This is ridiculous

Say what you want, but restricting beta access after the stress test was a dumb idea. You know how many F2P games would love this type of interest? Every hour that goes by more people drift away to wherever they came from. You can say what you want, but in the end if the population of the game isn't high enough it's a wrap. Or they have to change the business model.

How many potential lifelong players have already wandered off and will find something else that they will spend their money on?

Is it really necessary to kick people back out and then make them wait a week while you figure out how to operate a cash shop?

You're missing out on a chance to expand the community.

It's just a bad sign that GGG is missing the mark this early. Sure, everyone is excited about PoE and is giving their processes the benefit of the doubt. But you look at the desire on the part of their potential playerbase compared to their actions and it's already moving in a disturbing direction. If this happened with a Blizzard game people would be all "OMG BLIZZ SO ARROGANT" but when it's a new team we pretend there is some sort of mystical business model behind it.

We have a mysterious "trust us wink wink no one has spammed beta signups" with zero proof.

We have "trust us wink wink all those accounts made 9 months ago with no activity are surfing and not logging on" with zero proof.

If it was SOE or Blizz we would be ready to burn the world down over it, but for the new kids on the block we just assume they are ur gaming salvation.

I haven't been on this site as much as many other people but some of the people I see on here have been active and engaged for MONTHS. And they are getting crapped on.

I'm sorry, I enjoy the game. I felt the devs who were online were very helpful and approachable. But sometimes you gotta call a spade a spade, and in this case this is a dumb move.

You are not entitled for something that is free. The game is circulating a lot of interest and even if people stop caring now, they will be back once they launch an open beta.

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zebra204 wrote:

You are not entitled for something that is free. The game is circulating a lot of interest and even if people stop caring now, they will be back once they launch an open beta.

Yeah thanks for reading in depth. I never said anything about being entitled to anything. What I said was that the current plan was not the best idea possible and gave some scenarios to illustrate my point. I even went out of my way to say I am not nearly as active as some people around here and they have been a big part of the community. But don't let the minor details of reading the OP slow you down.

i agree with alot of the above points, but one thing i would add is that diablo 3 is right around the corner. If GGG dont grab potential gamers (and customers - micro transactions) then these ppl (if they have the cash) will undoubtedly go and spend it elsewhere.

By the way I'm not sure, but I would assume that GGG has to pay incrementally more for everyone that is using the servers, so I imagine a beta test with a limited amount of players, is financially easier to manage than say 40k people playing beta and not paying a penny, nor helping fund through the cash shop.

Even if the timer algorithm is set up to allow people that didn't play during the free weekend, in hopes that they will all pre-purchase from the cash shop instead for a beta key, then that is their choice. I for one find it to be completely generous to allow us to pre-purchase 10 dollars worth of stuff for a beta key, vs. just giving it away free to everyone that wants it.

At least this way, GGG sort of guarantees some income now, instead of waiting to see what happens at launch.

So buck up Mr. Johnny ShotMe and quit worrying so much how the developers handle their business. It's not really any of your concern.

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OrigamiElephant wrote:

So buck up Mr. Johnny ShotMe and quit worrying so much how the developers handle their business. It's not really any of your concern.

It's plenty of my concern. And it should be yours as well. We are people who are considering making a time/money investment. Shouldn't we consider who is driving the bus before we decide if we want to ride?

What else should we be talking about in the "Beta Invite Discussion" if not beta invites?

The sooner they get their shops/donations set up, the easier it will be to run the game FOR US.

Right, but concerning yourself with how GGG decides to conduct their business isn't really your business.

And besides, I'm sure they are frankly well aware of the fact that they made a game that doesn't cost anything, so I'm sure their business model is set up so that the company and game can run on a calculated cost, and that cost might not be very much.

So I would just say maybe think about that before assuming that without yours, my, or anyone's business, that GGG isn't even going to get out of beta.

Trust me, when this game launches, it's not going to matter where anyone else went. I heard about this game like a year ago or something, and I saw it on a forum like Friday that they were offering a free weekend, and here I am. So even if I do manage to "drift off" to something else, I'll hear about a final launch when it happens, and come right on back.

It seems like the guys running this party know what they are doing.

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JohnnyShotMe wrote:

Yeah thanks for reading in depth. I never said anything about being entitled to anything. What I said was that the current plan was not the best idea possible and gave some scenarios to illustrate my point. I even went out of my way to say I am not nearly as active as some people around here and they have been a big part of the community. But don't let the minor details of reading the OP slow you down.

I just fail to see what you try to accomplish. Are you assuming it would have been a better idea to keep it an open beta after the stress test weekend and that some how makes them out to be seen as good guys only because of a double standard between smaller and bigger game companies?

If so I disagree. They want to present people with a finished product, not to mention that 288 people get invited to the beta everyday. They have been more than satisfied from the results. The only people who are going to agree with you is everyone who is butthurt about not getting a key.

I'm in 2 minds about the cash for ingame items for the BETA. To me it sends the wrong msg.

'Yes you can test the BETA but it will cost you - and here are some items that you can have, but wont be able to keep once the beta ends'

I do like the idea of supporting the game and getting a early beta key tho - just not the model suggested. Maybe if those items are kept past the beta? maybe even unique things that would show ppl in the live servers that you were a beta tester?

just my 2 cents.