Have Firaxis Abandoned BtS?

[Duuk]

It seems a terrible shame, there are some things at least they could have fixed very easy. For SP mode you always have bhruic's patch, but for multiplayer, it's a shame ...

Have everyone do a clean install and install the unofficial patch.

Works like a charm in MP.

 

[bennos76]

after the way the people here acted preceding the 3.13 patch, firaxis shouldnt tell anyone anything.

Totally agree. So much disgruntlement about the release date and then so much complaining after it came out. There's a lot of whingers out there. People need to remember that Firaxis has never been under any obligation to make a patch to satisfy the needs of people that have already bought the game. Sure it's good business practice, but I think Firaxis have been truly exceptional as far as multiple patches tailored to the requests of the community go. I for one would like to see a bit more gratitude towards them.

 

[jkp1187]

For what it's worth, several Firaxis representatives on this forum have repeatedly said that a new patch is in the works, and that it is just a matter of time.

 

[r_rolo1]

^^Here we go again....

Firaxis employes saying that they are working on a patch is not much more than coffee talk... it might even be true ( I suppose that is true.... ) , but if the big buck dudes got there tomorrow and say " Ppl ,drop whatever you're doing and start thinking on _________ ( new game to launch in christmas 2009 ) " ,do you think that the patch will go out?

I would like to see Firaxis to use their Civ IV site ( that is idle for a long time... by my accounts , for about 3 years ) to drop something about the patch. But that is highly unlikely....

 

[Civfan333]

I think they'd use the BTS site....

 

[antracer]

"People need to remember that Firaxis has never been under any obligation to make a patch to satisfy the needs of people that have already bought the game."

Huh? A company is not responsible for making it's product work correctly? I suppose using that logic all those chinese toys with lead were OK to use, that the companies involved had no responsibility to their product?

Perhaps Ford should have thought this way when they made the Pinto... and decided an 18 cent part wasn't viable... causing the car to explode in rear end collisions. Using your logic Ford had no responsibility at all to make their cars safe... because you had bought them, and now they were your cars.

Why is it that a game company can throw out a few patches and then abandon their product? Just because it's a program on a computer? Because it's a game? Why is it allowable for a software company to just screw people over without being responsible? It's not just this game, it's ALOT of games and game companies. Why is it this way...?

Because people give them money. That's all...

Well, used to give them money anyways. Having been through the merry go round with these guys through Civ3 and Civ4 I can say the next time I touch another Civ product will be when it's $5 in the bargain bin at wally world, IF at all. perhaps when enough people stop spending $50 on a game and wait until it's $5 or $10, the tap dancing of the executives will bring blood flow back to the collective company cranial cavities, and they will realize how much more people will pay for something that WORKS CORRECTLY.

Not a popular song, but one that needs to be sung occasionally.

T

 

[AfterShafter]

Huh? A company is not responsible for making it's product work correctly? I suppose using that logic all those chinese toys with lead were OK to use, that the companies involved had no responsibility to their product?

Perhaps Ford should have thought this way when they made the Pinto... and decided an 18 cent part wasn't viable... causing the car to explode in rear end collisions. Using your logic Ford had no responsibility at all to make their cars safe... because you had bought them, and now they were your cars.

Why is it that a game company can throw out a few patches and then abandon their product? Just because it's a program on a computer? Because it's a game? Why is it allowable for a software company to just screw people over without being responsible? It's not just this game, it's ALOT of games and game companies. Why is it this way...?

...

Well, used to give them money anyways. Having been through the merry go round with these guys through Civ3 and Civ4 I can say the next time I touch another Civ product will be when it's $5 in the bargain bin at wally world, IF at all. perhaps when enough people stop spending $50 on a game and wait until it's $5 or $10, the tap dancing of the executives will bring blood flow back to the collective company cranial cavities, and they will realize how much more people will pay for something that WORKS CORRECTLY.

No, they really aren't. Remember, we live in a (largely) capitalist world. If people buy a faulty product, then the people selling have met their goal. Their goal isn't to produce a perfect product, rather a saleable one. There is no objective law or directive which obligates them to fix a product after they sell it. Only market forces obligate them.

Your new approach is the only one that obligates them to actually release a functional product. Problem for you is, since millions of others won't follow it, all you're going to do is deprive yourself of Civ V, Revolutions, whatever. So, your call.


PS - PLENTY of Ford products, new and old, have had glaring deficiencies in their design, many of which were fixed in foreign cars decades ago but persisted in Ford products. I don't really see Ford as being a great example to support your case of "They are obligated to fix faulty products!"

 

[mourndraken]

I don't think that a new patch is needed. update to 3.13 and then put in Bhuric's patch yourself. Why are people angry about a patch? Would you rather wait years while the game is play tested by a small group (who may or may not find the exploit) ? I prefer the current method of taking the game public as fast as possible and let us all find out what can be improved. Use company resources to make new products that will keep the company profittable and bring out civ5,6,7,8, etc untill I'm dead.

