Author Topic: Battlecruiser3000 AD release post (Read 762 times)

1K0N · « **Reply #15 on:** November 21, 2003, 02:35:32 PM »

Actually after being the one who bought the Bomb version years ago, I swore I would never ever purchase another game by him, I may actually buy this one because the reviews show its a great product other than 5 year old graphcs...

1K0N · « **Reply #16 on:** November 24, 2003, 08:26:06 AM »

OK
I found a copy at the software ETC. for $29 BC3000 millenium Gold.
After installing the program I run for the first time and I get an error message.... So much for first impressions, or second impressions..
Training is not an option, it just doesn't happen.. The manual is written in a font size of 4, sorry about my luck, The online help is lacking and the BBS tells newbies not to bother them with trivial manual type questions.. RTFM.... Wish I could read the fricken manual...
Smart could learnn something from HTC as far as customer service is concerned..
No biggy

IKON

OIO · « **Reply #17 on:** November 24, 2003, 09:09:29 AM »

the manual is in PDF format in the CD as well if its hard for you to read the printed one (actually, the printed manual is short compared to the PDF).

I did say from the start the game has a steep learning curve. Its very complex.. think learning Falcon4, only on steroids.

As far as the error messages, check the troubleshooting in the manual. I never had any problem with the game at all in any of my 3 machines.

And yes, the BBS for the game is very strict. For a game of such inmense complexity, we got bombed by people with the mental capacity of 10 year olds demanding they be spoonfed how to play the game... after 1000+ such posts the forums got locked down and people literally be told to use the SEARCH feature or RTFM.

e-mail me if you got any questions..maybe we can track down that error message of yours jalondon@bellsouth.net

1K0N · « **Reply #18 on:** November 24, 2003, 10:51:21 AM »

Thanks OIO!
No actually that helps!
I just want to know who chose the music!? early 90's techno hip hop I spent 10 minutes frantically looking for the music "Off" selection:)

~~IKON~~

OIO · « **Reply #19 on:** November 24, 2003, 11:18:44 AM »

im at work now, so dont expect a reply until tonight if you send e-mail to me today

edit: i misread your music whine. hehe. I hate to tell you this, but c'mon bud, any and all games have the music off option under menus labeled either SETUP or OPTIONS or CONFIG.

dont make me spoonfeed you

1K0N · « **Reply #20 on:** November 24, 2003, 12:05:08 PM »

I am going to start out simple by just mining moons in the SOL system and selling minerals. Then when I get better at the interface I will venture out. The navigation map seems kinda difficult...

OIO, I tractor beamed a disabled NME craft, what could I have done with it? I don't see an option to stow it in a cargo hold.?!
OR do I?

IKON

OIO · « **Reply #21 on:** November 24, 2003, 12:20:53 PM »

You cant tractor another ship inside your craft unless that craft is a support craft assigned to that ship (aka, its your craft).

Any disabled vessel can be tractored and delivered to a nearby starstation. When you dock with the station it will ask you if you want to deliver the tractored vessel. Warning: If you say 'no' you will dock and the disabled ship will stay floating outside the station. If you say yes, and its an enemy ship, you get rewarded in experience points (which build up towards a promotion if you in military).

And before you ask, if you find a 'cargo pod' floating in space, you tractor it and 'dock' with it..your ship will pick the pod up.

I suggest you always make a SHUTTLE do any and all tractoring and picking pods / ejected pilots up. You dont want to be cought with shields down and tractoring another ship when hostiles enter the region.

Mining is nice, but its very time consuming. You can go around and do several trade runs while your mining drones chug it up. I never played a trader, but I remember reading that certain radiation control units were very profitable to trade between certain SOL system startstations *grin*

The MOON region is the safest one to be while you learn the game. Think of it as 'newbie' zone.

Mini D · « **Reply #22 on:** November 24, 2003, 12:21:45 PM »

How many years did it take for that patch to get released?

There's a big difference between a publisher pushing someone to deliver a piece of crap game prematurely and a publisher asking a programmer to deliver on promises.

The publishers don't ask for anything that the programmers don't promise. It was Smart's classic flaw... and one that CRS took to nearly the same level. They both promised the world before they comprehended how much programming was involved.

