@hakenspit Ya i understand and agree it probably was an oversight. Is that the confirmation you want? The best answer was what I just posted last page : changing said files led to bad results. Potentially problems on the client end. And considering more and more were finding a way to do this it was worth ceasing.
Now as far as how time sensitive the situation was to call for that, well only the devs know, but I still think it was a great call that slightly inconveniences some for one patch at the cost of avoiding tech problems from seemingly "unmodded" servers and the scarlet letter that was the yellow stain.
And personally, as one who almost exclusively plays vanilla, I haven't seen the big deal.. There is no change from how things were before as i couldn't tell which were vanilla from the browser before anyways if it wasn't official, I had to wait to get in game. Now I can disconnect while loading at least.
The most important part is that improvement is coming like always.. Its the best part of ns2's high frequency of patches.
As for responses to users in the forums :
I support equal treatment.
We're all human, pretending the devs aren't is silly and only gives a green light for exploitation through uncivil or disrespectful discourse.
@ Ironhorse,
Thanks for agreeing that no reason had been provided for why the change had to happen and could not be held off, it does seem like a bit of an oversight.
Most servers in the southern hemi' are vanilla...but I often stray outside of my familiar territory
and had found the mod filter rather useful.
I guess I found the mod button more of a useful tool than a hinderance.
If there was a game breaking reason for this change to happen then letting us know would not have had any detriment (as they had removed the functionality) but would have gone a way to explaining why the change was made before the other changes where ready (besides because).
Its clear that UWE are trying to get things right...just a shame they went about it in the way they did with no communication that explains why the feature was removed.
Whilst dev's are people too, like admins they are held to a higher standard.
I dont see what value the comments made, besides putting more of a wedge between a paying customer and the game.
Would have made UWE look better had they not responded to the post of a clearly frustrated end user...instead what was intended in an off the cuff/throw away remark has only aggrevated more people.
I dont know frothy from a bar of soap (and did feel it was a bit of a dummy spit) but regardless of my opinion it did not warrant the antagonistic/smart arsed post.
But UWE are more than that post, heck they showed this over the course of the alpha/beta by at times choosing not to post in some threads.
The frustration that the community has directed at them has washed off their backs.
Firstly, I don't understand why ns2stats isn't on every server out there, surely it does nothing but good. Secondly, I wouldn't consider something like ns2stats a mod, all it does is gather data, it doesn't affect game play at all, so it should be exempt from the "Modded Server List" filter. Thirstly, players should be able to easily choose between playing on a modded or vanilla server. And fourcondly, the idea that "modded servers are second-class" is silly. Who came up with that? Look, whatever, all that needs to be done is: Give players the choice between playing on vanilla or modded servers, and put ns2stats on every server. Simples.
Firstly, I don't understand why ns2stats isn't on every server out there, surely it does nothing but good. Secondly, I wouldn't consider something like ns2stats a mod, all it does is gather data, it doesn't affect game play at all, so it should be exempt from the "Modded Server List" filter. Thirstly, players should be able to easily choose between playing on a modded or vanilla server. And fourcondly, the idea that "modded servers are second-class" is silly. Who came up with that? Look, whatever, all that needs to be done is: Give players the choice between playing on vanilla or modded servers, and put ns2stats on every server. Simples.
Because it does sometimes affect gameplay. Just before it was glitching Skulk movement. Its not officially supported code, they do not own it; it would just be an additional thing they would have to bug test with every release instead of a fan project.
Maybe when they get back from wasting a week on mods.
Amazingly enough, a games company cant be completely devoted to one game. They need to prototype new games modes and ideas to secure the future of the company. I don't know what world you're living in Farknut, but apparently you think NS2 is all UWE need to continue with to keep them employed and their families taken care of. Not to mention game jams like these have been proven to increase moral for teams. Something you're good at destroying with mostly negative comments.
Minimal infestation is not a priority right now. Time would be better spent making the 'best' infestation running as fast as the current minimal as it is a pretty important gameplay mechanic in NS2.