 

[deanej]

antracer, we're lucky the developers release patches at all. In fact, before the Internet, there were not patches. What if you wanted something that worked better? You had to buy a new version.

In fact, version 1.1 of Windows was released to correct a critical flaw in Windows 1.0. People who had 1.0 had to buy 1.1, though these days such a change would be put out via Windows Update on patch Tuesday.

 

[warpstorm]

In fact, before the Internet, there were not patches. What if you wanted something that worked better? You had to buy a new version.

I call BS!

That isn't at all true. I've got a box with patch disks that companies mailed out (assuming you registered your game). I also got a lot of patches off the bulletin board systems. Pretty much every game from Microprose had a patch or three.

 

[Woody1]

Yup, I can recall the days of getting patches off BBS's. It was kind of hit and miss, but worked if you had some good BBS's in your telephone area code.

IIRC, some companies had free long-distance BBS's that you could log into and get a patch.

 

[Wodan]

BBSes Telephones

Ah, the good ol' days.

And of course there was downloading pwrn at 4800bps or even 2400 or worse. Took all night.

Wodan

 

[r_rolo1]

... good ol'days ,when 3 kb/s was a nice download speed and the games occupied 45 MB in a CD

 

[Wodan]

... good ol'days ,when 3 kb/s was a nice download speed and the games occupied 45 MB in a CD

CD

Young whipper-snapper. In my youth games came on a 5.25" 256k floppy.

At least they weren't on punch cards.

Wodan

 

[Dale]

CD

Young whipper-snapper. In my youth games came on a 5.25" 256k floppy.

At least they weren't on punch cards.

Wodan

Pffft.

In MY day games came on cartridge or TAPE!

Barn-storming was revolutionary as it used more than two colours.

And Asteroids owned position number 1.

And where Civ1 took 17 minutes to load and two tapes.

 

[r_rolo1]

I'm a SMAC boy But I do remember my infant spectrum and Amiga plays in my friends houses ( computers were extremely rare around here 20/25 years ago ) and the good ol'tapes ( that had that annoying tendendy to wrap out .... )

 

[Honorable_Pawn]

if a new patch gets released by firaxis, will that then get put on the newest copies of BTS in the shops, if so how long does it normally take after final patch b4 id be able just to go and buy a bug free game without all this downloading one dodgy patch after another?
Got the first two civ4 and warlords but after reading some of these pages ive been completly scarred off from getting it! especially as im not v.good at fixing these probs myself,(last time i just checked for updates on warlords, downloaded official patches and niether game worked at all! had to reinstall!)
if any one can answer my question or put my mind at ease
about buying BTS i would be very grateful... CHEERS!!

Go ahead and buy it. Then install the official patches. The install Bruhic's fix.

I bought BTS the day it hit the stores. Between The official patches and Bruhic, I have a very enjoyable experience from day one.

 

[Honorable_Pawn]

Totally agree. So much disgruntlement about the release date and then so much complaining after it came out. There's a lot of whingers out there. People need to remember that Firaxis has never been under any obligation to make a patch to satisfy the needs of people that have already bought the game. Sure it's good business practice, but I think Firaxis have been truly exceptional as far as multiple patches tailored to the requests of the community go. I for one would like to see a bit more gratitude towards them.

I agree 100%

 

[Honorable_Pawn]

"People need to remember that Firaxis has never been under any obligation to make a patch to satisfy the needs of people that have already bought the game."

Huh? A company is not responsible for making it's product work correctly? I suppose using that logic all those chinese toys with lead were OK to use, that the companies involved had no responsibility to their product?

Perhaps Ford should have thought this way when they made the Pinto... and decided an 18 cent part wasn't viable... causing the car to explode in rear end collisions. Using your logic Ford had no responsibility at all to make their cars safe... because you had bought them, and now they were your cars.

Why is it that a game company can throw out a few patches and then abandon their product? Just because it's a program on a computer? Because it's a game? Why is it allowable for a software company to just screw people over without being responsible? It's not just this game, it's ALOT of games and game companies. Why is it this way...?

Because people give them money. That's all...

Well, used to give them money anyways. Having been through the merry go round with these guys through Civ3 and Civ4 I can say the next time I touch another Civ product will be when it's $5 in the bargain bin at wally world, IF at all. perhaps when enough people stop spending $50 on a game and wait until it's $5 or $10, the tap dancing of the executives will bring blood flow back to the collective company cranial cavities, and they will realize how much more people will pay for something that WORKS CORRECTLY.

Not a popular song, but one that needs to be sung occasionally.

T

Silence, Peon!

 

[toft]

At least next time (civ5), I know that I am not buying the game before I read about it in forums... I dont feel like paying for an extended beta.