The Platform of Choice

(Boktor) #1

Splash Damage, I’ve enjoyed your releases over the years, but I want you to think strategically about your next move.

I think Brink did a lot of damage to the company name.

For one, many found it to be a mediocre shooter, but that’s not what I’m talking about. The state the game was released in on the PC platform was unacceptable. For many the immediate reaction was “console port”.

I’ve seen it happen with a number of games, especially in the last several years. I can guarantee you it’s not good for a developer’s reputation. I could rattle off a list, but I’ll spare you. I know there’s a lot of money in the console market, but it’s a market already dominated by big names.

Maybe sales were alright last time, but what I and many others experienced May 2011 was a breach of trust. So please, make a fun game, spend a lot of time on it, maybe include a closed beta, and the word will spread. Just remember where your core fan-base is. There are a lot of us waiting for a game reminiscent of the glory days of the multiplayer FPS.

:penguin:

(Humate) #2

I wouldnt call it a breach of trust,thats a little too strong and dramatic. But I wouldn’t say they were transparent about the game either. Given the actual game, its not really that surprising.

As for strategy, while im not in the position to really comment :wink:, it seems they are covering their bases

edit: rts pun intended

(tokamak) #3

It’s totally fine as long as each platform isn’t bothered with the artefacts of the other. PC’s brink clearly had to deal with tons of console shenanigans, all the semi-automatic stuff and fixed animations dragged the game way below what people expect from a pc-game.

(Boktor) #4

The thing is, I made the mistake of buying MW2, Black Ops and Bulletstorm as well. All on PC and all poorly coded ports.

I was pretty impressed with all the pre-release footage and press about Brink. Being a fan of SD I even pre-ordered (which I rarely do). To say the least I was disappointed with the widespread performance issues the game suffered from. I decided from that point on I would be much more careful about my purchases.

When iD was coming out with Rage I was pretty excited. iD was one of my favorite developers. No pre-order this time, I learned my lesson. On release I heard about widespread performance issues on PC. I haven’t bought Rage and I still haven’t played it. It was a damn shame. I had such high hopes.

So when I talk about a breach of trust I don’t mean specifically with Splash Damage, it’s with the actions of developers on a whole. They go for a slice of the console money-pie and give PC sloppy seconds.

(Humate) #5

Anytime they say - gameplay parity across all platforms, but better gfx on pc… youre playing a console game on pc.

But this is where it gets tricky. They say **** like - “oh this game isnt a port, its developed concurrently across all 3 platforms” which doesnt mean ****, because the design/gameplay is based around the console. The average gamer’s definition of console port = it plays like a console game. Due to the fact that isn’t the true definition, devs can truthfully say their pc games arent console ports, and this prompts the pc player to buy the game, thinking they have a pc game.

(Indloon) #6

The game can be at every platform…

But if the game is broken,then hell no!

(brbrbr) #7

well syndicate[to which ZM belongs]strategy changed some years ago. topic was told about their decisions, not SD itself, focused on design and development itself.
so IMO, its more pointless to discuss on ZM forum than there.

p.s.
and im missed Linux client too :[