[Henry]

Point of Order

JD : Actually my wording is pretty much indisputable since Henry accidentally let the cat out of the bag by saying: "the release of ITP delayed OOTP to some time after the release date that would have been usually expected." It's not even possible to explain how that means anything other than "late."

JD : Like I keep saying, even Henry has unwittingly admitted that the game would have been out by now, but ITP interfered with the start of work on OOTP.

[i]I take issue with both of the above statements. Yes, OOTP was "delayed" due to work on ITP. But it is YOUR expectation that "release date" means opening day. Stating that it's an industry expectation is based on an assumption that customers expect to see baseball games available in March or April. I'll give you that much, but...

1. It's not opening day yet
2. Most baseball games HAVE NOT, historically, met that requirement
3. OOTP customers are less critical of that need, and more critical of game stability

If you’re going to publish a criticism, and IF OOTP misses opening day, I would expect it to be something in the order of the fact that OOTP, among others, has missed this year's opening day due to work on a companion title and significant changes in the game. If your intent is to suggest OOTP is the only game that has missed the opening day target, then your review would be subject to question. Using the word "late" suggests a promise - of which none was made for any of the six versions of the game. Synonyms ARE NOT equalities; they are similarities - a basic English course rule. "Late" does not mean the same thing as "delayed".

Had you been a regular of this board, you would realize that the primary intention of this company is to provide a stable game. It has met that challenge and succeeded most of the time, and reacted to customer concerns when it has not. Version 5 went though multiple updates to address a complex issue with online leagues. When it was said and done, the issue was corrected. Unlike other game companies, OOTP is interested in - but not married to - release dates. Had you understood this from the beginning, this thread would not have existed.

JD : Regarding the release, on the other hand, I am not claiming that you missed a stated release date. I'm saying that, unlike all previous versions of OOTP, this game is not expected to be out by Opening Day. To me it is late for that reason, ...

As I said in a previous post, I find this logic flawed. Each year OOTP obviously attempts to have the game ready by the start of the baseball season. But there is a BIG difference between trying to do so and "promising" it - even you should understand that.

JD : The staff steadfastly refuses to admit that the game is late, they don't want to acknowledge why, they haven't given us anything more than a very vague window when it might be available, and they have been aloof or even combative towards customer frustration.

??? Combative ? The Staff ? Excuse me ? In this entire post, no one from the "staff" has addressed this thread - because there was no reason to. I am not part of the staff, but I have been honest in my representation of what I believe is the truth. EVERYTHING is posted on the website and Newsletter. The game is to be released "soon". It "should" be ready by opening day. It is now March 27th. That sounds a lot more than just "vague" and the “staff” certainly could not have been combative considering they haven’t posted.

The fact that many customers have preordered displays the trust they have in OOTP and their acceptance of the expected release. If you, personally, chose not to accept that as a valid expectation - then I would suggest it is your issue, not anyone else’s - which brings me to my final point.

You asked for a refund since you were disappointed. I took the necessary steps and provided you an avenue to complete that refund within an hour of your request. I would expect that your review will point out that OOTP Developments is VERY responsive to customers - in that it issued an immediate refund to a reviewer who claimed he was unhappy.

That is the truth about OOTP.

Henry