7768 replies to this topic

[NoSkillRush]

BigBadBug, on 17 December 2013 - 07:16 AM, said:

A letter to Russ: [LONG POST WARNING]

As a person with Production experience in the gaming industry, let's talk a moment.

Let's start with he UI.

For BETA, what you produced was good enough, but your team should have been tasked with getting UI 2.0 ready for launch - without exception. Surely your scope and design documents outlined what was necessary to produce this, and your team was built so these elements could be completed. When it looked like you weren't going to make it, why didn't your technical director step up and let you know how behind they were, and the appropriate resources allocated to ensure they weren't? 18 "engineers" should have been plenty to write the code to support the new UI integration, leaving patching to further bring elements online. The framework is already there, you're showing that with the current UI, so enhancing the functionality and "glitz" of it could have been an issue left to gradual patching. If you can't pull from your current 18 to ensure that UI 2.0 is completed BEFORE Feb as a sign of good faith, then my suggestion is to pull in some new talent to ensure it is. Don't worry, it won't be temporary, because once UI 2.0 is launched, they'll be needed to support ongoing development and integration. At least the UI would be up and your user base would have a visual indicator of progress. What we have now, is a situation where your community feels slighted because you're focusing too much on the form and too little on the function.

Next is CW.

One of, if not the most important feature of any online multiplayer shooter-based game, is the ability for teams of people to organize private matches. Afterall, organized team warfare is the backbone to ensuring the longevity of your product. The more resources people invest in playing your game, the longer they'll play to ensure they get a return. The biggest mistake any multiplayer game company can make is to ignore the community aspect in their product and delay its integration. You end up stalling out the user experience, people lose faith in the developer, and what happens next is you lose customers. With so many outlets now for people to air their grievances, that can spell disaster for a company struggling to bring in new money. Some of your customers belong to enormous guilds, with hundreds of paying players looking for the next great game. Ignoring them is worse than ******* them off. At least if you give them what they're after, even broken, they'll keep playing in the hopes you'll fix it. Ignoring them however, and leaving out the most essential of tools, breaks the trust and pushes them away. Who wants to invest in a product that shows no sign of ever being what they're after? Promises are worth what it cost to make them...nothing.

Communications.

To say that PGI has been on top of keeping the community happy is a stretch. Sure you put out command chair and "Ask the Dev" posts, but when you consistently "backorder" key features that your community is screaming for - or worse, are consistently a "Johnny come lately" with information about the game's direction and apologies - you're being downright ignorant to your customers.

Further to communications, namely in-game, where's the support? Every video game is about the "experience", that's what makes good games great. MWO is missing the immersion of being in a 20-100 tonne walking tank. Sure you have Bitching Betty, and nice visuals, but where's the radio chatter? You didn't even bother to implement keybound commands that played when selected. This at least would have created some level of an immersive environment that would distract from no integrated voice communication ability.

So where do we go?

New mechs be damned right now. UI 2.0 should be the #1 priority. You say it's a bottleneck, ok, then why are we seeing you sell mechs that won't make an appearance until June, now? As a project manager I would have the design team tasked with ensuring the new UI is visually perfect, while my engineers are tasked with having the initial required features working, and short-mile the remaining features to get them operations ASAP. The UI is afterall the doorway into the universe you're creating, and the lynchpin to holding every other feature together. This needs to be out in January, not Feb.

Next is CW. Surely your team understood how important this feature was, and you had a team integrating the CW features this whole time. What can be launched now with the new UI and what order can you bring the remaining features online? If your current team isn't capable, I would be migrating a few people over to boost development now from your current team, and hire more people to support them ASAP. Your reputation as at stake here, and as much as you feel you're handling things, your community says otherwise, and they're spending/not spending based on your actions, not words.

Bottom Line.

Your credibility and that of your company is in question. You've missed all the deadlines you've set out for yourselves thus far, on all of the items your community has stated are vital for your success. You consistently say it's "just around the corner" but never state which corner that is, or how long it'll take to reach it. You give false dates, and inflate expectations. It won't end until you start delivering, and asking for more time isn't a realistic direction to travel unless you can guarantee you'll get enough new people to replace those that will walk now.

This is my IP. I've been playing it for almost 30 years. There are many like me here, and watching from a distance. You're not being fair to me, nor are you being fair to the franchise in the way you're handling this. You asked us for money to support you, and we gave it without hesitation. You asked again, and we gave again without hesitation. Now we're asking, and we're only asking for what you've already promised. Asking a 3rd time without even fully providing what you've promised the first 2 times is a bit arrogant and ignorant don't you think?

