Should developers "listen to the fans"?

[stvncpr236]

To a certain extent yes, I mean the fans are the ones who buy the games, and we do know what we want. That being said, you still cant please everyone, and fans do need to realize that there is usually a reason for decisions made, even if you don't agree with them.

 

[Troublesome Lagomorph]

If its a legitimate criticism and a genuinely good idea, yes.
Most fans spout a lot of crap, though.

What I believe the developers should do much less is forsake their fan base for mass appeal...

 

[Moonlight Butterfly]

Alot of additions Bethesda make to thier games come from fan mods. The adding of houses to buy in Oblivion for example. They also basically used the ideas of someones improved archery mod to design the skyrim archery system.

I think it's a good idea but obviously taken in moderation. Or you get something like this; http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/118/1182286p1.html

 

[Dyme]

Depends on the game and the fans.

 

[zehydra]

Nah, I enjoy making games I want to play, screw other people, they don't spend 6 months in C++ and 3DS Max

lol, agreed.

Is it just me, or is 3d Modeling (and getting it to work with your engine) a bigger pain in the ass than C++ itself?

 

[Scarecrow]

They should listen to fan feedback and ideas, but they should just do stuff to please fans. I mean, we all know that fans will never be happy with anything they are given.

 

[violent_quiche]

I'm convinced the main reason Bioware/EA are soliciting opinions on ME3- eg showing Tali's face, Femshep- is either to sustain hype through peripheral details, or market test ideas they already have. One or two common themes might emerge over time through forums and reviews, but hardly design by consensus. Anonymous user stats would be more influential.

 

[OldGus]

I think that if the fans say that something didn't work or that something was broken listening to them is probably a good idea but that pandering to them usualy creates a lesser product overall.

Yeah. While they are cool elements in some games, not every game needs bullet time, over-the-shoulder 3rd person, swords, jetpacks, guns, crowbars, destructible scenery, kung fu, customizable weapons, a visible experience and stats system (I have always said it would be coolest to have a game just do that sort of thing on its own, depending on, for example, what weapons a player uses... but not in every game) customizable characters, customizable weapons, customizable loadouts, C4, silent 1st person protagonists, not-silent 1st person protagonists, 4th wall breaking elements, inventories, morality systems (which end up almost always horribly weighted,) cars, planes, helicopters, stunt bonuses, Nazis, zombies, aliens, any combination of all of the previous elements, Nathan Fillian, Adam Baldwin, or cake. Honestly, yes, it is difficult to have a game without a least one or two of these elements. But if producers listened to fans all the time, every game would be a customizable Nathan Fillian with C4, a sword, a jetpack, kung fu, and bullet time versus Nazi-alien-robot-vampire-zombies that sound suspiciously like Jayne. And he would be fighting for pecan pie, because cake is getting a little stale.

 

[DarthFennec]

Generally, yes, they should listen to fans. Fans know what they want, and fans are the customers, so it would be stupid not to.

However, that does not mean at all that developers should try to please the fans' every whim. Developers go to school to learn how to design games, they're professionals, and fans aren't. Worrying about every tiny bitchy complaint of every fan doesn't get anyone anywhere. But that doesn't mean fan ideas shouldn't be taken into consideration to an extent. Fans could be considered something like the extended playtesters, so if the general consensus is that one mechanic doesn't work too well and should be replaced by a certain better one in the sequel, or something like that, then that kind of thing should be considered.

 

[V8 Ninja]

When legitimate complaints are involved (Ex: unintuitive menus, unnecessary button combinations to perform simple actions, etc.), yes; game developers should listen to their fans. However, when fans start suggesting changing gameplay mechanics, that's when game developers need to tread lightly. Developers need to keep their original vision of the game intact while they need to make it so that it will make the user experience better.

 

[skywolfblue]

The big question is "Which fans?"

The rabid crazy ones? No.
People with good suggestions? Yes.

 

[johnstamos]

fans aren't developers but to a point they should. and also about what?
Like nintendo and project rainfall or whatever it was, there response was pretty much from what i read "we wuv you guys plz keep buying our stuff but frankly, we don't care what you think".
The real question is Will developers listen to fans.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

99.999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% of them, no. Of the 0.0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001% that actually have something useful and constructive to say, yes.

 

[WitchD0ctor]

Nah, I enjoy making games I want to play, screw other people, they don't spend 6 months in C++ and 3DS Max

lol, agreed.

Is it just me, or is 3d Modeling (and getting it to work with your engine) a bigger pain in the ass than C++ itself?

Most definitely, I have fun with C++

 

[Strixvaliano]

Honestly, It depends on the developer and the type of feedback they get. If it is good solid feedback with evidence to back it up (game tweaks, etc) then in all honesty why not listen to the fans, especially after a bout of rigorous testing of said implementations.

I think a more pressing question that really needs to be brought up is "Should publishers start listening to fans more." It is generally the publishers who shoehorn in the restrictive DRM, force horrible choices because mega-popular game x has so and so then our game needs it too. Also I'm sure we can blame publishers for not letting games be localized for other areas of the world.

There are so many awesome games that I would love to support the developers on because they rightfully deserve the compensation but practices I tend to disagree with by their publishers cause me to end up not wanting the product. As a recent example it would have to be Arkham City because of GFWL. I think we need to take our torches and pitchforks in a different direction.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

As a rule, my answer is no. Fans will never give any advice save "do it the same as last time but better", which is useless advice. Simply put, the only thing your average fan knows they want is the last thing they liked.

 

[Jovip]

No, developers should however listen to Yahtzee. just saying.

 

[Laser Priest]

Hell the fuck no.

People are idiots. People will constantly ***** and complain about not getting what they want (no matter how demented their demands are) and then if and when the developer does it, the same people will ***** and complain that it wasn't what they had in mind.

Take suggestions from the fans into mind, perhaps, but never ever listen to them.

 

[Sinclair Solutions]

To a degree: they should try to listen to fans about what works in gameplay and tone and stuff like that, but when they listen to much, it becomes like the Silent Hill series. Nurses and Pyramid Head in every game despite the fact that it has nothing to do with the characters. I'm thinking about writing an article about this, so this thread is nice research.

 

[Torrasque]

Contrary to popular belief, there are people out there with good ideas, that are not on the design team.
They're hard to find amongst the rabble, but they exist.

OP: I think developers should listen to the fans, but just like when I read the news (no matter the source) I take it with a hefty helping of salt and realism. While fans would like to help and make the game better, they don't always know how. I love it when developers take fan input into account, and their position is swayed a tiny bit, not changed entirely.