I'm not sure I agree with #1. But #2 is dead wrong.
If you spend 150million on a game then you need it to be a big success. And as had been pointed out endlessly on these boards, "open beta" is more a marketing tool than any real beta test. Its the last big marketing push before launch. With so much at stake, not doing an open beta is just odd.
Did you just say TOR needs more marketing, maybe I'm mistaking your meaning, but it sounds an awful lot like you did?
you heard me right yes.
unless you think the folks at EA/Bioware are sitting back with satisfaction, nodding to eachother saying "oh yeah, we've done enough". Like I said, 150mil is a big gamble. Only a fool would declare victory several months before the game has even launched. But I know its very fashionable in some circles to believe that everyone is already going to buy the game just because its starwars and its bioware.
Does it need more marketing? It needs everything it can get.
The game cost between $80-$100 million to make, not $150 million.
And Bioware does not in any way need a very poor marketing tool like an open beta to increase hype for the game. The hype levels for SWTOR are already through the roof. A company like Bioware, which releases games that all sell very well, and an IP like Star Wars, which has been around for more than 30 years, and a game that is based on popular past games and been in development for almost 6 years now, does not need open beta to market their product.
Open betas are very poor marketing tools anyway. People are more likely to log into major lag as ten trillion peopletry to log in as well than anything else. There, now your game has a reputation for being laggy.
Plus, from a marketing perspective, one single 30 second television spot would do far, far more to attract people to the game then a thousand open betas ever would.
That is actually a very good point. We know there is already a lot of hype around this game, so an open beta may attract waaaay too many people.
Must be some very good reason, although i can only think of one. It's not as polished/finished as they make us beleive.
That's it for me, not going to buy this game for 60 bucks without a free sneak peek. Going to wait until it gets cheaper or there are free 14 day trials.
There are a lot of things out there you can not try before you buy yet you do anyway. Ever try to taste toothpaste before you buy it? Ever use some shampoo before you buy it? Threatening not to purchase something before you try it doesn't make you sound like a smart consumer or even a tough guy, it really just makes you sound like you're whining about not being able to play it for free before it comes out. You may talk tough but I'll bet you buy it without trying it, just like everyone else who says they won't.
Well after 100$+ millions of dollars and years of developement that doesn't sound like much.
And why did Elikal change his view on the game after trying it for a few days? It has to be an amazing game to cause that effect on him.
Who is wrong?
There is no right or wrong, there's just opinions and personal experiences. Some will like it, some will not, just like it works with everything. Some happened to have the chance to play it for a while and enjoyed themselves, some might still feel 'meh' about it even if they got the chance to play it extensively. Different tastes and all that.
Although so far it looks like the majority of people who had handson time with the game genuinely enjoyed themselves quite a bit, even a number of those who hadn't expected it. However, how many of the MMO playerbase really will like it or what the game's longterm appeal will be, we'll only find out after launch.
Ok but see what we have here, a fan saying the game is not anyting special, but has a lot of potential (the most dreaded words in MMOs) and will manage to capture the attention with future content (!!) And on the other hand you have a "hater" that radically changed his opinion in favor of the game. I smell something fishy here.
Well after 100$+ millions of dollars and years of developement that doesn't sound like much.
And why did Elikal change his view on the game after trying it for a few days? It has to be an amazing game to cause that effect on him.
Who is wrong?
There is no right or wrong, there's just opinions and personal experiences. Some will like it, some will not, just like it works with everything. Some happened to have the chance to play it for a while and enjoyed themselves, some might still feel 'meh' about it even if they got the chance to play it extensively. Different tastes and all that.
Although so far it looks like the majority of people who had handson time with the game genuinely enjoyed themselves quite a bit, even a number of those who hadn't expected it. However, how many of the MMO playerbase really will like it or what the game's longterm appeal will be, we'll only find out after launch.
Ok but see what we have here, a fan saying the game is not anyting special, but has a lot of potential (the most dreaded words in MMOs) and will manage to capture the attention with future content (!!) And on the other hand you have a "hater" that radically changed his opinion in favor of the game. I smell something fishy here.
Sure you do, I hadn't expected anything less from you. "an opinion that is too positive for my taste, and since I hate the game, therefore it must be fishy", that kind of reasoning, am I right?
A reminder of the Rules of Conduct of these site, people aren't allowed to talk about their gameplay experiences from the beta - any of them - on these forums.
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums: Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."
Comments
That is actually a very good point. We know there is already a lot of hype around this game, so an open beta may attract waaaay too many people.
Are you team Azeroth, team Tyria, or team Jacob?
There are a lot of things out there you can not try before you buy yet you do anyway. Ever try to taste toothpaste before you buy it? Ever use some shampoo before you buy it? Threatening not to purchase something before you try it doesn't make you sound like a smart consumer or even a tough guy, it really just makes you sound like you're whining about not being able to play it for free before it comes out. You may talk tough but I'll bet you buy it without trying it, just like everyone else who says they won't.
Ok but see what we have here, a fan saying the game is not anyting special, but has a lot of potential (the most dreaded words in MMOs) and will manage to capture the attention with future content (!!) And on the other hand you have a "hater" that radically changed his opinion in favor of the game. I smell something fishy here.
An honest review of SW:TOR 6/10 (Danny Wojcicki)
Sure you do, I hadn't expected anything less from you. "an opinion that is too positive for my taste, and since I hate the game, therefore it must be fishy", that kind of reasoning, am I right?
A reminder of the Rules of Conduct of these site, people aren't allowed to talk about their gameplay experiences from the beta - any of them - on these forums.
The ACTUAL size of MMORPG worlds: a comparison list between MMO's
The ease with which predictions are made on these forums:
Fratman: "I'm saying Spring 2012 at the earliest [for TOR release]. Anyone still clinging to 2011 is deluding themself at this point."