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[Column] Landmark: Flushing Money Down the Drain?

2

Comments

  • AzothAzoth Member UncommonPosts: 840
    Originally posted by Maelwydd
    Originally posted by Torvaldr

     

    It's his opinion. It's not a wrong opinion. He never said other people didn't ask for it. He said he doesn't like it. Is there a reason you can't just state your opinion without attacking him? Your posts sounds mean, nasty, and bitter. It wasn't an empty article, he made a reasonable explanation as to why he felt that way and the conflict he feels. Is it important to try and make him feel bad?

    I am sick of general forum posters without a clue what they are talking about spouting nonsense in discussions when the information is there for anyone with a mind to understand what they are talking about.

    But for this site to promote the same attitude is just pathetic. If they are going to hire people or allow people to write articles on games they need to at least be accurate. The article stated that these props were release for no good reason but the actual reason is that people active on the LM forums have been asking for them.  

    So either this opinion piece is inaccurate through choice or through lack of research. Either option is not worthy of sponsorship on a site that is broadcast to a wide circulation of people who come here to read informed articles. To the casual bystander this article is worse then lacking substance, it is providing inaccurate information.

    And sorry but I am not attacking the person who wrote it but the content of what was written. If someone wants to put their opinion out into the public domain they better do so either with integrity or accept people will call them out for their mistakes.

    You just noticed it now, after they kicked your puppy ?

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123
    Originally posted by Azoth

     

    You just noticed it now, after they kicked your puppy ?

    Yeah. because this is the only game I have discussed on these forums and this is the first time I have called out people that lie in posts and the first time I have commented on posts made  by 'official' posters.

    Oh and of course, this is the first puppy I have tried to look after...

     

     

  • serreniteiserrenitei Member UncommonPosts: 19

    I feel like, again people don't have a good understanding of how long it takes to develop even the smallest thing.  Hint - it's a really really long time.  I'm a software product manager so I literally leave and breathe development timelines on a daily basis.  The amount of work that the landmark team has put out has been impressive.  There's just epic amounts of code, adjustments, enhancements, revamping systems, all of this they are doing it just ... crazy.  And all under the untrained eyes of the public, which takes kahunes.  Like BIG ones.  

    As for the roadmap changing - welcome to software development.  It has always changed - and will always be changing - on a monthly, weekly -- sometimes hourly basis.  Its completely non-sensical to judge the Landmark development by roadmap changes.  

    The key to development is this - nothing is ever as easy as you thing.  If you think something is straightward and clear and totally predictable, you are missing something.  

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123
    Originally posted by serrenitei

    I feel like, again people don't have a good understanding of how long it takes to develop even the smallest thing.  Hint - it's a really really long time.  I'm a software product manager so I literally leave and breathe development timelines on a daily basis.  The amount of work that the landmark team has put out has been impressive.  There's just epic amounts of code, adjustments, enhancements, revamping systems, all of this they are doing it just ... crazy.  And all under the untrained eyes of the public, which takes kahunes.  Like BIG ones.  

    As for the roadmap changing - welcome to software development.  It has always changed - and will always be changing - on a monthly, weekly -- sometimes hourly basis.  Its completely non-sensical to judge the Landmark development by roadmap changes.  

    The key to development is this - nothing is ever as easy as you thing.  If you think something is straightward and clear and totally predictable, you are missing something.  

    Yeah it is a risk by SOE being so open in development. Especially when you read all the comments made where people just haven't got a clue where Landmark and EQN are in the development process.

    For example, the number of comments made who think the first iteration of the combat system in Landmark is the final version of combat that will be in EQN and dismiss it just astounds me.

    I love being part of the development process (as much as a passive outsider can be) and learning so much about how they are making the game and the intricacies they are dealing with. It is for me worth every penny I spent to become part of it as I have an interest in how it all works and being able to be part of a collective of people make the game we all want.

    I just wish the people who complain took the same time and effort they make being rude or ignorant to become part of the solution rather then an annoying and noisy problem. The devs are so open to comments and their output is very impressive and if people could become part of the process I doubt they would be so negative.

     

  • victorbjrvictorbjr Member UncommonPosts: 212
    Originally posted by Andrii

    I don't necessarily want to be the guy who comes in and immediately starts defending an investment in Landmark, but...