Our patience has worn out, and we don't trust you anymore. Show us we can trust you again and all will be forgiven...we'll prove it through giving you more money, but you need to show us first.

If you want to talk further, I'm available, just ask.

- Bug Out -

This ^^^ and why I am worried about the people in charge.

[TLBFestus]

BigBadBug, on 17 December 2013 - 07:16 AM, said:

A letter to Russ: [LONG POST WARNING]

As a person with Production experience in the gaming industry, let's talk a moment.

Let's start with he UI.

For BETA, what you produced was good enough, but your team should have been tasked with getting UI 2.0 ready for launch - without exception. Surely your scope and design documents outlined what was necessary to produce this, and your team was built so these elements could be completed. When it looked like you weren't going to make it, why didn't your technical director step up and let you know how behind they were, and the appropriate resources allocated to ensure they weren't? 18 "engineers" should have been plenty to write the code to support the new UI integration, leaving patching to further bring elements online. The framework is already there, you're showing that with the current UI, so enhancing the functionality and "glitz" of it could have been an issue left to gradual patching. If you can't pull from your current 18 to ensure that UI 2.0 is completed BEFORE Feb as a sign of good faith, then my suggestion is to pull in some new talent to ensure it is. Don't worry, it won't be temporary, because once UI 2.0 is launched, they'll be needed to support ongoing development and integration. At least the UI would be up and your user base would have a visual indicator of progress. What we have now, is a situation where your community feels slighted because you're focusing too much on the form and too little on the function.

Next is CW.

One of, if not the most important feature of any online multiplayer shooter-based game, is the ability for teams of people to organize private matches. Afterall, organized team warfare is the backbone to ensuring the longevity of your product. The more resources people invest in playing your game, the longer they'll play to ensure they get a return. The biggest mistake any multiplayer game company can make is to ignore the community aspect in their product and delay its integration. You end up stalling out the user experience, people lose faith in the developer, and what happens next is you lose customers. With so many outlets now for people to air their grievances, that can spell disaster for a company struggling to bring in new money. Some of your customers belong to enormous guilds, with hundreds of paying players looking for the next great game. Ignoring them is worse than ******* them off. At least if you give them what they're after, even broken, they'll keep playing in the hopes you'll fix it. Ignoring them however, and leaving out the most essential of tools, breaks the trust and pushes them away. Who wants to invest in a product that shows no sign of ever being what they're after? Promises are worth what it cost to make them...nothing.

Communications.

To say that PGI has been on top of keeping the community happy is a stretch. Sure you put out command chair and "Ask the Dev" posts, but when you consistently "backorder" key features that your community is screaming for - or worse, are consistently a "Johnny come lately" with information about the game's direction and apologies - you're being downright ignorant to your customers.

Further to communications, namely in-game, where's the support? Every video game is about the "experience", that's what makes good games great. MWO is missing the immersion of being in a 20-100 tonne walking tank. Sure you have Bitching Betty, and nice visuals, but where's the radio chatter? You didn't even bother to implement keybound commands that played when selected. This at least would have created some level of an immersive environment that would distract from no integrated voice communication ability.

So where do we go?

New mechs be damned right now. UI 2.0 should be the #1 priority. You say it's a bottleneck, ok, then why are we seeing you sell mechs that won't make an appearance until June, now? As a project manager I would have the design team tasked with ensuring the new UI is visually perfect, while my engineers are tasked with having the initial required features working, and short-mile the remaining features to get them operations ASAP. The UI is afterall the doorway into the universe you're creating, and the lynchpin to holding every other feature together. This needs to be out in January, not Feb.

Next is CW. Surely your team understood how important this feature was, and you had a team integrating the CW features this whole time. What can be launched now with the new UI and what order can you bring the remaining features online? If your current team isn't capable, I would be migrating a few people over to boost development now from your current team, and hire more people to support them ASAP. Your reputation as at stake here, and as much as you feel you're handling things, your community says otherwise, and they're spending/not spending based on your actions, not words.

Bottom Line.

Your credibility and that of your company is in question. You've missed all the deadlines you've set out for yourselves thus far, on all of the items your community has stated are vital for your success. You consistently say it's "just around the corner" but never state which corner that is, or how long it'll take to reach it. You give false dates, and inflate expectations. It won't end until you start delivering, and asking for more time isn't a realistic direction to travel unless you can guarantee you'll get enough new people to replace those that will walk now.

This is my IP. I've been playing it for almost 30 years. There are many like me here, and watching from a distance. You're not being fair to me, nor are you being fair to the franchise in the way you're handling this. You asked us for money to support you, and we gave it without hesitation. You asked again, and we gave again without hesitation. Now we're asking, and we're only asking for what you've already promised. Asking a 3rd time without even fully providing what you've promised the first 2 times is a bit arrogant and ignorant don't you think?

