Do Not Preorder Games

[Gwayne]

O well, I did buy hoi II on release day as well and I never did regret that.

So how bad can it be to preorder stellaris what is the same as release day buy but with goodies, and showing support for paradox.

Also they show the bugs life in the streams.

 

[theoverlysensitivegamer]

no one cares

On the contrary, I expect that a good crop of pre-purchases will most likely encourage them to stay the course. To do the same things with future games in development as they did with Stellaris, on the (probably good) assumption that what worked before will work again

I suppose this is possible, I am open to the idea that pre-orders are ok to reward a company, but I think you can find other ways of supporting paradox (eg buying old games that you wouldn't otherwise) and showing them that being transparent works.

 

[theoverlysensitivegamer]

Any number of things could happen between now and the release day. I've been hit by bills that are hirer than I originally expected so I have to cut back my 'waste on stuff' money for actually important things.

I'm not saying Paradox are saints, I'm just saying assuming they'll turn into heartless cuthroats on the drop of the hat is utterly mental.

Yeah your right, that PROBABLY wont happen. I think a more likely thing is them gradually getting more shaddy. Hmm...maybe if we just let that bug and that bug slip by no one will care...or that major game breaking bug....screw it , why even try? This is of course just a hypothetical situation and I doubt it will happen.

 

[theoverlysensitivegamer]

I could probably post a whole thesis about 'Pre-Order Culture' and all that jazz but it's like 3:10 AM where I am right now and I can't really be bothered to do something as stupid as that.

Look, 'Pre-Order Culture' is only a real, true concern (And it /is/ but only in the AAA scene, really. In AA studios(Like PDX) and Indie developers, it kinda isn't as -much- ... Early Access is a totally different beast which I'm not even gonna TOUCH right now) when it comes to AAA Developers who have a history of releasing buggy games and try for that yearly release cycle.

Paradox? It's kinda irrelevant to chalk them in the same light. They don't have the same shady history as say, Ubisoft or EA. They don't have a yearly release cycle. (They do however, release a fuck-ton of DLC, is this a problem? nope. Because if the host has the DLC, then -everyone- has the DLC, pretty much making that point by-and-large irrelevant. They don't split communities, ((hey if they did do that then they'd be screwed because of splintered community and their game would die faster than a fish at an air convention.)))

I just..
I don't know.

Why are you even arguing this?
You said, right in the first words of the first post of this thread that you concede that it'll do very little and probably accomplish nothing.

'I dont really know why I'm making this thread seeing as most of you have probably already made up your minds, but oh well.'

Well thank you for taking the time to think about your response. Yeah, this probably was a pointless thread. Just wanted to get my ideas out there. I updated the op to reflect the steam refund thing. And without a doubt, paradox is much better then publishers like EA or Activision, but there have been small, promising studios in the past that turned to the darkside. I really didn't mean to come off as bossy and apologize if I did. And unfortunately there are many people who are mindless drones and preorder for no reason, probably not as many that are paradox fans though. And my problem isn't that people are wasting their own money, its that video games as a whole could be effected negatively.[/QUOTE]

 

[King Travis]

preorders are bad

 

[bob2ball]

My money situation is tenuous not in a bad way but if I didn't preorder now I probably wouldn't be able to get the game for months , also I treat preorder like early access I only do it if I know I want the game in its current state.

 

[Dalvyn]

As an individualist empire, we will choose how to spend our energy ourselves. So we ignore your embargo, and continue with the trade arrangement.

 

[PlacidDragon]

*Some people are saying my title sounds like a command. It is not supposed to be

I dont really know why I'm making this thread seeing as most of you have probably already made up your minds, but oh well. Please don't preorder video games, it gives developers bad ideas and and makes you risk your money for an unfinished product. Do you really need that new avatar that badly? If you need more information just search for a video on youtube, total biscuit has a good one. Please watch these videos before commenting, pre-ordering can have lasting effects that go well beyond wasting your ten dollars. Even if you trust paradox, dont change their good rep by encouraging them to use scummy behaviors. I wasn't around when these games released, but if I recall correctly many of paradox's releases are unfinished/buggy? I respect Paradox greatly and I doubt they would do anything bad but its always good to be skeptical.

