacular sale', which was a whole bunch of other games that already came out – that was the number one slot.

"An ad for a Mazda 3 was the number two slot – because you all go on Xbox to figure out what car you want, right?

"We were number four and we stayed number four the entire week," he continued.

Microsoft then apparently told Team Meat that the better the game performed, the more promotion it would receive. However, despite outselling other Game Feast titles Comic Jumper and Hydrophobia by a significant margin, and racking up great reviews, no further marketing support came.

"We just kind of got pushed to the side, and that's basically how the Xbox Live launch went. The only reason the game sold well was because of how we promoted it. The help from Microsoft was there in a very limited capacity," Refenes insisted.

"It's not supposed to hurt your feelings because it's business, but it totally f***ing hurt my feelings. Me and Ed just killed ourselves trying to get this game done and now we're just pushed to the side.

"It was a f****** mindf***," added the other half of Team Meat, Edmund McMillen.

"It was really confusing. At that point I think we were so f***** up in our heads from development, it almost felt like 'are these people out to get us? What's happening here? Did we do something wrong? Are they trying to screw us because we did something wrong?'"

Later on in the presentation, McMillen tempered the attack a little, insisting that "working with the creative side of Microsoft was great".

"Everybody that we could talk to were great; the people who we couldn't talk to were the problem. So everyone who we worked with was wonderful. Everyone who was making decisions, not so much."

Thankfully for Team Meat, there was a happy ending. The Steam launch went much more smoothly, with PC sales easily outstripping those on Xbox 360. Refenes revealed that the game is now closing in on 400,000 sales across all platforms.

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (39) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Timbercottage #1 1 year ago

    I'm more interested in them announcing they have 3DS development kits. Would love to see a 3DS version of Super Meat Boy.

  • azix2 #2 1 year ago

    PC sales beat 360 sales. LoL! Well i pirated it but good for them. Definitely not a game for me even tho i had to see what it was about. There are folks who will love it

  • Maswor #3 1 year ago

    @azix2: You pirated it and you seem very proud!?

  • Timbercottage #4 1 year ago

    You pirated one of the finest games available? Shame on you. Team Meat rightfully deserve all the money I've given them, Super Meat Boy is a great achievement.

  • Psychotext #5 1 year ago

    I'd probably feel more inclined to sympathise if it wasn't for the fact that the save game bug in the 360 version lost me my progress so many times that I stopped playing.

    Still, not nice to get screwed around.

  • Cowbomb #6 1 year ago

    I've never seen a developer bitch and moan more than Team Meat.

    "Waaaaa! We made the game too big to fit on WiiWare, and Nintendo wont let us off!"
    "Boo Hoo! Sony didn't plead with us to release Meat Boy on PSN!"

    Seriously. They need to man-up.

  • lucifonz #7 1 year ago

    Eurogamer's pathetic exaggeration for hits is getting irritating. I'm seeing it more and more. "Meat Boy dev ATTACKS Microsoft support comments"? Not to mention the starting paragraph "has launched a bitter attack on Microsoft".

    Yet when you get into reading the article and in no way is there an attack. He expresses his sad feelings towards the situation, but does not make any comments which attack Microsoft. Infact even makes positive ones. This just makes Team Meat look bad, especially to Microsoft. It's insulting to developers when their comments are taken out of context for the sake of a few extra clicks.
    Edited by lucifonz at 01/03/11 @ 02:52

  • Feanor #8 1 year ago

    Bull shit. That was an attack.

  • Lusterpurge #9 1 year ago

    I wish Microsoft manned up and took Nintendo's stance on game publishing. It's not Nintendo's job to sell other people's games for them. If a game doesn't sell well, Nintendo is like "Tough shit, hombre. Some people were born winners, others not. You guys should be thankful we are even letting you develop for our system in the first place."

    Microsoft are getting too soft with game developers which is why they are getting bullied now. You never hear developers complain about Nintendo because if you did, you'd also hear how the developer's family was killed in a car accident the next day.
    Edited by Lusterpurge at 01/03/11 @ 03:46

  • azix2 #10 1 year ago

    @Timbercottage @Maswor Who said anything about proud? I don't play the game and I don't know why it would be a big difference whether or not I got the demo (is there one?) instead of the pirate version. Point was that I checked it out and put it down (sure i didn't need to mention piracy, but ppl hate it OH so much)

    It's a good game. You can't smash on games just because they seem like a regular flash game. It's not about epic 3d graphics all the time

  • Chrasomatic #11 1 year ago

    I remember downloading the demo for this - playing it for a few levels and thinking to myself I couldn't justify the purchase when I already have the excellent N+, the way people talk about this game you'd think it was the second coming, it's just a well made platform game that kids can't play (due to the grossness)

  • Genji #12 1 year ago

    I sympathise with them.

    But after that immature little spat they had with PETA last year, I can only sympathise so much.

  • MojoDex #13 1 year ago

    microsoft in acting like wankers shocker!

    wonders never cease.

  • Phishfood #14 1 year ago

    Well if they had a deal with Microsoft that said we won't publish Super Meat Boy for PS3 if you promote it on the dashboard then I see why they would have a reason to be upset.

    Plus this is business, if MS said they would do something then they better deliver because I'm sure other prospective developers are having second thoughts after reading this.

  • Aretak #15 1 year ago

    At least it's comforting to know that it's not only Indie Game developers that Microsoft shit on.

  • dagas #16 1 year ago

    You should always make sure to get it down in paper, if they refuse then it's a sure sign they don't plan on keeping their promise. At least it seems to have sold well enough.

  • sega #17 1 year ago

    They'd have even more sales if they released it on the Wii too - granted, that's not their fault either, though (bloody 40mb limits!). I just LOVE the game but don't have an XBOX 360 - infact the game is so good that it's even worth buying a 360 for. Perhaps I will - goodbye space under my TV.

