Why this game will fail...

Started by Alien Grand Master, Mar 30, 2020, 12:46:35 AM

Author
Why this game will fail... (Read 1,305 times)

Alien Grand Master

This is the kind of topic I hate to make.  As a fan, this game does a good job at fan service, (Not on the level of Alien: Isolation) but I do not think Predator Hunting Grounds will do well financially.

First is the lack of content.  Spending $40 dollars on a multiplayer-only game is a big risk especially from an indie developer.  The success of the game is dependent on people buying it and people have to feel confident that others will jump to buy.  There are likely to be only 3 maps and one game mode that is limited to 5 players max.  Most of the weapons are locked behind progression levels which stink of Star Wars Battlefront (not a good smell).  This progression is just a sad replacement for compelling gameplay.  It doesn't help that the Predator player is severely gimped without these weapons.  Put this together with a lack of different gameplay modes and a small selection of maps and weapons and the gameplay is going to get stale faster than you can unlock new toys.

This game needs something more!  Back in AVP2, they had a hunt multiplayer mod which basically offers the same gameplay for the predator, with more maps, more weapons, and more players.  And that was only a small subsection of multiplayer for that game, like 2% of the gameplay on offer.  There could have been predator vs predator modes, you could have made humans teams larger than 4 or have dedicated evac mod.  Or some kind of single-player skirmish or story mode.

Second is small, but it is the possibility of microtransactions.  The loot boxes (or whatever this game is calling them) are unethical.  I am also pretty sure it is illegal gambling in some countries now.  I know it is cosmetic only, but the behavior just shows that they are trying to milk players and given that it takes up a whole option on the main menu hints that development focus on this game was misplaced.  I would rather pay an extra $10 for a game with more content than one with microtransactions.  Now it is small and might only be cosmetic stuff but it will leave a bad taste in people's mouths seeing it on the main menu of this game.

The third is the matchmaking.  Currently, you have people pick whether they want to be a predator or human, and often most of the predator player players get matched into a game as a human.  (I got matched into a game as a human with no predator player I choose the predator matchmaker!)  It takes forever (right now) to find a match and the matches are over faster than the waiting in the lobby.  As soon as the predator player drops or leaves the game ends, which shouldn't happen after he is killed.

A better system would have been to match people in lobbies.  The predator player is then chosen at random from that lobby and the player can refuse if they want to play as a human.  If the predator player quits in the middle of a game someone else is chosen to assume the role. And the lobby should stick together so the next match can be started right after the last one.

Fourthly, this only applies to PC, but it is Epic Games Store.  It is not going to be better than steam anytime soon, and the platform is currently running at a loss. You miss probably 80% of the PC players by making it an Epic Games exclusive.  Only fans are going to look to buy it, causal players won't buy games unless it is put onto their radar, which Steam does well with seasonal sales, free weekends, and the daily promotions it does.  If this game does come to steam I fear it will be too late at the game will have died by that point.

Finally, it is the free demo weekend itself.  Honestly having the free demo is great, it never happens these days before the release of a game.  But it never happens for a reason.  Most players (the causal ones) don't put more than 10 hours into the average game. There is a significant minority of players who don't even play every game they buy.  I feel like the demo can work against itself by either exposing problems with the game or by satiating the player's interest in the game.

None of the above have anything to with the gameplay mechanics or the graphics.  And if you are a fan it really shouldn't influence your decision in buying this game.  This game has so much potential but I don't think this game will be alive this time next year.  Rant over.

razeak

razeak

#1
It is entirely the fault of consumers if they pay real money for cosmetic items. Illfonic would be stupid not to take that money.

Matchmaking will kill it for sure if it isn't running smooth next month. Being a PS4 and Epic exclusive is already a heck of an uphill battle. I can only hope it last long enough to get some expanded bot options.

Gr33n M4n

Gr33n M4n

#2
I got the feeling that this is gonna be AvP 2010 all over again. Lack of content, garbage matchmaking and repetitive gameplay.

The Shuriken

The Shuriken

#3
They don't have the resources of a triple A studio. Of course this will be a bomb. I'll admit what they did with Predator gameplay and design is wonderful. But it's not enough.

