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ARK: Survival Evolved has sold massively well for a game that isn't even finished. It has over ninety thousand reviews on Steam—yes, it's sold that well.
The DLC in question is "ARK: Scorched Earth - Expansion Pack". It adds a new map, new creatures, new items and so on. It couldn't have been an easy task considering all that content, which means that was time taken away from actually finishing the game itself to create extra add-on paid content. That doesn't sit right with me, considering I am a customer of theirs myself having paid for ARK personally.
The developers wrote up a blog post:
QuoteScorched Earth: Our original vision for ARK always included the creation of Expansion ARKs, along with the infrastructure and technical systems to transfer data dynamically between live ARKs. We determined that it is more sound to iterate on these systems during Early Access than after retail launch, given the significant risks involved if we didn't "get it right". While that meant unveiling the first Expansion early, it also means an easier time integrating further post-launch Expansions into the ARK network. We understand that this isn't everyone's cup of tea, and we appreciate the enjoyment people seem to be getting out of this initial view of how Expansion ARKs can work. Now that we have the systems in place to support them, we can ensure minimal integration issues with subsequent releases after ARK: Survival Evolved itself has launched.
I can completely understand adding in content during Early Access to make sure they get it right, but, this is exactly what Early Access is designed for.
Now, I can also certainly understand games that may not have sold as well adding in extra DLC to help keep development going, but in this case, it does seem to be a slap in the face for people who purchased the original game.
When you look into it a bit further, as reported by gamesindustry.biz it seems the previous lawsuit against Studio Wildcard (the ARK developer) and Trendy (Dungeon Defenders) was settled by Wildcard paying out around forty million dollars.
So, it seems like this is an attempt to recover some costs, but it will lose them a lot of fans in doing so.
This new paid DLC has seen the games overall rating on Steam absolutely dive-bomb into negative ratings ‒ I'm really not surprised by this!
ARK itself is still a mess when it comes to optimization and performance, especially on SteamOS & Linux. I wonder if they will ever truly put time into it, but not likely.
What are your thoughts? Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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Quoting: GuestI actually blame gaming customers because most of them are kids and/or are completely unrealistic in their views. Just read through the steam forums or reviews for any game title to see it....
That we agree on. However in this case I think the customers are right. I'm not saying the game is bad, but I am saying the dev/publisher is wrong and deserves it. They can turn it around, but they need fix their mistake one way or another. Release it, or refund. I haven't played the game, but if it is as good as you say there is no problem with them releasing it. Nothing would stop them from continuing to update it, or add new content and they would not get this level of backlash for releasing DLC's.
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Nor Mantis Sep 9, 2016
Quoting: m2mg2Quoting: GuestI actually blame gaming customers because most of them are kids and/or are completely unrealistic in their views. Just read through the steam forums or reviews for any game title to see it....
That we agree on. However in this case I think the customers are right. I'm not saying the game is bad, but I am saying the dev/publisher is wrong and deserves it. They can turn it around, but they need fix their mistake one way or another. Release it, or refund. I haven't played the game, but if it is as good as you say there is no problem with them releasing it. Nothing would stop them from continuing to update it, or add new content and they would not get this level of backlash for releasing DLC's.
You hit the nail right here. All the dev's did was released an expansion in early access. But the game is still better than most fully released AAA games these days. They should just release it. That is, to me, their only mistake. Having 2 words on steam, "Early Access" In the quote the dev's said..
"We determined that it is more sound to iterate on these systems during Early Access than after retail launch, given the significant risks involved if we didn't "get it right". While that meant unveiling the first Expansion early, it also means an easier time integrating further post-launch Expansions into the ARK network. "
So they are testing how to release expansions so they can get the systems right, nothing wrong with that in my eyes. Although I have bias, I love this game and have played close to 400 hours and the expansion is great fun played it for 8 hours last night. If this game was not as good as it is my opinion would be vastly different.
All it needs is optimization, it is awesome right now and I would not be upset if they released it today.
It make this topic interesting and why it is getting so much press. The game is popular, I just looked on steam there are 53,044 people playing right now. Not bad at all. This expansion is a success no matter how much backlash it has. Its fun. Did the devs make a mistake,yes. For me, it is worth every penny, I would gladly pay full price for the base game and expansion right now knowing the 100's of hours of enjoyment I have got from it. It is still a great price for a game packed with content and growing every week. ARK is one of Linux's best games in my opinion.
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Quoting: Nor MantisQuoting: m2mg2Quoting: GuestI actually blame gaming customers because most of them are kids and/or are completely unrealistic in their views. Just read through the steam forums or reviews for any game title to see it....