     

    It has been six months since we've had a crack at the alpha and in that time an enormous amount of features and technology have been implemented in the game. Some of that technology, like water or caves, required original R&D at SOE to implement. If your viewpoint is purely "what did I get out of it", then I think you could easily look at past Blueprints (if only they existed) and see that you got a lot of bang for your 20 bucks.

     

    But the real value in the Founder's packs for Landmark come from not features delivered but rather through the opportunity to have your voice heard - to be a "dev". I have seen countless suggestions implemented, feedback heard, and bugs quashed thanks to forum posts and tweets. Though your mileage may vary in other games, I really feel like the devs ARE listening in Landmark and your 20 bucks bought you that too if you took advantage of it.

     

    Hey there folks,

     

    Victor here. It's 5:40 am and I'm nearly reaching 24 hours awake doing a bunch of stuff, but I saw the comments here and I wanted to chime in.

     

    I've read all the comments so far, and I can see where the folks here are coming from. I'll state plainly where I'm coming from though.

     

    I maintain the Landmark/EQ Next column and the FFXIV ones because I enjoy both games, but hop around a lot into other games that catch my fancy. This game hopping plays a part in my mindset when it comes to thinking about the updates of a game.

     

    When I think of an update to a game, my mindset is that an update is a "something new to do" update rather than a "something nice to have" update. When MMOs, whether it be FFXIV or WoW, come out with updates, it's the "something new to do" type.

    Right now, since there's no EQN alpha, I'm playing Landmark for short bursts. Building and destroying, however, can get tiring if you're a certain subset of gamer (which I am). Landmark updates bring "something nice to have" but the main actions are the same (with the exception of the PVP update which gave something new to do, and also formally altered some of the ways people might approach bulding).

     

    I can understand that some are upset with my opinion, but trust that I have love for Landmark and EQN. I'm not a forum reader per se (more of a Reddit lurker on both EQN and Landmark when I'm not writing news), but I watch the Landmark Live episodes and also double check my twitch viewing to make sure I get the gist of certain information bits.

     

    That said, please do note that what I said was that I'm one of those who happens to be "impatient with Landmark and Everquest Next and wants more than what’s being offered." I do recognize that the game is immeasurably complex and beyond my understanding (The tech discussions are tough to follow sometimes), but I suppose I want to build AND fight AND quest AND do other activities.

     

    Landmark doesn't have all those other bits yet... which is what drives me to doubt my spending at times.

     

    Anyway. Post is too long. Apologies. 

    A writer and gamer from the Philippines. Loves his mom dearly. :)

    Can also be found on http://www.gamesandgeekery.com

  • AsamofAsamof Member UncommonPosts: 824
    If you think the development rate and excessive milking of its customer base is bad now...just wait for EQN to drop. It will be fun to see all the reactions of the hype train people who've never dealt with SOE before.
  • RukushinRukushin Member UncommonPosts: 311
    Unfortunately, I have a feeling that by the time EQN comes out and IF they deliver on what they say they will have as features in this game it will be TOO LATE. Perhaps I'm extremely jaded, but at this point we should be jacking in the matrix lmao. All jokes aside though, devs are milking money from the customers and not nearly working at the innovation rate that they were in 1999-2005. Very sad...
  • KnyttaKnytta Member UncommonPosts: 414
    Originally posted by bcbully

     

    At any given time there are no more than 200 people playing across 200/300 islands. (I don't  know if it has been reduced.)The people who play Landmark are a very small number by any game standard. I believe that the pace and direction of development have been the main reasons. 

    Ehh No. Adventure still has 200 + players most days, the other 3 big Serenity, Liberation, Courage around 100 each . With 9 servers/worlds it means that on any given night some 1000 people are logged in. That is still low I agree but I would say that a lot of people got into Landmark of all the wrong reasons. At the moment the performance issues are the biggest problem.

    Chi puo dir com'egli arde é in picciol fuoco.

    He who can describe the flame does not burn.

