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Why do you think the NDA hasn't been lifted?
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And what game are you compare ESO to? Games with long open beta periods also are ones that have active cash shops during those so called beta's making them more releases than testing. Most sub games have long closed beta periods with a NDA in place to the very end and a short open beta marketing blitz no more than a week or two before release.
There is nothing mysterious going on here as ESO is just following the typical Sub game cycle. People have gotten spoiled by F2P games so called "open beta"/soft launches where developers get to hide behind a "What do you expect it's beta" excuse while still collecting revenue from the cash shop. Now if ESO was charging a months sub for closed beta my attitude about the NDA would be very different.
Do not confuse your personal frustration of wanting to know more about the game with reasons why the game is still under NDA.
The game is still being developed and tweaked. Massive changes from beta to beta and new systems be tested each beta (under stress tests ... no idea what normal beta is testing and what build version).
There is nothing different than most game development. Some companies are more secret than others.
As I have mentioned before as well: Every game that is very heavily story based is ALWAYS under NDA for as long as possible. We would have tons of sites giving away all story lines and mapping quests out before players have even had a chance to play.
The game will be what it will be regardless of the NDA. Hardly anyone demands more information and asks for petitions to drop the NDA (lol) for story driven console games so many demand everything there is to know about mmos like it is their God given right. Quite silly.
You stay sassy!
I also prefer that devs get the feedback from the closed beta testers and not a mob of people literally pulling the game in several opposite directions
I do not understand why there's so much drama over a developer team continuing to uphold their NDA. Whats the point of getting worried about it? They have their reasons so why let it affect you? It shoudnt. If the game is fun to you that should be all that matters, play it. If it isnt fun then play something that IS fun to you. Simple as that.
I could careless why they havent removed the NDA. On the contrary there are still more betas in the works so maybe thats why? They are testing a lot of stuff. For starters Cyrodiil is a massive undertaking if you have seen any map of it. They have a lot of stuff in the game, at least on paper. From the looks of it possibly more then any MMO ever released in terms of content at launch.
Sounds reasonable at the first glance. However, if couple of youtube videos for levels 1-15 can reveal all of your PVE content, then your PVE is paper thin.
I think the main reason is that the game is not good and gameplay videos would turn people away from buying. Can't blame them for this approach though. If I held IP on Elder Scrolls and created sub-par game, I would probably do the same.
Not sure abut the last part, but a game that is promising to be next gen and hyping itself to high heaven...EQ next has update after update after update. They dont look to be 'hiding' anything. Now granted there isnt any testing going on but theyre surely giving peopel alot to look at.
EQ landmarks will have some testing starting fairly soon, will be intrsting what sort of NA they have there. But their scehdule is very aggressive also. You can also almost map it out if you look at their 'founder pack' disclosures and the dates they say items will be delivered both for alpha as ell as beta testing 'perks'.
Now whether they keep that timetable remains to be seen. But it looks to me like they ave a game that is ready to be 'paid' for already because theyre selling pre release packets which give beta access. Or it is just semantics and THEIR alpha test is actually what some would call a beta test, and their second phase of beta is basically an open beta, but they want people to pay something to get into it. So its semantics all the way around.
I have never seen a person say anywhere that ESO has some new secret thing that has never been seen before. Not even the most rampant fanbois can say that. So at this stage, closed beta or not the NDA is a moot almost useless block that is hindering critics and fans alike from giving their unfiltered reviews/opinions on.
Of course, me not being a mindless troll...
Because every now and then, there's an MMO on the radar. It's like that MMO gets "chosen" along the point, and then... Negativity upon negativity, misconceptions that are constantly repeated, and such. This time it's ESO's turn.
I am by no means saying it's flawless, or that there are no problems. There are. But it does in no way deserve to be slammed like it is every day.
I agree. I have been in a ton of mmo betas (many long term and many beta weekends) and nearly every single stress test that brings in ton of new testers you get the beta forums flooded with the negativity persistent here. Experienced testers stick with the forum topics and give the very specific feedback the devs ask for. Often test forums have no open forums but narrowly defined test subjects. New testers often ignore this completely and start their soapbox lectures on game philosophies and demanding core system changes to meet "their" view of the game.
These are not beta testers. These are whiners. They do not help game development. That is not what a stress test is about.
When you enter a beta you are testing the game the DEVELOPERS made ... not what you made. Testers greatly influence systems but the foundation of the game is already set in stone especially by time stress tests are ready.
You stay sassy!
EQNext isnt hiding anything because there isnt anything to hide. The game is still at LEAST a couple years off if Landmark hasnt even released yet and its an ALPHA, at least another year for a full official release of Landmark and then a year or two ater that for EQnext. Your argument is irrelevant. Im excited as anyone else for EQNext but the game is still faaaaaaaaaaaar away so of course theyre not going to be hiding anything. Like I said, there isnt anything to hide.