PsyKore

PsyKore

#4
I would have preferred a single player game, ala Concrete Jungle. Watching the Predator in this makes me want that even more. At the very least then you'd still have a game to mess around in long after the multiplayer has declined.

Le Celticant

Le Celticant

#5
Quote from: PsyKore on Mar 30, 2020, 05:25:37 AM
I would have preferred a single player game, ala Concrete Jungle. Watching the Predator in this makes me want that even more. At the very least then you'd still have a game to mess around in long after the multiplayer has declined.

Agree there.


From the videos I've seen (I learned about the demo too late), the animations & FX are complete garbage and looks like default Unreal Engine particles & Ragdoll physic. I'm even tempted to say that AVP2 had similar Fire FX if not better and that was 20 years ago.
The environment are somewhat "meh" and greatly lack polished. I get the optimization for Multiplayer but still, it looks kind of flat.

426Buddy

426Buddy

#6
Xbox crowd would have been more appreciative Illfonic, bring the game over here and dump these guys.  :laugh: j/k

Graphics/animations look fine to me, but the gameplay videos from this weekend really look fun as hell.

seattle24

seattle24

#7
The demo was enough to convince me to buy it (saying that, it would have had to been pretty atrocious to deter me, I was kind of locked in since they announced it).

But I do think the price point is an issue. It looks and feels like a £20 game. When I was searching for it on Twitter I saw 'predator graphics' trending and I couldn't disagree with any of the comments despite my bias toward the I.P

So in relation to the point about 'content', yes, I agree, it needs to be free-flowing as a counter-act to the poor graphics and basic, shallow gameplay (that bit isn't a dig from me, predator only needs to be simple, I meant from a general perspective)

So if lots of maps aren't available at launch I hope they're free DLC in the pipeline.

On a last note, the Predator gameplay was actually pretty sound. I prefer playing as the fire team but yeah I rated the Pred gameplay.

Voodoo Magic

Voodoo Magic

#8
Quote from: 426Buddy on Mar 30, 2020, 01:32:21 PM
Xbox crowd would have been more appreciative Illfonic, bring the game over here and dump these guys.  :laugh: j/k

Graphics/animations look fine to me, but the gameplay videos from this weekend really look fun as hell.

I overall had a blast. There were many moments as a member of the Fire Team, like when I watched the cloaked Predator jumping tree from tree, where I marvelled with the feeling that I was in the 1987 Predator movie.

I personally believe this thread is a premature one, but I blame Illfonic for much of its existence. There was a lot of content hidden from us. And I can't wait to learn more about Jake Busey's and Arnold Schwarzenegger's assumptive involvement. But I put this expectations vs experience problem squarely on the shoulders of Illfonic. Like Illfonic's first trailer not stressing it was Alpha footage, this weekend should have never been called a free trial. Never. It wasn't a free trial of the full game. It was a beta test of portions of it. We know there's a lot more content not shown and tweaks to come of course, but the gamers not following this game that closely who played a "trial" don't know that. Unless they called it what it was, a beta, and then people's expectations would have adjusted accordingly. I find it so frustrating.

JungleHunter87

JungleHunter87

#9
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Mar 30, 2020, 02:37:55 PM
Quote from: 426Buddy on Mar 30, 2020, 01:32:21 PM
Xbox crowd would have been more appreciative Illfonic, bring the game over here and dump these guys.  :laugh: j/k

Graphics/animations look fine to me, but the gameplay videos from this weekend really look fun as hell.

I overall had a blast. There were many moments as a member of the Fire Team, like when I watched the cloaked Predator jumping tree from tree, where I marvelled with the feeling that I was in the 1987 Predator movie.

I personally believe this thread is a premature one, but I blame Illfonic for much of its existence. There was a lot of content hidden from us. And I can't wait to learn more about Jake Busey's and Arnold Schwarzenegger's assumptive involvement. But I put this expectations vs experience problem squarely on the shoulders of Illfonic. Like Illfonic's first trailer not stressing it was Alpha footage, this weekend should have never been called a free trial. Never. It wasn't a free trial of the full game. It was a beta test of portions of it. We know there's a lot more content not shown and tweaks to come of course, but the gamers not following this game that closely who played a "trial" don't know that. Unless they called it what it was, a beta, and then people's expectations would have adjusted accordingly. I find it so frustrating.

