Age of Conan

Below is what I posted on the aoc forums...

I'd just like to say that I like this game besides all the obvious quality issues. I deeply respect the software engineers that dedicate their lives to making ours more enjoyable. I know this isn't necessarily your fault.

Let me tell you what is unacceptable in any market and warrants an immediate return to vendor.

-Misrepresentation
-Defects

But guess what, it's software. Lets bring up the facts about that.

-Cannot return software once opened.
-Software company is not accountable for retail policies/laws.
-Consumer responsibility is snuffed out because the majority is getting used to receiving this type of product.

This is not okay at all. I understand developing an mmo is quite the task, but this has become a slippery slope.

If you, as consumers, continue to accept these facts, it will only get worse.

If you go to buy a car and it doesn't have a steering wheel, you can see it and say, "hey this car is incomplete, I'm not buying it." With software, you're forced to take the companies word for it that you're buying a quality product that is complete to the best of their ability. If it's a game you don't like, that's the risk you take as the consumer.

Corporate accountability, and consumer responsibility are to blame.

Company: Don't try and make excuses for releasing an unfinished game, when you're focusing on making a release date for financial purposes. You're not fooling anyone. Stop exploiting the fact that people can't return opened software. We're not paying to further beta test your game.

Consumer: If you are fine with a game that is unfinished and full of issues, you are the problem. Normal people expect a quality product. Don't try and pull the "I love this game dont worry they'll fix stuff" card, cause it has nothing to do with it. It is pretty silly to expect a game to be perfect, but to run into several very obvious bugs just in the first few days of playing is unacceptable.

Acceptable on launch
-Uncommon variables causing a defect

Not acceptable
-Obvious issues that everyone experiences.
-Product misrepresentation ("Don't worry, we'll fix it at some point!" could be months or years!)

So basically, if you were a QA tester for a game and played it through, you would HAVE to notice these things and realize they need to be fixed before you can give it your stamp of approval. (Again, pressure to release the product can affect this type of thing.)

To the management of these companies: Stop ruining the credibility of your industry. Have some honor and take pride in your work. If you produce a quality product, you will deserve the financial gain. If you don't care that you produced and put your name on something of poor quality for financial gain, you are a bad person and the world could do without you. It's true that consumers these days are complacent and/or restricted when it comes to fighting back, but have some honor and don't exploit this. Everyone needs a paycheck, but you're taking someone else's.

To the customer: Stop letting companies like this take advantage of you. If you allow this behavior and standard of quality to continue, you'll only suffer more in the long run as it becomes more acceptable. Sacrifice a little for a greater good. You already pay taxes to fund who knows what, you get random fines and fees which aren't ever mentioned or explained. You spend half your paycheck just so you can insure your car and put gas in it to be able to make some money back again. You can't really do much about these things. You already have a lot to worry about in life, and getting away from your busy day to do something about this type of problem is completely unfeasible for most people. This is not about a game, it's about the quality of products and services degrading in general, and corporate responsibility. You can choose to do something about THIS since you are the one in control. Demand higher quality, force returns on retailers, petition, contact government officials. This kind of unchecked accountability is exactly what is rotting our country inside-out.

This is what you can try. Return it. The release version is a defective product and is misrepresented. Make them finish the game and buy it again when it's complete.

I'm sure I'll get banned or censored for something, but a few of you might see it and appreciate my motivation for this drawn out oratory.

reason you cant take back an mmo is because activation key would have been used up

anyway post was probably delted because it was considerd trolling. :( same thing happend to me in the wow forums. i made a topic saying some things that i disliked about the game and way. and then they banned me from the forum...i was unbanned 2 months later ( after i had cancelled my account)

Rebellion much? Of course they banned you, and there's lots of us who don't mind a few issues and are enjoying ourselves. No need to sacrifice for the greater good as you say, I'm no saint..

After Vanguard fiasco, I think hat many companies have seriously reconsidered their release quality and schedules.

I am amazed that Funcom seem to be one of the few to ignore the new 'expected standards' in MMO releases.

Either they are hoping to get away with it or they just don't care about their customers, either way they are living in the past.

Obviously you are a newbie when it comes to MMO's.   It's always like that , you cant compare a mass produced item like a car to a mmo.   A MMO is never finished, there's always bugs and issues, if you can't live with that, i suggest you buy yourself a game console (xbox, playstation) and stick with that.

the point is not whether you enjoy the game, but the fact that a lot of people cant because of quality issues and the fact that there arent standards anymore.

way to miss the point aguitha

Sorry for that...

they cant ban me..i dont use funcom forums and i dont play aoc anymore...

i'm not sure what country you live in, but in Australia, your right to return faulty goods is enshrined in statute, meaning that companies can CLAIM you can't take it back, but if you can show the product is faulty, they HAVE to refund.

i suggest you contact your local consumer protection agency.

Your points are valid and correct, but I am afraid the negatives are simply the nature of the beast. You can rely on most consumers to keep the market on the right track in most industies, but MMOs are a different animal entirely. This fact reflects back on a large portion of the playerbases that lack the required personal qualities needed to generate a dependable market. Read through a forum of your choice on this website and absorb the ridiculousness; then ask again why companies are able to get away with current practices.

Rapetrain, you should know it's always been this way. From the days of UO and EQ. It's rather naive to think you can change it.