BennyBlanco
aka IMurRIVAL69
BioWare and EA in general are both dead to me.
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Which publishers or devs are in your black book?
- Thread starter ShinMaruku
- Start date
Team Alucard
Banned
Gearbox.
Borderlands is one of the most boring game I have ever played, and if that's supposedly their peak, I have no interest in playing anything else from them.
Borderlands is one of the most boring game I have ever played, and if that's supposedly their peak, I have no interest in playing anything else from them.
ViewtifulJC
Banned
I only blacklist bad video games
You don't need to hold a grudge to notice trends.
Jeffolation
Banned
DICE
Had to spend over 60 dollars in long distance charges to fix a problem that they admitted was on their end with Battlefield 3's game of the year addition (had purchased the game a second time and it wouldn't let me access any of the dlc). When I asked for compensation I got some gun skins for MoH Warfighter. And then I bought Battlefield 4 day of release. Fuck that company.
Had to spend over 60 dollars in long distance charges to fix a problem that they admitted was on their end with Battlefield 3's game of the year addition (had purchased the game a second time and it wouldn't let me access any of the dlc). When I asked for compensation I got some gun skins for MoH Warfighter. And then I bought Battlefield 4 day of release. Fuck that company.
wumster3000
Member
I have other shit to worry about more than blacklisting a developer/publisher. I want games, I buy them. If a developer does something I don't like in reference to a game, I don't buy the game in question. None of this boycott publisher stuff. Miss out on too many games and it projects too much negativity. Takes the fun away from gaming.
BabyFaceKillah
Member
No video games aint that serious.
BouncyFrag
Member
None. I play games for fun and leave the worrying and such to more important things.
Well, I guess Bioware is in my black book. It isn't out of hatred or anything. Mainly because I just haven't really found a game of theirs since Baldur's Gate 2: Throne of Bhaal that I really enjoyed all the way through.
I find the combat and story in their new games to be pretty bad, bland, and boring.
It isn't for the lack of trying:
KOTOR: stopped playing after ~ 30 hours because it bored me to tears.
KOTOR 2: not even Obsidian's writing could keep me interested after ~ 15 hours or so. Of course, it could just be because I'm not a huge Star Wars fan so most of the topics didn't matter to me.
Mass Effect 1 + 2: Okay, these weren't bad (I think they have the only decent companions in a Modern Bioware game), but I had no desire replay them and because EA took their games off Steam I had no desire to go out of my way to buy 3 at Origin. I'm kind of glad because I probably would have impulsed bought it so they probably saved me money.
.
Dragon Age Origins: stopped playing after ~ 30 hours. Many people (including those who usually dislike "Modern" Bioware) enjoyed it as a return to Baldur's Gate 2 Bioware. I wasn't one of them. I honestly found everything about the game to be dull: the characters, story, and combat were all pretty bad imo (I found Morrigan to just be annoying). I even used cheats in the hope that I could get through the game quickly, but to no avail. Oddly enough, I completed the Fade and didn't mind it too much... :/ No idea why it didn't bother me.
So yeah, I pretty much have Bioware in my black book because at this point I don't see myself ever enjoying a Bioware game. I am tempted to buy DA 2 + Inquisition though just to see what the fuss is about...
I find the combat and story in their new games to be pretty bad, bland, and boring.
It isn't for the lack of trying:
KOTOR: stopped playing after ~ 30 hours because it bored me to tears.
KOTOR 2: not even Obsidian's writing could keep me interested after ~ 15 hours or so. Of course, it could just be because I'm not a huge Star Wars fan so most of the topics didn't matter to me.
Mass Effect 1 + 2: Okay, these weren't bad (I think they have the only decent companions in a Modern Bioware game), but I had no desire replay them and because EA took their games off Steam I had no desire to go out of my way to buy 3 at Origin. I'm kind of glad because I probably would have impulsed bought it so they probably saved me money.
I'll probably end up buying it the next time EA has a sale
Dragon Age Origins: stopped playing after ~ 30 hours. Many people (including those who usually dislike "Modern" Bioware) enjoyed it as a return to Baldur's Gate 2 Bioware. I wasn't one of them. I honestly found everything about the game to be dull: the characters, story, and combat were all pretty bad imo (I found Morrigan to just be annoying). I even used cheats in the hope that I could get through the game quickly, but to no avail. Oddly enough, I completed the Fade and didn't mind it too much... :/ No idea why it didn't bother me.
So yeah, I pretty much have Bioware in my black book because at this point I don't see myself ever enjoying a Bioware game. I am tempted to buy DA 2 + Inquisition though just to see what the fuss is about...
ShinMaruku
Member
I don't see how being discerning with your purchases and following trends as something as missing out on games.
Duxxy3
Member
Not really a black book, more of a current shit list
Infinity Ward - Ghosts was an atrocious game
Visceral - Moreso because they let EA dictate what kind of game to make
Bungie - Barren game with years of DLC to fill in the blanks
343 - Has to do with brand management rather than development
Guerrila - Killzone shadowfall was a pretty piece of shit
Infinity Ward - Ghosts was an atrocious game
Visceral - Moreso because they let EA dictate what kind of game to make
Bungie - Barren game with years of DLC to fill in the blanks
343 - Has to do with brand management rather than development
Guerrila - Killzone shadowfall was a pretty piece of shit
Glad it wasn't just me who thought this. I've never heard the term "black book" used in the way the OP seems to mean it. Maybe I'm just old enough to remember the days when people actually kept phone numbers in actual black books.
These, though Gearbox is probably the closest. Find it kinda hard to support them after the aliens thing.
