Ho boy, this is going to be a long one....here, have a
I kind of agree and thats because Star Citizen the open world sandbox MMO has lost its appeal. When it comes to potential theres far more mystery and therefor promise resting on SQ42 then on SC. Sure...Star Citizen is still heavily unfinished and a lot can change but what it already has paints a clear picture as to where the journey goes and all signs point to another niche game that will appeal to some and bypass the biggest part of the market. Free Flying weekends while intended to capture more money flies will probably also turn away a lot of people at the same time....random passerby's who are not patient enough to wait for bug fixes, get frustrated or irritated quickly by glitches, dont have a good gaming experience due to performance issues, are getting bored with all the waiting and travel times of which SC has a lot or simply run into less friendly members of the community getting rammed and killed within 30 minutes of their first log-in (25 of which are spent figuring out how to get a ship and get off the pad). These people are not brainwashed enough yet to accept SCs state as WIP (Work In Progress) and focus solely on the potential this pre-alpha holds and while a 45$ buy-in certainly is dirt cheap when it comes to Star Citizen (rofl....) the average gamer probably expects far more value for that kind of money then SC can currently offer. God help the ones who are careless enough to voice their first (bad) impression publicly as they will run into toxic members of the community quickly depending on where they post which further diminishes the first impression.
SQ42 is a complete unknown in stark contrast. While SC itself has forced even believers to retreat arguments and adjust expectations repeatedly over the years SQ42 still has the potential to become whatever Scam Roberts promises all those years ago. I posted it in the past and it looks like my opinion holds. Star Citizen last big push was 3.0 when the whole game changed. It also marked the upper limit of what SC has to offer. Ever since (and thats how many years ago by now?) development progress and news resemble "maintenance mode" in other games. New stuff is added but the rate at which this happens is pityful at best and none of the changes are "game-changers" really. Instead of following a clear game design it rather looks like CiG is trying to "mix it up" by going in different directions at once to keep things fresh and appeal to as many people as possible because holding on to the current cash hamsters is more important then anything. In addition they are running out of time as more and more people become restless and ask the hard questions or lose their patience at which point CiG loses income.
I can imagine that CiG sees the current SC version as pre-alpha ready for release, just add a lil more shine and get rid of some of the more critical bugs and glitches. According to the pro-SC community the game already has so much to offer and is enjoyable on the whole...what more do you want from a game right? Maybe the whales willingness to throw money at them also has changed seeing as Star Citizen has currently reached a peak point and resting "on hold" with nothing major going on development wise (you could argue the point of course but personally I expect more progress from an alpha-status project....MUCH more). So attention shifts to SQ42 only....theres nothing tangible yet on which hopes and dreams could rest. This game is a complete mystery when it comes to its current state or even existence. For years an imminent release was pretended but was always forgiven because the SC-part of the game was carrot enough. Both games are expected to use the same assets which makes the secrecy even more surprising. "Spoilers" dont cut it anymore sorry to say and other companies manage to release materiel WITHOUT revealing the story or big surprise but keeping up the hype...its called TRAILERS with all the trailer videos CiG has floating around doing exactly that (summoning expectations that dont reflect reality....) you would imagine that they could use SQ42 material which was supposed to be almost complete for years only held off by "blockers".
Yet it looks like SQ42 only just now starts to get development time and the projected timeline (almost 2 years to beta) mirrors that. You know....established company relying on already existing assets pushing out a game in 2 years or less? Yeah that. That is if your overall DOUBLE STANDARD enables you to see it at all.
The vertical slice video they released was less then impressive. Oh it looked good sure but I had the distinct feeling that the overall reaction wasnt as excited as CiG wished it would be. It would explain why that piece is the ONLY public evidence of SQ42 gameplay despite the fact that it suggested an advanced version of the game. If development really was as advanced as CiG wanted us to believe I have no doubt that they would have showered us with more trailers and hype....yet thats not the case.
