Developers v. Gamers
A very interesting thread popped up on Twitter. A game developer opined that the reason developers don't talk to gamers is that the gaming culture is so toxic that anything said by developers concerning how games are made will be accused of lying or cheating the gamers in some way.
I read the thread about a day before the story broke on news outlets, so I've had more time to think about the issue than others. And he does have a point. Whenever a video game is about to come out and it has a feature that is unfamiliar, weird or shady, (or had a feature that was in a previous game taken away), the gaming community will rage and troll and launch boring tirades against the developers of that game, claiming they will boycott the game. Then the gamers buy it, enjoy it, and wait for the next outrage to cross their path. If you want a really good example of this, take a look at the outrage surrounding No Man's Sky. Even I wrote about this game, and while I have softened my stance from the developers being liars to just getting in over their heads, the basic point stands. There are a lot of gamers that are toxic to developers (and most everyone else really).
But what no one seems to be asking is why this is. So let's ask why. I have a few answers, and the ultimate reason(s) could be one, some or all of them.
1. Shady business practices. Video game companies are secretive about how much games cost to make. This is not surprising. Most companies don't release numbers on how much to make a product. What gets gamers in a uproar is how these companies ask for $60 for their games, and it turns out to be an upfront fee, and then ask for more money from you in the form of microtransactions or lootboxes for cosmetic game items that used to be free in previous games (like shaders and haircuts). And these gamers tend to blame the developers for putting them into the game. But these developers are coding microtransactions in these games at the behest of their boss, the video game company. You know, the boss who signs their checks, and thus gives the orders, and the developers obey them or they get fired. You gamers want to get mad at someone? Be mad at WB Games. Be mad at Activision. Be mad at EA. Ask them why it's so expensive to make a game. Ask them to explain themselves and their actions. Don't blame the developers.
2. As a corollary, video game companies are throwing developers under the bus. Usually it's the developers who are the face behind the games, not the game company boss. So it's the developers who are talking to the gamers. And those developers have the unenviable job of convincing gamers why microtransactions, lootboxes, day-one DLC, season passes and other shady crap are necessary to the experience of playing these games. Even if they are adept at public speaking (which they're not for the most part), all these shady practices are a hard sell. Take a look at this video and this article to see what I'm talking about. And again, fans can't parse out the fact that WB Games ORDERED Bob Roberts to say those things and Sony LET Sean Murray twist in the wind, promising No Man's Sky features that would never be in the game. Why? Plausible Deniability. Oh no, it's the developers saying these things, not us your friendly neighborhood game company.
3. Gamers can (and usually do) act badly. Sure, they've been lied to. Sure, they've been cheated out of their money by greedy companies. That's still no excuse to shoot the messenger. The developers are toeing the company line, and they have to if they want to keep their jobs. Stop blaming, harassing, doxxing, & sending death threats to the developers. They are slaves to the capitalist nightmare just like the rest of us, and are trying to bring a little entertainment to our lives.
4. And sometimes, certain developers can be super-jerks themselves. I'm looking at you, Digital Homicide, Konami, Capcom, Blizzard. That's right, I said Blizzard. With your really good-looking $60 Overwatch game with the freaking lootboxes. You make more money than the GDP of every third-world country on Earth combined, every year. Why the damned lootboxes?????!!!!!!!!!!.............Uh, *ahem* yeah. I guess I need to take my own advice & calm down.
Honey, where's my Lord of the Rings music CDs?
I read the thread about a day before the story broke on news outlets, so I've had more time to think about the issue than others. And he does have a point. Whenever a video game is about to come out and it has a feature that is unfamiliar, weird or shady, (or had a feature that was in a previous game taken away), the gaming community will rage and troll and launch boring tirades against the developers of that game, claiming they will boycott the game. Then the gamers buy it, enjoy it, and wait for the next outrage to cross their path. If you want a really good example of this, take a look at the outrage surrounding No Man's Sky. Even I wrote about this game, and while I have softened my stance from the developers being liars to just getting in over their heads, the basic point stands. There are a lot of gamers that are toxic to developers (and most everyone else really).
But what no one seems to be asking is why this is. So let's ask why. I have a few answers, and the ultimate reason(s) could be one, some or all of them.
1. Shady business practices. Video game companies are secretive about how much games cost to make. This is not surprising. Most companies don't release numbers on how much to make a product. What gets gamers in a uproar is how these companies ask for $60 for their games, and it turns out to be an upfront fee, and then ask for more money from you in the form of microtransactions or lootboxes for cosmetic game items that used to be free in previous games (like shaders and haircuts). And these gamers tend to blame the developers for putting them into the game. But these developers are coding microtransactions in these games at the behest of their boss, the video game company. You know, the boss who signs their checks, and thus gives the orders, and the developers obey them or they get fired. You gamers want to get mad at someone? Be mad at WB Games. Be mad at Activision. Be mad at EA. Ask them why it's so expensive to make a game. Ask them to explain themselves and their actions. Don't blame the developers.
2. As a corollary, video game companies are throwing developers under the bus. Usually it's the developers who are the face behind the games, not the game company boss. So it's the developers who are talking to the gamers. And those developers have the unenviable job of convincing gamers why microtransactions, lootboxes, day-one DLC, season passes and other shady crap are necessary to the experience of playing these games. Even if they are adept at public speaking (which they're not for the most part), all these shady practices are a hard sell. Take a look at this video and this article to see what I'm talking about. And again, fans can't parse out the fact that WB Games ORDERED Bob Roberts to say those things and Sony LET Sean Murray twist in the wind, promising No Man's Sky features that would never be in the game. Why? Plausible Deniability. Oh no, it's the developers saying these things, not us your friendly neighborhood game company.
3. Gamers can (and usually do) act badly. Sure, they've been lied to. Sure, they've been cheated out of their money by greedy companies. That's still no excuse to shoot the messenger. The developers are toeing the company line, and they have to if they want to keep their jobs. Stop blaming, harassing, doxxing, & sending death threats to the developers. They are slaves to the capitalist nightmare just like the rest of us, and are trying to bring a little entertainment to our lives.
4. And sometimes, certain developers can be super-jerks themselves. I'm looking at you, Digital Homicide, Konami, Capcom, Blizzard. That's right, I said Blizzard. With your really good-looking $60 Overwatch game with the freaking lootboxes. You make more money than the GDP of every third-world country on Earth combined, every year. Why the damned lootboxes?????!!!!!!!!!!.............Uh, *ahem* yeah. I guess I need to take my own advice & calm down.
Honey, where's my Lord of the Rings music CDs?
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