I hate installations on new gen consoles (Rant)

[Elvis Starburst]

I had a pretty rough moment with work today. I work at a gaming store, and we host birthday parties sometimes. Today, while I was mostly on my own (Had the owners young daughter helping me, she knew how to make sales, so it helped a lot). I'm about 3 weeks new to this place, so when I learned there was a bday party on my first shift without anyone who knows more than I do... It was intimidating. The other worker set it up (It's easy to do) and I was in charge of getting the folks set up with some games. This is where shit hits the fan.

I put in a game into the Xbox One. Game is installing... Shit. The install is going along very slowly, and suddenly, I turn my back and come back to see another game's download installing instead. I frantically try to fix it, but I've used an XBone maybe twice in my life, so I had no idea how. The parents wanted to try another game on the PS4. That was fine, so I put in the game. Oh balls. The system isn't responding with the TV... The parents are getting a little tired of this, so we try another game on the XBone. INSTALLING AGAIN, and frozen at 2%! GREAT!

At this point, I'm panicking and am trying to fix this issue for frustrated parents. I told them I've never had these issues before (Though the XBone installation was one that always was a pain to deal with, and I mentioned that). By that time, 30 minutes or so had passed for the allotted 2 hours they had for the party, and I only managed to get one game working on a 360 (Not the original ones they wanted though). They ask me to just get *any* kid friendly game for 360 at this point. They didn't care. I look on our shelf. Well great, it's amazing we sold nearly half our 360 game stock this past week cause of boxing day and sales. I couldn't really find a game.

Every time I return to the XBone to try and fix something, the parents (Especially the dad) feels it's necessary to make shitty comments like "Has this place ever done this before?" and "We could be at home having more fun than this" and stuff. Yes dude, I know this is all going horribly wrong up, I'M TRYING TO FIX IT YOU GIT. 45 minutes have passed in total by now, they get up to leave after they suggested leaving and I said "Know what? That might be the better choice right now." I apologized a hundred times over during the whole mess. I told them we will refund them, and they say they'll come in and do it the next day.

I step out and sigh into my hands heavily for a good few minutes before coming back, very very bitter and humiliated. All because a god damn new gen console can't simply just have the game pop in and WORK right out of the box. No, we have to waste all this time with our work's crappy internet to install half a GB of updates to do ANYTHING. The lack of good 4 player kids games in our remaining stock wasn't helping either. I dunno what pisses me off more... My work for scheduling me pretty much alone with this stuff (I'm sure they thought I'd handle it, as I'm sure they didn't expect this big of a mess), the parents for being dicks (though I understand their frustration. I was right there with them), or new gen consoles for not simply being able to bloody work right away, instead of wasting our time with updates that refuse to let me play the games without them (The PS4 not working REALLY did not help me out one bit).

So that was my day. Left me angry, pissed off, and made me feel like an asshole in front of people who paid a lot of money for this farce of a bday party. Sorry, had to rant like mad. I'm still very frustrated by this. I still wanna tell the husband to fuck off with his annoying comments. I get you're mad bro, but give the new guy who's NEVER done these parties, or used the new gen consoles more than twice, a freakin break. /Rant

Edit (After calming down a bit): Yeah, I know, this was also a big fuck up on my part. At no point am I not taking responsibility. There was a lack of communication, training, understanding, and all else. Add onto issues with systems (The PS4 not working, for example) and several other things piling up turned it into one big calamity. I am to blame for a lot of it, but I wish it could've been easier to fix rather than dealing with this bullshit that occurred. (Yes, I indeed quite bitter, thank you).

 

[Dirty Hipsters]

If you work in a game store then why aren't you familiar with the new generation consoles? Shouldn't that be part of your training, or some mandatory skills? I mean if you don't know how to work the merchandise then what the hell are you there for? Your excuse that you've never used an xbone before shouldn't fly if you work around them all day every day and need to know about them.

Also, did you know beforehand which games the kids would want? Why weren't they preinstalled and updated before their arrival?

Sounds like the store isn't being run very well. I mean, yes it sucks that consoles and games can't fucking work out of the box anymore. Seriously, day one patches that are multiple gigabytes to install, really?! That being said, that's been standard for a while and a store specializing in video games should be aware of that and have everything handled BEFOREHAND.

Those people paid a lot of money for a birthday party and your place of business fucked up. That's on you and the owners running the place, and the father had every right to be the pissy git that he was. It would be one thing if they asked you to do something unexpected and you didn't have the knowledge base to do it, but they asked you to do something simple, they asked you to play a video game on equipment that you should be an expert in, and you couldn't do it. You screwed up.

