Greetings!
I'm pretty far from a good net connection so I'll keep this brief
Let me say that I'm glad that most people seem to like the game. This message, however, is for those who are disappointed with Elemental so far.
Stardock is not just a game studio but it is also a publisher. What does this mean? Well, historically, the way it works is a game is released and if people don't like it, they're supposed to buy some expansion pack for it that "fixes" things that people thought should be in the original version.
We don't have to do that because we're both the studio and the publisher.
That means we can release free "expansion packs" for Elemental until such a high percentage of players love the game that only then can we discuss sequels or paid expansions.
Having had the opportunity to finally get out of the office for the first time in months has let me look at the game (and ahem, play the game for crazy amounts) of time from a new perspective.
I should also say that regardless of sales or reviews, our commitment to Elemental will not be affected. As some of you know, most of our company's revenue doesn't come from developing games. Even if the game didn't sell another copy, we would still continue our update schedule.
So what will be the concrete results of this?
1. In September we will release v1.1 which will be the first major revision to the game that takes into account the feedback we're getting from players. This will be a pretty substantial change. In particular, character creation, magic (think, shared mana pools),
2. We are going to go ahead and make a more traditional tutorial. I'm not a fan of tutorials but some of my grognard friends have had trouble figuring out the mechanics which means to me that we have to do something about that.
3. We are going to move Book 2: Magesa out of a future expansion pack and into the base game in a future "mega" update, likely late Fall.
4. As mentioned on the forums back in July-ish, we plan to make a new DVD gold master available to those with limited Internet connections later this Fall.
5. As discussed (I think) last Winter, I will be taking a sabbatical this Fall specifically so I can dedicate time to AI and modding so that others, long after me, can use the Elemental engine to create other things (you will need to know Python to really go crazy with it).
6. I will NOT be ceasing my postings on other forums. The guys on Qt3 and Octopus Overlords and elsewhere are my friends. I'm no more going to stop posting there then I would stop going out with my friends to movies and other "public places" where, heaven forbid, someone datamining my comments might find a "gotcha moment". Those people are my friends both on the forums and outside the forums. Interacting with you guys is a major reason I like making games in the first place.
7. To those reviewing the game: I would urge you to review the game prior to v1.1. I say this because v1.05 (the release day version) is the version of the game that was originally released and if that version of the game is considered flawed then my view is that Stardock should suffer the consequences for that. We appreciate the kindness and patience many people have shown. I just think game studios, including Stardock, need to be conscious of what they release and not expect to "patch themselves out of trouble". I do believe Elemental is, by far, the best game we've ever made but I also agree with most of the criticisms I've read too. The state of PC entertainment has changed since 2006 (when we released GalCiv II) and it is our responsibility to stay with the times.
In short, we love this game. And we love this community. We're not going to be leaving this game to work on some other game. We're with it and you guys for the long haul.
I won't be around to answer questions until next week so I hope this answers some questions.
Great stuff. I love the game, it has a few bugs as we know and a tutorial would have been helpful as would an explanaition of how the rules work in the form of a pdf along side the manual but these are all fairly easy to remedy if required i suppose. But as a grand strategy come rpg game, i have to say this is the best i have played, although i may wait ntil patch 1.10 before starting another new game.
Thanks Stardock for the great game......
Brad,
I have been a very outspoken critic of Elemental, in fact, on the verge of a return. Today I played a bit more and keep seeing more and more of the game's potential. Some of the design decisions are incredibly brilliant--I love how cities expand visually, and I love the aesthetic direction your art team chose to take. I would agree that this could be Stardock's magnum opus with a thorough examination of the core combat mechanics to add more tactical depth to the game. The more I play, the more I "get" Elemental, and I see the vision popping through. I still believe it was released prematurely, but looking back on launches like Empire (which every major publication failed to mention was literally unplayable) puts things in perspective. Elemental needs some significant balancing and interface interrogation, but count me in for the ride.
I look forward to being an active member of the modding community and the future of your work.
Illegitimum non carborundum, domine salvum fac, Brad.
Don't feed the trolls. They just want our attention and its our job to ignore them.
There's a note in a thread elsewhere that the magic damage calculation is being looked at. If that one is on the table, don't be surprised to see other stuff looked at too.
Not today, but eventually. Stardock isn't shy about changing mechanics if they wind up not working out.
Thank you for the heads up...
Much appreciated
I'm still a pretty vocal critic of the game. I have to admit though that for all my problems with it, it's still a very addictive 4x experience, like most Stardock games.
Brad's saying all the right stuff for the moment, and the one thing I have total faith in is that the game will be receiving a lot of attention. Whether that's just balancing the mechanics and bugs, or doing a lot of other stuff that fell short of some expectations at release, remains to be seen.
With all due respect, they've said from before beta started that it's going to be a game about humanoid races. They said from before beta started that all sorts of different creatures wouldn't be the core of your armies, and that you'd still be training normal guys. There's no unmet expectation because the expectation was never there. And if people buy the game and are disappointed because all the races are humanoid, the fault is 100% theirs because SD has said from the very beginning that's how it was going to be.
awsome thank you so much from all of us
Thanks, Brad! This is why I love Stardock.
