chickenboo wrote on Dec 12, 2019, 19:36:
Good Op Ed, but it boils down consumer backlash to noisy racists/trolls, labelling all dissenting opinions about the EGS to the association with a few noisy rude loudmouths on twitter. It's like labelling all of the protesters in Hong Kong as dangerous radical looting rioters because a few bad seeds are present.

The arguing against EGS definitely comes off as petty - it's just a store front, big deal - but games sold on Kickstarter guaranteeing Steam keys and then suddenly taking EGS exclusivity deals while riding the association with the Steam store front is pretty misleading and bad practice. Ditto Metro Exodus who announced two weeks before launch that they're going EGS Exclusive, the backlash for that is pretty deserved, and despite there being a lot of horrible direct abuse and attacks which are never warranted, there's a hell of a lot of decent, reserved commentary on why this is a bad thing. It's pretty annoying that this Op Ed glosses over that in favor of portraying every game consumer with the same rabid/troll/racist/pigheaded paintbrush.

The 88/12 deal is fine for producers but the argument it will lead to more and better games is simply misleading. It's like when businesses say that any increase in taxes represents one less employee that could be hired, implying they would have hired extra people if they had the money, not that that ever really happens. Look at Mechwarrior 5 Mercs: the game just released, it's riddled with poor grammar, spelling mistakes, the story is some weak revenge tale with one dimensional characters who don't even more, they just stand there stock still. From what I've read the missions are dead simple and don't offer branching paths that even MW2 Mercs managed to do (complete your contract with A or do what B suggests and get double the payout). You mean to tell me this developer took the EGS payout, and this is what we get? How do you release a V1.0 with grammar and spelling mistakes? I thought 88/12 split was supposed to improve the quality of games.

Until we get clear proof from developers of what they were able to achieve with the generous EGS earnings split and a demonstration of what would have been left off the table without it, why should I believe them that it's in MY best interests to buy from this store, that exclusivity is worth it? And when/if Steam eventually meets the 88/12 split... are we going to see these fabled lands of better games now that devs get 18% more, or will it be status quo...

Luke wrote on Nov 26, 2019, 08:20:

Choobeastia wrote on Nov 25, 2019, 20:27:

Thakk wrote on Nov 24, 2019, 14:45:
I've dropped about $1k on the promise of CR's vision. I hope it comes to fruition. I'm fine with the spent funds. Will I be contributing anymore funds in the short-term? No. I've given enough. If/when the IP ships, that's when I'll determine to give more.

As a former Project Manager of software developers, I've been having a blast following the ups and downs and I've met some great people along the way. I know all to well the JIRA jargoon and Project Manager speak they've incorporated these past few years. It's a slog, no doubt about it, especially with scope creep. I wish them the best of luck.

Ahh a believer....never fails to make one laugh , keep telling to youself and it will be true...in ya head 350$ sick


Are you sure you're on the right webpage? My impression was that people were only allowed to call it a scam, joke about it never coming out, or act like it's their duty to love it around these parts. *offers a map*

All jokes aside, I agree. I'm not in as far as you (about $350 here), but I don't have any regrets. I enjoy watching the progress, and it's been a blast seeing different components come online. SOCS is a huge one, and I look forward to when that blossoms into Server Meshing.

GinRummy wrote on Nov 25, 2019, 10:35:
For all the millions of words argued about this game so far, nobody ever actually talks about the state of gameplay in it. Is it an empty solo place? Are there people, quests, enemies, planets, etc. yet even in beta form? What is coming soon and is it actually worth trying the demos now? I suppose I could install it myself and see, but that's work others could do and just tell me.

Cutter wrote on Nov 24, 2019, 17:29:
And each one of those virtual ships is available to you for only several thousand dollars a pop! What a bargain!!!

Thakk wrote on Nov 24, 2019, 14:45:
I've dropped about $1k on the promise of CR's vision. I hope it comes to fruition. I'm fine with the spent funds. Will I be contributing anymore funds in the short-term? No. I've given enough. If/when the IP ships, that's when I'll determine to give more.

As a former Project Manager of software developers, I've been having a blast following the ups and downs and I've met some great people along the way. I know all to well the JIRA jargoon and Project Manager speak they've incorporated these past few years. It's a slog, no doubt about it, especially with scope creep. I wish them the best of luck.

MeanJim wrote on Nov 15, 2019, 22:37:
Even if I were interested, it would be a no buy for these reasons:

3rd-party DRM:
* Denuvo
* EA on-line activation and Origin client software installation and background use required.
* Requires 3rd-Party Account: EA Account (Supports Linking to Steam Account)

Darks wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 18:56:

Choobeastia wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 12:44:

BIGtrouble77 wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 02:32:

Darks wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 02:13:

BIGtrouble77 wrote on Oct 19, 2019, 21:35:

Darks wrote on Oct 19, 2019, 19:02:
Freed huh? yea, there is nothing free about this POS game. its all locked behind DLC. Cost you 20 times more to unlocked everything then it would have to just buy the game. Screw that BS!!!

It's funny that everyone that doesn't play this game has this opinion, while the rest of us that do play the game like the DLC policy.

And you are exactly why these shit heel publishers do the shit they do. You must be so proud!!