A Link to the Past
Banned
It's not just about grudges, and with respect, the view that you shouldn't boycott companies because it's childish is in and of itself a childish idea. I don't buy from EA because I don't agree with their business practices. Same with Ubisoft and Activision.
CosmicQueso
Member
Like Larry from Three's Company, being in the black book is a GOOD thing. Kids these days with their sexting and tindering.
The Sarcastic Dude
Banned
CanUKlehead
Member
Discerning and being careful and checking trends to me is different from blacklisting.
In the first scenario, I'm no longer preordering games from a series/developer/publisher until I read reviews and learn things are fine.
Blacklisting implies 'you're dead to me, forever, I don't care what else you do'. If my dream game came out, I wouldn't want to miss out, regardless of publisher or dev. So I don't blacklist.
I think that's the general sentiment? There's 'keeping an eye on' vs blindly ignoring forever.
nah. There's the old saying 'fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me'.
Blacklists are to avoid a third time. Some companies dont deserve yet another chance. There's plenty of other better stuff to choose from without having to give more money to incompetent or scam companies.
/thread
themagicalkitsune
Member
Probably Phoenix Games.
hipbabboom
Huh? What did I say? Did I screw up again? :(
I think game activism is awesome 
Schweinehund
Member
Can't think of any.
I'm wary of SOE after SWG though. Still was interested in EQ2 and planet side though.
I'm wary of SOE after SWG though. Still was interested in EQ2 and planet side though.
Wheresmycoffee
Member
I guess I unintentionally blacklisted Ubisoft, EA, Activision, Atlus, and Square because I never buy any of their games.
Joke's on you, I force eight-year-olds in third world nations to make my video games
ShinMaruku
Member
With trends I think you can tell when you dream game will likely not come from certain developers.
ShinMaruku
Member
Blacklist has come from the practice of putting a person in a black book. Same thing.
PeskyToaster
Member
I have more of a whitelist than a blacklist. There's some dev teams out there that are just golden every time.
Moskitokrebs
Member
None of them. Every publisher makes bad and good games. Just stay away from the bad games and you will be fine. If you put every publisher or a developer in your black list you will never play a single game in the future.
I am effectively holding an old man's grudge against Creative Assembly due to Empire: Total War. I got Shogun 2 for free but it seemed boring and that was surprising since my favorite movie is Ran.
I had all the good will of the world to end that grudge but Rome 2 didnt help at all and i am nor a horror/Alien fan neither a Warhammer one.
Sorry CA.
I recently unbanned EA and installed Origin for the fist time (it seems ok!) mostly because they were being nice this past year and i wanted to give Bioware another shot since ME3. They do not help me at all and i am doing the best i can, i even changed my mind about Denuvo DRM too but they still ignore PC players by not fixing the DA:I controls. So i ll wait for them to do so and also wait for the price to drop.
Also, as far as i know, there is no company called Maxis. It once existed but not anymore.
I also try to avoid games that have microtransactions when fully priced, like AC:Unity and such.
I had all the good will of the world to end that grudge but Rome 2 didnt help at all and i am nor a horror/Alien fan neither a Warhammer one.
Sorry CA.
I recently unbanned EA and installed Origin for the fist time (it seems ok!) mostly because they were being nice this past year and i wanted to give Bioware another shot since ME3. They do not help me at all and i am doing the best i can, i even changed my mind about Denuvo DRM too but they still ignore PC players by not fixing the DA:I controls. So i ll wait for them to do so and also wait for the price to drop.
Also, as far as i know, there is no company called Maxis. It once existed but not anymore.
I also try to avoid games that have microtransactions when fully priced, like AC:Unity and such.
Gun Animal
Member
Ubisoft should be at the top of the Do-Not-Buy list but I keep buying the annual Assassin's Creed games anyways because of the novelty of the new time periods/locations. Other than that: EA, Activision/Blizzard, Capcom and SEGA are all on my Do-Not-Buy list.
On the flipside: Valve, Naughty Dog, Rockstar, Platinum, Kojima Productions, Nintendo and Grasshopper are in my White Book in the sense that I'll buy pretty much anything they release without question.
On the flipside: Valve, Naughty Dog, Rockstar, Platinum, Kojima Productions, Nintendo and Grasshopper are in my White Book in the sense that I'll buy pretty much anything they release without question.
schaft0620
Member
Never Say Never but UBI has somehow removed The Division from my most anticipated list to the I don't care List.
None, I judge publishers on a game-by-game basis. If a publisher makes a game that's worth buying then they deserve my money for that one game. If a publisher makes a buggy or DRM-filled game or something then I'm not going to want to buy the game, not because I'm "boycotting," it but because I don't want to play a game with those things. If a game is made by a developer that I didn't like very much then I'm unlikely to like their next game so I probably won't like it. If that counts then lots of devs I guess, mostly shovleware devs but also Infinity Ward, Treyarch, DICE, Take Two, and Sucker Punch off the top of my head.
This, I mean, I am capable of judging each piece of software individually and wholly separate from the developer/publisher.
I may be more cautious with some versus others, but my rules still stand, if it looks like a fun game, and it appeals to my tastes I will roll with it.
If you use seemingly arbitrary means to ignore games you will probably miss out on a lot of potentially good stuff.
ShinMaruku
Member
Andrew Luck is potentially a great quarterback, but his attitude and history points to that never happening. It's a similar case with some developers and publishers. And also it could just be how a company has moved to a genre I have no interest in that can also place them in the book as well.
Except when Ino is talking about Akiba Trip and a certain X publisher...
You must absolutely loathe Rockstar and 2K games
Lord Panda
The Sea is Always Right
Gearbox.