23 replies to this topic

[_Andrea_]

Seems update didn't help this game yet, do we still have hope for this game?

 

[hellc9943]

Steam charts aren't necessarily correct, there are a lot of players who launch Hawken directly and not over Steam. Oh wait.

[WmMoneyFrmMissouri]

Game is alive. I played last night, had some really good tdms that I was able to find relatively fast. The glass is certainly half full but work needs to be done to get it to its sweet spot.

[Gueber]

Still dying a slow death, unless the people playing botstdm by themselves are going to buy more bling to pay for the servers.

 

 

[WmMoneyFrmMissouri]

Still dying a slow death, unless the people playing botstdm by themselves are going to buy more bling to pay for the servers.

I've heard this slow death mumbo jumbo for the 2 years I've been playing... I'm sure the people before me have heard it even more. What is dead may never die, the game is still here.

[Gueber]

I've heard this slow death mumbo jumbo for the 2 years I've been playing... I'm sure the people before me have heard it even more. What is dead may never die, the game is still here.

Real Talk / True Facts:

Peak Players:

May 2014: 2,394

May 2015: 900

May 2016: 366

May 2017: 243

 

We have 234 servers. How many players does the game need to sustain itself? How long will 505 pay for a game that's in the red? Can we reach the first number before the second one runs out? Place your bets my dudes.

Edited by Gueber, 21 June 2017 - 01:32 PM.

[Nilithium]

I'm not getting back into the core game until they fix the hitboxes on small targets such as:
-Class A mechs
-Turrets (MG/Rocket/Shock)
-Drones (Bot Destruction)
Especially when using low fire rate weapons (Assault, Hawkins SP) bullets tend to pass right through targets.
I'm still baffled as to why they haven't reverted HAWKEN until they give use a smooth UI experience. G2 Mechs have got to go also; I didn't sink money into the game to have my robots outdated; and I'm not sinking in more until they're gone, or original in the way that the G2-Assault and G2-Raider (or Marauder) were. Also, clear robot names would be nice. Anyone have any idea what a Vytro or a 36M does at a glance?

Edited by Nilithium, 21 June 2017 - 01:37 PM.

[Morquedeas]

Well the game is definitely more dead than I've ever seen it, which is not surprising considering the "soft launch" was, aside from the new (and mostly half-assed) content, an all-around downgrade.

 

I'm sure there are a good amount of players, like myself, who are just taking a break while waiting for things to be less terrible.  For me, fixing hitboxes is the bare minimum for me to want to come back.

 

Regardless of how dead the game is, the fact of the matter is this game will only persist as long as it is considered profitable, or is perceived as having a potentially profitable future.  Since there is no way the PC version is making a profit with ~100 concurrent players, we have to assume (or hope) we are in the latter scenario. 

 

Because the game costs money to keep up, there is a unknown (probably more known by the publishers) point at which the game will be shut down if it has not yielded profits yet.  The developers are going to need to spend as much time as they can fixing the game and making it something people want to play, then, ready or not, they will need to make a splash/generate awareness before it's too late.

[DingdongJR]

Well the game is definitely more dead than I've ever seen it, which is not surprising considering the "soft launch" was, aside from the new (and mostly half-assed) content, an all-around downgrade.

 

I'm sure there are a good amount of players, like myself, who are just taking a break while waiting for things to be less terrible.  For me, fixing hitboxes is the bare minimum for me to want to come back.

 

Regardless of how dead the game is, the fact of the matter is this game will only persist as long as it is considered profitable, or is perceived as having a potentially profitable future.  Since there is no way the PC version is making a profit with ~100 concurrent players, we have to assume (or hope) we are in the latter scenario. 

 

Because the game costs money to keep up, there is a unknown (probably more known by the publishers) point at which the game will be shut down if it has not yielded profits yet.  The developers are going to need to spend as much time as they can fixing the game and making it something people want to play, then, ready or not, they will need to make a splash/generate awareness before it's too late.

