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Denver, 1:55 AM
Sat Nov 21
51 posts in the last 24 hours
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11/12/09
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11/12/09
And yes we established a nice pipeline of imported versions. The austrians make lots of money because of this, they usually have uncut versions of the games with german language. So many people order their stuff from there and the austrian export shops know of their monopol and rip us off with insane prices.
Anyway this newsarticle is old, it has been known for quite some time that an release in germany is highly unlikely because rebellion refuses to cut anything about the game. I hope more developers/publishers will follow that example.
Because than at some point we germans will end up with no new games at all and at that point mabye some change might happen.. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
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11/13/09
In their thinking it's possible for minors to "want" these game if they see advertisement for them or just see them on the shelf (even if they can't even buy them).
It's a stupid situation because most people just want to leave education to the goverment instead of taking care of their children themself. They rather would take out all mature entertaiment (including movies) out of retail shops to make sure that no minors get their hands on that stuff. This way they won't have to care about education themself, they won't have to take a look at what their kids are playing on their consoles, they won't have to take 5 minutes of time to apply youth protection on the console so the kid can't play games that are above a certain rating.
Overall it's the stupidity of the masses and the lazyness.
Doesn't help that the govemernt does host their own "GOTY" awards. And developers that win get some money from the goverment to motivate them making "good games". That whole thing is a complete joke, only german games can apply and it has been allready said that FPS games can't win an award because they can "never be considered good". That's the perfect example of the narrowminded thinking that's usual around here.. #aliensvspredator
11/13/09
In a way I can see some of the logic behind it from the Germans. What is the ultimate villan in movies and games? To many people they are the personification of evil to the point of almost not being human. The one thing that no one fears sympathy for and you can just shoot at and make the ultimate evil? Nazi's. But to them the Nazi's arent these faceless evil soldiers who arent people, they were friends and family that lived in a different time. They were real and it must be incredibly hard to see games based around the whole idea of murdering as many of these people as possible. Imagine if Americans had to see games built around killing American soldiers. Or people seeing a game based on 9/11 where you kill evil Americans? They'd go nuts.
Question for ou: How does it feel though to play a game where you shoot Nazi's and you have that tangible connection to the characters there?
11/13/09
And it's hard to tell if it makes them seek out more, from my personal experience i have to say: Yes clearly
When i was young the hardcore violence videogames where THE stuff to have. It's alllways been like "woah did you hear about thrill kill? that game got indexed! that sounds awesome, need to get that!"
So this whole censorship thing backfires, by making it "bad" they make it more interesting. They try to prevent that with all the indexing and restrictions (you can't mention any of these games in the papers because that would be considered "advertisement") but everybody living in a free society knows how well that works. It doesn't work at all...
Another funny sidenote: Did you know that after WW2 they passed laws to prevent "war toys"? Yup no toys that where shaped after weapons where allowed. I think the law is still in effect but nobody cares anymore.
But this is a pretty good example of the thinking going on around here. To many german politicans and "scientists" violence is something unnatural that only gets triggered by "bad things" and not a part of human nature. So they hope to eliminate it by removing/hiding everything that could trigger it.
About the nazi thing:
Todays germany is pretty much over that, because we get constantly reminded of it.
The TV is full with WW2 documentations about the SS and the Nazis. Most younger germans are fed up with it and don't care anymore because they have to learn nearly everything about it and even visit old concentration camps.
Nobody sees these characters as "germans" but they rather see them as "nazis" and over here in germany getting called a nazi is one of the worst things that can happen to you. Worse than compared to other countries where most people can use the word as a joke. Over here "nazi" is a pretty hefty insult and can destroy reputations.
So there isn't a real connection to the nazis like you think there would be. They are not considered german, or family or anything like that. They are just considered an evil of the past with no further thinking.
But to go back on the whole violence part: I think it can be pretty much compared to the issues the US has with such simple things like mild sexual content. The difference is that not many games feature something like that, so the topic doesn't pop up that often in the US.
In germany it's about violence and because violence is such a big part of so many videogames the whole topic enjoys way more attention over here.
11/14/09
It's amazing the dynamic a culture can have with something horrible happening in their past. Here we do learn about the atrocities we commited also like the bombing of Japan and the entire Vietnam war but obviously that isnt the same. It's actually might be interesting to play where Americans are the bad guys instead of playing games where youre constantly the hero and theyre trying to shove an apple pie up your ass while they salute the flag.
