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.
How can you play an addicting game like Civ for 12 hours and have time to play something else?
Like I've said numerous times, it's pointless to compare EWoM to Civ5...some posters [trolls] on this forum can only "talk" about things like EWoM SUX, Civ5 will kill EWoM, etc...this is getting annoying....seriously.
I'm not worried that the game will eventually be more like what we expect and more like what it should be, but I don't get the timing.
If money isn't a problem, why not sit on the game a few more months before releasing it, let beta testers pound on a version of the game that's more like a release candidate to iron it out, and then release it.
In 2-3 more months, this game will look and play very different after numerous bug fixes, balance changes, and probably complete system revamps. Why not do this BEFORE release instead of AFTER if money isn't an issue? That's what I don't get.
Then forum posts like this wouldn't be necessary, requests to review builds days after release wouldn't be necessary, and a lot of negativity would be avoided.
You may not depend on game sales but I'm sure you'd rather your games be wildly popular and sell copies to show it. A cleaner release and more stable game at release would do wonders.
I pre-ordered so it's not like I'm upset because my money was spent long ago - didn't matter to me when the game was "released" since I've had access for months, I just think this all could've played out a LOT better.
I was going to buy the game just after it released but got scared off by a lot of my gaming friends at Qto3 and a few other forums I go to, so I've held off to see where all this is going.
I have to say reading Brad's latest post(A quick note from Brad)hit me as being very honest and straight, that he stands by his game BUT also sees the problems that many people are having with it. That's important to me as so many devs/pubs of other games I've played with problems simply don't care enough or don't acknowledge the problems to begin with. I can't wait for patch 1.1 as this will most likely be my new release day purchase time, I can start getting excited about the game again.
I really think all the plans Stardock has in the near future for Elemental will make it the game everyone was hoping for all along, lord knows they have taken more than enough heat for the maybe too early release to last a long time, so it's time to switch things around.
I don't. I send all my forum comments with Federal Express. And a Stardock employee posts them here for me...
Great response. I know you guys will keep up with support for a long time to come!
And if Brad changed name, put money in the caiman's isles and start doing something else ??
Is that really what you are worried about?
Well said. I think its because they have a poor business model when it comes to developing their own game. I work for a financial software company, and if the system we are configuring is a bit buggy or not up to spec, we will not promote it into production no matter what. We may entertain the idea of stripping out the buggy features and releasing only the parts that have been tested thoroughly, and that have undergone parallel testing with their current system. To release a premature version is bad press. Now ours is a product which has next to no visibility outside the financial world. Here, we are talking about a game, which has widespread visibility, even more so because of the hope that it will be as good if not better than MoM. So why would you release something to the general public in this state? Poor management, pure and simple. And when we hear statements like "most of our company's revenue doesn't come from developing games", the game's release doesn't seem logical, by any means. Why couldn't they stay in development for another yearand have beta tester pound away at it, if its revenue is an afterthought.
I'll speak for myself by saying this has only caused me to question a future Stardock purchase. I don't care if they will patch this up over the next 2-3 months into "classic" status. It doesn't mean anything. What matters is what I have in my hand now. Perception is everything, in every business. If Brad had considered that, the game would have sat in development and testing like it should have. So, back to a poor business model. My advice is to get that straightened out before your next project.
Could you please take your Fanboism some where else. Many of us want them to patch the bugs and fix the game to the point that is should have been upon release. I don't think Nick is too far off on what he said but I do thing that Brad will pull through like Stardock always does unless he starts listening to Fanboys who bury thier head in the sand and ignore the problems in the game..
Sorry for the rant I just despise Fanboys. They are the reason Devs put out unfinished games in place.
So you think name calling and rants help?
Why is this even being discussed. The gameplan for Elemental has been discussed by Stardock ad nauseum for months. Elemental is the sole focus of Stardock from now until at least the end of 2011. Why do people act like Stardock is just going to pull up their stakes, think everything is just kosher, and move on?
They have announced their plans and have announced a major patch in September. It does not matter what the "fanboys" or "antagonists" have to say. They are paying attention to the constructive criticism, as is readily apparent by Brad's most recent announcement. What they are ignoring (and locking) is the mud-slinging back and forth.
Yes, please no more fanboy-this, troll-that. No one really cares. Take it to PM if you really need to argue with each other.
I agree with your conclusions about sales and reviews if the game had been released later but I think Brad had to release it now. Not because of financial reasons, but because of his personality and the culture he has developed at Stardock. Stardock is not your typical company, thank Christ!
Having read statements by Tom Chick, who has worked closely with Brad, and also the way things have frantically changed within the game, I think it is fair to say that Brad can best be described as 'chaotic'.
When a corporate culture thrives on chaos there many aspects to it. First off you can expect a lot of creativity in what they produce. You can also expect a lot of dead ends and back-tracking. There will always be the next 'great idea' that has to be made. And many people will sign up to come along for the ride.
Imagine having that corporate culture without any checks and balances. For Brad, you can tell his word means an awful lot to him and so when he makes a commitment he will move mountains to try and honour that commitment. Stardock appear to be very goal oriented.
Many chaotic companies don't realise their goals because they never actually finish anything. Look at the development of Duke Nukem 3D. 12 years or so in development but wouldn't be released because it wasn't 'finished'.
What makes Brad and Stardock so very different is that they combine their chaotic nature with specific goals. That is why they had to commit to a launch date that in the end got away from them. Much better that than roll around to February when more chaotic twists had taken the game in different directions with the high likely-hood we would have just as many issues.