    Petrarch


  • observerobserver Member RarePosts: 3,685
    Originally posted by serrenitei

    I feel like, again people don't have a good understanding of how long it takes to develop even the smallest thing.  Hint - it's a really really long time.  I'm a software product manager so I literally leave and breathe development timelines on a daily basis.  The amount of work that the landmark team has put out has been impressive.  There's just epic amounts of code, adjustments, enhancements, revamping systems, all of this they are doing it just ... crazy.  And all under the untrained eyes of the public, which takes kahunes.  Like BIG ones.  

    As for the roadmap changing - welcome to software development.  It has always changed - and will always be changing - on a monthly, weekly -- sometimes hourly basis.  Its completely non-sensical to judge the Landmark development by roadmap changes.  

    The key to development is this - nothing is ever as easy as you thing.  If you think something is straightward and clear and totally predictable, you are missing something.  

    You forgot about priorities.  This is basically what the article is talking about.  SOE is prioritizing props before fundamental designs.

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    Imagine a world without toilets, it wouldn't be very great to use the bush every time you had to go...

    But one can wonder why they settled for WCs? While toilets where water flush the waste away do have existed since Minoian times they were rare except in Rome (the city, not the entire empire). They should have gone for outhouses instead.

    And yes, I am just half serious but the gameworld do look more alive it if looks like people actually living there.

    I always wondered where the orcs who always seems to be sitting in a room dicing in D&D products sleep, eat and crap. Then again, maybe they do it all under the table (hate to be the cleaning lady there).

    What we don't needs however is emotes for using the things. ;) Crud, now I remember that AoC actually had that at launch...

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123
    Originally posted by Torvaldr

     

    Actually the article never said that. You said the article said that. No one, including the author, ever said people haven't requested this or that it shouldn't be added. The author said that having that be the big part of the update was disappointing. He feels like development is lagging and expects a content update to be meaty. He explained why he feels this way. It's a perfectly valid opinion even if I don't share it. You used that as pedestal to twist his words and lash out. Talk about spouting nonsense. If he posted some empty tripe that had no reasoning behind it then I would say he deserves a scathing rebuke. As it stands he didn't, I've never seen him post like that, and I still think you're out of line.

    Well my point was, if this guy is the main reporter for Landmark and EQN for this site he should really know what he is talking about. It is obvious that the development of the game is not being followed because his article was all about toilets and the fact that he was disappointed with the update.

    What was not mentioned was the VAST number of regular updates introducing a whole range of things AS WELL AS props that the people that ARE invested in these games have asked for.

    The whole article puts across the message that nothing is being done, no developments ate being made and "toilets" have been the only progress recently. That is NOT correct. Since SOELive they have managed to introduce things like combat, weapons, ropes, fabrics, metal chains, gaming tables, PvP games, mover, launchers...

    So yes I do have a problem with the post because it is taking a single update from a single week from a single snapshot of the game and doesn't represent the MASSIVE amount of work that SOE have done and continue to do on a daily basis.

    It misrepresents the guys doing tons of work, a lot of the time over weekends and over night to make sure what they promise is delivered.

    Anyone that has invested in the game is responsible for their own involvement in the development and progress. If you pay money to participate but then do not, it isn't the developers fault. Anyone who is participating knows how much work is done by the development team and I take offence when their hard work is ridiculed simply because the person poking fun is out of touch with what work is being done.

    And this isn't just aimed at this article. The recentpodcast where the guys there were also talking about Landmark and didn't have a clue either. Seriously, if MMORPG are going to commission people to talk about a subject, podcast or article, either make sure the people doing so are knowledgeable about the game they are talking about or do some fact checks before posting.

  • starstar1starstar1 Member UncommonPosts: 62
    I like a lot of what is going on in Landmark . However,  for me, the only thing that is important is code optimization as I can't get past 15 FPS so I can't enjoy the game. I have a quad core processor on my lappy, but my shared graphics are the death of me lol. I pumped 12 GIGs of ram but I still suck wind.... I just hope they can optimize it enough so I can run 30fps in medium low settings!
  • BMBenderBMBender Member UncommonPosts: 827
    Originally posted by sketocafe
    I stopped pre-ordering games before the whole crowdfunding thing started, so I've never bought into any of them. I've played the shit out of FTL and will continue to buy good games that come from kickstarter or indiegogo, but I'm not going to pre-pre-order something, or pay for an alpha or beta.

