Bhruic wrote on Sep 19, 2010, 09:55:Stardock knowingly released an incomplete product hoping fans would be forgiving and patiently wait for patches to complete the game.
That's not true, if you believe Brad (and I can see justifiable reasons not to). His story is that he truly believed that the game was ready to ship, because he was "too close" to the source, and didn't have perspective.
Stardock knowingly released an incomplete product hoping fans would be forgiving and patiently wait for patches to complete the game.
Sepharo wrote on Sep 19, 2010, 07:18:
At least WoW and HL2 were finished. They suffered from release/distribution/server-load issues (and a few bugs) but they weren't incomplete.
Stardock knowingly released an incomplete product hoping fans would be forgiving and patiently wait for patches to complete the game.
Scottso wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 04:07:D_K_night wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 03:48:Scottso wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 23:29:
For what it's worth, it's really easy to get a refund. Coming here complaining that you should have bought Civ 5 instead is kind of disingenuous since you CAN get a refund on Elemental. Let's see you get one if you decide you hate Civ 5...
How? Tell us how you can get such a refund. You can't return opened software. EBgames/Gamestop won't take back PC games used.
People got screwed huge, months later this game still isn't playable with the FULL feature set it promised upon release.
Did you actually buy it from one of those places? I only ask because one of the biggest complaints was that it was hardly available on store shelves, only directly from Stardock.
That said, it's not hard to go to their site and learn how to get a refund. If you can't be bothered to find out on your own then I'm not going to hold your hand. Perhaps you are one of those people who post "their opinion" when they didn't even actually buy the game?
Mind you I'm just as disappointed as everyone else at how it ended up being released and I'm hardly a fanboy. I'm just pointing out the fact that Stardock has always been, in my experience, accommodating and they will take care of you if you bother to take it up with them instead of random whining on random forums. But I understand why expecting a bit of effort might be asking too much from some.
mixma242 wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 22:54:zodden wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 22:27:
At least Stardock continues to try and improve the game and fix it. Many companies abandon totally a project that's less then successful.
True, and that is one of the qualities that made Stardock's good reputation. They have been working hard under horrible stress for weeks at this point, and shown that they truly care.... but....
Elemental should never have been released in the first place. We all hear about buggy games, but seriously I have been playing computer games for twenty years and Elemental is on top of the list for 'bad state at release'. Good post release support does not excuse releasing garbage.
Stardock has veered into dangerous turf, and they have gotten zapped for it. They thought that any failings could be made up for in a quick 0day patch, and they planned their business strategy around that. An example is the multilayer - it is touted as a feature yet we now know they never intended to have that as a feature at release. They thought they would patch that in one week after release. Instead, the product is so distressed and they are so far behind that one month after release they still have not implemented it.
If you are content throwing money at a sinking ship, that's your business. I was only here to express my frustration and to perhaps warn others not to make the same mistake I did.The fact that you can't see any middle ground between being content and "OMG I'll never ever buy anything from them again, no matter what!!!" is kind of what I was referring to. I don't like what happened, and as I've already said, I'll be adjusting my expectations and actions toward them to make sure I don't buy a crappy product from them again. They'll now be treated basically like any other publisher, which means they don't get the benefit of the doubt, and they certainly won't get a pre-order.
Wowbagger_TIP wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 12:26:
I'm sure they'll terribly miss the drama queens they lose. Where will all the wailing and gnashing of teeth come from on the forums?
If you bailed on every company that fucked up like this, you would have bailed on Stardock and Ubisoft. That's about it.Really, because no other companies have ever released games that were buggy messes? Have you been gaming for more than a month?
Wowbagger_TIP wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 12:26:Well I took what I could get, but I am here to tell you...I AM DONE WITH STARDOCK! They used to have my highest respect, but after getting the shaft with Demigod and now this piece of bantha poodoo, I am done with Stardock, Brad Wardell, and Impulse.I'm sure they'll terribly miss the drama queens they lose. Where will all the wailing and gnashing of teeth come from on the forums? Really, if I bailed on every company that fucked up like this, I'd have to quit gaming altogether.
They have lost this customer for life.
From what I've heard from others, Demigod turned out pretty good after a while. I never bought it since it's not really my thing. I'm willing to wait and see how this game turns out too. Between the fixes they make and the moddability of it, I'm sure I'll end up with something that's pretty good. I've got plenty to play in the meantime.
Well I took what I could get, but I am here to tell you...I AM DONE WITH STARDOCK! They used to have my highest respect, but after getting the shaft with Demigod and now this piece of bantha poodoo, I am done with Stardock, Brad Wardell, and Impulse.I'm sure they'll terribly miss the drama queens they lose. Where will all the wailing and gnashing of teeth come from on the forums? Really, if I bailed on every company that fucked up like this, I'd have to quit gaming altogether.
They have lost this customer for life.
Scottso wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 23:29:
For what it's worth, it's really easy to get a refund. Coming here complaining that you should have bought Civ 5 instead is kind of disingenuous since you CAN get a refund on Elemental. Let's see you get one if you decide you hate Civ 5...
D_K_night wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 03:48:
How? Tell us how you can get such a refund. You can't return opened software. EBgames/Gamestop won't take back PC games used.
D_K_night wrote on Sep 18, 2010, 03:48:Scottso wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 23:29:
For what it's worth, it's really easy to get a refund. Coming here complaining that you should have bought Civ 5 instead is kind of disingenuous since you CAN get a refund on Elemental. Let's see you get one if you decide you hate Civ 5...
How? Tell us how you can get such a refund. You can't return opened software. EBgames/Gamestop won't take back PC games used.
People got screwed huge, months later this game still isn't playable with the FULL feature set it promised upon release.
Scottso wrote on Sep 17, 2010, 23:29:
For what it's worth, it's really easy to get a refund. Coming here complaining that you should have bought Civ 5 instead is kind of disingenuous since you CAN get a refund on Elemental. Let's see you get one if you decide you hate Civ 5...