Verno wrote on Sep 8, 2015, 09:07:
What's wrong with Youtube game videos? Plenty of funny and informative stuff up there. There are some games I don't want spoilers for but other things like Dark Souls/etc its fun to watch the kinds of builds and antics others get up to.

Agreed, all I hear when people complain about stuff like this is the new version of -

I don't understand why kids today are listening to that garbage instead of real rock and roll! Back in my day we played gee-tar the way the real gee-tar heroes told us to play. None of this new-fangled dub wub wub shtup crap! You can't play air gee-tar to that! How could anyone think that garbage is cool! Go back to listening to what I listened to back when TV was telling me I was cool and get the hell off my lawn!

El Pit wrote on Sep 4, 2015, 01:09:
To put it with the great Frank Zappa: The Torture Never Stops. Neither will the development of this game. One game to rule them all? Yeah, sure.

Great tune, but I think 'The Radio is Broken' really captures the whole SC phenomenon.

InBlack wrote on Sep 4, 2015, 09:34:
Mickey dont sell. Like Machete don't text.

Yeah I figure he's got a better chance of getting hired as a producer on a Monkey Island title than ever repurchasing the IP.

harlock wrote on Aug 28, 2015, 18:32:
btw the whole Handsome Jack character made me want to track down the writer and punch him in the brain.. voice actor didnt help at either

EVERYTHING with Borderlands 2 made me want to slaughter the writer whenever the shooting stopped. I'm still amazed at what this franchise became after being built on some of the strongest co-op gameplay out there. Maybe it's because I played it on a console / couch situation and had an easier chance to enjoy that possibility. Surviving a tough boss battle with your friends a few feet away and hollering the whole time before overcoming the challenge is something that neither a voice in a headset nor creative writing / scripting can ever replicate.

I don't figure it'll be SMB bad, but I'm expecting somewhere between Double Dragon and Doom. Maybe if we're lucky it'll be on par with Tank Girl.

I just hope there's a political assassination in a parade mission like in the original Syndicate. I tried a variety of ways to beat it. Finally settled on recruiting a new agent, giving them some kind of big gun and parking them in the middle of the parade path. Once the traffic stopped he opened fire and the chain reaction took out the target (and pretty much everything else on screen).

All while my more experienced team members nonchalantly walked to the mission exit zone while whistling a jaunty tune over a job well done.

ForgedReality wrote on Aug 27, 2015, 11:23:
I. FUCKING. HATE. THAT. NAME.

Why the fuck can't they call the first one "Divinity: Original Sin" and the second one "Divinity 2: Second Coming" or something? Dumb.

I liked the suggestion from a pcgamesn writer when the sequel was first teased - Divinity: Derivative Sin.

Did they really need to shoot that in front of garbage cans? Just, I don't know, trade places with the camera and shoot against the side of a building.

And how much did they pay for the big Trine poster that got dumped around 6 minutes in?

Seriously, while I did feel bad for these guys initially this is getting ridiculous.

I think there's something else to be said about how radio went from being the main source of media distribution to the public and being thoroughly replaced by TV (and becoming a main source of music distribution) by the time Springsteen started releasing singles.

{PH}88fingers wrote on Aug 25, 2015, 16:39:
Any court can have court marshals or the FTC or whatever send personnel to their many offices around the world and see that actual work is being done.
Which proves how utterly ridiculous this whole frivolous lawsuit is and I am baffled that someone self proclaimed intelligent and an expert in the field can argue otherwise.
That's Derek "Smart" for you right there.

Speaking of utterly ridiculous... the idea that a court would send out a Marshal to a video game studio. I know when you say Court Martial out loud it sounds the same, only it means something completely different (as in - it's a military court of law).

Maybe your thinking of the bailiff who is present in court in order to maintain order and security, or the sheriffs who are there when prisoners need to be transported. Also the FTC is an independent body that isn't directed by courts, hence being independent.

Google - helping people not sound utterly ridiculous since 1998.

Tipsy McStagger wrote on Aug 25, 2015, 15:48:
-You probably can't beat that bear at the start that the guy talks to you about.

It depends on what you mean by 'at the start'.

If you're looking to fully clear the zone before moving on, then yeah you'll have difficulty as a solo fighter.

But... the next area is a town with sidequests to revisit that wildersness zone, and you can recruit a wizard in front of the Inn (or make NPCs). The blind spell is AoE and super awesome.