You mean like HOMM5?
On the other hand, HOMM5 demonstrated that a disapointing start can be turned into a good game. And they did like you say, through the expansions.
Really looking forward to this one!
Looking forward to all the improvements sir.
Thank you Brad, for taking time (and risking life and limb should you wife discover you on the PC while ostensibly on vacation) to send us your thoughts. It is good to see the plans for 1.1 laid out so soon and I look forward to hearing more about it. Rest up and come back refreshed and rarin' to go, OK?
Also nice to read this about the 'huge update' in september. My 3 big things Im hoping for are Diversity of Meaningful Choices (in faction design, spell choices, and unit design), a revamp of the combat system, and a serious upgrade of the AI. Those three things would make this game perfect for me. Right now its 4 out of 5 stars, but those three would sneak it up to 5!
Thanks for the update, Froggy. I've passed your comments along to a couple of other boards like OO. The "shared mana pool" thing concerns me, but I'm reserving judgment until I see how it actually works.
Wonderful post Brad,
I admit I have criticisms of the game at the current state; however i think you have the right idea of how to go about rectifying the problems. Kudos. I am looking forward to the upcoming fixes and the new material. I also want to offer my thanks on acknowledging a tutorial, there is alot of frustration out there about what exactly certain mechanics are and what some things do.
RAT
This puts me at ease and has me looking forward to 1.1 - hopefully it refines the experience!
You say you love the game 'as-is' -- does that mean you think it is fine as is, and doesn't need polishing/balancing, and is currently up to the standards you expect from SD?
If so, then if you read posts by SDers, and judging by how they're still working their butts off on patches instead of taking a well-earned rest after the pre-release crush, that shows that they disagree.
Do you think the game at release it a true representation of what SD is capable of? If so you do them a disservice.
Do you think the SD folks are too fragile to hear an honest opinion that is backed up by facts? If so you do them a disservice.
Brad and SD are adults. Taking responsibility for one's behavior is an adult trait. Holding Brad and SD responsible isn't unreasonable, and that sort of 'tough love' is in their best interest -- that is if you truly have what's best for them at heart.
Acknowledging/accpeting a truth is the first step to fixing it for future releases.
Does my "gdamn pretentious crap" also include where I said Elemental will be a classic of its genre, and the many good things I've said about SD and the game?
I admire folks standing up for friends/etc. but there are times when 'tough love' is the best thing one can do for a friend. Telling someone what you think they need to hear, when you know they don't want to hear it, is true friendship.
I was starting to worry about the character of this Wardell guy. Then I read point 7 and *RENEWED RESPECT***
-Keith
Very Classy post. There's only two developers I trust implicently when it comes to long-term product Support...Stardock and Paradox Interactive.
I've been a gamer since computer games were invented, the complexity has increased almost in direct proportion to computer power. I pay to be entertained. Some games can only entertain me for a few hours or days, for example shooters or limited scope adventure games, so I expect a very polished released product. Then there's games that developers like Stardock and PI make. When I buy one of their products I know I will be entertained for months, if not years to come. I am always more entertained by the product delivered over time than I was originally, because they accept feedback so readily and keep improving it, so I will accept a work in progress.
I am so sick of "fire and forget" developers that toss games out there, throw a courtesy release day patch on their gold version and call it a done deal. I am quite willing to play a paid beta if it means my 50 bucks will buy me another year or two of perpetually improving entertainment value rather than a more polished inital release of a game that will never improve.
As Froggy alluded to, PC gaming as a platform has changed dramatically. It's almost a niche market now with console game taking the forefront. The single biggest attraction to the PC platform for developers and players alike is the amorphous nature provided by continuous support, patching and expansion. PC gaming allows the players of a game to help continue its growth and design well after release. No formal beta, however long, can ever compare to complete release product scrutiny and constructive critisism.
Froggy, keep making good games and supporting them vehemently as you have in the past and we'll keep buying them. If you don't make a fool out of us for giving you our money we won't make a fool out of you for taking it...
All of this is marvelous!
I just wish the game engine will use more than 5-10% of our gpu in the future!
Thanks for the update. Sounds like it's best to wait at least until after the 1.1 update.
We're not going anyplace. Keep 'em coming.
"You did it again, didn't you?"
"What?"
"That floozy, the internet... you were with her, weren't you!"
"What? No! I was-"
"Don't you dare lie to me, Brad Wardell. I can see the sweat on your palms where they were resting on the keyboard!"
"Honey, I'm sorry. It won't happen again!"
"You always say that."
to me this is what indie development is all about. every body bitches and moans about the lack of depth in big development house game designs. well here we have a company that is doing what most other companies won't do. is to keep changing the game until people love it. not just like it, or are ok with it. the game has become something more than a game, its become a community effort. everybody rants and raves about mods for games that people work on, and they get all this attention. well here is a game that is going to be made together by everybody. i bet by the end its not going to be perfect for everyone, but i bet everybody will love it.
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