Originally posted by _Shadowmage About as funny as a bullet in the head. Instead of stressing follow some other game thats closer to release. Its not like your life will be over if this game isnt released for 10 years.
Hey, from my experience in years of playing MMORPG's and watching the progress of games on message boards like this, I can only conclude that a quiet game is possibly a dead game. If they are making true progress, then they can release info on a class or a map or two to keep the interest up.
And yes, some people will be gone in 10 years. If not "late", then certainly will have moved on to other games.
Well, I for one cannot say the reason behind the silence. It's not my place to question PR strategies, or wonder about the lack of updates. But I do know that Hero's Journey is anything but dead. Myself, and those in the World Building team, have been busy building. I do know the other teams have been bristling with activity as well.
So, don't dispair...there's still a strong pulse. Just a quiet patient.
------------------------- "An area decorated in blood, is an area decorated with love." - HJ-Rowell
Former Simutronics Staff (ASGM) Hero's Journey - World Building Team
Originally posted by HJ-Rowell Well, I for one cannot say the reason behind the silence. It's not my place to question PR strategies, or wonder about the lack of updates. But I do know that Hero's Journey is anything but dead. Myself, and those in the World Building team, have been busy building. I do know the other teams have been bristling with activity as well.
So, don't dispair...there's still a strong pulse. Just a quiet patient.
That's good news. I think all of us ask is that H.J. come up for air now and then.
Im curious to see what Bioware has in the works for the HJ Engine. In a recent interview they were describing what they had planned for there next mmorpg and it sure sounded familiar. Primarily how they planned to handle quest. Wouldnt it be ironic if Bioware used the HJ engine and made a game that was a success and then the makers of the engine fail at making there own game?
While I highly doubt HJ will fail to appear I do highly doubt it would ever eclipse a game by Bioware. Thats a opinion that could change of course with due time hehe. Well off for another few hours of work then.. more work after work..
Originally posted by Techleo Wouldnt it be ironic if Bioware used the HJ engine and made a game that was a success and then the makers of the engine fail at making there own game?
Ironic? Nope. Even Blizzard is shivering at the though of the competition. I don't think Nike see any problem with their staff been unable to compete with NBA professionnal.
All in all, it is best for everyone. BioWare is about to take over the MMO's market, which is definitely not going to hinder Simu in anyway, it is only going to help them. I may be wrong, but if BioWare is making the new MMO champion, there is nothing wrong in lagging behind while doing awesome in it own way.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
Oh come on Amathe, the game system is in working order and the game contest is to many interations in to have been a marketing ploy. Considering Simutronics propensity to not advertise with there previous products as well, this is par for the course. I dont personally like what there doing but the games hardly a ghost.
Oh and Anofayle, very good point. I think it wouldnt per say hurt HJ. It would just be a little weird to play a game you wished was HJ instead because you know the engine behind it. Anyways its not like I have much to do now anyways. None of the new mmorpgs seem to be in much a hurry to come out. Probably a good thing.
Originally posted by AmatheI was a huge fan of this game, but I have come to believe HJ was merely a marketing vehicle for an engine. This looks like vaporware.
HJ has been in development since 1999 or earlier. That's probably before the term 'vaporware' was even coined (not really). If they were going to give up, they would have done it long ago (like after the '99 iteration, when the technology wasn't advanced enough to make HJ they way it was envisioned). Patience, young padawan.
From personal standpoint, I would much rather see a game company take its time and make sure that everything is right, working and unbugged....than have the company push a half-finished game out, and spend the next 6-12 months patching it.
Take Blizzard for example. They had their expansion slated to be released during the Christmas season. They pushed back their release so they could fine-tune the game, and make sure it was bug-free (as possible). I applaud Blizzard's decision to do that; it shows that they put their name, product and integrity above cash and deadlines.
Same thing for Hero's Journey. I think the quality of the gaming experience will be worth the wait.
Now....back to the GrindStone for, before they notice I'm missing.
------------------------- "An area decorated in blood, is an area decorated with love." - HJ-Rowell
Former Simutronics Staff (ASGM) Hero's Journey - World Building Team
While its admirable to develop well theres little to be seen in the way of current evidence. I wouldnt expect much more then a seething and apathetic public tell Simutronics gets a exceptable PR campaign uderway. That includes some relative timelines for release.