Have gamers gottent ogether over there to try to repel the laws? Gaming is getting more mainstream and its big business and we all know money talks. Have any corporations like IW or gaming advocacy groups been brought to fight the laws? How about the ESRB? #aliensvspredator
11/16/09
And the gaming industry is suprisingly silent about all this. I think they just try to duck away and hope it will just go away. They fear they might make people even more upset.
Because over here they get portrayed as the evil big business coorperations that make their games as bloody and violent as possible to profit on children.
Some of the "anti gaming" people even claim there is something like a "military-industrial media complex" where the military, gaming industry and the media are working all together because of all the money involved. (which is pure BS considered that most if not all the mainstream media over here is contra-gaming)
Basicly they claim that video games are just a testing platform for the military to make some kind of software that desensitizes people to killing. The developement gets sponsored by the millitary because they train their soldiers with this kind of software to make them better at "killing" on the battlefield. Well at least that's what these people claim. I don't need to mention that 100% of this stuff is just wrong and made up.
Still many people believe this crap because they have no clue about the whole topic.
The only thing that will help is time, it's just like rock/metal music, Dungeon & Dragons or a few hundred years ago Books and reading.
All these things had been new and got feared because they where new and the older generations didn't understand them. But when the generation that grew up with this stuff is old enough to have kids themself they know better. Sad thing is they don't realy learn from what happened to them. Instead they just stigmatize something the current youth enjoys that this now "old generation" doesn't understand. It's just an endless circle... #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
It makes me wonder how the Australian censorship board will treat the game though. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
The rating is not AvP's biggest problem in Germany, the lack of an audience is. Sega is doing the right thing by not wasting money on releasing it in Germany and instead seeking attention by blaming the German rating boards.
It would just be an 18 rated game of a franchise that is unlikely to attract more than 15.000 sales. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
I could be wrong but it just seems strange to make such a statement. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
and despite continued government efforts, the PC FPS crowd is huge there. the first AvP was a massive hit among said crowd in germany, so it would be fair to assume that the sequel will sell.
but nobody wants USK censored games anyway, so they just import. as i'm sure they will for the new AvP #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
11/12/09
AvP had 1.000.000 sold movie tickets in Germany, AvP2 sold 750.000 tickets. That is in the nowhereland between hit and flop, it'll make its money back, but it will require DVD sales to do that.
So far that is ok, but you have to calculate an attachment rate of roughly 10% when the game sales start. Actually less, because uncensored imports play much more of a role in this niche and piracy will occur.
It's commercially not viable to fully localize a game, if your sales are going to be that low. While there are Germans who love their AvP, there aren't enough of them to valid a local version. Which is not a bad thing, because those who do like AvP will know how to get it anyway and are likely to have a taste for the original language version as it stands. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
11/12/09
Uwe Boll is one of the usual suspects for that kind of sales strategy, btw. (no matter if you like or dislike his work).
Also, there is virtually no cost saved in terms of localization.
Don't forget that there are still other countries that speak German, namely Swiss and Austria.
The only "overhead" that is saved is the time spent in the cutting room.
As of now, there are 2 main reasons for us to buy movies, games and comics in another country. The price tag and wanting to have the uncut version. A minority (I am part of it) also loathes bad localization and wants to get the English version, but that is actually almost always included nowadays anyway.
Fact for me is, I do usually save 10-20% if I order stuff from the UK, do get the uncut version (and don't mind if there is no German localization). Still, most people order in Austria. Not everybody around here is proficient enough to watch/play movies/games in English. By coincidence, those people are the major demographic who also buy the DVD, instead of going to the movies. #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
I got the game in the end, but I think that point still holds slightly true today. The problem that arises is that the more humanoid the aliens become, the less likely it is to brush it off as fanciful instead typical gore.
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11/12/09
Though, thinking about the trailer... maybe not so... #aliensvspredator
11/12/09
11/09/09
This is why i think all games systems should require a demo of all published games to be released at the latest 1 week before the title releases. Because i can tell what i will like with about 5 minutes of demo time. I dont need a game review score to know if the game is my cup of tea or not.
