I've seen them in a few places, but what exactly are these seasonal passes?
Essentially pre-orders for all paid game content that is released after the fact. Most of the time it's for DLC, but games like Teletales' The Walking Dead use it a little more literal.
Though, it not unheard of for devs/publishers to exclude content from the season pass to make an extra buck.
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Essentially pre-orders for all paid game content that is released after the fact. Most of the time it's for DLC, but games like Teletales' The Walking Dead use it a little more literal.
Though, it not unheard of for devs/publishers to exclude content from the season pass to make an extra buck.
Yeah, another way to make you pay more for stuff they could've
included in the game.
I remember the days big budget games were being sould for $50,00, with lenghty campaigns and free multiplayer. Now you see many MMORPGs with monthly subscriptions that charge you extra money to play a race or some gear that was included in it's predecessors lore and gameplay for free. And imho, early acces to special or collector edition equipment is unfair.
But I'm starting to get optimistic. More and more people complaining about it. Soon, most developers will have to drop this strategy. That's why I like more independent reviewers.
^ And in a way it is. The Witcher's developers made a pretty big deal about how The Witcher 3 paid DLC would be exclusively used for adding 30+ hours worth of game content to the base game. Strongly implying they'd have expansion packs rather than the DLC we're used to nowadays.
CD Projekt is doing a great job. I like the idea of respawning enemies, because it just encourages you to try new gear and skills before moving on with the story/main quest.
Yes, we should favor developers and publishers who learn from their mistakes and are not afraid of offering new things.
Game development (for mainstream or popular games) is a very pricey endeavor though. It's not uncommon for development and marketing costs combined to hit close to or over $100 million. So naturally they're going to be reluctant at trying out new things for which there is a very possible chance it will totally flop. As much as I like originality in games, I'm not going to hold a grudge against devs or publishers that make barely any changes to the gameplay formula and stick to something they know is lucrative (many modern military FPS games and Assassin's Creed series for example). They are a business first and foremost after all. Indie games and smaller studios are usually where the more 'artsy' or creative/original games are.
Game development (for mainstream or popular games) is a very pricey endeavor though. It's not uncommon for development and marketing costs combined to hit close to or over $100 million. So naturally they're going to be reluctant at trying out new things for which there is a very possible chance it will totally flop. As much as I like originality in games, I'm not going to hold a grudge against devs or publishers that make barely any changes to the gameplay formula and stick to something they know is lucrative (many modern military FPS games and Assassin's Creed series for example). They are a business first and foremost after all. Indie games and smaller studios are usually where the more 'artsy' or creative/original games are.
Maybe I made it look like I want every developer to make revolutionary game design. But that's not what I meant. I like when they bring at least some changes to gameplay and listen to what faithful fans of a franchise have to say. And indie developers because you never know what kinds of new things they can bring. But I agree, many times they just can't risk new things.
Like you mentioned, some shooter franchises change almost nothing but graphics and physics technology from one game to the other.
But I still have lots of respect for what CryEngine or Frostbite can do, and what DICE and Crytek have accomplished.
Some people criticize COD for being repetitive, but I find the plots of MW, Black Ops and Advanced Warfare very good.
I just prefer to spend money on games that bring more new elements and avoid just copying some formulas, they just
spark my curiosity more. Maybe it's because of my age. After some time, I see some gamers care more about new gameplay and artistic concepts and story telling more than realistic graphics.
I was gonna wait to DL 'Pillars of Eternity' until the Steam sale... but I got impatient last week.
Nice little Infinity Engine strat-RPG. Crowdfunded by Obsidian (same studio that made Fallout New Vegas), and rather well put together.
Sounds like it's got a large amount of content, too; upwards of 50 hours-worth of main story, plus sides and mini-games. Combat is a pause-and-issue variety, and the multitude of classes/races will make for some good replayability, as well.
Playing Recettear, a game about managing an item store in a dungeon-like setting. A woman showed up trying to sell me her father's favourite thing because he had passed away. That thing was... a piece of candy. Ended up buying it for 23% of the base value because it was low season for sweets.
Soooo. Anyone wanna gush about E3 happenings? Fallout 4? Final Fantasy 7 Remake?
I fell out of my chair when they announced The Last Guardian. It was as infamously mysterious as, until recently, Half Life 3 had been. Horzion: Zero Dawn also looks super cool.
The backwards compatibility on Xbox One might convince to actually get it now.
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