I can’t say I blame them. Histwar, an ambitious Napoleonic strategy/wargame, has been in development forever and it says something about the state of independent publishing that Battlefront stuck it out this long. I do hope the game gets finished, of course, and that it is good. But all it would take is one or two more delays for a publisher to think that maybe this is a commitment of time and resources that are better spent elsewhere.
Thanks to Rob Zacny for the tip.
Wow, after they finally announced a release window. Of course, it was “end of summer,” so obviously that didn’t pan out. Kind of odd to just drop it without any notice or anything though.
Addendum, from the H:LG English Forum:
HW:LH Manual will be consultable on November the 11th…
HW:LH Demo will be released before the end of this month…
HW:LG will be in pre-order on the first week of December…
HW:LG will be released before Christmas…
That’s next week for the manual, though “before the end of this month” is one of those things that’s likely to come and go with another, “just fixing a few animations.”
One of the reasons why my answer to the publishers I’ve been contacted by has always been; let’s talk when this thing is ready. ;-)
As a professional software developer, I’m thoroughly unimpressed by the game-developer’s (and fan’s) mantra “when it’s done.”
When it comes down to it, software is about one thing: _shipping_. I don’t care if it’s a spreadsheet, a web app, or a game, if you can’t manage a project well enough to hit a ship date with enough features implemented and the core bugs ironed out, why should I believe that you can manage it well enough to, say, make the game fun?
Not picking on you, Michael, just saying that “when it’s done” is the moral equivalent of “when Jesus comes back.” It might be good enough for internet forum wankery, but it’s not good enough for real product development.
Lucky then that what I do (working on games) is first and foremost for my own enjoyment.
I don’t think HistWar is JMM’s day job either; so apart for his tendency stating deadlines (and then not keeping them), I would cut him some slack as well. And he has actually published a game, which puts him ahead of 99,999% of the forum wankers out there. ;-)
That aside, I sympathize with the sentiment. I’m after all a professional software developer myself.
Speaking of which, Michael…finish already!
;)
Consider http://afoolandhismoney.com
(I’m True Believer #13).
Crap, there’s no edit button. I meant “http://thefoolandhismoney.com/”
Ouch – my eyes hurt. That is a joke……. right?
But there’s a reason why I’ve never thrown any significant amount of money into my game (or allowed others to throw any money into it); business and pleasure shouldn’t mix. And I say that, despite building on games for enjoyment – and despite me enjoying my professional work just as much.
@Troy: I’m planning to have it released for the forthcoming Saturnalia celebrations. The DLC will be released in $10 increments every ides of march after that. ;-)
If you’re badly in need of a Roman fix (aren’t you playing DA, though?), you can always mess around with Imperium Mini. It should tide you over for at least a couple of minutes while you figure out just how bare-bones the gameplay is.
With indie developers I see no reason not to cut them slack when it comes to game development times because yes, 95% of them aren’t doing it full time. They have day jobs and are trying to live the dream when they can. As a side note, you’d be surprised at how many board game developers fall into this category, too.
With the “professional” studios though, yeah, there should be no reason they can’t hit a date. You’re not doing anything else, you’re doing one thing, making your game. Most AAA studios would fail miserably in the corporate world of software.
Oops, that should be “I see no reason NOT to cut them slack…”
Edited the comment for you.
Well all you neysayers, Histwar was released in January 2010 and it is by far the absolutely BEST Napoleonic Strategy simulator out there. It is continuously supported by JMM and has a thriving community and now the major Clans are fighting it. If you want a quick “Eye Candy” arcade game, stick to NTW but if you are a real Napoleonic Strategist, Histwar is the only way to go. I fight MP twice a week and it’s depth never ceases to amaze me