I agree wholeheartedly. I think tempered expectations would help. But, Illfonic are definitely not helping themselves by the lack of transparency or rather truthful promotion of the product.

razeak

razeak

#10
The game looked better in the tutorial I believe. Maybe I'm filling in the gaps. I think it probably dialed back on the multiplayer side. There were some framerate issues when the predator was in close and moving. He's already fast enough lol.

The Shuriken

The Shuriken

#11
Quote from: PsyKore on Mar 30, 2020, 05:25:37 AM
I would have preferred a single player game, ala Concrete Jungle. Watching the Predator in this makes me want that even more. At the very least then you'd still have a game to mess around in long after the multiplayer has declined.

Yeah that is what we all wanted. But alas it's not so. Best we can hope for is a bot mode. But even that probability is significantly low. Just gotta wait and see.

ResolutionBlaze

ResolutionBlaze

#12
As a very casual player of Asymmetrical games, I'm used to long queue times and imbalances.  But I can see myself playing this game above the others I've played.

My main concern is that the game is an Epic Store exclusive and pricey.  I can pay for it, but its going to keep numbers low.  Illfonic has a tendency to overprice their asymmetrical multiplayer games, hence why DbD beat out F13th (one of the reasons).

Vow

Vow

#13
QuoteFourthly, this only applies to PC, but it is Epic Games Store.  It is not going to be better than steam anytime soon, and the platform is currently running at a loss. You miss probably 80% of the PC players by making it an Epic Games exclusive.  Only fans are going to look to buy it, causal players won't buy games unless it is put onto their radar, which Steam does well with seasonal sales, free weekends, and the daily promotions it does.  If this game does come to steam I fear it will be too late at the game will have died by that point.

It's not coming to Steam at all. There isn't even a Steam page. So far, I heard that matchmaking on PC is abysmall and the wait times are very long. I don't see much incentive in paying $40 for a game that's DOA on a store front that isn't all that much consumer friendly.

QuoteThey don't have the resources of a triple A studio. Of course this will be a bomb. I'll admit what they did with Predator gameplay and design is wonderful. But it's not enough.

I imagine they got quite a bit of money from Epic to not release the game on Steam, so they could have used that to make more content for the game rather than lock gear behind repetitive gameplay just so you could actually enjoy it as a Predator played way down the line. And given that the PC version of the game seems to have so few matches going for it, unlocking the gear would become even more difficult.

It's a shame, really. We get a new game that lets us play as the Predator after 10 years and it's going to die on us. I wish someone would have just either completely remade Concrete Jungle with modern visuals and improved gameplay, or at least took inspiration from the game and built on that. We need single-player content to stay relevant and option multiplayer, rather than multiplayer-only.

seattle24

seattle24

#14
Quote from: Voodoo Magic on Mar 30, 2020, 02:37:55 PM
Quote from: 426Buddy on Mar 30, 2020, 01:32:21 PM
Xbox crowd would have been more appreciative Illfonic, bring the game over here and dump these guys.  :laugh: j/k

Graphics/animations look fine to me, but the gameplay videos from this weekend really look fun as hell.

I overall had a blast. There were many moments as a member of the Fire Team, like when I watched the cloaked Predator jumping tree from tree, where I marvelled with the feeling that I was in the 1987 Predator movie.

I personally believe this thread is a premature one, but I blame Illfonic for much of its existence. There was a lot of content hidden from us. And I can't wait to learn more about Jake Busey's and Arnold Schwarzenegger's assumptive involvement. But I put this expectations vs experience problem squarely on the shoulders of Illfonic. Like Illfonic's first trailer not stressing it was Alpha footage, this weekend should have never been called a free trial. Never. It wasn't a free trial of the full game. It was a beta test of portions of it. We know there's a lot more content not shown and tweaks to come of course, but the gamers not following this game that closely who played a "trial" don't know that. Unless they called it what it was, a beta, and then people's expectations would have adjusted accordingly. I find it so frustrating.

See, I didn't know this. I knew Arnie and Busey had possibly recorded audio but as someone that hasn't followed every drip of news, I thought this trial was pretty much the real deal.

If anything I am now more excited for April 24th.

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