4 ms·

Wut. The company lied about the product. Isn't that fraud? And you say people were too harsh?

LeoNatan25 9y ago
Damn millennials are too harsh, expecting developers to be honest! It’s just a game after all! /s It’s because of such ridiculous attitude and low expectation that the gaming industry is at the state that it is—terrible.
- crispyambulance 9y ago
  Well, it is "just a game"... an innovative, highly creative game with some really interesting features. I suspect the real creative talent behind the game got used and pressured by product-manager types to ship far before it was ready because of all the money and promises involved. Throwing a fit because of "honesty" in game pre-marketing is sort of like asking for your money back because a movie didn't fulfill the expectations set by the trailer. Yeah, good luck with that at the multiplex, but also keep in mind that many people got their money back for the game. And anyways, cautious folks who expect absolute honesty from their game vendors, would do better to wait for the 3rd party reviews before jumping in headfirst with their 50 bucks.
  - LeoNatan25 9y ago
    This is not really a game—more like a tech demo. This was the problem outlined in the article and many, many gamers. > And anyways, cautious folks who expect absolute honesty from their game vendors, would do better to wait for the 3rd party reviews before jumping in headfirst with their 50 bucks. 100% agree, but the two are not really related. People should be cautious, but developers and publishers should not lie.
  - noxToken 9y ago
    > Throwing a fit because of "honesty" in game pre-marketing is sort of like asking for your money back because a movie didn't fulfill the expectations set by the trailer. Yeah, good luck with that at the multiplex, but also keep in mind that many people got their money back for the game. These aren't the same though. Trailers can be used to evoke a certain sense about a movie that is disingenuous such as masking a drama as a comedy by splicing together the funny parts. You'll still get those funny parts, but they just weren't what you expected. A director can say that they'll guarantee you'll laugh until you cry, but that's all subjective. What happened with No Man's Sky was just outright lying. This would be akin to someone saying that some actor gave the performance of a lifetime in the movie, but the actor never had anything to do with the movie. Does that mean I can't enjoy the movie? Nope. I might still love it, but that person still lied to get me to see the movie. That's what they did with No Man's Sky - gave false information about a game's features that was still good for what it was. For what it's worth, I heard that people who didn't follow the hype-train liked the game. Those accounts of the gameplay all praised it.
    - vinkelhake 9y ago
      > For what it's worth, I heard that people who didn't follow the hype-train liked the game. Those accounts of the gameplay all praised it. It's unfortunate (but understandable) that critique of No Man's Sky often mix what was promised with what was actually delivered. So much of the commentary focus on Sean Murray's broken promises. There are a few reviews that cut through all the hype and focus on the gameplay and it's not a pretty picture. It's an AAA-priced game that (at the time of the launch) is at the level of an early access game. I recommend checking out Joseph Anderson's analysis on Youtube. The people who have had the best time with this game seem to treat it as an overly complicated fidget cube. Something to keep their fingers busy while their mind is focused on something like listening to a podcast.
  - enraged_camel 9y ago
    >>Well, it is "just a game"... an innovative, highly creative game with some really interesting features. My understanding is that the developer either outright lied about the features pre-release, or they strongly hinted at them and misled people, or a mix of two.
- zerohm 9y ago
  I don't envy software developers under immense pressure to deliver a AAA title on time. Having to predict whether or not you can get that feature working flawlessly in 30 days isn't easy in a vacuum. Much less with your Marketing dept being overly optimistic with your prediction.
  - LeoNatan25 9y ago
    In this case of a small company, most of the marketing was done by lead director who was very close to the development team and obviously knew what the team was able and unable to deliver.
    - zerohm 9y ago
      Yeah, but like in the case of online multiplayer, I believe they had every intention of making that a release day feature, but it just wasn't ready. I just think calling the guy a liar is a bit harsh. All marketing is lying in some form or fashion. :P
      - LeoNatan25 9y ago
        How is purposefully implying that there is multiplayer a month before release not a lie? Had it been “uhm, yeah, we are working on that but have nothing to announce at this point” would have been a lot more honest. But none of the marketing campaign was honest—it was full of half-truths, inaccuracies and insinuations of something much grander. Also, I think the end result being as bad as it was in many’s eyes create feedback loop on the negativity. This is not the first time a game has disappointed its audience due to an overreaching marketing campaign, but this was not much of anything at the time of release.
    - ghurtado 9y ago
      > obviously knew what the team was able and unable to deliver. You speak like someone that has never been a part of a software project.
dkersten 9y ago
Beyond the lies, I could have forgiven the game for what it is if it didn't have a AAA price tag. But of course, they did lie, so... yeah.

