» Mon May 14, 2012 1:45 pm
Something to remember, though, is that there are more people that own both a console and a PC then one or the other. Very few have things segregated that black and white. I, for one, would have bought RAGE for one of my consoles if I didn't have a brother to play online co-op with (haven't even bothered to make that attempt since it is anyone's guess how the single player issues are effecting that side of things right now). That was a definitive selling point for me.
Personally, before RAGE popped on the scene, I'd never really bothered looking into who made Doom/Quake/Wolfenstein. I just played them and left it at that. The problem is that issues, errors, and mistakes on the order of magnitude that RAGE and id Software are having make a much bigger impact towards people knowing your company then a great game ever will just because of how fast negative press and word of mouth (or forum as is the case) spreads. I, for one, am not passing definitive judgement on the companies involved with this launch because of the launch. I will reserve my judgement on who is worth while when the week is up and there is, or is not, a patch for RAGE itself. I give credit to ATI for moving as fast as they did to correct some, obviously not all, player issues by trying to push out driver patches left and right in the span of the day the game hit shelves; they're not even the developer losing the possibility of future consumers of a product. For as many people that say id Software should shout at ATI to get with the program, how many think ATI is looking at id Software and shouting at them to start owning up for their software launch issues. I never had a problem with my video card drivers until RAGE, as an example.
Remember, two days is an eternity for a consumer more times then not. For a developer facing launch issues this large that could be easily the span it takes to get everyone on the same page, sitting down, and gathering up as many different issues as possible on forums such as this, before settling on where to even begin.
Probably the biggest thing I can't seem to understand is why, after all these years of various products having faults on launch of varying degrees of magnitude, has no one thought to assign a group to do one thing and one thing only; provide feedback to the forums/consumer base about the what, when, where, how, and/or if on attempts to iron out problems like this. I can't understand how companies can expect people, who have extremely varying degrees of patience, to react calmly, rationally, or even politely when they provide no insight as to whether or not anything is even being talked about. Fact is, I'm, and others I'm sure, just assuming id Software is looking into anything at all by the silence. It is just as likely, because we haven't had definitive feedback, that they're doing absolutely nothing, but weighing portfolios and ideas for the next project. Hearing nothing is hearing nothing. It doesn't matter if the company is, or isn't, doing something about a problem. If people hear nothing, they can only assume it means nothing, or, at best, means somethings; but even the hopeful dwindle when nothing is said as the days go by.
I have faith, since it has only been two days, and I know how hard it can be getting things rolling when chaos befalls something, but if, in a week for instance, no real back-and-forth feedback comes up from anyone, even I might start changing my attitude on it all.
EDIT: All references to 'company' or 'companies', unless otherwise stated, are referring to companies as a whole, not necessarily id Software or the companies involved with RAGE and its launch.