I don't understand why the folks at Valve still keep talking about their two irregularly released expansions as "episodic content". I would expect episodic content to be released at some reliable (intervals, and more than just two "episodes". This isn't "episodic content" they're just expansion packs.
I like games, and to a certain extent I feel some kinship with the folks who make them. So it is a bummer when I see those places closed down.
At the same time when I hear these stories of development locations or developers being closed down and the subsequently whining by a few of them I can't help but think "welcome to the world of work". Seriously, gaming is a business like any other and regardless of realistic or unrealistic expectations, or just random unfairness stuff like this happens.
I don't doubt that some or many folks have been having difficulty with the Unreal engine. Having said that Silicon Knights development of Too Human has seemed epically bumbling so I have trouble trusting them much. Too Human was at first a PlayStation game (claimed to be 5 disks), then a GameCube game, now a 360 game. Silicon Knights in general seems to have their own issues with getting a game out the door. Is this the fault of Epic's support? A continuation of SK's inability to finish a game? or a bit of both?
Sounds more like some folks got scammed by some people selling retail boxes in a manner that they shouldn't, or people were just trying to work the system.
I've used Steam, and bought games over Steam, played games over Steam, in various countries with no problems. There's no lock that I've ever found for the stuff bought over Steam. It is just some of the retail copies in a few places do have a form of region lock as I understand it.
Too bad they can't just buy the right copy at the moment and play, although I wouldn't be surprised to see that issue resolved eventually. Steam has been nothing but quick and convenient for me since I've used it for the HL2 release.
Ratchet and Clank looks great. Yet I can't help but think when I hear "Pixar Quality" that the first time I heard that teerm was when Sony was touting the Playstation 2's power:P
Glad to see the Register is right on the spot reporting a possibility that most every game site that talked about when the Manhunt 2's ratings problems (PR stunt) began.
I know this is a Will Wright game but the more I hear about it sounds like a Peter Molyneux game where there are some keen concepts around the edges of the game but I wonder if the core game play will be able to make it worth playing.
When a system is being released there's not much to think about other than the hardware. However, the PS3 has been out for a while and the issue isn't the SKUs it is the lack of games compared to the compition. They can fiddle around with SKUs all they want but they only have a handful of big exclusives, many aren't going to be out for a long time. Sony needs games ASAP, not changes to their system.
If the arcade replaces to core it makes a bit more sense. The core with no memory was a ridiculous package. "Yay I get to play games but can't save..." At least with the arcade you could save some games and play arcade games out of the box.
It still seems like a silly package without a drive, but it is all relative in a gaming world where Microsoft sells (or was selling) the ridiculous core (crippled) package along side an insane number of SKUs, Sony asking a huge amount of money for a system with only a couple exclusive games, and Nintendo acting like it doesn't know how to mass produce consoles.
All the complaints about Halo 3's resolution reminds me of all the "pixel peeping" that goes on when it comes to digital cameras. Everyone gets hung up on tech specs to the point that they stop looking at the image in question.
Halo 3 looks nice, and plays great. That's all that matters to me. I'm certainly willing to forgo some extra pixels in favor of a smoother experience.
I wish the game would come out, be mediocre, and we can all move on with our lives.
I'm tired of watching the ESRB fumble around and ironically try to keep what changes were made to the game secret. Way to instill confidence in the process...
I'm also tired of watching Take 2 and Rockstar hang themselves out to be innocent victims of oppression and milk it for all the PR they can.
It is crap everywhere you look. Just be over ready.
Crippling a modern method of distributing demos for the sake of propping up a somewhat out of date method of distributing demos (magazines) seems ridiculous on the face of it.
Also what game developer or publisher would possibly want to limit access to their demo in this manner?
My concern is that over the long run the big console makers and publishers will abandon E3. Rather they'll just host their own private events where they can schmooze their own had picked gaming media friends however they like. This would leave the smaller developers with no showcase to show their wears. Although for all I know this may already be the case to a certain extent...:(
EA should know they have a rabid Sim City fanbase. All they have to do is say that there will be a separate Sim City 5 game, eventually, and that SimCity Societies is just another game with a similar theme that fans may want to keep an eye on in the meantime.
Peter's enthusiasm is always nice, but does anyone put a lot of weight into what he says before a game is released?
His games are usually good, but never nearly as revolutionary as he talks about before they're released. The innovations he tries end up being around the edges of the game and the core game often is very... typical.
The sad part is how little developers and the various people involved do to prevent all the hating and racist crap in online gaming. I report the racists and such on XBL, does it do anything? I've no idea and I have my doubts based on how often I run into those folks. Could they stop it altogether? Probably not, but few seem to even try to do anything about it.
I also would like to see some sort of system where you could choose to join games where people are just looking to have a good time without the childish trash talk, cursing at each other, racism and such. Some of my best gaming experiences are when you just get a bunch of folks together and everyone has fun together and we all enjoy the game and laugh together when something funny happens. On the other hand I avoid some games and playing online at times because of the pervasive jerk culture that has developed there.
Agreed. This move should have long been expected by those altering their consoles. If they want to do it good for them, but obviously there are going to be some downside.
If this is how episodic gaming is supposed to work this sucks. To me episodic gaming means a somewhat stable stream of content. Instead we have content, delay delay, content, delay,delay.
Who cares? As long as their system has good games I'll keep buying them. It doesn't matter to me one way or another who Gates thinks plays various games. Sometimes I think the gaming community is just looking to be offended if someone isn't busy hugging them.
Slashdot Mirror
Thankfully more businesses don't hork up your OS so they don't have to act this way.