Generally speaking, i agree with you. With the exception of Paradox games (as in, internally developed, not published). There, i generally know what i am getting, as i have been a customer of them for uuuh... 15 ? years (ever since the original EU). The only time i've been burned by Paradox in that regard was with "Sword of the Stars II", which was (and still is) a giant turkey. But that was an externally developed title, their in-house titles have never disappointed me (gamebreaking bugs aside, but i got used to that in the old days...lol. Those do not rear their ugly heads anymore).

Now, i am not trying to tell anyone else what to do with their money, that is none of my business. But i have no problem supporting Paradox (usually with more than i have to), because they deliver games that i think are very fun to play, they are actively discussing with their fan base, and generally speaking, they seem as passionate about their games as anyone. And most important of all, if they do f**k things up, they have no problem admitting that, and taking steps to fix it. That open and honest attitude, along with delivering great games. have more than earned them my support.

 

[MichaelJanuary]

Pre-Orders are soooo bad .... i've been burnt many times by believing the game hype only to be massively disappointed .... not yet by Paradox though ....

GALAXY EDITION PRE_ORDERED YESSSSSSSS

 

[Knotz]

Um... no.

One, it IS my money and I can and will do what I want with it. Two, for ME at the very least there is a tangible benefit in pre-ordering, my local game shop sells games bought on pre-order for slightly cheaper. Three, I have never regretted something I've pre-ordered. Maybe this is because I tend to closely follow the development of the games I'm intrested in, maybe I value my money less but even when it comes games like Fallout 4 which was not as awesome as I was expecting I did, without a doubt, get my money's worth (and continue to).

And then there's the 'You're supporting anti-consumer and/or just plain bad policy decisions that effect EVERYONE, don't be selfish!' mmmmm, no. When the day comes when developers show up at your house and put a gun to your head and FORCE you to buy their shit and then whisper into your ear "Pre-orders send their regards" then maybe, maaaybe you'll have a leg to stand on but still not much of one because 1) I'm not on the board of whoever makes these decisions, and I doubt m/any who preorder are and 2) support for one thing does not imply support for another. The slippery slope argument has always been a schlocky as shit perspective.

 

[Chat]

I'm in complete agreement with the OP, preordering games is typically a bad idea. It's rarely worth it. Nearly every preorder I have ever made, I've regretted. Sword of the Stars II is perhaps the one I regret the most (particularly since I convinced a friend to buy it too), and Paradox did publish that.

But there has been a couple that I was more than happy to preorder and never regretted. In both cases, I got to play a section of the game before it was released. These who worked on the game weren't afraid to have it picked apart by people before they even paid a cent. Whilst it's not as good as being able to play it myself first, I'd like to be able to take these sorts of open, non-scripted streams that Paradox has done as a decent way of demonstrating how good a product is. Kind of pseudo-review where there's an entire chat/comment section picking away at the game. We'll see on the 9th how reasonable that thinking is of mine; Paradox has my money. This time.

 

[ImpureGenesis]

I have no problem preordering from Paradox. They have excellent games, eventhough sometimes they are buggy after a release, and support for a long time. Just look at Crusader Kings 2 which is released in 2012 and is still getting new content. Also because they support Linux I want to applaud them for that by preordering.

 

[theoverlysensitivegamer]

Um... no.

One, it IS my money and I can and will do what I want with it. Two, for ME at the very least there is a tangible benefit in pre-ordering, my local game shop sells games bought on pre-order for slightly cheaper. Three, I have never regretted something I've pre-ordered. Maybe this is because I tend to closely follow the development of the games I'm intrested in, maybe I value my money less but even when it comes games like Fallout 4 which was not as awesome as I was expecting I did, without a doubt, get my money's worth (and continue to).

