23 June

[johnbmac]

Disappointed.  My opponent proposed that we end our current PBEM game because he read the release of the manual as an indication that full release was imminent.  Now what am i gonna do till gold?  I read the forums but it would be nice to have a copy of the database to analyze.

[Graycompany]

I kinda did to. I got ripped off for Fathers day, I told the family that is what I wanted, and so all I got was a card and a steak dinner[:(]

[DrewMatrix]

and so all I got was a card and a steak dinner

I got a card and had to _pay_ for a steak dinner with my children and their spouses.

[Andy Mac]

going as fast as we can working as hard as we can

[undercovergeek]

ORIGINAL: Andy Mac

going as fast as we can working as hard as we can

hey thats cool and all our hopes are with you - its just that we thought............

youd finished!

[johnbmac]

exactly! our mistake

[rroberson]

ORIGINAL: undercovergeek

ORIGINAL: Terminus
Here it is: you WILL see AE before the end of the summer. I can't tell you the exact date, because I don't know, but it WILL be there. That's straight, it's skinny and it's level...

is this a nice way of saying - end of summer? if it was going to be june you would say end of june, july - end of july, but we're still only on a 'seasonal' release date - end of summer?!!?

Honestly, Terminus isn't the one who should be answering this question. He is the programmer....he will keep pounding at the code as long as they let him. I had earlier asked (march or so when rumor control was rampant for a spring release) what happens when the release date continues to slip backwards and was assured that wasn't going to happen. We were told June, then July, now we are told before the end of the summer which if I recall correctly is September. So, the date does keeps slipping. That tells me the consumer there are problems. The fact that they won't set a price so I can save my pennies is mystifying. All I have been asking was give me a hard date, I'm a grown up. Ill come back on that hard date credit card in hand...

Clearly that isn't going to happen. So I will drop in here again in a month or two and see if there has been any progress. Sorry guys Ill check in again in a few weeks..

[Bullwinkle58]

ORIGINAL: SuluSea

 With the latest delay I bought some HPS titles I've been wanting, I'm getting some enjoyment out of them. After getting my hopes up of an imminent release and spending much of the past few weeks watching for gold I'd be lying if I didn't say I was starting to be indifferent to this whole thing, Hopefully AE will be out by sometime next year.

Well, I'm not "indifferent", but I am looking at some other titles. Fallout3 DLC is coming out on DVD (rather than MS Live) soon, and that's a pretty tasty option.

Fact is, and no mud at Matrix, but there's a recession on. My personal financial situation has deteriorated since last year, and I can--really, truly--only afford one game between now and December. It's not about asking the missus, it's just the numbers and my job situation. I've been holding out for AE, but as time goes on I'm starting to think about dating other folks. I don't want to, but gaming is really the only non-TV entertainment I have right now. (Dinners out are a fond memory.) I can go into mid-July or so, and after that it's going to be next year at the earliest for me.

[kaleun]

From the days of the "Evil Empire":

Misha has saved up his rubles and enters a car dealership in Moscow. He buys a brand new Moskovich. The salesman tells him his car will be delivered in two years.

"Two years! That long?" Misha answers, distraught.

"Tovarisch, the five year plan, the capitalists; it will take two years, but it will be delivered then."

Misha asks: "In the morning or in the afternoon, comrade salesman?"

"It's in two years; what does it matter?"

Misha answers: "Because the plumber is coming in the morning."


Feels the same about AE.[:D]

[aphrochine]

I'm no marketing major, but it's hard to drum up any real excitment for a product when you cant put down a release date, cant tell us how much it will cost, and have built systematically built a firm reputation of 'delay delay delay'.

[Charbroiled]

Considering that AE is being designed by a bunch of "volunteers" that have real jobs to contend with while programing AE in their free time....I just happy that they have come as far as they have and didn't abandon the whole project because of the demands that I am sure it has placed on their lifes.[&o][&o][&o]

I'll wait as long as it takes.[8D]

[Lützow]

Is there any reason for another possible delay? Last time Erik told us, it would only rely on printing office.

[DuckofTindalos]

ORIGINAL: rroberson

ORIGINAL: undercovergeek

ORIGINAL: Terminus
Here it is: you WILL see AE before the end of the summer. I can't tell you the exact date, because I don't know, but it WILL be there. That's straight, it's skinny and it's level...

is this a nice way of saying - end of summer? if it was going to be june you would say end of june, july - end of july, but we're still only on a 'seasonal' release date - end of summer?!!?

