Betas are a joke now. No one reports bugs when they see one....Its more of a hey I can try it to see if I want to buy it, instead of doing their job and actually helping the developers out. I wish MMO's were more like the DAoC days
If the devs where 100 % sure that their game would swipe everyone of their feet the wouldnt need to have closed beta with early access when you preorder the game. Besides the betas not are a joke compared to 10 years ago or even 5 years. Since its not really beta is more like a finished product. And the people now even complain about lag issues in closed beta, please stay of beta testing then.
And what I mean with this that there should never be a prebeta or closed beta access when you buy a game on preorder. In game items are very nice an also good but not beta access.
So why do MMO gamers frequently complain about pre-order closed beta access?
Many companies advertise it as
"open beta! just create an account and play!!(if you got a serial number which you get by preordering)FREE OPEN BETA(for everyone who got a key) TRY IT FOR FREE NOW(if you preordered it for only 50$ for a game that has no reviews yet and you cant try before you pay and that is buggy as hell because it's a beta, but give us your money anyway FREE!!!!111)"
Probably because people that do not help out also get the benefit of playing. More people notice they get away with it and it grows until its accepted.
Normal human behavior, thats why they hand out tickets to people that are speeding, otherwise everyone would do it.
Some monitor tool if people do report things after certain amount of playtime. Maybe keep the emails names of people that where useful and get them into closed betas of partner developers future mmorpgs? They must have considered this before?
(sorry still learning. I now know I do not hit the reply next to the post I want to reply to. I need to hit the quote button)
Preordering for an open beta is like telling a developer "Here, I don't give a damn how crappy the game is or will be, heres some money up front anyways". It sends a bad message to developers that its ok to make crap.
I don't really have a problem with "paying for a beta". I havent' done it yet, and really can't imagine a game that I feel would be good enough for me to pay, but it's possible that there is one out there.
What it comes down to is this. There is a huge demand for beta spots, everyone and their dog, along with the cousin and step-brothers want to get into a beta spot. Since there is demand, to me it just makes sense that someone would try to make money of it. Thats the way trade works. Yes the company is getting an advantage by having the person test their game, but the next person in line can do that too. As I said the demand is there.
Venge Sunsoar
Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it is bad.
I don't know from were you people pre order but I pre order from play.com and they only get the money when the game is released not a day before so your still technically trying the beta free just you have confirmed that you will buy it once it's out and you can always cancel it before it's out and you will not lose any money.
Regarding Mortal Online, you could preorder and get in the beta.
The problem is that the game is an utter crap, hardly in early Alpha, years away to real "beta" status, let alone release....and they refuse to refund you.
I don't know from were you people pre order but I pre order from play.com and they only get the money when the game is released not a day before so your still technically trying the beta free just you have confirmed that you will buy it once it's out and you can always cancel it before it's out and you will not lose any money.
Maybe thats how it works out in the USA. Not everyone lives there you know.
In my country when you put money down its spend and ordering a game overseas is not done most of the times, because of local servers. And of course shipment cost if its not a client we can download.
I'm from europe and that site ships to europe too and gives europe clients as far as I know (My aion account worked on europe so i think do they have european versions).
Yeah, you know who I'm talking about. All those people that boycotted games like Mortal, Star Trek and Global Agenda because pre-orders came with beta. I don't get you people. You're telling me it's okay to include pre-order benefits like an extra outfit or an extra pre-order only vehicle that will never be available after the game releases but it's not okay to include closed beta access as a pre-order benefit? Games like Natural Selection 2 and Overgrowth are including every phase of development with pre-orders. Both are in alpha. Both allow you to toy with everything the devs do except the source code. I've heard no complaints from any of them yet. So why do MMO gamers frequently complain about pre-order closed beta access? Is it because you're all cheap tightwads that think that if you can't try a game for free that the dev isn't worth your money? Or is it that you really think that's all you're paying for? Wake up. You're paying for the game and a free month of gameplay. The beta is a pre-order benefit, nothing more. It means devs figure that anyone willing to pay up front is dedicated enough to the game to playtest and not just milk free playtime. I don't know how many complaints I've seen about this. Just saying...
Wasn't the Star Trek Beta the "Get an account with Champions and get in the Star Trek Beta" event. That is pretty wrong, it wasn't simply a preorder Star Trek and get in the closed beta.
And I don't think anyone boycotted those games, I think those games all are pretty terrible so most people just didn't buy them or get interested in them. Significant difference there.
Just curious, which game are you such a fan of that you're mad people aren't buying them and don't like how the company operates, an opinion any consumer is allowed to have.
Originally posted by SnarlingWolf Just curious, which game are you such a fan of that you're mad people aren't buying them and don't like how the company operates, an opinion any consumer is allowed to have.
None, really...Global Agenda is awesome, and it's one of the cleanest betas I've been in, even when the devs were still actively bug-fixing and looking for real testers. That being said, without Conquest, it only lasted me a few days and I was off to "better" FPSs again.
Mortal kinda failed me when it didn't fix anything except the absolutely gamebreaking issues.
