quoting post
I'm a little frustrated by this post and feel the need to speak. As someone who has paid for the game, who purchased it on retail day one, I believe that I have the right to speak as long as I am civil about it. I'm not trying to start a flame war or anything like that, but I'd really like you to tape it to the office wall.
Elemental had a beta and people gave critical feedback. From the look of the retail launch of Elemental it was either wholly ignored or poorly implemented. Elemental staff then asked people that purchased the game in good faith to basically function as beta-testers who are paying to beta-test a product. Now, Elemental staff is asking for their players, who have already been asked to function as beta-testers who pay to test the product, to note things they like about the game and suggest how to make that area better. In light of what has happened with Elemental that is something that is totally inappropriate, something that would not be the case if the history of Elemental and Stardock's response was better. As it stands now, it looks like Stardock made incredibly terrible mistakes with the game and is scrambling to do just about anything to make it better. Don't scramble, you either have the ideas or you don't. Don't take advantage of the playerbase's good will anymore. The people that are kind enough to follow these suggestions and post all sorts of great things in that section of the boards aren't getting any real recognition and they certainly aren't on your staff. They deserve better.
Whatever happened to this?
Again, this isn't meant to start a flame war or anything of the sort. Please, read it and take it to heart. Post it on the wall, figure out what to do and realise that you owe all of these people so much more than you've been giving.
See Brad? Ya need to be careful about things like this mate. (That's referring to another post in another topic entirely, explained below.)
While I abhorrently oppose most any sort of political establishment on the basis that they're entirely faulty and serve no purpose but to further ones own ends, I'm going to defend it this time...
One thing I want you to consider when reading the GBOR is the phrase at the beginning of each Amendment. "Gamers shall have the right..." By the very spirit of those words, it means we have the right to do the listed action within, or to NOT do the listed action within. To put this in more understandable terms, the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights states that the people have the right to Freedom of Speech. Now, Freedom, by it's definition, is the ability to do/use it, how we want, when we want. In this particular instance, following with the Spirit of the aforementioned document, you can safely tack on "Within reason" to the end of that. This means we have the right, by virtue of the word 'Freedom,' to speak our mind, or to NOT speak our mind, when and how we please, within reason.
The same also applies to the GBOR, but unfortunately, because of the nature of the rights in question, this also means that WE as the Gamers, must contribute to using those rights effectively and for good purposes. We cannot fulfill Amendment 3 of the GBOR without selflessly, and without any conceivable or expected profit of any kind, contributing. We can only hope that our contribution will profit us, in the form of a better, more enjoyable gaming experience.
Now, I warned Brad in another thread that the GBOR he'd created was a slippery slope, being that it's mostly a platform for his honest practices movement, which is exactly what the American Bill of Rights, and consequently, the Constitution, was, and look how that turned out. America's a great country, but we take our Constitution for granted anymore...
I warned Brad for one simple reason. Because on his end of things, the true Spirit of the document must be adhered to, and being that it's a Bill of Rights outlining OUR rights as Gamers, it is we who shape what that Spirit is. (Read: We don't Define it, it's already defined.) BUT, that does not mean that we can ignore the spirit of it either. More important than Brad or the folks at Stardock adhering to the spirit of the GBOR, is that the Gamers, the very people that Bill was written for, both adhere to, and protect, the spirit of that Bill, regardless of circumstances or consequences. Without profit or gain of any kind. Come Hell or High Water.
I am not... Well, I am criticizing you, but I'm trying to do it rationally, constructively, and kindly. I'm trying to tell you, if you understand what a Bill of Rights implies, then you generally only have two choices. Paint over it, as we've already done with our own Constitution, or adhere to it, hold it close to your heart, and make sure that if someone destroys it, they destroy you as well. That if they want to take it away from you, you will take away their life or die trying. Yes, I know, I'm sounding melodramatic and extreme, but that is the level of importance a document that outlines your RIGHTS should warrant from you, and everyone else it affects.
I understand your frustration, and according to your First Amendment Rights, you have the right to vent those frustrations, within reason. You have not broken this amendment, and in fact followed it to the letter. By attacking the Gamers Bill of Rights, you have, however, encroached upon your own rights listed there-in, and while there will be no consequences to the end of Mod-Enforcement that I can foresee, there will be consequences with how people new to the GBOR will view said document. Stardock is not violating the rights outlined in that document in any way, shape or form. They are using it to satisfy their own ends, which normally I would oppose. In this case, however, their ends are altruistic, and their exploitation of said document to reach those ends, those ends being making Elemental into a good game, warrants the exploitation, even if it be at our expense. And it is our right, as gamers, to allow said exploitation, and to provide the feedback they need to satisfy their ends, or not. I choose to use the right. You may freely choose to not use your right. In the end, it's not whether or not you use the right that makes the difference, it's how you choose to use it, or not. It's the choice itself that matters. Just please, don't attack our Rights, our Mutual Rights, that we as gamers share, and should hold close to our hearts.
Edit: If you'd like to respond to this, please do so in a PM, so we don't continue to clutter up this thread.