Damn millennials are too harsh, expecting developers to be honest! It’s just a game after all! /s It’s because of such ridiculous attitude and low expectation that the gaming industry is at the state that it is—terrible.

crispyambulance 9y ago
Well, it is "just a game"... an innovative, highly creative game with some really interesting features. I suspect the real creative talent behind the game got used and pressured by product-manager types to ship far before it was ready because of all the money and promises involved. Throwing a fit because of "honesty" in game pre-marketing is sort of like asking for your money back because a movie didn't fulfill the expectations set by the trailer. Yeah, good luck with that at the multiplex, but also keep in mind that many people got their money back for the game. And anyways, cautious folks who expect absolute honesty from their game vendors, would do better to wait for the 3rd party reviews before jumping in headfirst with their 50 bucks.
- LeoNatan25 9y ago
  This is not really a game—more like a tech demo. This was the problem outlined in the article and many, many gamers. > And anyways, cautious folks who expect absolute honesty from their game vendors, would do better to wait for the 3rd party reviews before jumping in headfirst with their 50 bucks. 100% agree, but the two are not really related. People should be cautious, but developers and publishers should not lie.
- noxToken 9y ago
  > Throwing a fit because of "honesty" in game pre-marketing is sort of like asking for your money back because a movie didn't fulfill the expectations set by the trailer. Yeah, good luck with that at the multiplex, but also keep in mind that many people got their money back for the game. These aren't the same though. Trailers can be used to evoke a certain sense about a movie that is disingenuous such as masking a drama as a comedy by splicing together the funny parts. You'll still get those funny parts, but they just weren't what you expected. A director can say that they'll guarantee you'll laugh until you cry, but that's all subjective. What happened with No Man's Sky was just outright lying. This would be akin to someone saying that some actor gave the performance of a lifetime in the movie, but the actor never had anything to do with the movie. Does that mean I can't enjoy the movie? Nope. I might still love it, but that person still lied to get me to see the movie. That's what they did with No Man's Sky - gave false information about a game's features that was still good for what it was. For what it's worth, I heard that people who didn't follow the hype-train liked the game. Those accounts of the gameplay all praised it.
  - vinkelhake 9y ago
    > For what it's worth, I heard that people who didn't follow the hype-train liked the game. Those accounts of the gameplay all praised it. It's unfortunate (but understandable) that critique of No Man's Sky often mix what was promised with what was actually delivered. So much of the commentary focus on Sean Murray's broken promises. There are a few reviews that cut through all the hype and focus on the gameplay and it's not a pretty picture. It's an AAA-priced game that (at the time of the launch) is at the level of an early access game. I recommend checking out Joseph Anderson's analysis on Youtube. The people who have had the best time with this game seem to treat it as an overly complicated fidget cube. Something to keep their fingers busy while their mind is focused on something like listening to a podcast.
- enraged_camel 9y ago
  >>Well, it is "just a game"... an innovative, highly creative game with some really interesting features. My understanding is that the developer either outright lied about the features pre-release, or they strongly hinted at them and misled people, or a mix of two.
zerohm 9y ago
I don't envy software developers under immense pressure to deliver a AAA title on time. Having to predict whether or not you can get that feature working flawlessly in 30 days isn't easy in a vacuum. Much less with your Marketing dept being overly optimistic with your prediction.
- LeoNatan25 9y ago
  In this case of a small company, most of the marketing was done by lead director who was very close to the development team and obviously knew what the team was able and unable to deliver.
  - zerohm 9y ago
    Yeah, but like in the case of online multiplayer, I believe they had every intention of making that a release day feature, but it just wasn't ready. I just think calling the guy a liar is a bit harsh. All marketing is lying in some form or fashion. :P
    - LeoNatan25 9y ago
      How is purposefully implying that there is multiplayer a month before release not a lie? Had it been “uhm, yeah, we are working on that but have nothing to announce at this point” would have been a lot more honest. But none of the marketing campaign was honest—it was full of half-truths, inaccuracies and insinuations of something much grander. Also, I think the end result being as bad as it was in many’s eyes create feedback loop on the negativity. This is not the first time a game has disappointed its audience due to an overreaching marketing campaign, but this was not much of anything at the time of release.
  - ghurtado 9y ago
    > obviously knew what the team was able and unable to deliver. You speak like someone that has never been a part of a software project.

dkersten 9y ago

Beyond the lies, I could have forgiven the game for what it is if it didn't have a AAA price tag. But of course, they did lie, so... yeah.