It's still in closed beta. That's why the NDA hasn't been lifted.
I imagine that there will be an open beta in March and at that time the NDA will be lifted.
Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.
To make one thing clear: I am certainly going to buy ESO. So go figure.
That said, I am quite sure they are QUITE afraid. They have almost fallen silent since the disastrous Quake Con video got plenty of sneer, doubts and head shaking. And rightfully so, because that video was NOT very good, especially the combat that was shown.
So, by strictly referring to the non-beta material, I think it is safe to say they have a few issues, and do not want to ruin their business. And the Quake Con video shows, animations and combat are certainly one of the big issues. Again, this can be seen from all the official videos. It's no beta secret.
People don't ask questions to get answers - they ask questions to show how smart they are. - Dogbert
Zenimax is going to lift the NDA on February 14th to show you how much they love you. Zenimax told me so.
If you want a new idea, go read an old book.
In order to be insulted, I must first value your opinion.
Technically, what he said. Simply, they don't want people making judgments over beta footage. Which is fair I guess, but also a lie to their consumer. For those who don't get beta access, dishing out $59 to try the game is harsh.
Originally posted by Arskaaa
"when players learned tacticks in dungeon/raids, its bread".
Why am I always getting nervous when someone says that! o.0
People don't ask questions to get answers - they ask questions to show how smart they are. - Dogbert
Any veteran MMORPG player knows that "the magic patch which will fix it all at the last minute" never existed.
The only reason at this point to having an open beta would be hype. Well, if they get more hype or they think their advertising will work better without an open beta or lifting the NDA, then it makes sense to not lift it.
Has an open beta or lifting of any sort of NDA helped many games in the past? If not, then it doesn't really matter how good the game is, not lifting the NDA or having an open beta makes sense.
I can not remember winning or losing a single debate on the internet.
I do think the pve content is paper thin. Same old same quest to level cap crap. I also think the game looks terrific, and gameplay videos would do more good than harm, especially vids of PvP.
Imo ESO is the first western AAA pvp centric mmorpg made in years. Can't wait to see where it goes.
You can't even buy it yet. So how is anyone getting lied to? It's not like closed beta and the NDA will last until the very release date. People will have time to hopefully try open beta, along with reading up and researching about the game before they purchase.
Purchasing something without knowing what you're buying and then crying over what you thought you bought, is utterly stupid I think.
Some people seem to think that the NDA is blocking anything.
Apart from people not allowed to talk about it, there is NOTHING in the beta that Zenimax themselves did not show already. The game is exactly in the state they showed the world up to this point. Nothing more, nothing less.
There is not going to be any big BOOM when the NDA lifts, apart from a few more reviews.
MMOs finally replaced social interaction, forced grouping and standing in a line while talking to eachother.
Now we have forced soloing, forced questing and everyone is the hero, without ever having to talk to anyone else. The evolution of multiplayer is here! We won,... right?
I am not saying WHAT should still change, but to all those who think, it still can: did we EVER see that?
Did we ever see a MMO change in a noticable way 3 months prior to release? Because I don't recall this. Changes the like we may wish for are a matter of half a year min.
I really hope they delay it till autumn to fix XXXXcensoredXXXX, which REALLY needs fixing.
People don't ask questions to get answers - they ask questions to show how smart they are. - Dogbert
They have something secret they don't want revealed yet:
1. Story
2. Code
You are so out of touch with the reality of business it makes me feel embarrassed for you. Does a car developer reveal it's final design long before it marketable? No. Can you test drive the car a year before it is ready for reveal? No. Does a car company want a new car publicly reviewed long before it is ready for sale let alone before adequate testing? Hell no.
Does a developer want the entire story line revealed before release? No. Does a developer want publishes reviews? No. Does a developer want their code and systems for a game (That is their ONLY product) revealed to other developers years before release of the game? HELL NO!
It is standard business practice and independent of whether the game will be successful or not. There are a TON of testers in TESO beta. It may be very likely you simply are not needed and this obviously hurts your sensibilities. Stop confusing your frustration with having to wait until the game is ready for release with why their is an NDA. You do not know why. If you are or were in beta you would know more but I still do not have faith that many can separate their emotion from logic in order to see the actual facts.
If the game releases not ready or is the type of game you did not want then that has nothing to do with an NDA. The developers make the game they wanted to make. It doesn't mean it will be either great or successful. Your voice 3 months from release on a game developed over many years mean nothing.
You stay sassy!
Some pretty significant system changes were made between betas. They will probably make more, good point. MOST mmorpgs don't change much from the beta weekend phase to launch.