Visualante2
Member
Why bother, they'll probably give it away free when their next game shits the bed.I'll buy this game when it hits the bargain bin for 5$, shouldn't be too far away now right?
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SimCity code includes 20 minute force shutdown timer for offline play
- Thread starter zomgbbqftw
- Start date
Boss Doggie
all my loli wolf companions are so moe
Speaking of Sims 3 they just plopped the Maxis logo in the update.
The_Player
Member
I like where all this situation is going.
I noticed. An ominous sign of things to come? Or just a reminder to update the No Intro mod? Come to think of it, probably both...
The_Player
Member
Boss Doggie
all my loli wolf companions are so moe
I removed the No Intro mod because it causes crashes for some odd reason.
And I always thought it's just a proof that "Maxis" is just a PR stunt - they never actually left. They're still in EA. That's why I shrugged when people touted "IT'S MAXIS GUYS!"
Mihael Mello Keehl
Banned
That is one way of looking at it in a positive perspective lol.
From what I understand, yes, but you wouldn't be able to save your city without going online.
Samurai_Heart
Member
EA = Train
Hackers/Modders = Landmaster
SneakyStephan
Banned
Guys it's not like there is a switch they can flip to make the game work offline it would take a large amount of time and effort.
Ahahahahahahahahah.
Ahahahahahahahahah.
Bummer. In the end I'm glad this has gone down the way it has, obviously not glad for Maxis as I'm sure they'd have it play out differently but glad that EA has tripped and handled this game so inconceivably horribly that hopefully other companies will think twice before trying to scam consumers like this.
Nubian Star
Member
Why didn't EA just say that the online DRM was just to protect their investment instead of coming up with these lies. I bought the game, but it seems like I just fed the beast.
moka
Member
I can't think of another game which has suffered through so many PR disasters in its infancy.
SneakyStephan
Banned
Surely this hilarious gem is going to be on all popular gaming sites by tonight, right guys?
...
Guys?
Junnalists?
...
Guys?
Junnalists?
XANDER CAGE
Member
It's 4AM in the US on a sunday morning, so probably not until Monday.
Heavy's Sandvich
Member
Has someone linked this to our favourite Polygonal writer?
SneakyStephan
Banned
Also this Sunday is St. Patrick's Day so I imagine most people who care will forget about it in a haze of green beer and spirits and hats and clovers and whatnot.
water_wendi
Water is not wet!
And the bad news for this game just keeps coming.
Mihael Mello Keehl
Banned
You must have done alot and is reaching the 20 minuet deadline?
It is almost as if Maxis understood the hilarity of the whole situation that EA has put them in (if they did), and opted to give the power to the player's hands. Which is awesome.
The alternative is that, as their PR suggests, they not only choose this hell for themselves, they also made sure to fail spectacularly at it.
The alternative is that, as their PR suggests, they not only choose this hell for themselves, they also made sure to fail spectacularly at it.
QuicheFontaine
Member
Anyone who thinks that you can delete the 20 minute auto-quit function literally doesn't know what they're talking about.
To those thousands of GAFfers who are enjoying the Always-Connected functionality, what features are you particularly enjoying?
To those thousands of GAFfers who are enjoying the Always-Connected functionality, what features are you particularly enjoying?
SpaceDrake
Member
It almost certainly did start as "Simcity Social". A very large amount of the interface and design reeks of having begun life as a browser game and relying on microtransactions to keep your city growing. A friend and I have been speculating that the game was repurposed for retail after Zynga stock tanked and the Facebook market began to collapse substantially. This is an attempt to salvage a social game, without the talent necessary to actually make it an engaging SimCity game. The hilariously simplistic AI, which was probably put together in a few weeks at most, makes this abundantly clear.
It's worth noting: very few people are talking about "social" games at GDC this year.
Well Cumpkin I love how I can battle it out with my friends and show the rest of our acquaintances which of us is the best. Especially showing them on facebook. I like this social aspect of SimCity ™ as it brings out the awesomeness of the interplay between the Sims ™ and SimCity ™. I'm going to buy that cool new tileset and show it off to my friends, YEAH! Being able to fire up Origin ™ and and jump into SimCity ™ for some great multiplayer action is why I always come back to the high quality, AAA, big blockbuster games of EA ™. Here's to us gamers ©!
kill me...
Not enough keywords.
Christ, if this game wasn't so chock full of disastrous always online drm it probably would have been a run of the mill AAA hit that wouldn't surprise many if it were included in some gaming journalist's top ten of the year. But now. . .lol
Boss Doggie
all my loli wolf companions are so moe
When has EA ever told the truth lately?
Rebel Leader
THE POWER OF BUTTERSCOTCH BOTTOMS
I'm gonna bet (nothing) that there will be new news by the end of today
Well, pre-spectucular blowup I've been thinking that Sims 4 would follow the same path as SimCity in its social, always-connected
Post-blowup, my thoughts are that it'll be the same, but they'll change the .packages.
Actually, this does hurt EA. The Sim City IP is one of EA's valued assets. If Sim City goes tits up because of this fiasco, that means the franchise devalues and EA's value goes down. This reduces their stock price and hits them where it REALLY counts: the shareholders. Sure, EA makes money on this, but essentially the same way a snake oil salesman does. He might make out like a bandit, but people aren't going to buy the same bottles when he comes back around. This is the same problem they had with Medal of Honor. In fact, this makes five EA franchises in three years that EA ended up devaluing due to vocal consumer backlash (Dragon Age II, Mass Effect 3, The Old Republic, Medal of Honor, Sim City), and more if you count reduced consumer interest (Dead Space 3, Need For Speed though that's cleaned up in the last couple years). It's yet to be seen if future titles, such as Battlefield 4, are devalued by EA's continued (poor) monetization strategies, but I wouldn't be surprised. I do hope shareholders take EA to task for this anti-consumerist bullshit, but I can only hope.
So you're saying that The Sims will end at 3? I'm seeing that happening, too...
And THAT would be a blow EA would feel. The Sims is a major franchise, if the base Sims 4 game leave a bad impression, so few people buy the DLC and expansions, well... Bye Maxis!
It's still not possible to save offline. I'm giving it two weeks until that's done, too. A conservative estimate.
Cjdamon042
Member
I hope not, it's hilarious.
Now I like Maxis and SimCity (and did like The Sims but I seriously worry for its future) and I wanted a great game to come out of this and for Maxis to come out on top, but this all going belly up over and over again might hopefully make EA realise that they need to make serious changes to how they run their company, studios and how they make games.
I just hope Maxis themselves don't suffer too much, but this being EA I doubt that will be the case.