Even with all the DLC paid at full price, my price per hour played is ridiculously low. That's the only metric I care about.

I'm right there with you. Even if I paid the full $191 for Stellaris, plus 3 full expansions, plus many story packs and others, I am at about $0.15 an hour with 1281 hours played. It would cost me more than that in gas to go to a nearby donut shop and just look at the donuts.

Basically, the PDX model is a proper business model to keep up with inflation, and not something designed to bilk some people out of tons of cash via micro-transactions and loot boxes.

You guys are a bunch of delusional assholes. I dont care how you break it down,. price gouging is gouging no matter how you guys try and justify it. SMH!!!

BIGtrouble77 wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 02:32:

Darks wrote on Oct 20, 2019, 02:13:

BIGtrouble77 wrote on Oct 19, 2019, 21:35:

Darks wrote on Oct 19, 2019, 19:02:
Freed huh? yea, there is nothing free about this POS game. its all locked behind DLC. Cost you 20 times more to unlocked everything then it would have to just buy the game. Screw that BS!!!

It's funny that everyone that doesn't play this game has this opinion, while the rest of us that do play the game like the DLC policy.

And you are exactly why these shit heel publishers do the shit they do. You must be so proud!!

Even with all the DLC paid at full price, my price per hour played is ridiculously low. That's the only metric I care about.

Kxmode wrote on Jun 11, 2019, 16:45:

Cutter wrote on Jun 11, 2019, 11:35:
Oh right, EGS exclusive = hard pass.

September 2020, available on Steam... soft pass. I don't reward developers who engage in deception.

ldonyo wrote on Jan 25, 2019, 11:07:

Darks wrote on Jan 25, 2019, 10:58:

Clu32 wrote on Jan 25, 2019, 10:54:
did anyone even ask for this?

Nope, I think mainly we have been wanting more content added to the world and the option to host our own servers. None of this forced in pvp bullshit.

In fact, the exact opposite of this has been asked for; the ability to completely opt out of PvP. Instead, they've nerfed weapons and added ambush PvP, err "survival mode".

VaranDragon wrote on Jan 8, 2019, 16:50:

Muscular Beaver wrote on Jan 8, 2019, 12:42:

ItBurn wrote on Jan 8, 2019, 12:35:
Well if this is Win10 only, I guess I'm not playing it...

And not even DX12... lol

Yeah this is really weird. I mean a lot of people are still gaming on Win7 machines, so if it's not a DirectX 12 exclusive, what possible reason would they have to leave a good chunk of money on the table? Im guessing that Win10 machines are kind of more like consoles, so they are easier to support? (lol?)

Cutter wrote on Jan 4, 2019, 21:17:
All of these clowns need to shut up and let the courts decide. That's all that matters in the end. He said, she said, whatever.

eRe4s3r wrote on Jan 4, 2019, 21:43:
Holy crap, if before I just thought they are misaligned assholes now I think they are malicious fucktards. The entire last paragraph is straight out of some insane alternate reality novel. You couldn't make that shit up if you tried.

They apparently believe they have a copyright on gameplay expressions. Can't wait till a court tells them how the real world works because that's just absurd, if the court gave them a pass on that reasoning the entire games industry would end.

GothicWizard wrote on Jan 2, 2019, 23:01:
Paul and Fred needs to, as The Rock would say, know your role and shut your mouth. They clearly lost the IP. Get the fuck over it and move on. If SC meant so much to them then where was the next SC game from them before SD got involved? Yea.. exactly. Seems like they want to whine and cry about something they didn't seem to want to do anything with until someone else did.

Kxmode wrote on Jan 2, 2019, 22:24:

Choobeastia wrote on Jan 2, 2019, 21:55:

Kxmode wrote on Jan 2, 2019, 21:14:
Setting aside the legal shenanigans, please remember Stardock is not EA or Activision. I do believe all the people involved in the project put their heart and soul into this game, and out of love for the original and not to please anonymous shareholders. I'm not calling it mercy money, but $20 is a decent price. Buying from Stardock's site means they keep 100% of the purchase, which they definitely need now.

Actually, I'm uncertain if Steam still takes a cut if Stardock is auto-generating keys. Anyone know?

Brad has a history of telling half-truths, and twisting the narrative to put himself in the best light, and make others look crazy. He also has a tendency to show up places to do so when he's mentioned, as though he spends his day googling himself to find out where to rush in with his special type of "truth."

While I do believe most people at Stardock are passionate about the projects they work on, and Brad may even be as well, I also believe that Stardock is poorly led and represented by him.

It isn't our responsibility to reward them for being passionate about what they do, it's his responsibility as CEO and the public face of their company to learn how to play nice, and keep quiet while the lawyers do their jobs. It's a shame the damage he is doing to his company, and the people who work for him, but I'm sure as heck not going to reward him for it.

Who said anything about "reward?"

Ford and Reiche issue the DMCA takedown against their product on Steam and GOG. So I'm not exactly sure how your last point relates to my suggestion of supporting an independent developer/publisher who isn't a publicly traded faceless corporate giant like EA and Activision. By the way, I started my comment with "Setting aside the legal shenanigans" to explicitly set aside ALL of what you're talking about because it's not relevant to the point of my original post.

Again, you keep using that word "reward." I do not think it means what you think it means.