The Flock Is A Horror Game With An Expiration Date

[FoolKiller]

Single player for the win.... at least if you have previous generation consoles. I still don't trust Xbox One

 

[Hagi]

I don't see anything that could possibly go wrong with this, it being on the internet and all.

There's no way anyone would spend 10 bucks or whatever the price is just to die over and over and over again to ruin this for other people, right?

It doesn't matter if they do, the death limit is likely in the millions.

OT: It's an interesting concept, but I'll never be on board. I like replaying games I used to play years ago.

I'm not sure if they'd put it that high.

If it's high enough that a decent sized group intent on killing themselves can't impact it then it's high enough that a normal player actually trying to stay alive has absolutely no noticeable impact on it.

If it's low enough that a normal player trying to stay alive actually feels it's meaningful then it's low enough that a decent sized group intent on killing themselves can abuse it.

Either way, normal players lose.

 

[lacktheknack]

I don't see anything that could possibly go wrong with this, it being on the internet and all.

There's no way anyone would spend 10 bucks or whatever the price is just to die over and over and over again to ruin this for other people, right?

It doesn't matter if they do, the death limit is likely in the millions.

OT: It's an interesting concept, but I'll never be on board. I like replaying games I used to play years ago.

I'm not sure if they'd put it that high.

If it's high enough that a decent sized group intent on killing themselves can't impact it then it's high enough that a normal player actually trying to stay alive has absolutely no noticeable impact on it.

If it's low enough that a normal player trying to stay alive actually feels it's meaningful then it's low enough that a decent sized group intent on killing themselves can abuse it.

Either way, normal players lose.

Reading the description, it seems to be a capture-the-flag style of free-for-all, with the carrier killing tens or even hundreds (EDIT: Not that many, sorry) of players per carry if they're good.

If you're "trying to stay alive", you're playing the game wrong. You're trying to capture the flag.

 

[MonsterCrit]

So... dopn't buy this game then. Rather silly of the devs. I think I know what they';re trying to do, basically allow them to create an artificial scarcity but it will invariably back fire I think. If they were smart they would simply reset the game once the finale is done.

 

[Hagi]

Reading the description, it seems to be a capture-the-flag style of free-for-all, with the carrier killing tens or even hundreds (EDIT: Not that many, sorry) of players per carry if they're good.

If you're "trying to stay alive", you're playing the game wrong. You're trying to capture the flag.

Ah, seems I got the wrong impression then. I figured since it was a horror game it'd focus more on building up tension and that sort of thing instead of kill streaks. But you're right, especially watching the trailer again that doesn't really seem to be the case.

 

[DementedSheep]

Arghh no, I'm buying a game with an unnecessary time limit, especially if you don't know how long the time limit is going to be and it's based on something like deaths in the game which you know people are going screw with intentionally. I like multiplayer games where you get to play as a monster. Unfortunately for some reason game with that tend to like that tend to pull stupid stunts.

 

[Bat Vader]

This is an interesting idea but charging money for a game that you already plan to take offline just seems incredibly crappy and anti-consumer.

If they weren't being forthright about their plans, I can see how it could be viewed as an anti-consumer practice. But they're not only on the level, they're pushing the limited nature of the game as a selling point, an experience that you can only participate in for a limited time before it's gone. Whether consumers respond positively to it or not is one thing, but they certainly aren't taking advantage of anyone with this.

It's good that they are on the level I just think asking for money for something that is only going to run for what could be less than a year is wrong. If it's like five bucks or something that would be acceptable but if it's ten or more I will be quite displeased. In all honesty I see it as nothing more than a glorified rental.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

Interesting concept and I appreciate the thought behind it...

But I'm not down to purchase a game with a shelf-life printed on the 'box.' This is the video game equivalent of buying a gallon of milk and, frankly, I don't like the idea of knowingly buying entertainment that'll curdle.

 

[Conrad Zimmerman]

I just think asking for money for something that is only going to run for what could be less than a year is wrong.

Why is that wrong? There are plenty of products that are useless in less than a year that people are happy to throw down cash for. Most multiplayer games are absolute rubbish by that time. Having a multiplayer game with an exit strategy, one that acknowledges the impermanence of that type of play, seems like a mature and consumer friendly response.

 

[Bat Vader]

I just think asking for money for something that is only going to run for what could be less than a year is wrong.

Why is that wrong? There are plenty of products that are useless in less than a year that people are happy to throw down cash for. Most multiplayer games are absolute rubbish by that time. Having a multiplayer game with an exit strategy, one that acknowledges the impermanence of that type of play, seems like a mature and consumer friendly response.

They're rubbish becuase people abandon it though. People could still willingly play a rubbish mp game. That's cool it has an exit strategy but because of that though it I see as a rental.

I'm not going to financially support something that could potentially be around for less than a year. More power to the people that are interested in purchasing it and playing it. I'm just not one of them.

 

[truckspond]

As long as the game is stupidly cheap from day 1 then it might be worth a quick look. Otherwise I won't be buying it.

 

[Conrad Zimmerman]

They're rubbish becuase people abandon it though.

Well, yeah, that's what I'm getting at. There's a normal life cycle for a multiplayer game. They tend to thrive at launch and then, as players leave to go play the next big thing or get bored of it, the game becomes less accessible and enjoyable to the other players, resulting in a snowball effect that still makes the game only slightly less unplayable as the Flock will eventually be, and usually within a year's time, give or take.

 

[Glaice]

This is a really stupid idea and this only would give bigger publishers ideas for more Games-As-Service anticonsumer BS. They are products, not services.

 

[Ftaghn To You Too]

Combining real creativity and ideas with being a scumbag. It's an interesting idea, but one I will not be participating in.

 

[thewatergamer]

I'm in two minds about this, on one hand this could make for a very interesting idea and It will certainly be cool to see what happens, but with that said, I don't like the idea of a game that "breaks" or "is deleted" permanently after an arbitrary amount of time... I'm not sure, this is a game I'm not going to be buying at any price more than 5$, because ever since titanfall I have been avoiding games with no significant singleplayer like the plague and this just seems like an extreme version of that. Then again titanfall was a 60$ game... Well I guess it all comes down to the price tag on this game

It does also offer some weird problems, what happens if I buy the game and my internet goes down for the duration of the event? Will I get a reimbersed because the game is now useless?

Double checked the article if it's going to be on steam, well the dev's had better make this game a very interesting 6 hour experience because if they don't people are going to log-in for the "finale" and then immediately refund it either that or just look up what happened on youtube or twitch and just avoid it entirely, I really think the dev's are shooting themselves in the foot by trying to charge money for this

 

[Aerosteam]

This is just a stupid marketing gimmick, fuck off with that.