Honestly, Terminus isn't the one who should be answering this question. He is the programmer....he will keep pounding at the code as long as they let him. I had earlier asked (march or so when rumor control was rampant for a spring release) what happens when the release date continues to slip backwards and was assured that wasn't going to happen. We were told June, then July, now we are told before the end of the summer which if I recall correctly is September. So, the date does keeps slipping. That tells me the consumer there are problems. The fact that they won't set a price so I can save my pennies is mystifying. All I have been asking was give me a hard date, I'm a grown up. Ill come back on that hard date credit card in hand...

Clearly that isn't going to happen. So I will drop in here again in a month or two and see if there has been any progress. Sorry guys Ill check in again in a few weeks..

Actually, I'm not a coder, but a scenario designer. I'm itching to get to work on the Downfall scenario, but because there's so much data to enter, I can't start until I get a Gold version on my computer, so I'm quite frustrated too.

[Oliver Heindorf]

I dont understand all the talking. its done when its done - basta. Who cares if its June or September ? I dont. Got better things to do anyway [:'(]

[Przemcio231]

Fellows give it a break... as you write the designers are probably busy twitching with the AE to make it as bug free as possible. If they need more time stop bullying them into realeseing it now
as after the realase you will be complainning that you have to stop your ongoing CG's becouse of some BUG[:)] Im sure the guys are putting everything they got to give us the final product but it can't be done so quickly:)

[Akos Gergely]

Yeah I can agree with that, a sort of developers diary or something like that would be nice to give us some official update regularly on what's going on in the background. We can live with the delays somewhat easier if we know what's going on.

Last time Erik mentioned a possible manual printing issue, but he said it can only delay things for weeks, not months on (that meant latest mid-end July), so I hope T's end of summer (Aug-Sept) is really just a wild estimate and not close to reality ...

RRoberson: to be honest an exact price isn't that important. They said on many occasions that it will be less than the original WitP but not much less, so that gives you a rough idea IMHO (I'd say between 40-50 USD)

[Erik Rutins]

ORIGINAL: rroberson
Well this wasn't really directed at you guys. I respect the work you are doing and would kill to have the kind of skills you guys have to make toys for guys like me. I understand the corporate types run the show and it was directed at them. Seems like an awful lot of zero to no buzz for a game that could be out as soon as july. I keep putting off starting games because I keep hearing its close. Something I have heard for many many months. I'm just looking for the straight skinny.

<shakes head>

Look, I posted just a couple of weeks ago saying we were probably looking at a July release based on the timeline of the printed manuals. For the last two months there has been constant AAR activity from the test team here as well as about a quarter of the manual being posted as a free preview. This to you constitutes "zero to no buzz"? Wow.

I also gave a very narrow ballpark for the price (less than WITP but not by much). I also said that delays at this point would be weeks or days, not months.

When we're prepared to post a release date and final pricing, we will. All I will say now is that a July release is the date we are aiming for and we are currently working with the AE team on a release candidate. The manuals are on the boat and depending on when they arrive in our warehouses (which we'll know more about as time goes on) will allow us to know when the release date will be exactly (yes, we don't know for certain yet either).

The only way that we would miss July is if Customs decided for some reason to sit on the manuals for a few weeks. Nothing in the actual game development/release candidate/gold master process looks like it is going to need more time than that.

Oh and for the record, there are no "corporate types" at Matrix, at least in the way people usually intend that particular phrase to be taken as something other than a compliment. We are all wargamers and heavily engaged in the games we publish.

Regards,

- Erik

[Erik Rutins]

ORIGINAL: SuluSea
 With the latest delay I bought some HPS titles I've been wanting, I'm getting some enjoyment out of them. After getting my hopes up of an imminent release and spending much of the past few weeks watching for gold I'd be lying if I didn't say I was starting to be indifferent to this whole thing, Hopefully AE will be out by sometime next year.

You guys are unbelievable. I understand the frustration and anticipation, but seriously... Question posted yesterday, official answer today, everyone's already figured out for themselves in the meantime that no one will answer and that it's now delayed until September. We have been on target for the projected release timeframe for months now. Another clue, if you don't hear it from me, it's not official as far as Matrix is concerned.

Regards,

- Erik

[rogueusmc]

'sides, he's from Vermont...anyone know anyone evil who came from Vermont?[:D]

[jmscho]

This is a bit like the stories of people waiting in a queue. When they are kept in the dark they bitch and moan; when given some information to let them know what is happening, they are happy.

As I see it at the moment we have had release of part of the manual - which has given the nit-pickers a lot to keep them occupied. I've glanced at it - but its just a part, not worth paying attention to. But what else have we had. I can think of only two things:
1. There are delays because of art work. To be frank I don't care about the artwork a ship is a ship and a plane is a plane. To me the game is about the overall results not the stylistic combat screens. All I need is the working engine and the maps.
2. Mention of release in the summer. I started tracking this project when the promise was late summer 2008 - QED.

Can anyone at Matrix keep the queue happy, while we wait for the team to finish their work?