1st and 3rd Friday COTM/GOTM releases?

[Denniz]

Would it be practical to schedule release of new GOTM/COTM on a Friday night at midnight? Say COTM on 1st Friday and GOTM on 3rd Friday each month instead of the 1st/15th as we do now.

For the record, let me say that the intent here is NOT to increase ainwood's or AlanH's work in anyway. I really appreciate all their efforts and am not trying to make anyone's life difficult.

 

[ainwood]

Well, I'm mildly flexible. If AlanH can code all the automated systems to work with these, then that's fine.

The only problem would be when I'm away for weekends, but with a bit of pre-planning it could probably be worked-around.

What do people want?

 

[Dynamic]

I prefer the classic release dates because I play GOTM much longer then one weekend and isn't matter for me what the day of the week will be. And I always know when I must end my game.

 

[Ambiorix]

I think this favors only people who play fast, and not those who need more time. Advancing the date of a new release means less time to finish the previous one.
...Unless you allow an overlap during that weekend...

I just mean : if you allow games to start earlier, you should also allow submissions later (by Sunday-evening, e.g.).

 

[Darkness]

I prefer the classic release dates because I play GOTM much longer then one weekend and isn't matter for me what the day of the week will be. And I always know when I must end my game.

Same here...

 

[a space oddity]

Another vote to keep it the way it is. All I need to do now is check the calender to see what needs to be done (finish my own game, start checking submissions, etc). I would surely loose track somewhere if the dates are different each month... (yes, that's a treat! )

 

[Xarin]

*likes it the way it is too*

 

[AlanH]

I don't quite see the point of this proposal. If you want to play the game in a weekend there are always at least three weekends every month, and there's only a fixed number of weekends in a year. Are you saying you always need four weekends to finish? Or is this simply because you can't bear to wait up to five days to start after it's released?

If you need four weekends then we could solve that by delaying the close date on the rare occasions when there are only three in the month. Delaying the start until the first Friday doesn't seem to me to achieve anything, apart from depriving those who prefer to play during the week of some playing time.

I wouldn't need to do anything if a change is agreed, BTW, apart from to change a web page or two that say how the dates work. All the automated dates are driven from the dates Ainwood enters when he uploads the game file. I deliberately didn't hard code the dates because they are bound to vary. For example, last winter the submission deadline for the game that ran over Christmas was delayed to give people more time with their families.

As Space says, the problem is for us human beings, not the robots. Ainwood would have to get the dates right each month when he sets and posts the game dates. Each month, players would have to work out which days to start looking for pre-release threads and game releases and spoilers. And staff would have to remember when to do the checks and when to release the results. It's much easier for people to work to regular fixed dates.

 

[Lance]

If you need four weekends then we could solve that by delaying the close date on the rare occasions when there are only three in the month.

Indeed it is rare. In fact, last time there were only three full weekends (saturday-sunday) in a month, was in february 1998. The next time there will be only three full long weekends (friday-sunday) in one month is february 2009. So I guess it is safe to say that in general, there is always four full weekends in every month. (And yes, the same generalization goes also for periods from the 15th day on the month to the 15th day of the next month.

 

[Denniz]

I don't quite see the point of this proposal... Or is this simply because you can't bear to wait up to five days to start after it's released?

Uh, that one.

As Space says, the problem is for us human beings, not the robots. Ainwood would have to get the dates right each month when he sets and posts the game dates. Each month, players would have to work out which days to start looking for pre-release threads and game releases and spoilers. And staff would have to remember when to do the checks and when to release the results. It's much easier for people to work to regular fixed dates.

The timing issues you and Space mentioned have always made me reluctant to post the question. I saw a post that made me think of it again and I got weak.

I can't finish a game in a single weekend. I just want a large block of time to play the QSC period. Yeah, that's it, I need my extra time at the start. It has nothing do with a lack of patience or wanting something to do on the weekend.

Seriously, right now the only fixed dates I remeber are the 1st and 15th game release dates. All the threads are relative to those dates. For me it is more of a matter of checking to see if they are there yet, than knowing when they will appear. Having to work with companies using different Fiscal calendars over the years, I know it is a matter of communication and adjusting to change. I could help build a calendar with the schedule of GOTM events if someone defined the relative timing of the other events. The schedule could be posted in a sticky and on the GOTM home page. Also, placing the game start date in the title of the Pre-game discussion thread would help with some of that. I would have made this a poll only I don't know how.

Do you think it would be too disruptive?

 

[a space oddity]

Seriously, right now the only fixed dates I remeber are the 1st and 15th game release dates. All the threads are relative to those dates. For me it is more of a matter of checking to see if they are there yet, than knowing when they will appear. Having to work with companies using different Fiscal calendars over the years, I know it is a matter of communication and adjusting to change. I could help build a calendar with the schedule of GOTM events if someone defined the relative timing of the other events. The schedule could be posted in a sticky and on the GOTM home page. Also, placing the game start date in the title of the Pre-game discussion thread would help with some of that. I would have made this a poll only I don't know how.

Do you think it would be too disruptive?

You're right in that it *could* be done, we humans even adapt to things like daylight saving time. It's just that I don't see a big enough reason to implement that change. If you can only play in weekends, then by all means do. Is it so hard to know that the game already available and you can't play yet? I'm sorry but I can't perceive it as a weighty argument.

 

[bradleyfeanor]

I suppose the biggest problem I run into is not having enough weekends to get both games finished. So, I think a better solution would be to add a fifth weekend to every month in the Julian Calendar. Maybe we could also eliminate Mondays, as I have never been very fond of those. I am sure Alan can accomplish this with a bit of PHP.

 

[a space oddity]

Good idea, I'll second that one! I hate mondays too.

 

[AlanH]

Mondays are hereby abolished.

@dvandenberg:
Sorry, I still don't get it. Either we delay release for up to a week, or you delay playing for up to a week. In the first case everyone has to fall in with your version of the calendar, whether they prefer playing weekdays or not. In the second case, you simply work to your calendar, and you look for the game announcement on the Friday night, just as you would have to if we delayed it.

I can also reassure you that you don't need the finish date delayed in order to still have a month to play. Your submissions have arrived an average of 7.6 days from the start date for your 10 games so far.

 

[leif erikson]

@dvandenberg:
Your submissions have arrived an average of 7.6 days from the start date for your 10 games so far.

Isn't it fun having a discussion with Alan? He has way too much data available to him.

 

[Denniz]

Your submissions have arrived an average of 7.6 days from the start date for your 10 games so far.

As you have noted, I am not having a problem with time. Nor am I unhappy about anything. It was just a random thought that had occured to me a couple of times. I wanted to see if anyone else had thought about it as well.

You have already wasted too much time responding to a bad idea. My thanks to you and everyone for your thoughts on the topic.

 

[bradleyfeanor]

You have already wasted too much time responding to a bad idea. My thanks to you and everyone for your thoughts on the topic.

It wasn't a bad idea at all! In fact, just this past weekend my girlfriend (who also plays Civ) and I were discussing the same thing. We both had time to play this past weekend, and knowing the game was not coming out until Monday was most frustrating. I much prefer playing in a large block of time to squeezing in an hour before or after work on a weekday. I hope you didn't take my silly joke from earlier as a knock on your idea!

 

[Denniz]

I hope you didn't take my silly joke from earlier as a knock on your idea!

Not a problem. It was funny.