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A Warning
infra172
Member UncommonPosts: 145
This game looks great! I can't wait to play it. However, if you delay one more time or if the game fails to live up to your promises at launch, the MMORPG community will come down on you like a ton of bricks. Let what's happening to Dark and Light be a warning to you. Put in overtime. Hire new programmers. Do whatever you can to make this game a reality. The days of Anarchy Online, Star Wars Galaxies, and Dark and Light style releases are over. People aren't going to sit around and wait on a game's "potential." There are too many games on the market for that.
On February 1st, send out a complete, working game or prepare to send out your resume.
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Comments
And what is your part of the mafia called?
MMORPGas Nostra?
I understand where the OP is coming from.
There are currently way too many less than quality MMORPG in the market at this time.
So many that companies seem to think that the consumer will be suckered to take in anything at this time due to the current market.
Many has released less than quality games and many people give teh excuses of "Its a MMO, all MMOs have issues at the beginning!"
If the consumers keep giving this excuse then the companies will feed of those excuses that the consumers help them with.
But back to the point.
The release of D&L: SoG at its current state and th amount of refunds for its Pre-orders have made Farlan succumb to actually allow Refunds straight from them.
Why they do this?
It is simple really: If a dissatisfied consumer requests a refund via the CC then teh manufacturer will be charged addtionally for charge backs.
It may be less of a cost for the manufacturer to hand out those refunds themselves.
Some of the faithful followers of the game has lost faith in the game they ahve been following for years.
Some are tired of how the MMO Companies are exploiting their consumers.
In short: Some consumers are starting to use their rights and not letting the companies step on them.
I am now currently checking out TC and I hope that it does not pull a "D&L: SOG".
So far, TC has already put a better effort in the communication factor.
I have asked a question in their official forums and was actually replied to by an official rep of the game within the same day!
We will see how TC delivers in time I suppose ... and I will be watching.
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My Sager 5760 Review
Yes because everyone cares what the community on MMORPG.com has to say.(sarcasm if you didn't notice)
Your mind is like a parachute, it's only useful when it's open.
Don't forget, you can use the block function on trolls.
- CaesarsGhost
Lead Gameplay and Gameworld Designer for a yet unnamed MMO Title.
"When people tell me designing a game is easy, I try to get them to design a board game. Most people don't last 5 minutes, the rest rarely last more then a day. The final few realize it's neither fun nor easy."
I know that, Im trying to sound skeptical here
shhh
But ya, I was actually surprised by those people actually answering my question ... and in quite a fast mannr as well ... considering its the holiday season.
______________________________
My Sager 5760 Review
This is the first game that I have seen Reps with such quick responses and the best thing is that its not just 1 doing everything.
No one cares what you believe troll...so you move along
And to the original poster....the community here does not make or break any game. If you think so...then you spend too much time here.
"This may hurt a little, but it's something you'll get used to. Relax....."
If the community doesn't play the game and pay the subscription, the company goes bankrupt and the game servers are shut down. Is that too complicated for you?
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He meant the community here on MMORPG.com specifically... maybe you should spend some time reading the posts and figuring out their actual meaning rather than trying to come up with some useless snide reply.
Well I did three preorders because I believe in the game and it will be worth playing. No Dwarves making doors 200 feet tall, no static world to see the same quest handed to *every single person* who talks to them, no more fights that go "tab 1 1 1 2 1 1 2... tab 1 1 1 2.." like a frost/fire mage (and a rogue wasn't much different). No more classes! Play a flying pixie, or a giant treefolk.
I think the players decide if the game is a success more than you do. I've also been playing these games 9 years, touching them for the first time in UO beta (fishing before there was any fish to fish). Played EQ, AO, WoW, SB, PE, Horizons, MxO, SWG, Planeshift all over a month. Also played Knight Online, Saga of Ryzom, Guild Wars, Silkroad Online, and quite a few others but they couldn't hold my interest. I think The Chronicle will have enough game depth to keep me playing a long time.
Most of those games are level and content grinds. Once you have seen all the content what is there left to do? Nothing. Shadowbane and Guild Wars were the only two games to offer any alternatives at all at launch, WoW sorta added BattleGrounds but it seems to yank people out of instances and groups more than feel like an ongoing battle. Middle of deep in an elite area with no hearthstone charge, and the other 4 teammates get pulled away just before I die. Yay for battlegrounds. Shadowbane you could build a city, but... only a Tree with a few shops really. Here, the city will breathe and live based on your actions.