Our patience has worn out, and we don't trust you anymore. Show us we can trust you again and all will be forgiven...we'll prove it through giving you more money, but you need to show us first.

If you want to talk further, I'm available, just ask.

- Bug Out -

One of the best posts in the entire thread.

It's just what I would have said if I was articulate, unfortunately my heart is full of anger and my mouth with bile. After today, I need to walk away again for a few weeks and remember it's Christmas and I have much more important things to do.

[Takeo]

This package is a joke. You aren't getting all the Clan mechs, don't even know if you do get them, what will to all your Inner Sphere Mechs? WIll they be lost, will you keep them what? Also the Gold Mechs wow I need to go and Get a surgery so I can give my Arm and Leg, and may need to give my Left something else. I am really thinking what did I spend all this time and money for?

[Anastasius]

Way too expensive.

Until I see the UI update and a persistant campaign, No more of Ana's money. Period.

I havent played 10 games in the last few months due to the horrible UI and lack of a campaign.

If we as a community accually pay these inflated prices then we deserve everything we do not get.

Not 1 red cent from me until I see some actual progress. Until then pound sand good sirs.

[Bacl]

Right now all i feeling like doing is drown them with mails pushing them to refund me my legendary package and phoenix overlord package for a permanent ban ticket. I paid to support and to encourage the birth of a new Mechwarrior game. CW was announced when the founders got out ffs! I paid for that damn it now its out in another year i mean really? I shouldnt feel ashamed to be founder so why do i?

I got the the phoenix package when the game was still fun, 2 weeks after my purchase they pull out the ghost heat and weapon linkage, i was stupid enough to think " its too big they cant possibly support that in the game, this is a mistake and they will remove it". Intead of fixing things up they added the 3rd person view with some other "cool features" and now the Overlord package is permanent... How do you think i feel? Well reading that forum i see how you do.

I gladdly follow the N.O.P.E. and i will go even further trying to stress them for a refund. I cant support that game while these clowns are making fun of it.

Edited by Bacl, 17 December 2013 - 08:49 AM.

[PanzerMagier]

Been taking a 3 months hiatus and planning on coming back to MWO when CW/UI 2.0 hits live.
Now I'm not looking forward to it anymore. This whole clan package makes me feel like a gimped fool for buying founders/overlord.
But don't worry PGI I see your business ethics and your handling on community in general and you have no plans on changing it at all. I have seen it from start till whenever for more than 2 years now. I sorely regret ever doing business with you or trusting your company. Thank you for butchering my favorite franchise and milking it like EA milks call of duty. If this is how you go about "riving" mechwarrior, I would have prefered that it stayed in the dust.

Edited by PanzerMagier, 17 December 2013 - 09:25 AM.

[Aleksanteri Bekker]

focuspark, on 17 December 2013 - 08:13 AM, said:

No I got what you were saying, and I said you are wrong. The maths are 21 mechs for US$210, that's $10 per mech no matter how you slice it. If you want the 'mechs ala cart, then be a good little boy and wait until they are for sale individually. You'll even be able to pick them up for US$0 (+ C-bills).

Oh so you know of some unmentioned future plan to make Mechbays available for C-bills? I'm not sure PGI wants you leaking their secrets.

Ohhhh, you forgot that to get any mechbays to put the mechs in you either have to sell off 'mechs you already have and have put time into mastering, or spend real money for a place to put these "free" mechs in.

Yeah, you're wrong, but keep preaching marketing speak, the dumb ones will believe you.


Edit:

If they were indeed selling them at $10 per 'mech (which they're not), they'd make $60 off of me since all I want is the Nova and Adder. As it is now, they will make $0. I either have to pay $60 to get the Novas, or $150 to get the Adders. Your fiction of $10/mo doesn't change that. You only get the Novas if you spend $60, you only get the Adders if you spend $150. You can not get the Adders and Novas for spending $60.

Edited by Aleksanteri Bekker, 17 December 2013 - 09:34 AM.

[Dymitry]

TL:DR version: What you are asking for is outrageous and insulting to someone that has been with you since day 1.