Firstly, I don't understand why ns2stats isn't on every server out there, surely it does nothing but good. Secondly, I wouldn't consider something like ns2stats a mod, all it does is gather data, it doesn't affect game play at all, so it should be exempt from the "Modded Server List" filter. Thirstly, players should be able to easily choose between playing on a modded or vanilla server. And fourcondly, the idea that "modded servers are second-class" is silly. Who came up with that? Look, whatever, all that needs to be done is: Give players the choice between playing on vanilla or modded servers, and put ns2stats on every server. Simples.
Because it does sometimes affect gameplay. Just before it was glitching Skulk movement. Its not officially supported code, they do not own it; it would just be an additional thing they would have to bug test with every release instead of a fan project.
Well, I think some sort of data-gathering tool is needed, on every server, something put out there in the big wide real world to look at and record player performances and how games play out. I think there's a difference between play testing in a lab and play testing in the real world. I just think it would calm down complaints and arguments about balance, but more importantly, would increase the competitive eSport side, because more players would have good access to useful analytical data about their play style. I understand UWE's resources are limited, so I know this may not be a priority for them, but it's something I would personally like to see done asap.
Well, I think some sort of data-gathering tool is needed, on every server, something put out there in the big wide real world to look at and record player performances and how games play out.
It's there already. It reports data back to UWE. They have it all. They use it.
And they are working on ways to make it publicly available, but no eta yet. It's called "Sponitor", and you can search to learn more about it.
Minimal infestation is not a priority right now. Time would be better spent making the 'best' infestation running as fast as the current minimal as it is a pretty important gameplay mechanic in NS2.
A large portion of people, mostly comp players with a clue, do not even want infestation in the game to begin with. So if you are going to force people to endure infestation at least make it visually acceptable in its minimal state. It would also be really great if we could see where on the ground infestation is instead of the current patchwork situation, given your emphasis on what an important mechanic it is.
Or would you prefer I shut up and go back to spamming phasegates on supposedly uninfested ground until I find the right spot. Gotta have dat busy work.
Minimal infestation is not a priority right now. Time would be better spent making the 'best' infestation running as fast as the current minimal as it is a pretty important gameplay mechanic in NS2.
Sorry, but this is fucking ridiculous. The "best" infestation? The best infestation is the one that doesn't impair your view, hide or obscure players and structures, and is even across the board instead of being randomly generated client side. Please tell me how full infestation is the best infestation. Please tell me how it is a more important gameplay mechanic than minimal. I would imagine nearly all (if not literally all) competitive players use minimal infestation exclusively, and it's been bugged forever.
This is like the commander interface bugs that have been around since the beginning of time and have still not been fixed. Maybe game jams improve morale, maybe UWE has to think of the future, but you think they're going to get repeat customers if they don't fix their fucking game? Things break and go unfixed for MONTHS at a time. Bugs that have been reported for months (skulks making sounds that they can't hear, but are audible for everyone else, the infestation bugs, players being dead at the beginning of the round) go unfixed. Skulk movement gets nerfed, is unanimously hated, and is never fixed.
Ironhorse, what do you disagree with in my post? Most of my post is just facts.. Full infestation is ONLY better than minimal infestation if you ONLY judge on aesthetics. Minimal infestation has been bugged for months. Most competitive players use minimal infestation. Full infestation is literally the same game mechanic as minimal infestation, so can not be more important than minimal.
The fact that infestation has been bugged for a long time and is not a priority IS like the commander interface bugs that have been around forever and still haven't been fixed.
The only parts of my post that were conjecture are that the skulk movement nerfs were unanimously hated, and the implication that I made that UWE will get few repeat customers if they don't fix the bugs in their game... but if you take a look at the discussion about the skulk movement nerfs, it was mostly a lot of hate. And NS2 has less people playing on average than The War Z does for fucks sake... I know that they are two very different games, but the War Z developers are largely considered to be scammers, yet they still have more people playing their game than UWE does. It's reasonable to assume that the people who bought NS2 and no longer play it will not be repeat customers.