That we agree on. However in this case I think the customers are right. I'm not saying the game is bad, but I am saying the dev/publisher is wrong and deserves it. They can turn it around, but they need fix their mistake one way or another. Release it, or refund. I haven't played the game, but if it is as good as you say there is no problem with them releasing it. Nothing would stop them from continuing to update it, or add new content and they would not get this level of backlash for releasing DLC's.
You hit the nail right here. All the dev's did was released an expansion in early access. But the game is still better than most fully released AAA games these days. They should just release it. That is, to me, their only mistake. Having 2 words on steam, "Early Access" In the quote the dev's said..
"We determined that it is more sound to iterate on these systems during Early Access than after retail launch, given the significant risks involved if we didn't "get it right". While that meant unveiling the first Expansion early, it also means an easier time integrating further post-launch Expansions into the ARK network. "
So they are testing how to release expansions so they can get the systems right, nothing wrong with that in my eyes. Although I have bias, I love this game and have played close to 400 hours and the expansion is great fun played it for 8 hours last night. If this game was not as good as it is my opinion would be vastly different.
All it needs is optimization, it is awesome right now and I would not be upset if they released it today.
It make this topic interesting and why it is getting so much press. The game is popular, I just looked on steam there are 53,044 people playing right now. Not bad at all. This expansion is a success no matter how much backlash it has. Its fun. Did the devs make a mistake,yes. For me, it is worth every penny, I would gladly pay full price for the base game and expansion right now knowing the 100's of hours of enjoyment I have got from it. It is still a great price for a game packed with content and growing every week. ARK is one of Linux's best games in my opinion.
They could very easily test with free DLC. They didn't need to charge for a DLC while in Early Access to test that function. If they wanted to test they should have tested with free DLC. If they want to charge, release the game and charge for it. It really isn't very complicated.
My biggest concern is other dev/publishers follow suit and we end up with all these games eternally in Early Access, not fixing issues or following through with what was supposed to be core content but charging for a bunch of DLC. From my point of view you go Early Access so you can get some funding for your game before it is complete, you also get people to bug test your game, give you feedback on it and pay you for it. I don't think I've ever bought an Early Access game for this reason. In my view the dev/publishers get more than fair return from customers on Early Access games, this feels like glass just got put on the stick if you know what I mean. They want to get all benefits of Early Access, plus all the benefits of having a released game but take none of the drawbacks of either. In my opinion they are getting off easy.
Last edited by m2mg2 on 9 September 2016 at 8:13 pm UTC
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Nor Mantis Sep 9, 2016
Quoting: m2mg2They could very easily test with free DLC. They didn't need to charge for a DLC while in Early Access to test that function. If they wanted to test they should have tested with free DLC. If they want to charge, release the game and add DLC. It really isn't very complicated.
True. They have released 2 free DLC. A total conversion pack, and a map. Both are great. Another reason I don't mind paying. The price is still well worth what you get. It is jammed full of content. Even at 400 hours I still have unseen areas and things to explore on the base map! Never mind the 2 other maps officially supported. Add in the conversion pack and an expansion its almost a new game. With all of it added together is still cheaper than most AAA games.
Last edited by Nor Mantis on 9 September 2016 at 8:08 pm UTC
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Quoting: m2mg2Quoting: Nor MantisQuoting: m2mg2Quoting: GuestI actually blame gaming customers because most of them are kids and/or are completely unrealistic in their views. Just read through the steam forums or reviews for any game title to see it....
That we agree on. However in this case I think the customers are right. I'm not saying the game is bad, but I am saying the dev/publisher is wrong and deserves it. They can turn it around, but they need fix their mistake one way or another. Release it, or refund. I haven't played the game, but if it is as good as you say there is no problem with them releasing it. Nothing would stop them from continuing to update it, or add new content and they would not get this level of backlash for releasing DLC's.
You hit the nail right here. All the dev's did was released an expansion in early access. But the game is still better than most fully released AAA games these days. They should just release it. That is, to me, their only mistake. Having 2 words on steam, "Early Access" In the quote the dev's said..
"We determined that it is more sound to iterate on these systems during Early Access than after retail launch, given the significant risks involved if we didn't "get it right". While that meant unveiling the first Expansion early, it also means an easier time integrating further post-launch Expansions into the ARK network. "
So they are testing how to release expansions so they can get the systems right, nothing wrong with that in my eyes. Although I have bias, I love this game and have played close to 400 hours and the expansion is great fun played it for 8 hours last night. If this game was not as good as it is my opinion would be vastly different.
