Sim City is now down, the maintenance message is amazing

Archie said:
7zOh1GG.png
Click to expand...

Ouch
 
Amazon reviews (lol) -

Customer Reviews
SimCity - Standard Edition [Download]

288 Reviews
5 star:
(9)
4 star:
(10)
3 star:
(8)
2 star:
(19)
1 star:
(242)
 
Jokab said:
While some may have that opinion, it's strange seeing people being, as I said, almost excited that the game they bought isn't working because it means they can throw random bait posts toward anyone who doesn't feel the same they feel.
Click to expand...

People that bought and are excited are crazy. People like myself feel justified and hopeful for its demise.
 
Uthred said:
While theres some truth to this theres a lot of populist nonsense. Theres nothing wrong with free to play models, dlc or even microtransactions as long as theyre handled well. Theres also no need for "air quotes" around stuff like development costs and next gen features, because development costs are massive these days for larger games/studios (for even smaller studios as well, e.g. the recent Skullgirls funding drive) and for next gen features. As long as its not exploitative or required DLC is fine, it allows the developers to cover their development cost and make a profit and allows the consumer the choice of more content for a game they like.
Click to expand...

no way dude. 41 years old and WHERE IS THE FUN

Yeah, that post made my eyes roll a bit.
 
At least you guys aren't dealing with Verizon's customer support over getting FIOS internet installed. I just moved and transferred my service over but they screwed up have left me without internet until the 12th or later. Between their terrible communication among themselves and their lack of ability to help customers I can't imagine EA's customer support being any worse.

Silver lining? I guess I wouldn't be playing Simcity today if I had internet anyway. :(

Hang in there at Discovery Delta 1, guys, I'll be there soon. Or, feel free to kick me out and I'll just pick up a new spot once I can get online again.
 
taoofjord said:
At least you guys aren't dealing with Verizon's customer support over getting FIOS internet installed. I just moved and transferred my service over but they screwed up have left me without internet until the 12th or later. Between their terrible communication among themselves and their lack of ability to help customers I can't imagine EA's customer support being any worse.

Silver lining? I guess I wouldn't be playing Simcity today if I had internet anyway. :(
Click to expand...

I would kill for your problem!
 
Mugaaz said:
I bought the game to play it online. Yeah, I could be playing it offline, but the whole point of this one is the online stuff. I guess its ok. You can get a worse experience offline guys, so its all good! Its the DRMs fault! Not a bunch of incompetent people behind the scenes!
Click to expand...

The problem people have is not the quality of the game, but the fact that they can't play it at all thanks to the Always-Online DRM. If you weren't required to always be online, I guarantee you that at least half the people in here (rightfully) complaining wouldn't be doing so because they would be playing the game they purchased.
 
Uthred said:
While theres some truth to this theres a lot of populist nonsense. Theres nothing wrong with free to play models, dlc or even microtransactions as long as theyre handled well. Theres also no need for "air quotes" around stuff like development costs and next gen features, because development costs are massive these days for larger games/studios (for even smaller studios as well, e.g. the recent Skullgirls funding drive) and for next gen features. As long as its not exploitative or required DLC is fine, it allows the developers to cover their development cost and make a profit and allows the consumer the choice of more content for a game they like.
Click to expand...

The problem is the bar a lot of people set for "DLC that is handled well" is very low. People also buy bullshit excuses for why a game like Sim City has to be online. They could have easily given players a CHOICE if they wanted to play the game online, but they chose not to do that. There is no good excuse for that decision.
 
Warm Machine said:
They obviously can't meet demand and severely underestimated it. They are also getting punished for it. How many people are not buying the game right now because they know they can't play it? On top of this they are gettin bent over by the press so not only are they losing cash but their reputation which is already pretty shaky is getting hammered.

Interestingly Microsoft has no problem with always on DRM. The entire Xbox Live Indie Games channel is set up like that and there is only ever a problem if Xbox Live as a whole is down.
Click to expand...

And buyers in a digital space are very finicky. Amazon knows the psychology of this all too well and it's the whole basis for their One-click button. People that hold off buying for a day or two or a week (or even have to go through a couple more clicks), are MUCH more likely to never come back and buy.
 