IronHorseDeveloper, QA Manager, Technical Support & contributorJoin Date: 2010-05-08Member: 71669Members, Super Administrators, Forum Admins, Forum Moderators, NS2 Developer, NS2 Playtester, Squad Five Blue, Subnautica Playtester, Subnautica PT Lead, Pistachionauts
@ritualsacrifice : Okay, i'll bite.
I hesitated even bothering clicking disagree because of the difficulty in explaining why.. oh the cosmic irony that you ended up asking..lol
Its a long list, but all having to do with the second paragraph.
Mostly to do with your unnecessary tone, (angry and bitter, cursing) not reading the recent thread regarding the skulk sound bug, (which contains the why) or understanding the reasons why a bug hasn't been fixed (or even knowing whether it wasn't intentional) or lack of asking or contacting anyone to find out that are so openly available to you, (Me, or any PT) or assuming a change is unanimously hated. (i don't think either of us have gathered any tallies of so many posts to make such a broad statement.*)
But I'll stop there and say i understand why you think the way you do about bugs, as i once did. Its simply not understanding the process or how things work.
So many PTs , once they join go "oooohhh" and it all makes sense.
Believe me its a long explanation (i even wrote a thread about it i was going to post but decided against it)
So i don't blame you, or am that upset by your post, even.
But i care just enough to click that "Disagree" button... oh and obv write all this, ofc.
:-)
I get that there is a lot of stuff that's going on behind the scenes, the problem I have with it is it seems like what's going on is chaotic and disorganized. I read gliss's response in that thread and I get that movement is getting revamped, but you gotta realize that this game came out almost half a year ago and the skulk sound bug has been there ever since.. since your view model doesn't turn when you wall walk, you could be shift walking through a vent and be making all kinds of noise that you couldn't hear. In a vent, you could be wall walking along any of the 4 walls, and you're gonna basically be seeing the same thing. Since there is no visual cue, the audio cue is imperative, and we don't get either cue. It's the game actively working against you to get you killed, and the only thing you can do is be careful and try to predict what sounds other people are hearing.. it seems like it would be important enough to get fixed after 6 months you know?
As far as getting in contact with people, I'm in ENSL gathers almost every day talking to other competitive players, many of them playtesters and map testers, who have been able to give me some insight to things. A lot of them tend to agree with me.
The worst example of what I'm talking about though is the BT mod. I haven't had too much experience with it, but why is it necessary to have a balance test mod at this point? 6 months after the game comes out, they're working on a mod that's going to totally revamp the tech trees, movement, the way the weapons work.. and that's great, and I've heard good things about it. But isn't this basically just admitting that the game wasn't finished at release?
No game is ever finished. Especially not at release. There is no shame in admitting it. You only develop a game as long as you think you can make it better and as long as the bills get payed.
At some point you need to release the game to get funds out of it. But that doesn't mean it is the time, the game is perfect. It is just fun to play. And that is enough. This isn't a reason to prolong development before release or stopping development after the release.
Demanding perfectness is simply not the reality. If you would work in development you would know that.
Maybe when they get back from wasting a week on mods.
I'm pretty sure Sewlek is still working on the balance test mod this week, so there's your progress for NS2... and there's A LOT of changes mind you, it has the potential to become one of the most substantial gameplay overhauls NS2 has seen since early beta days. You can even jump in and test all those changes now, and help speed up their implementation.
But I guess you rather spend time writing troll comments on the forums.
The worst example of what I'm talking about though is the BT mod. I haven't had too much experience with it, but why is it necessary to have a balance test mod at this point? 6 months after the game comes out, they're working on a mod that's going to totally revamp the tech trees, movement, the way the weapons work.. and that's great, and I've heard good things about it. But isn't this basically just admitting that the game wasn't finished at release?
How so? Why can't it just be UWE admitting that the game can be made EVEN better? How is it any different from say Blizzard totally revamping some game mechanics in Diablo 2 with the LoD expansion? Only difference here is that you get it entirely for free. Just because a game is deemed ready for release doesn't mean it can't be improved upon later. And let's be thankful for that, because if innovation stopped at a game's release then a lot of games or mods would have never become as great.
