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Bored with the Hype
partytildawn
Member Posts: 8
I became interested in the Age of Conan game well over a year ago. I've beta tested quite a few MMORPG games over the years for review at a large entertainment magazine, however -- even after contacting the press reps for Conan with my credentials (actually, they never replied) -- I've not been able to secure a seat testing/playing the beta.
Of course, this sounds like whining, however let me qualify this statement. I have quite a few friends in the gaming community, and I live in a very techy area -- Portland, Oregon. Yet, I have not been able to meet a single person within my press contact circle, friends working at Intel, a general post on Craig's List, and gaming friends who have signed up for this beta who have been accepted into the beta.
I hung out over the weekend at a rather large and established computer cafe here in Portland designed for group gaming called Backspace and asked around there as well. Each person who was interested in Conan was experiencing the same frustration about not being able to get in on the beta nor knowing anyone else currently involved with the beta.
This is a bit unusual this close to game release and I can tell that at least among the people with whom I spoke, the level of frustration is growing to disdain of the game. Signing up for this beta has been hawked all over the internet yet it seems very few people have been accepted into the testing program. This type of hype without follow through could backfire on the Conan team.
Comments
If you really had tested many MMO's you would know that NDA's often prohibit you from disclosing that you even are in the beta. So, good contract abiding testers would not tell you if they were in the beta.
Yes true I belive what you are saying I entered to get into the beta a good almost 2 years ago still nothing...I know many people (and guilds) that are into this game yet no one has an invite i dont know why this is....Also there has been no signs of guild beta's going out either. Yet this game is very well a group/guild game with citys and battles..Hmm maybe they are just letting the devs familys and friends test it not us...with only a few months left this could be good.....At keast they are keeping us somewht updated : /
Wait.... You havn't got into beta and you are saying that makes this game not good...or they are hiding something? Just because you are not in beta doesnt mean that there arnt other people in it. "I live in a techy city and have tested many MMOs before"... should that bump you to the top of the list then? get real man. Im sure they saw your email and laughed at you. Go sign up like the rest of the world, cross your fingers to get in, and if you don't tough luck buy the game when it comes out.
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Can't find an MMO worth playing
Sorry but your title "bored with hype" and the type of post you made just make you come across looking silly.
Just because you say you have credentials in the industry doesn't guarantee you beta.
Funcom was born in Europe, things are done a bit different. To be honest just because someone works at Intel doesn't grant them anything either, not to mention I've never heard of "Craig's List", Backspace is just a cyber cafe and Portland certainly isn't capital of mmorpg land. Sorry to break it to you.
Funcom filters their applications for beta, over 10'000 people are in world wide, probably more like 15'000 now. I've met far more "well" established Press who aren't in beta for the game. *EDIT* and this experienced press guys don't even know the fundamental game development difference to others in the genre - so how would they be any good without a decent understanding in the first place?
It's also known that veterans of the forums, people who participated in the community got some early invites. Just because someone might write an article in a magazine or a web site with 5k hits a month doesn't give them any rights in getting an invite over average joe with an average PC who was also there at the start. There is plenty of follow through..
Trust me, there is nothing unusual, there are thousands of testers, and if you have signed up for beta, then you will almost certainly get in - sorry if thats not quick enough for you because you think you deserve an invite faster, or if your bored with the hype because of it, but you won't find any sympathy from me.
Its kinda like the staff writer here who put a post up asking for a beta spot, so he could write about the game.
Just because you have beta tested games for review? Aren't you mean't to test completed games for review?
Maybe Funcom decided they didn't like your review style. *shrugs*
How else can I answer your questions? Ok, Im a techie at a Cable company, we add new channels to our packages all the time, just because we dont give people or my friends a free preview straight away doesn't make that channel a failure in anyway at anytime. They can catch the free preview if they want a few weeks down the road.
The way I read the OP, it sounds like he thinks he should get into the beta because of his supposed press credentials, when in fact, those credentials and the fact that he has apparently touted them as a basis to get in are exactly why they SHOULDN'T let him in. There's an NDA for a reason, which is that they don't want blabbermouths badmouthing the game based on what they see in the Beta.
The Beta isn't there so you can right articles. It's there to test the game.
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im to lazy too use grammar or punctuation good
I love you
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Can't find an MMO worth playing
Credentials?
You should get into beta before me because you write for a magazine and hang out with some geeks?
I went to school for Multimedia Design, 3d Animation and have been playing MUDs and MMO's for as long as I can remember. Does that mean I have a bit more knowledge in the field than the majority does? Whatever. I dont feel "entitled" to a free beta pass.
You and "each person who is interested in Conan" sound like you need to understand that it is not a personal "poke" from FunCom. It is not FC snickering behind your back while they spout off how glorious the beta is to all of their geek friends. This, most certainly, is not about making people feel special by inviting them into beta.
Im sorry you and your friends are frustrated about not getting into beta...
Like my mom used to tell me...
"...you cant always get what you want." I still hate that Stones song because of her.
*edit
It looks like I am repeating what a few have said before me. Sorry for the repeat, but happy to see Im not the only one who feels this way.
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*This thread contains enough compressed stupidity to erase all science as far back as the middle ages.
Seems people do not understand what a beta is, its not a free trial of a game... If you want to play a free trial you'll have to wayt till the game is released and /or apply for open beta.
I would neverinvite people that write for dubious magazines to an early beta test. Most people do not understand that testing a game requires a certain attitude that allows people to see past the bugs (And hunt those bugs at the same time)
Next to that there are maybe 5000 beta testers and 500.000 people that applied. So do you know 100 people that applied to the AoC beta test?
Quit your whining and move on, play your current games, and wayt till your pre-order arives at your doorsteps.
Saddest thing is there applied 500K people, and thats probably more then the open beta can even handle, thats why FC will prolly call it an Open invitationall beta. Next to that open beta somehow will be distributed by gaming sites too, so people will really start whining then...
Why does everyone still beleive they are the center of the Universe
And no, its not only Conan where this happens, its all games under development. Over at the Warhammer and Spellborn developer boards people are allways whining about this.
Next to that more and more game companies are turning more towards inhouse testing instead of beta testing. Just because it works ao much better. I think in the future long time beta's like AoC are history, beta will be just a few months before release.
Best MMO experiences : EQ(PvE), DAoC(PvP), WoW(total package) LOTRO (worldfeel) GW2 (Artstyle and animations and worlddesign) SWTOR (Story immersion) TSW (story) ESO (character advancement)
This guy rocks. He should get a Beta key!
DOOOOOOOM
"I don't give a sh*t what other people say. I play what I like and I'll pay to do it too!" - SerialMMOist
Dude if you want in beta bad enough to complain about it, why don't you go buy someone's beta account.
There's plenty of kids that got invites to AOC and WAR beta that are selling their accounts on various forums. If you've been around the MMO scene for as long as you say you have, you should know where to find it.
Why should he have to buy an invite, when he's obvioiusly earned it? Did you see his credentials? He's deserving of a free invite. He's practically a gaming god. Sheesh.