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Episodic Games
This is a perfect example of why people should never buy into games released in an episodic nature. (Like Minecraft: Story Mode for instance, although only using that as an example of the practice.)
It should also hit home to gamers that this is very clear evidence that it's BECAUSE gamers decide to back these kinds of methods to fleece your cash from your wallet before the work is completed that it's even an issue at all. IE: We're doing it to ourselves. Well, you're doing it to yourselves. I'm ignoring them until they're completed.
Imagine if most people insisted on waiting for a game to be completely finished before buying it. Why, all these episodic trash games (my opinion of the practice) would do the same as the one in the link. At which point the developer (And publisher) would have to either get back to finishing what they started before trying to hand it off to their customers or simply go bankrupt. I can't say I'd feel too sorry if they went bankrupt. Sorry if that offends anyone but I can't and won't fake feeling something I don't.
If you're going to do a game like this, then make damned sure you're going to finish what you start. You can prove this by finishing the damned thing regardless of whether or not you feel enough people are buying the game. If you do finish it, great! People like me, if we were interested in the game in the first place, will probably end up buying the completed version. The boycott in this case is only until YOU finish your job.
Let's be serious here. If you're trying to make money like this, and you cancel your game half way through, what have you done? You've essentially lined up and BITCHSLAPPED every person that gave you money for the portions you DID release. Guess what? You better make sure your next game is INSANELY GOOD and the most interesting thing this side of the galaxy because you'll now have a reputation for not delivering on your promises. And the people that gave you money this time around are likely going to be on this side of the boycott fence when you release the first episode of your next great game.
Keep in mind, this also goes for the other annoying practice of game devs that insist on linking their games together with big ass cliffhangers at the end of each one. Failing to finish your little trilogy, or whatever, leaves the same kind of bitter taste in the mouths of your fans. (As a shenmue fan I can definitely assure you this happens. And waiting a decade before getting around to finishing it, while appreciated by those who didn't die of old age while waiting, isn't going to completely clear your record. >_>)
It should also hit home to gamers that this is very clear evidence that it's BECAUSE gamers decide to back these kinds of methods to fleece your cash from your wallet before the work is completed that it's even an issue at all. IE: We're doing it to ourselves. Well, you're doing it to yourselves. I'm ignoring them until they're completed.
Imagine if most people insisted on waiting for a game to be completely finished before buying it. Why, all these episodic trash games (my opinion of the practice) would do the same as the one in the link. At which point the developer (And publisher) would have to either get back to finishing what they started before trying to hand it off to their customers or simply go bankrupt. I can't say I'd feel too sorry if they went bankrupt. Sorry if that offends anyone but I can't and won't fake feeling something I don't.
If you're going to do a game like this, then make damned sure you're going to finish what you start. You can prove this by finishing the damned thing regardless of whether or not you feel enough people are buying the game. If you do finish it, great! People like me, if we were interested in the game in the first place, will probably end up buying the completed version. The boycott in this case is only until YOU finish your job.
Let's be serious here. If you're trying to make money like this, and you cancel your game half way through, what have you done? You've essentially lined up and BITCHSLAPPED every person that gave you money for the portions you DID release. Guess what? You better make sure your next game is INSANELY GOOD and the most interesting thing this side of the galaxy because you'll now have a reputation for not delivering on your promises. And the people that gave you money this time around are likely going to be on this side of the boycott fence when you release the first episode of your next great game.