All it needs is optimization, it is awesome right now and I would not be upset if they released it today.
It make this topic interesting and why it is getting so much press. The game is popular, I just looked on steam there are 53,044 people playing right now. Not bad at all. This expansion is a success no matter how much backlash it has. Its fun. Did the devs make a mistake,yes. For me, it is worth every penny, I would gladly pay full price for the base game and expansion right now knowing the 100's of hours of enjoyment I have got from it. It is still a great price for a game packed with content and growing every week. ARK is one of Linux's best games in my opinion.
They could very easily test with free DLC. They didn't need to charge for a DLC while in Early Access to test that function. If they wanted to test they should have tested with free DLC. If they want to charge, release the game and add DLC. It really isn't very complicated.
Cam'on, its just 20 euros for a game with thousand of hours of gameplay... cam'on
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Quoting: bubexelCam'on, its just 20 euros for a game with thousand of hours of gameplay... cam'on
You say that as if everyone that buys it will play it for thousands of hours. Some people have other things to do and play some games here and there on the side. From the other side, that is also thousands of hours of free testing you just did for them on top of the 20 euros you gave them. Seriously, you can play tic tac toe for thousands of hours too. That means nothing. I haven't heard anyone say the cost is to much, or there isn't enough game play. The problem is that the game is still early access. You're giving answers to a question that hasn't been asked. It has nothing to do with what you are saying. You want to make a bunch of money on a game, release a game. You want people to pay you to test your Beta game, have the decency to only ask them for money once, or at least release the silly game before asking for more.
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Geez, I feel like some silly obsessed Evangelist. I'm a keep my mouth shut now.
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Nor Mantis Sep 9, 2016
Quoting: m2mg2My biggest concern is other dev/publishers follow suit and we end up with all these games eternally in Early Access, not fixing issues or following through with what was supposed to be core content but charging for a bunch of DLC. From my point of view you go Early Access so you can get some funding for your game before it is complete, you also get people to bug test your game, give you feedback on it and pay you for it. I don't think I've ever bought an Early Access game for this reason. In my view the dev/publishers get more than fair return from customers on Early Access games, this feels like glass just got put on the stick if you know what I mean. They want to get all benefits of Early Access, plus all the benefits of having a released game but take none of the drawbacks of either. In my opinion they are getting off easy.
Here I agree with you %100 and I feel the same way. But in my opinion the devs have delivered on all their promises, minus the optimization, with a ton have extra stuff on top. This game is far beyond my expectations. I don't think its a buggy mess. It runs well for me, the graphical glitches are minor and don't effect me much. I get a solid 50-60 fps on high setting with the expansion. It never crashes on me. For me the game is solid. That is why I will turn a blind eye to this mistake and feel like I have given money to devs that deserve the money. But its the eye of the beholder I guess. If you have trouble with the game, as many do, or never played I can see how this will rub you the wrong way. If the game wasn't, in my opinion, as good as it is then I would have a different story to tell.
Interesting discussion, it brings out the best and possibly the worst of early access practices. I believe WildCard are an early access success story. I have my moneys worth and love their game. If they called it quits and we didn't get another update I would be happy. I cannot say the same for a lot of early access games I have purchased.
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Nor Mantis Sep 9, 2016
Quoting: m2mg2Geez, I feel like some silly obsessed Evangelist. I'm a keep my mouth shut now.
LOL
Sorry I enjoy your comments and I totally see your point and it is the correct one. But my mind is clouded by the urge to leave work early and go play ARK..
Last edited by Nor Mantis on 9 September 2016 at 8:45 pm UTC
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Quoting: KeyrockI'm glad they are getting called out on this and having their name dragged through the mud, they deserve to be.
Look, I get the lawsuit settlement hirt them and they felt the need to recoup the money right away. That doesn't make this right, though. Paid DLC for a game still in early access is a very dangerous precedent and we (consumers and media alike) need to make damn sure that the message comes across loud and clear "this sort of crap will not be tolerated". We can't allow other publishers and developers to think they can get away with crap like this.
Releasing paid DLC for a title still in active development opens up all kinds of cans of worms. For example, how much of the content in the DLC is content that was originally supposed to be added in to the base game during early access? Also, how much time was taken away from fixing the multitude of serious bugs to make this DLC?
We can't allow thos to become the new standard. DLC and microtransaction practices have already gotten bad enough as it is.
This, right here. Absolutely - allowing this to become the defacto standard will be a devastating blow to gaming, for the consumer.
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