Bethesda & Obsidian Ignoring Fans

Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 4:29 pm

So its been about 6 months since the release of this game and I still have 9 total hours logged into the game. Each and everytime I even consider getting the game back so I can finish it I am ever so kindly reminded about all the issues that still plague this game by some hillarious and amazing youtube viewers who continue to post on my video's of the failure that is this game.

Now I have contacted both Bethesda and Obsidian by email, twitter and even by phone and I never ever get a response or reply. So I am here to see what the community has to say and if you feel they are ignoring us because they just dont care and have moved on to making other titles or if you think there is a chance we will ever see a patch that fixes these issues ?
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Nick Jase Mason
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 1:51 pm

Well, I e-mailed tech support after I first started experiencing issues, discussed with them the numerous issues I was having, including the disc showing up on my system as "corrupted data".

I finally had them admit something was wrong with the game and then after telling me I was referred to the next level of support they never got back to me. Some next level.

[censored] you, to, Bethesda.
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Josh Sabatini
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 10:33 am

This whole business puts things into perspective. What is a PS3 system worth? I thought the idea was (in contrast to a PC-platform) that you bought the platform (PS3) and then any game (for instance Fallout: New Vegas) and it would work. If you pre-order you'll get some fancy additions to the game, but it would still work. Somehow this title changes these rules. Some people say they have no problems what so ever - so where does that leave me? Am I to believe them or what? Are both my PS3's bad? Is the PS3 platform so fragile that games might play totally different on different hardware? My guess is that the PS3 is OK. This game is not. People saying there are no problems aren't really saying the truth. Why?

Somehow the publisher/developer pushed this through the quality assurance process just to get the money flowing. Who let them? Why? There is some fundamental flaw in the publishing cycle which makes me doubt the platform itself.

Now, make no mistake, I've seen problems in other titles as well (Far Cry 2 - predecessor tapes, Red Dead Redemption - graphical issues, bounties not registering, there are more but they are just minor issues) but all of these problems have either been fixed FAST, or do not actually interfere with game play. Sometimes easy workarounds have been identified making an official patch somewhat not really mandatory. As far as I see it I can take it because the net result i still awesome you have to give people some slack.

But Fallout 3 (minor CTD problems, but also quest breaking problems) and Fallout New Vegas (on the point of being totally unplayable) reaches new heights in failed products. Let's be fair: given the basic assumptions - you buy a PS3 and then a game and have a blast - it's not true anymore. There is no limit to how bad a game can be on this platform without any actions being taken.

I'm really disappointed and I'm actually reluctant of pre-ordering anything anymore. It's probably better to wait 6 months after a release and buy the game cheaper with patches released. If at all, in which case you can just ignore the product.

Historically, there has been slack to this process as well; the games goes Gold, it gets pressed, distributed and bought. At the time the first person installs the game he/she will be informed that the "latest version of the games" has been found and you're offered a chance to download it. That's good. The team is probably on a tight schedule and releasing the game prematurely and then immediately offer a patch is perfectly acceptable, at least in my book.

But 6 months? After the fist DLC? The BASIC-game is still not working? Wow. I hope this is THE low water mark and that it will never ever be repeated. If I see one more title like this I'll have to abandon the PS3 platform (use them purely as BR-movie players) and buy something else. Bethesda/Oblivion/ZeniMax or whatever you choose to discover you as - you are gambling with the future of the PlayStation-brand.
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Natasha Callaghan
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 6:01 am

This whole business puts things into perspective. What is a PS3 system worth? I thought the idea was (in contrast to a PC-platform) that you bought the platform (PS3) and then any game (for instance Fallout: New Vegas) and it would work. If you pre-order you'll get some fancy additions to the game, but it would still work. Somehow this title changes these rules. Some people say they have no problems what so ever - so where does that leave me? Am I to believe them or what? Are both my PS3's bad? Is the PS3 platform so fragile that games might play totally different on different hardware? My guess is that the PS3 is OK. This game is not. People saying there are no problems aren't really saying the truth. Why?

