American McGee Wants Upset SimCity Gamers to "Relax"

[Timothy Chang]

American McGee Wants Upset SimCity Gamers to "Relax"

McGee thinks we should all just get along when it comes to launch failures and always-online DRM.

EA's controversial SimCity launch was experiencing server login difficulties [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/122691-Maxis-Developer-Takes-SimCity-Review-Lumps-Gracefully] due to the lack of launch preparation in the Americas and Europe. Game designer American McGee has offered his two cents on the dramas surrounding always-online DRM, and he thinks that everyone needs to calm down a little.

When asked about the SimCity and Diablo III launches, the designer of American McGee's Alice said that "incendiary media coverage or player reactions" aren't called for when things just don't work as they're intended to. "Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch? Do they think all the screaming and gnashing of teeth actually helped resolve those issues more quickly? There's got to be a balance to the relationship," he commented.

"Just because you've given a restaurant your business doesn't entitle you to throwing molten cheese fries in your waiter's face if your margarita comes out frozen instead of on the rocks," McGee continued. "People need to relax a little and stop turning everything into World War III - Gamers vs. The Man. There are no winners in that scenario."

He agreed that customers do have the right to receive products that work as advertised. However, he adds that developers and publishers also need to consider ways to counter piracy as well as create online experiences that meet the needs of gamers, or "face extinction" as a result.

McGee claimed that some Chinese developers have managed to solve these issues and maintain a happy player base, as opposed to Western developers, who "have some obstacles to overcome before they get there".



Source: Forbes [http://www.forbes.com/sites/johngaudiosi/2013/03/24/american-mcgee-not-impressed-with-sony-ps4-and-believes-simcity-gamers-need-to-relax/]

Permalink

 

[baarserik]

Well, yeah, if your waiter brings you a frozen margerita its one thing, but if he decides to take a dump on your plate and tries to convince you its steak, then i think you have the right to be upset.

 

[ViciousTide]

You can't shackle American Freedom of Offline play with always on DRM. The Patriots have crushed you and your game for even trying.

 

[Kmadden2004]

American McGee:
"Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch?"

I don't know, do you think EA and Blizzard thought we'd appreciate paying $60 for the privilege of staring at an error message for two weeks?

 

[CriticalMiss]

Maybe Chinese McGee needs to relax in regards to big publishers marketing too? http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/121620-American-McGee-Blasts-EA-Marketing

The problem with SimCity was that the launch failed because EA and Maxis decided to lie to their customers in order to put the game behind the bars of DRM. Is this his way of telling us his next game will be an always-online single player game which needs DRM to calculate masses of data?

 

[Something Amyss]

"Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch?

No. But then again, why should I care? Especially since the always-online thing is a particularly well known issue that well predates these products.

Oh god, the irony!

I don't get it. Though it is funny within the context here, where he seems to be all "won't somebody please think of the poor developers who took your money with the implication of a working title?"

There is a balance, it seems, not unlike Fox News.

 

[Irridium]

By putting the always-on DRM on the games, they created all the incendiary media coverage and player reactions. Those things would not have existed if the games didn't require you to be always online. They created problems that didn't have to exist.

If they require us to be online 24/7, we should require them to be online 24/7.

 

[-Ezio-]

"Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch?"

no. but I'm sure they expected problems (EA especially, after diablo 3 how could they not). doubt they did anything to prevent it.

 

[T'Generalissimo]

Hey, you know what, maybe developers and publishers should relax about piracy and stop turning everything into World War Fuck You - Game Creators versus their Customers. Do they really thing all the screaming and shackling DRM to games actually helps to resolve piracy more quickly?

 

[Roander]

American McGee Wants Upset SimCity Gamers to "Relax"


"Just because you've given a restaurant your business doesn't entitle you to throwing molten cheese fries in your waiter's face if your margarita comes out frozen instead of on the rocks," McGee continued.


