You mean 'Vaporware'?
Subcontracting has its good points.
However, there are some SERIOUS problems with subcontracting that just doesn't make it an reasonable choice for companies such as HTC.
For onething, subcontracts to volunteers who don't get paid is not as efficient as one might think. People don't get paid, so they don't assume real responsibilities. Most of the work is done off-line by individuals who HT or Pyro doesn't have any kind of real control over. People usually contact by online and when one of the people just 'disappears' one day, the whole project is often forced to come to a halt. There could be potential legal issues, or some other hairy shi* that one just can't take care of as easily as when they would be if the work was done by a regular employee.
I've seen tons of mod teams and mod projects in so many games, that just vaporize over a certain time. People who lay out glamorous planes on the "to-do" list and yet, the work is never finished at all. Just look at IL-2 - IL-2 had a really big list of add-on planes with volunteers who've signed on to get the job done. Practically the entire WW2 plane list has been "contracted" by volunteers and yet, look at the results - the only planes that were finished and added on, were those done by Mr. Oleg Maddox and his crew. All the rest of the 'volunteers', just vanished. Disappeared. Projects were halted, and after a time, nobody mentions it anymore.
Look at Targetware. When did they start work on it? Or is there even a collective "they" we can look up to? Or pin responsibility on? If a volunteer has some kind of problems, and does not get the job on time, what's HTC gonna do? Sue him? Sue a volunteer game fan? For one thing, this looks really bad for HTC, so even if legal responsibility can be claimed against the volunteer, the odds are HTC would never do it. And the work goes unfinished.. HTC would have to find a new guy to do it, which takes time. The new guy might have to start everything all over again.. and truckloads of more problems will come up.
In short, subcontracting is a very inefficient form of development unless the contracter has some kind of powerful, direct control over those who will work for them. Most likely very powerful, large companies will choose to work with another company who can assume full responsibility in development and getting things finished on time, following the guidline faithfully - either that, or they will face full legal responsibility and be sued when the job is not done.
HTC is a small company. To give out subcontracts for development, they'd have to make someone in charge of the contracts first. Someone who would direct the whole operation and make sure projects are done on time, and the planes and objects that are needed in the game are developed under the conditions which HTC wants it.
It will do nothing but increase the workload of HTC employees, and more than likely actually delay the development time rather than be of any help. HTC is working on the Combat Theatre. They need to get B-17s and 110s, and etc etc.. aircraft done. So they send out subcontracts, find people who would do it, which takes time. Then, they'll have to make sure that the volunteers are qualified enough to do the jon, and their work is good enough in quality. And then, they have to sit back and wait for something to get done, which they have no control over. What if somebody, for some personal reason dumps the 110 he was working on? Then the entire Combat Tour is halted because of that one man. The damage is done, and loads of regret and sour feelings are passed through the developers and the fans.
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No sir. By no means I'm a management expert, nor do I have a MBA. But it doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure out that subcontracting just cannot work with companies like HTC.
