From what I played at QCon.

(eyesore) #1

From what I played at Qcon I was very impressed and I can tell this is going to be an extremely fun game to get addicted to. BUT I’m really worried for PC users (like myself) It’s going to have come down with extreme port-itis. It’s going to be WAY to simplified for PC users. One button doing multiple things making it way too easy to pull off what should be medium to advanced moves.

I’ve always loved Splash Damage games (especially ole’ wolfie!) Please, please, PLEASE! Do not succumb to what EA has made popular and just pushing the console version into the PC version with just better graphical options. I’m pretty sure most PC users would not mind waiting an extra few months for you to make the PC version, instead of having a controller console port. Please take this into grave consideration, if you make this into a port it will fail horribly on PC when FPS’s really have no business on a console. Please reconfigure the controls and how 1 button can do SO MUCH. I understand that being a case on a platform that only has like 8 buttons but we have a keyboard and a mouse…come on… please dont go down that road… please…

(twenty2) #2

i agree, console ports to pc suck. but console is where the money is. whatever they decide to do with the pc version i just hope i can free demo it first

(darthmob) #3

You are not the first to say that and I simply don’t get these complaints. Mapping different buttons to different actions doesn’t make a game more difficult!

In my opinion simplifying too much removes control. Having one context sensitive button for everything helps if you are new to the game and you are not aware of what you can do. Once you have reached a certain skill level you know in any situation exactly what you want to do and that’s where it may be hindering. You can’t tell the game anymore “I want to revive”, you have to look for the right context. What if someone is lying right in front of the objective? Did you aim at the body or at the objective or at the floor when you pressed the button? Which action is it going to be? Dropping a medpack? Reviving? Interaction with the objective? This was horribly wrong in Wolfenstein and I really hope that SD had a look at that and these issues won’t be present in Brink.

(potkettleblack) #4

Thanks for the post eyesore. I hope more and more people who had the opportunity to play the game, post their impressions.

Darthmob, you didnt get the memo? Its not over simplified, its streamlined!

(aimology) #5

Darthmob is obviously not a very talented gamer and what he says makes no sense. Wolfenstein was a game made for perfect. They has yet to be a game made with such flawless coding and control lay out, other then quake. You also say that “You are not the first to say that and I simply don’t get these complaints. Mapping different buttons to different actions doesn’t make a game more difficult!”, yet your next paragraph basically contradicts that statement, because you need multiple keys / buttons to do exactly what yours talking about.

every console port to pc is complete ****, but if I remember correctly they already stated on pc you can individual bind each key and not use the “smart button” which is exactly how it should be. I just hope the coding is good since its a port, because they never are.

(Apples) #6

I guess darthmob agreed basically with the first post… Or I didnt get DM’s post, or I didnt get the first one… Well calm down on drugs anyway guyz oO

(LyndonL) #7

Port means they took a game DESIGNED FOR one system and did a hackjob to make it run on another system. Simultaneous releases and in line development (which has been stated by SD MANY times) does NOT constitute a port!!! People need to stop being all angry and start reading more before they post crap.

Sure there are less buttons than there could (or even possibly should) be… but that doesn’t make it a port FFS!!
Definition of port. Read second to last dot point - modify software.

(darthmob) #8

Basically I agree but I think the argumentation is wrong. I have 8 buttons for weapon slots in QL but not because I think it takes more skill. It makes playing the game a lot more comfortable. You are always in control. Selected the wrong weapon? It’s your own fault.
Wolfenstein wasn’t like that. Wolfenstein was like “hah your cursor was at the wrong place I’ll just drop a medpack instead of reviving and make you look like a total fool”. It’s needlessly frustrating.

I don’t care about the removal of weapon slots anymore. Hopefully SD keeps in mind what can go wrong with too much context sensitive binding, proves all us whiners wrong and delivers a perfect simple control scheme which actually works. :slight_smile:

(Susefreak) #9

The context in which port currently is given is the concerns that the focus for the game lies with the consoles rather then the PC. In various posts here has been stated that people conceive Brink as a console game and are concerned that yet again the PC users are left with a game that just doesn’t feel right compared to what PC games used to be.

I don’t blame them. Studio’s and publishers seen the big bucks in the consoles rather then the PC, where piracy is at it’s all time high. With the features that SD brings to the table in Brink, it just looks and feels like the main focus lies on the consoles rather then the PC, which was the starting point for them back when they did mods and earlier game titles.

To be honest I am shocked to see the blind devotion, near religious devotion to the game/studio (usually seen at Apple cults) just takes over even when there even might be a small part of criticism towards SD or Brink. I’ve read various comments that I would expect from a lynch mob rather then a games forum.

(LyndonL) #10

Don’t get me wrong I’m not going to blindly follow them irrespective of what they put out, but geez porting is a pet hate of mine - take GTA IV for example. And something that I hate that much, I want distinctions between.

Look, until I play the final product I am in no position to judge. From what I have seen so far though, every public iteration of the game that I have seen so far has been different from the previous, and all of these “game breaking” (as some people would call it) issues seem to slowly be getting ironed out.

But to claim that having a one button does all is a decrease in skill is just stupid. If anything it increases the required level since the process potentially takes more precision and takes longer which means you need to be more vigilant and rely on tighter teamwork to complete objectives.

I’m on the fence as to the whole one button thing - I’ve played games with both systems and tbh the amount of difference it creates to the playability of the game is so insignificant that it has never even consciously entered my mind.

