Should we expect more solid time frames for Telltale releases?
I know it is a custom that Telltale doesn't put release dates to not disappoint fans and part of this rant is simply frustration between waiting periods, but who here would want more of a solid release date for these games?
Sometimes it just goes beyond not wanting to rush the developers to get a quality product. Even something more like "Coming in December" versus "Coming Soon" like the Season 2 teaser trailer did would be a better reassurance. I personally don't mind delays as long as there is still a projected time period for when the product is set to come out. Heck, as disappointed as I was in Watch Dogs and South Park being delayed, at least they gave us an alternate release date to keep excitement up.
Anyone else feel this way?
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I'd be willing to wait months between episodes so long as they are consistently good. At least they're not like Valve, right? Otherwise we might not see Season 2 this side of the century.
A solid release date? Oh god yes.
Now I'm pretty certain TTG has an internal deadline for the game/first episode, but to not releasing a fixed date for the community and fans is simply bad catering for the fan base. I'm not joking here. A lot of people are more casual gamers who perhaps thought that "well, the first season was good, and I'd like to play the second too" but aren't kept in the loop by any news. And when this kind of player is not kept updated they WILL forget about it. Less exposition of a game means less sales, and there isn't a company in the world who takes that easily. A product not sold is a product not generating income.
By now, TTG should have put up banners on sites, had press conferences regarding the next season, fully fledged teasers, trailers and perhaps even a demo to show things off and tease the tastebuds - hell, they could have arranged for wacky walking Dead costume contests, yelled it from Empire State Building, whatever. But instead, we are met with this:
Silence
***By now, TTG should have put up banners on sites, had press conferences regarding the next season, fully fledged teasers, trailers and perhaps even a demo to show things off and tease the tastebuds - hell, they could have arranged for wacky walking Dead costume contests, yelled it from Empire State Building, whatever. But instead, we are met with this:
Silence***
Which is why I'm questioning if we are really going to see season 2 released this month. It doesn't make sense to not be all bells and pan banging if your game is just weeks away from release. You can't merely rely on previous success (GOTY for the first season) and your fan base to sell your game. You need to attract new players, and the only way you do that is by making noise.
I fear what we will get before Jan 1st is all the hoohaa, and then a lot of hemming and hawing as to why the first episode is still not out.
I pre-ordered this season based on the fact that we were promised to have the first episode in Fall of 2013. That promise is broken, as well as my commitment to ever pre-order a game from TTG. Next time, I will save my money until the day of release.
I doubt we are going to be getting more concrete dates. Everyone here seems upset that they won't just give a date already but I'm sure everyone already upset by this would get even more mad if they set a date that was then delayed.
I personally have no issue with waiting. I love the games Telltale makes, and I want Telltale to be happy with what they release instead of making sure to stick to a specific release date like everyone here seems to want.
Then they shouldn't even say things like "Fall 2013" or "This month". Even that seems too specific for them to keep. At this point, I will be surprised if the Ep1, S2 comes out before Dec. 31st, let alone Christmas. Coming out before Christmas is more likely before Christmas, 2014.at this rate.
I agree that I don't mind waiting and I love their games. However, giving us a nebulous release date makes it harder to be excited more than just frustrated. At least with Watch Dogs and South Park, I am able to readjust my expectations once I get past my disappointment with the delays. So it's less "Crap, the game is delayed!" and more "Ok, it's been delayed until ___." With Telltale, it is just "Crap, I don't know when it will come out!" Plus, knowing their track record of not even announcing a release date until five days before the date, it makes it harder to anticipate playing when you can't plan a day to play it. Especially for those who have work schedules, school, family and bigger priorities to accommodate before leisure game playing.
So I don't mind if they take a while to develop, but I prefer having at least a reassurance to a general time frame, even a delayed one. Seeing "Coming in December" versus "Coming Soon" is much more comforting in my opinion.
I might be wrong about this but from what I've seen the game hasn't ever even been delayed, they've said fall 2013 and before Christmas and since Fall 2013 ends December 20th which is 5 days before Christmas, it seems Telltale is on track to deliver the game in the time frames they have already given to us.
Beyond that I'll say, If they don't know when they will release it they don't know, I mean Telltale has to go through several different companies before they release the game and I doubt Telltale as intimate knowledge of their timetables which is why they usually announce the game only a few days before the release. The only thing that can be accomplished by them giving specific dates when they don't have one is disappointing fans when they don't meet it.
As happy as I was with the first season, I'm not buying this yet. Not for a few episodes anyway.
Season 1 they promised episodes on or around the same day every month. In the case of some episodes, we waited much, MUCH longer than that. I don't trust any TT deliverable dates, even if the games are good.
I looked at a couple and said to myself "This looks like it has potential. But I don't want to wait another 12 months to see the conclusion". It's not the "sitting on the edge of your seat" that you want your customers to have.
Seven years of experience tell me: yes, you are going to see the first episode released this month.
Telltale has announced a schedule they could not adhere to for Season one, that much is true.
But, no, they didn't promise episodes 'on or around the same day every month', never ever.
Fall officially ends Friday, December 20. They could release within a week of Christmas and still be within that timeframe. The latest blog says it is still on track to releasing this month. All these so-called delays people keep ranting about never happened. It was all just speculation that led to disappointment. Because of the nature of how episodic gaming works, TTG doesn't know the official release date until maybe a week or so before, and they are typically good about giving out the release dates of their games when they have them. So far, no promise has been broken.
I wouldn't expect a release date until a few days before the release.