posted 12-19-98 11:08 PM ET        

First off, I would like to wish the AC team happy holidays. Ok, here is my beef. A while back Brian Renyolds stated tha EA is experiencing some delays with the translations with the AC manual. What the ****?!? I ask. Electronic Arts, being the worlds largest entertainment software publisher in the free world and otherwise, should have resolved their difficulties with the translations MONTHS ago. As we all may have read from various sources over the last 24 hours, AC went gold and is being shipped to manufacturing for duplication. If EA would of had their **** together package production wise, we all could have been playing AC by the end of this month. I may sound like I am nit-picking but what the hell, Bioware/interplay shipped off Baulders Gate this last Thursday, And it will be in stores next week. The point is here that EA, being a big corporation is not interested in making their customers happy, or their development studios.(that's another rant all together)
What EA seems to really be interested in is shoveling out tons of **** product for the Christmas season, (nascar99, that crappy boxing game)and making gamers wait for stuff that they really want. Namely, Alpha Centuari. I really wish that there was some sort of petition that we as AC posters, and gamers in general could send to EA, to let them know that we really do not appriciate them screwing us as consumers. If there was a way I could give Brian or Sid $50.00 for the game directly, I most definately would. ANy thoughts? complaints? suggestions?

Merry Christmas,

LevelDesigner

posted 12-20-98 01:57 AM ET            

Did it ever occur to you that maybe they DO care about the gamers and so waited until the game rules and GUI were set in stone before making the manual? Remember that the game was delayed from November until now because Firaxis decided to redo the user interface! Now, this is just my opinion, but I think it might be a prudent idea to wait until the game is as close to being done before doing the manual! If the game is as complexe as it looks, it's probably also a very big manual. That means it's going to take time to write, then translate, then print.

Also, I doubt that EA is doing anything on purposefully to delay the game. Remember, they've probably already paid Firaxis a hefty advance (possibly in the range of $1 million, based on the reputation of Firaxis). Until EA starts selling product, they aren't recouping any of that money!

Well, one exception. They may be purposefully delaying the release of the English version so that they foreign language versions can be released at the same time. There was a point made a while ago that when English version are released before foreign versions, the forgein versions don't sell as well because people download the english version as warez.

Finally, it is possible that EA misjudged when Firaxis would actually finish the game and so they aren't as ready as they could be, but seriously, I think you're overreacting just a tad. Remember, this is just a GAME, it's not like people's lives are at stake here. (Really, they aren't. If they are, then the people are WAY TOO unstable! )

posted 12-20-98 02:28 AM ET            

ouch that hurt!

No more jokes please. I was rearended and it hurt to laugh so please no more joke, for a few days

posted 12-20-98 03:19 AM ET            

I am like chill dude. I realize that peoples lives are not at stake, and I also do
realize that it is only a game. It is certainly not going to break my heart if the game is late, actually I couldn't care less. My point is that I would rather have my money go to the actual talent that made the game, not the megacorporation that is EA. 1 million advance? try like 3 to 4 million, games are getting way more expensive to create nowadays. Now, my views are from a different perspective because I have actually developed a few games for big companies and It was not the most rewarding experience. On the other hand, being an Independant developer is much more rewarding because the satisfaction of finishing a product without having an entire corporate infrastructure breathing down you neck is well, nice. Not to mention the profits and financial rewards are much more obtuse as well. Its really a whole issue of art vs. commerace. With that in mind, I directly buy products from ID software whenever I can, as opposed to buying them from activision. Carmack and co deserve mymoney much more than some marketing goon in a nice suit at Activision. To end this rather dull tirade, The money should go tto the talent. Not big name publishers who screw things up with their out of step shipping ideologies, SKU's and marketing experts.

Leveldesigner

posted 12-20-98 01:14 PM ET            

The problem there is that there are too many games out these days and since some publishers know their game is lousy, they spend money to basically bribe the retailers into putting it in a big display. Then the poor customer thinks that the game must be good because it's in a fancy display.

This is also why some games need to be patched. Because the publisher has purchased shelf space for a specific time, they put the game out regardless of whether or not it is done.

posted 12-20-98 04:51 PM ET            

1. Give me the english version of the manual, in a .TXT file.

2. I go to www.altavista.com

3. I run the .TXT file through the translator.

4. I give the versions back to EA, in all the languages.

5. People in foriegn countries can now stare at their manuals in complete bewilderment.

Thank you, that is all...

posted 12-20-98 06:29 PM ET            

Well, same goes for the english version, doesn't it? So no point delaying it?

IMHO, people who have had computers as a hobby for some time, are used to english and propably don't even want any game translated to, for example, finnish (I don't). It's the same thing with OS. I had Win95 in finnish but when I changed to Win98 I switched back to english; I never was familiar with the finnish version; too many unfamiliar, invented computer terms.

To me, computers and english belong together.

With the enlargement of computer market, there are more especially middle aged people who have just bought their first computer ever with no knowledge at all.

For them, computer games mean NHL98, Formula 1, Quake, Colin McRae, Tomb Raider XVII etc. (not claiming that these games aren't good).
They are the ones who need the translation, and it's o.k. if NHL or some Formula 1 game is translated to finnish. It's good business.

If I try to tell to my middle aged friend with his first computer, brand new P2-450, how fine a game SMAC is/will be, he won't/didn't understand. And I'm not talking about the language, but the idea and complexity of the game. SMAC is just so original, complex and different from the mainstream games, that it propably won't please the majority; if it would, it'd be RTS ;-)I hope I'm wrong; the more games Firaxis sell, the happier I am, it only means more quality games.

Furthermore, translations usually suck, they have errors and the resulting "language" is something between the original and the
destination; in my case "finglish". This is because of the pressure of the release date.