I bought founders nearly on day 1 - purely to support the franchise. I did not really like some of the initial promises, particularly I was very worried about the freemium model, but in the end I did not care one iota - MW, the first one, was my first PC game and I have been utterly in love with all things BT ever since, and I was heartbroken when the reboot died a couple of years ago, so I choose to support PGI by forking the equivalent of 2 brand new triple A games, just to buy into the promise of another MW game - even one that 1) would not offer any sort of single player and that 2) would eventually require me to spend more money on it for things that really should be included when one forks out 120$. People were saying that the free MC and premium times made it actually a good deal, mostly comparing to WoT (I guess), although I strongly disagreed. I have discussed already a couple of years ago on this forum that, even if for some aspects it is an unfair comparison, older MWs had 50+ mechs in, single player and multi-mode multiplayer for the price of few hero mechs (and a lot of people worked on those games too, and at least until the third one they were at the bleeding edge of what was possible in PC gaming at their times, both in single and multi player). And let's not talk about the fact that the founders programme was a big success - to me it proved that if PGI could afford to make a proper game and we would have been there to support them and their product. I guess that a short, few hours only single player campaign and a lot of additional DLC in time would have been nice and totally doable. I mean, the graphics are kind of there, but in terms of gameplay small indies churn out more complex stuff every day. And no balancing-debugging talks please. Whatever we suggested as a community, they constantly ignored - with the excuse of making the game palatable to non BT fans they alienated several one and still I do not see the hordes of COD teenagers making PGI outrageously rich and the game (what game, 4 maps and 1/ 1/2 game modes) incredibly fun to play for newbies and veterans alike.
But I digress.

Flash-forward to the Phoenix pack. By the time it was on sale I have not played in several months (I stopped around the final closed beta reset, and played few games here and there just to check the status, FYI) - the game was obviously stagnating. The meta had switched a bit, especially with "electronic warfare", DHS and the likes, meaning that all of my expensive founder mechs in default configurations, were not effective and I did not felt like grinding again, for the umpteenth time.
Although I could have easily done it with the noob bonus and all, I thought it was very silly actually that a new player - even an expert one - would be forced to spend several hours nearly helpless while grinding for better gear, all because stuff like an "all standards builds" mode, another thing that was suggested countless times by the community (and I did not care for, at that time), could not be implemented.
In retrospective it seems that making people having fun without forcing them through the grinding process would have meant reducing the need for them to get premium time, a hero mech or some pack; by the way, I got two friends of mine (1 big MW fan, another used to play MechCommander and likes stompy robots - and they both play dota 2 so they are not afraid of a steep learning curve) to try the game as soon as open beta was ready. They both told me I should have rather spent my money on beanie babies.

But still I bought the pack. I bought into the promise, again. I mentally justified forking out the equivalent of another triple A title and some more with poor PGI having to buy the rights to the unseen, and deserving a "reward", kind of one would tip someone for going "the extra mile". Then the expansion to the pack came. I am not even sure if I bought it, to be honest. I think I missed it purely due to the lack of playing, and me starting to ignore the monthly email containing "new hero mech in sale, only the equivalent of a good indie game, not to mention a great title only few years old". Then I read the "we started working on the clans!" announcement which sounded totally odd to me because the game simply is not there, a part of me still thought that they were just missing deliveries, but eventually would get there in order. I.e. we get Inner Sphere community stuff going on for a while, the model gets refined, and then we get the Clans invasion. So basically everything cool, just rewind the timeline a couple of years.

Then I received the "Clan invasion package" email on my mobile. Forget my feelings towards the game up to this point, I am a clanner at heart - from the Jade Phoenix trilogy, so I was instinctively happy. As my rational part was mumbling "this is stupid, and you are an i***t", I read "Khan pack" and got a nerd fit. I was preparing to fork out, again, what I thought would be an amount of money that could have given me another full game, or an endless amount of dota 2 content (I ended up swapping MWO for dota 2, those Volvo guys give a FULL game for free, with 100+ unique 3d models (but only 1 map really), and charge for aesthetic items and tickets. Oh, no grinding, just skill. Crazy stuff...) for basically few 3d animated models that I perhaps could use someday, if we ever had a game to use them in.
I am sorry that I have been too prolix so far, but as soon as I opened the pricing list, I was utterly speechless. There is no way to describe how royally you f****d this up PGI. There is being fair, something you have probably have never been. There is milking, childhood memories and lifelong passions, I can endure that, its MY bad. And there is this. Although I hope you guys will get your act together, develop a brilliant game with a solid business model behind, that the game succeeds and you guys get to go around in ferraris and whatnot, I need to know, how does one that has been with you since day 0 can still believe that you are willing to pull it off, and that you will.
Have you guys, honestly, went out a regular gamer, nevermind average Joe, explained to him what are you charging for a friggin "Mad Cat", never mind those idiotic golden mechs, and asked them whether it is a fair proposition or not? And again, this is not in a "fully functioning game with huge player base" but in something that is in alpha, because at BETA, by definition, features must be nearly complete.
You wanted to make 240 bucks to finance the game by selling clan mechs? By all means do ask for that, but you gotta give something back.
There are infinite ways you could have done this in a nicer way, an I am sure the community has already given you better ideas than mine, but you could have sent some nicely made models, some gadgets, something that gives the impression of a "fairish" exchange. But that would not be so profitable would it?

