I like how people try to defend Smedley but his history is proof enough. Sorry, he's made enough, he could easily front 200K of his own money. I'm not going to.. not for him. Never again.
If you actually read the development info, they've accumulated 2.8 million dollars in funding and they've got 17 total people working on the game. They're fine even if they fall short 100k.
The problem is also that many crowd funded MMORPGs are not producing good products as it is so people just are not longer taking a chance. This is what happens when we have countless crowd funded MMORPGs instead of a handful at best.
I'm also not sure that using Indiegogo was the best choice. Given his name, Smedley might have been able to pull off a funding round with Fig -- it looks like a fantastic game and one that a lot of people would play "despite" the 8-bit look.
To those who know anything about the gaming industry, the name 'Smedley' does not echo with the ring of quality. From SWG to Landmark, everything turns to shit when explosed to 'That touch of Smedley'.
And to those of us who are not wrapped up in the bullshit know that's just a haters crook of shit.
Matrix Online - at the time, one of the world's most immensely rich cinematic IPs, run into the ground and taken offline within three years.
SWG - gigantic, true open world MMO with Star Wars IP destroyed almost overnight by New Game Enhancements designed to make it like WoW.
Vanguard - bought half-finished from buddy; neglected and under-resourced; still managed to limp along with hardcore of supporters until SOE decided to 'monetise' it. Instant collapse in revenues, shuttered.
FreeRealms - got four million to sign up, had to be cancelled because of crass strategaic planning by someone...
Everquest Next.... My god! Do I really need to go on?
And what do all these catastrophic failures - and I could name many more from POTBS to Landmark - have in common?
Why, that pie-faced failure, John Smedley.
Yeah but it's getting to the point now where we have to explain to people who Smed is, not many newer gamers know or where around for swg (Millennials). If this game goes to Steam I can bet you most of those people over there won't care who Smed is and will only judge the game on whether it's good or terrible.
I'm sure there will be some veterans ranting about how Smed can go suck eggs, but the ones who were never around in MMO gaming all those years ago are not gonna care about that.
I mean I was there, in fact I was personally put on the Devs shit list back in the day. Smed did not like me and a few others here because we bashed SOE on a daily basis, created a site for angry swg vets and Raph Koster used to even post there. For whatever reason Smed had some conspiratorial idea we were out to ruin SOE like some weird Cabal.
I didn't get it at the time that it was all in vain; the games would have died anyways whether SOE shut them down or changed anything. They were progressive games, but to be honest they were also very niche and the genera had moved passed a lot of the mechanics those games had because they were not widely favorable to the masses. World Of Warcraft showed the everyone what an MMO should be sadly, not SWG. In all honesty SWG was "too hard" for the average player to want to figure out. We loved it, but most didn't. Going back and playing the emu after all these years I can understand why it never gained widespread appeal.
My point is let it die, the fight is over; he left SOE and you should consider the battle won. Let the guy run his little company and do his thing. If you don't want to play the game, fine don't. But you really are messing with his livelihood; he isn't running a big studio. The game is obviously a labor of love, lets see if it has legs to stand on.
The problem is also that many crowd funded MMORPGs are not producing good products as it is so people just are not longer taking a chance. This is what happens when we have countless crowd funded MMORPGs instead of a handful at best.
I'm also not sure that using Indiegogo was the best choice. Given his name, Smedley might have been able to pull off a funding round with Fig -- it looks like a fantastic game and one that a lot of people would play "despite" the 8-bit look.
To those who know anything about the gaming industry, the name 'Smedley' does not echo with the ring of quality. From SWG to Landmark, everything turns to shit when explosed to 'That touch of Smedley'.
And to those of us who are not wrapped up in the bullshit know that's just a haters crook of shit.
Matrix Online - at the time, one of the world's most immensely rich cinematic IPs, run into the ground and taken offline within three years.
SWG - gigantic, true open world MMO with Star Wars IP destroyed almost overnight by New Game Enhancements designed to make it like WoW.
