I think that Ritual did something very silly though. Announcing all nine episodes is going to make people think twice about investing in the series, even though it's only the cost of 3 regular retail releases. I would have mentioned only 3 at the most, see how things go, then announce the next 3 etc. Most gamers suffer from ADD, and comprehending 9 episodes might be a bit much.

This comment was edited on Apr 6, 12:04.

What you are equating here is apples and oranges. If you buy 3 full length games you are getting 3 full length gaming experiences. In buying 3, 3-episode blocks of the same game you are getting "more" content, but still a single gaming experience. This is not an equal comparison, especially since no one knows whether the added content will bring new features or it will just be akin to adding more maps with the same gameplay from previous episodes.

I don't see your logic here (entirely). When you buy 1 game, it has the same gameplay and relative content. So if 3 episodes contain the same content and relative gameplay as a full length title what's the difference. This argument would only hold true if they changed nothing at all in the course of 9 episodes. Which they have already stated is not going to happen. They plan to make adjustments, add new features and content with each episode. Of course this is all words. Until it happens we won't know.

It would not even be acceptable to compare the 9 Sin episodes to a trilogy of games such as Quake 1, 2, 3 since in a typical game trilogy the technology and features change with each installment providing a substantially different gaming experience with each new iteration. With episodic content I doubt that any extensive new features will be added with each episode because of the myriad of problems involved in changing core mechanics of a game.

You are making an assumption that the technology will not change. I think that's a major oversight. The Source engine is going under major revisions atm. And will over the next few years. Valve is moving towards episodic content, heck they've essentially been testing that model for 5 years now with HL1. Constantly adding bits here and there (for free). Using HDR as an example, this was a major rendering addition. More is coming, be sure of that. And unless Ritual does 0 changes to the renderer themselves, which I doubt, expect that they plan to do more with it. Also they are working on their own tech.

Geez I sound like a lame fan Boi.. (which I'm not.. believe me).

This comment was edited on Apr 6, 11:55.

Forgoing whether or not this is a good game or not, let's break down the strategy:

Avergage full length retail/download PC FPS title is around 9~ hours of gameplay for the "experienced player". COD2, HL2, etc all fall into this category. They are all priced at $49.99+

-3 episodes = 1 retail release (9hrs+ gameplay $60~)
-9 episodes = 3 retail releases (27+hrs gameplay $180~) or a trilogy (a standard way of designing a story)
-wait between episodes 6~months
-if it was a full length product, wait between retail releases 18-24~months

Argument #1 - Broken up, not enough content etc..

Yes you potentially will have a downtime in between titles. However, this downtime is much less overall. A 9hr game can be comfortably completed in two sittings. This game can be completed in 1 sitting. So you waited 5 years for HL2, what's the problem with waiting 6 months for Episode 2?

You'd have to wait longer for the next title in a traditional retail/online full length game. If the game is designed to be a long story there would be a larger gap in story telling vs episodic release.

Argument #2 - Price

People think this game will cost more than a traditional retail release. This is simply not true.

When finished, SiN Episodes will cost no more than 3 traditional full length games. Provided they meet the minimum 3hrs of gameplay for "experienced gamers" that is the same value as releasing 3 full length titles.

I'll add more later as I see em come in.

This comment was edited on Apr 6, 10:08.

Notice how they they announce an expansion before the Editor is done? I wonder how well planned that was. Get at least one expansion out before the mod community does something better!

Butterfingers 2

I suspected this would happen. It was obvious to me the real motivation for DICE to acquire Trauma Studios was so that they could avoid any litigation that would come about with the production of BF2 (come on guys, BF2 is Desert Combat with a shiny new grafx engine and some great new features, cant wait for the game though). It was the cheaper and smarter move to make. Now the Trauma boys are done out of $200,000 and their only job security is to move to Sweden.

A developer wants to continue their franchise. Unfortunately the next logical step has already been developed for free, and is widely successful.

Buy the rights to the free mod, cease development of said mod and then dissolve said team when new game is finished. The community feels that their beloved mod makers are getting a decent reimbursement and PR takes the rest of the day off to play golf.

DICE/EA not having to payout any remaining money was most likely due to a one-sided (DICE/EA) contract.

This comment was edited on Jun 7, 12:33.