Originally posted by Techleo While its admirable to develop well theres little to be seen in the way of current evidence. I wouldnt expect much more then a seething and apathetic public tell Simutronics gets a exceptable PR campaign uderway. That includes some relative timelines for release.
The only seething and apathetic people I see are the proverbial vocal minority, who keep trying to somehow goad Simu in to releasing info with vague threats about losing interest and not buying the game. It's actually infinitely more annoying than Simu not releasing any new information.
Agent_X7 AKA J Star [/URL] Notice: The views expressed in this post are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com or its management.
Well, we're all extremely busy, and most of what we are working on is not ready to be shown.
We are all working very hard to not only make a game, but to make a -GOOD- game. We could throw together some junk and show it off, but then it takes away time from the actual game development. If we're going to show you things, we want to show you things that look good, work, and will be fun. Not just one of those.
Ah, but you could easily release a screenshot a week just so we know you are still out there. The communication between Simu and it's followers didn't go away slowly like a 6th grade girlfriend... you guys just stopped cold turkey. Really seems strange to me. We got used to bi-weekly or at least monthly updates or screenshots or even real game data from Melissa or any GM.
I suppose it just seems like we were left in a lurch. A weekly screenshot and a little blurb about it wouldn't be too much to ask for, or would it?
Especially with Simu, you gotta admit, you guys don't have the best reputation for keeping your fans informed. You keep your fans psyched about a particular topic then forget about it for two years when somebody leaves and somebody else comes to take their place, dusts it off, and decides to pick up where they left off. I'm sure it's not sunshine and daisys over there, but it would be nice, at least, to have some of that work spill over into a couple minutes a week of one person to post some Screens.
I would have to agree. There is no reason why you could not post additional screenshots to show the game is still active. Screenshots could be of already developed content such as the current races in the game or even furniture. I feel that the quiet is also a very bad sign as well. Not so much that the game is dead but it shows a lack of support and implys that the game is a very very long ways off from completion. If I were creating a game that I thought was awesome I sure as heck wouldn't go dead but would be talking about it as much and regularly as possible. The official website has been dead on content for months on end. This is sad as initial reviews gave promising reports of an awesome game. In truth, your deluding yourself if you say you have no time to post on your own official website about the game your creating. In fact to do so would take less than a hour time so I don't buy the we are too busy excuse. I also feel you have enough content developed given your initial reviews where you would not have to worry about the screenshot making a false promise. Think of the message your sending when you can't post a single screenshot in several months time. It implys that there is something wrong and your prospective customers are going to start looking somewhere else rather than pay attention to a site that has apparently no support and the content development is suspect. Although, heh, truthfully I don't see much else being developed elsewhere to catch my interest except perhaps Spore which like HJ is going through its silence spell itself. I suppose you could cross your fingers and rely on the game release with good content to make up for your lack of communication with prospective customers interested in your game. Blizzard messes with its customers all the time and gets away with it. Still..... I don't think not updating your website or maintaining a lack of communication with prospective customers is a good idea. I took the time to make an account here and make this post as I'm concerned at the direction the game is going. Hopefully a PR representative from HJ can do the same. Shake a leg and start pouring on the info on MMORPG, Ten Ton Hammer, IGN, Your own official website, and you should even toss your fansites a bone. A good game should never be without a voice.
I gota apologize for being so vocal about my discontent earlier. Actually lately I think Ive been overly hard on these smaller mmorpg companies. After about 2 months doing a early beta for one of those companies I have a diffrent view. All I can say is good fortunes to Simutronics. THere doing damned good. Although I would like one picture a month
So riddle me this. HJ used to write articles, provide screenshots, and post frequently. Back when they were doing that, should we conclude that they weren't busy? That they weren't working on the game? That they didn't want it to be a good game? If that is why they can't do it now, I take it there was a time in the past that nobody at Simu was doing anything game related?
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Two new desktops were released recently. I would think there is more work involved in an artist doing a desktop picture - than in taking a screen shot.
Well I hope you all manage to get some time away from developing over Christmas and the New Year to spend with your friends and families so you can recharge your batteries.
Cheers to that shadowmage. We all need that I think. This years been a rough one for almost everyone I know. Mind you Ive been blessed and I am thankful for where I am. My works wonderful and Im engage. So heres to a WONDERFUL YEAR TO COME! Despite the crap that will come with it! The hell with odds lets just be happy
Wow, I come back a few months later and my humble thread has turned into a war zone. I'm not sure if I'm amused or horrified.
