Congratulations to CFC for getting us FREE DLC! (the mongols)

[Zoo7]

Somebody made a good comment on that article. If you purchased the Digital Seluxe on Direct2Drive, you got ciV Deluxe, Babylon, and the first DLC free. I took that offer with the "school sucks" promo to get it all for $49.99 USD. So that means my first "free" DLC was free anyway...

Well, if the Mongols DLC count as your free DLC, then I'd be upset too. But I doubt that it will.

 

[Thander]

I like that this is free, but I don't like that they are probably going to be releasing more exclusive civ DLCs you have to pay for. In the old days these would be free updates or combined together into an expansion. All DLC does is allow publishers to charge more money for content then they could before. In the past you might buy an expansion for $40 that includes ten new civs plus new units and buildings, sometimes even new mechanics. Now you pay for each civ individually at $5, so ten new civs is gonna cost you $50, the price of a new game, and it won't even have new units, buildings, and mechanics for the overall game. Still is still good news. I'd rather get this free than pay for it. I just wish the rest of them were free too.

 

[Thoughtful Thug]

Then don't purchase the DLC.

This argument has been used countless times for countless games. People still buy DLC. DLC continues to break records. The process rinses and repeats.

A collective of people complain about a game feeling unfinished, unpolished, empty, etc. Company then releases DLC. It's the new alternative to the expansion. Why? Expansions are risky.

Look at Titan Quest. A game that, just like many of you, people said was 'empty, buggy, incomplete.' They patch, patch, patch, people still feel this way. Suddenly: Expansion. People stop complaining about the game feeling empty, being buggy, feeling incomplete. Company goes under.

Why?

Expansions are risky. DLC is not.*

Even further, when a game has many expansions and a NEW game is released, players of the old content expect EVERY SINGLE DETAIL from the past game to still be in the new game. It's like EQ2. When EQ2 came out, EQ players said two things:

1. THE GAME IS INCOMPLETE (EQ had some 7 expansions by that point I believe). Compared to EQ at launch, EQ2 had just as much content.

2. THE GAME IS BUGGY (EQ had some 6 years to fix all of the bugs in the title). Compared to EQ at launch, EQ2 had just as many bugs.

But I digress. If you feel that Firaxis is undermining you, or you feel they did not deliver on their product, or whatever else, just don't buy any products from them. Period.

ETA: If you even, for a second, believe that Firaxis is some god game company, you're absolutely wrong. If nobody buys their next product they will go under.

I never bought the DLC (for ciV and never will) , boy. Only DLCs I would buy, and I did, are FPS like Call of Duty M2. Which is suitable for wanting to play new maps on multiplayer with friends.

But you still forget that most of the games that had success with DLCs are actually good games that deserve more contents for more replay value. This however fall short of that. They need to first add more stuff and fixes before they will ever get any more of my money.

 

[aukrest]

Woot! Mongols!

 

[Clement]

The free dlc can be looked at in 2 ways,

A - I like civ 5 and/or it's only going to get better as it is patched, the free dlc is most welcome.


Or as i currently see it,

B - what use is a new leader to me if i find the core game to be broken? it's only of any use if the dlc comes with a fix for those issues, as a standalone gesture it's pointless.

Sorry for being negative, it's just the way i feel about it.

 

[MasterDinadan]

They did not have the time to implement a properly working diplomacy system and fix the major bugs, but they had the time do work on DLC?

Money rules the world...

It's not as though they put their entire staff on the task of fixing bugs. If you've never worked in the software world, let me enlighten you. There is such a thing as assigning too many people to a single project. There are not very many ways that additional people can contribute.
The point I'm getting at is that it is entirely possible for one group of developers to be working on patches and another group of developers to be working on DLC, with no loss of efficiency.

 

[zonk]

The free dlc can be looked at in 2 ways,

A - I like civ 5 and/or it's only going to get better as it is patched, the free dlc is most welcome.


Or as i currently see it,

B - what use is a new leader to me if i find the core game to be broken? it's only of any use if the dlc comes with a fix for those issues, as a standalone gesture it's pointless.

Sorry for being negative, it's just the way i feel about it.