 

But that is the problem, they can't advertise yet. There is so much to fix, so much to restore and nothing has been done to help relations. Why they even released the public version in this state was a shot in the head in my opinion. There is so much that has to be done before they can even consider doing anything with advertising. Until things change for the better, things will continue to decline. 

[Morquedeas]

But that is the problem, they can't advertise yet. There is so much to fix, so much to restore and nothing has been done to help relations. Why they even released the public version in this state was a shot in the head in my opinion. There is so much that has to be done before they can even consider doing anything with advertising. Until things change for the better, things will continue to decline. 

 

This is all true.  This game would probably get shut down before they fix enough for it to be considered a positive change relative to the original PC version.  So, they're going to have to fix as much as they can, advertise, and hope for the best.

[William_Adama]

if they would have done it right the first time this wouldn't be a issue but nooo it has done the hard way god forbid so. its been almost a month from the last patch update and it is very clear that they had no plan or very bad plan. scrolling to find a mech ingame was the worse UI choice they could have used whos idea was that must had too much too drink. 

[EMEUTIER]

... scrolling to find a mech ingame was the worse UI choice they could have used whos idea was that must had too much too drink. 

 

That is one of the many pitfalls of porting a console based UI to pc, they were warned but they didnt seem to listen, they only changed to colour...

[claisolais]

if they would have done it right the first time this wouldn't be a issue but nooo it has done the hard way god forbid so. its been almost a month from the last patch update and it is very clear that they had no plan or very bad plan. scrolling to find a mech ingame was the worse UI choice they could have used whos idea was that must had too much too drink. 

I would say UI are the least problem we have...garage, customization downgrade, strange visual effect...STRANGE hitbox, P2W bundles+G2s, STUPID item downgrade, drunk internal design, shitty Holos and FLASHING chassis.

It could be just me, but pings are worse than ever.

It's not just bugs, the whole redesign concept is a disaster.

I've heard they applied for E3 2017, they probably have no idea why it is rejected.

Edited by claisolais, 24 June 2017 - 12:59 PM.

[Neraste]

Well the game is definitely more dead than I've ever seen it, which is not surprising considering the "soft launch" was, aside from the new (and mostly half-assed) content, an all-around downgrade.

 

 

I think they had 2 options: "true launch" when the update is completely ready or this "soft launch". A complete true launch would have been better, but think about these points:

• They have a small dev team;
• Some players will always complain about gameplay changes, whatsoever, and will request fixes;
• In a workflow, it's easier to deal with feedback on a set of feature at a time, rather than feedback for a complete and finished bundle of features;
• People on the forum literally beg for an update.

 

About stats, the update alone won't attract new players. They have to do some advertisement for that, which will happen, I guess, when the game is ready (even if more clarity would be appreciated on how they'll promote a 2012 game).

 

C05 pointed out the update is incomplete, and many things remain to be fixed. In the meanwhile, some players will certainly take a break. I suppose Reloaded bet it's easier to make players come back after a disappointing incomplete update rather than no update at all. At least, they showed us things are moving. Honestly, weren't you happy to have an Hawken update in your Steam client after 2 years of nothingness?

[Morquedeas]

I think they had 2 options: "true launch" when the update is completely ready or this "soft launch". A complete true launch would have been better, but think about these points:

• They have a small dev team;
• Some players will always complain about gameplay changes, whatsoever, and will request fixes;
• In a workflow, it's easier to deal with feedback on a set of feature at a time, rather than feedback for a complete and finished bundle of features;
• People on the forum literally beg for an update.

 

For you first 2 points, the first thing that comes to mind is stuff like the splitting of the shock coil internal into multiple useless internals.  Sure people are always going to be complaining about something, but in cases like this, a small team wasted precious time and resources to make an unequivocally worse change that absolutely didn't need to happen.  This has kinda been the theme of the current dev's occupation.  And what's even easier than getting feedback on a single set feature at a time?  Asking before the feature is even employed/worked on.  So much of the current mess that is Howken could have been avoided with communication.