Somehow the publisher/developer pushed this through the quality assurance process just to get the money flowing. Who let them? Why? There is some fundamental flaw in the publishing cycle which makes me doubt the platform itself.

Now, make no mistake, I've seen problems in other titles as well (Far Cry 2 - predecessor tapes, Red Dead Redemption - graphical issues, bounties not registering, there are more but they are just minor issues) but all of these problems have either been fixed FAST, or do not actually interfere with game play. Sometimes easy workarounds have been identified making an official patch somewhat not really mandatory. As far as I see it I can take it because the net result i still awesome you have to give people some slack.

But Fallout 3 (minor CTD problems, but also quest breaking problems) and Fallout New Vegas (on the point of being totally unplayable) reaches new heights in failed products. Let's be fair: given the basic assumptions - you buy a PS3 and then a game and have a blast - it's not true anymore. There is no limit to how bad a game can be on this platform without any actions being taken.

I'm really disappointed and I'm actually reluctant of pre-ordering anything anymore. It's probably better to wait 6 months after a release and buy the game cheaper with patches released. If at all, in which case you can just ignore the product.

Historically, there has been slack to this process as well; the games goes Gold, it gets pressed, distributed and bought. At the time the first person installs the game he/she will be informed that the "latest version of the games" has been found and you're offered a chance to download it. That's good. The team is probably on a tight schedule and releasing the game prematurely and then immediately offer a patch is perfectly acceptable, at least in my book.

But 6 months? After the fist DLC? The BASIC-game is still not working? Wow. I hope this is THE low water mark and that it will never ever be repeated. If I see one more title like this I'll have to abandon the PS3 platform (use them purely as BR-movie players) and buy something else. Bethesda/Oblivion/ZeniMax or whatever you choose to discover you as - you are gambling with the future of the PlayStation-brand.


*stands up*

*Begins Clapping*
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liz barnes
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 7:41 pm




Bravo my friend.

However, I still have close to no problems on my PS3 and everything for NV runs fine.

Don't ditch your PS3 because a company chooses not to fix its games. Ditch the company.
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Stacyia
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 11:42 am

Don't ditch your PS3 because a company chooses not to fix its games. Ditch the company.


My thoughts exactly. I've had issues with plenty of games, sure. But in no game I've played have I had the amount of issues I've had in New Vegas.

I just don't get it. How is it that some people can have no problems with it, yet plenty of others have tech issues that are similar? As far as I know, there isn't anything performance wise that could be wrong with so many peoples systems. Some are brand new.
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WTW
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 12:48 pm

We're here and we're listening. I'd suggest keeping an eye on this thread...

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1125221-please-read-from-the-teams-at-obsidian-and-bethesda/

... as well as any updates we post on Bethesda Blog. As noted back in February, we're in the process of working on the latest update for the game. Once that's out, we'll share more details on what it covers.
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Megan Stabler
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 11:27 am

Well Gstaff, I'm not one of the bashers (My PS3 suffers little of these bugs the others mention, for which I am fortunate I am lucky not to get them) But you have to admit, we've been waiting for nearly a month with nothing more than a 'We'll be rolling out something new very soon ladies and gentlemen.', and that silence is getting very deafening, to which, some could easily misconstrue it as neglect on Bethesda/Obsidians part. We'd at this point be satisfied with the slightest provocative datum to let us have any confirmation of an update.
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kasia
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 12:23 pm

We're here and we're listening.


