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Package Split Explained in New FAQ
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Package Split Explained in New FAQ
The Star Citizen site has been updated with a new FAQ to clear up some of the confusion that last week's announcement caused with regard to the separation between Star Citizen, the persistent world, and Squadron 42, the single-player campaign.
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This have been a good conversation
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cig/star-citizen/description
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
There may even be more splits coming as long as people throw money at them and continue to accept it.
I still, in my own opinion, smell one of the biggest frauds in history about to happen,
What isn't OK is spinning it into "this was the plan all along" when clearly it wasn't. It's that spin along with other red flags (such as CR spinning his video blogs as "TV series" over at IMDB, for example) that should make people leery.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
If that is not going to the case then.... yeah, they are digging that hole deeper so they can fit the backers and themselves.
Foundry 42 UK is their biggest Office, not their smallest. About 60% of CIG employees worldwide work there. You obviously refer to the article by the UK government that CIG spent 15 Million pound Sterling in the UK.
As you derive your other numbers from that, your theory and derived conclusions are fundamentally flawed.
Have fun
It has not always been the largest and only recently became the largest due to CR shifting everything to it in order to ship the stand alone SQ42 game so he can bring in more needed money.
Quote: "The US based video game company is increasing its investment in Foundry 42"
It specifically says Foundry 42 which is ONE office. It does NOT say they spent 20 million across the UK.
You can try and spin it any way you like but the facts are, CR is pushing everything into SQ42 to get it out for release as a stand alone product.
Star Marine, which was again and again the focus of most of their marketing push in 2015 has been indefinitely postponed. Now why would a game developer who already showed footage of a working product and had said on numerous occasions it was almost done, suddenly abandon that project and take a hit for the bad press and focus on a totally different part of the project?
Answer: SQ42 will bring in needed revenue while Star Marine was just a module people had already paid for. That is my opinion and the facts seem to support it.
smh
"When we started Star Citizen’s crowdfunding campaign, the plan was that earlier backers would get a lower price on the Star Citizen starter package than those that backed later. The plan was to first gradually increase the price and then split up various modules for “a la carte options.”
Seems odd that this was the plan and yet I can not find any mention of it over the almost 4 years this game has been in production. I tend to agree with Anthur above. It is just some made up story to cover the fact they are switching focus and putting everything into SQ42 to ship it as a stand alone product.
It is still a game mode - it is the single player mode in the Star Citizen client. The PU is one of the the multiplayer modes in the same game client.
How is integrating something into another the same as postponing it?
"Hey guys! One big clarification from CitizenCon: the Baby PU is NOT replacing Star Marine, it's simply going to include a lot of the work we've done on the FPS. We still intend to release Star Marine proper (with Gold Horizon and the HQ game mode and all that.) In all likelihood, you'll see Star Citizen Alpha 2.0 first and then Star Marine proper shortly after that... and we'll continue to update with more details on both as they're locked down.
So here's the thing that I'm reading right now. Chris Roberts is mad that people keep commenting that Star Marine is canceled, because it was never supposed to be its own thing and was only supposed to be FPS features in the persistent universe. However, everything I've read up until the YouTube video released recently was that Star Marine was going to be its own game element, much like Arena Commander, where you'd go through various levels and the such with friends and all of that. We were shown lots of demos of it in action, promised it, and now it's not only not being delivered, but we're also told that all of that was wrong and things are going as they're supposed to."
Source: http://www.tentonhammer.com/columns/respawn/oh-well-star-marine-now-canceled
Star Marine is NOT integrated into Star Citizen and that was NEVER the plan until January 2016. Star Citizen has about 10% of the features promised for Star Marine. The entire year of 2015 Chris promoted Star Marine as a SEPARATE mode/module for Star Citizen. Here is a quote from their official website:
"Where Star Marine differs from Arena Commander is that we’re not launching it in its most basic game. Instead, we’re trying for something more. It includes animation fidelity and attention to detail that you wouldn’t normally expect in an “alpha” gameplay module. There’s even an entire sci-fi sports game with zero-G movement fully simulated and animated in there! (And don’t worry, there’s traditional FPS action too… with some new ideas that aim to set Star Citizen apart from the crowd.)"
Source: https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/14697-Star-Marine-FPS-Update
Does that sound like what we currently have in the PU? Does this video look anything like what was mentioned on the official site?
https://youtu.be/Go1oFvxUoeI
What about this one?
https://youtu.be/oiEYkk_VWvg
As I understand it, the UK branch was originally much smaller, but has grown to its large size recently. Some might think it is because they need to get out SQ42, others might point to Erin taking on more duties in the SC production world.
I haven't seen any numbers on Illfonics or the other, now dumped, modular component builder companies, from back when this was touted as another brilliant project design.
If you are holding out for the perfect game, the only game you play will be the waiting one.
It's pretty clear for anyone reading that initial KS page I linked that they were talking about one game... not two nor three nor four with an idea similar to what Elite Dangerous was also thinking of doing (and later scrapped): an offline mode of the one game.
And see... there is nothing wrong with plans changing and owning up to and explaining the changes. That happens all the time for a variety of reasons and is real and honest.
But the obsession with revising history and calling black white? That's just messed up and disrespectful to an audience they are assuming is stupid and willing to play along.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
What they
Why is it spin?
The idea of kickstarter backers getting a better deal is pretty obvious. If you accept that - and it seens perfectly reasonable to me - then there are only two real options: constantly increase the price of a single offering or split the package. So I certainly think it was an option.
I don't discount that if their fiscal projections indicated they would get everything done for ($X + $Y profit) then there may have been no split.
And depending how things go in the future may stay as two packages or become twenty or whatever!
And whether prices for these - potential - games will be worthwhile that is a different question. I do not see this as spin though just an inevitable fallout of "rewarding" kickstarter backers.
Feeling like I need a shower every time CIG and CR put the latest spin on things? Yeah.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
SC started out as one single game project and was described that way for many, many months. I already said I have no problem with them changing their minds nor do I have a problem with early adopters getting a better deal.
I have zero problems with them saying: "You know what? SQ42 has become much bigger than we originally envisioned and a separate game in its own right. We're splitting it off for any new packages bought but anyone pledging before Feb 14 will still get the original deal."
But I do have problems with revisionist BS spin that claims that this was the plan all along when it clearly wasn't.
As to more spin... You're OK with "Ten for the Chairman" and "Around the Verse" being listed as TV series in IMDB? Doesn't that strike you as a distortion of the truth about Youtube video blogs?
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0730932/
IDK about you, but I'm seeing a pattern.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
Incorrect. Has been the largest for over a year now. And is still hiring a lot more people (see CIG Jobs page).
Have fun