@Dee: I'd like to second that request; it's clear that you can't tell us what's going on, but can you at least say whether there's been any movement on the issue in the past few weeks? Even that miniscule amount of information would at least relay to us that something is being done...
If I say there's been progress, will that actually make anyone happy?
I'm not saying that -- I don't know what's going on -- I just question the premise that vague claims of something happening would satisfy anyone.
When the issue's resolved -- *however* it's resolved -- it seems highly likely someone in authority will let people know. Anything other than "This is what's happening going forward" is pretty much irrelevant in practical terms.
I understand the desire to know what's going on, but... well, odds are we're never going to find out what's going on, just what the end result is, when there is one. Best to make peace with that and get on with life.
@AndrewFoley: On the contrary - progress, at the very least, implies that things are moving forward, however incrementally. If nothing at all has been achieved in the past month, it paints a rather different picture of what we can expect in the days to come.
Yes, we are making progress. These things take time, though, so don't expect that to mean that you'll suddenly see the game back on sale with a patch tomorrow, or even next week.
Honestly, you'd think that all of us saying "We're working as hard as we can to get the issues resolved" would tell you that much.
@JonSnowIsAlive If we can't reveal the details of the issue (or its resolution) beyond "This is what's going to happen", that's a legal concern; it's not that we don't want to tell you what happened or why.
@AndrewFoley: On the contrary - progress, at the very least, implies that things are moving forward, however incrementally.
Maybe, but I wouldn't read "progress" or "moving forward" as implying a positive outcome, just further plodding towards a resolution one way or another. If things weren't moving forward, I'd expect there to be an announcement that things aren't going to change. In the absence of such an announcement, I'd assume things are progressing in some fashion. Maybe that's assuming too much.
What's so ghastly that you couldn't ever talk about it post-resolution?
1) Hypothetical situation pushed to ridiculous extreme to make point: There's not a lot to be gained by calling your spouse names after a divorce. For one thing, it could alienate other potential spouses.
2) It might not be ghastly. It would probably be boring and/or aggravating, especially for the people actually involved (a number in which I am not included, I hasten to repeat).
3) I could be wrong. Maybe the people who know what happened will be eager to discuss it once things are resolved. Personally, I'm more interested in the resolution itself than the process that resulted in it.
*Insert standard disclaimer re: the opinion expressed above being solely that of the writer, anything herein does not represent the opinions of Beamdog, Overhaul, or anyone else. I'm only 80/20 on whether it represents the writer, actually.*
Ok this is my final attempt and I'll follow Andrew Foley's advice and will get on with my life. What I really want to know is if there is some activity at the moment from Beamdog's side to solve this or if You just waiting for some decisions to make and Your hands are truly tight. Besides I get a feeling that only Trent Oster knows what is really going on but maybe it's just me beeing paranoid. But as I've said - my final attempt and I'm letting it go.
lol Holy god, how many times, and in how many different ways, do people need to hear that Beamdog CAN'T SAY ANYTHING. About what's going on, about the timetable for patch release, about ANYTHING.
Patience, people.
Which reminds me. How many times can we also say: THE PATCH WILL NOT BE RELEASED UNTIL THIS IS RESOLVED.
It's like the 'how many times do you lick a tootsie pop' question, and the answer is the same. The world will never know.
I'm completely boggled by the number of people who are asking for information and not reading the thread. There's 15 pages here folks, several very good posts (even those not mine! ) with great information on the hows, what's and why's of all of this.
We've all pretty much done the legal discussion to death, and most of the conjecture runs us to the same points. It's ALL in the posts above this one. If you really want to know the ins and outs, go read...I realize it's a lost art in society today to actually read for information instead of just expecting someone to give you all the world's knowledge in a single sentence. (and by this point in my post I've already lost half of my readers since I've gone longer than 6 sentences).
If you don't want to know the ins and outs, that's great too...skip the thread and read @Dee's post above. Yes, stuff's happening. No one is going to give you a time line, no one is going to give you a date, no one is going to give you a working project plan.
@AndrewFoley has the right of it also: Telling you "Yep, it's progressing" isn't going to do the majority of you any good either. How long are you going to listen to "Yep, it's progressing" before someone says "you keep saying that but without more detail how do we know you're not lying to us?"
Wait wait, let me see if I can get the argument right!!!!
"OMG BeamDog Lied to us on when they were going to publish the game and they published it with BUGS so why should we trust their update that says they're working on it!"
(I think I did that justice)
What you're asking for is relevant information that will give you some clue as to what is happening and when it will happen. That information is not in the hands of anyone (moderators on down) on this or any other thread on these boards. Most people CAN'T give you the information you want, those who could aren't posting here. Those who would post here who COULD give you the information you want STILL CAN'T because they are either under legal agreement NOT TO or it would be a REALLY BAD IDEA to do so.
I can't put it more clearly than this. The information you want is not out there. It is not public knowledge, it cannot be public knowledge, it would be harmful for it to BE public knowledge. Furthermore, giving you the information you want could very well change the answer from "We believe this will get resolved" to "This will now never be resolved because we've pissed off everyone would would have considered allowing us to continue selling this game."
It has been CLEARLY stated in this thread and on these boards, but I will state it again:
1) The developers, producers, owners and employees of BeamDog/Overhaul are interested in continuing to produce and develop BG:EE and sell it to us, their customers.
2) There is a legal issue preventing this from happening.
3) They continue to believe that there are doors open allowing this process to continue at some point down the line.
4) As soon as something official happens it will be announced.
As @Dee and @AndrewFoley mention above no news, in this case, is good news...they continue to believe a resolution is possible, they continue to work toward it, and nothing has happened that would negate those beliefs. That is how the official word has left it, and nothing has been posted to the contrary.
