The Rise Of Bugs In Console Games

Thanks to GameSpy for posting a column discussing the increasing prevalence of serious bugs and glitches in console titles, especially in relation to several of this summer's 'blockbusters'. Singled out are Enter The Matrix: "Even if you enjoy the game.. you can't ignore the fact that all three console makers let Atari have a 'get out of final approval free card' when it came to testing...", as well as the new Tomb Raider title: "AOD froze up on me at least half a dozen times... Lara fell through invisible gaps in the street, walked through invisible gaps in walls, and refused to walk up stairs that she was supposed to be able to climb." What's to be done when, as the author says, "judging from the sales of these... titles, enough of you guys just aren't punishing the companies for releasing sub-par products to make a difference"?

Comments

whats to be done?

[mutewinter]

Buggy games certainly have to account for a portion of "piracy" out there. A few bad experiences of dropping $50 for a piece of trash can make individuals who aren't quite in the middle-class less than eager to take the risk again.

Consoles are even worse. At least for PC games we can anticipate patches, which generally tend to do a pretty good job fixes bugs, especially if its a big game (or an online one.)

too much pressure to rush to market?

[jdvernon1976]

I'm betting on "We HAVE to get this game on the shelves, otherwise we lose money because of X"

X = in time to be released same weekend as movie
X = it's already been delayed and it's killing us

Don't the publishers realize that releasing sub-par games on schedule is MUCH worse than releasing excellent games behind?

Look at Blizzard - standard-bearer for "when it's done, it'll be fabulous" - Diablo 2, Warcraft 3 are prime examples

Gamers are lenient on deadlines when the game exceeds expectations, but I'm betting that Matrix Revolutions (if they make a game) won't have quite the same reception....

Well..

[icemax]

Enter the Matrix was a rush job by a studio that never should have gotten the contract. Shiny's biggest accomplishments (Earth Worm Jim, MDK) are no where near the great games put out by the first two studios contracted by the Matrix producers (SquareSoft et al). Also, Tomb Raider was an abomination to let out the door. The controls are terrible, and the game is buggy. A beautiful looking game however. Even with that said, these games are in the minority. Alot of good bug-free games came out this year