Is Early Access a bad thing for the industry?
GameKeysNow let us know their thoughts
Half-Life and Portal writer Erik Wolpaw has detailed how his team has been using Generative AI for research and development at Valve.
Valve has responded to New York Attorney General Letitia James' lawsuit against the firm, stating it does not believe that lootboxes in its Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, and Team Fortress 2 games unlawfully encourage minors to gamble, adding it was "disappointed" to see the action go ahead despite efforts to "educate" the NYAG about virtual items since "early 2023."
Not a single mention of any of the successful Early Access titles.
Love how the lack of transparency is supposed to be a good thing. Gamers are so distanced from the process that its entirely mysterious to them. Maybe if they were more informed they wouldn't react as badly.
Maybe Gamers need to pull their heads out of their out of their collective asses and learn to read. I'm sorry, I have ZERO sympathy for impulse buyers who don't read or ask questions and just click buy. I read up on the game, see how far along they are, see how often the updates are released, then look at the price and decide if I want to risk my money on this. I KNOW I am not buying a game, but the promise of one. I also KNOW that promise might be broken.
Sorry, there is no reason not to have Early Access available to those who want it. Its a choice. That's really the key here, its CHOICE. I see no reason to regulate something an informed consumer should already be aware of.
What if they can't meet the release date we force on them?
What if something happens and they can't finish the game?
Its starts to get VERY complicated, which defeats the entire purpose of it. I say if it bothers you stay the hell away. Wait until its released.