 

[tippy2k2]

I'm going to put this as nicely as I can but it's not going to sound nice...

It sounds like you didn't know what you were doing (which, to be fair, you're new) and now you're blaming the equipment instead of the person who didn't know how to use the equipment.

It would be nice if the games didn't require installs but they do and that's something you and the store should have been aware of.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I feel your pain. I miss the days of being able to just pop a disc in and it fires up. I never thought that this could happen at a game store though. It does raise an interesting point. How does one demo a game if they all need to be installed on the system first? And for your party thing, how does one handle the need for quickly switching games?

My suggestion would be to add a new box on the form that I'm sure people fill out for parties: Which games do you want to be able to play? (and if there's not a form, there should be a form). Have people turn this in early so that you guys have time to get the games downloaded and installed. If people don't tell you, warn them ahead of time that some games are going to take a bit to get started.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

I test all kinds of things at work from computers to consoles to cameras to even Roombas. And the Xbone is by far the worst thing to test, you'd think testing a game console at work would be awesome. Firstly, you need to download a freaking update for it do anything. Just to play COD: Ghosts so you can test it takes forever to install. COD is quite a great test game as you can just jump in and test everything on the controller super fast without sitting through cutscenes (like inFamous) or tutorials. Then, the console will decide to stop installing the game for some reason or turn off (your shirt grazing it shuts off the damn console). I've ended up just fucking playing Madden as it installs fast even though I can't test the controller all the way. You can tell the Xbone was, in fact, designed with all that DRM crap as you can tell it was basically "torn" out of the console.

The PS4 is much better and easier to test and get up and running. It only takes 5 minutes at most to play inFamous for example. It just seems like you had random bad luck with the PS4.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

Snip

The issue is that I've never had the opportunity to sit down with one of these consoles. This kind of thing isn't supposed to be so difficult, but because of several issues going on at once, that didn't help me in my situation. Secondly, no, the games aren't pre-installed, and no, the games aren't asked for previously. the way the parties are handled is "Pick any game in the store and put it in. Have fun!". They SHOULD be pre-installed, and I'm gonna suggest that to the management. Thirdly, there was no manager there today. Fourthly, nobody told me about this party either, so there was a lack of communication on a few people's parts. (Side note: I had no solid knowledge base about this sort of thing. I was shown it maybe once. It's simple stuff, and if it all went smoothly it would have been fine, but something messed up and the rest came crashing down). Sooo, yeah, I do blame the bullshit that occurred to a point. I know I fucked up though. I just made this rant cause I was mad at how poorly it went (I could have been better off if I even knew it was gonna happen today, not 5 minutes after the people arrived >.>)

Snip

Eh, it's a mix of both, I'd say. I did mess up, big time, and that is due to a lack of knowledge on my part. But, I'm not gonna say that there's not some bullshit with these things. It can never seem to be as simple as it used to be, and I hate that. I am gonna bring this all up though, and make sure it's fixed. (Problem with my store is apparently everyone before me managed to get things down with little to no issue, able to learn it on the first or second explanation. That's not exactly my case, so I've been thrown into a few things expected to learn very quickly, faster than I normally can. Not their fault, sure, but it doesn't help.

 

[Maximum Bert]

Yeah its kinda BS to be honest the amount of time I have got home after a hard days work done my other work at home and then sat down for a quick 30 min session before the shit starts again to be greeted with update needed (which almost always takes 30 min or longer) is very grating. I try and plan ahead now but usually I am not sure if I will play or not and I dont want to slow my internet down downloading patches to a game I may not play.

That said you should not have been left without a manager or some figure of authority on your first day (or ever really bt thats not always feasible) you should have been given proper direction and the family should have been given the service they paid for. The last one was not really your fault but I would not say you are blameless either that said what can you do at that point its updating nothing really although sometimes you can skip the update to some games to forgo the chance to play online.

Just sound like it was badly planned TBH and you were dropped in the middle of it maybe there was nothing that could have been done about it shit happens sometimes or matbe your boss(s) are just arseholes Ive been dropped in the shit plenty of times sometimes because there is no choice which I can take and others because my boss doesnt care and is a complete twat. I quit one job because he would drop me in the shit all the time because he could not be arsed to work literally it was like go to this place put in all new door linings and hang the doors (never hung a door before needless to say it took me ages) another time I had to take the big tractor out and power harrow the fields (havent driven any modern tractors before and dont like driving much anyway).