Vanguard - bought half-finished from buddy; neglected and under-resourced; still managed to limp along with hardcore of supporters until SOE decided to 'monetise' it. Instant collapse in revenues, shuttered.
FreeRealms - got four million to sign up, had to be cancelled because of crass strategaic planning by someone...
Everquest Next.... My god! Do I really need to go on?
And what do all these catastrophic failures - and I could name many more from POTBS to Landmark - have in common?
Why, that pie-faced failure, John Smedley.
Thats funny because I am sure Smedley did not SINGLE handly design everything in all of them games. It was more along the lines of managing how much funding + resources each said project got and rather the project was a go ahead or dump to the ground and pass.
If anything Smedley kept alot of these turds of games running alot longer then most other CEOs would have done.
The problem is also that many crowd funded MMORPGs are not producing good products as it is so people just are not longer taking a chance. This is what happens when we have countless crowd funded MMORPGs instead of a handful at best.
I'm also not sure that using Indiegogo was the best choice. Given his name, Smedley might have been able to pull off a funding round with Fig -- it looks like a fantastic game and one that a lot of people would play "despite" the 8-bit look.
To those who know anything about the gaming industry, the name 'Smedley' does not echo with the ring of quality. From SWG to Landmark, everything turns to shit when explosed to 'That touch of Smedley'.
And to those of us who are not wrapped up in the bullshit know that's just a haters crook of shit.
Matrix Online - at the time, one of the world's most immensely rich cinematic IPs, run into the ground and taken offline within three years.
SWG - gigantic, true open world MMO with Star Wars IP destroyed almost overnight by New Game Enhancements designed to make it like WoW.
Vanguard - bought half-finished from buddy; neglected and under-resourced; still managed to limp along with hardcore of supporters until SOE decided to 'monetise' it. Instant collapse in revenues, shuttered.
FreeRealms - got four million to sign up, had to be cancelled because of crass strategaic planning by someone...
Everquest Next.... My god! Do I really need to go on?
And what do all these catastrophic failures - and I could name many more from POTBS to Landmark - have in common?
Why, that pie-faced failure, John Smedley.
Yeah but it's getting to the point now where we have to explain to people who Smed is, not many newer gamers know or where around for swg (Millennials). If this game goes to Steam I can bet you most of those people over there won't care who Smed is and will only judge the game on whether it's good or terrible.
I'm sure there will be some veterans ranting about how Smed can go suck eggs, but the ones who were never around in MMO gaming all those years ago are not gonna care about that.
I mean I was there, in fact I was personally put on the Devs shit list back in the day. Smed did not like me and a few others here because we bashed SOE on a daily basis, created a site for angry swg vets and Raph Koster used to even post there. For whatever reason Smed had some conspiratorial idea we were out to ruin SOE like some weird Cabal.
I didn't get it at the time that it was all in vain; the games would have died anyways whether SOE shut them down or changed anything. They were progressive games, but to be honest they were also very niche and the genera had moved passed a lot of the mechanics those games had because they were not widely favorable to the masses. World Of Warcraft showed the everyone what an MMO should be sadly, not SWG. In all honesty SWG was "too hard" for the average player to want to figure out. We loved it, but most didn't. Going back and playing the emu after all these years I can understand why it never gained widespread appeal.
My point is let it die, the fight is over; he left SOE and you should consider the battle won. Let the guy run his little company and do his thing. If you don't want to play the game, fine don't. But you really are messing with his livelihood; he isn't running a big studio. The game is obviously a labor of love, lets see if it has legs to stand on.
You don't need to tell me who Smed is I've had two accounts with SOE and now Daybreak since 99.
Don't assume because someone disagrees with you that they need educating about Smed and SOE.
Someone at the top of SOE was making poor product decisions. The developers were constantly forced to mold the games to mirror successful competitors (be it turning SWG into WoW, or EQ Next into Minecraft). This development model, where the management calls the design shots, rarely ends well.
I'm not sure to what extent Smedley is responsible. Most people displeased with SOE will agree it was the management, not the developers. As such, Smedley is a prime suspect. I'd avoid anything from Smedley the best I can.
