SimCity's Launch - Failure.

Plenty of issues have occurred in Sim City's launch.
Examples being;

Most, if not all of the people who pre-ordered the game cannot get into the game.
People who purchased the Digital Deluxe edition are having problems with their game running.
Servers down.
And there's a lot more, including a 200 page thread in the EA support forums.

Watch this entire video for more information.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUl_Cj2_KWU

(I know that Chris mentioned he can't play Sim City - he was one of the many people that pre-ordered).

You think game developpers would learn from Diablo 3...Assassins Creed...these always on DRM's are easily emulated so why make things for paying customers so difficult for something thats not going to work anyways?


Of course Francis had to chime in LOL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9VClRhU404

In my opinion, EA gives the worst gaming experience out of all of the game developers/publishers. Fifa and Fight Night have some of the worst servers around. And considering how much profit they turn over from each title they release, it's terrible. I feel for those who pre-ordered the game a long time ago.

I also think it's stupid that a lot of the game is based around an internet connection.

I was excited for SimCity but I don't think I'll purchase it any time soon.

Waves'

Twitch shows while some aren't able to play, and there are problems, over all it wasn't that bad for an online game. Seriously you guys should be the first to understand what online games are like, mmo launches are always dire. Hell months into the game it can still be shit, and with them you are paying a monthly sub too.

Launch problems just aren't a reason to bitch about DRM. They are quickly solved, mostly as demand from launch settles, and frankly there are far worse problems with DRM, people shouldn't be fixated on the simplest one which will naturally fix itself.

Personally I'm more concerned about games becoming services instead of products. It make it far too easy for companies to fuck around with them post launch. Which again every mmo player should have past experiences of, SWO to name but one (though every mmo changes over time).

On one hand I love multiplayer, on the other I hate not being able to also play solo/offline. I hate how companies have taken to the argument that online is needed for multiplayer, when clearly older games show it's BS and they can easily do both.


Oh and I'd question calling this launch a failure. D3 was far worse, at least people are playing simcity. That video shows a 30min wait timer, are you seriously saying that constitutes a failure? 30min is nothing, I've waited 2+hours to get on some games, after many hour downloads. It's more of a failure that they didn't have a global launch. But I suppose that would have caused more issues, and hopefully they will have fixed it for the UK launch anyway. But yeah bitching about a 30min wait, when I have a what 96hour wait, seriously fu.

A 30 minute wait on a game that has lived it's entire life as solo offline play...yea..thats a failure. Customers that paid hard earned money for pre release not being able to download due to server overloads? Yea..failure...

I don't want "friends" cities...I don't want an online experience...I log into WoW for that....I want Sim City Reborn...not Sim City You cant play on a laptop at the Doctor office...or in a hotel without paying outrageous internet fees...only when EA says you can play...not when you want to play.

One video I watched touches base on a very interesting subject...no game is ever supported forever....so when EA decides to stop supporting this game what then? Servers will be shut down...your cities will be gone...and the game will be worthless...

When I pay $60 for a game..I want a game I can install 10 years later and play for nostalgia alone...

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Originally Posted by Monolith

A 30 minute wait on a game that has lived it's entire life as solo offline play...yea..thats a failure. Customers that paid hard earned money for pre release not being able to download due to server overloads? Yea..failure...

I don't want "friends" cities...I don't want an online experience...I log into WoW for that....I want Sim City Reborn...not Sim City You cant play on a laptop at the Doctor office...or in a hotel without paying outrageous internet fees...only when EA says you can play...not when you want to play.

One video I watched touches base on a very interesting subject...no game is ever supported forever....so when EA decides to stop supporting this game what then? Servers will be shut down...your cities will be gone...and the game will be worthless...

When I pay $60 for a game..I want a game I can install 10 years later and play for nostalgia alone...

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All games are moving online though, even if they started off as an offline game. Online interactions adds more content with zero effort from the dev team. Customers pay hard earned money for pre orders of mmos too. Hell there are a lot of things you can buy before release, that have no guarantee of working on release.