Keep in mind, this also goes for the other annoying practice of game devs that insist on linking their games together with big ass cliffhangers at the end of each one. Failing to finish your little trilogy, or whatever, leaves the same kind of bitter taste in the mouths of your fans. (As a shenmue fan I can definitely assure you this happens. And waiting a decade before getting around to finishing it, while appreciated by those who didn't die of old age while waiting, isn't going to completely clear your record. >_>)
no subject
For me, unless you count the really early games that tried this piecemeal, cliffhanger bullshit (e.g. Shen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenmue)mue (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenmue_II), Legacy (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_of_Kain:_Soul_Reaver) of (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_Reaver_2) Kain (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legacy_of_Kain:_Defiance) [after the first game (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_Omen:_Legacy_of_Kain), anyway, which was a properly contained, stand-alone game], Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamfall:_The_Longest_Journey), etc.), which, after the fact, I kind of feel like I got suckered by, then I also do not do the episodic thing (especially now that it has become a "genre" of sorts). And it is because of those earlier games leaving me feeling like I got screwed over that I don't do it. Admittedly, I did buy the Strong Bad (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strong_Bad%27s_Cool_Game_for_Attractive_People) games on the Wii as they were released, but those are all stand-alone games with no real overarching story, rather than a single game broken up into five or six parts like pretty much all other episodic games are. But even for that, it still would have been a huge slap in the face if they'd simply cancelled the series after the first episode, even if they'd given me back my $10 or whatever. All other Telltale games (since they seem to be the king of this sort of thing nowadays), including the earlier Sam (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_%26_Max_Save_the_World) & (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_%26_Max_Beyond_Time_and_Space) Max (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_%26_Max:_The_Devil%27s_Playhouse) games, and all of their later games, such as Back to the Future (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Back_to_the_Future:_The_Game), The Walking Dead (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Walking_Dead_%28video_game%29), Game of Thrones (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Game_of_Thrones_%282014_video_game%29), and so on, I only bought after the full seasons were released.
And I intend to continue doing so. Hell, I still haven't even played any of The Silver Lining (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Silver_Lining_%28video_game%29) yet, because they still have not finished and released the final episode for that, even after four fucking years (episode 4 of TSL was released in November 2011), and that shit is free. As such, I'm absolutely not going to be paying actual money for piecemeal shit like this, at least not until the whole game is available. The only thing I suppose I'm guilty of lately is backing the Dreamfall Chapters (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dreamfall_Chapters:_The_Longest_Journey) Kickstarter, when I was still in my Kickstarter-supporting phase, and even that, even though I have access to the early episodes, I refuse to play until the whole thing is available.
(Fuck you, LiveJournal.)
no subject
But then, I scrolled down to the comments under the PC Gamer article, and the currently top-most, highest-voted comment (http://www.pcgamer.com/afro-samurai-2-removed-from-steam-further-episodes-cancelled/#comment-2369535207) is some idiot sucking the devs' dicks, lauding them for being "honest" and "wishing them the best" on their future projects. No, we fucking do not and should not "have to give them props for that." That right there is precisely why the modern video game industry is such a goddamn sewer pipe now, because people suck shit like this down and ask for more.
(Hell, this (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Deathly_Hallows_%E2%80%93_Part_1) shit (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Deathly_Hallows_%E2%80%93_Part_2) isn't (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twilight_Saga:_Breaking_Dawn_%E2%80%93_Part_1) even (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twilight_Saga:_Breaking_Dawn_%E2%80%93_Part_2) limited (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit:_An_Unexpected_Journey) to (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit:_The_Desolation_of_Smaug) games (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hobbit:_The_Battle_of_the_Five_Armies), anymore. Assuming (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Empire_Strikes_Back) it (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Return_of_the_Jedi) ever (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_Dead_Man%27s_Chest) was (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_At_World%27s_End) limited to games in the first place, of course.)
no subject
For reference, the originally broken links:
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strong_Bad's_Cool_Game_for_Attractive_People)
Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_%26_Max:_The_Devil's_Playhouse)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_Dead_Man's_Chest)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_At_World's_End)
Unless and until LiveJournal fixes this fucking bug, all of those links will go to a Wikipedia "Bad title" page.
But if you replace the ' or (&)quot(;) with (%)27, it works:
Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strong_Bad%27s_Cool_Game_for_Attractive_People)
Sam & Max: The Devil's Playhouse (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_%26_Max:_The_Devil%27s_Playhouse)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_Dead_Man%27s_Chest)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pirates_of_the_Caribbean:_At_World%27s_End)