Power to the...Gamers?

[Something Amyss]

My opinion is solely based on the answer to this question:

Are Games and Art or a Product?

If they're a product, then you can scream and yell and make your noise and demand any kind of change you want to something you are unsatisfied with.

If they're an art, then sit the fuck down, and stop acting like a whiny, tantrum throwing crybaby.

What if they're both, since the two are not mutually exclusive?

 

[Agente L]

I will see you when the next Bioware/EA game comes out.

OT: If you think you deserve X item and ***** until you get your way then you are an entitled little shit. If you give constructive criticism then you are a normal human being. That is how I look at it anyway.

I may have missed your point, but I haven't bough neither Mass Effect 3, Dragon Age II or SWTOR (and trust me, a I'm a huge star wars fanboy, and I also loved DA:O, ME1 and ME2. ME@ not as much, but anyway). I don't require bioware games/EA games to survive. Sure, they have some titles I really want to play, but I won't buy their BS while they are on this business format.

But what can be considering bitching nowdays?

I don't see the Retake Mass Effect, or the topics on Bioware forum as bitching. Sure, we do have the "OMG THIS ENDING SUCKS, HATE U BIOWARE!!!!" But even those with universal acclaim have those. And is extremely hard to make constructive criticim in a thing such as a entire ending.

We aren't sure what basis did bioware have for the ending. Maybe they inspired it in some mythology history (Many games do this), maybe they created a "original" story to go with mass effect. Even the Indoctrination is less of a constructive criticism and more of a "PLEASE LET IT BE THIS".

 

[hermes]

Since this is the escapist, I will leave a Yahtzee's quote here, which the latest events with EA, Bioware and Mass Effect has make me think are entirely true:

Fans are clingy, complaining dipshits who will never ever be grateful for any concession you make. The moment you shut out their shrill, tremulous voices, the happier you'll be for it.

 

[Twilight_guy]

Yes, gamers are entitled. I've been saying that for years. I think its mostly because of just how ignorant they are of how the industry works in that your average gamer has not produced a game and certainly not worked in a major studio. Therefor when they ask for things (or more likely demand) that stuff happen or change they are not aware of what exactly it is that they are asking. I also find that gamers demand a whole god damn lot. These forums are full of people saying 'X' in gaming is wrong, fix it. Now we add to that the fact that any change in business model (read DLC) tends to send gamers off into a tirade about how wrong it is and demand that it stops rather then considering what this means and seeing what its merits are. For example, DLC could be a first step to modular game design, a truly interesting concept that may never be pursued because gamers demand that a certain model (i.e. one time all or nothing) be the purchasing method.

I don't necessarily know if gamers have too much power. As with any other industry they control the trends and what gets sold and made but there is enough diversity in buying in that there really is no 'gamer' whole in purchasing decisions. Look at all the posts on how people hate 'too many shooters' or 'too much CoD' and you can see that clearly no one group represents the purchasing decisions of the whole. I do know that gamers have a tendency to ***** unceasingly and that they put very little stock into their own purchasing power. (Look at all these comments about EA and how people think that EA will never die even if they stop buying games from them). I also know that as an amateur game developer I support a developer's right to do what the fuck they feel like. The customer's buying decisions determine if what the fuck they felt like was good for business or not. I hate designing games around whats popular and I hate people thinking developers are holding a gun to their heads and stealing their money.

 

[Agente L]

No, there are plenty of people, like Daystar Clarion (at least I think that is who I am talking about) who made great posts on how the ending was terrible and how it could be fixed, asking in a (somewhat) polite manner to Bioware on fixing it. For every Daystar, however, you have 20 random people going "OMFG THIS ENDING SUCKS. Since I have been a follower I deserve a new ending!" or "God Damnit, Bioware promised me that there was to be no ABC ending when there is an ABC ending, I DESERVE A NEW ENDING" of which there are plenty. I could even reference multiple posts right now if you want me to on said subject.

Those later examples were why I got so pissed off at the entire prospect of the Retake Mass Effect idea as I rarely saw people like Daystar and saw more random poster #34134 bitching just to ***** without any weight on the subject.

Also as the last point, the whole "see you when the next Bioware/EA game comes out" I was more or less saying that the publishing branch of EA is rather large. Just because you have a beef with EA doesn't mean you should hate a game that is only published by EA. If the game was made under them, I can understand (to a degree, I still think boycotting is a stupid idea in general with Video Games), but publishing... can't understand that bit.

Because the publisher get the biggest share of the money you spend on the game.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-01-10-where-does-my-money-go-article

Granted, it's not based on USA tax/dollars. But it's somewhat recent, and shows that when you buy a game, only a small margin (25% of the publisher's revenue [Which is approximately 30%] after deductibles.).

So when you buy a EA published game, a huge part of the deal goes to EA.

That's why I avoid to buy EA-published games. Because I know they gonan get a huge share of what I just spend. And I'm pretty much saying "Keep doing what you do and I will keep buying".

And as the publisher, they are to be blamed directly if a game is unfinished/Huge amounts of DLC are launched/etc. It's because they can enforce deadlines that the developers NEEDS to meet, or the game simply won't be launched, or they will simply pull the funding.

It's blatant obvious that EA forced Bioware to release SWTOR at december last. The game was clearly unfinished. Sure, it still has a lots of content. But it lacked many basic features. Dual Talente specialization, mroe bug testing, end game content.

 

[MrFalconfly]

OK I've had it with all these "we aren't entitled" forum threads.

Seriously if you want a community driven game go to WMD (World of Mass Development). Currently it is used (and was invented by) Slightly Mad Studios who are using it to make the new Project CARS (Community Assisted Racing Sim). As far as I understand it anyone with an idea are welcome to post said idea to WMD and will have access to SMS's development tools not to mention the community will be the ones to do all the funding and promotion of the final product (for an example do a quick YouTUbe search for "Project CARS").