    Same here.  I stopped pre-ordering, hype buying back when I finally realized that many of the companies in the space rely more on marketing/hype than game design.  I fail to see how/why the very same companies would perform any better while at the same time getting more $ with less market feedback via CS.  At least in a real game box sales/subscriptions will reward/penalize an organization if they meet or fail to meet market expectations.  With CS they can basically deliver vapor ware and still get paid.

     

    In all honesty I did get into one Kick starter game : Kerbal Space  Program.  It had a demo witch allowed me to observe quality of product prior to buy in.  To me if ones' product isn't able to sell itself via a demo your in the wrong career field.  If you need hype, mass market campaigns ect, just to achieve basic sales or keep the lights on; you should go back to school and pursue a different area of study.  You add no value to the market space.

     

    image
  • jbombardjbombard Member UncommonPosts: 599
    If you paid hoping to have fun, and you had fun I would say the rest really doesn't matter.  Personally alpha/beta testing software isn't much for me, I'd rather play a polished product and see everything for the first time when it is ready to be revealed.  But at the end of the day it is about fun.  Currently I am enjoying Wildstar, I don't care what other people think about it, I try not to worry about the future of the game, I pay my sub because the game provides me with fun, when it no longer does I will find something else that does.  If you over think your enjoyment of something it can ruin your enjoyment of it, and that is a tragedy IMHO.
  • KothosesKothoses Member UncommonPosts: 931

    Could it be down to the fact that the PVP, Caves and water additions were so huge and had such a massive crunch that they simply didnt have much to release this week so put together something to show progress?

     

    If you have never played landmark, you wont have any idea how BIG of an addition water, Caves and PVP were.  Your article here is a really misinformed one, showing a lack of insight into the process behind game production and a lack of understanding of the product you are covering, further more all it does is serve to put people off.

     

    Landmark will be delayed, accept that, and understand that a launch fully featured, this year is nearly impossible at this point.  SOE have a long way to go, they have been overly ambitious with EQN and Landmark but rather than do what WoW is doing and cut almost every feature they hyped up last year they are pushing on.

     

    Now there is a LOT that Landmark needs, optimization is what puts me off more than anything but complaining because this weeks content release was not as big as the last one is a very poor way of reviewing the progress that this game is making.

     

    The hardest part for a lot of people is that this game is an old fashioned Beta, (allbeit a paid one which I wont even start to discuss because I have a lot of disdain for paid betas).   Its about testing ideas, features and getting feedback early enough in the dev cycle that you can actually make changes to the games core functionality.

  • SlyLoKSlyLoK Member RarePosts: 2,698
    Originally posted by Andrii
    Pre-SOE Live we got water and caves. Then they went dark for SOE Live. Then we got combat and PVP. I'm not sure that's a "pathetic" pace.

    The only water that matters are the rivers , lakes and streams.. The ocean is there to keep the game from looking even more like a 3 person garage project. And combat was supposed have been in months ago but they pushed it back to " get it right " which is pretty sad if they think what they have now looks good.

    Systems need to be going in and not props and cash shop items.. I mean the building tools are still very limited and basic , no life in the world at all , no weather , it is as bright in caves as it is on the surface , the islands are far to small..etc. Many more things need attention other than coming up with a few props a week to add.

    I expected a lot more out of SOE when I supported Landmark.

  • ArchlyteArchlyte Member RarePosts: 1,405

    They may be putting out a lot of stuff, but the quality of the game as a whole is not up to the standards of many of the players who have already left, came back and saw combat is lame, and left again. Those toilets should be used to flush the bad combat system before it gets to EQNext.

    Again, their schedule may be fine, but the game itself tries to do a lot and fails at most of it.

     

    MMORPG players are often like Hobbits: They don't like Adventures
  • Athena_StarfireAthena_Starfire Member UncommonPosts: 213

    I know I wasted US$70.00 on Landmark (Which I thought was a Building Game) I should have known better considering every time I try SOE I get burned somehow..Maybe if Player Studio were available to more than the USA I would have stayed..

