NO Botanical Garden is UNACCEPTABLE and the game is UNPLAYABLE

[Shazlow 13]

The Botanical garden was one of 5 assets available to those who PRE-ORDERED the game. Now I don't care for the garden itself, I care for the red/orange flower bed and fountain of the garden which has been used by modders to create new parks on the workshop.

 

 

The fact that my base game is missing these two assets means I can't download these parks, meaning my game-play is severely limited. Also, the fact that the pre-ordered version of the game gave you 5 additional assets seemed a little over the top and unfair anyway, especially when sim city only gave you the launch arcology and the Mr Voo Police station. 

 

I literally can't play this game because I'm missing two small assets, the flower beds and fountains that came with the botanical garden asset.

 

It really is too unfair. The whole pre-order system smacks of inequality and unfairness that should not even exist in 2015. And if we must have the system, then surely 4 bonus buildings is enough God Damn it.

 

See here:

 

http://steamcommunity.com/app/255710/discussions/0/610575007214081463/

[mutton noir 170]

Must admit I think the garden flower bed looks awful, a real blot on the landscape and adds nothing to the game

[Vahr 343]

While I do share some of the sentiment about pre-order exclusiveness that seems to pervade the industry, I do have to question the following:

 

The fact that my base game is missing these two assets means I can't download these parks, meaning my game-play is severely limited.

 

Your gameplay is hardly limited:

Can you build cities? Yes.

Can you manage a city? Yes.

Can you build and manage a successful city? Yes, assuming you don't screw up.

Can you use everything else, namely the hundreds of bundled assets and hundreds more of Workshop assets that don't rely on the flowers? Yes.

 

Conclusion: The gameplay is intact.

 

I literally can't play this game because I'm missing two small assets

You can't play the game because you're stopping yourself, not because the game is broken, pre-order content is OP, or missing crucial game functionality. You even said it yourself, just two small assets... not a big deal.

[Shazlow 13]

While I do share some of the sentiment about pre-order exclusiveness that seems to pervade the industry, I do have to question the following:

 

 

The fact that my base game is missing these two assets means I can't download these parks, meaning my game-play is severely limited.

 

Your gameplay is hardly limited:

Can you build cities? Yes.

Can you manage a city? Yes.

Can you build and manage a successful city? Yes, assuming you don't screw up.

Can you use everything else, namely the hundreds of bundled assets and hundreds more of Workshop assets that don't rely on the flowers? Yes.

 

Conclusion: The gameplay is intact.

 

 

I literally can't play this game because I'm missing two small assets

You can't play the game because you're stopping yourself, not because the game is broken, pre-order content is OP, or missing crucial game functionality. You even said it yourself, just two small assets... not a big deal.

 

My gameplay is limited because I only play the game to build parks and recreational areas. Sure I can build a city, but it's not the city I'd like to build. Yes I did say that these are two small assets but I did not say they aren't a big deal. I don't know where you got that from. People play the game for different reasons, and I play it to build parks around a CBD. Why should I not have these assets? You think that it is right of paradox to not give them to me when I paid exactly the same amount of money to play the game as everyone else did. Why should the fact that I did not buy the game at a certain time restrict the content available to me. What an atrocious model of bussines this is! Imagine if someone could not afford the game at its pre-order time, but could shortly afterwards. Why should this person be punished for being poor in a game? It is just a game, but paradox once again, like most developers nowadays like to strip away content and remove the fun factor for sake of business and making money. If they were a decent company, they would put these two assets into the base game for us all to enjoy. Doing so will not affect their profits, and besides, they have already made enough money out of this game already. It is their greed that will stop people like me from playing the game...

[1131989 223]

They should at least offer each as a paid DLC; maybe $2 apiece. Imagine if SC4 had paid dependencies (which is what the issue is; the botanical garden is a dependency for a lot of parks)

[Thin White Duke 4,072]

I'm sorry, but you seem to be overreacting quite a bit. Calling an entire developer bad because you can't have acess to two small assets is unfair. I think it would be a nice suggestion, but paying tribute to those who bought the game beforehand and therefore funding the development of said game by adding a few extra things is most definitely an acceptble thing to do. Whatever you say, the game does not become "unplayable" do to the lack of two small assets out of hundreds. I can understand that you feel annoyed and that you would like to have these, but it really does not make the game unplayable, even if the reason you play it is to make new park and such.

