This has always struck me as the biggest load of space magical bullshit ever.
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EA Maxis Studio head Lucy Bradshaw comments on SimCity launch mess and online stuffs
- Thread starter GlassBox
- Start date
This has always struck me as the biggest load of space magical bullshit ever.
SneakyStephan
Banned
It's not weird for Polygon, they get a wad of cash and the score goes back up, everyone is happy!
The fact that a publisher can even 'reach out' to a review outlet to 'manage' anything is sickening.
Yeah, I don't know how it would be possible to check the game's installation files and download patches if the whole service was shut down.
I guess what a cool publisher would have done is to make this an optional feature for people with low PC specs
The 30 minute thing is probably the weirdest part. Why exactly 30 minutes? It can't actually simulate 30 minutes in advance because you can constantly change and modify your cities, right?
CoffeeJanitor
Member
I guess I just don't care when I'm buying games for 80-90% off. But I guess I don't buy Steam games for any more than that so I'm probably the minority.
Metroidvania
People called Romanes they go the house?
While I don't know the particulars of how Steam checks things client-side in response to a magical button, presumably, if steam shut down, you wouldn't ever be downloading or installing anything new.
What you had before the shutdown is probably what you are left with (along with being given some level of forewarning to download what you want). You could still make on-disk backups, but if the service is shut down, obviously you can't get new stuff from it. More limited than owning a physical copy, to be certain, but better than not having anything left at all.
But unless Valve tanks suddenly, I don't think we really have to worry about Steam in the same vein as stuff like Simcity's current woes.
NEOPARADIGM
Banned
This is plainly a fact.
Yep. Maxis Studio head: "[we will be] working one-on-one with media to manage this as closely as possible."
Now you know what that means
It's not really surprising at all.
WAR recon zero
Banned
I don't post or congratule OTs in Gaming for this matter. Pretty sure that 80% of them are moneyhatted.
Industry people should be more transparent when talking about their own products/services. GlassBox was clearly an amateur at undercover posting, that EA culture.
This deserves more love, should be DetectiveGAF's official logo.
This deserves more love, should be DetectiveGAF's official logo.
Dion Blaster
Member
If Steam shuts down you'd be fine presuming you have all your games downloaded (big if). Doesn't offline mode always work? I've never had a problem with it.
I think in that anonymous confession thread in off topic we had someone admit to being a viral marketer for DmC. Too bad we couldn't get a name.
fabricated backlash
Member
Given how every EA game has these problems, the BF series in particular, I'd call it simple good old fashioned greed. They simply don't want to pay for servers in advance.
GoddyofAus
Banned
Okay while we're making confessions, I should let you guys know that I've actually been marketing the Brisbane Broncos to you subliminally. Ban me gently.
Joe Shlabotnik
Banned
They'd still have to remove the DRM. I think you'd never be able to log out of Steam or your computer again otherwise.
GoddyofAus
Banned
Well, none of us know what a Brisbane Bronco is, so I think you're in the clear
Shit, I'll probably get fired now.
Azure Dream
Member
It's funny, if I saw someone posting with the name "Hedgehog Engine" (in fact, there's someone here using the logo as an avatar), I would just presume it's the average crazed fan. It wouldn't cross my mind to think it was actually someone who at least worked at Sega, if not potentially worked on the engine itself.
Dead Prince
Banned
now we will judge and keep tabs on everyone even more.
I guess that's actually a possibility. Player numbers always take a hit after the launch. So it's probably cheaper to just keep your regular server number and wait for the launch week to blow over.
Art Teitlebaum
Member
And you are successful with that. Now I'm hungry.
Dion Blaster
Member
Oh yeah. I haven't had to put in my password in forever. So when I've done offline mode with my Internet not working, it's just remembered that I was logged in before?
NoirVisage
Banned
Detective Gaf is scary.. i wonder how much they could find out about me or any random member..
I could believe that.
TimeEffect
Member
Let's not forget this great first reply in the midst of all this controversy.
as long as you check 'stay logged in" or whatever, and put the client into offline mode, you can use all the games that you've already activated and run once.
bonesmccoy
Banned
It's a bit mind boggling that a company like EA Maxis, with all the resources they have at their disposal, messed up their stress-testing so badly.
Unspeakable Evil
Member
it's a pretty good way to lighten the server load for the new game, lol
I think this thread would be a more relevant place to post
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=521427
Edit: wait, seems to be a store deal where you buy Sim City and get another game free
Looks like some store specific deal. Not even EA would troll that hard.
Unstoppable Lionheart
Banned
Just goes to show that no point is too low for EA.
If they can make money, they will sell their own mothers.
If they can make money, they will sell their own mothers.
lazybones18
Banned
Aww, missed live DetectiveGAF going to work
Maybe next time
Maybe next time
BurnOutBrighter
Banned
Posting in this epic thread for posterity.
Well done, DetectiveGAF.
Well done, DetectiveGAF.
Risible
Member
Since we're mentioning Polygon, doesn't anyone else think it's pretty shitty that they've got this huge-ass giant fawning review and then at the very end they have a blurb to with the the now-low score they've given it? You could easily be forgiven for skimming through it a bit and thinking to yourself "Hmmm, this looks really good."
In their defense their review update link does go right to the newly modified score part, but I feel that should still be moved to the top of the review. Maybe I'm just being overly sensitive about it, I don't know, so was curious what others thought.
In their defense their review update link does go right to the newly modified score part, but I feel that should still be moved to the top of the review. Maybe I'm just being overly sensitive about it, I don't know, so was curious what others thought.
In some cases, yes, we've been first to report on certain SimCity developments. Stories like that internal memo and the embarrassing online marketing withdrawal — I think — we posted before others.
Was that memo intentionally leaked? I don't know. Orchestrated "leaks" happen fairly often (like some recent "leaks" of prominent first-person shooters) in this industry and others, and Bradshaw's internal memo seems carefully groomed for positive internal and external reception. You'd have to expect at a massive company like EA, they'd count on communication like that escaping the company.
As for Maxis reaching out, we emailed them several requests for interviews with Maxis people. They responded late Friday evening giving us a short turnaround on an email interview. The goal in that interview was to get a better sense of what's happening at Maxis, why they won't offer an offline version of SimCity and how the launch was so incredibly fucked up.
I thought their communication — and complete absence of a human being saying "We're sorry" until that point — was incredibly poor. It seems like EA finally realized that, hence the last-minute availability for an interview paired with the post on EA's website last night.
So Lucy just reponded to questions about refunds... no surprise here
https://twitter.com/simcity/status/310485833700487169
Except that it's terrible customer service considering the circumstances, and is the thing that irks me the most. Instead of being flexible with their Origin DD policy, they want to shove it in your face and then offer you a free game in a few weeks from some unknown selection. If they can dig in with the damage control and spin for a week or so, they'll have fixed many of the problems. The magnitude of backlash and frustration will subside and they can sweep it under the rug.
https://twitter.com/simcity/status/310485833700487169
Except that it's terrible customer service considering the circumstances, and is the thing that irks me the most. Instead of being flexible with their Origin DD policy, they want to shove it in your face and then offer you a free game in a few weeks from some unknown selection. If they can dig in with the damage control and spin for a week or so, they'll have fixed many of the problems. The magnitude of backlash and frustration will subside and they can sweep it under the rug.
Valve has time and time again shown they deserve the benefit of the doubt.
EA has done the exact opposite.
It's less about trusting Valve's word and more doubting the logistics of it. I don't think the Steam app would be capable of gutting DRM out of our games. If it were that easy I'd be content knowing I could do it myself someday.