I actually want to play this game but have stayed away. Always online single player is stupid, I wont pay for it
 
EA is just a corporation trying to be profitable and this kind of stuff is the best way for them to be profitable. You know, this is basic stuff and only unserious dreamers can fault EA for trying to be profitable.
 
/v/ posted that even a clock that is broken is right twice a day. EA's clock is so broken that it can't even be bothered to be right once a day.
 
Yasae said:
But the implementation is what always sucks, not merely the existence of DRM.

The always online stuff is inevitable whether you like it or not. What should be questioned is how it's done. This SimCity debacle is worthy of its own laughing stock.
Click to expand...

You say that like the existence of a thing and it's implementation are unrelated. Uhhh.
 
Congrats guys, we got there. All those years of day one DLC, horrible DRM, and online passes have culminated into this. Sim-Fucking-City has evolved to a point that it can't be played without a constant online handshake. Great work everyone!
 
This review made me laugh

I've so far played this game one hour. During that time my buildings would flashing on and off in what appeared to be a video glitch.

The majority of my experience has been watching a Server is Busy error and waiting for a 20 minute timer to count down to 0. Once it does, I get a network server error and it resets.

I'm giving the game 1 star because it's been a great way to re-heat my enchiladas in the oven. Otherwise, I'd give this game a 0.

If you have not purchased, stay far away.

And if you're reading this months from now and they've seemingly fixed their issues, do yourself a favor and do not purchase the game. It's a Simcity-lite, not a true successor.

Maxis is a shell of their former selves.
Click to expand...
 
I don't tend to bitch about these things because I understand the complexity of launching an online game, but this one's pushing it for me. I haven't been able to play for more than 55 minutes today and I've been attempting to connect on and off since 6am.
 
taoofjord said:
At least you guys aren't dealing with Verizon's customer support over getting FIOS internet installed. I just moved and transferred my service over but they screwed up have left me without internet until the 12th or later. Between their terrible communication among themselves and their lack of ability to help customers I can't imagine EA's customer support being any worse.

Silver lining? I guess I wouldn't be playing Simcity today if I had internet anyway. :(
.
Click to expand...

I sincerely empathize with you. My FIOS install was a fiasco piled on top of a farce. To call Verizon's customer support bad is like calling the sun hot - it doesn't begin to do the description justice. Hang in there though - the product itself is quite good once you get it sorted out.

On the topic of Sim City/Always on DRM, sadly it's going to take the vast majority of people holding off on day one purchases before EA, Blizzard and the ilk get the message.

In fact, in this day and age, I really can't think of a good reason to buy any game day one anymore. Let alone games that adopt draconian DRM similar to this and Diablo III.
 
BruiserBear said:
The problem is the bar a lot of people set for "DLC that is handled well" is very low. People also buy bullshit excuses for why a game like Sim City has to be online. They could have easily given players a CHOICE if they wanted to play the game online, but they chose not to do that. There is no good excuse for that decision.
Click to expand...

I dont think its really possible to set some objective bar for DLC. I think its fair to say that DLC shouldnt be essential to the main experience of the game. But beyond that its up to the individual consumer to determine the value of the DLC, like it was with most purchases. For example, in Fist of the North Star 2 the "classic" costumes are €3 apiece, too rich for my blood, but if you're a bigger fan of that character/franchise the entertainment you get out of that €3 could make it seem like a decent deal.

Conceptually I'm not entirely opposed to always online games (which arent traditionally so, obviously it would be daft to be opposed to always online for stuff like MMO's). However in practice I've yet to see the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. The two biggest always online releases, Diablo III and SimCity would both have been better served by being optionally online, as you said. However I do think that always online is going to become more and more prevalent and that a vocal minority are unlikely to change that. As thats likely to be the case I can whinge about it and vow never to buy a game that has it, despite the fact I might really like the look of that game or I can say "Yeah this is shit, but I hope it gets better". For the moment I'm going to opt for the latter.
 
RedNumberFive said:
Congrats guys, we got there. All those years of day one DLC, horrible DRM, and online passes have culminated into this. Sim-Fucking-City has evolved to a point that it can't be played without a constant online handshake. Great work everyone!
Click to expand...