[wallacet 336]

 Why should this person be punished for being poor in a game? It is just a game, but paradox once again, like most developers nowadays like to strip away content and remove the fun factor for sake of business and making money. If they were a decent company, they would put these two assets into the base game for us all to enjoy.

 

...I don't understand your logic here. You complain that you don't have two small assets, and yet CO just pumped out a huge update with tons of new features and buildings for free, instead of making it paid DLC. They are a decent company, as evidenced by the fact they are taking suggestions and listening to complaints, and adding/fixing said suggestions/complaints every update, for free. No offense, but I think you are blowing this out of proportion.

[Koriolanis 14]

I came across a set of flower bed props not so long ago on steam, you could just replace the ones from the botanical garden with those. Unfortunatly I can't remember the name of the asset, you'll have to look

[lew1984 231]

This thread is also on paradox forums lol. I'm sorry to say but pre-order stuff is a thing these days all/most companies are doing it. I really can't imagine it makes the game unplayable though... But I can see why it could be frustrating if it makes some modds/custom assets unusable for you. 

[T Wrecks 10,210]

In the first days, custom content for SimCity 4 also heavily relied on Maxis props. Even when the BAT came out and allowed players to make new models, it took a while until custom models and textures were available for most purposes.

 

The current phase of C:S seems to be comparable to these early days: most custom content is basically a remix of default game content - with the difference that some of this content is reserved for people who pre-ordered. However, this situation should change over time if the game lasts and if the editors attract some creative people.

 

I wonder if it would be possible for Paradox to provide the required resource graphics as a dependency for custom mods, but not the assembled version? Then again, the actual botanical garden could be re-assembled using the provided resources, and then the pre-order folks would whine about lack of exclusivity...

[eoin247 75]

It's annoying yeah. They shouldn't have props that some people can't get. I wouldn't mind even paying a bit to get the pre-order stuff now. 

 

However saying that your game is unplayable just because a few workshop parks are missing props is ridiculous.

[Linoa06 1,374]

While I do share some of the sentiment about pre-order exclusiveness that seems to pervade the industry, I do have to question the following:

 

 

The fact that my base game is missing these two assets means I can't download these parks, meaning my game-play is severely limited.

 

Your gameplay is hardly limited:

Can you build cities? Yes.

Can you manage a city? Yes.

Can you build and manage a successful city? Yes, assuming you don't screw up.

Can you use everything else, namely the hundreds of bundled assets and hundreds more of Workshop assets that don't rely on the flowers? Yes.

 

Conclusion: The gameplay is intact.

 

 

I literally can't play this game because I'm missing two small assets

You can't play the game because you're stopping yourself, not because the game is broken, pre-order content is OP, or missing crucial game functionality. You even said it yourself, just two small assets... not a big deal.

 

That basically. Get over it. It's not like the game was, you know, unplayable. Overreacting much.

[CorpusDei 69]

I wonder if it would be possible for Paradox to provide the required resource graphics as a dependency for custom mods, but not the assembled version? Then again, the actual botanical garden could be re-assembled using the provided resources, and then the pre-order folks would whine about lack of exclusivity...

 

I wouldn't be at all surprised if, a few months down the line, they just roll that initial pre-order content into a patch or make it available as (perhaps paid-for) DLC... wouldn't be the first time that's happened with games; pre-order exclusives aren't always exclusive in perpetuity.

[Linoa06 1,374]

They did say they'd eventually go for paid DLCs. The unexpected success of the game did show they weren't just draining people's money though.

[Metalpuritan 160]

In the first days, custom content for SimCity 4 also heavily relied on Maxis props. Even when the BAT came out and allowed players to make new models, it took a while until custom models and textures were available for most purposes.

 

The current phase of C:S seems to be comparable to these early days: most custom content is basically a remix of default game content - with the difference that some of this content is reserved for people who pre-ordered. However, this situation should change over time if the game lasts and if the editors attract some creative people.

 

I wonder if it would be possible for Paradox to provide the required resource graphics as a dependency for custom mods, but not the assembled version? Then again, the actual botanical garden could be re-assembled using the provided resources, and then the pre-order folks would whine about lack of exclusivity...

I have the pre-order deluxe version and I would not care one little bit if they made the resources from the additional content available for all to use.