I agree, Techleo, this isn't something worth fighting about. I didn't start all this with the intention of bullying Simu into anything, and I'm certainly not as worked up about it as some people seem to believe. But seeing all the things that devs have said in my absence, I do have to reassert my point that it's not the silence itself that I'm questioning, it's the silence that follows a torrent of information. If you were to build momentum as the game neared completion, that would be one thing. But you went so far as to give us a fairly comprehensive explanation of the Wyr system, and on that day Hero's Journey was actually close to the top of that "Most Anticipated" list. In the following five months, you've given us I think two screenshots and two desktop wallpapers. That seems pretty counterintuitive to me.
I have to agree with Amathe. If hard work is what's keeping you from maintaining the dialogue we once had, the implication really is that you somehow cared less six months ago. But I don't think that's what it is, because as we all know, devs don't do the PR. PR does the PR. Now if something happened back in July to make Simu decide to turtle, you don't have to tell us what it is. You could just say that the circumstances are such that you're no longer comfortable glibly spouting off so many of the details. That's a sufficient answer. Just don't say that you're too busy to tell us anything of substance; your absent PR department would have a heart attack if they knew.
My only guess is that this is some kind of corporate strategy to maintain the viability of your Hero Engine, but since that's no secret to any potential competitor, it shouldn't be to us. We're a small and loyal community, we who still care about whether you release this game. And we're ready to hand you our money in addition to our love. So do us a favor and talk straight. Tell us we have to take one for the team so that your engine can sell better; we won't mind. It may sound presumptuous, but I do think we deserve that much.
If it's not secrecy you're after, I can't think of any other reason why you'd be so tight-lipped. So I reiterate: I'm very interested in this game you're making, and I'd like to know more. If you have more to tell, by all means, tell it. If you can't, then at least let me know when you might start again. If you don't even know that, say, "Sorry, Charlie. PR's got us on a short leash until further notice." I promise I will understand.
Simu has been tight lipped in all it's games (they have several text based online games) so their silence comes as no surprise.
However, back in 2004's Simucon they said that HJ was done, as in finished and complete. Then in 2006 they ramped up to a supposed release, then died off into 'pushed back' and more silence.
I've been waiting on this game for several years. What started out as a strong desire to play has died off into a mild curiosity to see if the game will ever see daylight. New technology is always coming out. If you keep pushing back the game to develop on the new technology, it will never go from development to market.
...What started out as a strong desire to play has died off into a mild curiosity to see if the game will ever see daylight. New technology is always coming out...
Its the same for me, I once championed this game, now I'm looking at Vanguard & LotR while only checking in here from time to time out of curiosity
Currently Playing:GW2 Currently Following:Elder Scrolls Online Games in my wake:Anarchy Online, Archlord (beta), Asherons Call, Asherons Call 2, City of Heroes, Dark Age of Camelot (SI to Catacombs), DDO, EVE Online, EverQuest II (beta), Guild Wars, Horizons, Lineage II,LORTO, Rift, RF Online (beta), RYL, Saga of Ryzon, Shadowbane, Star Wars Galaxies, Vanguard, WAR, WoW
I am looking forward to this game. It is based out of St. Louis, and well I live there, so that makes it kind of nice. Maybe a close fan faire for once:) If you all need any volunteers let me know!
Comments
About as funny as a bullet in the head.
Instead of stressing follow some other game thats closer to release. Its not like your life will be over if this game isnt released for 10 years.
Hey, from my experience in years of playing MMORPG's and watching the progress of games on message boards like this, I can only conclude that a quiet game is possibly a dead game. If they are making true progress, then they can release info on a class or a map or two to keep the interest up.
And yes, some people will be gone in 10 years. If not "late", then certainly will have moved on to other games.
not my place to question PR strategies, or wonder about the lack of
updates. But I do know that Hero's Journey is anything but
dead. Myself, and those in the World Building team, have been
busy building. I do know the other teams have been
bristling with activity as well.
So, don't dispair...there's still a strong pulse. Just a quiet patient.
-------------------------
"An area decorated in blood, is an area decorated with love."
- HJ-Rowell
Former Simutronics Staff (ASGM)
Hero's Journey - World Building Team
http://play.net/hj/
Wouldnt it be ironic if Bioware used the HJ engine and made a game that was a success and then the makers of the engine fail at making there own game?