Didnt this happen with Batman too? Was there even a need to ask for high scores on that game? #assassinscreedii
11/09/09
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11/10/09
Perhaps its just a feeling I have, but if publishers are going to strong arm reviewers for good reviews... I say let the people become the reviewers. A required Demo before the release date would allow us to decide if said game is crap....
Be that as it may... I am still super ready for AC2. #assassinscreedii
11/09/09
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11/08/09
11/08/09
If this turns out to be true, it will just be another reason why I don't buy Ubisoft games...new. #assassinscreedii
11/09/09
Every single company out there bends rules and screws people over. Welcome to the great Capitalist society we live in.
Seriously, a stand over something justified is one thing, but because they wanted a good review score? Please.
Sony bullied Crystal Dynamics into not publishing Soul Reaver 2 on Dreamcast because it looked and played better than the PS2 version.
Microsoft sues then buys out companies every year.
Nintendo? Well, I haven't followed Nintendo since my NES days, but I'm sure they've engaged in shady practices as well. #assassinscreedii
11/08/09
1) Not accept the offer, and thus not review the game BUT when the review was supposed to be on the site or in the publication put in its place a page that basically says "We were supposed to review but we didn't because we didn't receive a copy to review because "
You'd pretty much devoting the space you were going to use for the review to telling the public how much the developer/publisher fails at being ethical.
2) Accept, but just in order to get your hands on the review copy. When you review the game, review it how you always would, and give it the score it DESERVES and make it a point to stress though out your review that the developer tried to force a good review JUST SO YOU COULD GET A REVIEW COPY AT ALL.. They didn't buy you in the end, you basically conned them into letting you do your job right.
Either way I wouldn't expect to ever get a copy of the game at all after doing either of these things. But I do think making them look like huge fools for trying to buy your love with something they should be providing any way should be the most important thing.
So can you you shed some insight on this for me, Owen, cause while I know it happens (I believe I remember GameSpy having a bribing thing happen a couple years back) it still blows my mind that it happens. #assassinscreedii
11/08/09
It's becoming more and more obvious how professional reviews are purchased and therefore useless.
"Metascores" are becoming obsolete.
Seriously, I purchased Tekken 6 (a game that has received a 80 Metascore) and was horrified by how unpolished and utterly terrible it was (especially since I just picked up Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection off of the PSN and found it a far better game for 1/3 the price).
I miss the days of PC Accelerator Magazine (now extinct because they weren't in anyone's pockets). I miss the "Golden Crackpipe Award" given to developers that made a game so shitty that they must've been smoking crack during the development.
When was the last time we saw a big-publisher-backed/highly marketed game receive a Metascore below 60? I mean Hellgate: London (a game that financially imperiled Namco/Bandai enough to make them pull out of American development) received a bloody 70 Metascore! If that doesn't illustrate how screwed the system is, nothing does.
11/08/09
Would Ubisoft do this, just for the sake of a better Metacritic rating? Eh, it's not entirely unlikely. The first one was well received by most people, but there was a large minority (myself included) that felt the game was weighed down by a lot of issues.
Even if Assassin's Creed 2 is great, I have no plans to buy it, based solely on how disappointed I was with the first one. I imagine Final Fantasy IX and Metal Gear Solid 3 would have received more sales in much the same way if people weren't disappointed by Final Fantasy VIII and Metal Gear Solid 2. #assassinscreedii
11/08/09
Of course, high Metacritic scores are the symptom and not the cause- games are good not because Metacritic says so, but because they were made that way. #assassinscreedii
11/08/09
Anyway, I won't buy a game if it gets a bad score, but I'm comfortable with buying something in my favorite genres if it rates higher than a 75. Otherwise I can wait till it hits the discount rack. $60 is a tad high for mediocrity.
11/08/09
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11/08/09
If you've never hear of "Computer Bild Spiele" then you must be a half world away from Germany or live under a rock/bridge.
Here in GER the mag hardly needs an introduction and is backed up by the Germany's most successful newspaper publishing company Axel Springer Verlag.
Also Ubi has already pulled that one with EGM over AssCreed1, so go get a clue:
[www.1up.com] #assassinscreedii
11/09/09
Everybody in Germany, Austria and Switzerland knows it. But that might as well be translated to "no one" for you - right? #assassinscreedii
11/09/09
11/08/09