The Future of TT from GG!

[Reagent X]

Still can't get in to even try it.

[dad]

^Reagent, you're not missing much the playabilty sucks....If this is the future of TT then too bad...

Just doesn't make sense to continue marketing a product that no one likes.

[TMG Leader]

Just doesn't make sense to continue marketing a product that no one likes.

the stand alone version?

Anyway. Even if they do enhance the game play and get rid of that lag, I still won't give that much support for the new tt. In my opinion IA is just wasting time with tt. They should have given us the update and kept it a standalone. Only games I see playing Marble Blast(because the idea of "online" with other ppl is what I've been dieing to experience with that game and it's been a project before AI ever existed) and Fallen Empire(I'm a FPS junky). But this doesn't mean I won't play TT, I just won't help that much in their forums.

[*Sheena*]

I have tried many times to get into play but I get nothing no visual at all only sounds of getting blown up...I have no clue on how to change anything and I have asked for help there but no response

[wOOt]

Pai

it's really thoughtful of you to go out and give it a go, this is the deal tho, basically they are using you buddy, to promote their idea of what they want to do. Not one time did any of them come to us , the people that actually play the game and bounce any idea's off of us. They are wanting to promote a game thats total chit to cover their over extended a$$'s on a game that just don't work.


And what really sticks in my crawl is they have the balls to come out and decide what we, that pay for the game, and we that play the game, decide what we are going to do pfft, kiss my fat hairy a$$ ya bunch of self absorbed geeks!

I'm with Napalm, the new version of TT on IA will die way before this version does.

[Jerry]

I've played quite a few games on IA and will say that the lagg is getting better. And now you can see what kind of connection you will experience in each hosted game. Now its nota ping reading like ours, but the green bars will work i guess. I still don't think that it will ever be as good as this one and they will never give "our"TTs anykind of updates. We're pretty much dead to them except for the chance to get us to go to they're IA.

I'm with you woot. They're just tring to get as many of us from here as possible. I'm surprised that they haven't bitched because of our promotion of our version in thier forums and games. That will be next.

[Napalm]

It's pretty simple.

GG has never put any effort in making a real TT2. Not for the people who carried this game from the start. I can certainly see what GG is trying to do, and I don't blame them at all. It's a good concept and a good business model. Unfortunately, they are really missing what the actual players think. Maybe they feel they know best as they are the creators of the game. I think what they should have done is found a way to create an update in both environments promoting both. See which one takes off and then back that one, and drop the other.
No Linux support? I don't use Linux, but come on! I thought they were moving < forward?

No offense, I have tried on my PC just to see what its like and I get the same as Sheena, just a black window, Oh my, isn't this fun?

I have also tried in on my Mac, and didn't get squat.

This game will live on as long as the people here continue to provide for one another and the operating systems support it.

Even if GG were to pull the master server, we'd find a way to generate our own, or use IPjoiner.

The game, this game, will be what we make of it. Garage Games will not make this game better for us.

If I told you I was going to marry you 5 years ago, would you still be waiting for me?

[Feathers McGraw]

Pai... I'm going to give you a half/half response here, since I see that there doesn't seem to be much middle ground here on the IA issue. People either like it or want to watch it burn.

There are a couple of big issues with the InstantAction version of ThinkTanks, and if you could please forward this in some way to your contact this may get some better negotiations than just "Browser Based is the Future" <--> "No It Isn't".

1) The biggest issue: the lag. I have no clue why this is, as I'm not a computer whiz, but the IA Think Tank games are running slow for me and many others here. My computer isn't a new top-o'-the-line gamer machine, but it handles the Software TT just fine... to see people with better machines than I ALSO having issues running the Browser TT boggles my mind. This problem has to be looked at, or we will still be stubbornly attached to our Software TT.

2) The second biggest issue: MOD-ability. What I don't understand is why they are pushing aside people wanting to tinker with the Browser version of the game from the get-go? Dazzle has had Rollerball out for 2 years just about, King of the Hill has been around, Capture the Flag was on PTT1 several times, as well as Survivor (I miss those old maze maps). Why are they not WORKING with us in developing this stuff for TT2, or heck even allowing us to mod the browser? I can't see any way for us to mod maps or make new ones if the whole thing is only accessible from InstantAction's machines. Would maps made with Torque Game Engine even be compatable with the new game engine? Would we be able to script Rollerball (a mindblowingly great, but download heavy game) for it, or would we not have access to the main files? This is stuff that really counts because certainly InstantAction doesn't have the time to devote to constantly improving the game like we are currently doing. It's also weird to not hear my Rollerball voice as my default "powerup" and "ammo reloaded" sounds... I quite prefer my awesome voice

