Don't Condescend To Frustrated Customers. Thanks.

[tran]

I try to be patient. I bought the game on pre-order.
The UI sucked. The gameplay was awkward. There were bugs and crashes.
Whatever.
It's a first game. I'm just glad a company is working on something..

So for that, OOTP, thank you.

But one thing I have difficulty with is when OOTP representatives bitch at customers for being unhappy with the product.

Guys, seriously. I know that Sebastian, Malte and Jeff work their butts off. And sometimes you're so swamped that you do not want to be distracted by going to the forums, I really know what I'm talking about here since I have these times on several occasions each year. And once you do, reading posts that bitch about communication does not help, believe me. Stuff like that once resulted in me suffering burnout and depression like symptoms, which is no fun at all.

Our job is really stressful, and FHM is in its early stages, having to follow a product which is in development for 17 years (OOTP). Of course, not everything is working out the way we planned and hoped, but I can assure you that the guys are working as hard as they can to make a great game and the customers happy. It's a learning process, and FHM will catch up to OOTP eventually in all regards, but it cannot possible happen over night (or 3-4 years, for that matter), I hope those who are overly critical about FHM think about this for a minute.

All I see is excuses and whining.
You took the money for a half-assed product and now you have the gall to complain about frustrated customers?

If your developers are so distraught by complaining customers that they cannot view the forum, then maybe you should have them email updates someone who has the psychological ability to cope with criticism.

It really bothers me that you ask us to consider your "stressful" business. Good lord. Everyone who works has stress in their lives.

Then you say that we shouldn't expect this game to be polished, since it's the first one.
When Ford or GM put a new car on the market, can they expect a free pass on the first year of production???

Finally, you finish with a condescending remark about "overly critical" customers.

Be thankful you have customers willing to put up with a gaming company that thinks it's OK to take customers' money, deliver a piece of junk product, fail on promises to fix it (more than a year later), fail on promises to simply keep customers informed, and finally, then bitch about customers for voicing their displeasure.

You guys an owe an apology to your customers.

We'd be willing to support your project. Work hard to improve your project ASAP. Keep us aprised of your efforts to fix this program. Treat your customers, even the frustrated ones, with respect instead of criticizing them ... do those things and maybe people will drop another $30 on your project when it's "ready."

[Sebastian Palkowski]

I think Markus said it well enough, no need to talk about it again and again. Closed.