While I highly doubt HJ will fail to appear I do highly doubt it would ever eclipse a game by Bioware. Thats a opinion that could change of course with due time hehe. Well off for another few hours of work then.. more work after work..
_______________________________________________________________________________
Flatline.
I was a huge fan of this game, but I have come to believe HJ was merely a marketing vehicle for an engine. This looks like vaporware.
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Ironic? Nope. Even Blizzard is shivering at the though of the competition. I don't think Nike see any problem with their staff been unable to compete with NBA professionnal.
All in all, it is best for everyone. BioWare is about to take over the MMO's market, which is definitely not going to hinder Simu in anyway, it is only going to help them. I may be wrong, but if BioWare is making the new MMO champion, there is nothing wrong in lagging behind while doing awesome in it own way.
- "If I understand you well, you are telling me until next time. " - Ren
Oh and Anofayle, very good point. I think it wouldnt per say hurt HJ. It would just be a little weird to play a game you wished was HJ instead because you know the engine behind it. Anyways its not like I have much to do now anyways. None of the new mmorpgs seem to be in much a hurry to come out. Probably a good thing.
HJ has been in development since 1999 or earlier. That's probably before the term 'vaporware' was even coined (not really). If they were going to give up, they would have done it long ago (like after the '99 iteration, when the technology wasn't advanced enough to make HJ they way it was envisioned). Patience, young padawan.
its time and make sure that everything is right, working and
unbugged....than have the company push a half-finished game out, and
spend the next 6-12 months patching it.
Take Blizzard for example. They had their expansion slated to be
released during the Christmas season. They pushed back their
release so they could fine-tune the game, and make sure it was bug-free
(as possible). I applaud Blizzard's decision to do that; it
shows that they put their name, product and integrity above cash and
deadlines.
Same thing for Hero's Journey. I think the quality of the gaming experience will be worth the wait.
Now....back to the GrindStone for, before they notice I'm missing.
-------------------------
"An area decorated in blood, is an area decorated with love."
- HJ-Rowell
Former Simutronics Staff (ASGM)
Hero's Journey - World Building Team
http://play.net/hj/
Agent_X7 AKA J Star
[/URL]
Notice: The views expressed in this post are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of MMORPG.com or its management.
Well, we're all extremely busy, and most of what we are working on is not ready to be shown.
We are all working very hard to not only make a game, but to make a -GOOD- game. We could throw together some junk and show it off, but then it takes away time from the actual game development. If we're going to show you things, we want to show you things that look good, work, and will be fun. Not just one of those.
HJ-Diviana
Hero's Journey GM
Hero's Journey Official Site
Hero's Hall
Ah, but you could easily release a screenshot a week just so we know you are still out there. The communication between Simu and it's followers didn't go away slowly like a 6th grade girlfriend... you guys just stopped cold turkey. Really seems strange to me. We got used to bi-weekly or at least monthly updates or screenshots or even real game data from Melissa or any GM.
I suppose it just seems like we were left in a lurch. A weekly screenshot and a little blurb about it wouldn't be too much to ask for, or would it?
Especially with Simu, you gotta admit, you guys don't have the best reputation for keeping your fans informed. You keep your fans psyched about a particular topic then forget about it for two years when somebody leaves and somebody else comes to take their place, dusts it off, and decides to pick up where they left off. I'm sure it's not sunshine and daisys over there, but it would be nice, at least, to have some of that work spill over into a couple minutes a week of one person to post some Screens.
I would have to agree. There is no reason why you could not post additional screenshots to show the game is still active. Screenshots could be of already developed content such as the current races in the game or even furniture. I feel that the quiet is also a very bad sign as well. Not so much that the game is dead but it shows a lack of support and implys that the game is a very very long ways off from completion. If I were creating a game that I thought was awesome I sure as heck wouldn't go dead but would be talking about it as much and regularly as possible. The official website has been dead on content for months on end. This is sad as initial reviews gave promising reports of an awesome game. In truth, your deluding yourself if you say you have no time to post on your own official website about the game your creating. In fact to do so would take less than a hour time so I don't buy the we are too busy excuse. I also feel you have enough content developed given your initial reviews where you would not have to worry about the screenshot making a false promise. Think of the message your sending when you can't post a single screenshot in several months time. It implys that there is something wrong and your prospective customers are going to start looking somewhere else rather than pay attention to a site that has apparently no support and the content development is suspect. Although, heh, truthfully I don't see much else being developed elsewhere to catch my interest except perhaps Spore which like HJ is going through its silence spell itself. I suppose you could cross your fingers and rely on the game release with good content to make up for your lack of communication with prospective customers interested in your game. Blizzard messes with its customers all the time and gets away with it. Still..... I don't think not updating your website or maintaining a lack of communication with prospective customers is a good idea. I took the time to make an account here and make this post as I'm concerned at the direction the game is going. Hopefully a PR representative from HJ can do the same. Shake a leg and start pouring on the info on MMORPG, Ten Ton Hammer, IGN, Your own official website, and you should even toss your fansites a bone. A good game should never be without a voice.