STO I didn't even have the will to d/l and play after I got a key for it.
I don't understand why would I pre-order something in first place... Leaving extras bundled with pre-order offer aside, what is the point?
Usually it's to assure you get a copy on the release date. In the case of Heavy Rain, I pre-ordered because it gives me the first episode of the Heavy Rain downloadable games free ($10 game) and assures that no matter the rush to get it, I still get a copy.
The term "paying for beta" originally meant subscribing to a half-finished and buggy MMO after release... which is technically applicable for games like STO.
Originally posted by johnmatthais Usually it's to assure you get a copy on the release date. In the case of Heavy Rain, I pre-ordered because it gives me the first episode of the Heavy Rain downloadable games free ($10 game) and assures that no matter the rush to get it, I still get a copy.
Ah, I see. Not that I would ever think about purchasing a game without trying or having access to enough information about it, I can understand it can be welcomed service for many.
I always thought beta was about bug finding to help improve the game once it gets released. nowadays its just a cheap perk given to anyone that pre-orders. Between inexperienced testers, devs that don't listen to thier testers, and finacial backers that are short-sighted and rather get the game on the shelves ASAP rather then invest more time and money into a quality product that could lead to a more stable future for the game...we get games like STO, CO, AoC, WAR etc... the future of MMOs grow darker with each new game that is released. its a good thing that its not about the gamer and more about how fast devs can entice players to buy their newest game.
Yeah, you know who I'm talking about. All those people that boycotted games like Mortal, Star Trek and Global Agenda because pre-orders came with beta. I don't get you people. You're telling me it's okay to include pre-order benefits like an extra outfit or an extra pre-order only vehicle that will never be available after the game releases but it's not okay to include closed beta access as a pre-order benefit? Games like Natural Selection 2 and Overgrowth are including every phase of development with pre-orders. Both are in alpha. Both allow you to toy with everything the devs do except the source code. I've heard no complaints from any of them yet. So why do MMO gamers frequently complain about pre-order closed beta access? Is it because you're all cheap tightwads that think that if you can't try a game for free that the dev isn't worth your money? Or is it that you really think that's all you're paying for? Wake up. You're paying for the game and a free month of gameplay. The beta is a pre-order benefit, nothing more. It means devs figure that anyone willing to pay up front is dedicated enough to the game to playtest and not just milk free playtime. I don't know how many complaints I've seen about this. Just saying...
Betas have always, and should always, be free. It's people testing the game. It should not have a price tag. Why would you put a price tag on a product that isn't launched yet?
And NO, Mortal Online did not have a pre order beta. You had to BUY the game, the entire game, for 70 bucks, a game that doesn't even have a release date, you had to pay full price in order to get into beta. But then Mortal did the total opposite, and opened a truly, free and open beta. The first company to do so in ages. They went from one extreme to the other.
Its a shame though that the beta is a horrible failure. It doesn't work at all. It takes 3 minutes for the server to realize I have taken my axe out, and I can't even put skills on my hotbar, so I can't play or test anything.
Well I personally don't think it's acceptable to give away ANYTHING in-game for a pre-order. Give some free gametime away if you want to provide incentive. But NOTHING else should come with a pre-order. No beta access (which IS a paid beta no matter what kind of twisted reasoning you'd like to argue otherwise), No cosmetic pets, certainly no character-enhancing perks (e.g. no experience rings or free skill points (like the walmart sto perk), and above all NO HEAD START.
Yes, I have an elitist view on this, however it is just important to me that everyone start the same place at the same time with the same gear. End of story. Of course, those who know me may find this humerous as I'm a big advocate of player to player rmt, but that really doesn't matter to me in this context. I just simply believe we should all start a mmo in exactly the same position.
Comments
Betas are a joke now. No one reports bugs when they see one....Its more of a hey I can try it to see if I want to buy it, instead of doing their job and actually helping the developers out. I wish MMO's were more like the DAoC days
Pepsi1028
PEPSI!!!!!
Get out of your box already...
If the devs where 100 % sure that their game would swipe everyone of their feet the wouldnt need to have closed beta with early access when you preorder the game. Besides the betas not are a joke compared to 10 years ago or even 5 years. Since its not really beta is more like a finished product. And the people now even complain about lag issues in closed beta, please stay of beta testing then.
And what I mean with this that there should never be a prebeta or closed beta access when you buy a game on preorder. In game items are very nice an also good but not beta access.
Many companies advertise it as
"open beta! just create an account and play!! (if you got a serial number which you get by preordering) FREE OPEN BETA (for everyone who got a key) TRY IT FOR FREE NOW (if you preordered it for only 50$ for a game that has no reviews yet and you cant try before you pay and that is buggy as hell because it's a beta, but give us your money anyway FREE!!!!111)"
and that is a tad annoying.
Let's play Fallen Earth (blind, 300 episodes)
Let's play Guild Wars 2 (blind, 45 episodes)
Probably because people that do not help out also get the benefit of playing. More people notice they get away with it and it grows until its accepted.
Normal human behavior, thats why they hand out tickets to people that are speeding, otherwise everyone would do it.