I wouldn't be surprised if Hero's Song overhauls the gameplay a year down the line, turning it into a 6v6 multiplayer battle arena. Or perhaps it would make a great trading card game!
Unfortunately, I hadn't heard of this game until now. Definitely looks like something i'd play. Wouldn't mind throwing a bit of cash their way, but I guess it's a bit late now.
The problem is also that many crowd funded MMORPGs are not producing good products as it is so people just are not longer taking a chance. This is what happens when we have countless crowd funded MMORPGs instead of a handful at best.
I'm also not sure that using Indiegogo was the best choice. Given his name, Smedley might have been able to pull off a funding round with Fig -- it looks like a fantastic game and one that a lot of people would play "despite" the 8-bit look.
To those who know anything about the gaming industry, the name 'Smedley' does not echo with the ring of quality. From SWG to Landmark, everything turns to shit when explosed to 'That touch of Smedley'.
And to those of us who are not wrapped up in the bullshit know that's just a haters crook of shit.
Matrix Online - at the time, one of the world's most immensely rich cinematic IPs, run into the ground and taken offline within three years.
SWG - gigantic, true open world MMO with Star Wars IP destroyed almost overnight by New Game Enhancements designed to make it like WoW.
Vanguard - bought half-finished from buddy; neglected and under-resourced; still managed to limp along with hardcore of supporters until SOE decided to 'monetise' it. Instant collapse in revenues, shuttered.
FreeRealms - got four million to sign up, had to be cancelled because of crass strategaic planning by someone...
Everquest Next.... My god! Do I really need to go on?
And what do all these catastrophic failures - and I could name many more from POTBS to Landmark - have in common?
Why, that pie-faced failure, John Smedley.
Yeah but it's getting to the point now where we have to explain to people who Smed is, not many newer gamers know or where around for swg (Millennials). If this game goes to Steam I can bet you most of those people over there won't care who Smed is and will only judge the game on whether it's good or terrible.
I'm sure there will be some veterans ranting about how Smed can go suck eggs, but the ones who were never around in MMO gaming all those years ago are not gonna care about that.
I mean I was there, in fact I was personally put on the Devs shit list back in the day. Smed did not like me and a few others here because we bashed SOE on a daily basis, created a site for angry swg vets and Raph Koster used to even post there. For whatever reason Smed had some conspiratorial idea we were out to ruin SOE like some weird Cabal.
I didn't get it at the time that it was all in vain; the games would have died anyways whether SOE shut them down or changed anything. They were progressive games, but to be honest they were also very niche and the genera had moved passed a lot of the mechanics those games had because they were not widely favorable to the masses. World Of Warcraft showed the everyone what an MMO should be sadly, not SWG. In all honesty SWG was "too hard" for the average player to want to figure out. We loved it, but most didn't. Going back and playing the emu after all these years I can understand why it never gained widespread appeal.
My point is let it die, the fight is over; he left SOE and you should consider the battle won. Let the guy run his little company and do his thing. If you don't want to play the game, fine don't. But you really are messing with his livelihood; he isn't running a big studio. The game is obviously a labor of love, lets see if it has legs to stand on.
Last sentence of your first paragraph is exactly how each game should be judged. Whether the GAME is good or not. We all can find something wrong with each dev/artist/anyone if we look and I'm sure there is a smed in each of your favorite studios but because the name isn't as well known it is given a pass. This should go for everything too, not just in this case but certain studios get a pass and a high rating even if the game sucks just because people like the studio. Each game should be judged if it is a good game or not, not based on ONE person in the team.
peter molyneux probably lied more than smed did. If he came out with an awesome game I would still buy it, I would NOT fund it but if it turned out great then you would be a fool not to play it.
Each to their own, but for those who are complaining about permadeath, lucky you, there's plenty of non-permadeath games for you to go and enjoy. Permadeath the the main reason I did back this one, very exciting for those of us not scared of a real challenge
Congratulations! You're in luck as permadeath is the current new fad bullet point. Of course it loses all the people that don't like permadeath, so it is reducing it's appeal. Maybe that will work out, maybe it won't, but either way it won't change peoples minds on permadeath one way or the other.
