Hey GB, when can we expect

Homeworld Remastered Collection Homeworld Remastered Multiplayer
#1

I ordered my original copy of HW from a game store in the mall back in 1999. i have been a member of the hw community since day one. this game is dear to me and i am worried.

It doesn’t feel like there are very many people working on the development of this game. I am concerned that the player base is evaporating rapidly before our eyes. For many of us, the hw community was an amazing microcosm of friends, clans, mods and fansites. Many of us came here looking to experience that magic again.

Question 1)*
How many people are actively working on HWR bug fixes and balancing issues at this point?

After a month of complaining about not having a game lobby, which we all know is very important for match making, clans, and the overall community. We were pleasantly informed that this issue would be addressed, and is important to GB.

Question 2)
How long can we expect to wait for a lobby to be implemented? Just a general, reasonable, time frame would suffice.

Many of us are concerned about the progress and priority of game breaking bug fixes and balancing issues for MP. Not knowing what you intend to address for MP can make people hopeful for things that will not come.

Question 3)
Is there a list of these priorities that you guys can share with us. Even if its is just a list of what you guys are planning to address in patch 3, 4, 5 etc?

Basically, I am really worried. I fear that the longer away from the launch date we go, the less important our concerns will become. It did take almost a month for you guys to confirm that we would even have a lobby. Personally, i ‘feel’ like i might be hoping and expecting a lot more than what will be delivered. If that is the case, no biggie. I would rather know now than to wait for months to discover, this was not the droid i was looking for.

EDIT: new questions outlined below
Question 4)
Did GB release the game to us, without changing a single stat for balancing purposes?
Question 5)
Was Multiplayer planned from the beginning, or was the whole MP aspect of this release something that came about after realizing people might no go for a ‘redo’ of a popular RTS without it?
Question 6)
The website says 'ALL FEATURES of the original games. When can we expect to see these missing features implemented? (Formations, Tactics, Lobby) or is this a typo on the website?
Question 6-a)
If this is a typo on the website, do you think it should be removed as to not mislead other potential customers?

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#2

And momo is one of the nicer, level headed guru.

#3

I think they’re either working on something to make mod support better (being able download the host’s mod in client) for the official balance mod to come, or they’re working on getting those missile extra damage bug fixed before pushing a patch and the mod. They just now confirmed the bug a bit of what caused it, but can’t really predict how long it’d take to fix.

3: Looking at the topics on this forum, one of the higher up ones is an issue tracker.

#4

If you’re referring to the one I set up, it has absolutely got nothing to do with developer’s priority. While some may have similar priorities, consider it our memo from players’ perspective.
They have other tasks than just fixing those such as balancing HW1 races.

#5

Here’s the thing: Gearbox don’t tend to announce stuff they aren’t 100% sure will happen. I’ve never, in six years of hanging around their forum, seen them give estimated dates or priority lists (apart from the incidental info from Bitvenom, Burleson, rscole, or Botman; check the devtracker button above) because things change. The policy seems to be an attempt to avoid a backlash if things change to a point where stuff they wanted to happen, announced would be happening, can’t happen.

Also, this thread is much better than your previous effort. Stick with the polite stuff, thankyou.

#6

Here’s the thing: When Gearbox picked up the IP for Homeworld, we were part of the baggage. When HW:C came out and brought backlash you had devs posting on relic news arguing their side and arranging games with the community to prove them wrong on certain OP/UP arguments. We already had high expectations because we have 16 years of history. And frankly, GB is behind the 8-ball with both the quality of the release and the lack of communication, fixes, and support post release.

This is no knock on any 1 dev. Individually I’ve seen good post from them, but big picture is not looking so good. And a reality check from a frustrated community member should be expected.

Sorry if the this is how Gearbox works doesn’t sit well with us.

4 Likes
#7

So that’s what you call giving more support in a few weeks than Relic have since '99, while only getting started?

#8

quantity =/= quality. And without rehashing points that have already been expressed over and over here, the 2 post released patches only addressed a fraction of issues that should’ve never been present in the first place. We still haven’t seen one of these quick ‘balance mods’ 16 days later. If it’s 3 + weeks between trying out mods of a balance patch, how long before we actually see any of this fixed?

I realize that GB is in a difficult position. It’s not like they released a new game and everyone learned it for the first time. We were quickly able to point out a massive amount of problems that would probably have taken months to discover had we all played this for the first time.

I hope I can look back on this time 6 months from now and have nothing but praise for GB for polishing the game to a level never seen before. I also hope there are players still around to enjoy it.

#9

I understand what you are saying. Personally, I am trying to keep a positive spin on things.

Time will tell. It’s only been little more than a month.