So while I'm peeved with where the game is at the moment I know it isn't because of lack of effort or drive. I have faith that the game will improve over a short amount of time and hopefully end up being a great game.
Having spent the last week+ playing Elemental, from Version 1.0 to 1.06, I'm glad to see that Stardock doesn't depend on game sales to survive. My feeling is Elemental will get blasted in reviews and sales will be relatively low. Mostly fans of other Stardock games or people like me who used to love and play strategy games (I'm just getting back into it, having been on consoles for the last several years -- it's good to be back!!!) will buy it.
And I actually might have to abandon the game, at least for a while. I want to complete the campaign but to be honest it's so basic and easily broken and so disjointed from the rest of the game that I will only do that if it doesn't drive me crazy first. I also want to try more sandbox games but so far I've yet to complete one of those between Stardock releasing patches (1.06) that invalidate game saves and just getting to a point in a game where I can't proceed further.
But I want Elemental to rock. I want it to be one of those games I can play for years. But Stardock released it far too early, and although it's good to see its CEO tell the gaming press to just review what they have, he really doesn't have a say so in the mater. I just really hope that V1.1 doesn't just mix things up a bit; I want to see the game fixed and balanced and as far as I'm concerned, that takes time.
In other words Stardock: Take your time. We'll still be here. Don't rush a half assed patch out the door.
In the end, it's just a game and you're only out $50. Let's have a sense of proportion here.
"...if..."?!?!
Are you saying you think 1.05 is in an acceptable state for release and isn't flawed?
Strongly agree. You claimed you wouldn't release before it's ready, and I believed you. Shame on me for getting fooled (again).
Strongly agree to both -- Elemental has great potential, unfortunately it was released a few months too early.
It sounds like you're trying to claim that somehow things have changed since 2006 and that had you done then what you did now it'd have been ok in 2006.
If so, Nuts to that.
It's never been acceptable to release before a game is ready (stability/balance/UI/AI/etc.-wise).
There were 2 John Wayne personas in the movies -- one would never admit a mistake, the other was man enough to. I respect the second. Maybe all the mistakes I've made in the past 50+ years have humbled me to the point of being biased in that way...
These are the quotes that people consider trolling. You took a comment by the company president in which he basically admitted his company let gamers down with the release version of Elemental and that the game should take its release day lumps in the press and turned it around like he was claiming that no mistakes were made at all and that the game should get good reviews from the press because 1.05 was good enough to be worth good reviews.
Since Brad's intent with point 7 was clear enough that an 8-year-old could understand it, and you got it 100% backwards, our only choices were to assume either that you were 7-years-old, that you were as ignorant as a 7-year-old, or that you were a troll. We gave you the benefit of the doubt on your age and intelligence and went for troll. You should be pleased.
Love the feedback, big boss man .
I have been reading about this game for quite a while and when the release day was on my birthday I just had to buy it.
Sure there are some problems with the game, but with the GalCiv2 experience on updates and expansions, it can only get better.
Keep coding and I keep playing!
( or maybe I start coding and you can publish it )
Typical attack by a fanboy. Brad didn't go far enough with point 7. Version 1.0 is what ended up on store shelves but he wants reviewers to review the 1.05 version. Why? If 1.0 was good enough to sell then it's certainly good enough for review and let Brad/Stardock take their lumps. They certainly deserve them. I gues the Gamers Bill of Rights was nothing but BS, right?
I don't see anything wrong with what Nick said. He certainly wasn't trolling. The true trolls are the people who zealously defend an unpolished not ready for release game and attack anyone for saying so. Sad part is that Brad/Stardock are basically saying the same thing as well as reviewers who are well respected in the gaming industry. Let's get a little perspective here. The game has major problems and it's not a crime to say so.
Because that's how it works.
Was a joke , you guys take this too seriouly.Sounds like we are on presidential campaign to know who is right atm ... ^^
I'm probably going to write a review based on 1.06, in fact wrote a post on a French forum which amounts to that, more or less. I'll certainly stress that 1.1 should be more stable/ergonomic, and hopefully more balanced?/fun?/challenging?. It's still a pity to have to write out that, honestly, people should wait to buy the game. Because it's an honest opinion, but people may just move away and not come back instead of just waiting.
I think Elemental is a diamond. However, it's not yet cut. It's even not uncut. It's still a block of carbon burning under extremely high pressure and slowly turning into a diamond. Don't let the pressure break it, or flaw it, and once it looks like a diamond, take the time to cut and polish it.
Thanks for sticking to your game.
But is this honestly the right way to do business? They put out a game in an unstable state, get my game dollar now, and then take all the time in the world to fix it? Why is this ok? Why do I have to pay for crap now, in the hopes that it will be buffed out later? This isn't just Stardock, but it seems to be the norm for all these game companies to churn out beta games, knowing that we the consumer are ok with waiting around while they fix their mistakes.
Actually the problem is us. We promote this type of behavior. From the responses I see here, we are basically patting Stardock on the back for a job well done, and telling them "its ok that things are wrong, we know you'll fix them. Here's my gaming dollar as a reward for a job well done." I just don't understand this type of attitude, and until we change and let publishers know we won't buy until they put out a finished product, this is what we get. Buggy software and an excuse, and another $50 down the drain.
Dude, even StarCraft II had a 60MB day one patch. That's just how things are done in this age of internet connectivity. Get over it.
The game isn't crap now. It could - and will - be better, but it's not crap. Frankly, I'm getting tired of these exaggerations. The way some people talk, Elemental will kill your dog if you install it.
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