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Call for this game to be reviewed
Talonsin
Member EpicPosts: 3,619
The Goblinworks CEO has publicly stated that Pathfinder Online is not in an alpha or beta state and is
"a playable fantasy sandbox MMO. It isn't "missing" anything that would make it "really work".
Since the game is not in a testing state and is not missing anything that would make it "really work" and it is charging a full monthly subscription to play, some have asked MMORPG for a review of the game. If you would like to see this game reviewed in its current state please post in the thread linked below and make your opinion known.
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/431096
We need to stop developers from hiding behind fancy marketing speak. You cant say the game is not in a testing state to justify charging a sub fee and then cry when your game is considered launched and gets a poor review. What he is doing is the same thing that Sergey Titov did in War-Z when he tried to justify charging to beta-test by calling it a "Foundation Release".
Comments
I've no real interest in playing this game, and am basically unaware of it other than the topic of the developer making comments about his marketing and the player base. Certainly the entire gaming industry is in dire need for an outside agency to encourage some kind of semantic definitions on it. Part of the semantics issues involve games requiring payment but trying to maintain some sort of distinction from a 'released' game and something that's not quite finished. That's disingenuous, if not outright duplicitous, and its presence is dividing the community.
I'd read a review of this product, if for no other reason that MMORPG.com trying to show some kind of editorial position on the 'when is it a release' subject.
Logic, my dear, merely enables one to be wrong with great authority.
Agreed.
Seems like the CEO looked at EVE Online, and read about how many players just keep accounts going in EVE to gain xp, and figured he could make the cheapest, most basic functioning product with the same system and end up with the same outcome.
You could almost call it a scam, similar to WarZ. It's a money grab, plain and simple.
I seem to recall seeing a Pathfinder Online ad run by MMORPG.com a time or two, so the non-review of PO might very well be intentional.
Either they review the game and the writer lies (saying it is the "bestest game ever", as usual, and not mentioning any of the glaring bugs/broken systems that are clearly there) at the behest of the developer and make the site's very dubious credibility even worse (and reducing the number of people that visit), or piss off a past and potentially future paid advertiser by saying that the "emperor has no clothes" and then gives an honest review that this particular game is more or less crap in its current state, and not worth the box/sub fee.
In each case, it is bad for the financial side of the site, so it is better if they say nothing.
Thus the only winning move is not to play. :P
Interesting proposal. From the good old days of Mortal Online I have always said that if you are charging a sub you should be reviewed as a released game. That's not a new position for me and anyone who cares can go look it up.
All time classic MY NEW FAVORITE POST! (Keep laying those bricks)
"I should point out that no other company has shipped out a beta on a disc before this." - Official Mortal Online Lead Community Moderator
Proudly wearing the Harbinger badge since Dec 23, 2017.
Coined the phrase "Role-Playing a Development Team" January 2018
"Oddly Slap is the main reason I stay in these forums." - Mystichaze April 9th 2018
I think a review is warranted.
If the product is released and fully functional as claimed, then there is no reason not to review it. Other games on this site have been reviewed at the same stage of development.
If you're gonna talk the talk, be ready to walk the walk.
Try to be excellent to everyone you meet. You never know what someone else has seen or endured.
My Review Manifesto
Follow me on Twitter if you dare.
There are no more wipes. Easy to find on their site but also confirmed here in this post by the CEO:
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/post/6633621
All time classic MY NEW FAVORITE POST! (Keep laying those bricks)
"I should point out that no other company has shipped out a beta on a disc before this." - Official Mortal Online Lead Community Moderator
Proudly wearing the Harbinger badge since Dec 23, 2017.
Coined the phrase "Role-Playing a Development Team" January 2018
"Oddly Slap is the main reason I stay in these forums." - Mystichaze April 9th 2018
Try to be excellent to everyone you meet. You never know what someone else has seen or endured.
My Review Manifesto
Follow me on Twitter if you dare.
Glad to hear it Bill, thanks for coming in here to let us know.
Much appreciated brother.
One request for the review. Please be sure to take a look at how the water is handled in the "River Kingdoms".
All time classic MY NEW FAVORITE POST! (Keep laying those bricks)
"I should point out that no other company has shipped out a beta on a disc before this." - Official Mortal Online Lead Community Moderator
Proudly wearing the Harbinger badge since Dec 23, 2017.
Coined the phrase "Role-Playing a Development Team" January 2018
"Oddly Slap is the main reason I stay in these forums." - Mystichaze April 9th 2018
Bill, if I were a female I would have your baby. Sadly you will have to settle for a hearty handshake when I see you at a games conference.
Everyone that has touched the game already knows what any close to professional review is going to say. “The game clearly isn't ready for a subscription. The game features aren't anywhere near comparable to similarly priced competitors available today.” In the most part, they will be right. In the most part, I think that a lot of the people paying for the game right now, and even those that will continue paying for the game into the future, would say the exact same thing.
I'm emotionally invested in the game. I have running rivalries with other groups that make me login and do my best to get a leg up on them. I have close ties with the gaming group I play the game with that make me login and do my best to help them along.
If you want a feature complete game, then Pathfinder Online very clearly isn't for you. Every single review of the game should say that loud and clear.
I do, however, hope that any such review would also look at the progress the game has been making, and the pace of that progress, and give them a few points for it. If charging a subscription for a few whales (and having a cash shop for those whales willing to throw cash at the developers with) is what it takes to bring the game to the wider market, then I have no issue with them charging a subscription. If you don't want to pay the subscription yet, don't. ezpz.
I think it points to a game no longer being in a testing phase and they only want to review games that meet the criteria of a "released game".
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
The issue is the way Dancey is trying to advertise the game, not that the game itself isn't feature complete.
I would have thought that was obvious, especially if you had read the entire thread, or any of the numerous others on this forum involving Ryan Dancey and PFO.
He makes ridiculous statements regarding the game not being an alpha, having already been through alpha testing, etc... it's nothing but wordplay meant to deceive gullible individuals into buying into the game.
If he had been honest with the community none of this would be happening.
I'm aware, and I have the same issues, personally. I have been following PFO since the start of the second kickstarter, and I have quite regularly disagreed with how Dancey does things. It is why I am trying to keep myself from advertising to my friends, even though my gameplay time would be vastly more enjoyable with more people to play with.
I might give out a buddy key now or then, but I will always do so with a caveat of telling them how feature weak the game is right now. People should know what they are getting themselves into, and they should also know what to expect as the game develops.
You have 49 posts and every single one is in relation to Pathfinder Online...
Yes he worked for CCP, he was the Chief Marketing Officer for a period of time.
You know what does make it a scam? Charging your fanbase to access your alpha, and then charging them a monthly fee on top of that under the guise of "crowdfunding". All the while claiming that you have a "fully functioning sandbox MMO" that "isn't an alpha", when you know damn well that it is exactly that.
This is identical to the situation with Sergey Titov and the War Z. The CEO is utilizing wordsmithing and rhetoric, along with flat out denials, to try and convince gamers that his product is something it is not. It is insulting to the gaming community as a whole. Perpetuating this type of behavior is bad for the industry and even worse for the consumer.
Here are a few articles that I suggest you read. Take the time to educate yourself as to what type of individual he truly is, rather than just blindly following him:
https://shutupinternet.wordpress.com/2011/02/16/ryan-dancey-is-destroying-gaming/
http://icv2.com/articles/games/view/5416/gama-governance-crisis
http://challengerating25.blogspot.ca/2012/05/ryan-dancey-is-basically-con-artist.html