Time to eat Crow

[jallard]

Hi all:

 

 

 

 

It isn't everyday that you turn 64 and have to eat crow, but here I must.

 

 

Well, it is time for me to eat some crow and perhaps well deserved, I might add. Those folks over at NVSE.Silverlock.org were right on the money getting NVSE updated after FNV's update for their new DLC add-on." Speaking of which, I am lead to believe that some people are already having problems with it—the DLC. And, unless I miss my guess someone will come out with a mod fix before Steam or Bethesda (and/or Obsidian) will.

 

I was having a friendly discussion with a friend yesterday about what took place –what with Steam updating the game prior to the release of the new DLC and how NVSE hadn't yet been updated along with it. He reminded me that those folks over at SilverLock.org are 3^rd party developer modders. The point he was trying to make was, "why are you upset when they do things for free to make your game a better experience?" I agreed with him obviously. Still, I asked him the following question:

 

"If what you say is at issue why don't the game developers themselves make the game a better experience right from the get go? I mean if some wondrous modder can make the visual effects play in HD, for example, why don't the developers do it beforehand?" He didn't have an answer. He just walked away.

 

I don't mean to diminish the game developers in any way shape or form. I certainly do appreciate a well developed game, such as the likes of Dragon Age Origin that was five years in the making: or the good folks over at Bethesda for their Fallout franchise. And, this is where I answer my own question: as with all game developers and publishers it's all about the money!?!

 

I read an article a few months back about game developers and the cost of making a game for all platforms: and, I will paraphrase here. The author talked about how if the market could bare it these game developers would have to charge extremely more for games than they currently do. Apparently the cost of developing, publishing and distributing can easily exceed the price of a particular game. Incidentally, before closing, if the game was exceptionally well developed –in all aspects—I would be willing to pay $100 bucks for the game. Thank you for letting me rant. And, thank you SilverLock.org for getting out nvse_1_beta7 so fast.

 

Respectfully,

 

Jallard

[hurrdurrmurrgurr]

He was right to walk away, saying that the game is good but mods prove it can be better is completely flawed. The devs have deadlines to meet and must prioritise each task to make the best product before shipping so endlessly polishing it won't help at all. Mods also can improve any game because no game is perfect and the players spend years going over every aspect of a game and work out exactly how they would like it. On that note mods also specialise content, what updates you might like might lag my system and what changes you want might unbalance my game play. The best devs can do is give the community the tools to make the game the way they want it to be and provide the best experience for modders to work with.

 

As for the cost the majority of it is marketing fees and paying more for a game won't change anything since the profits go to the publishers not the devs. Once the publishers get their cut they report their earnings which makes the shareholders happy who then demand even better results next time so their return can rise. No matter what is done about the quality of the game or the price it will always come down to how the publisher wants to treat the product.

[jallard]

He was right to walk away, saying that the game is good but mods prove it can be better is completely flawed. The devs have deadlines to meet and must prioritise each task to make the best product before shipping so endlessly polishing it won't help at all. Mods also can improve any game because no game is perfect and the players spend years going over every aspect of a game and work out exactly how they would like it. On that note mods also specialise content, what updates you might like might lag my system and what changes you want might unbalance my game play. The best devs can do is give the community the tools to make the game the way they want it to be and provide the best experience for modders to work with.

 

As for the cost the majority of it is marketing fees and paying more for a game won't change anything since the profits go to the publishers not the devs. Once the publishers get their cut they report their earnings which makes the shareholders happy who then demand even better results next time so their return can rise. No matter what is done about the quality of the game or the price it will always come down to how the publisher wants to treat the product.

 

That much I know. Since EA bought out Bioware, for example, their DLC's for Dragon Age Origin where the pits. They were cranking out DLC's left and right and the playable content didn't even follow the storyline of the original game. EA was just cranking them out for the revenue. I know because they got me for well over a $100. Then again, it was my fault for buying sight unseen. Incidentally, I have no intention of buying Dragon Age 2 just for that reason. In closing, I appreciate your response. Thanks for enlightening me.