Allowing console updates is great in some ways but so many just use it as an opportunity to ship a broken game and then patch it later just so they can hit deadlines.

 

[laggyteabag]

Yeah, that is probably one of the biggest complaint about the next gen consoles. One of the biggest advantages of having a console was the whole "plug in and play" factor, but now, you need to install just about anything that you want to play, and that can take a lot of time. I don't think that the Wii U has this problem, however.

That being said though, someone at the shop should have probably realised this beforehand and had the games installed on the hardware before the customers arrived. If you have never worked with these consoles before, then that is fine, but surely the whole "needs to installed before you can play it" thing would have been part of the training, or someone should have let you know. That being said though, throwing you onto a shift on without a supervisor was probably a bad idea to begin with, especially seeing as you were still very new to the place. It just sounds like the whole event wasn't very well planned out to me.

 

[stroopwafel]

Kids are easily entertained. They are just as happy playing Mario Party on the Wii so why even bother?

Yeah installs and patches are a pain but atleast on PS4 things have improved significantly compared to PS3. Installs are much quicker, firmware updates way fewer and patches download on the background and it automatically downloads all the latest patches of games installed on your harddrive. As a result there is way less time between popping in a (new) game and actually playing it,

Games have become a bit more complicated with a lot more moving parts than the simple 8/16-bit games of yore(and even those were often buggy and broken). So I understand patches/updates/installs have become a necessary evil, but (atleast on PS) they are making strides to smoothen the process.

If you're in hurry though, Nintendo is your friend.

 

[Evonisia]

Yeah, that is probably one of the biggest complaint about the next gen consoles. One of the biggest advantages of having a console was the whole "plug in and play" factor, but now, you need to install just about anything that you want to play, and that can take a lot of time. I don't think that the Wii U has this problem, however.

The worst thing I've ever encountered on the Wii U is that it sometimes asks you for those stupid 2mb updates you'd constantly find on the Xbox 360 and PS3 because they need to update online information. Beyond that I've not experienced anything that could stand against my Xbox One, and definitely not my PC's installation business.

 

[CommanderZx2]

It is a shame that modern consoles are no longer pick up and play systems, such as the classic ones. Now a days you have to wait for a slow install and then wait for it to download and install patches.

 

[Haerthan]

Yes, let the anger flow through you. Let it surge through you. Use it my young apprentice. Use the hate and the anger and together we shall rid the galaxy of the consoles. Now Lord Elvis Starburst go and deal the consoles a deadly blow.

 

[Weaver]

Shouldn't that be part of your training

lol, training doesn't exist in this day and age. I remember in 2009 Intel was bitching directly to our university that the school was teaching MIPS instead of teaching x86 assembly and instruction sets because they didn't want people to have to learn it on the job.

 

[Fox12]

If you work in a game store then why aren't you familiar with the new generation consoles? Shouldn't that be part of your training, or some mandatory skills? I mean if you don't know how to work the merchandise then what the hell are you there for? Your excuse that you've never used an xbone before shouldn't fly if you work around them all day every day and need to know about them.

Also, did you know beforehand which games the kids would want? Why weren't they preinstalled and updated before their arrival?

Sounds like the store isn't being run very well. I mean, yes it sucks that consoles and games can't fucking work out of the box anymore. Seriously, day one patches that are multiple gigabytes to install, really?! That being said, that's been standard for a while and a store specializing in video games should be aware of that and have everything handled BEFOREHAND.

Those people paid a lot of money for a birthday party and your place of business fucked up. That's on you and the owners running the place, and the father had every right to be the pissy git that he was. It would be one thing if they asked you to do something unexpected and you didn't have the knowledge base to do it, but they asked you to do something simple, they asked you to play a video game on equipment that you should be an expert in, and you couldn't do it. You screwed up.

Now, lets not be a snarky asshole, yeah? He's a new employee, and it sound like he wasn't briefed about the party before, which means he wouldn't have time to install. That responsibility would belong to the people who were on shift before. Furthermore, if the games weren't pre-chosen, then he wouldn't even know what to put in. Regardless, it sounds like to he tried to salvage a bad situation. Yes, the party was ruined, and yes, it's difficult to reschedule a birthday party. Everyone agrees the situation sucks. That doesn't make it all OP's fault, and, honestly, it doesn't give the father a free pass to be a passive aggressive little priss. OP is little more than a pariah in this situation.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

I would have explained that with the new generation of consoles, you now have to do lengthy installs and updates. And when they complained, sympathize with them.