The thing I DO believe is that SQ42 and SC share the same assets because thats a logical consequence when you basically develop the same game which game modes you split due to profit reasons. Going from that starting point we can establish that one of the most important aspects for an enjoyable single-player experience is a list of things....
- AI complexity and capability
- environment diversity
- story
- flight model
No doubt NPCs have some form of AI it simply feels like out-of-the-box rudimentary AI various basic packages provide. At no point do NPCs in Star Citizen manage to surprise you (apart from hilarious bugs/glitches aka emergent gameplay. And never forget that combat AI and personality AI are very different things. Yet Scam Roberts promised a level of AI that basically lives its own digital live next to you acting on its own desires, its own priorities, reacts to environmental or economical changes and so on. Its like Scam Roberts is using the term Artificial Intelligence literally while developing the video game equivalent of it. Its not the same.
While SC has environmental diversity by now this has only happened recently and again...at a pace and with a tier-zero implementation that leaves a lot to desire. We can expect SQ42 to rely heavily on hand-crafted environment because the game is designed as a story-tunnel rather then a game of freedom. While some people are pleasently surprised with the various biomes demonstrated in the current pre-alpha I personally cannot see drastic different environments neither in detail nor overall design. Even zones in World of Warcraft have more difference and flavor to them to what SC currently offers.
Its a closely guarded secret but truth be told I am not holding my horses when it comes to SQ42s story. Movie Roberts had opportunity in the past to show his skills when it comes to story-telling and directors qualities...maybe thats why SQ42s vertical slice resembles a movie more then a game? Regarding "secrecy"....what kind of secrets remain when it comes to SQ42s story? We know the main characters and protagonists, we know what the player is going to do and we know how its going to end (victory or temporary stalemate). Ships offer no surprise, the flight model (no doubt the same as in SC) holds no surprise....the only thing that remains is a personal character development that needs to bond with the player to make it enjoyable. Not only is that a laughable idea when you consider the capabilities of the current game AI CiG also needs to double the effort to make a female avatar choice possible. The Mocap cutscenes are at best used for key scenes and currently represent a high caliber cast only. When I consider currently existing game animations it all seems to be made by hand or taken out of stock rather then surprising you with quality.
It doesnt help that existing competition bypasses or disqualifies Star Citizen with their own takes on various problems so CiG is forced to up the bet or limp after the rest of the crowd. But thats to be expected when you produce a game based on an outdated engine I guess.
No doubt CiG has realized that the current flight model....while sufficient for SC is going to be very underwhelming when it comes to SQ42 where it will be the main player interaction, either via feedback or because some poor sods in CiGs ranks managed to convince the head honcho that its simply not enough.
When I picture a next-generation Wing Commander, you know....a game that the original version was unable to provide due to technical capabilities.....I imagine a very loosely defined basis from which to start. You as a cadet joining the Star Fleet at a time of need but basically an unknown. Your role and field of activity will be determined by your early choices and I expect the game to support each choice equally. Be it as a starfighter pilot, a capital ship crew member, infantry or whatnot. Heck with the level of detail and fidelity CiG advertises even picking a technical career should provide you with enough immersion and challenge to provide ample entertainment. Its all about providing CHOICE and OPTIONS. After all SQ42 is being sold at full retail prize so expecting a little more then an interactive movie is not unrealistic I d say.
Now it could be that CiG makes that choice for you and focuses on the pilot career, complete waste of potential in my book but sure....a next-generation wing commander would have to up the previous qualities by orders of magnitude to deserve that title next-gen. And while graphics certainly are up to the challenge (compared to Wing Commander, not to current games mind you) the rest of the game is not. Nothing about Star Citizen currently is ground-breaking...not when you consider reality and disregard propaganda claims. As both games are so tightly connected the one we can currently access and experience doesnt fill me with a lot of confidence or hope when it comes to SQ42.
Remember Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare?