I do want friends cities. I do want an online experience. I like WoW too, but it's a different online interaction. Having online simply shouldn't affect the ability to be offline, and frankly anyone suggesting that can go to hell for wanting less content. Just look at SC2 for instance, you can play that offline, and then go online and get vastly more out of it. Trust me, I whore that game while I'm away and have taken my laptop with me! Not having offline is bullshit, having online is not bullshit!

I totally agree with games not being supported forever, which is why they should all have offline modes. I have no issue with the idea behind DRM as long as your account can be cached while offline. I know the servers will be shut down at some point in the future but I also know I won't be playing it by that point. Also they could easily stick in some cash shop features to milk out enough to keep a server up. Servers cost barely anything these days, a few players who are still buying stuff can easily support a few thousand.

I'd also be shocked if someone doesn't emulate the server side anyway. Seriously people are doing it for mmos which are far more complex behind the scenes. D3 had an emulator before it was released! If they haven't released an emulator, or EA haven't made an offline patch, before the servers close I'd bet there'd be legal action available imo.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Monolith

You think game developpers would learn from Diablo 3...Assassins Creed...these always on DRM's are easily emulated so why make things for paying customers so difficult for something thats not going to work anyways?


Of course Francis had to chime in LOL

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9VClRhU404

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LOL couldnt stop laughing at him

These companies need to realize DRMs and forcing online play just hurt sales. I remember more people buying games in the early 2000's than now, even when the games were easily pirated and also able to be played online on the official servers. There are so many restrictions now that they lose potential sales just from bad press. ex; me being a huge SimCity fan and never touching this game because of the issues.

Good luck, EA. Hope you die soon.

*UPDATE* EA Disables Non-Critical Features To Ease Server Problems;
EA Disables Non-Critical Features in SimCity to Ease Server Problems - IGN

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Originally Posted by Ron

These companies need to realize DRMs and forcing online play just hurt sales. I remember more people buying games in the early 2000's than now, even when the games were easily pirated and also able to be played online on the official servers. There are so many restrictions now that they lose potential sales just from bad press. ex; me being a huge SimCity fan and never touching this game because of the issues.

Good luck, EA. Hope you die soon.

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There is nothing wrong with DRM for anyone who actually pays for games. The problem comes when the DRM becomes too invasive and harms the experience. It's sort of like speed limiters in cars, they are perfectly fine when used loosely to stop excessive speed, but they could easily decide to limit speeds to the road you are on and make it too invasive which would make it bad. Technically it would make sense for a legal PoV, but it would be annoying as fuck.

Forcing online play however is complete BS that companies need to stop, but probably won't.

Pretty sure games sales have only increased as gaming becomes more mainstream and social, which is probably the opposite to what the original gamers liked about games! It's the same with the internet really, everything I liked about the internet as a whole is slowly being sapped away from it. It's now illegal in England to troll people on social media sites...

Bad press doesn't exist in the long run. People who were going to get the game, still get it at some point. People who weren't going to get the game are subjected to constant talking about it, and down the line get it to see what the discussion was about. The best way to slam a bad game is to ignore it, and deny it's existence as much as possible. I'd give some examples, but that would defeat the object of ignoring it!

I hope EA doesn't die, then the SimCity servers might go down!

theres 2 resons for "failing at launch" they dont have the money to spend on the right amount of server and keep them going after the support for the use of them is lost, and free advisement, yes thats right free advisement.

Servers are actually running perfectly for me and most people.

Are they sorting all their problems out though?

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Originally Posted by KidRamboDubstep

Are they sorting all their problems out though?

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It's pretty much all sorted. I've had no problems whatsoever. :):

Why do people keep calling SimCity a failure? It quite clearly isn't, I have found out recently that over 60% of those who criticise the game, don't actually have it nor have they ever played it. So seriously, buy the game before you judge it...

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Originally Posted by Lunerica

buy the game before you judge it...