No, I don't think your rash judgment based on fake data by some nameless *cough* mmorpg website will affect the game too much.
I think just the fact that they're trying to move the genre forward makes them worthy of a pre-order. And planning a game with zombies? That's worth two. With games like WoW getting rich by dumbing everything down to appeal to everyone, I really wasn't expecting anything like this to come along. And perma-death? Wasn't expecting to see that again. It'll be nice to have penalties for dying again.
A** Still Raw From Your Last SWG Subscription? Come join us at RLMMO.com
That's why i pre-ordered as well and partly why i didn't ask for my pre-order back (that and it wasn't worth the time). however, the original poster has a point; the delays considering the games self-promotion does seem to illustrate either a naive company, an incompatent company or a company that is considerably over hyping it's abilities.
Its a company that has shot itself in the foot. Even if the game is released in April (don't hold your breath) and even if the game is incredibly good, its ruined. It now has absolutely no chance of building a community. Who is going to trust them? The best they can hope for now is that they recoup some of their development costs from the fanboys who'll play the game even if its a ghost town.
I was one of the first to predict what has happened to Dark and Light. I predict the Chronicle will be about as successful as Horizons or AC2.
The prophet has spoken.
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April is another date this site pulled out of their ass pretending to know something you don't and calling it news.
Changing game engines is no small feat, and the general consensus is that the shift is worth it. They moved from a semi-free game engine to one that has been actively developed and used for years, in another game called Endless Ages from MMOLands.com. (EA has old art, MMOCenter is updating that art).
I wanted to read more about the Aura Game Engine, and found this link http://www.brokenreality.net/ on google weeks ago, before I made my preorders. Aura has a physics engine. WoW defies physics at every turn. Aura has collisions, WoW has running through characters in pvp to avoid being hit by them. A PHYSICS Engine! Imagine dropping something in water and if it is dense enough, it sinks, if not, it floats. I don't know if/what physics will be implemented, but this is something that hasn't come out in an MMOG that I know of. There is that car bashing game, but I barely see that as an MMOG, aside from the fact you crash into other people. Maybe it won't be in the first game, but if it is in a game, wow... Implementing Havok (in Halflife2) made a huge difference, the world seemed real. They have a forklift demo on that link above, and think of the difference between dropping a crate in that demo and the prompt in WoW, "Are you sure you wish to destroy this item?" when you attempt to drop something.
No, no... infra, this does *not* make them incompetent.
PS The game screenshots are from the OLD game engine and look horrid.
April is past their deadline of 8 months. How can they achieve the same results if they keep switching game engines and finish the game in 2 years. April is past their 8 month period of "development" therefore if it is released to consumers after this 8 month period they will lose their recognition as fast mmorpg developers. They lied to consumers without justifying it with a reasonable explanation. The fact that they got a new "engine" does not justify releasing the game after the 8 month period. This site did not come up with April, they got it from the interview with Adam Getti http://www.ogaming.com/data/3412%7Emmocenter.php
8 months was the deadline under the old game engine, not the new one. Game engine switching adds delays.
I can see where they arrived at the Feb deadline, using 8 months from May 2005. Where did this April deadline come from?
1 switch to a new engine I understand. If in 6 months RR says they are switching to a new game engine (again) and The Chronicle is delayed until May 2007 then your argument has merit. Everyone I spoke with on this topic says the old graphics were going to be a deterrent to the game, and the new graphics are amazing. I don't see the motivation for a second switch, especially considering the new engine has a solid track history working with Endless Ages. As a user I see little to no motivation to switch again. I spoke with people at RR about game engines and this switch specifically, so I think that I might know *something* especially since I also looked at doing developement under several game engines myself.
your wrong drak. TC had already been postponed once from Nov to Jan before they switch ports. and, it was already obvious that they weren't going to make that date before they annonced the switch. secondly, you seem to be under the impression that somehow, the switch to a new engine wasn't due to the developers miscalculating the abilities of the original engine and the also stubbornly maintaining the same rechtoric about the engine well into when they were looking for other alternatives.
TC is over hyped. i'm not saying that it won't be a fun game or even a great game, but the development company has some issues.