Source: Forbes [http://www.forbes.com/sites/johngaudiosi/2013/03/24/american-mcgee-not-impressed-with-sony-ps4-and-believes-simcity-gamers-need-to-relax/]

Permalink

If a waiter brings you the wrong drink he's not likely to stand there lying to you about why it's impossible to give you the drink you actually ordered while at the same time refusing to give you a refund for said drink.

 

[The_Darkness]

"Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch?"

No. But it didn't work, and they need to learn that Always Online isn't a good model, so I'm angry at them in the hopes that they'll learn not to do it again. If your game is always online, that means I can't play it. That's regardless of server issues and the like - my internet connection simply isn't reliable enough.

It's a bit like telling someone off when they do something wrong... wait, no, it is telling someone off when they do something wrong.

 

[Yarpie]

Only thing is that the margarita isn't just frozen; the waiter refuses to give it to you for a couple of days and when he finally does, he tells you that you can't drink it at the speed you want to or that you can't enjoy it unless there are at least three people at your table. Furthermore, should your cellphone lose it's reception, the waiter will snatch away all your food and tells you that you can't have it back until you get your reception back. At that point, I think the costumer is within her full right to fling a sole cheese fry in the waiters general direction.

"Do gamers or the media think EA or Blizzard wanted things to go so badly at launch?" No, but they sure as hell aren't making it any easier on themselves by using a deeply flawed system that is generally very unpopular with the consumers and being ill prepared for the launch, as we have seen, and then follow that up with demonstrably false claims as to why the always on DRM is needed. I'd say that speaks volumes in terms of arrogance and disrespect.

And no, it is not in any way, shape or form unreasonable to expect a game you paid full price for to work as advertised. It is however unreasonable for developers to claim that this is somehow the fault of the consumer that this has become such a big deal. Granted, us gamers are infamous for kicking up a shitstorm over some trivial things, but no one in their right mind can claim that the developers and publishers are not to blame for this. There's a reason this became a big deal, and it sure as hell wasn't sensationalism.

 

[PunkRex]

Guy would have a good point... if it was the first time. EA does this constantly, if it was a one off I doubt people would be as mad.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

McGee claimed that some Chinese developers have managed to solve these issues and maintain a happy player base,

The Chinese also take it up the arse in regards to their government and corruption as well, does that mean we should bend over as well Mr Mcgee?

In all seriousness the Always Online that was saddled with Simcity wasn't required and could be rendered null with a couple of lines of coding.

kNoRepeatNetworkAlertSeconds : 15
kNetDownForceQuitAfterMinutes : 20

Just remove these any you're set.

 

[marurder]

I wish people would stop reporting what this idiot says.

The simple crux of it is - the developer COULD have done better but decided to allowed a flawed product. The customer has every right to be angry.

It is becoming increasingly commonplace for incompetent/lazy/greedy developers to release a faulty product then 'patch' it later and say it was acceptable.

 

[Karathos]

Another good argument from an individual torn to shreds by butthurt gamers who freak out at the mere suggestion that their their over-the-top tantrums over everything could possibly be a bad thing. He is not shifting blame from the developer to the consumer - because there's none to shift. People bang on about developer respect, yet they're willing to offer none back. This is the whole "customer is always right" nonsense that's about as archaic as the bloody dinosaurs at a museum.

You can instantly tell people don't have a lot to respond with when they take the other guy's metaphor and make some twisted version of it. Gamers ***** and moan about everything. There are many good causes to fight for when it comes to developer vs. consumer situations, but the majority of the time the way gamers "support" (MASSIVE fingerquotes for emphasis) that cause is by throwing dumb tantrums that only make us seem more childish and juvenile as a whole.

 

[nodlimax]

Well, I've ended my relationship with the b**** called EA when they made Origin mandatory.

And in all honesty I'm just extremely amused about EA just failing at everything they touch at the moment...

Regarding that guy defending EA I can only /facepalm.....

Oh and btw. if I expect a drink and instead get a glass with completely frozen content I would leave the bar and not pay one cent for that...