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You are the cancer killing gaming. "THROW $60 AT THEM AND IF YOU DONT LIKE IT TOO BAD"

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Originally Posted by RaptorJesus

You are the cancer killing gaming. "THROW $60 AT THEM AND IF YOU DONT LIKE IT TOO BAD"

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Uh, pretty much every entertainment format follows the same principle. You pay for it, and if you don't like it well you've consumed that content so do you really deserve a refund? It's a bit of a catch-22, in order to decide you don't like something you need to try it, but in trying it a company can easily say you've used their product and are no longer eligible for a refund. There should be some sort of timer I guess, but considering the quality aspect of gaming is completely unregulated there's fuck all chance of us getting any quality assurance really. I really think if they are going to remove reselling, government needs to step in and force refunds for stuff. Kind of like the South Korean government did on D3.

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Originally Posted by Lunerica

Why do people keep calling SimCity a failure? It quite clearly isn't, I have found out recently that over 60% of those who criticise the game, don't actually have it nor have they ever played it. So seriously, buy the game before you judge it...

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DRM that for me again?
i cant play an offline game, offline why?
there isnt a reson, apart for i want ppl to steal this game and add a feture thats already in the game, just need a little modifiying.

ill try it once that happens, and if come with a LAN mode i wont buy it, just becuase i dont like "always online" you know alot of us dont have an internet connection.

its the main reson i didnt get diablo 3

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Originally Posted by MAXTRAXv3

DRM that for me again?
i cant play an offline game, offline why?
there isnt a reson, apart for i want ppl to steal this game and add a feture thats already in the game, just need a little modifiying.

ill try it once that happens, and if come with a LAN mode i wont buy it, just becuase i dont like "always online" you know alot of us dont have an internet connection.

its the main reson i didnt get diablo 3

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This is an mmorpg forum, it's kind of the last place people should be moaning about online play. To me, the online aspect is probably the best part of the game, or it will be when it works fully! I can build a city in the old games, and they get released all the time. The online stuff is awesome, for the same reason I enjoyed Anno 2070.

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Originally Posted by RaptorJesus

You are the cancer killing gaming. "THROW $60 AT THEM AND IF YOU DONT LIKE IT TOO BAD"

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Oh yes, because 60$ will break the bank... No it wont (well for most people)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWcHMHz3NoA

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Originally Posted by llhlhljh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWcHMHz3NoA

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The irony of that being posted on the 10th March, your argument is invalid.

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Originally Posted by Lunerica

The irony of that being posted on the 10th March, your argument is invalid.

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I guess you're trying to say that they reviewed it after the botched release was fixed or something. If that's the case, yeah right. It's not a far stretch of the imagination to consider the makers experienced those issues for real, then planned and created the video, scripted and recorded the voice acting in the days leading up to the 10th when it was published.

I don't know what you're talking about though, fanboy. You can't just claim someones argument is invalid without giving any legitimate explanation and expect to be taken seriously.

Enlighten me. I don't know much about this game - and I'm proud to admit it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by llhlhljh

I guess you're trying to say that they reviewed it after the botched release was fixed or something. If that's the case, yeah right. It's not a far stretch of the imagination to consider the makers experienced those issues for real, then planned and created the video, scripted and recorded the voice acting in the days leading up to the 10th when it was published.

I don't know what you're talking about though, fanboy. You can't just claim someones argument is invalid without giving any legitimate explanation and expect to be taken seriously.

Enlighten me. I don't know much about this game - and I'm proud to admit it.

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Oh you are trying to be clever? It's the 10th March, Nothing special - I don't actually think anyone has even had this problem since they have upgraded their servers, now stop trying to be clever where you quite clearly are not. Move out and get on with something. Your argument is invalid as you just post a video dated 10th March 2013, if you are to stupid to understand that, then just get out.

Regardless of validness or not...that was pretty funny...

"I have a fucking receipt!!!!"

lol

Just a minor update....there is now a server emulator out for this game....you know where to look "ARGGHH Matey!"

It works with minor bugs..it's not complete mind you...but it allows you to get a feel of the game prior to purchase.