I think there is just something wrong with your attitude. It's great that you care so much for this game and try to point the devs to some sore spots that need fixing, but you should also take a step back and try to look at the whole picture before accusing the devs of being unorganised and wasting time by doing a mod jam.
NS2 was 6 years in development not counting the years it took NS1 to lay the foundation of this game. UWE have worked continuously on the game since launch, releasing patch after patch as well as new content. They reworked this forum and organised countless events and promotions along the way. All this with very limited man-power and funds.
All this for a meagre 34-23€ (or even only 10€ when you went for a sale)! Just think about that!
Sure, I too know the feeling when you get really engaged with something, pouring in countless hours of your spare time, trying to make it part of your every-day social environment (in this case by giving away copies to your friends and all that) and then things don't go the way you'd like to see them go. It sucks, but that is not the game's nor the dev's responsibility and that's just that.
Now think about UWE doing that jam. Just think how you would like to work on the same project for almost 7 years (or even more than a decase in some cases) day in day out. Don't you think you'd crave for doing something different for once? And if it is even only for a week? That's how you burn people out. Not even considering the monetary implications of working for all that time on one project, just the basic human desire for fresh experiences and exploring new creative alleys. I could be mistaken, but judging from myself, I'm pretty sure there are some people at UWE who'd love to try something different and just keep going with NS2 because they feel they owe it to their awesome community, not so much because it generates revenue for the company. I don't think they are in any way obliged to continue working on ns2.
And after all, the game is a shitload of fun as is...
Most competitive players (in my experience) would be happy with gray box maps and all asthetic fluff removed which, imho, make for a lame game. I like the eye candy and I am happy that it is there and think that all the things that competitive players do to game to make them competitive can ruin the game.
Most competitive players (in my experience) would be happy with gray box maps and all asthetic fluff removed which, imho, make for a lame game. I like the eye candy and I am happy that it is there and think that all the things that competitive players do to game to make them competitive can ruin the game.
Not liking visual obstruction constantly jizzed in my face doesn't mean I want the game grey boxed.
And after all, the game is a shitload of fun as is...
Nice story time m8.
The game may be fun, but it is inferior to ns1 such that every day another comp player leaves the scene due to boredom and frustration. Next minute we're only left with custom servers running siege007 and pub scrubs such as Torak and CrazyEddie who would probably find it just dandy if comp players would just leave and stop shitting on their beloved "eye candy"
Gotta get dem splosions and dat bloom, so critical to my enjoyment of this game. Functionality? why on earth would you want the commander UI to not be frustrating. Why aren't you immersed in frustration. Stop complaining you lame pricks.
How so? Why can't it just be UWE admitting that the game can be made EVEN better? How is it any different from say Blizzard totally revamping some game mechanics in Diablo 2 with the LoD expansion? Only difference here is that you get it entirely for free. Just because a game is deemed ready for release doesn't mean it can't be improved upon later. And let's be thankful for that, because if innovation stopped at a game's release then a lot of games or mods would have never become as great.
Would you consider video games art? I would. Just like music, or painting, or dance, or film. Do you see painters selling their art to a museum, then going to the museum 6 months later and totally re-doing fundamental aspects of their painting?
When a piece of art is released, it is judged on the way it looked when it was released. It's expected to be complete. I understand that video games are a different medium than any of the things I mentioned above, and they require maintenance. But a complete overhaul of tech paths, unit abilities, movement, the way weapons work... that's a little more than maintenance. That's having to re-do things they got wrong the first time. Maybe I shouldn't have said they're admitting the game was unfinished at released. A better way of putting it would be to say that it was not ready for release.
Most competitive players (in my experience) would be happy with gray box maps and all asthetic fluff removed which, imho, make for a lame game. I like the eye candy and I am happy that it is there and think that all the things that competitive players do to game to make them competitive can ruin the game.
