From: kennys@terapin.com (Kenny Sequeira)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.advocacy
Subject: Exodus
Date: 3 Jan 93 15:36:26 PST
Organization: BBS

Can I ask a simple question, why is it CBM's or the Amiga communities 
fault every time a game developer drops Amiga support.  These companies 
sight various reasons, maybe they should look inward for their lack of 
success in the Amiga market.

For example, I have bought 5 Sierra games, I personally like this genre 
of a game and I'm a patient man.  These games run like dogs on the Amiga, 
and there is no way Sierra can convince me that it is the Amiga's fault 
for sucor performance.  To Sierra's credit their latest games where 
much improved, better graphics and speed, and now they want to pull out 
when they are beginning to move forward.

SSI, I bought one of there games awhile back, I heard they made pretty 
good games.  I go home rip open the package, and find out, damm no HD 
support, STRIKE 1.  I load the game from the floppy, GURU City, STRIKE 2.  
I disable the accelerator, GURU again, STRIKE 3 YOUR OUT.  Jusout of 
curiosity I remove the accelerator card from the computer and the game 
runs flawlessly.  I have never bought aner SSI product.
We all know the bottom line for the exodus of game developers is lack of 
sales, here are a some of my suggestions that may help the situation.  
The numbers show that the Amiga is numr 2 in game revenue, so know 
there is money to be made, not as much as the PC market but, there is 
some money there.

1.  If a game developer is planning to port a PC don't bother its to late, 
it wont sell.  For example, most game these days come out first on the PC, 
there is massive hype, advertising, reviews, big promotions ect... if it's 
a good game its sells real well and usually fade away awaiting the next 
entry.  Then a year later the same company plans or does a port or is 
working on one for the Amiga.  Give me a break, the game is old, its 
history, its stale, and that usually equals poor sales.

2.  The Amiga is here stay regardless of the crap you here on the NET, so 
why not co-develop PC and Amiga games together, and then release the game 
into both markets at the same time.  This would do a few things, one, it 
would reduce the development cost of the Amiga versiems logical 
that developing a game for each platform is not cost efficient.  Two, 
releasing the Amiga version at the same time as the PC would increase the 
Amiga version sales, how, do you ask, it would feed off the PC versions 
hype, store displays, PC users bragging, all those game magazines, and 
good old word of mouth.  What if Wing Commander II or Ultima # (?) was 
released at the same time as the PC versions, I'm sure Amiga sales would 
be much greater than they are now.  I remember when WCII first game out, 
I was excited and I don't even own a PC, I would have bought the in 
a instant if i was available for the Amiga.  Now, I could careless.

3.  Attack the Amiga market, why bother with half ass attempts, poor ports, 
and no advertising.  Quality almost always sells, and you know what usually 
happens with junk, it sits on the shelf.

4.  Support the HD and accelerator, even if the bulk of the Amiga market 
does not these items, a sale is a sale.  Also, it can't be that hard to 
include HD and accelerator support.

5.  Disk based copy protection must go, it serves nopurpose but to piss 
the people ff who bough the game.  Hell, the pirates are playing the 
game before its even released and then you want to punish your paying 
customers.  If your worried about the average joe passing the game around, 
code wheels and look up in manual types of copy protection will de the 
job.  

6.  Please, plug your leaks, why are people paying games before they are 
released into the market, usually the game is a beta version and may have 
problems and then the game gets a bad rap, because of this.

When I get the urge to buy a game and go to the store, I look  carefully 
for HD support, accelera support and copy protection schemes on the 
box cover, if I don't see this I usually put the game back.  This is 
improving as I see more and more with this type of info.

One final thought, if Ford make a new car and its sits on the lot and 
does not sell, I r hear, Oh! the stupid people just won't buy are 
fine car.  What happens is some people get fired.

Kenny