The problem is the old schol gamers are so set in their ways they won’t adapt to new systems even if (and I’m not suggesting that this is) the new system is better. However automation - everyone seems to be against that… but how many people complained when car gearboxes became auto? Arguably the best drivers in the world are F1 drivers… I don’t see them using a clutch. Elevators? Using an elevator diminishes the skill involved with piloting stairs… Washing Machine? Sheeit Cletus, You can’t gots no skill using a washing machine instead of a wash board in that there river over yonder.

I’ve just had 4 early morning shifts in a row and I get grumpy when I don’t get my sleep.

(potkettleblack) #11

[QUOTE=LyndonL;237273]Port means they took a game DESIGNED FOR one system and did a hackjob to make it run on another system. Simultaneous releases and in line development (which has been stated by SD MANY times) does NOT constitute a port!!! People need to stop being all angry and start reading more before they post crap.

Sure there are less buttons than there could (or even possibly should) be… but that doesn’t make it a port FFS!!
Definition of port. Read second to last dot point - modify software.[/QUOTE]

You are absolutely correct. However when the decision is made to ensure that both the PC and the Console versions are identical in gameplay, its irrelevant.

The game needs to feel as if it was specifically designed for the PC and only the PC.

(Voxie) #12

[QUOTE=Susefreak;237278]The context in which port currently is given is the concerns that the focus for the game lies with the consoles rather then the PC. In various posts here has been stated that people conceive Brink as a console game and are concerned that yet again the PC users are left with a game that just doesn’t feel right compared to what PC games used to be.

I don’t blame them. Studio’s and publishers seen the big bucks in the consoles rather then the PC, where piracy is at it’s all time high. With the features that SD brings to the table in Brink, it just looks and feels like the main focus lies on the consoles rather then the PC, which was the starting point for them back when they did mods and earlier game titles.

To be honest I am shocked to see the blind devotion, near religious devotion to the game/studio (usually seen at Apple cults) just takes over even when there even might be a small part of criticism towards SD or Brink. I’ve read various comments that I would expect from a lynch mob rather then a games forum.[/QUOTE]

Regarding that last statement, Susefreak, it hasn’t occured to you that people have different opinions? I personally feel no desire to preach the words and decisions of the developers, I just share their mindset when it comes to certain design changes.

I’m getting tired of users here forgetting that this is a discussion forum; posting inappropriate framebait tags (even though there’s been a stickied thread about just this behavior) and name-calling won’t make your voice heard more than others’. Please try to be more tolerant of those whose view-points polarizes from your own.

(LyndonL) #13

[QUOTE=potkettleblack;237281]You are absolutely correct. However when the decision is made to ensure that both the PC and the Console versions are identical in gameplay, its irrelevant.

The game needs to feel as if it was specifically designed for the PC and only the PC.[/QUOTE]

No, the worst part about a port is sloppy system performance on PC because the game is optimised for console.
That is the distinction that is the worst about ports.
Achieving identical gameplay is actually brilliant. If the game runs perfectly on all systems that is the sign on a well developed game.

(Ragoo) #14

He was talking about Wolfenstein 2009 and its horrible one-button control^^

SD should really give us an option “[ ] enable advanced controls” which gives every tool/nade a weaponslot so it’s like W:ET/ET:QW (ET:QW was even better with the function key to bring out the tools when you need them, especially for new players).

I guess SD will understand what we are complaining about but won’t change/add anything now :frowning:

(badman) #15

We appreciate every bit of feedback we get and consider all of it (though constructive feedback will generally go a lot farther :)). Always have, always will.

(Susefreak) #16

[QUOTE=Voxie;237282]Regarding that last statement, Susefreak, it hasn’t occured to you that people have different opinions? I personally feel no desire to preach the words and decisions of the developers, I just share their mindset when it comes to certain design changes.

I’m getting tired of users here forgetting that this is a discussion forum; posting inappropriate framebait tags (even though there’s been a stickied thread about just this behavior) and name-calling won’t make your voice heard more than others’. Please try to be more tolerant of those whose view-points polarizes from your own.[/QUOTE]
For the first part, sure I do respect others opinions, yet there are various statements, both the forums and the irc channel that makes me wonder what have gotten into some people. The second is part of the problem.

(SnipingPenguin) #17

It isn’t one button, right? yeah, sure you can just press the button down if you want, but you can also sprint and press whichever button is appropriate and do it earlier and on your own.

(DarkangelUK) #18

To go on the flipside of your argument, I have no idea how some people are so dead against even the thought of trying a different system they’ve not used before, that they rant and shout and flame, stoop to name calling and even threats of convincing others not to buy the game JUST because they like how it worked in their favourite game, and want it exactly the same way in this one. I’m an open minded gamer and willing to try new things, I can understand concerns but not to the point of what i’ve just stated… and certainly mature to not bitch and moan about it constantly as if it’s the destruction of all PC gaming. This doomsday attitude is getting ridiculous, yet you somehow view people who accept it and are willing to try it as placing SD on a pedestal? Way to overshoot the mark…

(jazevec) #19

Re: OP

If they can make the interface better and simpler without dumbing things down, then I’m all for it. You sound like a StarCraft player who likes to have bad interface and virtually nonexistant AI because otherwise it will be too easy to play. That’s silly. If the game is deep enough, the challenge will simply move to a higher level.

(Voxie) #20

Got to ask you, jazevec, how do you feel about the context-sensitive use button from a pure speculative perspective, and if you think it’s lacking, what do you think would be a good way to improve upon it? If I’m not mistaken, last we discussed this in the other thread you stated that the current implementation is counter-intuitive, short-sighted and dumbed down, while in this one you perfectly nails the essence of why I’m for this revised way of interfacing with the game world. We clearly have the same desire for a more approachable and intuitive game without the expense of depth, but seem to be thorn on the issue of whether Splash Damage have made the right decision for the PC version or not.