I don't think very many people who play comp NS2 would be happy with gray box maps. We're happy with the NSL versions of the maps that improve performance to acceptable levels, and those are FAR from grayboxed. We like our eye candy too. But we don't want eye candy that gets in the way of what's going on. I'm curious to see if you can name even ONE thing that's allowed in competitive NS2 that would "ruin the game." There are actually very strict rules about what you're allowed to do in comp play... you're not allowed to script, use macros, use custom skins... it's essentially 100% default NS2, just with fewer light entities on the maps.
I don't consider videogames art, no, I consider them entertainment. And if whoever is providing this entertainment changes the product to possibly provide me with even better entertainment then I don't see how I could possibly be against that.
Here's where the misunderstanding is then; I'm not against the balance test mod at all. I think it's great that we're finally getting some changes, and I think that most of them sound good. I just also think that it's a little silly that it took 6 months after the game was released for them to admit that these things needed to be changed.
Well, I will agree a lot of these things should have been put in earlier, especially since a lot of the changes are in response to issues the community has been bringing up since the early beta days. I just don't see the point in crying over spilled milk and I don't think NS 2 was 'incomplete' at release. I simply think it wasn't as good as it could have been but clearly the developers didn't agree at the time and have only now recently changed their vision.
Better late than never, I really don't see the point in chastising UWE over changing their opinion on NS2's design post-release.
Comments
It's CrazyEddie, he's just crazy like that.
@ Ironhorse,
Thanks for agreeing that no reason had been provided for why the change had to happen and could not be held off, it does seem like a bit of an oversight.
Most servers in the southern hemi' are vanilla...but I often stray outside of my familiar territory
and had found the mod filter rather useful.
I guess I found the mod button more of a useful tool than a hinderance.
If there was a game breaking reason for this change to happen then letting us know would not have had any detriment (as they had removed the functionality) but would have gone a way to explaining why the change was made before the other changes where ready (besides because).
Its clear that UWE are trying to get things right...just a shame they went about it in the way they did with no communication that explains why the feature was removed.
Whilst dev's are people too, like admins they are held to a higher standard.
I dont see what value the comments made, besides putting more of a wedge between a paying customer and the game.
Would have made UWE look better had they not responded to the post of a clearly frustrated end user...instead what was intended in an off the cuff/throw away remark has only aggrevated more people.
I dont know frothy from a bar of soap (and did feel it was a bit of a dummy spit) but regardless of my opinion it did not warrant the antagonistic/smart arsed post.
But UWE are more than that post, heck they showed this over the course of the alpha/beta by at times choosing not to post in some threads.
The frustration that the community has directed at them has washed off their backs.
edit: And alien structures that regen faster than they can be damaged.
Maybe when they get back from wasting a week on mods.
Because it does sometimes affect gameplay. Just before it was glitching Skulk movement. Its not officially supported code, they do not own it; it would just be an additional thing they would have to bug test with every release instead of a fan project.
Amazingly enough, a games company cant be completely devoted to one game. They need to prototype new games modes and ideas to secure the future of the company. I don't know what world you're living in Farknut, but apparently you think NS2 is all UWE need to continue with to keep them employed and their families taken care of. Not to mention game jams like these have been proven to increase moral for teams. Something you're good at destroying with mostly negative comments.
Minimal infestation is not a priority right now. Time would be better spent making the 'best' infestation running as fast as the current minimal as it is a pretty important gameplay mechanic in NS2.
Well, I think some sort of data-gathering tool is needed, on every server, something put out there in the big wide real world to look at and record player performances and how games play out. I think there's a difference between play testing in a lab and play testing in the real world. I just think it would calm down complaints and arguments about balance, but more importantly, would increase the competitive eSport side, because more players would have good access to useful analytical data about their play style. I understand UWE's resources are limited, so I know this may not be a priority for them, but it's something I would personally like to see done asap.
You probably don't know anyone who voted for Nixon, either.
And they are working on ways to make it publicly available, but no eta yet. It's called "Sponitor", and you can search to learn more about it.