And then there's the 'You're supporting anti-consumer and/or just plain bad policy decisions that effect EVERYONE, don't be selfish!' mmmmm, no. When the day comes when developers show up at your house and put a gun to your head and FORCE you to buy their shit and then whisper into your ear "Pre-orders send their regards" then maybe, maaaybe you'll have a leg to stand on but still not much of one because 1) I'm not on the board of whoever makes these decisions, and I doubt m/any who preorder are and 2) support for one thing does not imply support for another. The slippery slope argument has always been a schlocky as shit perspective.

Preordering effects others not because game devs will force you to buy something but because it is POSSIBLE (not certain) that games will gradually become more buggy/unfinished over time as companies realize people will give them their money before they have finished. You coud agrue this has already happened. I'm confused by your points 1 and 2 though.

 

[Smiles_]

There are a few developers I am okay Pre-ordering from, since I've enjoyed their games over the years. Paradox and Doublefine at the top, with Obsidian and Larian moving into the mix.


Smiles

 

[pguyton]

With the steam refund policy it doesn't matter :

Refunds on Pre-Purchased Titles
When you pre-purchase a title on Steam (and have paid for the title in advance), you can request a refund at any time prior to release of that title. The standard 14-day/two-hour refund period also applies, starting on the game’s release date.

 

[Velorian]

Preordering effects others not because game devs will force you to buy something but because it is POSSIBLE (not certain) that games will gradually become more buggy/unfinished over time as companies realize people will give them their money before they have finished. You coud agrue this has already happened. I'm confused by your points 1 and 2 though.

Well various companies are already doing that. Normally I'd agree completely but I've a large degree of trust for Paradox built up over years, if they do want to throw all of that away by suddenly abandoning their policy of supporting a game after release then so be it, but I trust that won't be so.

Anyway if you want to sell a buggy unfinished pile of crap with a bunch of pre-orders the key is to show small selected portions of gameplay. Stellaris has had a lot of uncontrolled gameplay shown, also Paradox has a policy of very lengthy support and development on their main products. So I don't think they are in the same category.

Now that I think about it, had it been any other developer I would not have pre-ordered. EA and similar companies already have horrible reputations so they'd have little to lose, Paradox has a lot to lose though.

 

[Seirkins]

Even if everyone stopped pre-ordering games completely (which will probably never happen), I doubt developers and publishers would ever stop at trying to offering incentives for people to do so. That's business and ultimately, any company (even a video game company) is trying to turn a profit.

The difference between Paradox and certain publishers/developers that will go unmentioned is that Paradox has a track record of delivering a quality product. As such, even though I don't typically pre-order, I'm more likely to do so because Paradox has proven that they value my business both as a customer and a fan. Therefore, I will continue to support them with my purchase. Simple logic, really.

 

[jcd000]

597_WILL_BUY_WHEN_READY

Because preorder is a practice that i'd like to die.

 

[Hull-Tanker]

k

 

[Kyle Lionheart]

I'm probably just adding to the choir, but here's my 2 cents.

I agree that preordering blindly, as some game publishers want you to, is bad. Really, it's just irresponsible. You shouldn't buy an house without first seeing it in person, ever.

But in this case, it's not blind buying at all. We've got Dev Diaries, we've got Q&A session with the devs, and we've got multiple hours of actual gameplay footage in the streams. There's plenty of material to decide if you are interested enough to get the game as soon as it's out.

So in practice, preordering Stellaris at this point is comparable to when, after a thorough visit to your prospective future house and its neighborhood, you have decided that yes, it's a great place, and you want to seal the deal as soon as possible, even if it'll be another month before you can actually move there. I don't see much wrong with it, assuming you know and trust the sellers, and are fairly confident that they won't mess up the building during that month.

And if those sellers offer some (more or less)cool swag in exchange for moving the money a little earlier than strictly necessary? Even better! As long as the swag isn't the only reason you do it, of course