Some monitor tool if people do report things after certain amount of playtime. Maybe keep the emails names of people that where useful and get them into closed betas of partner developers future mmorpgs? They must have considered this before?
(sorry still learning. I now know I do not hit the reply next to the post I want to reply to. I need to hit the quote button)
Preordering for an open beta is like telling a developer "Here, I don't give a damn how crappy the game is or will be, heres some money up front anyways". It sends a bad message to developers that its ok to make crap.
I don't really have a problem with "paying for a beta". I havent' done it yet, and really can't imagine a game that I feel would be good enough for me to pay, but it's possible that there is one out there.
What it comes down to is this. There is a huge demand for beta spots, everyone and their dog, along with the cousin and step-brothers want to get into a beta spot. Since there is demand, to me it just makes sense that someone would try to make money of it. Thats the way trade works. Yes the company is getting an advantage by having the person test their game, but the next person in line can do that too. As I said the demand is there.
Venge Sunsoar
I don't know from were you people pre order but I pre order from play.com and they only get the money when the game is released not a day before so your still technically trying the beta free just you have confirmed that you will buy it once it's out and you can always cancel it before it's out and you will not lose any money.
Regarding Mortal Online, you could preorder and get in the beta.
The problem is that the game is an utter crap, hardly in early Alpha, years away to real "beta" status, let alone release....and they refuse to refund you.
Maybe thats how it works out in the USA. Not everyone lives there you know.
In my country when you put money down its spend and ordering a game overseas is not done most of the times, because of local servers. And of course shipment cost if its not a client we can download.
I'm from europe and that site ships to europe too and gives europe clients as far as I know (My aion account worked on europe so i think do they have european versions).
Ps. Play.com has free shipping on every item.
Wasn't the Star Trek Beta the "Get an account with Champions and get in the Star Trek Beta" event. That is pretty wrong, it wasn't simply a preorder Star Trek and get in the closed beta.
And I don't think anyone boycotted those games, I think those games all are pretty terrible so most people just didn't buy them or get interested in them. Significant difference there.
Just curious, which game are you such a fan of that you're mad people aren't buying them and don't like how the company operates, an opinion any consumer is allowed to have.
None, really...Global Agenda is awesome, and it's one of the cleanest betas I've been in, even when the devs were still actively bug-fixing and looking for real testers. That being said, without Conquest, it only lasted me a few days and I was off to "better" FPSs again.
Mortal kinda failed me when it didn't fix anything except the absolutely gamebreaking issues.
STO I didn't even have the will to d/l and play after I got a key for it.
Check out the MUD I'm making!
I don't understand why would I pre-order something in first place...
Leaving extras bundled with pre-order offer aside, what is the point?
Usually it's to assure you get a copy on the release date. In the case of Heavy Rain, I pre-ordered because it gives me the first episode of the Heavy Rain downloadable games free ($10 game) and assures that no matter the rush to get it, I still get a copy.
Check out the MUD I'm making!
The title of this thread is misleading.
The term "paying for beta" originally meant subscribing to a half-finished and buggy MMO after release... which is technically applicable for games like STO.
Ah, I see. Not that I would ever think about purchasing a game without trying or having access to enough information about it, I can understand it can be welcomed service for many.
Thanks for explaining
I always thought beta was about bug finding to help improve the game once it gets released. nowadays its just a cheap perk given to anyone that pre-orders. Between inexperienced testers, devs that don't listen to thier testers, and finacial backers that are short-sighted and rather get the game on the shelves ASAP rather then invest more time and money into a quality product that could lead to a more stable future for the game...we get games like STO, CO, AoC, WAR etc... the future of MMOs grow darker with each new game that is released. its a good thing that its not about the gamer and more about how fast devs can entice players to buy their newest game.
Betas have always, and should always, be free. It's people testing the game. It should not have a price tag. Why would you put a price tag on a product that isn't launched yet?
And NO, Mortal Online did not have a pre order beta. You had to BUY the game, the entire game, for 70 bucks, a game that doesn't even have a release date, you had to pay full price in order to get into beta. But then Mortal did the total opposite, and opened a truly, free and open beta. The first company to do so in ages. They went from one extreme to the other.
Its a shame though that the beta is a horrible failure. It doesn't work at all. It takes 3 minutes for the server to realize I have taken my axe out, and I can't even put skills on my hotbar, so I can't play or test anything.
Well I personally don't think it's acceptable to give away ANYTHING in-game for a pre-order. Give some free gametime away if you want to provide incentive. But NOTHING else should come with a pre-order. No beta access (which IS a paid beta no matter what kind of twisted reasoning you'd like to argue otherwise), No cosmetic pets, certainly no character-enhancing perks (e.g. no experience rings or free skill points (like the walmart sto perk), and above all NO HEAD START.
Yes, I have an elitist view on this, however it is just important to me that everyone start the same place at the same time with the same gear. End of story. Of course, those who know me may find this humerous as I'm a big advocate of player to player rmt, but that really doesn't matter to me in this context. I just simply believe we should all start a mmo in exactly the same position.