Or would you prefer I shut up and go back to spamming phasegates on supposedly uninfested ground until I find the right spot. Gotta have dat busy work.
Sorry, but this is fucking ridiculous. The "best" infestation? The best infestation is the one that doesn't impair your view, hide or obscure players and structures, and is even across the board instead of being randomly generated client side. Please tell me how full infestation is the best infestation. Please tell me how it is a more important gameplay mechanic than minimal. I would imagine nearly all (if not literally all) competitive players use minimal infestation exclusively, and it's been bugged forever.
This is like the commander interface bugs that have been around since the beginning of time and have still not been fixed. Maybe game jams improve morale, maybe UWE has to think of the future, but you think they're going to get repeat customers if they don't fix their fucking game? Things break and go unfixed for MONTHS at a time. Bugs that have been reported for months (skulks making sounds that they can't hear, but are audible for everyone else, the infestation bugs, players being dead at the beginning of the round) go unfixed. Skulk movement gets nerfed, is unanimously hated, and is never fixed.
This coming from a playtest lead is a disgrace. You should resign as you clearly have no idea what is going on.
There isn't a nice way to say it. Also you already know I don't care about forum score.
The fact that infestation has been bugged for a long time and is not a priority IS like the commander interface bugs that have been around forever and still haven't been fixed.
The only parts of my post that were conjecture are that the skulk movement nerfs were unanimously hated, and the implication that I made that UWE will get few repeat customers if they don't fix the bugs in their game... but if you take a look at the discussion about the skulk movement nerfs, it was mostly a lot of hate. And NS2 has less people playing on average than The War Z does for fucks sake... I know that they are two very different games, but the War Z developers are largely considered to be scammers, yet they still have more people playing their game than UWE does. It's reasonable to assume that the people who bought NS2 and no longer play it will not be repeat customers.
I hesitated even bothering clicking disagree because of the difficulty in explaining why.. oh the cosmic irony that you ended up asking..lol
Its a long list, but all having to do with the second paragraph.
Mostly to do with your unnecessary tone, (angry and bitter, cursing) not reading the recent thread regarding the skulk sound bug, (which contains the why) or understanding the reasons why a bug hasn't been fixed (or even knowing whether it wasn't intentional) or lack of asking or contacting anyone to find out that are so openly available to you, (Me, or any PT) or assuming a change is unanimously hated. (i don't think either of us have gathered any tallies of so many posts to make such a broad statement.*)
But I'll stop there and say i understand why you think the way you do about bugs, as i once did. Its simply not understanding the process or how things work.
So many PTs , once they join go "oooohhh" and it all makes sense.
Believe me its a long explanation (i even wrote a thread about it i was going to post but decided against it)
So i don't blame you, or am that upset by your post, even.
But i care just enough to click that "Disagree" button... oh and obv write all this, ofc.
:-)
As far as getting in contact with people, I'm in ENSL gathers almost every day talking to other competitive players, many of them playtesters and map testers, who have been able to give me some insight to things. A lot of them tend to agree with me.
The worst example of what I'm talking about though is the BT mod. I haven't had too much experience with it, but why is it necessary to have a balance test mod at this point? 6 months after the game comes out, they're working on a mod that's going to totally revamp the tech trees, movement, the way the weapons work.. and that's great, and I've heard good things about it. But isn't this basically just admitting that the game wasn't finished at release?
At some point you need to release the game to get funds out of it. But that doesn't mean it is the time, the game is perfect. It is just fun to play. And that is enough. This isn't a reason to prolong development before release or stopping development after the release.
Demanding perfectness is simply not the reality. If you would work in development you would know that.
I'm pretty sure Sewlek is still working on the balance test mod this week, so there's your progress for NS2... and there's A LOT of changes mind you, it has the potential to become one of the most substantial gameplay overhauls NS2 has seen since early beta days. You can even jump in and test all those changes now, and help speed up their implementation.
But I guess you rather spend time writing troll comments on the forums.