Hope to hear a heartbeat soon.
So riddle me this. HJ used to write articles, provide screenshots, and post frequently. Back when they were doing that, should we conclude that they weren't busy? That they weren't working on the game? That they didn't want it to be a good game? If that is why they can't do it now, I take it there was a time in the past that nobody at Simu was doing anything game related?
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
Two new desktops were released recently. I would think there is more work involved in an artist doing a desktop picture - than in taking a screen shot.
Well I hope you all manage to get some time away from developing over Christmas and the New Year to spend with your friends and families so you can recharge your batteries.
Mind you Ive been blessed and I am thankful for where I am. My works wonderful and Im engage. So heres to a
WONDERFUL YEAR TO COME! Despite the crap that will come with it!
Wow, I come back a few months later and my humble thread has turned into a war zone. I'm not sure if I'm amused or horrified.
I agree, Techleo, this isn't something worth fighting about. I didn't start all this with the intention of bullying Simu into anything, and I'm certainly not as worked up about it as some people seem to believe. But seeing all the things that devs have said in my absence, I do have to reassert my point that it's not the silence itself that I'm questioning, it's the silence that follows a torrent of information. If you were to build momentum as the game neared completion, that would be one thing. But you went so far as to give us a fairly comprehensive explanation of the Wyr system, and on that day Hero's Journey was actually close to the top of that "Most Anticipated" list. In the following five months, you've given us I think two screenshots and two desktop wallpapers. That seems pretty counterintuitive to me.
I have to agree with Amathe. If hard work is what's keeping you from maintaining the dialogue we once had, the implication really is that you somehow cared less six months ago. But I don't think that's what it is, because as we all know, devs don't do the PR. PR does the PR. Now if something happened back in July to make Simu decide to turtle, you don't have to tell us what it is. You could just say that the circumstances are such that you're no longer comfortable glibly spouting off so many of the details. That's a sufficient answer. Just don't say that you're too busy to tell us anything of substance; your absent PR department would have a heart attack if they knew.
My only guess is that this is some kind of corporate strategy to maintain the viability of your Hero Engine, but since that's no secret to any potential competitor, it shouldn't be to us. We're a small and loyal community, we who still care about whether you release this game. And we're ready to hand you our money in addition to our love. So do us a favor and talk straight. Tell us we have to take one for the team so that your engine can sell better; we won't mind. It may sound presumptuous, but I do think we deserve that much.
If it's not secrecy you're after, I can't think of any other reason why you'd be so tight-lipped. So I reiterate: I'm very interested in this game you're making, and I'd like to know more. If you have more to tell, by all means, tell it. If you can't, then at least let me know when you might start again. If you don't even know that, say, "Sorry, Charlie. PR's got us on a short leash until further notice." I promise I will understand.
However, back in 2004's Simucon they said that HJ was done, as in finished and complete. Then in 2006 they ramped up to a supposed release, then died off into 'pushed back' and more silence.
I've been waiting on this game for several years. What started out as a strong desire to play has died off into a mild curiosity to see if the game will ever see daylight. New technology is always coming out. If you keep pushing back the game to develop on the new technology, it will never go from development to market.
Currently Playing: GW2
Currently Following: Elder Scrolls Online
Games in my wake: Anarchy Online, Archlord (beta), Asherons Call, Asherons Call 2, City of Heroes, Dark Age of Camelot (SI to Catacombs), DDO, EVE Online, EverQuest II (beta), Guild Wars, Horizons, Lineage II,LORTO, Rift, RF Online (beta), RYL, Saga of Ryzon, Shadowbane, Star Wars Galaxies, Vanguard, WAR, WoW
Educator, writer, and Gamer.
Follow me at: MMOG Musings and MMOGology
Educator, writer, and Gamer.
Follow me at: MMOG Musings and MMOGology