And a 2.1 GB update on Steam even if you didn't get the expansion.

Will it ever reduce load times (mine averaged between 60-90 seconds)? I finished the base game like 2 weeks ago after logging 100 hours. I figure at least 10 of those were load screens.

Even with that gripe I totally plan on playing through it a 2nd time eventually.

descender wrote on Aug 25, 2015, 08:41:
This sounds suspiciously like another conversation I just had... What? You want facts?! Here, let me refer you back to something I wrote that has no verifiable source!

Seriously, you are not a reliable source of information in any way, linking to your own blog isn't proof that there is corruption in CIG. Unless you have any hard evidence this is just another frivolous lawsuit that will get laughed at by a judge.

I don't understand what you think you are accomplishing.

I do agree with your first part.

And I'm not a lawyer.

But... if it truly was a frivolous lawsuit couldn't / wouldn't CIG just start of with a classic Cease & Desist letter under threat of slander or libel charges? At which point wouldn't any continued action or words against them would be a chargeable offense?

Seems to me paying a lawyer to send a single letter would be a hell of a lot cheaper and less hassle than letting this play out in the press.

Maybe I read things wrong but it seems to me the potential lawsuit is predominantly about allowing any backer who requests a refund to be granted a refund due to the substantial changes and current challenges faced by the development process. That doesn't seem frivolous or unreasonable to me considering how much things have changed over the last 4 years.

Yes, I know they polled the 'community' and got back a resounding 'yes! keep expanding it!' - from the people that chose to (or were aware of) that poll. What about the backers who voted no? or who we unaware of the option and subsequent moving of the goalposts into the next timezone?

It's kind of like if someone in an office went around asking for money to get some pizza for lunch then realized they got WAY more money than they needed so they decide they'll get a chef to come in on some weekend -eventually- to prepare a massive buffet (which would include some pizza on the side). That might be a nicer option for some, but there are some other people involved who just wanted lunch today and that's what they paid for. Shouldn't they be allowed to get their money back?

Comet wrote on Aug 24, 2015, 20:17:
Regarding the 2014 release date. Did they ever assured backers that they would release in 2014? Answer is NO. That date was always a tentative date. And by the way. That expected date was for Squadron 42. Not SC MMO.

I think that's kind of the point for a lot of the unhappy people. This doesn't look like a new Wing Commander game anymore. And the part of the new and improved super duper vision that was going to be the new Wing Commander game (chopped up into episodes) doesn't seem like it'll be happening this year either.

Hell, go to the RSI site, enter 'Squadron 42' in the search box and tell me what you see. Because all I got back were a bunch of Star Marine status updates.

SMB might have been a horrible movie but something based on Fire Emblem done in the style of the Lord of the Rings films could be cool.

Or Zelda in the style of Willow.

Or Metroid a la Aliens! (ok I'm getting ridiculous)

eRe4s3r wrote on Aug 23, 2015, 08:06:
For Steam which is not at the stock exchange, it makes no difference. But for developers and publishers selling on steam this makes a HUGE difference.

While that's definitely true, it's absolutely not Steam's responsibility. They're a distributor, not a publisher. If the developer or their publisher can't be bothered to research or don't care about the results before releasing another clone on the market it's on them, not Steam. And unlike past traditional distribution methods where physical shelf space was a valid concern, as a digital platform, it's irrelevant.

So if you want to release the 14th MOBA this quarter as if yous will be the one to finally cut away a substantial part of the LoL / DOTA2 market well... good luck with that. I would have invested the entire development budget in lottery tickets.

Really though, would you argue that iTunes should be telling musicians what style of music to create?

Awww man... you need 107 games in your Steam library to be part of the One Percent?

I only have 102. I feel like such a loser now hahaha

nin wrote on Aug 21, 2015, 22:11:

jdreyer wrote on Aug 21, 2015, 21:04:
So nin, did you play Wander?

I don't even recall it coming out. I just thought it was a good read from s different perspective most of us don't see.

It's definitely a good read, and something anyone thinking about getting into the industry should take a few minutes to enjoy. Personally I cringed the entire way through. Just the whole premise of someone being brought into development on an MMO without any experience in the industry and essentially became their sole tester... just

YYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NO! no no no no no no no ! NO! NOoooooooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

"A lot of the other team members weren't from a game background"



As far as I can tell it's their first and only product. The link to the developer on the game site loops back to its own start page. The person listed in the article as the programmer is listed as the Press / Business Contact on the site.