Because the more I think, of it the more it seems that the only thing you guys are trying to achieve is monetization. Everything that it is not directly cashable, is being delayed definitively. This is in direct contrast to what you promised, and even if not legally, deeply unethical from a professional perspective.

From a dev to devs, you guys seem to have forgotten your stated goals. Make a lot of money from a great game. We already gave you a great deal of money, much much more of what you deserve from what you are offering at the moment. The web is covering you in ridiculous, there already are articles that identify this as "how to get the freemium model terribly wrong". Are you proud of working at what is basically an "i am rich" app, with nostalgia flavour?

From a gamer to gamers, is that a game you would want to invest time and money in? Is this a studio that deserver my hard-earned cash? Are you proud of asking more than a whole gaming system for a bunch of texture and a 3d model?
And from a lifelong BT and MW fan to stated BT and MW fans, is this how the universe should be brought forward?

We have supported you with money and with time, testing, helping newbies, defending the game in forums and community and by promoting it - and we only asked what we paid for, a great MW game. At every step of the way you are trying to milk us while ignoring our pleads in you quest to bring in new audiences, and by the way, some of whom are likely to be incompatible with the spirit of a MW game.
As much as I love battletech, I cannot accept being repeatedly taken advantage of. As a word of advice, you better get your act together pronto, or there will not be audience left to see it.

[Airborne Thunder]

"Become a Gold Khan member.
Own the most exclusive.

• Extremely Rare
  
• Limited Edition
  
• Gold Skinned Clan Mech"

If they are indeed so "rare" and "limited" why are they still selling them after being available for 4 days?

[Quinn Allard]

PGI, hire EVERYONE from MWLL and double the amount of people working on CW, UI2.0, and bug fixes. PLEASE. I want this game to be awesome ssoooooo bad. Right now it sucks, and it feels like you dont care. You shut down MWLL, they did more for MechWarrior with a few guys then you guys have in 3 years with 40-50 people. Now it feels like your milking us for everything we are worth before this ship sinks. We arnt mad about the Clans coming, we are furious that you would throw it up 6 months in advance BEFORE you keep your promises. What you should have done was say "We are sorry, we are really really far behind in delivering content. What we are going to do is give 1 free hero mech of your choice, along with 1 month free premium time. Content wont be here until yada yada." Then in February-March AFTER you release UI2.0, another mode or two, etc etc...THEN hit us with epicness and awe inspiring Clan invasion! They are supposed to be expensive, yes $500 for a gold mech is crazy, however some people WANT crazy! Lamborghini made its name and fortune off being crazy with crazy impractacle methods but it worked! We WANT as many mechs as you can cram into this game, BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT BUT we want CONTENT, we want PROMISES KEPT, we want CW, we want MERC CORPS and private maches! LISTEN TO YOUR PLAYER BASE OR WE WILL LEAVE! Just like SSSOOOOO many games before you! Star Wars Old Republic, Conan, the list goes on! PLEASE LISTEN!

[Razor Kotovsky]

Quinn Allard, on 17 December 2013 - 10:04 AM, said:

PGI, hire EVERYONE from MWLL

Yeah we said that 2 years ago. But now not a single self-respecting developer will share a coffee with them.

Edited by Razor Kotovsky, 17 December 2013 - 10:25 AM.

[Fiveohmike]

Wallet is perma-closed. I hope PGI goes under and someone can take the IP away from them. I manage development teams for a network security company in silicon valley. If I had done anything similar to PGI, I would be living in a box on the streets.

[Ingvay]

BigBadBug, on 17 December 2013 - 07:16 AM, said:

A letter to Russ: [LONG POST WARNING]

As a person with Production experience in the gaming industry, let's talk a moment.

Let's start with he UI.

For BETA, what you produced was good enough, but your team should have been tasked with getting UI 2.0 ready for launch - without exception. Surely your scope and design documents outlined what was necessary to produce this, and your team was built so these elements could be completed. When it looked like you weren't going to make it, why didn't your technical director step up and let you know how behind they were, and the appropriate resources allocated to ensure they weren't? 18 "engineers" should have been plenty to write the code to support the new UI integration, leaving patching to further bring elements online. The framework is already there, you're showing that with the current UI, so enhancing the functionality and "glitz" of it could have been an issue left to gradual patching. If you can't pull from your current 18 to ensure that UI 2.0 is completed BEFORE Feb as a sign of good faith, then my suggestion is to pull in some new talent to ensure it is. Don't worry, it won't be temporary, because once UI 2.0 is launched, they'll be needed to support ongoing development and integration. At least the UI would be up and your user base would have a visual indicator of progress. What we have now, is a situation where your community feels slighted because you're focusing too much on the form and too little on the function.