I love how people are saying perma death is the reason it wasn't backed...When Chronicles of Elyria (who boast a similar hard core system) is the number one hyped game on this site and funded over 900k during its kickstarter...logic
They didnt fund because it wasn't heavily advertised. Why, I do not know.....
Many of us are sick of theme parks and quest beacons. We welcome the days of a challenge, open world exploration and a consequence to your actions. If you had a hard day at work and want a brainless click-fest go play wow...
I have noticed a trend in this industry...The same ones complain about things being too hard or not obvious are the same ones who gobble up content without reading the text or power game through the experience...and then complain that there is nothing to do....go away...seriously...leave this game alone....There are plenty of games designed just for you. How many do we get? I have been waiting for something like this since old school UO.
As far as the graphics go..Many people enjoy a top down simple look, it reminds me of snes zelda or secret of mana. Other positives are it will be able to run on many systems, and will be able to be made and updated quickly...I dont understand people who look at one screen shot and pass because of graphics...would you not play pong, even if it was fun? would you not play super mario or darkest dungeon or any other game without 3D graphics just for that reason? Then I say you are missing out...have fun waiting another 8 years for chronicles of elyria or whatever awesome utopian game you think is coming.
I'm sure when/if it goes on Steam it'll do well with initial sales but the permadeath feature may push all except the most hardcore players away over time.
This sure looks like a dated ARPG, the gameplay footage looks bad and that shouldn't happen for a game that's supposed to be six months away from full launch. The problem isn't the retro look, its the combat that looks like it was made before diablo 2.
If it hadn't been for Smedley's name we wouldn't even discuss this game, he is far more exciting than this game will ever be.
Iselin: And the next person who says "but it's a business, they need to make money" can just go fuck yourself.
Believe I read that this game will support 200 (for now) per world/server which players control themselves. Seems more like a retro single player meets MUD than anything resembling a mmorpg made from UO and beyond.
Not that this is bad, but clearly not going to be for many mmo fans.
Not positive, but early on I read something that made it seem like they aren't even going to support in long term. More of release and move on to next project. Not expansions or massive updates over the coming years.
Click to move, small populations, low support, meh art style, I'll pass.
Have to say, despite the big names behind this, it looks objectively pretty terrible.
Could play like a dream though, and I haven't heard any feedback. I'm not a graphics whore myself, but just at a glance and with a name like Smedley, it feels like an uninspired cash grab.
But multiple failed funding rounds is majorly discouraging for the devs
Will be discouraging to the backers as well (not the crowd funded ones) since it suggests:
- it will need investor funding to the very end; - sales may not be that easy, pre-sales via "crowd funding" being low; - so a decision needed on how much to spend on marketing = more money.
Comments
http://twitch.tv/woetothevanquished
I'm sure there will be some veterans ranting about how Smed can go suck eggs, but the ones who were never around in MMO gaming all those years ago are not gonna care about that.
I mean I was there, in fact I was personally put on the Devs shit list back in the day. Smed did not like me and a few others here because we bashed SOE on a daily basis, created a site for angry swg vets and Raph Koster used to even post there. For whatever reason Smed had some conspiratorial idea we were out to ruin SOE like some weird Cabal.
I didn't get it at the time that it was all in vain; the games would have died anyways whether SOE shut them down or changed anything. They were progressive games, but to be honest they were also very niche and the genera had moved passed a lot of the mechanics those games had because they were not widely favorable to the masses. World Of Warcraft showed the everyone what an MMO should be sadly, not SWG. In all honesty SWG was "too hard" for the average player to want to figure out. We loved it, but most didn't. Going back and playing the emu after all these years I can understand why it never gained widespread appeal.
My point is let it die, the fight is over; he left SOE and you should consider the battle won. Let the guy run his little company and do his thing. If you don't want to play the game, fine don't. But you really are messing with his livelihood; he isn't running a big studio. The game is obviously a labor of love, lets see if it has legs to stand on.
