EA doesn't make bad games (Ubisoft is the worst, to be honest), EA just makes bad business decisions. They work for them, but they're just the epitome of corporate greed.- Every title must be dumbed-down to appeal to the 'widest market' (meaning console retards) to maximize profits.- If you're trying a new franchise, it must use old concepts. If you're trying new concepts, it must be in an established franchise.- Anything for the almighty dollar - in-game advertising, nasty DRM, 'micropayments'...They just treat customers like cattle.Agreed. All their RTS games follow the same pattern: Three sides. Small campaign. Small battles. Breakneck speed. Patchs that tweak the game so much that it ruins the whole thing.Also, the only one to blame for games like Simcity: Societies is EA. When fans called for a new Simcity, EA said: "Fuck Maxis, lets be as penny-pinching as possible and hire Tilted Mill!" (For those who don't know, Tilted Mill is a group of bad developers who have taken every good city building series and wiped their butt with it.) EA doesn't realize what PC Gaming is. Hell, they don't even know console gaming.I'm glad Stardock can't be bought. With all their succeses, I'm betting that they will soon be rival to EA. And if Stardock decides to buy developers, I'm sure they won't dissolve them. Stardock is what game companies should be: Talented people who care, and make good games, not lazy bigwigs who concentrate on money and nothing else, while making most of their workers nearly wage slaves (exaggeration)Pretty soon, EA and the other titans will encounter trouble, and it will be someone else to carry the torch (BTW, I pray for the Olympics to be cancelled, Communists suck.)Etrius
Am I the only one who sees the hilarious irony in making what is essentially a long post complaining about capitalism just to be finished off by saying communists suck? (I know, I know, this is a really simplistic way to view it, especially since you can easily find a comfortable middle margin, but I just think it's funny. ESPECIALLY since it's uninformed about China's economic situation. China is by no means communist anymore. It's state-based capitalism. Closer to fascism, really, though certainly not the same.)
Anyway, setting aside my amusement, I have to agree. I would like very much for Stardock to grow to this extent if Mr. Wardell keeps a nice leash on it and keeps the essence of gaming to what it really is: gaming, and not bloody profit mongering. (I'd say something about regulation here, but could you really regulate what's essentially an art form? As nice as it would be, I don't see how it could reasonably work.)