Cutter wrote on Jun 4, 2014, 23:49:
Because simply adding a disclaimer doesn't release you from responsibility. And the customer didn't pay you for the first few chapters they paid you for the entire product - which you failed to deliver and therefore owe them their money back. And the company that owns the mall should have done some due diligence to see if the tenet was reliable in the first place.
Obviously the simple solution is just don't do early access, but there is also the very real and legal concept of "good faith". In that consumers are entitled to a "reasonable expectation" that in paying someone for a product or service, it's going to be delivered on time and on budget.
Re-read my example.
"Customer agrees to pay me for the first few chapters".
That's all they are entitled too since that's all they can actually purchase since nothing else actually exists yet. If I keep writing and create more and release it to consumers, they're still NOT owed personal satisfaction from the product. Just whatever new content has been created.
I think the issue is there are too many young / naive gamers who are putting too much stock in the concept of 'good faith' and this misguided belief that indie development without the boogeyman of publisher suits will automatically result in awesome games like the ones we all dream about. Did that really work out in the music industry over the last few decades with the rise of its indie / home production scene?
I will never side with the irate consumer who didn't bother reading the fine print before spending their cash. NKD said it best, Early Access is a matter of investing in hope, not a guarantee.