     

     

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123
    Originally posted by Archlyte

    They may be putting out a lot of stuff, but the quality of the game as a whole is not up to the standards of many of the players who have already left, came back and saw combat is lame, and left again.

    Then those people were stupid to pay money to be part of the process so early if they failed to understand what they were spending money on. If you don't know what Closed Alpha means in terms of what to expect then they don't have a justified opinion. An opinion yes, but not a justified one.  

    Those toilets should be used to flush the bad combat system before it gets to EQNext.

    The problem here, as I have pointed out in previous posts, is this focus on the toilet and sink props. the OP makes it into a joke and everyone who is clueless follows suit. It totally misses the reality that this was a simple update, one of many, that are continually being released, some small changes, some big, but all improvements to the game.

    Again, their schedule may be fine, but the game itself tries to do a lot and fails at most of it. 

    Do you really mean fail here? I ask because I think people are confusing failure with incomplete. Many of the systems are first iterations and many of the systems are not even in the game. If the game were a finished product then that would be a fair opinion but to say something has failed when it isn't even out of the testing phase is jumping the gun and disingenuous.

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123
    Originally posted by Athena_Starfire

    I know I wasted US$70.00 on Landmark (Which I thought was a Building Game) I should have known better considering every time I try SOE I get burned somehow..Maybe if Player Studio were available to more than the USA I would have stayed..

     

    LOL people complain that Landmark is ONLY a building game so I find your comment ridiculous.

  • KnyttaKnytta Member UncommonPosts: 414
    Originally posted by Athena_Starfire

    I know I wasted US$70.00 on Landmark (Which I thought was a Building Game) I should have known better considering every time I try SOE I get burned somehow..Maybe if Player Studio were available to more than the USA I would have stayed..

     

     

    It is still mostly a building game, but a bit different. Most of the players are still builders and player studio submissions can be made from Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and the United States

    Chi puo dir com'egli arde é in picciol fuoco.

    He who can describe the flame does not burn.

    Petrarch


  • ReverielleReverielle Member UncommonPosts: 133
    Originally posted by BillMurphy
    Originally posted by Mavolence
    Originally posted by Maelwydd

    Can we get another reporter to report on Landmark and EQN.

    Perhaps one that follows the forums, is up to date on the latest information and generally has a clue!

    Why were these props introduced.....because there was a demand for them.

    Anyone who plays and follows the game development knows what is happening but the amount of sloppy reporting on this site through pure laziness is astounding.

    Going to have to agree

    To be fair to Victor, this isn't a news report. It's an editorial column, which means it's his opinion on the subject at hand. You may not like it, and in this case it may not even be right, but the real point of this post is that he invested in the game, and feels like it's not going the direction he'd hoped it would.

     

    I think, in part, what Victor was getting at is that with even the smallest amount of interest/effort in the official forums the author would have found answers to many of the questions/concerns they've raised in their editorial.

    News post or no, I think one should at least try to gain a bit of an understanding of the topics one writes about. 

  • CleverjackCleverjack Member UncommonPosts: 72
    You Fan boys had no reason to be rude. Its an editorial piece and its his opinion. He stated that he enjoyed it while he played it but he no longer likes the direction of it so he's hopping off the bus. You have no right to be rude to him. Justify spending all that money for a repackaged minecraft with less features than minecraft all you wan't but don't be rude to the writer. LandMark is a niche game, so niche that no one even considers it a game, but in fact a waste of time, and alot of people who have paid 60 bucks or more are juust like the writer and shaking their heads counting this as a waste. Seriously a cash shop before any meaningful content. You want people to build ya world and you're charging them for items. When did this become ok?

    image

  • MaelwyddMaelwydd Member Posts: 1,123

    Being honest and blunt isn't rude. Otherwise his opinion would be as 'rude' as everyone else.

    Calling people Fan boys kind of is though.

  • MumboJumboMumboJumbo Member UncommonPosts: 3,219

    >"or in the case of Pathfinder Online you sell a really good idea and charge subscriptions for the alpha."

    I'll pay a fair chunk for a really good idea in the mmorpg genre by people I think will given just enough help stick to the idea.

    But a fair chunk is still not much and it's for one really great idea only. I think that's the key to crowdfunding: A little on a real passion project and not more or again.

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