 

[Elijin]

I would maybe even argue the business model is bad to be including next gen systems without pre-loaded games in a 'party pack'.

Like really, a 2 hour window to play games, at a public place with likely bad internet service and you want to install/update games?

For this business model to exist, you have to restrict it heavily. Either by confining it to old gen systems, or forcing the customer to make decisions prior to the party, so the games can be installed and loaded ahead of time.

So I dont agree with the people who are placing the blame on you. Sure, it was a less ideal situation, and your inexperience potentially exasperated the situation, but it sounds like the idea of in store parties has not been fully thought through, and is a long way from being customer ready.

 

[CpT_x_Killsteal]

I guess that sort of throws out half the reason for buying a console (ease of use/no fucking around).
Your best bet would be to just have consoles permanently set up in the store (and get the names of wanted games beforehand). Tough break mate.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

If you work in a game store then why aren't you familiar with the new generation consoles? Shouldn't that be part of your training, or some mandatory skills? I mean if you don't know how to work the merchandise then what the hell are you there for? Your excuse that you've never used an xbone before shouldn't fly if you work around them all day every day and need to know about them.

Also, did you know beforehand which games the kids would want? Why weren't they preinstalled and updated before their arrival?

Sounds like the store isn't being run very well. I mean, yes it sucks that consoles and games can't fucking work out of the box anymore. Seriously, day one patches that are multiple gigabytes to install, really?! That being said, that's been standard for a while and a store specializing in video games should be aware of that and have everything handled BEFOREHAND.

Those people paid a lot of money for a birthday party and your place of business fucked up. That's on you and the owners running the place, and the father had every right to be the pissy git that he was. It would be one thing if they asked you to do something unexpected and you didn't have the knowledge base to do it, but they asked you to do something simple, they asked you to play a video game on equipment that you should be an expert in, and you couldn't do it. You screwed up.

Now, lets not be a snarky asshole, yeah? He's a new employee, and it sound like he wasn't briefed about the party before, which means he wouldn't have time to install. That responsibility would belong to the people who were on shift before. Furthermore, if the games weren't pre-chosen, then he wouldn't even know what to put in. Regardless, it sounds like to he tried to salvage a bad situation. Yes, the party was ruined, and yes, it's difficult to reschedule a birthday party. Everyone agrees the situation sucks. That doesn't make it all OP's fault, and, honestly, it doesn't give the father a free pass to be a passive aggressive little priss. OP is little more than a pariah in this situation.

Holy hell man, THANK you. Put it better than I tried to. It's not like I'm entirely blameless either. It just didn't help that whenever I tried to fix something, something else was screwing up on me next (The PS4, for example). It doesn't help that one game stopped installing and the XBone started installing another for some reason (An issue I couldn't fix in the end). It also doesn't help the one 360 game I put in on the tail end wasn't responding to me selecting the hard drive to put the save file.

I wish it all went better, and I sure as hell tried my best to fix it. I also extended apologies to the people while getting their refund. And no, being a passive aggressive little shit is not often warranted. Sorry, I'm not gonna sit here and believe that for a damn second.

 

[Elvis Starburst]

I would maybe even argue the business model is bad to be including next gen systems without pre-loaded games in a 'party pack'.

Like really, a 2 hour window to play games, at a public place with likely bad internet service and you want to install/update games?

For this business model to exist, you have to restrict it heavily. Either by confining it to old gen systems, or forcing the customer to make decisions prior to the party, so the games can be installed and loaded ahead of time.

So I dont agree with the people who are placing the blame on you. Sure, it was a less ideal situation, and your inexperience potentially exasperated the situation, but it sounds like the idea of in store parties has not been fully thought through, and is a long way from being customer ready.

The worst problem is that it apparently never had this issue to begin with. The 2 times I watched a party get set up was either on old gen stuff, or any new gen stuff didn't require an update. Those times ran smoothly, which aggravated me... I do plan on telling my manager next time I'm in that some new systems need to be put into place, or just perhaps not have someone who's only worked 3 weeks at the store to over-see an entire freaking bday party. At least having *someone* with more experience than I to oversee the thing would have been ideal, it didn't have to be a manager.

 

[Guy from the 80's]

Next time tell them to buy a PC instead. (not a troll)