How so? Why can't it just be UWE admitting that the game can be made EVEN better? How is it any different from say Blizzard totally revamping some game mechanics in Diablo 2 with the LoD expansion? Only difference here is that you get it entirely for free. Just because a game is deemed ready for release doesn't mean it can't be improved upon later. And let's be thankful for that, because if innovation stopped at a game's release then a lot of games or mods would have never become as great.
I think there is just something wrong with your attitude. It's great that you care so much for this game and try to point the devs to some sore spots that need fixing, but you should also take a step back and try to look at the whole picture before accusing the devs of being unorganised and wasting time by doing a mod jam.
NS2 was 6 years in development not counting the years it took NS1 to lay the foundation of this game. UWE have worked continuously on the game since launch, releasing patch after patch as well as new content. They reworked this forum and organised countless events and promotions along the way. All this with very limited man-power and funds.
All this for a meagre 34-23€ (or even only 10€ when you went for a sale)! Just think about that!
Sure, I too know the feeling when you get really engaged with something, pouring in countless hours of your spare time, trying to make it part of your every-day social environment (in this case by giving away copies to your friends and all that) and then things don't go the way you'd like to see them go. It sucks, but that is not the game's nor the dev's responsibility and that's just that.
Now think about UWE doing that jam. Just think how you would like to work on the same project for almost 7 years (or even more than a decase in some cases) day in day out. Don't you think you'd crave for doing something different for once? And if it is even only for a week? That's how you burn people out. Not even considering the monetary implications of working for all that time on one project, just the basic human desire for fresh experiences and exploring new creative alleys. I could be mistaken, but judging from myself, I'm pretty sure there are some people at UWE who'd love to try something different and just keep going with NS2 because they feel they owe it to their awesome community, not so much because it generates revenue for the company. I don't think they are in any way obliged to continue working on ns2.
And after all, the game is a shitload of fun as is...
Getting the usual "missing required mod" all the time
Most competitive players are lame.
Allow me to expand here...
Most competitive players (in my experience) would be happy with gray box maps and all asthetic fluff removed which, imho, make for a lame game. I like the eye candy and I am happy that it is there and think that all the things that competitive players do to game to make them competitive can ruin the game.
Not liking visual obstruction constantly jizzed in my face doesn't mean I want the game grey boxed.
Nice story time m8.
The game may be fun, but it is inferior to ns1 such that every day another comp player leaves the scene due to boredom and frustration. Next minute we're only left with custom servers running siege007 and pub scrubs such as Torak and CrazyEddie who would probably find it just dandy if comp players would just leave and stop shitting on their beloved "eye candy"
Gotta get dem splosions and dat bloom, so critical to my enjoyment of this game. Functionality? why on earth would you want the commander UI to not be frustrating. Why aren't you immersed in frustration. Stop complaining you lame pricks.
Would you consider video games art? I would. Just like music, or painting, or dance, or film. Do you see painters selling their art to a museum, then going to the museum 6 months later and totally re-doing fundamental aspects of their painting?
When a piece of art is released, it is judged on the way it looked when it was released. It's expected to be complete. I understand that video games are a different medium than any of the things I mentioned above, and they require maintenance. But a complete overhaul of tech paths, unit abilities, movement, the way weapons work... that's a little more than maintenance. That's having to re-do things they got wrong the first time. Maybe I shouldn't have said they're admitting the game was unfinished at released. A better way of putting it would be to say that it was not ready for release.
I don't think very many people who play comp NS2 would be happy with gray box maps. We're happy with the NSL versions of the maps that improve performance to acceptable levels, and those are FAR from grayboxed. We like our eye candy too. But we don't want eye candy that gets in the way of what's going on. I'm curious to see if you can name even ONE thing that's allowed in competitive NS2 that would "ruin the game." There are actually very strict rules about what you're allowed to do in comp play... you're not allowed to script, use macros, use custom skins... it's essentially 100% default NS2, just with fewer light entities on the maps.
Better late than never, I really don't see the point in chastising UWE over changing their opinion on NS2's design post-release.