How do you imagine SQ42 being superior to that game? (honest question) Because I see a cutscene-heavy gameplay with matured FPS mechanics digging into avionic gameplay that is on par if not superior to SCs. The story is epic and well presented transporting drama and action in equal terms while the vertical cutscene of SQ42 invited me to take a nap after 5 minutes. If focus is more on flying ships rather then FPS then I would expect massive improvements and development progress when it comes to ships in general. Ship complexity when it comes to interior modules, ships offering varying gameplay depending on their role, damage model, physical simulation offering a good flight experience....OF COURSE VR because...well thats to be expected of todays flight sims.
You see....a lot of hopes and expectations rest on SQ42 and its success. And that it is a complete unknown at this point only helps to preserve its mystery and therefor key role when it comes to Star Citizen as a whole. No wonder that development focus has shifted "yet again" when community attention shifts. it certainly doesnt smell like "parallel development" to me so I wish the various marketing drones would bring that up as an excuse or sign of excellence.
When it comes to SQ42 I will stand with my past evaluation criteria. If I dont see it or cant access it...it doesnt exist and is to be ignored or disregarded.
AND SUDDENLY we lose about 80% of the content we can talk about....shocker (made-up number).
I am often confused because I fell victim to hype often enough in my life. Something catches my interest, usually a movie but it was video games as well. While waiting you delve into whatever is available be it lore, technical documentation or just interviews and articles.....anything to get more information and of course feed that hype-pet you have under your belt. Your expectations rise and you become restless, twitchy and simply cannot wait. Pretty much ALL these examples have resulted in me being very disappointed in what I finally got. Movies overall are teasing you with content that simply isnt there or very underwhelming to a degree where you deem the trailer being a "better" movie then the movie itself. Games swing one of two possible ways. Acceptable return value for my money and time or complete disappointment. Neutrality really isnt an option anymore once you get invested, either financially or emotionally. The effects and results of hype have taught me to be very careful and skeptical when it comes to trailers or teasers or simply vocal promises. Some call me a hater because of it but really, I cant see "hate" which is often pure disappointment.
Now a critical factor is the duration of the hype. As a company you want to hit the "sweet spot" where people are eagerly expecting the game (pre-orders, special packages merchandise) but not go completely overboard to a degree that your game simply cannot fulfill them anymore. The longer the waiting the more elaborate and generally bigger expectations become. Take too long to develop the game and you are suddenly threatened with other teams copying your idea and release before you diminishing the waters for you. At one point you stack up so much hype and debt that your game simply cannot live up to its expectations anymore.
For me, CiG has reached that point years ago and blew past that sweet spot with afterburners stuck. Many expectations are by now completely unrealistic and delusional when you consider the base SC has. Many people have realized this as well and continue to "adjust" their expectations accordingly to a lesser version of 2012. At the same time you have the hardcore fans who claim superiority in every area becoming toxic and delusional in the process. There is a difference between acknowledging existing issues but reserving a "thumbs-up" for yourself and getting into arguments using absolutes because you dont accept other peoples opinion. You can have great discussions and arguments with one kind of these people, the other one only ensures a trench war and repeat cycle filled with ridicule, glee, snide remarks and distraction tactics.
Worse...CiG seems to be completely unable to control or manage community expectations and often fails at basic community interaction often alienating people if not directly then by proxy (DS and Beer4TheBeerGod were example enough for me to make up my mind about CiG as a company).
Their default decision seems to be to "let it run wherever it wants and wait for it to get tired then assess the situation based on where you are". You can get lucky with such an approach but the risk of breaking your neck or ending up in the wrong place is astronomical compared to any success chance.
Thats really how I see CiG these days.....a cowboy on the back of a wild bronco reacting to its actions and trying to stay on top while the horse is taking them wherever and challenging them as long as it has the strength to do so. And CiG certainly does whatever needs to be done to stay in the saddle but thats a far cry away from "being in control". And the longer this show lasts the more and more obvious it becomes that the "manageable" steed CiG picked at the start of the rodeo is in truth the "back breaker" with a lot more stamina and a real nasty attitude making them fight for their life.
