OK i normally wouldn't get into this in the open, but here goes.
some of you people piss me off.
I agree that derek's arrogance is misplaced when one contemplates the playbility and fun of his games, but the fact is, he may very well get the liscence to FS3. The attitude shown here may very well have cost any of us a consultation, and the big thing you were *****ing about? none of us being consulted? Well who the hell are we anyway? We are a bunch of fans who love a game, we are not people who have put out 5 games in 15 years.
On the other hand, we are people who have played
more than 15 games in 15 years. I think that to sum it all up for Mr. Smart, we recognize your business genius, we also recognize that you have led teams to successful development of space sims. We now ask that you recognize the fears of the people who would be purchasing the game you contemplate. I've played BCM. I find the ability to choose my character interesting. I also find the controls interface to be very cumbersome and unwieldy. In other words, like most games, it has good points and bad points. I'm not going to flame you. You are a business man. That i can understand and apreciate.
I do have a few questions for you.
1. Why would you take a dead title that wasn't received well in the first place and invest money in it?
2. You've mentioned the eye candy as positive draw of freespace, and while i agree with this statement, i think that what most of us are worried about is the storyline. Something that hasn't been mentioned. I've said before and i will say again that too much eyecandy detracts from the storyline, case in point, the last two star wars movies. the story in freespace was much more important than the eyecandy, although i agree that the eyecandy was awesome. My question is, what do you see as your top priority in the development of this game?
3. You've stated that you would attempt to remain true to, or at least consult the fs mythos. a new engine isn't a bad thing, however a complete overhaul of our controls and flight characteristics i would think would be detrimental. How much change can we expect in our hud, controls and flight characteristics?
I only ask this because I am a classic battletech fan, and i was highly upset at the new look of the mechs in mech4, the redone hud, and the way they looked so damned prissy when they walked. a 45 ton shadowcat should not be prissy.
4. in relation to question 1, the space combat sim genre is all but dead, people are more into first person shooters. How agressive an advertising campaign do you plan to develop, and do you think it will be agressive enough to overcome the current market state?
5. as an avid PC Sim gamer, the main thing i look for in a game is playabitity. Playability equals fun, fun being one half of the equation you gave us for creating a successful game. How would you go about creating that playability?
6. Have you taken into account the oportunity cost of your actions here today? I too am a businessman, and if i were to treat my potential customers as shabbily as you seem to treat yours, i would not be in business for long. So allow me to rephrase that question....Do you think it wise to alienate the only people who really care about a sequel to a dead name in a dead market? and yes, i mant to use the word "name".
7. If you are willing to pick up the rights to freespace and chance freespace 3 in the current market conditions, then you must have some faith in the game in its initial inception. You must see the game as a potential source of profit, profit being the second half of the equation you gave to us. So bearing those givens in mind, where did your good friends at Interplay go wrong?
8. You've stated that we are a group going in a different direction. Are we to take this to mean that you have also been in contact with Volition and know what direction they were taking?
If this is the case then please tell us now so that we can all stop working on what will obviously be wrong.
9. You've asked if we would rather see fs3 not get done. I say to that "you're damn right". I for one would prefer that FS3 live only in our dreams, rather than see it be released and be a farce. Knowing this, why should I, the cunsumer, your paycheck, take a chance and buy FS3? Also keep in mind that I have played games that you have been involved with, and while good games, i also found them lacking.
10. Who the hell do you think you are? You think that because you have the money to buy the rights to FS3 that we are supposed to prostrate ourselves before you and kiss your ass? We have put more work, and heart and soul into freespace than you havbe put into all of your games combined. You want to see the future of Freespace? Look no further, you've found it. I will not sit by while you use your arrogance, 10 letter words, and poor spelling in an attempt to belittle the very people that you hope to market this game to. The simple fact is, you sir, know in your heart that your work was never quite good enough, and the only way for you to look good is to make others look bad. I dare you to come up with a better team of coders who have done what our guys have done, for free. I also dare you to find models that are more deserving of the freespace legacy than what you will find here. I also dare you to find some 3000 ad fans who are as rabid as we are when it comes to our game.
You can't. Your arrogance alone is enough to keep me from buying FS3. In this community you have people who are the best at what they do. When dealing with the limitations of FS2, they have had to become the best. How dare you post that they can be eclipsed. Your own weakness is your arrogance. Arrogance and ego are not the same. Arrogance and confidence are not the same. Take it from someone who has played your games, they are good, but not great, and as such, your arrogance must stem from your wallet, it can't stem from your talent.
My final Question.
You've come in and pretty much told the market for this venture to kiss your ass. Do you still expect a dead name in a dead market to be a success?