Gstaff, given the run around we've received about patch information across all platforms, it's hard to believe this. The lack of communication and sporadic updates that constantly use the word "soon" have left many of us with little faith and trust in you. If you truly are reading the Hardware and Software Issues for New Vegas, I hope that you or your superiors have come to realize by now that more concrete information on when the next patch is coming and what exactly it will cover is desperately needed. You've disappointed many with your lack of response and action, to which at this point if you truly are here and listening; then you honestly don't seem to give a damn.
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Andrew Lang
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 5:14 pm

well said olle.

i've had problems, everyone i know or have talked about this game with, have had problems. i'm not excusing bethesda/obsidian, but this is a recent trend in games. some current major releases like codbo, gt5, kz3, have had a ton of tech issues. patch after patch, they still have issues. i'm having a very hard time convincing myself to buy anything new. why buy new for a faulty game when i can wait and buy used after all the patches are in place?

i would like to know who let this game go out the door. there is no way these issues weren't known; there are simply too many to have slipped through QA. the game freezes everywhere. look at fallout wiki, after every location/quest etc., there is a list of known bugs. everything has a list. unacceptable. look at the metacritc scores for NV: some reviewers give it a 10, while others give it a 4 because of tech issues.

my main complaint is we have no recourse as a consumer. once we buy it, that's it. there's no refund, only the ability to sell it back at a massively reduced price. developers can ship anything out and face no repurcussions for their
faulty product. no where else do i see this kind of free pass for a business.

i believe in supporting the dev's i enjoy. i'm very excited about brink and skyrim, but am not sure i'm buying new (and that is the best way to support the developer). i love the games betheda makes/publishes, but i can't support the ship now patch later philosophy. you guys have no competition, there are no games like yours. why force a product out the door that's so obviously broken? it's not like you're another generic fps producer trying to snag some sales between the latest cod iteration.

all that said, i do believe bethesda cares. especially when dlc is still on the way. and i'm sure there are many employees that take great pride in their work and it is absolutely killing them they were forced to release this broken game. oblivion, fo3, now NV..bethesda, you're giving yourself a reputation, and that reputation is not a good one. you can only shaft your customers so many times.

based on how other dev's handle tech issues, i'd say bethesda is not ignoring us. it seems to be standard practice to mention something once and then not talk about it. to me, this is terrible PR. one person can't find 10 minutes a month to empathize and give a status update? two posts a month, that's all you have to do.
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Spooky Angel
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 8:12 pm

I have little to no problems with New Vegas. I used to have CTDs but that stopped long ago. svcks some people are still having problems but it seems to be with PS3. Bethesda did not give enough time to make the game or a good enough job doing the QA. Still Bethesda/Obsidian are working on it as GStaff pointed out.
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Ray
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 6:42 pm

Seriously I think the Gamebryo engine was made for PC, not for consoles, as we can see with the many problems console users have been experiencing.
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Rude_Bitch_420
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 8:32 am

Seriously I think the Gamebryo engine was made for PC, not for consoles, as we can see with the many problems console users have been experiencing.


Gamebryo wasn't supposed to run on anything period. The PC has mods and with a create mod community you get nice things like unofficial patches and the console, on closed systems like Xbox 360 and PS3 you get nothing and are at the mercy of the developer to fix their mistakes.
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~Sylvia~
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 1:57 pm

We're here and we're listening. I'd suggest keeping an eye on this thread...

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1125221-please-read-from-the-teams-at-obsidian-and-bethesda/

... as well as any updates we post on Bethesda Blog. As noted back in February, we're in the process of working on the latest update for the game. Once that's out, we'll share more details on what it covers.

if you are listening then take some time and read all the issues we have before you go bankrupt
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Arrogant SId
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 4:18 pm

I barley had any problems with my new vegas some sporadic crashes and such but nothing serious. Then the end slides always crashed for me ALWAYS so I went on the forum and asked for help, nothing helped so I e-mailed the support and even though they couldn't help me despite several diffrent strategies (they didn't give up I did) I was still pleased because I got anwsers very very quickly from them.

I just took my loss and started a new character sense I was then with my first, and guess what the ending slides has worked on every ending exept on my first playthrough. My point? Im satisfied with the game and the support :fallout:
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Mr. Allen
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 10:38 am

Look, I personally think the game is very playable but if you disagree otherwise I totally understand.

Having said that your method of contact is most likely typical email/phone support.

