I want to ask this.

I'd say that the people that do not post and that are not happy have left.
The people that do not post and are happy either do not post because they don't care for the environment or they simply are happy to do their own thing.
So the people that DO post have inherent reasons to do so. Either they want to vent their frustrations or they want to see the game fullfill its potential.
And then there's the group that just posts because thats what they do. Be it for good or ill.

I worry about the fact that there is some delusion that most don't post so they are are happy and we are just the small few that don't like the game. This concerns me. Before I ever posted, if I did not like a game, I stopped playing it and never posted. I hate the idea that the DEV would assume I liked the game because of my lack of posting, I was just not in that community and never had the thought to do so. Now that I do, it frustrates me to think that by not complaining you have an assumption of approval.

It just does not work that way, if I truly approve you will hear it. If I don't care enough to post, then I don't care enough about your game. That just puts me at middle of road and if they are aiming for middle of road, then that is sad.

For me personally, I post (sometimes) because i am interested in games, game design and godus. When i saw peters first introduction video (where he 'plays' and explains the idea behind godus) i was very much interested and was hoping to get a game like B&W or Populous.

It has since become very clear that that is not going to happen, so now i'm just on here to see how development progresses. Hoping to learn a lesson or two on how (not) to do proper game-design. And ofcourse there is the ocasional big fuck-up by 22C, that is when i whip out my bucket of popcorn and enjoy all the rage


I am never a very active poster on forums, but i am a very active reader.

I've been around on Steam EA since Sept/Oct 2013 ish, and have clocked 111hrs on Godus. I tend not to post/join forums because I'm usually convinced that nobody is interested in anything I have to say. Either that or they'll vehemently disagree with me and arguing on the internet is nothing to be proud of.

Seen as you asked, I'm not happy with Godus for a variety of reasons, ranging from the petty annoyances with longstanding bugs/errors to deal breakers if I was looking at purchasing it now rather than before. For starters, the f2p mechanics and absurdly long timers have no place in a PC game, and just serve to wind me the hell up whenever I sit down and attempt to play. And I keep on attempting to play, because the game I was pitched on the Steam Store looked promising. I basically got the impression that it would be a bit like Black & White (which I loved), or at least that was what I was hoping for. A living world with a civilization I could indirectly shape.

No, what I've got right now are a bunch of soul-less idiots for followers who can't even tell when their crops are ready to harvest without help, and just sit around on what used to be a beautiful landscape, save for a few preset animated "activities". There is this bit in the film The Matrix where Agent Smith likens the human race to bacteria blighting the world, and when I look at my people on Godus, I can't help but agree. I don't connect to them, I don't want to help them to expand. They're a chore and a waste of space.

Combine that with the stupidly long waits to do anything, and I don't know what I'm playing when I open Godus, but it certainly isn't God.


PS: I lurk on these boards a lot. You guys all seem pretty cool and have a heap of good ideas for the game. I hope the devs listen to some of them.

I'm inclined to agree with all the observations about human behavior, wherein the most displeased tend to be the most vocal, and in contrast to that, those that are content are just that - content and comfortable with thier experience; therefore they don't feel inclined to be vocal (plus, they're too busy enjoying it).

One needs to simply look at online review sites (i.e. yelp, epinions, amazon,etc.) to realize this. Certainly there are those that have such an extraordinary experience, they feel obligated and excited to share that, to make it known, often in a show of support and hope for it to continue being a success (or become a success) - but the majority will do so out of frustration or anger due to a poor experience. Of course it's evened out a bit in the last few years as people are more comfortable online, and feel more free and obliged to post opinions and reviews.

But the observation of the disparity is still measurable. Anyone that owns a business, or generates product, should be educated - or pursue information - about the psychology behind consumer feedback, as it can only aid in how they manage and handle customer relations.

However, as we all know, the internet affords a certain degree of obscurity and anonymity; this becomes tempting as a playground for mischief (as intent and anonymity can be blurred and abused), so there are bound to be trolls lingering in every available potential for victims of chaos. Perhaps it's also just some sycophantic derangement to witness another fail, or perchance some peculiar misplaced desire to be a bystander watching the train heading for the broken bridge.

Although most, I think we'd agree, feel they have some vested interest in the topic - the desire to be a part of a community of like minded people. The point is, we're here, despite our positive or negative opinions, because we all have some desire to see this through (and I'm still trying to decide, or determine, the "why" behind the seemingly powerful hold Godus has on so many. It's kind of interestingly mysterious.).

That said...

Not to rub salt in the wounds, but I am still somewhat miffed, and baffled by the whole crazy experience. We wouldn't even be discussing half of this had things not gone down a certain platform road before there was a stable "core product", or if things had been better planned and described in the initial pledge. And further more, for Peter, or anyone involved (or viewing from outside-in), to make a generality about the community as a whole, and assume our vocalizations about the topic - being Godus and 22Cans - is invalid because we're all just a bunch of childish bullies, whining about something "we can't possibly understand" is shameful and belittling the very people that actually had/have (originally) some faithful support or interest in the product... otherwise the majority of us wouldn't have posted in the first place.

I don't know why Peter continues to open mouth and insert foot, because it's not a very sensible thing for a company head to be doing. I know he's a very "heart on shoulder guy - which is generally admirable - but his inability to hold back hurts not only the community that should be supporting the game, but also the very people whom work hard to help bring his dream to fruition.

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In reference to what @forumshy said - thanks for participating and sharing your experience, btw - in line with, but counter to, that Matrix analogy; I actually expected, and hoped, that the followers would actually function more like a virus within the game world. What I mean is, I expected was a more organic, self-replicating, almost independent people, whom reacted to your influences but were not solely reliant on it; in other-words, they'd be the virus run amok in a laboratory or environment, and we'd be the scientist(s) performing the experiment.