Next is CW.

One of, if not the most important feature of any online multiplayer shooter-based game, is the ability for teams of people to organize private matches. Afterall, organized team warfare is the backbone to ensuring the longevity of your product. The more resources people invest in playing your game, the longer they'll play to ensure they get a return. The biggest mistake any multiplayer game company can make is to ignore the community aspect in their product and delay its integration. You end up stalling out the user experience, people lose faith in the developer, and what happens next is you lose customers. With so many outlets now for people to air their grievances, that can spell disaster for a company struggling to bring in new money. Some of your customers belong to enormous guilds, with hundreds of paying players looking for the next great game. Ignoring them is worse than ******* them off. At least if you give them what they're after, even broken, they'll keep playing in the hopes you'll fix it. Ignoring them however, and leaving out the most essential of tools, breaks the trust and pushes them away. Who wants to invest in a product that shows no sign of ever being what they're after? Promises are worth what it cost to make them...nothing.

Communications.

To say that PGI has been on top of keeping the community happy is a stretch. Sure you put out command chair and "Ask the Dev" posts, but when you consistently "backorder" key features that your community is screaming for - or worse, are consistently a "Johnny come lately" with information about the game's direction and apologies - you're being downright ignorant to your customers.

Further to communications, namely in-game, where's the support? Every video game is about the "experience", that's what makes good games great. MWO is missing the immersion of being in a 20-100 tonne walking tank. Sure you have Bitching Betty, and nice visuals, but where's the radio chatter? You didn't even bother to implement keybound commands that played when selected. This at least would have created some level of an immersive environment that would distract from no integrated voice communication ability.

So where do we go?

New mechs be damned right now. UI 2.0 should be the #1 priority. You say it's a bottleneck, ok, then why are we seeing you sell mechs that won't make an appearance until June, now? As a project manager I would have the design team tasked with ensuring the new UI is visually perfect, while my engineers are tasked with having the initial required features working, and short-mile the remaining features to get them operations ASAP. The UI is afterall the doorway into the universe you're creating, and the lynchpin to holding every other feature together. This needs to be out in January, not Feb.

Next is CW. Surely your team understood how important this feature was, and you had a team integrating the CW features this whole time. What can be launched now with the new UI and what order can you bring the remaining features online? If your current team isn't capable, I would be migrating a few people over to boost development now from your current team, and hire more people to support them ASAP. Your reputation as at stake here, and as much as you feel you're handling things, your community says otherwise, and they're spending/not spending based on your actions, not words.

Bottom Line.

Your credibility and that of your company is in question. You've missed all the deadlines you've set out for yourselves thus far, on all of the items your community has stated are vital for your success. You consistently say it's "just around the corner" but never state which corner that is, or how long it'll take to reach it. You give false dates, and inflate expectations. It won't end until you start delivering, and asking for more time isn't a realistic direction to travel unless you can guarantee you'll get enough new people to replace those that will walk now.

This is my IP. I've been playing it for almost 30 years. There are many like me here, and watching from a distance. You're not being fair to me, nor are you being fair to the franchise in the way you're handling this. You asked us for money to support you, and we gave it without hesitation. You asked again, and we gave again without hesitation. Now we're asking, and we're only asking for what you've already promised. Asking a 3rd time without even fully providing what you've promised the first 2 times is a bit arrogant and ignorant don't you think?

Our patience has worn out, and we don't trust you anymore. Show us we can trust you again and all will be forgiven...we'll prove it through giving you more money, but you need to show us first.

If you want to talk further, I'm available, just ask.

- Bug Out -

Superb Post Bug!

[Axeman1]

BigBadBug, on 17 December 2013 - 07:16 AM, said:

You're not being fair to me

Dude it's a free to play game...shut the **** up you're entitled to exactly squat.