Thats funny because I am sure Smedley did not SINGLE handly design everything in all of them games. It was more along the lines of managing how much funding + resources each said project got and rather the project was a go ahead or dump to the ground and pass.
If anything Smedley kept alot of these turds of games running alot longer then most other CEOs would have done.
This isn't a signature, you just think it is.
You don't need to tell me who Smed is I've had two accounts with SOE and now Daybreak since 99.
Don't assume because someone disagrees with you that they need educating about Smed and SOE.
The mug you quoted is talking out of his/her ass.
This development model, where the management calls the design shots, rarely ends well.
I'm not sure to what extent Smedley is responsible. Most people displeased with SOE will agree it was the management, not the developers. As such, Smedley is a prime suspect. I'd avoid anything from Smedley the best I can.
I wouldn't be surprised if Hero's Song overhauls the gameplay a year down the line, turning it into a 6v6 multiplayer battle arena. Or perhaps it would make a great trading card game!
that was just free money, because why not ?? these type of guys love free money
he would have done the games with kickstarter goal or not
Last sentence of your first paragraph is exactly how each game should be judged. Whether the GAME is good or not. We all can find something wrong with each dev/artist/anyone if we look and I'm sure there is a smed in each of your favorite studios but because the name isn't as well known it is given a pass. This should go for everything too, not just in this case but certain studios get a pass and a high rating even if the game sucks just because people like the studio. Each game should be judged if it is a good game or not, not based on ONE person in the team.
peter molyneux probably lied more than smed did. If he came out with an awesome game I would still buy it, I would NOT fund it but if it turned out great then you would be a fool not to play it.
Of course it loses all the people that don't like permadeath, so it is reducing it's appeal.
Maybe that will work out, maybe it won't, but either way it won't change peoples minds on permadeath one way or the other.
Lost my mind, now trying to lose yours...
They didnt fund because it wasn't heavily advertised. Why, I do not know.....
Many of us are sick of theme parks and quest beacons. We welcome the days of a challenge, open world exploration and a consequence to your actions. If you had a hard day at work and want a brainless click-fest go play wow...
I have noticed a trend in this industry...The same ones complain about things being too hard or not obvious are the same ones who gobble up content without reading the text or power game through the experience...and then complain that there is nothing to do....go away...seriously...leave this game alone....There are plenty of games designed just for you. How many do we get? I have been waiting for something like this since old school UO.
As far as the graphics go..Many people enjoy a top down simple look, it reminds me of snes zelda or secret of mana. Other positives are it will be able to run on many systems, and will be able to be made and updated quickly...I dont understand people who look at one screen shot and pass because of graphics...would you not play pong, even if it was fun? would you not play super mario or darkest dungeon or any other game without 3D graphics just for that reason? Then I say you are missing out...have fun waiting another 8 years for chronicles of elyria or whatever awesome utopian game you think is coming.
If it hadn't been for Smedley's name we wouldn't even discuss this game, he is far more exciting than this game will ever be.
Believe I read that this game will support 200 (for now) per world/server which players control themselves. Seems more like a retro single player meets MUD than anything resembling a mmorpg made from UO and beyond.
Not that this is bad, but clearly not going to be for many mmo fans.
Not positive, but early on I read something that made it seem like they aren't even going to support in long term. More of release and move on to next project. Not expansions or massive updates over the coming years.
Click to move, small populations, low support, meh art style, I'll pass.
For ~15-20 bucks, not bad for those interested.
The only thing I'd say to Smedley is: karma's a bitch, right?
Could play like a dream though, and I haven't heard any feedback. I'm not a graphics whore myself, but just at a glance and with a name like Smedley, it feels like an uninspired cash grab.
"SWG players, our next game (not announced yet) is dedicated to you, Once we launch it... you can come home now."
Maybe he was talking about this game rather than H1Z1.
- it will need investor funding to the very end;
- sales may not be that easy, pre-sales via "crowd funding" being low;
- so a decision needed on how much to spend on marketing = more money.