The longer development lasts the higher the expectations become. Especially when you consider the prizetag to this venture so far. The less you reign in your community the more impossible these expectations will become to fulfill. The problem is that you cannot do a 180 on these things when you are dependent on a continuous funding stream. I mean you can try but I dont think that ll have a good ending. Already CiG tries to lower expectations and while that works for a small part of the community others remain on the extreme opposite ends of previous versions utterly disregarding CiGs current input.
SQ42 is a complete unknown in stark contrast. While SC itself has forced even believers to retreat arguments and adjust expectations repeatedly over the years SQ42 still has the potential to become whatever Scam Roberts promises all those years ago. I posted it in the past and it looks like my opinion holds. Star Citizen last big push was 3.0 when the whole game changed. It also marked the upper limit of what SC has to offer. Ever since (and thats how many years ago by now?) development progress and news resemble "maintenance mode" in other games. New stuff is added but the rate at which this happens is pityful at best and none of the changes are "game-changers" really. Instead of following a clear game design it rather looks like CiG is trying to "mix it up" by going in different directions at once to keep things fresh and appeal to as many people as possible because holding on to the current cash hamsters is more important then anything. In addition they are running out of time as more and more people become restless and ask the hard questions or lose their patience at which point CiG loses income.
I can imagine that CiG sees the current SC version as pre-alpha ready for release, just add a lil more shine and get rid of some of the more critical bugs and glitches. According to the pro-SC community the game already has so much to offer and is enjoyable on the whole...what more do you want from a game right? Maybe the whales willingness to throw money at them also has changed seeing as Star Citizen has currently reached a peak point and resting "on hold" with nothing major going on development wise (you could argue the point of course but personally I expect more progress from an alpha-status project....MUCH more). So attention shifts to SQ42 only....theres nothing tangible yet on which hopes and dreams could rest. This game is a complete mystery when it comes to its current state or even existence. For years an imminent release was pretended but was always forgiven because the SC-part of the game was carrot enough. Both games are expected to use the same assets which makes the secrecy even more surprising. "Spoilers" dont cut it anymore sorry to say and other companies manage to release materiel WITHOUT revealing the story or big surprise but keeping up the hype...its called TRAILERS with all the trailer videos CiG has floating around doing exactly that (summoning expectations that dont reflect reality....) you would imagine that they could use SQ42 material which was supposed to be almost complete for years only held off by "blockers".
Yet it looks like SQ42 only just now starts to get development time and the projected timeline (almost 2 years to beta) mirrors that. You know....established company relying on already existing assets pushing out a game in 2 years or less? Yeah that. That is if your overall DOUBLE STANDARD enables you to see it at all.
The vertical slice video they released was less then impressive. Oh it looked good sure but I had the distinct feeling that the overall reaction wasnt as excited as CiG wished it would be. It would explain why that piece is the ONLY public evidence of SQ42 gameplay despite the fact that it suggested an advanced version of the game. If development really was as advanced as CiG wanted us to believe I have no doubt that they would have showered us with more trailers and hype....yet thats not the case.
The thing I DO believe is that SQ42 and SC share the same assets because thats a logical consequence when you basically develop the same game which game modes you split due to profit reasons. Going from that starting point we can establish that one of the most important aspects for an enjoyable single-player experience is a list of things....
- AI complexity and capability
- environment diversity
- story
- flight model
No doubt NPCs have some form of AI it simply feels like out-of-the-box rudimentary AI various basic packages provide. At no point do NPCs in Star Citizen manage to surprise you (apart from hilarious bugs/glitches aka emergent gameplay. And never forget that combat AI and personality AI are very different things. Yet Scam Roberts promised a level of AI that basically lives its own digital live next to you acting on its own desires, its own priorities, reacts to environmental or economical changes and so on. Its like Scam Roberts is using the term Artificial Intelligence literally while developing the video game equivalent of it. Its not the same.
