A message from the PC community to Infinity Ward, by Krow

[[RC]Hunter]

While browsing the IW forum, I found this posting ...
Give that guy a freaking medal, goddam I couldn't word it better myself.

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Dear Infinity Ward,

First of all, I would like to thank you for doing what you have done as a developer. You have made a slew of excellent first-person shooters that I played with much pleasure over the years. They have shaped the way games are developed and have been the games of choice for many PC gamers. In this 'thank you' I express as much appreciation as I possibly can. However, this thanks does not come by way of a 'keep up the good work, thanks a bunch.' Indeed, I feel it should be noted that it is meant more as a 'you've had a great run, and should remembered for it.'

I will not lie, I bought your game. I paid the heinous $60 dollars because I trusted you. I heard all of the buzz about the dedicated servers but I figured you knew what you were doing. And I have to say that I wasn't completely wrong. Your new game is a lot of fun. I have spent a lot of time playing it, and will continue to do so. But, I have recently come to a realization that irks me. It irks me doubly so, because you have charged me $10 more something that is worth $10 less. I am getting ahead of myself, so let me just express what I must as clearly as possible, and then I will get back to your obvious retaliation against a community that supports you.

IWNet, your solution to a problem that never truly existed, is broken. Not because it doesn't work (well, for some it doesn't... Aussies have to pay extra for this too, shouldn't they be guaranteed a functional multiplayer experience?!?), but because it doesn't work for me, as a gamer. Living in a decently sized American city means that I really don't have too much trouble joining a game. I can get on and play relatively lag-free. That all sounds great right? Why am I complaining? Well, the answer requires some explanation.

My game of choice for quite a while - along with many other PC gamers - has been Counter-Strike: Source. I would like to note here that CS:S has been around for over five years, yet it's community is just as strong as it has ever been. Anytime of day someone can find hundreds of populated servers no matter where they live. And right now it's only $20... O.O.

There is a server on CS:S that I always play in. It's a 5v5 dust2 server based out of my own city. I play there just about every time I am on CS, and I am not the only one to do so. And because of that, I play with a lot of the same people. They know who I am, and I know who they are. We are friends on steam. We join each other when we see another playing. We chat when we aren't in a game.

I have been playing Modern Warfare 2 an obscene amount this past week. The unlockables and what-not are a great motivator for wanting to stay in the action. But soon after I started playing I came to the realization that I deeply regretted spending $60 on your game. I didn't exactly know why... After all, I was having fun. Now it has dawned on me: I knew that I would start getting bored with your game. Why? There are tons of things to unlock and then there's prestige mode, etc.

But I realized that it was because, even after all the time I had spent on this game, I had not met a single person that I consistently played with. I just kept going from match to match playing totally random people only to never see them again. It was when I discovered this that I knew any chance your game had of developing a community I would want to be a part of and stay a part of was completely destroyed.

Now, other flaws become apparent. Why must I play the maps I don't like when the people in my lobby refuse to voteskip them? Why can't I type-chat in a lobby, during the overly-extended amount of time between rounds? At least then I would be able to meet the people I am playing the game with and friend those I find humorous, or skilled, or friendly in general.

The answer to these questions and those unasked but understood (there is a slew of them already iterated hundreds of times in this forum that I feel no need to repeat here) is this: you, the great Infinity Ward, are catering to the mindless half-wits that have destroyed what gaming used to be. I am talking about people who are willing to pay $60 for meager hours of fleeting entertainment. Console gamers... People that find a server browser CONFUSING! People who don't give a rat's ass about being a part of a community, and finding friends in an online game. And you did this because you knew those people had the cash and weren't smart enough to say no.

Well, I certainly feel ashamed, because I fell for it too. The difference is those people will be satisfied by their experience and I will not. I am not. I spent $60 dollars on your game... And I wholeheartedly regret it.

Which begs me to question, why did you charge $60? Surely, it wasn't for the substantial content... A four hour campaign, stock co-op games pulled nearly scene for scene out of said campaign (some that I played were interesting and fun, albeit short lived... credit is due for that, I admit), and multiplayer with limited features compared to other PC multiplayer games? No, it wasn't for content, and it wasn't for maintaining servers either (we all know why, after all)... It was to get back at us, the PC gaming community.

To get back at us for pirating Modern Warfare 1, and cheating on our dedicated servers (which apparently upset some simple folk who had money that you dearly desired... that's why you took those dedicated servers away from us, right?). Well, I have news for you, IW: I paid for Modern Warfare 1 (twice actually, on Xbox AND PC), and I never hacked... And I am the one who feels cheated now.

Your lack of trust to the PC community is evidence of your lack of respect for us. You would rather make mindless fools 'happy' by giving them a $60 pill that's easy to swallow than giving your real support the tools necessary to make a lasting and impacting gaming experience for EVERYONE. And you don't give a damn that in 6 months the Modern Warfare 2 online community will be desolate as a desert - because no one made any friends, and no one made any cool mods, and no one had awesome servers where gamers met each other and built a community - because we already gave you our $60 and that's all you cared for.

Thank you, Infinity Ward, for the great games you have made in the past. Now I bid you farewell. I will not be purchasing your next game, of that you can be certain. And I will finish playing Modern Warfare 2, only to eventually delete it from my drive and never play it again. I should have pirated it... Maybe then I would actually enjoy it, instead of being constantly reminded of gaming's steady decline and my own ill-placed funds every time I play a match.

And to those who agree, I would greatly appreciate you saying so on this forum. We can be certain this post won't last for long before being deleted, so please state your mind.

That is all,
Krow
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source:
IW Forums

Hunter

[iD]

purple heart for krow

[[RC]BooZer]

Wow ... I completely agree with ID ... and absolutely with Krow! [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/3_bravo_1.gif[/img]