Well --- I guess one could say that the Mongols and GK make sense in the realm of AI diplomacy.... Perhaps Jon IS working on diplomacy... the next patch will just include more warlike civs while surreptitiously deleting the peaceful ones... voila - diplomacy 'works' because all the available AI civs just start the game hating you, keep hating you, and respect only your ability to squash them.

 

[Supr49er]

Question: Anyone know if we will ever be able to get Babylon if you didn't get the CE/Best buy special offer?

Babylon will be DLC for $5, released when the Mongols are.

 

[Vlade Divac]

Awesome news. Can't wait for the free DLC. Thanks Firaxis and 2K!! Here's one satisfied customer....

 

[MadRat]

With our luck the Mongols horse unit will probably be busted and the remainder of the civs will overrun them with horsemen . *groan*

It is great news - i just hope this will also mean that the patch will release alongside it.

Rat

 

[Clement]

Well --- I guess one could say that the Mongols and GK make sense in the realm of AI diplomacy.... Perhaps Jon IS working on diplomacy... the next patch will just include more warlike civs while surreptitiously deleting the peaceful ones... voila - diplomacy 'works' because all the available AI civs just start the game hating you, keep hating you, and respect only your ability to squash them.

I agree with you, the predictably violent and unfriendly AI leaders are the biggest disappointment in the game to me, genghis is going to have to do some serious battling if he wants to be noticed among the other leaders, when he meets gandhi he's going to get the shock of his life.

 

[Mustakrakish]

First, try NOT being so condescending. I'm not some wingnut conspiracy theorist. I just think a lot of people are buying into an obvious ego-stroke on 2K's part.

It seems FAR too coincidental to me that D2D had this offer, and now 2K is saying "oh yeah, this is all because we value your community SO much." Sounds like as much bunk to me. And this will be the last time I bother responding to you, since it seems you can't help but to be uncivil.

HE is being uncivil?

Uncivil? Condescending? I know you're not responding to me, but I can't even figure out what part of the post would be considered so or why you'd assume that was my tone, when that was hardly my intention.

Never mind him...

...

People are too busy complaining about free DLC (don't get me wrong I hate DLS in general myself) and no one really started to properly rant/speculate/complain on the content itself, so I'll start...

WTH is that second UU? Khan himself? WHAT? 30% combat strength when fighting City-states? Bah... Even more overpowered horsemen?
A horse again? Don't we have enough of leaders on a horse already? What's up with all the horses!? ...Did he steal Alexander's horse!?

 

[masterminded]

I have a recommendation for everybody who bought the game and is dissatisfied with it. It works with every other game that anyone else has been dissatisfied with for the PC and has worked for me in the past.

Stop talking about it and quit playing it. Don't buy DLC. Don't buy expansions. Don't buy future titles. Posting on forums only spreads awareness of a product and, in turn, even if the awareness is negative, people will buy it 'just to see'.

Buck up. We've all made purchases we regret. Take your loses and move on. Don't buy another Civ. Play Civ4. Whatever. Complaining about something that is free is an even more absurd thing. Stating that you're getting something for free when other problems exist is like saying "You know, the visuals in this animation are great but the sound just doesn't cut it. They should have spent more time on the sound!" Who is they? The guys who did the animation?

Don't assume that content people are the same people who fix bugs.

Ugh.

ETA: It's one thing to say "Yeah, this should be changed." It's another to say "This game is awful."

ETAA: I don't buy the argument that 'people are not satisfied with the game.'

Current: Peak:

47,748 72,400 Counter-Strike: Source
44,545 70,662 Counter-Strike
39,249 69,059 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 - Multiplayer
27,267 40,930 Sid Meier's Civilization V
19,041 29,317 Team Fortress 2
17,234 22,868 Left 4 Dead 2
14,145 17,327 Football Manager 2010
5,945 8,790 Empire: Total War
5,390 8,738 Garry's Mod
4,853 7,281 Condition Zero

While I agree that the 'dissatisfied,' myself amongst them, can express our discontent by not purchasing DLC, I don't find your reasoning for not discussing it well grounded. We do so because we care about the franchise and do not like this recent iteration.