You're not being ignored, that's the way it goes

Want to really make a difference? Look at the credits for the names of people who made the game and google for their personal information. It isn't private, it's there because they are human like everybody else. I'm not advocating this but if you REALLY want to do it that is the only way you're going to get a response. Otherwise you'll be connected to a different country to a lazy hourly support engineer who doesn't even know what Fallout is. Seriously. After the PS3 geohot mess, I searched for every Sony executive and contacted several. There were a couple dead ends, but I did get responses and although I was deflected by some, there were others set up a conference call. It was all a bunch of crap in the end and my main complaint was agreeing to new terms or installing a firmware twice a month when connecting to netflix. Needless to say, they said they'd pass on my concerns and it made me feel that at least I tried my best to make a difference. Just keep that in mind, no decision makers read this forum or your support emails/phone calls. Not at all. You have to play hardball.
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My blood
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 2:50 pm

Look, I personally think the game is very playable but if you disagree otherwise I totally understand.

Having said that your method of contact is most likely typical email/phone support.

You're not being ignored, that's the way it goes

Want to really make a difference? Look at the credits for the names of people who made the game and google for their personal information. It isn't private, it's there because they are human like everybody else. I'm not advocating this but if you REALLY want to do it that is the only way you're going to get a response. Otherwise you'll be connected to a different country to a lazy hourly support engineer who doesn't even know what Fallout is. Seriously. After the PS3 geohot mess, I searched for every Sony executive and contacted several. There were a couple dead ends, but I did get responses and although I was deflected by some, there were others set up a conference call. It was all a bunch of crap in the end and my main complaint was agreeing to new terms or installing a firmware twice a month when connecting to netflix. Needless to say, they said they'd pass on my concerns and it made me feel that at least I tried my best to make a difference. Just keep that in mind, no decision makers read this forum or your support emails/phone calls. Not at all. You have to play hardball.


if their tech support can't do their job then I'm not putting up with their [censored]. That's what they're paid to do. I shouldn't have to contact people higher up in the company just to have the [censored] game I paid full price for work.

That's ridiculous. [censored] absurd.

Sorry about the swearing, no hostility directed towards you, it's just...well, what I said above. My main point is: We shouldn't have to.
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Lewis Morel
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 3:24 pm

We're here and we're listening. I'd suggest keeping an eye on this thread...

http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1125221-please-read-from-the-teams-at-obsidian-and-bethesda/

... as well as any updates we post on Bethesda Blog. As noted back in February, we're in the process of working on the latest update for the game. Once that's out, we'll share more details on what it covers.


How is this for confrontational because I am quite frankly appalled at the situation. FO3 was saved eventually but suffice to say you walked straight into the same gaping hole the exact same way, F:NV still bears the genetic defect in that programming and the engine is not fit for purpose.

You may revert back to February but last I checked February barely fixed anything, the company is dithering about in DLC and not devoting enough to fixing problems. Same old story.

I have watched these forums endlessly for you, since you are the only available source, to cite some sort of gratifying fix. The "great big patch full of fixes"? didn't fix anything. There are no excuses for this behaviour, the game has been out since October - the only bug you really fixed was, ironically, the one that you couldn't cover up since it exploded over youtube.

I am not making an ultimatum or an "I'm not buying your next game" (which gotten to this point will be true) but, and noone dare argue me with this, resetting and hard resetting my PS3 is unbelievable. That sort of standard is appalling. You realise if one person were to eventually damage their PS3 in whatever irrevocable way, they have lost over £200 - and likely more if they do not get it fixed or a new system due to all the dusty games.

It is a testament to everyone involved in F:NV project and their attitude to their profession, you haven't fallen from grace because your already at rock-bottom.

Reno
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tiffany Royal
 
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Post » Sun Dec 04, 2011 2:23 pm

Sorry guys - it's past time for some routine clean-up on this board. Let's try to keep the blowing off steam confined to one thread. (We don't generally allow duplicate threads - anywhere on this forum.) Please feel free to continue in http://www.gamesas.com/index.php?/topic/1175465-this-is-ridiculous/page__st__40 thread. Thanks!
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Mandi Norton
 
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