This is a really sore subject for me as I hate the idea that fans dictate what should and shouldn't be created in a video game. All we seem to hear these days is fans complaining that some aspect of a game didn't meet their requirements, and so the developers of said game change their original vision to please said fans.
Is this practise right?
Like hell it is!
The developer has a vision for the game THEIR vision, not the fans vision.
What next the developer gives away free games because a game didn't meet the fantasy ideas of a fan?
1 Like I am totally with you. The whole Mass Effect thing was completely blown out of proportion. No other media has this nonsense. I can appreciate that games are more expensive than DVDs or books but hearing gamers comment (anonymously on the internet) about how they haven't received 'closure' from their game is pretty sad.
It's one thing to make petitions and stuff to change things like the mass effect 3 ending. I'm not sure this was the case for Hitman though. I don't recall hearing about any petition. Most likely the developers saw all the backlash from comments on the video, and decided to change it themselves.
If I like a series, but see something that is extremely dumb or looks horrible, I'll call it out. Case in point RE6 and Dead Space 3. Those games look like crap, and I will be very vocal about it. I won't be buying those or supporting the developer. I don't really care about some stupid petition though.
As you say, a video game is an art. So the artists have thier rights to do whatever they want. But from the other hand, it is also product. And the consumer also got thier rights to say what they expect from the product they want to buy.
What actually we need is a better connection between the developer and fan so each other can understand the other's plans and goals. Official threads don't worth a shit. If you go and talk about your opinions there it is much as like talking to yourself in your bed room. And ofcause it's human nature that no one want to be ignored and this leads to a fan rage.
any game will please some fans and annoy others so how can you tell if it was those fans who affected the developers choice or just they are the ones who were pleased with the outcome?
Mass Effect 3 has been a new low point for gamers due to Bioware caving in and changing the ending. :/
@g1rldraco7 I for one will be playing the original when I get around to it, and not the new additions; for this very reason.
I think the developer should look at what the fans have to say and if they think it works then they should do it, but if it goes against the fans, then maybe the fans should respect the developer, cause they want their game to be great by their standards.
I get the feeling gamers complain too much about anything and everything sometimes, but then again I feel some complaints are legitimate, namely when games are broken in some areas and are virtually unplayable. I think you're referring much to a case like Mass Effect 3, where people didn't like the ending so it was changed up in attempts to please everyone. In my opinion that's a bit ridiculous. It's fine to be disappointed, but crying to the game devs is kind of pathetic, especially when it gets to the point where they give in and change it. It seems standards are getting really high for gamers, then again millions are still playing Call of Duty, so I'm not sure what to think.
I think fans should complain as much as possible, the more pessimism the better! Why? Because if the developers or publishers actually listen to their fans' general consensus (unlike Capcom), they can make a better game.
Don't like something? Don't be sad, be mad! :p Yell at the devs for being so terrible, that way you might just get exactly what you wanted. It's the entire purpose of complaining, to hope that your issue is fixed.
@parkurtommo Capcom is exactly what I was thinking about, but admiringly so because they REFUSE to let whiny fans sway them from evolving their Franchise (Resident Evil).
Let the fans cry. IGN Resident Evil Message Board is infamous for this. Terrible creatures over there.
Unfortunately you are the problem and would fit in right over there. So go.
1 Like Interesting question - does the ending of a movie change because the fans don't like it? No but in part because the cast and crew are long since gone and working on other projects. Developers on the other hand are working on DLC or the next game. Equally is an alternate ending or similar released as DLC a bad thing??
@SadPSPAddict Yeah, a lot of movies change the ending. Paranormal Activity, The Shining, Clerks, Dodgeball, Little Shop of Horros, Men in Black II, Dawn of the Dead, Dr. Strangelove, Pretty woman, Blade Runner, Army of Darkness, 28 Days Later, Pretty in Pink... need I go on?
@SadPSPAddict Actually, yes they do. They do pre-screenings, and in many instances they have changed the ending because the pre-screeners didn't like the ending. Case in point, Rambo 1 had two endings, and people liked the one that's in the movie.
2 Like No matter how much a developer wants to share their vision of a game, the fans typically have the final say because they're the ones paying $60. In today's economic climate, studios are being shuttered, so development teams have their backs against the wall. I feel as if they're forced to give in to fan demand----they don't have a choice these days.