I don't really find your claim that discussing the game in a negative context raises consumer awareness in a manner that encourages purchasing the game. There is no way to prove that assertion sans extensive consumer polling. One could easily proffer countervailing reasoning that is just as unfounded, such as arguing that not discussing the game's weaknesses will foster the impression that there are no substantial problems with the game.

I'm not quite sure what you are trying to prove with your steam numbers. The game is new. Recently released titles are played more often than older titles by casual gamers. These gamers are less invested in the franchise than those that play Civ far past release dates. They are less likely to even recognize faults. I would wait to see how popular this game is 6 months out before even considering these numbers. Even then, they will be of limited value because we don't have similar stats from prior versions of the franchise to compare them to. A better metric, in my opinion, would be to compare the percentage of Civ V buyers who purchase the expansion to the percentage of Civ III/IV buyers who purchased the expansions for those games. This isn't perfect as it doesn't account for confounding variables, such as the perceived quality of individual expansions, but it is a better approximation than referencing steam numbers.

 

[Silvis]

Yeah I love the idea that they are releasing more Civs already. Does anyone know if they will work on MP or will it be like the deluxe edition issues?

Also, on the topic of all this speculation and accusations... is there really any good that is going to come from it? I mean, who cares why they released the Free DLC or why they are charging for the other. Since the issues at hand aren't going to be fixed with then there is no reason to pour salt on their wounds. Do we think that they really haven't read the forums or aren't watching the ratings dropping. They will fix the issues or they will never make another Civ game due to bankruptcy. Either way the game has issues but is fun and entertaining. If you don't think so please don't rain on the rest of our parades.

 

[LegioCorvus]

I like this, because I still have hope for this game, despite being near unplayable now. Free DLC/Civs is always nice.

Too bad for the Direct2Drive people, but maybe they'll get the next DLC Civ (Spain?) for free.

Interesting to know that damage control like this is needed. Believable, especially for a game that does better in lifetime sales than release.

 

[The_J]

I agree on not feeling right, but it's free, so I think that makes up for it. But really, I don't think the guys who write the graphics code are the same guys who develop textures / sounds / buttons. Sure, there's some coding time involved in putting the civ in the game, but I think the overlap is minimal. I understand very little about game design, but do you think the guys who create Genghis Khan, create the Mongols painting and the UU painting and etc are the same that deal with textures not initializing correctly? What about the guys who created the soundtrack? They can do the Mongols soundtrack while the game is being patched.

You're sure right, but what about the guys who coded their ability?
What about balancing?

Hey, The_J, good friend you forgot to mention in your frontpage article that Civfantics is mentioned by name! (which was the main reason why I posted it here!)

Exact quote: "as a free gift to the legions of Civ fanatics. (Don't mess with them, they're really well organized."

I think it more refers to all the fans out there .

It's not as though they put their entire staff on the task of fixing bugs. If you've never worked in the software world, let me enlighten you. There is such a thing as assigning too many people to a single project. There are not very many ways that additional people can contribute.
The point I'm getting at is that it is entirely possible for one group of developers to be working on patches and another group of developers to be working on DLC, with no loss of efficiency.

I know, i know, like in math classes: If one person can dig a hole in 5 days, how long will it take 1000 persons to digg that hole? Not really logical, right.

But at least the PR is bad in this case, they should have waited until the patch is out.

 

[Silvis]

I would for sure download Spain if they got it. I wonder what it is that is taking them so long on releasing it. Hopefully they have bigger plans for them or are having issues incorporating their Civ's abilities. I don't know but I am looking forward to it.

 

[Omega124]

Am I the only one whom doesn't like the civ itself? I'm not too keen on having Khan himself to be a UU. If this was, say, FfH, I wouldn't have an issue with the leader being a unit, but the vannila game shouldn't have hero units, in my opinion.

 

[ResIspaLoquitor]

Great, I thought Oda was a little nuts.

Cant wait to have ole Ghengis Khan next door.

 

[Thoughtful Thug]

But at least the PR is bad in this case, they should have waited until the patch is out.

I agree with that. Especially some of the jokes about the game being too war-friendly. Now they give us the Mongols for free? Irony?

We can't be certain if it was a move on Firaxis part, or 2K games. It would be silly that the decision was on the behalf of the latter since they are in the sense -I suppose - to be an expert in that department.