 

And I think I was actually one of the people asking them to withhold on the PC relaunch, having seen what the changes looked like on the console I'd rather have kept playing the PC version as it was.

 

C05 pointed out the update is incomplete, and many things remain to be fixed. In the meanwhile, some players will certainly take a break. I suppose Reloaded bet it's easier to make players come back after a disappointing incomplete update rather than no update at all. At least, they showed us things are moving. Honestly, weren't you happy to have an Hawken update in your Steam client after 2 years of nothingness?

 

Honestly, I was a little excited (and apprehensive) when the softlaunch occurred, but I've stopped playing completely since (mostly because of hitboxes and hitreg stuff), and I'd rather have the old version back for the time being so I could actually play.  And I disagree with the second point you make here, I don't think many people will be so ready to give Hawken yet another chance.  Their best bet is to fix stuff and advertise and hope to rope in new players that know nothing of Hawken in it's current state.

[DingdongJR]

 

C05 pointed out the update is incomplete, and many things remain to be fixed. In the meanwhile, some players will certainly take a break. I suppose Reloaded bet it's easier to make players come back after a disappointing incomplete update rather than no update at all. 

 

If you look closely, you'll notice that "Reloaded Games" logo no longer appears on the startup, or present on the website's front page footer. It's still in terms of service, but Hawken's now owned by "Hawken Entertainment, Inc." and published under 505 games. 

 

It was a silent move, but still noticeable. What it means is anyone's guess. My theory is that "Hawken Entertainment, Inc." is an offshoot of Reloaded. 

[Neraste]

If you look closely, you'll notice that "Reloaded Games" logo no longer appears on the startup, or present on the website's front page footer. It's still in terms of service, but Hawken's now owned by "Hawken Entertainment, Inc." and published under 505 games. 

 

It was a silent move, but still noticeable. What it means is anyone's guess. My theory is that "Hawken Entertainment, Inc." is an offshoot of Reloaded. 

 

True that.

 

And what's even easier than getting feedback on a single set feature at a time?  Asking before the feature is even employed/worked on. So much of the current mess that is Howken could have been avoided with communication.

 

Console Hawken is an example of bundle of features that came as it and which a lot of forum members yelled at. I think that with this incomplete PC update, they try to not reproduce this past mistake (plus considering the 4 points I've mentioned). Even if beforehand communication is way better (but it doesn't seem to be their way to go, AFAIK), I hope discussions will help to fix the current problems.

 

For you first 2 points, the first thing that comes to mind is stuff like the splitting of the shock coil internal into multiple useless internals.  Sure people are always going to be complaining about something, but in cases like this, a small team wasted precious time and resources to make an unequivocally worse change that absolutely didn't need to happen.  This has kinda been the theme of the current dev's occupation.

 

Weird ideas seem to run among the devs (hello Nief)…

[Morquedeas]

My big concern right now is that they won't actually advertise or do anything to generate awareness.  I see so many small games with great potential that seem to have a huge aversion to marketing of any kind, I really don't understand it.  And it always dooms those games to obscurity.  Dev's if you're reading, if Hawken is not advertised in some way, it WILL NOT be successful.

 

Look at Overwatch for example.  Over hyped, repetitive, lacking content, and over priced for what it offers.  But they marketed the hell out of it.  Then there was Battleborn, which is overall probably a better game.  But no one even knows about BB.  They went free recently, and the game is already almost dead again because they failed to generate awareness for the game (and other reasons but this is just an example).

[PsychedelicGrass]

My big concern right now is that they won't actually advertise or do anything to generate awareness. I see so many small games with great potential that seem to have a huge aversion to marketing of any kind, I really don't understand it. And it always dooms those games to obscurity. Dev's if you're reading, if Hawken is not advertised in some way, it WILL NOT be successful.

Look at Overwatch for example. Over hyped, repetitive, lacking content, and over priced for what it offers. But they marketed the hell out of it. Then there was Battleborn, which is overall probably a better game. But no one even knows about BB. They went free recently, and the game is already almost dead again because they failed to generate awareness for the game (and other reasons but this is just an example).

