Releasing the game in this state feels like a slap in the face

[mogonk]

Years ago, I was one of the people saying "it's early access, you can't expect the polish of a finished product" etc., etc. Early last year, I was frustrated with the lack of progress and I decided to take a break until release. I would wait, come back, and the game would be ready.

Well, they didn't finish the game. They just didn't finish it.

Now, everybody has an idea in their head of what Bannerlord should be like. Somebody could easily look at the game as it is, compare it to the ideal version of the game in their head, and call it unfinished. That's not what I mean at all.

No, I'm talking about characters eyes turning into red holes in their face.

I'm talking about floating blades, or blades clipping into the hilts.

I'm talking about duplicate smithing parts with identical names and appearance, but different stats.

I'm talking about dialogue options that lead to "....Nevermind" as if that's an acceptable way to structure a dialogue tree in 2022.

I'm talking about repeatedly "unlocking" smithing parts that are already unlocked.

This is not an exhaustive list of every problem in Bannerlord, not at all. This is a list of the problems I encountered within two hours of playing the release version of the game. I have looked all of these up on the forums, there are dozens if not hundreds of bug reports or discussions for every one of these.

So they knew these issues existed. They knew they had not fixed them. And they released the game with all of those issues still unfixed, knowingly.

To me, what this expresses is contempt for the players. I don't see how else you could consider that acceptable.

All I can really do is never buy another TW game, and tell everyone I know to do the same.

 

[five bucks]

And lord relations, traits, armour, voting, surrendering etc. not working as intended/having barely any effect

 

[pRaX]

We've been slapped in the face since the start.

 

[Ananda_The_Destroyer]

Pie in the face

 

[Veith]

....as long they dont spit....
Clear many folks arguing the main programm must be finest polished, but factly in much many games modders are the polisher, main devs more rough workers. Because thats more than often i am a mod-waiter, sad, but curiously not strange, more common.

 

[stevepine]

Of course you're right.

The development of this game over the years is an insult to everyone who paid money for a decent successor to Warband.

The 'end game' of Bannerlord just isn't worth getting to. It simply isn't worth putting in the hours for. And so many mechanics of the game have been released broken.

So at this point, I really don't care what the DLC are .... I wont be giving more money in any way, shape or form to this company. Not a penny. They really don't deserve it.

 

[Veith]

It is curious as i started with Mount & Blade, was perhaps 2006?? you could fight on a funny map ''3'' groups of looters, nothing more and that independant development went further and further to something greater and greater, finally even better...with mods. Sure Bannerlord is comparing to the beginning splendid, but the enthusiastic goal of Talesworld itself to bring really greater gameplay for and with ''mounts'' and ''blades'', finally didn't keep what everyone had expected or promised in the end. For me nevertheless not curious that i will play the probably great mod-overhauls because there is nothing, absolutely nothing on the game-market comparable with M&B. That is factly more sad than Bannerlord is not the game many folks wanted.

 

[Fistochat]

I think you are all overreacting a bit. Guys, rejoy, the game is stable and is a very solid base for modders. And that is all we need. Don't ask to much of this company, they did what was the best for us in the end.

 

[Veith]

@Fistochat, clear the expectations are growing into the far sky over years and years, thats perhaps also a ''problem'' Mount and Blade works now more than 15 years and i am sure there will be some more years. That i wait for mods is i think also normal after more than a decade playing that game concept (clear seomtimes also a year of pause^^) But i am sure mods will match my taste in a better way, was in past for M&B the same. And if the platform is fine for modding then it is finally fine.

 

[Brano]

That's the level of quality you get for product created in environment without competition

 

[Gandamula]

I didn't even care with the base game lack of content, if the modder community was alive but it's already dispersed, Mods like Calardia expanded, My Little Warband, Distinguish Service and many others look like they've been waiting for the official version to disappear. After two years playing in Calardia expanded map, the TW map seems a piece of crap, made by a 10 yeras old kid.

 

[pRaX]

I think you are all overreacting a bit. Guys, rejoy, the game is stable and is a very solid base for modders. And that is all we need. Don't ask to much of this company, they did what was the best for us in the end.

No one is overreacting. People were actually under reacting. Coping hard. Using EA as a shield for legit concerns every time and the whole time. Yet here we are. They did what was best for themselves and no one else.

 

[LuciusDomitiusAurelianus]

Babe wake up, people are mad at a video game again.

I mean, I agree, but idk - ****ting on the devs who don't control what management wants to do isn't the right move. Good excuse to learn modding anyway so for me, not a big deal.

 

[a_ver_est]

It is really shocking that the same person who created a gem like MB and grown it to a master piece in his time like WB now has created BL.

With the current technology most of us expected the best and what we get it is far from it, I wouldn't say a bad game but far from what its predecessors were.

 

[Dead End]

How are the dialogue bits and romance, still barebones? Haven't played for a while but I was grinding a bit on "Launch Day" but I never really got to the noble/schmoozing stage

 

[Aurex]

I think you are all overreacting a bit. Guys, rejoy, the game is stable and is a very solid base for modders. And that is all we need. Don't ask to much of this company, they did what was the best for us in the end.

Stable? I mean, a purely Vanilla try gave me a list of bug that's a little longer than the one I compiled at RELEASE.
"They did what was the best for us." Scamming us was the best for us in the end? Oooookay.

 

[Ser Jon]

It doesn't matter what we all think and the devs have shown that for years, by ignoring us and or just straight up bait and switching or giving out "its impossible/not our vision". They got their console numbers and that's all that matters to them now. They'll patch it up so it functions and then throw modding tools out for modders to fix their game and give it soul, and then bank off their success because, in order to play those superior mods, you first got to get the $40 game!

I think you are all overreacting a bit. Guys, rejoy, the game is stable and is a very solid base for modders. And that is all we need. Don't ask to much of this company, they did what was the best for us in the end.

 

[Bjorn The Dead]

the devs

I think when people say devs, they often refer to management.

 

[Ser Jon]

I don't think there's really some big "management" holding the devs up. I remember reading one of them saying something about how they work together with other devs for features etc.

 

[bunions]

Back in the day when I was a youngin in the USMC, it was often said there were only two reasons for a screw-up:

You either didn't know, or you didn't give a *#^$%.

If you didn't know how or what the situation was, well you got taught, and believe me if you didn't give a &^$%# ... well you also got taught lol.

One could argue: "Well its not that cut and dry, not that simple to make a game of this magnitude etc..." However my counterargument to that is: No kidding!?!? THAT'S WHY WE GAVE YOU OUR MONEY TO DO IT. That was the agreement no? We give you cash, you deliver a good product. If this is your version of a good product, well I hope you are proud of yourselves. In the end, you get to self reflect, and know inside how well you delivered. I am even fully accepting of the idea that there are diligent people behind the scenes who are just as frustrated and wish more could have been done. In the final analysis however, this is what the decision makers at the company decided to deliver.

Some people seem to be satisfied with the current results. That's fine, enjoy yourselves, my response is to never give this company another cent for the rest of my lifetime unless something radically changes. I somehow doubt that however.

Since I already paid, I come around to keep tabs and see what's going on and even occasionally commiserate. Of course there will be mods to play this game and make it somewhat enjoyable, but there are of course the continual frustrations as well.

Ultimately however, I just will vote with my wallet. No reason to get emotional and argue with the Taleworlds defense force on these forums, and certainly no use begging decision makers who don't give a @#$^% to act like they do.