A core team of no more than 10 people and only 3 full time? For an MMO?

I admit I'm harsh here, they deserve some recognition for being able to tough it out and manage to release something. But if it's so narrative heavy as implied throughout their website, then why did it actually need to be an MMO rather than an engrossing single player experience? I mean real objective justification as to why having all that extra technical framework was necessary for the narrative - not just because the lead decided they wanted to make an MMO.

They've apparently got more content and story planned. Why did they not implement that first rather than face the incredibly challenging technical difficulties involved in making an MMO? I can't answer that question and hindsight is always 20/20 but still, I cannot wrap my head around why anyone with a real clue on development would make that initial decision.

Because I'm super duper bored this morning...

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
Any game that's part way into development is a 'buggy unplayable mess of a demo'. It's still missing core functionality. Heck, try driving a car that's only two-thirds complete.

Like an engine + chassis but without a body? Sounds entirely drive-able, definitely not street legal, but totally drive-able, and likely the first 2 of 3 major elements to be addressed. In video game terms - the engine (again), and the fundamental mechanics of the various systems the product needs to support, and virtually nothing to look at. No bells, no whistles, nothing shiny or pretty yet, because it has no real big picture value if the underlying elements aren't solid. That's not to say it doesn't have value from a marketing / fund raising standpoint but that's a whole other can of worms.

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
What we do have, though, is evidence of much more substantial content coming - the social module, large maps, multi-crew and first-person combat. At the end of the year we should have a much better idea of where the project stands, as we'll have either had the social module, SM and AC2.0 or they'll be MIA.

And still nothing about Squadron 42, you know, the actual spiritual successor to Wing Commander that got so many people hyped in the very first place. And is there evidence or not, you completely flip flop between the start and the finish. Is there actual evidence coming or will it be MIA?

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
Don't forget, Half-Life 2 took five years to develop.

Don't forget, HL2, or GTA5, or Doom4 or whatever are being made by groups of people who've got a history of delivering. They're also not first attempts, and they're not trying to shoot for a target that no one has hit before and beyond the scope of anything else in the entire industry. Think about that. People who are essentially doing the same thing over again still have a hard time getting it right.

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
The scope of the project has expanded since the original pitch and now the only sensible comparison for development time is that of other AAA games and MMOs - they generally take at least fours years, usually five.

Again they're generally made by people who have a proven track record of delivering products. While I don't doubt the people hired by CIG have talent and ability Chris Roberts' own track record is a valid point of concern.

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
Doom 4 was announced back in 2007 - it's taken eight years and they haven't released anything more than a trailer.

Gee. I wonder if Id being absorbed by Zenimax / Bethesda had anything to do with the length of development. Oh! Development has been entirely restarted by Bethesda as of 2011.

theyarecomingforyou wrote on Aug 22, 2015, 03:10:
We're all well aware of the delays. What matters is whether the end game is decent and that looks to be the case now more than ever. Go back and watch the original pitch then watch the Gamescom demo - the fidelity is far beyond what was originally shown.

Decent? DECENT?!?! Decent does not sound like a valid adjective for what has been routinely quoted as the Best Damn Space Sim Ever! Fidelity is worthless if the underlying framework can barely support it. It's like those douchebags who get a Ferrari body on top of a Honda Civic chassis. Sure it 'looks' like a Ferrari... but it's not a Ferrari.

Creston wrote on Aug 21, 2015, 12:58:

I can't remember where I read it, but it was estimated to be around $40-50 million for the music licenses. That undoubtedly has increased for the PC/PS4/Xbone versions since they have a lot more music.

Fair enough, sounds reasonable as well considering the amount of music. And if it did happen to come out of development budget rather than marketing budget then SC's current budget really isn't that far off either. Especially if most of the marketing budget comes from their monthly subscription revenue. Interesting.

RedEye9 wrote on Aug 21, 2015, 11:21:

Wiki, GTA5 development costs 137 million plus 128 million for marketing.
The more you know... Everyone happy now?

And how much of either piece went to licensing music for all the radio stations?

Seriously though, I've always been curious about it.

As for SC well, rawr rawr rawr, grumble grumble. Another week another wiggle of the carrot, another crumb on the trail.