Opinions on how TCR & FG are dealing with AAMFP criticism

[Alardem]

Seems fair enough for a game that's been around that long.

[Diango12]

Denial.

[Alardem]

Denial.

Non sequitur.

[bluel0bster]

*Pokes head back into the forums, abruptly leaves again*

[Hardarm]

My heart just got broken though when I read this and some earlier post from TCR...

"I'm 40. I've been playing and loving games since long before half the people telling us we are anti-games were even the dream of a zygote in their parents underwear. "

now everytime I think about the game I become disappointed..

[Alardem]

My heart just got broken though when I read this and some earlier post from TCR...

"I'm 40. I've been playing and loving games since long before half the people telling us we are anti-games were even the dream of a zygote in their parents underwear. "

now everytime I think about the game I become disappointed..

My respect for Pinchbeck went up after I read about his book on why Doom was such a classic game.

[Paddy™]

I'm currently listening to Jessica Curry's interview with Top Score Podcast [here] and was somewhat alarmed by something she said:

[ 03:40 ]

A lot of people have said to us, so, you're trying to follow up on what's been called the scariest game ever made, in The Dark Descent, how do you do that? and Dan and I were talking about it yesterday, and he said "actually, I didn't want to make it as scary" because the amount of people that report that they never got to the end of The Dark Descent, because it was too frightening, is really high and actually what we do at The Chinese Room is try and tell really good stories, so what we've tried to do with Pigs is balance it, so you still get a really frightening experience, but actually it leads you through... because the denouement is really important, it's the absolute crux of the game. It's, you know... we want people to get there.

I'm find myself empathising more and more with the critics of the game, despite the fact that I loved AAMFP. If you read through the various interviews and articles about AAMFP prior to its release [here's a compilation] and then you listen to Jessica saying this after its release... well, it's understandable that people felt misled and disappointed, and both Jess and Dan need to accept that.

[Statyk]

I'm currently listening to Jessica Curry's interview with Top Score Podcast [here] and was somewhat alarmed by something she said:

A lot of people have said to us, so, you're trying to follow up on what's been called the scariest game ever made, in The Dark Descent, how do you do that? and Dan and I were talking about it yesterday, and he said "actually, I didn't want to make it as scary" because the amount of people that report that they never got to the end of The Dark Descent, because it was too frightening, is really high and actually what we do at The Chinese Room is try and tell really good stories, so what we've tried to do with Pigs is balance it, so you still get a really frightening experience, but actually it leads you through... because the denouement is really important, it's the absolute crux of the game. It's, you know... we want people to get there.

I'm find myself empathising more and more with the critics of the game, despite the fact that I loved AAMFP. If you read through the various interviews and articles about AAMFP prior to its release [here's a compilation] and then you listen to Jessica saying this after its release... well, it's understandable that people felt misled and disappointed, and both Jess and Dan need to accept that.

I wonder if TCR will ever own up to making a mistake in any games they make or if they'll always just come up with some excuse to justify a complaint. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but I don't think I've ever heard TCR say "I guess maybe we DID do something wrong here". If someone can show me a time where they did, I'd happily take back my comment. But this just kinda grinds my gears a bit.

Egos are my worst enemy.

[Paddy™]

Their P.R. manifesto apparently consists of just one line, written in 72pt bold caps: maintain a smug air of disingenuous frustration at all times.

In the case of AAMFP not only have they dismissed all of the criticism (ALL of it) they've actually been misrepresenting it by claiming that everyone who criticised the game just wanted another TDD, or words to that effect. That they refuse to accept responsibility for creating that expectation themselves is what annoys the hell out of me:

Pre-release

Spoiler below!

"If we don't get as many cool YouTube videos of people having fits, then I'll be disappointed," Pinchbeck jokes.

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And for all those Amnesia fans brave enough to return - can they expect a game at least as scary if not more so in A Machine for Pigs? Do you see that as a challenge for the next game?

DP: Yeah, I think if we don’t go all out to scare the living hell out of people then we’re doing something wrong.

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RPS: What kind of things have to be in a game for it to be an Amnesia game?

Pinchbeck: It has to be absolutely, bone-shatteringly, terrifying.

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"The thing is, if we don't frighten people as much as the original, then we've failed."

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"We want this game to be absolutely skin-crawlingly, heart-shatteringly, and nerve-jarringly terrifying -- that's the target. Everything is geared around that. Just turning people to complete ice and making them have complete meltdowns," he added.

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From the start, the plan has been to outdo The Dark Descent – a game that, while Pinchbeck loved, he felt frustrated by when it “held back” on occasion. “In a couple of places Frictional pulled up a bit short,” says Pinchbeck. “And I thought, no, you can really really push this.”

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“People are really hungry for more Amnesia content,” says Pinchbeck, “and I think it would have been dishonest to basically say, ‘This is an Amnesia game,’ and then radically change the core of what Amnesia is about. There are tweaks, but Amnesia is standing there and slowly peaking around a corner, or hiding in a cupboard because you thought you heard a noise. We want to keep that core – the very psychological gameplay – or it wouldn’t be an Amnesia game, and that would be disrespectful to the fans.”

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Post-release

Spoiler below!

Dan and I were talking about it yesterday, and he said "actually, I didn't want to make it as scary".

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@ChineseRoom I like the new Amnesia because it feels more like a game than its predecessor. But I got much less creeped out as a result

@C418 yes, we wanted people to finish the game so had different priorities to the first. Glad you liked it

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All of this:

http://www.edge-online.com/features/the-...g-concept/

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Every single tweet from TCR which has responded to criticism - too many to paste here; too irritating to re-read at this early hour.

[Statyk]

Good lord Paddy, you're going to give me a heart attack.