I don't understand why the folks at Valve still keep talking about their two irregularly released expansions as "episodic content". I would expect episodic content to be released at some reliable (intervals, and more than just two "episodes". This isn't "episodic content" they're just expansion packs.
I like games, and to a certain extent I feel some kinship with the folks who make them. So it is a bummer when I see those places closed down.
At the same time when I hear these stories of development locations or developers being closed down and the subsequently whining by a few of them I can't help but think "welcome to the world of work". Seriously, gaming is a business like any other and regardless of realistic or unrealistic expectations, or just random unfairness stuff like this happens.
I don't doubt that some or many folks have been having difficulty with the Unreal engine. Having said that Silicon Knights development of Too Human has seemed epically bumbling so I have trouble trusting them much. Too Human was at first a PlayStation game (claimed to be 5 disks), then a GameCube game, now a 360 game. Silicon Knights in general seems to have their own issues with getting a game out the door. Is this the fault of Epic's support? A continuation of SK's inability to finish a game? or a bit of both?
PA said it best: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/11/02
*sigh*
Sounds more like some folks got scammed by some people selling retail boxes in a manner that they shouldn't, or people were just trying to work the system.
I've used Steam, and bought games over Steam, played games over Steam, in various countries with no problems. There's no lock that I've ever found for the stuff bought over Steam. It is just some of the retail copies in a few places do have a form of region lock as I understand it.
Too bad they can't just buy the right copy at the moment and play, although I wouldn't be surprised to see that issue resolved eventually. Steam has been nothing but quick and convenient for me since I've used it for the HL2 release.
Ratchet and Clank looks great. Yet I can't help but think when I hear "Pixar Quality" that the first time I heard that teerm was when Sony was touting the Playstation 2's power :P
Glad to see the Register is right on the spot reporting a possibility that most every game site that talked about when the Manhunt 2's ratings problems (PR stunt) began.
I know this is a Will Wright game but the more I hear about it sounds like a Peter Molyneux game where there are some keen concepts around the edges of the game but I wonder if the core game play will be able to make it worth playing.
n/t
When a system is being released there's not much to think about other than the hardware. However, the PS3 has been out for a while and the issue isn't the SKUs it is the lack of games compared to the compition. They can fiddle around with SKUs all they want but they only have a handful of big exclusives, many aren't going to be out for a long time. Sony needs games ASAP, not changes to their system.
If the arcade replaces to core it makes a bit more sense. The core with no memory was a ridiculous package. "Yay I get to play games but can't save..." At least with the arcade you could save some games and play arcade games out of the box.
It still seems like a silly package without a drive, but it is all relative in a gaming world where Microsoft sells (or was selling) the ridiculous core (crippled) package along side an insane number of SKUs, Sony asking a huge amount of money for a system with only a couple exclusive games, and Nintendo acting like it doesn't know how to mass produce consoles.
It would have been better had they shot it on a Canon.
All the complaints about Halo 3's resolution reminds me of all the "pixel peeping" that goes on when it comes to digital cameras. Everyone gets hung up on tech specs to the point that they stop looking at the image in question.
Halo 3 looks nice, and plays great. That's all that matters to me. I'm certainly willing to forgo some extra pixels in favor of a smoother experience.
Is it my imagination has Thompson shifted his strategy to include basic internet troll techniques?
I wish the game would come out, be mediocre, and we can all move on with our lives.
I'm tired of watching the ESRB fumble around and ironically try to keep what changes were made to the game secret. Way to instill confidence in the process...
I'm also tired of watching Take 2 and Rockstar hang themselves out to be innocent victims of oppression and milk it for all the PR they can.
It is crap everywhere you look. Just be over ready.
Crippling a modern method of distributing demos for the sake of propping up a somewhat out of date method of distributing demos (magazines) seems ridiculous on the face of it.
Also what game developer or publisher would possibly want to limit access to their demo in this manner?
My concern is that over the long run the big console makers and publishers will abandon E3. Rather they'll just host their own private events where they can schmooze their own had picked gaming media friends however they like. This would leave the smaller developers with no showcase to show their wears. Although for all I know this may already be the case to a certain extent... :(
EA should know they have a rabid Sim City fanbase. All they have to do is say that there will be a separate Sim City 5 game, eventually, and that SimCity Societies is just another game with a similar theme that fans may want to keep an eye on in the meantime.
Peter's enthusiasm is always nice, but does anyone put a lot of weight into what he says before a game is released?
His games are usually good, but never nearly as revolutionary as he talks about before they're released. The innovations he tries end up being around the edges of the game and the core game often is very... typical.
The sad part is how little developers and the various people involved do to prevent all the hating and racist crap in online gaming. I report the racists and such on XBL, does it do anything? I've no idea and I have my doubts based on how often I run into those folks. Could they stop it altogether? Probably not, but few seem to even try to do anything about it. I also would like to see some sort of system where you could choose to join games where people are just looking to have a good time without the childish trash talk, cursing at each other, racism and such. Some of my best gaming experiences are when you just get a bunch of folks together and everyone has fun together and we all enjoy the game and laugh together when something funny happens. On the other hand I avoid some games and playing online at times because of the pervasive jerk culture that has developed there.
Agreed. This move should have long been expected by those altering their consoles. If they want to do it good for them, but obviously there are going to be some downside.
If this is how episodic gaming is supposed to work this sucks. To me episodic gaming means a somewhat stable stream of content. Instead we have content, delay delay, content, delay ,delay.
further ostracizing gamers
Who cares? As long as their system has good games I'll keep buying them. It doesn't matter to me one way or another who Gates thinks plays various games. Sometimes I think the gaming community is just looking to be offended if someone isn't busy hugging them.