[Canadian Attack Beaver]

Quote

However if we assume the extra rewards are equivalent to the Phoenix packages it really comes down to the `Mechs. In each case you get the two free variants to go along with the Prime variants making an overlord package $80 or $20 per prime variant. With the Clan packages you are paying what equates to $30 per prime variant. But remember our pricing of MC in MWO has a relationship between MC and CB costs. Clan Technology is significantly more expensive, and is reflected in the package pricing

This has got to be one of the most ridiculous justifications for a price gouge in the history of online gaming. The phoenix packages were good value; $20 per prime + 2 variants along with premium time and other perks (colour, geometry, medallions, etc.). This $20 was consistent across all weight classes but the lighter chassis' had to be purchased to gain access to the heavier ones; fair enough. The purchase of any tier granted the option to purchase an additional two prime + 2 variants combo for $30, or $15 per prime + 2 variants.

Now we come to the Clan much packages. $30 per prime + 2 variants. Why? Because clan tech in this imaginary world is more expensive in the lore of the game! Silly me; why didn't I figure that out!

We have an established relationship that more C-bills = more MC and more tonnage = more C-bills, therefore more tonnage = more MC. But wait, the Clan Mechs aren't heavier. Hmm... You stated that the more C-bills = more MC relationship is the justification for the package prices and that the Clan Mechs will cost more than equivalent tonnage IS Mechs so let's assume the more tonnage = more C-bills = more MC relationship holds true. BUT it has now changed to more tonnage = more C-bills (+50% if Clan tech) = more MC (+50% if Clan tech). Does anyone else see the problem here before I continue?

You stated

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First we need to remind everyone that MWO is committed to never being a P2W product and this new clan program does not violate that commitment

From what has been communicated regarding the Clan Mechs is that they are being balanced such that they don’t make IS Mechs obsolete. The higher Clan costs for their technology was balanced by their superiority to IS tech; this balance aspect doesn’t exist in MWO, yet you continue to use the lore justification of higher Clan tech prices as an excuse to inflate the prices of your prime + 2 variant groupings.

You also stated

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However if we assume the extra rewards are equivalent to the Phoenix packages it really comes down to the `Mechs

I’m glad you said this, because I’d love to hear how these Mechs are worth 50% more than the Phoenix Mechs. They are being balanced so that they aren’t superior to the existing IS Mechs, but will have different customizability aspects and tradeoffs. Is this different but not superior customizability supposed to be worth the 50% price increase? Are the different but not superior Clan weapons supposed to be worth the 50% price increase?

I would love to hear a justification for this but I know there isn’t one besides trying to maximize revenue off of a highly anticipated aspect of the game. I’m not sure who is in charge of the corporate aspects of Piranha Games, but their business acumen is… lacking (to be polite). Let me tell you what will happen if these prices remain at these levels; you are going to limit your sales and negatively impact total revenue.

Let me share some personal info to illuminate the basis of my perspective. . I’m fairly new to the game (started playing about 2 or 3 months ago) so I am still learning the intricacies of MWO. I am a mid-30 year old professional, I recently completed my graduate program and I have a young family. My play time is limited so the extra C-bill boost from the Phoenix Mechs is appreciated to help me buy the engines and components to tinker with my Mechs (planning my Mechs out is one of the most enjoyable aspects of this game). The Phoenix packages were excellent value. I enjoyed the variety of chassis I received in the Overlord packages, as well as the perks in the prime variants. I also bought the Sabre package. I also recently bought more MC as the Firebrand and Ilya Muromets heroic Mechs were on sale; I believe I have spent $125 on this game, in total, over the past 2 or 3 months.

I have more spare cash than I do spare time and I will not spend another dime on this game unless these Clan packages are brought in line with the Phoenix Mech packages.

I applaud the decision not to make this a P2W game and I look forward to seeing the balance of the Clan Mechs and tech within the existing game. However, removing the superiority of the Clan Mechs’ due to their flexibility and superior design of Clan weaponry, you also remove the justification for charging more for it.

If you expect to charge people money for items, then don’t use fabricated justifications for increasing prices from previous packages. Increasing prices 50% from the Phoenix packages (or 100% (!) from the Sabre package) is ridiculous and reeks of a desperate money grab on the part of Piranha games. Sorry if that is harsh, but that is my perception of it.

If the Masakari collection was $160 you would already have my pre-order cash in your pocket. As it is right now, a 50% price increase for these Clan packages is not something I am willing to purchase to continue my support of this game.

[GateKeeper York]

I understand the price structure for the packages ...
but I would only be tempted a selection of the mechs.
I think they should have offered a selection option within packages, i.e.

package 1: $90
-Kit fox
-Nova

and choose one from the following selection
-Summononer
-Direwolf

No bonus bits

Package 2: $120
-Kit fox
-Nova
-Summoner

and choose one from the following selection
-dire wolf
-adder

No bonus bits

Package 3: $180
-Kit fox
-Nova
-Summoner
-Dire wolf

and choose two from the following selection
-adder
-stormcrow

Some bonus stuff

Package 4: $240
All mechs

More bonus stuff

(may be also have a lower package)

[Aiden IIC]

Axeman1, on 17 December 2013 - 10:44 AM, said:

Dude it's a free to play game...shut the **** up you're entitled to exactly squat.

