https://youtu.be/Edq6uzxF5l0
No Man’s Sky came out a year ago and it inspired me to write about Peter Molyneux’s tendency to, shall we say, talk about the things he wanted to be in the game rather than about the things that would eventually be in the game. Unfortunately, he talked about the things that he wanted to be in the game as if they were going to actually be in the game, so when the game came out, people would ask stuff like “hey, where’s that thing you talked about?” and that led to all sorts of stuff.
Anyway, it reached the point where if Peter Molyneux said “we’re thinking about having a keyboard interface for our next RPG”, everyone would say something like “looks like he’s bringing back the conversation wheel from Elder Scrolls: Oblivion” and get back to not thinking about the game at all. Well, No Man’s Sky promised the moon way back when and, when it came out, it inspired a host of posts about Peter Molyneux. After that, it pushed the limits of Steam’s refund policy as *TONS* of people who pre-ordered the game gave it back saying “they promised me so much stuff and they delivered diddly squat.”
This was kind of something that people ought to have seen coming, really.
Now here’s where we get to the part that I, at least, did *NOT* see coming.
No Man’s Sky updated. Like a *HUGE* update. Like, on PS4, the original game was just under 10 Gigs and this update is a little over 7 Gigs.
On top of that, get this, it looks like the game is now pretty danged close to what was originally promised. Like, the stuff they told you that you would be able to do that got you all excited? You can do that now. The stuff you were really excited to see in the game? IT IS NOW IN THE GAME.
Well, except for sandworms. Those still aren’t in the game.
But it looks like we have a game where it’s appropriate to say “you’re excited? Well, you *SHOULD* be excited!” instead of a game where it’s appropriate to say “you should manage your expectations because you know that E3 tends to overhype things and… well, remember Peter Molyneux?”
Which I can’t even remember the last time that that happened. Holy cow. The game got fixed.
So… what are you playing?
(Picture is HG Wells playing a war game from Illustrated London News (25 January 1913[/efn_note]
What possible business sense does this make?Report
I don’t think it’s about business.
I think it’s about making games.
As such, I think I might just forgive Hello Games… which involves buying their *NEXT* game.Report
As such, I think I might just forgive Hello Games… which involves buying their *NEXT* game.
_You_ might.
The people who demanded refunds, and everyone else who read how it fell short of expectations, however, are not, especially as it’s unlikely they’ll never even know the game had all that stuff put in later.
That is a hell of a way to run a business.Report
When I wrote this post this morning, I looked at No Man’s Sky on Steam and saw that it had Recent Reviews as “Mixed”.
Now? Recent Reviews are “Mostly Positive”.
The subreddit devoted to the game is actually falling over itself in praise (and this is after it was pretty hip deep in the whole “#neverpreorder” thing).
While I would agree that the version of the game that they have today is the version of the game that probably should have shipped in the first place (to the chorus of “WHERE ARE THE SANDWORMS WE WERE PROMISED!?!?!?”), the fact that they finally shipped the version of the game that they probably should have shipped in the first place is a good thing for the people who wanted the version of the game that they probably should have shipped in the first place.
That ain’t nothin’.Report
David,
Where ya been, mate?
This is always how publishers make bank.
“Get it out by Christmas”
(But, seriously, August??? That’s late even by video game standards.)Report
Stop bothering me, I’m playing No Man’s Sky Atlas Rises update!
(Crashed freighters!?!)
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Hi Jaybird! (et Maribou, et alia)Report
JHG! (I hadn’t heard about the crashed freighters!)Report