There was a primary reason why I chose not to apply to become an ambassador for Warlords Awakening (they initial accepted most folks who applied as there are quite a bit of folks who have almost no content presence on YouTube, Twitch, etc; most of the wheat will be separated from the chaff once the game launches where those who want to remain in the program will need to create content). I wanted an unvarnished view of how the company would be interacting with the community as a whole since they mentioned they wanted to foster a community and listen to them (see the following).
Source: https://steamcommunity.com/games/WarlordsAwakening/announcements/detail/3219392883426255360
This is me playing my usual role as the skeptic and just being blunt. It’s been clear they’ve been primarily interacting with/favoring those in the ambassador program (via Discord which is why ambassadors have such a glowing opinion of the company) while failing to establish any real repertoire with everyone else. The rest of those people they are literally neglecting are potential players (customers). My low bar gauge is normally Trion Worlds BUT even they managed to interact decently well leading into and during their alpha testing of Devilian (where the only folks who could access it were those who purchased the higher end Founders packs). One associate producer managed to actively engage with anyone who was interested (not just Obsidian Founders Pack purchasers).
My more recent low bar gauge has been Webzen though (with MU Legend) and even they tried to have some form of interaction (even after their only community manager left a few months before open beta) even though there was the usual group screaming at them about not making the game p2w or dragging them over the coals when they pushed back their open beta from September to November (2017). Whomever was replying took it with a sense of humor. Sure, a lot of it has been unprofessional and amateur level stuff but at least their tone didn’t come off as defensive as the following (which is not the way to go when trying to make good first impressions that count).
PLAYWITH Interactive (the subsidiary handling the Steam launch) on the other hand seems unable to walk and breath at the same time. And the reason I feel this way is their response to a question on their Steam discussion forum. The question was valid (though laced with heavy skepticism).
There were of course other snarky posts from others but that is to be expected. The following was PLAYWITH’s (unprofessional) response a few days later where it is clear that whomever drafted it, has been offended by most of the posts on their Steam discussion forum (that is because they aren’t actively involved to begin with). It’s not like their Steam discussion forum is hyper busy either. Discord being more or less chat focused is also NOT the best medium for longer discussions like a forum is where topics are encapsulated.
This person makes it sound like it is a chore to have to post on “this forum style medium” when surprise, that is part of their responsibility and obligation IF they want to put actual action to their high sounding words (about community) posted in the screen capture at the top. If they seriously cannot handle things now, how the hell are they going to manage when the game actually goes live, and they have to deal with the usual irate players that have valid issues?
Furthermore, they go on to paint that “most of the people” on their Steam discussion forum are using it as a means to “deface the game, their company, or simply attacking the game”. Yes, there are some whose primary objective is to get others to not buy into the game but that unfortunately comes with the territory (more so if there is no community management to at least moderate it and/or to offer more than what has been mostly potential players, talking to a blank wall). Generalizing the majority in this manner really isn’t good form either.
In my case, I brought up the Korean server closure because it just makes sense to get ahead of it BUT they obviously (based on the above) probably have lumped me in as one of those folks who are looking to attack their company (which at the time, I was not). I was giving them the benefit of the doubt but their inaction to at least address this concern has spurred me to give my thoughts about how terrible of a job they are doing when it comes to interacting with their community across all mediums.
Me, I believe it is up to each person to decide how to spend their money so long as they can make the most informed opinion. PLAYWITH being transparent about the Korean server closure is something I consider important for potential players to at least be aware of. But PLAYWITH has chosen not to address it (so all it comes across as they have something to hide). Maybe they’ve covered it with their ambassadors (like it does the rest of us any good if they are doing this sort of selective communication).
They should also know the exercise now when it comes to gaming communities where the trolling unfortunately comes with the territory. But as I mentioned, even Trion Worlds, Webzen, and (I can’t believe I am saying this) Neowiz put on their best faces and didn’t respond in the above sort of manner. Words and conveyed tone are crucial in crafting a PR response and the above response by PLAYWITH is a huge fail.
I realize this subsidiary handling the Steam launch is running on a limited budget and can’t hire the best people with the proper PR communication skills (let alone those with actual community management experience). But as a company, I’ve been trying to give them the benefit of the doubt, and they aren’t doing a good job at all since (as a non-ambassador) they are giving me the very wrong first impressions when it comes to dealing with and managing their communications with the entire community (I don’t care if this is pre-early access launch either – the above is doing a poor job at representing PLAYWITH Interactive and Warlords Awakening period).
On their official forums, there is ONE solitary ambassador (zerohour150) posting feedback that seems to be happening in an echo chamber. Yes, other ambassadors active on their Discord have been saying PLAYWITH has been responsive there but they are doing an absolutely shitty job outside that. And that does not speak well to once they go live when there are going to be way more people giving the game a shot (courtesy of what must be close to 1000 free key giveaways so far).
If they hired the same way in Korea (low budget), then I can see why they had to end up shuttering the game. The game itself probably wasn’t the problem; the competence of those running the front facing operations may have been a chief contributor and this subsidiary handling the Steam release hasn’t done a good job at all with living up to what they wrote on the screen capture at the top (only those in the ambassador program have a very slanted view for obvious reasons).
I have no issues with spending hundreds or thousands of dollars with companies that put their words into action. When it comes to the gaming industry, I’m tired of spending money with “B” rated publishers that really don’t know how to walk the talk. It’s why I decided against getting involved with becoming a venture capitalist when it comes to game developers because you have to sift through so much bullcrap of individuals trying to get funding and over promising on ideas (with way too much sweet talk) which they know they have no way of delivering. You don’t have to look much further than your average Kickstarter or Early Access to see exactly what I mean (which is why I normally don’t talk about many and wish now that I hadn’t for Warlords Awakening).
Unlike this “do not buy” review of the game, what I am going to simply say is caveat emptor and just know not to expect longevity or top quality customer support/service (if you end up needed it). This is similar to Devilian where I really enjoyed the game (quirks and all) but utterly despised the fact that it was Trion Worlds that ended up being the publisher for NA/EU. In this case though (with the company handling both development and publishing), I’m obviously not keen with the folks on the player facing operations side (it’s all on them to change this lousy initial impressions they are giving but I’m not holding my breath that anything is going to change).