Okay, let me see how I am wrong here. 5 (may) + 8 = 13 = Jan of next year. Unless I am wrong there, and 5+8 *actually* = 11.
Announcing a switch is probably done after they already decided it. Like how parents are supposed to decide things before announcing them to their children.
Miscalculating abilities? I think that they probably understood their engine well and collisions, etc. The basic features are not cutting edge, and I'm certain that the old system would have done an adequate job. On the other hand, as a developer, I would not want to spend 1 year under a system, and then switch to something new, backport everything, attempt to fix and kludge things together, converting live content at the same time. Why put my users and developers through that agony if I can just switch now and spare everyone the pain? The only 'pain' experienced now is phantom pain, from not having a perceived desire.
It isn't "rechtoric" as you say if the statements are accurate. Namely, the old system would have been adequate. The new system (and you haven't seen what I have seen unless you are secretely preorder) is much much better. So you have old < new and again I fail to see your logic or my flaw.
RR made a very good stragetic move, rather than rebuild something or attempt to tweak or suffer under an adequate archictecure, they bought and implemented an existing system *and their expertise*. Here is the general perception I see here: a company lying, realizing the lie wasn't believable, and then making a (previously claimed by someone else) series of vaporware announcements that result in a timeframe approaching industry standard, with industry standard ethics to go with. The reality to me, after doing more research and accurate math than I have seen here, is the following synopsis:
Company has concept of making multiple games and has art talent and solid concept for each game. Company licenses the drawing of graphics on screen, and has ok graphics and believes they can sell solid gameplay. Company wants to not only stay competitive, but realizes better technology is within grasp. Company buys another company, revenue stream, existing product and expertise derailing a mostly completed project under old system as new system is adopted. Refund offered for people who aren't happy with the delay (I have been billed again by companies in similar circumstances before *cough HZ cough*) and move forward with development not hindered by outdated (but adequate) graphics. Better to upgrade now than later, saving resources and avoiding doing the same work twice.
These are two very different pictures, and both perspectives could apply to the same events as viewed by an outsider. Most of the claims I have seen here are inaccurate (5+8=11 is wrong) and I'm not so much interested in debating perspective because only time will tell. In the meantime, I look at information available, talk to the developers and Community Manager, ask questions and get answers. I personally don't think that scam companies offer refunds, or spend additional money buying (game) assets. Changing a UI or Engine is a lot of work. Look at Anarchy Online, they *still* have the same annoying UI and a few months of dev time could have fixed most of the annoyances. (team of 5 under 1 month) AO has an adequate UI, and they probably won't ever change it. On the other hand, a company preemptively updating their code to be competitive will likely stay competitive.
I'm not going to respond to this thread anymore until someone shows me May+8=Nov or where this April deadline came from.
you're using phony numbers drak. the original concept was 6 months not 8. the dates giveen in this forum by most isn't by extrapolating expect developmrnt time, as you have done, but are reference to dates given by the community/devlopment leader.
there is no shades of grey as for the engine being adequate/better. what is meant by better? if the first engine worked giving them the quality they desired then it is nothing except a delay to change to a "better" engine. If the first engine was inadeuate then it was a mistake not only to choose it as the engine (which is an accepable mistake) byt then they have been promoting it as the next wave of development well after it should of been obvious that it wasn't.
while i don't agree that it's only perspective even it that was true given the nature of the mmorpg markets why would anyone give mmolands the benifit of the doubt. It should be rapid realities responsibility and focus to prove they are different and do what they can to not just leave it to individuals perspective by providing proof not rhetoric for how they are better. As someone already suggested they have shot themseleves in the foot by promoting themselves as new/different, organized and innovative and then giving the "perspective" of not being so.
The bottom line is: Rapid Reality failed to come up with a game within 6-8 months. Who can trust someone who does not show up for an important appointment? Who can trust someone who doesn't complete their work in time? TC is over hyped and the potential fanbase will slowly decline because they failed to comply with their own deadline of 6-8 months.
The fact that they got a new engine or a simple improvement doesn't change anything about time. They already lost the battle with their own deadline.
I don't show up to work on time, but I personally made my company over $3 mil last year. They like me.
Where did April come from?
I'm not allowed to show you any content, but this is not shades of grey. The new engine is much better. PHYSICS! Not to mention kick ass graphics.