I think their next update will be a better indicator for all of us about the direction they are headed in and what they consider priority. Also, they just tell us. They have been communicating with us.

I know it has been stated before, but a CHAT LOBBY would go a long, LONG way to allaying some concerns. Since it is on their plate, I guess we have to wait and see what happens.

Keep your chin up! It’ll be ok!

2 Likes
#10

i haven’t had a chance to compare the original hw1 and hw2 stats to the remastered version. makes me wonder though…

Question 4)
Did GB release the game to us, without changing a single stat for balancing purposes?

the whole multiplayer thing is another animal completely. Clearly the balancing issues are not as relevant in the single player version. It kind of feels like maybe the MP thing was an after thought. A super in yo face WARNING about the MP being old code and uber BETA. no lobby, weird flickering refresh on games list. then they took away the refresh altogether.

Question 5)
Was Multiplayer planned from the beginning, or was the whole MP aspect of this release something that came about after realizing people might no go for a ‘redo’ of a popular RTS without it?

After reading the reviews of another very special IP (Aliens: colonial marines). Here is the #1 YT video review. 3.2 mil views with over 46,000 likes (1400 dislikes). this guy says a lot of things that seem to sound familiar to me.

/watch?v=UGX2WE4QUw8

#11

i to am holding onto that glimmer of hope… that all my fears and concerns will be laughing points 4 months from now.

#12

Relic post HW1 is one of my most hated companies, so not a good bar to compare to.
HW2 support was a disaster. Tales of Valor was one of the biggest scandals in video gaming that somehow went unreported. Between those two, there were the constant rushed expansions that would ruin games multiplayer more and more at the expense of cash grabs. Not sure why you would hold Relic as a company in high regard.

1 Like
#13

I don’t know about the dark, ends times of relic. My time with HW1 was between 99 and 00, and HW:C from 01 to 05. And when HW2 release I was a little out of pocket. But In the beginning, It wasn’t unusually for those guys to show up and chat in the #homeworld irc channel. They had chops on the multiplayer field, and they were good about communication in general on the boards. This all may be rose colored glasses. But I imagine that iterative changes have to have improved over the last 15 years also.

#14

this guy’s video is such a powerful display of why no formations have removed a major tactical element that all hw1 and hwc players had come to love and rely on.

sorry if this has been posted before… but if you have not seen this. i highly recommend you watch it. this guy does live, split screen analysis of formations, and why they are important.

7 Likes
#15

Thanks, this video was very informative.

It was pretty damn disheartening as well. :disappointed:

#16

yes, the video nails it… and the guy does a great job breaking it down for the hw2 guys who never played hw1, so don’t understand what we are complaining about. granted, we have to accept that hw now have hw1 running in the hw2 engine. but i think there IS a way to find a happy medium ground for the lack of formations and tactics. it will only be disheartening if GB decides not to follow through.

i’m not afraid of change, i’m not locked into ‘this has to be 100% exactly the same mechanics’, but again, you just can’t take away the heart of the game and expect it to thrive.

1 Like
#17

Agreed. Do me a favor Mo and respond to this post. There is a reason I put it up.

#18

I forgot that Homeworld was Game of the Year.

It would be very difficult for me to accept that they couldn’t find a healthy middle ground.

The tactics part of the video was upsetting.

1 Like
#19

and that’s without going into the changes to support craft either :cry:

heck it won

E3 1999 - Game Critics Awards: Best Strategy Games
IGN 1999 - Game of the Year
PC Gamer 1999 - Game of the Year

I think it even won awards for the music score and game manual didn’t it ?

HW2 had one hell of a shadow to get out from under right from the get go.

1 Like
#20

yeah, i think a number of the hw2 guys think the old hw1 guys are just whining and don’t want to adapt. the truth is very simple. hw2 was a different game. anyone who loved hw1, who decided to try hw2 knew that this was a completely different game. some liked it, some didn’t. me, i liked at first, then didn’t like how much had changed, then after a few months, liked the game on it’s own merit. granted, it was not hw1 or hwc, but it was still fun, and offered it’s own brand of strategy and tactics. worth every penny imho.

but what we have here is not hw3, or hw revisited… this is hw remastered.
imagine this… you buy your ticket to see STAR WARS remastered, new scenes, new cgi… better sound. you sit down to the movie, to discover a bunch of missing scenes, a changed plot, lots of added stuff that didn’t quite feel like the original movie. then, when you voice your opinion about how this isn’t STAR WAS REMASTERED, it is STAR WARS REVISITED… and some 15 year old kid, who never saw the original, tells you that you are dumb, the movie is awesome, and you should stop whining.

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