Flop? or Not?

[Jeff Kaos]

I like Defiance okay; it's not great but it's not terrible either. I understand Trion is working hard to fix this mess, at least thats what I hear from all the people who love Defiance, but the problem is that this game released with way too many bugs out of the box. Between the mediocre reviews, what appears to be stagnant sales and a lack of communication regarding the bugs I'm afraid the writing is on the wall and it's not good.

On the plus side this game will act as a lesson to other console mmo devs out there and there's bound to be a really good one sooner or later.

[WhiteCell]

Since Trion isn't a public company we will probably never know. My personal view as a consumer it was a huge bomb. I have no doubt it came no where near close to their sales expectations though, but whether it was a financial bomb for them I'm unsure.

What they wanted to pull off was risky and never done before. I don't think Trion will be attempting another risky venture like this anytime soon as a result.

I'd say that's only half right. They appear to have the budget, but the jury is still out on the experience.

I think the inclusion of consoles and all of the unique issues with those platforms and how games have to be designed around them was very detrimental to Defiance. Their experience is the PC yet it's obvious they put far more focus on consoles for this game. The game would have been far better if it were a PC only game and probably more profitable as a result.

[baelrusk]

Yeah it's a flop.
We paid for something we could play at launch. Not something where we have to wait for an unspecified amount of time until they fix it to actually get what we bought.
Yes it's still playable......but it's not what we were presented ATM. Eventually yeah it could be made into what we were presented.......but we paid for it to play it then.....not later.
It's like eating out and ordering a steak........then they give you a barely rare steak because the equipments on the fritz......or maybe ask you to wait until it's back up (I'm patient, but I don't like blind guesses....especially on time).
It would be hard enough for them to make enough cash to keep the servers up and running.......but now with unsatisfied people leaving.......people getting refunds.......and people complaining over screwups in the ingame store........who knows when they'll have to shut them down.

It was good in theory, but poorly implemented.

[EchoOne]

all valid points. just as a general question, no ill will intended, do you see season 2 as too far off as a potential revive? i speak only in regards to the next gen of consoles coming out and the amount of effort being put into an overhaul on a game for systems which may soon be dated. very interested in your opinion

Good question, I am a console player at heart, but since I play Defiance on PC (with xbox controller) I didn`t really think about that.

I think the soon arrival of next gen consoles is something Trion must have been aware of from the start. The success of the game doesn`t even make much of a difference there, players will be lost to the new consoles anyway. Also, console players may be less "sticky" to one game in general, which might have also been part of the planning.
So...for consoles I would guess that it was never really planned with an incredibly long life-span. The business model leans more towards initial sales anyway. Unless Defiance receives an unexpected major gain in popularity within the next 12 month I think Trion will maintain the console service, but not heavily invest into it.
The PC version is certainly in a better position for something like a re-launch.

Of course, as a very optimistic point of view, if all platforms proof very profitable for Trion they may consider bringing it to next gen consoles as well. Maybe as new release on the new consoles and graphics/content upgrade DLC on PC. I don`t really see it happening, but one can dream.
(Sidenote: releasing a MMO for a new console may be suizidal anyway, everyone expects the best graphics there, which is something MMOs naturally can`t provide)

[Jym]

So after a MONTH and the game being still unstable and still in BETA... (call me a troll if you want just because I disagree with fanboys doesnt make me a troll) thank you very much...but yea...
Considering I sold my game 2 weeks ago, I will still rebuy the game once it pulls the thumb out of its *** and actually is A MMO...and WORKS.
I havnt been here for the past 2 weeks...Whats been going on? Have they came out with any new content yet? AND NO, PURSUITS DO NOT COUNT.
And the big question of them all....AFTER A MONTH, Is this game a FLOP? & Explain in a brief paragraph

I feel that I paid $60 for a beta. There are issues that exist now that existed back in the beta. Patches have been buggy. With that said the devs don't have much credibility with me in their ability to make significant changes to the game in the near future.

I don't think the game is a flop though considering it was fun doing the missions and co-ops with friends. The game just got boring too fast for me. All MMO's have things to grind for - those things on here just aren't worth it IMO. Weapons all look generic and no variant stands out in regards to damage or visual appeal when it comes to Legendary vs Ordinary. Investing significant time to grind EGO isn't worth it considering there's no vertical progression. Not having all 9 perk slots until EGO 5k isn't a big deal considering there's only a handful of perks that are worth using in PvE or PvP. PvP got boring fast, it revolves heavily around Cloak - using it and/or constantly having to counter it.

Edit: Customer service is a nightmare. I can't seem to get an issue resolved where my boosts that I purchased with bits were never applied - however, my bits were spent. After that I was reluctant to give them any more of my money.

I'm taking a break from it until the DLC is released and then I'll evaluate it again to see if the new stuff is worthwhile.

[Darth Haighter]

interesting reply Echo, i may be a little more pessimistic in regards to that day and time and mos def agree the PC version stands the best chance at longevity, but i liked your response. thanks!

[Chemikz]

One of you please tell me why this game is a 'mess' in its current state, because I really don't see it...

I like Defiance okay; it's not great but it's not terrible either. I understand Trion is working hard to fix this mess, at least thats what I hear from all the people who love Defiance, but the problem is that this game released with way too many bugs out of the box. Between the mediocre reviews, what appears to be stagnant sales and a lack of communication regarding the bugs I'm afraid the writing is on the wall and it's not good.

On the plus side this game will act as a lesson to other console mmo devs out there and there's bound to be a really good one sooner or later.

Is telling people how much you think Defiance/TRION will die all you do on this forum? I remember you from all my other threads.

[WhiteCell]

One of you please tell me why this game is a 'mess' in its current state, because I really don't see it...

Because it literally does nothing well but everything poorly?

The controls on the PC are an absolute mess. Game design leaves nothing for cooperative play, long term play, or any sort of competitive/organized play. There are no substantive rewards for anything you do. No economy. No player economy. The game world is devoid of any character or impressive locales. Lack of character customization whether it's visual or gameplay related.

I could go on about just everything in the game. It's the most generic, shallow, and unrewarding mmo I've played to date. Then there are the bugs which wipe rewards and progression.

A better question would be: What does Defiance do well? If there are any legit answers they will be short.

[EchoOne]

It was an interesting question, fun to think about it.
I am not overy optimistic either, just saying (hoping) that the green light for season 2 might be the second chance Trion needs here.
The show tie-in may prove a good idea after all.

I agree with WhiteCell, I don`t think Trion saw the bad media reception coming, must be quite depressing for them.
But imo the game is pure gold at it`s core. The setting, mood, music, core gameplay, TV show connection, it all works.
It`s just that many people, reviewers in particular, chose to focus on the flaws (which are there of course, just don`t bother me at all).
It would be a terrible waste if Trion had to give up on it, hopefully their profits are high enough to justify putting more work into it.

[Untamed Gunner]

look first off I love this game and I will leave it at that. I think everyone on this forum (myself included) are like democrats and republicans who are Way to far Left and Way to far Right. Most people are not thinking in an new mmo side of things look at WOW when it came out had very little content small world and lots of bugs.That being said it did not blow up to mainstream till around 4 years ago when Mr.t was a doing comercials then it hit it Huge. Give this game 6 months to a year then we will know for sure what it is and were it is going.