MiniD

OIO · « **Reply #23 on:** November 24, 2003, 12:33:24 PM »

I think patch v2.09 took a year.. off the top of my head. The patch was so big it virtually was a completely different game. And the guy offered the patch for FREE and even the whole v2.09 game to be downloaded for FREE from the internet... when have you seen a company do that? Only HTC comes close by giving free head to head in AH (though we cant really compare a single player game from the early 90's to aces high online only gameplay).

And mini, one sad thing is that most developers sign off the rights of their products to the bigger companies... if the bigwigs 'upstairs' want to ship it, it will be shipped, regardless of what the devs. say. Thats why i mentioned that D. Smart bought the rights for his game back from Take2. All releases after that have been through publishers with him holding the legal veto to say if the game ships or not.

Cornered Rat Software had the same issue... they were forced to ship before it was ready. SWG I now believe, had the same issue...all released before ready. If you think about it, these big companies dont really care if the product is faulty..they know it makes money by selling the box version and the average subscriber lifetime of 6 months (which is when people get so fed up they leave).. and in those 6 months the devs keep perfecting the 'beta' game until it finally becomes 'gold' ... usually a year or 2 after the release. See Everquest for a perfect example.

Mini D · « **Reply #24 on:** November 24, 2003, 12:45:03 PM »

"forced to ship before it was ready" is one perspective. "Forced to ship on the promised date" might be a more accurate one.

Smart basically defined promising the sky. You comment on the "early" "forced" release. If I recall, it was released at least a year late (almost two)... and even then it was a worthless POS. Saying they finally finished it a year after that is not really saying much.

MiniD

OIO · « **Reply #25 on:** November 24, 2003, 01:07:19 PM »

"The publishers don't ask for anything that the programmers don't promise."

I think thats the whole flaw in your argument mini.

You may consider BC3K V2.09 to be a POS.. that could be your opinion based on what a game should be, according to you. Just like I think Everquest is a POS game but I love Final Fantasy XI. same game type, different approach.

Dinger · « **Reply #26 on:** November 24, 2003, 01:10:18 PM »

Yeah, and contrary to what some think, CRS took the blame for the WW2OL fiasco on themselves; they did not shift it to strategy first.

A distributor doesn't say all of a sudden "Hey, I got an idea, you are scheduled to release in fall 2004, but we're going to release in fall 2003."

The problem is usually inexperience and optimism. My experience is that debugging time increases something on the order of the complexity of the software to a power of two. In other words, a game with twice the features of another will take four times longer to debug. Add to this the naive enthusiasm of coders, who when the bulk of the coding is done think the product is going to work out by the third compile at the latest, and you get products that always seem to finish late.

Now you've got a publisher, who has reserved some time with the duplicators, worked up release date to fit in with other products, has made the contacts with the retailers, and set up the advertisements. A delay in release is going to be costly. Usually, the contract will specify that the developer who incurs the overruns incurs the costs (=pays a penalty). CRS couldn't afford those costs, and odds are Mr. Smart couldn't either.

But when it comes time to assign the blame or credit for a product, that goes always and ultimately to the developer. The developer selects the distributor and agrees to the terms. If the developer doesn't deliver a functional product on the deadline, don't put the blame elsewhere.

And,y eah, Mr. Smart better have "escape" clauses in everything else he releases. That's the only way he can get people to trust him.

OIO · « **Reply #27 on:** November 24, 2003, 01:39:58 PM »

actually, since 2.09 hes never released anything until its ready. get bit and learn I guess.

Mini D · « **Reply #28 on:** November 24, 2003, 02:52:57 PM »

I never said 2.09 was a POS... the initial release of BC2k was definately a POS. And that release was at least a year late if not two years.

You're talking like someone that didn't know anything about BC prior before 99. Really... the history goes back several years before that.

MiniD

OIO · « **Reply #29 on:** November 24, 2003, 05:43:53 PM »

lol ive been in the 3000ad forums since 96~97. I know

I bought the Take2 version when I was in my country..cost me 2 months worth of allowance back then when i was in high school.

I believe i misunderstood you then. I thought you said the original release was a POS and even after the 2.09 release it was 'still' a POS. Sorry