Advertising campaigns and marketing are absolutely not what the game needs right now. They'd be marketing a broken, buggy product and imo that'd be about the end of hawken. It'd attract people who would quickly move on given the games current state.


They should only focus on advertising and marketing once the major issues have been fixed, including the hitboxes, server issues, hitreg issues etc, and from what I understand that's what they intend to do.

[Morquedeas]

Advertising campaigns and marketing are absolutely not what the game needs right now. They'd be marketing a broken, buggy product and imo that'd be about the end of hawken. It'd attract people who would quickly move on given the games current state.


They should only focus on advertising and marketing once the major issues have been fixed, including the hitboxes, server issues, hitreg issues etc, and from what I understand that's what they intend to do.

 

Yeah, no kidding.  This is literally what I said earlier, don't just read the last post and jump into the discussion....

[Zavier_]

As much as it hurts me to say, instead of wasting time on making a new stupid looking AI , that time and effort they could've spent on making new content , maps for thought, new mechs are always a welcome. Also if they can release another "developer update" that would make things more relevant.

[Neraste]

Of course, we speak about advertising when the game is great again™. It would be nonsense otherwise…

 

My big concern right now is that they won't actually advertise or do anything to generate awareness.

 

Well, Hawken Entertainment is a company, it develops the game with profits in mind. So, it shall make advertisement… Right? Because, honestly, without advertising, you cannot make profits from a game released in 2012, still in beta, left dead for one year, bought by another company and with a depleted playerbase. And even with good advertisement, I have doubts it will be successful, because of the aforementioned historical facts (2012, goddammit, literally 5 years ago)…

 

To remove Hawken's zombie stink, they may rename the game. Something like "Hawken: Rebirth," "Hawken: Phoenix" or even "Hawken: Turbo," just to make people think the game isn't a zombie anymore.

 

 

Look at Overwatch for example.

 

Overwatch is Blizzard. You can't compare: whatever Blizzard does is gold.

 

 

they could've spent on making new content , maps for thought, new mechs are always a welcome.

 

But we have new mechs! Think about Nief!

 

Honestly, nobody know what is the dev's plan. But I think that what might be in their agenda is polishing Hawken: add previously rejected content (the bunch of old mech models around, maybe rejected maps or items), fix bugs, fix exploits, fix balance, add some features like clan management, spectator mode, game events… But brand new content (new models and all), I seriously doubt they will do that, because it requires too much investment. I hope I'm wrong, though…

Edited by Neraste, 25 June 2017 - 03:56 AM.

[KamikazeCommando]

Me when I think about the once fantastic Hawken:

 

 

One thing that really annoyed me when I tried playing after the update ( there were many... inlcluding the hideous new GUI and unfathomable garage layout ) was realising ( unless I've gone mad ) that G2 mechs have to be levelled up just like g1 mechs- oh gawd why? G2s were meant to just be a fun reward for fully levelling a few specific mechs, now they're a crutch to add 'spice' to the game instead of slowly adding new mechs over time which is what we actually wanted & what the game needed ( along with new maps added say, once every few months or so ). 

 

 

[Ezodev]

> But I think that what might be in their agenda is polishing Hawken: add previously rejected content (the bunch of old mech models around, maybe rejected maps or items), fix bugs, fix exploits, fix balance, add some features like clan management, spectator mode, game events… But brand new content (new models and all), I seriously doubt they will do that, because it requires too much investment. I hope I'm wrong, though…

 

 

I believe that's what they should have done instead of this fuzzy bunnyed up update. New content? Sure, it is nice. But if they polished game instead - fixed the bugs, optimized it better, invested in non-shitty servers, hired someone minimum-wage as a GM to ban griefers, fixed matchmaking... we would have a good, polished game. Fixing bad hitreg and FPS drops is worth much more than 10 new mechs. And we already had plenty of them. It's not like Hawken didn't have enough content before update.