While SC has environmental diversity by now this has only happened recently and again...at a pace and with a tier-zero implementation that leaves a lot to desire. We can expect SQ42 to rely heavily on hand-crafted environment because the game is designed as a story-tunnel rather then a game of freedom. While some people are pleasently surprised with the various biomes demonstrated in the current pre-alpha I personally cannot see drastic different environments neither in detail nor overall design. Even zones in World of Warcraft have more difference and flavor to them to what SC currently offers.
Its a closely guarded secret but truth be told I am not holding my horses when it comes to SQ42s story. Movie Roberts had opportunity in the past to show his skills when it comes to story-telling and directors qualities...maybe thats why SQ42s vertical slice resembles a movie more then a game? Regarding "secrecy"....what kind of secrets remain when it comes to SQ42s story? We know the main characters and protagonists, we know what the player is going to do and we know how its going to end (victory or temporary stalemate). Ships offer no surprise, the flight model (no doubt the same as in SC) holds no surprise....the only thing that remains is a personal character development that needs to bond with the player to make it enjoyable. Not only is that a laughable idea when you consider the capabilities of the current game AI CiG also needs to double the effort to make a female avatar choice possible. The Mocap cutscenes are at best used for key scenes and currently represent a high caliber cast only. When I consider currently existing game animations it all seems to be made by hand or taken out of stock rather then surprising you with quality.
It doesnt help that existing competition bypasses or disqualifies Star Citizen with their own takes on various problems so CiG is forced to up the bet or limp after the rest of the crowd. But thats to be expected when you produce a game based on an outdated engine I guess.
No doubt CiG has realized that the current flight model....while sufficient for SC is going to be very underwhelming when it comes to SQ42 where it will be the main player interaction, either via feedback or because some poor sods in CiGs ranks managed to convince the head honcho that its simply not enough.
When I picture a next-generation Wing Commander, you know....a game that the original version was unable to provide due to technical capabilities.....I imagine a very loosely defined basis from which to start. You as a cadet joining the Star Fleet at a time of need but basically an unknown. Your role and field of activity will be determined by your early choices and I expect the game to support each choice equally. Be it as a starfighter pilot, a capital ship crew member, infantry or whatnot. Heck with the level of detail and fidelity CiG advertises even picking a technical career should provide you with enough immersion and challenge to provide ample entertainment. Its all about providing CHOICE and OPTIONS. After all SQ42 is being sold at full retail prize so expecting a little more then an interactive movie is not unrealistic I d say.
Now it could be that CiG makes that choice for you and focuses on the pilot career, complete waste of potential in my book but sure....a next-generation wing commander would have to up the previous qualities by orders of magnitude to deserve that title next-gen. And while graphics certainly are up to the challenge (compared to Wing Commander, not to current games mind you) the rest of the game is not. Nothing about Star Citizen currently is ground-breaking...not when you consider reality and disregard propaganda claims. As both games are so tightly connected the one we can currently access and experience doesnt fill me with a lot of confidence or hope when it comes to SQ42.
Remember Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare?
How do you imagine SQ42 being superior to that game? (honest question) Because I see a cutscene-heavy gameplay with matured FPS mechanics digging into avionic gameplay that is on par if not superior to SCs. The story is epic and well presented transporting drama and action in equal terms while the vertical cutscene of SQ42 invited me to take a nap after 5 minutes. If focus is more on flying ships rather then FPS then I would expect massive improvements and development progress when it comes to ships in general. Ship complexity when it comes to interior modules, ships offering varying gameplay depending on their role, damage model, physical simulation offering a good flight experience....OF COURSE VR because...well thats to be expected of todays flight sims.
