Posted 26 October 2012 - 08:30 PM
Hey Paul, thanks for staking a position on this argument. It helps cement that feeling that you guys stick to the lore first before making any changes that may be ultimately necessary. I told Russ it was a pity you didn't show up to the Mechwarrior Tournament at Nvidia, as I had some flasks of 12 year single malts of Macallan and Glen Moray to share. Get down to California next time man.
Anyhoo, on topic (Without my trolling and without the Peoples Political Correctness Brigade hyperbole)...
As far as the paint job goes:
Yes, it can be offensive to some who don't know the lore and just see the paint-job and description, and it could affect sales.
Yes, the lore itself (as well as much of the Battletech Lore) can be offensive as well, but less likely to affect sales.
These are perfectly valid arguments, and these are actually reasonable questions for a business to ask itself when it comes to the bottom line.
That said, should it be changed?
I'm personally not a fan of that idea, so I might as well talk out my backside for a bit. If we step outside of Battletech and look at how Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting has changed over the years... it has slowly become more and more politically correct with each edition. Spells required less components that could be construed as ******* or wiccan, allegorial racial stereotypes have been muted, gender equality has been increased, racial equality has been increased, the likes of torture has been toned down, etc. While in our reality these things have been great for the sake of progress...
They make for a very boring setting, as it makes for very boring story material. And there's plenty of politically correct products in the marketplace, so there's a lot more competition for that sort of thing, They practically dumped it in 4th edition, but whatever.
Now if you look at a campaign setting like Warhammer Fantasy or Warhammer 40k... which is far from politically correct, and is actually centered on racism, hatred, and BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD.... Well, it's doing very well. It has for a long time. It distinguished itself in the marketplace because its unique in that regard, and having all that rage and hatred makes a great deal of conflict, which leads to good material for a story.
A more relevant comparison could be made between World of Warcraft and EVE Online... and let me tell you, EVE Online has been doing quite well... because it's not bending over backwards to be politically correct (Hell, you can trade slaves), and it promotes player conflict, which generates a great story.
I could go into more depth with supporting evidence, outlining a polished argument... but hell, this is an interwebz forum, too much effort for a single reply, I'll just sum it up with this:
PGI needs to stick to the lore, and more importantly, its principles, as much as possible. They only need divert from this when such is so impractical that it utterly destroys the game on a mechanical level. They don't have the money to compete with the companies who have offices full of people who handle PR and Political Correctness, while ordering millions of dollars in advertising to shove their product in front of the mass public... so they need to let the game's mechanics and its strong IP differentiate themselves in the marketplace. There's a reason Battletech has a strong following (with the Lore's quirks and all), and a reason that it appealed to that audience in the first place. Maximizing to that end will make it a more solid, consistent, and unique game.
Meh, rant is done, that's all I got. AFK, pizza.
3
thanks!