  • mkreku #18 1 year ago

    Why do you censor them? Would it kill us to read the word "fucking" if that is what they said? This isn't America, you know.

  • Genji #19 1 year ago

    But maybe he actually said "f******"!

    Did you ever think about THAT? Hmm?

  • Koborover #20 1 year ago

    "Team Meat had been told..."
    "Microsoft then apparently told Team Meat..."

    If these things are not in black and white, Microsoft can do whatever they think is best for their business.

  • feline #21 1 year ago

    AAA companies have fancy official PR guys. Team Meat have dudes who swear a lot.

  • Xboxfanuk #22 1 year ago

    This saddens me. I thought that was the thing Microsoft was so good at, developer support. And now we lost Back to the Future on XBLA because of it as well. Microsoft needs to treat XBLA as seriously as they do boxed copies.

  • Peew971 #23 1 year ago

    @Phishfood - There wasn't a PS3 version planned as Sony turned the game down when they saw it. That's how it became a 360 exclusive before moving on to PC and Wii.

  • WinterSnowblind #24 1 year ago

    If they were told something would happen and Microsoft didn't follow through, that does indeed suck. But these guys do seem pretty whiny and I can't blame MS for wanting to promote games that do well. That said, I don't think they release games on these promotions in any kind of order.

    Torchlight and BG&E have been getting a lot of spotlights but they're being released in the middle of the current promotion.

  • Spekingur #25 1 year ago

    This is because the XBox marketing and financial department is a freaking slugmonster.

    Also, Mazda ad? WTH?

  • Widge #26 1 year ago

    Looking forward to their future PSN releases

  • BillyBrush #27 1 year ago

    To be honest MS did quite a lot of pushing for this game...i thought, so much so that it put me off...they let them pretend they were selling it at a discount when really it was just an 800pt game, they did inside xbox vids, they did have those panels.....tried the game, didn't much like it...what more MS could have done i don't know.

    Be good to see their stats for how many people tried the demo...i bet it was a lot...and that's what promoting XBLA games should be about, if they can't convert from there...games fault not MS

  • Greggywocky... #28 1 year ago

    You can say the word 'fuck' on the internet you know, Eurogamer...

  • ziolorastaman #29 1 year ago

    @Greggywocky...

    Meybe is not matter of what they can do, meybe it is matter of what they want to do...

  • SandyMcD #30 1 year ago

    This is what they get for promoting their game on Wii, getting loads of publicity they'd probably never have had in the more crowded Xbox market, and then switching formats when they decided they had no hope/willingness to fit the thing in the Wiiware size limit.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #31 1 year ago

    You can say the word 'fuck' on the internet you know, Eurogamer...

    Although if you say it a lot when talking about companies with whom you do business, apparently you end up sounding like a sullen teenager.

    And what, they can't squeeze a 2D platform puzzle game down to less than 40 megs for a standard-def console? After my respect for them was raised folling their Peta-baiting, it has dropped considerably now.

  • dillingerdan #32 1 year ago

    It would get more advertising the better it did? So to that end, in that week more people bought a Mazda 3 over XBL, than bought SMB? Now THAT is something I didn't think would ever be implied, as that cannot be true!

  • Mister-Wario #33 1 year ago

    "Microsoft then apparently told Team Meat that the better the game performed, the more promotion it would receive".

    Wait. How is this supposed to work?

  • TonyHarrison #34 1 year ago

    @Mister-Wario You'd be surprised how many publishers actually expect that kind of tactic to work.

    "Hey Mr Publisher, our game is ready for launch now."

    "Really, that's nice. We'll put it out then, if it sells and gets good word of mouth then we'll put some adverts on at 2am during those silly game shows where you have to guess that a woman would have a balaclava or a hammer in her handbag."

    "Gee, thanks...."

    "You're welcome."

    *Game dies at retail"

    "Hey Mr Developer... you're fired."
    Edited by TonyHarrison at 01/03/11 @ 12:03

  • bigtechno #35 1 year ago

    i bought it cause i seen it on live dashboard
    don't know why their moaning
    i didn't think it was worth 1200 points though

  • Murton #36 1 year ago

    I'd like to highlight a specific line in his speech.

    "It's not supposed to hurt your feelings because it's business, but it totally f**king hurt my feelings. Me and Ed just killed ourselves trying to get this game done and now we're just pushed to the side."

    Funny that, because whenever any third party dev goes exclusive with their game/DLC the people on the excluded platform are often told "it's just business." "don't take it so personally" "we value our fans on all platforms and we're certainly not sidelining anyone" - Team Meat are of course an exception, they don't have the manpower for a multiplatform release, but I think the big boys would do well to heed his words and realise how they damage their image with these decisions.

    As for the comments from Team Meat, without knowing the specifics on whatever deal was allegedly made it's hard to come out on either side of the argument. If we take their word for it then MS promised a huge marketing boost and then reneged on that to market a competing product, which is a pretty dick move. But then I kinda doubt that MS would promise such a boost to a small fish like Team Meat in a week where a general Halloween theme would be more advantageous to them, I suspect Team Meat may have jumped to conclusions here and made themselves look foolish in doing so.

  • CHAZBIGPOTATO #37 1 year ago

    This guy is never going to beat Cliffy B for swearing pointlessly, he should just give up trying.

  • Rack #38 1 year ago

    They did add a feature where if you looked at it then you automatically bought it with no confirmation screens whatsoever, they should be happy about that.

  • Wizzle #39 1 year ago

    "Everyone got a free week except us?" Strictly, except yourselves AND Costume Quest, Team Meat. They might not have been part of the promotion, but it would be a bit silly to expect a game about Halloween to have come out at any other time than Halloween.