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Okay, so I am not exactly the biggest {Noble MechWarrior} around in terms of defending PGI. My posts tend to be on the negative side, with bursts of cautious optimism. When it comes to MWO, I always had an agenda of what I wanted from the game; I knew PGI's vision was quite different. I've always dreamed of an MPBT-3025 reboot, and unfortunately it was abundantly clear this would never become that failed dream for many long months now.
All that being said, I would like to take this thread to offer constructive suggestions on why, independently of the axe I have to grind, this presentation is widely viewed by the forum audience as underwhelming.
1. If you are going to have a big "reveal", it needs to be "big".
People like myself have been waiting for definitive CW plans for years now. The silence on this design pillar was deafening. We wanted to see a polished, smooth, complete, sensible description of what was planned. If this could not be delivered, the date should not have been set. I do not believe that even the most ardent {Noble MechWarrior} would qualify the CW reveal as meeting this criteria.
2. If your CW plan is incomplete ...
The "CW" reveal should have started a new rapprochement between PGI and the community. PGI should have taken the opportunity to start key feedback threads on the core design plans -- solicit the community's advice on features and you could be pleasantly surprised. Of course, the community was and is going to rake you over the coals for not doing this much earlier, but this is unavoidable.
If you know key elements of your design plan are weak, be up front about it and get feedback from the community.
CW could, should, and in a sense must be used intelligently to market the game not only to prospective clients, but to the hardcore fans who are upset with you. :-) If CW is your main leverage for selling Phoenix, why miss the opportunities inherent in talking about CW?
To reiterate:
a) Where are the efforts to reach out to the community on CW?
If you know its not great, be up front about it and work with your community.c) Explain your overall vision in a clearer fashion -- focus more on overall limits to the scope of the project, and get help from your overly-passionate community.
3. The best {Noble MechWarrior} Defense...
Perhaps PGI is afraid of letting us in on certain specifics for fears of allowing competitors to gain too much information. However, I would like to point out that if this is the case, you are also concealing it from a more important audience: your customers.
Business secrecy is often quite overrated when it inhibits your basic relationship to the most important audience. After all, the main point of having an exclusive license to an IP is that it is.... an exclusive license on that IP.
4. In conclusion
PGI, you missed an opportunity here. Please see above for suggestions on how to get us to give you our money.
I will make a public promise -- if you begin a rational, constructive dialogue on CW here on the forums (I know you hate your forums, but that is your cross to bear) I will happily buy Overlord and Saber even though I hate mediums.
A constructive dialogue would have the following elements:
1) Multiple polls on key design elements of CW to get a sense of what your community wants.
2) Regular and consistent responses to community feedback in multiple heavily moderated threads discussing each particular element of CW. An open regular discussion, not an AtD.
3) A commitment to keep the dialogue going with full transparency. Announce a new kickstarter type "goal" of funding for each objective if necessary. Ease up on the secrecy and your community might be more forgiving.