The more people are willing to say "i don't care" - the more we will see of this kind of DRM. Nobody should support anything from companies like EA. Find alternatives to their games and be done with it.

Thankfully I am interested in very few of their franchises and those have alternatives that I am willing to give my money to.

Time to stop feeding that EA machine and put that fucking company under.
 
Yamauchi said:
Enjoy your bowl of shit, gamers. You asked for it.
Click to expand...

I don't think "gamers" have asked for it. But I do think the casuals who run out in droves to buy the "newest" version of last year's game which is nothing more than a 0.000001 version upgrade for 60 bucks are the issue.

Casuals don't have their finger on the pulse like most "gamers" do. Sadly, while we have voices, we are but a few drops in the bucket.
 
Draft said:
EA is just a corporation trying to be profitable and this kind of stuff is the best way for them to be profitable. You know, this is basic stuff and only unserious dreamers can fault EA for trying to be profitable.
Click to expand...

Funny thing is, I don't even want to fault EA. What purpose does that serve, they're never going to change no matter what they are responsible for. I fault Maxis for getting excited about a gameplay mechanic they thought they could pitch to both gamers and management.
 
Jokab said:
Reading this thread, I get the impression that a lot of people are almost excited that the servers are wrecked because it means they can say "HAH! Told you so, always-online defenders! Where are you now, huh?!".
Click to expand...

I won't lie, while I feel bad for the people who swallowed the bitter pill and begrudgingly bough it, I love the fact that the always-online defenders are forced to smell their own shit like dogs. It is a rather nice thought to go to bed with.
 
lazorexplosion said:
You say that like the existence of a thing and it's implementation are unrelated. Uhhh.
Click to expand...
I said it in regards to some people attacking the wrong problem.

I'll burst the collective bubble in here and say: is anyone really that surprised? Is this some type of shocker? The crappy examples of DRM are a necessary growth spurt. They're made even worse when we already have systems which, for the most part, work well.

It's not consumers forcing this on any of their compatriots. It's the machine. It's the greed. Same old fucking story. It's not any of us buying SimCity - which I was actually planning on getting, but good luck now! Why is there always this ringing cacophony when it's what we wittle peasants want? It's only a question of how deep EA can get in our guts. They won't up and stop if this game bombas.
 
ClovingWestbrook said:
Don't blame PC gaming for this. It started with console gamers buying the DLC, the online passes, the microtransactions, and more. This spread to the PC, not from it.
Click to expand...

PC's started those whole DRM thing. Protecting music and software from Pirates caused the industry to keep pushing DRM, which forced the consoles to follow suit and Devs/Pubs to make up new ways to draw cash out of people.
 
The major problem with this is that this game is hugely social. The first few days is THE time to the play the game. Population is only going to go down. Not letting people play your social, inter-connected game for the first two days after launch totally goes against what the game is for.
 
I sort of defend EA from time to time, but servers are a BIG problem for them.

The thing is, they demanded that Microsoft and Sony let them run their own servers for games. This was done for a variety of business reasons, including the ability to shut down older versions of games and force consumers to buy newer versions (e.g. Madden and a whole list of other games). But whether on console or PC, they don't want to cough up the money to pay for enough servers when a major game launches. Let's look at history:

SW:TOR - launch problems. Not enough servers. Server disconnects, etc.
Battlefield 3 - Not enough servers at launch across all platforms. All the past Battlefield games had some sort of server issues at launch too, if I remember correctly.
SimCity (2013) - Server problems at launch.

Of the top of my head, this is the third time in 2 years that EA has botched a launch of a big game. Blizzard botched D3's launch as well. The lesson here is that these companies simply don't care, or they continually underestimated demand.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

This is a message to ChiefDada
2
61
3K
HogIsland replied
PSN is down (Update: Back up)
19 20 21 22 23
1K
66K
Negotiator replied
Whispers of the Eyeless - Cult management sim/dungeon delving RPG now in Early Access
1
225
SJRB replied
Stellar Blade Director Is Now One of the Richest People in Korea
2
99
4K
Felessan replied
  • Poll
Where would you rank the Switch now that end is approaching?
2 3 4
164
4K
James Sawyer Ford replied
Top Bottom