The ignorance you display in your eloquent one line response is astounding. For people who have put in over a year of financial and intellectual support of this crowd funded game, asking for a third round of financing without delivering on promises from the first round is a slap in the face. For people like you who play for free, you have no skin in the game. Fine.

But those of us who have invested have a RIGHT to expect PGI to deliver functionality promised as a result of that funding. Bug Out explained it thoroughly and succinctly. If you can't be bothered to put yourself in our shoes, why should we care about your opinion either?

Edited by Aiden II, 17 December 2013 - 11:02 AM.

[Razor Kotovsky]

Aiden II, on 17 December 2013 - 11:01 AM, said:

The ignorance you display in your eloquent one line response is astounding. For people who have put in over a year of financial and intellectual support of this crowd funded game, asking for a third round of financing without delivering on promises from the first round is a slap in the face. For people like you who play for free, you have no skin in the game. Fine.

But those of us who have invested have a RIGHT to expect PGI to deliver functionality promised as a result of that funding. Bug Out explained it thoroughly and succinctly. If you can't be bothered to put yourself in our shoes, why should we care about your opinion either?

It is, technically, not crowdfunded.
Anyone who put money in founder's is a sucker that didn't do his research on PGI and ate those incoherent yet containing inner sphere star map blogs with hook, line and sinker.

I knew i practically throw 60 bux down a well exepecting wizards at it's bottom which will deliver the game i waited 6 years for. Then i saw CBT and threw in another 60 because it was really good. For a CBT.

Edited by Razor Kotovsky, 17 December 2013 - 11:13 AM.

[Chikote]

"A sucker gets up every morning, you just have to find him." I am ashamed to have been that sucker, but I will be no more.

W...O...W.

I'm inactive from the game. I want sooooo badly to love this game. I purchased legendary founder, liked the game...for a week. Got bored. Game was a one trick pony. But I want my mechwarrior, so I keep watching and waiting for something to draw me in.

Phoenix package brought me back. Nice mechs, reasonably priced. Grabbed the overlord package. Drew the line at the sabre package until the game actually proves to provide long-lasting fun times. Played the game for...2 days. Got bored. Still...a one trick pony. Back to waiting to be drawn back in.

Load up the MWO front page one day, what do I see? O..M..G its my favorite mech the timberwolf. Last I read CW was "coming", I'm seeing clan mechs, I see my timberwolf. Hopes are high..if but for a few minutes. I look at the pricing. HOLLY MOTHER OF PEARL $240 for the top tier. HOLLY MOTHER OF PEARL $500 GOLD MECHS!!! Well then, I soooo want these mechs, they really are a major item I'm waiting for. But...no thank you. Nice money grab. Well, at least CW should be right around the corner. Wait...wait...read the forums, catch up a bit, and....yea when is this CW coming out again? Oh, not here. Game is still a one trick pony. Will PGI ever bring forth new, diverse, long lasting fun content for this game? Or will they just continue to keep that carrot dangling on a stick, just out of reach, just tantalizing enough to get people to keep spending money on the promise of future greatness.

Well no more for me. I'm out. Sorry, this cash grab and the continued lack of good new content is too much for me. I want a great MW game sooo much, as do many others, and PGI is exploiting this to just rob us blind. The amount of cash grab I have experienced in this game is shameful. I greatly regret the $250 - $300 I have dumped into this game which I have gotten maybe 2 good weeks of playing out of. Maybe I'll check back in one day, CW will be out, the game will be more than the same one trick pony, and I'll finally be drawn into the game I hoped this would be. I hope it happens (not holding my breath). But I will not give another dime to PGI.

[Airborne Thunder]

PGI,

If you want to avoid this kind of rage in the future here are some suggestions on what you can do to avoid this type of reaction from your base.

1. Keep the package deals about 6 months apart. Any sooner than this and people will start to have trouble affording them and it makes you looks like you are desperate for money.

2. Keep the size of the package from between 4 and 6 mechs (this includes any "reinforcement" mechs you want to offer). Any more than that and again the price begins to be too high. By keeping the amount of mechs small (like the Founders package and Phoenix package) it allows more players to participate. I think $100.00 for a package deal is just about the sweet spot (at least for me anyways).

3. NEVER EVER sell GOLD MECHS. It is insulting, tacky and a blatant cash grab and makes people think you are in financial trouble or are just plain greedy.

Just a thought.