You see....a lot of hopes and expectations rest on SQ42 and its success. And that it is a complete unknown at this point only helps to preserve its mystery and therefor key role when it comes to Star Citizen as a whole. No wonder that development focus has shifted "yet again" when community attention shifts. it certainly doesnt smell like "parallel development" to me so I wish the various marketing drones would bring that up as an excuse or sign of excellence.
When it comes to SQ42 I will stand with my past evaluation criteria. If I dont see it or cant access it...it doesnt exist and is to be ignored or disregarded.
AND SUDDENLY we lose about 80% of the content we can talk about....shocker (made-up number).
I am often confused because I fell victim to hype often enough in my life. Something catches my interest, usually a movie but it was video games as well. While waiting you delve into whatever is available be it lore, technical documentation or just interviews and articles.....anything to get more information and of course feed that hype-pet you have under your belt. Your expectations rise and you become restless, twitchy and simply cannot wait. Pretty much ALL these examples have resulted in me being very disappointed in what I finally got. Movies overall are teasing you with content that simply isnt there or very underwhelming to a degree where you deem the trailer being a "better" movie then the movie itself. Games swing one of two possible ways. Acceptable return value for my money and time or complete disappointment. Neutrality really isnt an option anymore once you get invested, either financially or emotionally. The effects and results of hype have taught me to be very careful and skeptical when it comes to trailers or teasers or simply vocal promises. Some call me a hater because of it but really, I cant see "hate" which is often pure disappointment.
Now a critical factor is the duration of the hype. As a company you want to hit the "sweet spot" where people are eagerly expecting the game (pre-orders, special packages merchandise) but not go completely overboard to a degree that your game simply cannot fulfill them anymore. The longer the waiting the more elaborate and generally bigger expectations become. Take too long to develop the game and you are suddenly threatened with other teams copying your idea and release before you diminishing the waters for you. At one point you stack up so much hype and debt that your game simply cannot live up to its expectations anymore.
For me, CiG has reached that point years ago and blew past that sweet spot with afterburners stuck. Many expectations are by now completely unrealistic and delusional when you consider the base SC has. Many people have realized this as well and continue to "adjust" their expectations accordingly to a lesser version of 2012. At the same time you have the hardcore fans who claim superiority in every area becoming toxic and delusional in the process. There is a difference between acknowledging existing issues but reserving a "thumbs-up" for yourself and getting into arguments using absolutes because you dont accept other peoples opinion. You can have great discussions and arguments with one kind of these people, the other one only ensures a trench war and repeat cycle filled with ridicule, glee, snide remarks and distraction tactics.
Worse...CiG seems to be completely unable to control or manage community expectations and often fails at basic community interaction often alienating people if not directly then by proxy (DS and Beer4TheBeerGod were example enough for me to make up my mind about CiG as a company).
Their default decision seems to be to "let it run wherever it wants and wait for it to get tired then assess the situation based on where you are". You can get lucky with such an approach but the risk of breaking your neck or ending up in the wrong place is astronomical compared to any success chance.
Thats really how I see CiG these days.....a cowboy on the back of a wild bronco reacting to its actions and trying to stay on top while the horse is taking them wherever and challenging them as long as it has the strength to do so. And CiG certainly does whatever needs to be done to stay in the saddle but thats a far cry away from "being in control". And the longer this show lasts the more and more obvious it becomes that the "manageable" steed CiG picked at the start of the rodeo is in truth the "back breaker" with a lot more stamina and a real nasty attitude making them fight for their life.
The longer development lasts the higher the expectations become. Especially when you consider the prizetag to this venture so far. The less you reign in your community the more impossible these expectations will become to fulfill. The problem is that you cannot do a 180 on these things when you are dependent on a continuous funding stream. I mean you can try but I dont think that ll have a good ending. Already CiG tries to lower expectations and while that works for a small part of the community others remain on the extreme opposite ends of previous versions utterly disregarding CiGs current input.