2) The third biggest issue: in-game differences. The Browser TT has lots of upgrades, some of them I personally like, others not so much. The Health Meter is redundant and just a frustrating view-blocker as far as I'm concerned. The tanks smoke and flame when health is low, a health bar we can live without. Game times are a lot shorter too, CUT IN HALF. According to Dazzle, who has apparently been studying the Browser TT, the gameplay is roughly 7 minutes whereas the Software TT is 15 minutes of game time. 7 minutes is not enough time to have a rip-roarin' game, especially if you enter a server any time after it starts... then you just have no time to really play! The sighting/reticle system is the last "new feature" I frown at. The old reticle system worked perfectly, the new "single circle" sight is horrendously inaccurate and would make any gamer cringe. I recently found their new adaptation of the old reticle system on InstantAction, and it's "stiffer" and doesn't let me curve my shots when on the move (which was really awesome in the Software TT).


This is my final negative thought on the "InstantAction is the future" bit: Did you even try upgrading the Software TT? Patches have been sent out for the Mac OS X (I think?) fix for a while now, and if I remember correctly there was some sort of update or message system inherent in the TT platform which allowed BraveTree or GG to send out a "Thank You for Joining" message or something (It was a button that was located up on the upper-lefthand "bolt" on the main screen of TT). Isn't it possible to send a notice about an upgrade patch through that or even through GarrageGames/Shockwave who distribute the game? I find it very very insulting to have what's been working for 5 years (better than ever thanks to us modders and scriptors!) be completely abandoned for something that's shinier and has miles to go before reaching the level of its prototype!


With that said, I've got some good things to say about the InstantAction Browser TT... but nothing that hasn't already been said a dozen times.

-- The graphics are spectacular (albeit more cartoony). The palms, cactus, fern, and Easter-Island Heads are a wonderful breath of fresh air.... although I do miss those spooky trees and rocks, I can only take so much of the heads. The sky textures are amazing as well.
-- The physics engine is similar to the Software TT, so thankfully there's no major malarky there! However the friction of the treads needs some greasing and the Heavy Tank needs to lay off the NOS.
-- The "Tan Maps" (from what I remember) are a brilliant and welcome additions, despite being just reskins of 3 old maps. I would love to see original Tan maps if those three were to be brought back in their original format (I have faith in those game designers in constructing a decent map).
-- The additional tanks from the Xbox version just totally made my day. I've yet to unlock them (I need to buy tokens) but I'm glad they're available.

However, these upgrades pail in comparison to the 3 overwhelming defects which are causing their former fanbase to shun the good intentions of InstantAction. And the fourth one I mentioned, while childishly stubborn of us and perhaps not part of a business's financial equation, is in serious need of reviewing by the people at GarageGames. They've got a game which has garnered an adult fanbase (much older than was originally pitched for) as well as the youth, and they shun the people which hold the majority of the community and investors in this game to appeal to a crowd that would rather play Call of Duty 4 than a simplistic tank shoot-em-up game.


Now then. Although I will give InstantAction a fair chance, ThinkTanks1 will be the only version I shall play until decent mod-capability is brought to the browser. "Feathers Mods", reruns of Roo's Mods (which hopefully will popup some time by another hoster), Dazzle Mods, Napalm's, Dash's, MonkeyMan's, Fixit's, and everyone elses amazingly fun maps will ONLY be available on ThinkTanks1. The people at InstantAction are the ones who are missing out... not us.

[Mighty Mouse]

I think it's a simple financial model that they are going after. It is clear that TT standalone is not an exponential growth proposition. Yes we are getting newer players, but if it were growing well, the servers we have should not be enough. Also, how much money have you spent beyond the initial $20 to play the game?

As such, they decided to go after a more "populated" market. The children with allowances in their pockets who spend hours online on the web. It may turn us off, but in the end they'd be losing what at most 200 players. I'd make that trade-off any day of the week and twice on Sundays.

Just tried the game today. It's alright, takes some getting used to. I think I'll try some more to get feel for the game. It's nice to be able to play anywhere I have a computer without downloading 1 gb's worth of mods. I'd save that treasure chest for my home computer.

[DJ Wings]

On the "Linux compatibility" front, I tried using Wine (an emulator that lets you run Windows apps on Linux and usually works very well). Now I can read messages and browse servers, but I also get the black screen. Judging from some responses I've seen, this might not be the Wine team's fault.