As to your comment about the Early days of SimCity 4, I agree, when I go to look at the assets, the RCI stuff, I see TONS of what we would call in the SC4 community, "re-lots", not a big fan of re-lotted work, but it is what we got so far, right?

 

However, there are already new props popping up here and there if you are looking closely enough and there are definitely people making new building assets as well, lots of them too.  I am pleased to see the modding community accelerating at this pace.  I just CO would get their patches over and done with already.  With every patch comes broken mods, key mods mind you, not frivolous mods but essential mods, so for a few days save games are broken and sometimes broken permanently.  I have already seen some folks quit and abandon their mod work.  Like the person who made Traffic manager, that mod has not been updated for like 2 months now, it is essentially abandoned and it was a great mod, one of the greatest actually.  Probably got tired of his work getting destroyed every time they made a patch to the game.  I know it would make ME mad.

 

As to the original post, I actually thought this was a joke at first because this one little thing is so asinine, I could pour over the Workshop for C:S for hours, maybe days before I find anything that requires the props from the add-on content from pre-ordering.  I thought it was a joke until I got down to the replies here.  Odd how we don;t see too many others complaining about it, right?  Obviously the OP is having deep issues with it, but I am not feeling it, not because I have the content, (content I don't use by the way) and I just don't see how it is important, not even slightly important.  All the OP does is make parks?  Say what?  OP got me on that one, totally lost.  i totally thought this was some sort of gag post, for real.

[SteveManx 24]

In the first days, custom content for SimCity 4 also heavily relied on Maxis props. Even when the BAT came out and allowed players to make new models, it took a while until custom models and textures were available for most purposes.

 

The current phase of C:S seems to be comparable to these early days: most custom content is basically a remix of default game content - with the difference that some of this content is reserved for people who pre-ordered. However, this situation should change over time if the game lasts and if the editors attract some creative people.

 

I wonder if it would be possible for Paradox to provide the required resource graphics as a dependency for custom mods, but not the assembled version? Then again, the actual botanical garden could be re-assembled using the provided resources, and then the pre-order folks would whine about lack of exclusivity...

I have the pre-order deluxe version and I would not care one little bit if they made the resources from the additional content available for all to use.

As to your comment about the Early days of SimCity 4, I agree, when I go to look at the assets, the RCI stuff, I see TONS of what we would call in the SC4 community, "re-lots", not a big fan of re-lotted work, but it is what we got so far, right?

 

However, there are already new props popping up here and there if you are looking closely enough and there are definitely people making new building assets as well, lots of them too.  I am pleased to see the modding community accelerating at this pace.  I just CO would get their patches over and done with already.  With every patch comes broken mods, key mods mind you, not frivolous mods but essential mods, so for a few days save games are broken and sometimes broken permanently.  I have already seen some folks quit and abandon their mod work.  Like the person who made Traffic manager, that mod has not been updated for like 2 months now, it is essentially abandoned and it was a great mod, one of the greatest actually.  Probably got tired of his work getting destroyed every time they made a patch to the game.  I know it would make ME mad.

 

As to the original post, I actually thought this was a joke at first because this one little thing is so asinine, I could pour over the Workshop for C:S for hours, maybe days before I find anything that requires the props from the add-on content from pre-ordering.  I thought it was a joke until I got down to the replies here.  Odd how we don;t see too many others complaining about it, right?  Obviously the OP is having deep issues with it, but I am not feeling it, not because I have the content, (content I don't use by the way) and I just don't see how it is important, not even slightly important.  All the OP does is make parks?  Say what?  OP got me on that one, totally lost.  i totally thought this was some sort of gag post, for real.

 

 

Someone else picked up the Traffic Manager code and called it TrafficManager Plus. I think updating the mods isn't that much of a problem for most devs, it's just if they stop playing the game and lose interest. As a programmer myself, it wouldn't bother me. It happens all the time with any code, just part of the job/hobby. The original dev is on Steam right now but hasn't been playing Cities lately. As long as they leave the source code available and it's a good mod, someone will assume the mantle. It's already happened for some others like the improved assets and mod panel. Not the best scenario but it seems to be working good enough so far. No popular mods have permanently vanished yet, as far as I know.

By the way, if you stop Steam from downloading the game update you can continue to play it in the state it's in. It seems even the mods won't update until you let the game update which works out perfectly. I kept playing the old version until just a few days ago when it seemed most patch issues were resolved with the mods. There may be a time limit before you are forced to update, but I didn't hit it.