Holy S***! NO Multiplayer Until Spring!

[Gramphos]

Originally posted by Mergle
Well, I never play multiplayer (I simply don't have the time), but this scenario has got me very worried. The point (as many are sa

Mergle, I think I miss your point

But I guess that you are worried about other features to be skipped.

[Waku]

Originally posted by Leonidas
The more I hear about this game, the more worried I become.

me too

[tniem]

If it is more then just a rumour where is the Firaxis PR person to confirm it?

If you were a PR person what is more important to end a rumor that has the potential to cost your company thousands or dollars or confirm a rumor that has the potential to cost your company thousands of dollars?

I would say if this rumor was false we would have already heard something to that effect.

[Boris Godunov]

I gotta say...

I do not use multiplayer for Civ. I have been waiting for Civ3 for years now. I want it October 16th. If they delay the release over this issue because everyone was yapping about it, I will be very very angry. I will get revenge most foul.

Do NOT screw this up for those of us who cannot wait any longer for Civ3. You WILL rue the day.

[dennis580]

Unfornately we will have to wait to Oct 30 not Oct 16..

[Hoot]

October 30? I just lost 2 weeks of my life!

[General Ludd]

Originally posted by Hoot
October 30? I just lost 2 weeks of my life!

From the shock, or just another 2 weeks wasted?

[Hoot]

Good point, Osweld, probably a combination. Let's see, how much time have I wasted reading the redundancies and agreements of opinion? 2 weeks + an hour or so.....

My gut reaction upon hearing that there would be no mp upon release was a common one, and I admit to feeling let down by Firaxis/Infogrames, but the more I think about it, the less I care.

We have no PROOF that the rumor is true, nothing concrete saying anyone at Firaxis feels they are releasing it prematurely, and no way of knowing if we will have to pay twice for sp and mp. Its all speculation, and until we know more, why should we worry?

I probably only played about 5-10% of my Civ2 time MP (may explain my low level of play), so if Civ3 is only SP to start, fine. They're going to get my money, however they want to go about it. I've bought crappy expansions for games far less interesting and engaging than the civ series, so why get uptight when they ask for it? The system is in place, we collectively as consumers have allowed it. I don't feel I should hold Firaxis et al. to a higher standard just because I have been more eagerly awaiting their product than all those RTS games that siphon money from my account. Only my opinion, and the first I've shared here in a year or so. Let me know if I should make it another year...

[Leonidas]

A full working day has passed and not a single refutation of this rumour by Firaxis. You mean to say that not a single person from Firaxis has poked their nose in this forum for at least 5 minutes today and does not know about what is being discussed here?

That does not include emails that were probably sent to the company about this very issue. So Firaxis must be aware of it.

It was a sneaky thing to do though - to not tell the fans that MP would not be in the fall release of the game. Basically, none of us would have found out about it until AFTER we bought the game

I'll bet people would have been steamed about it at that point. At least now we have been forwarned, if only by accident by the PR person through an email. I sure hope she doesn't lose her job over this.

With that said, I will buy the game, but I think I'll wait until I find out what others have to say about it, and what the reviews say.

I thought this was going to be a special game; apparently everyone thinks so except the publisher. . . It looks like they want to cash in on Sid's name and make a bundle before Christmas before people wise up and realize there are problems with the game.

I hope I'm wrong - boy I hope I'm wrong. . .

[kennymae]

If this is true then I have lost *all* respect for Firaxis as a game development company. This is a shameless abuse of loyal customers. Multiplayer has been an industry standard feature of strategy games since 1998. When I heard Firaxis was going to redefine the industry standard with civ 3 I had no idea that it meant shamelessly abusing customers. What is next? Does Firaxis intend to charge extra for sound?

I have already cancelled shipment on my pre-order and absolutely will *not* buy this game until multiplayer is included out of the box for no additional charge.

If hope this is not true and that firaxis is not attempting to abuse their loyal customer base.

The marketing department really blew this one.

Looks like it is time to start helping out the people working on FreeCiv.

[isaac brock]

Do not lose respect for firaxis! They have no responsibility. They are just lowly developers being pushed around by their big pimp, infogrames. you can **** infogrames right in the ass for all i care, but don't be pissed at firaxis. all they want is a game that they and the gaming community can enjoy. Oh yeah, I almost forgot: they also want money. But its not their fault.

[Paul D]

I will NOT buy Civ 3

Surprise surprise..
The consumer gets jammed for their patience yet again.

I will not buy Civ 3 - it seems far to suspiciously like CTP all over again.

Yet another company who will never see another buck from my wallet.
Firaxis.. your poor business decisions will crush you.

[kennymae]

Originally posted by isaac brock
Do not lose respect for firaxis! They have no responsibility.
snip

I disagree. This had to be on the table before any deals were inked. Firaxis should have stood up for their fans and refused. Developers can only be as good as the features their marketing department will let them include.

No multiplayer in Civ III? Ridiculous. What year is it? 1996? Civnet was fine. Civ II Gold was weasely because networked games were common then. Civ III Gold Network Edition is totally absurd, shame on everyone involved. SMAC was good, but I probably would not have purchased it in the first place if it had not been developed by Firaxis.

Not including MP was a terrible, not to mention arrogant, marketing decision by the publisher, and it was stupid for Firaxis to go along with it. Infogames might benefit from this, but it will seriously damage the Firaxis brand.

I'm glad I got that email from Apolyton regarding this issue. I had no problem cancelling my order. I won't be buying Civ III, and will think twice before buying anything else developed by Sid and company. Besides, I've got Trade Wars now!

Ken

[isaac brock]

It sickens me to the point of explosive diarrhea to share a forum with a traitor like yourself.

[kennymae]

Likewise, with blind Fanatics.

Look, they really dropped the ball here. Did they offer us something like Battle.net, or Ultima Online or Never Rest?. Did they create a huge, rich mutliplayer experience with rankings, ladder games, etc. ?

No.

They took us back to 1996.