"We're still working on it" is neither a good nor acceptable update to assuage anyone who DOESN'T believe things are continuing into believing that. For those of us who have faith that BeamDog/Overhaul is as good as it's word and continues to work toward a resolution, we don't need to hear it. And for those who don't believe this, hearing this won't change their opinions in any way.
I'm sure someone is smart enough to create a thread and script a daily timed job that posts "Still working on it" to that thread once every 24 hours.
Would that help any of you? As a service to this community I'd be happy to take that job unto myself...
lol Holy god, how many times, and in how many different ways, do people need to hear that Beamdog CAN'T SAY ANYTHING. About what's going on, about the timetable for patch release, about ANYTHING.
Patience, people.
Which reminds me. How many times can we also say: THE PATCH WILL NOT BE RELEASED UNTIL THIS IS RESOLVED.
It's like the 'how many times do you lick a tootsie pop' question, and the answer is the same. The world will never know.
You know I knew it was some kind of a lolly pop but honestly I don't recall being into tootsie pop's much as a kid. I did get tootsie rolls a lot for halloween (which for me was basically a waste of space in a halloween bag haha) but tootsie pops must just not been as big where I grew up I guess. Anyways I'm only writing this because the first question that popped into my mind when I saw your post was "what the heck is a tootsie pop?". Now I know
I'm completely boggled by the number of people who are asking for information and not reading the thread. There's 15 pages here folks, several very good posts (even those not mine! ) with great information on the hows, what's and why's of all of this.
We've all pretty much done the legal discussion to death, and most of the conjecture runs us to the same points. It's ALL in the posts above this one. If you really want to know the ins and outs, go read...I realize it's a lost art in society today to actually read for information instead of just expecting someone to give you all the world's knowledge in a single sentence. (and by this point in my post I've already lost half of my readers since I've gone longer than 6 sentences).
If you don't want to know the ins and outs, that's great too...skip the thread and read @Dee's post above. Yes, stuff's happening. No one is going to give you a time line, no one is going to give you a date, no one is going to give you a working project plan.
@AndrewFoley has the right of it also: Telling you "Yep, it's progressing" isn't going to do the majority of you any good either. How long are you going to listen to "Yep, it's progressing" before someone says "you keep saying that but without more detail how do we know you're not lying to us?"
Wait wait, let me see if I can get the argument right!!!!
"OMG BeamDog Lied to us on when they were going to publish the game and they published it with BUGS so why should we trust their update that says they're working on it!"
(I think I did that justice)
What you're asking for is relevant information that will give you some clue as to what is happening and when it will happen. That information is not in the hands of anyone (moderators on down) on this or any other thread on these boards. Most people CAN'T give you the information you want, those who could aren't posting here. Those who would post here who COULD give you the information you want STILL CAN'T because they are either under legal agreement NOT TO or it would be a REALLY BAD IDEA to do so.
I can't put it more clearly than this. The information you want is not out there. It is not public knowledge, it cannot be public knowledge, it would be harmful for it to BE public knowledge. Furthermore, giving you the information you want could very well change the answer from "We believe this will get resolved" to "This will now never be resolved because we've pissed off everyone would would have considered allowing us to continue selling this game."
It has been CLEARLY stated in this thread and on these boards, but I will state it again:
1) The developers, producers, owners and employees of BeamDog/Overhaul are interested in continuing to produce and develop BG:EE and sell it to us, their customers.
2) There is a legal issue preventing this from happening.
3) They continue to believe that there are doors open allowing this process to continue at some point down the line.
4) As soon as something official happens it will be announced.
As @Dee and @AndrewFoley mention above no news, in this case, is good news...they continue to believe a resolution is possible, they continue to work toward it, and nothing has happened that would negate those beliefs. That is how the official word has left it, and nothing has been posted to the contrary.
"We're still working on it" is neither a good nor acceptable update to assuage anyone who DOESN'T believe things are continuing into believing that. For those of us who have faith that BeamDog/Overhaul is as good as it's word and continues to work toward a resolution, we don't need to hear it. And for those who don't believe this, hearing this won't change their opinions in any way.
I'm sure someone is smart enough to create a thread and script a daily timed job that posts "Still working on it" to that thread once every 24 hours.
Would that help any of you? As a service to this community I'd be happy to take that job unto myself...
"Still working on it!"
--Illydth
Actually, @Illydth, the thing is, people coming late to this thread (or coming back to it after a month of being curled up in the corner, rocking slowly back and forth while crying and muttering things like "go for the eyes, Boo, the eyes... *sob*") don't even need to read all 15 pages of posts. You can stop at page 1. Because there's basically been no new information since the original announcement.
Even better: you can skip the forums altogether and just go to the main page at www.baldursgate.com, because there's an FAQ. That FAQ probably addresses most of the Qs in this forum that are A-ed with the greatest F. Like it was designed for exactly that, or something.
lol Holy god, how many times, and in how many different ways, do people need to hear that Beamdog CAN'T SAY ANYTHING. About what's going on, about the timetable for patch release, about ANYTHING.
Patience, people.
Which reminds me. How many times can we also say: THE PATCH WILL NOT BE RELEASED UNTIL THIS IS RESOLVED.
It's like the 'how many times do you lick a tootsie pop' question, and the answer is the same. The world will never know.
You know I knew it was some kind of a lolly pop but honestly I don't recall being into tootsie pop's much as a kid. I did get tootsie rolls a lot for halloween (which for me was basically a waste of space in a halloween bag haha) but tootsie pops must just not been as big where I grew up I guess. Anyways I'm only writing this because the first question that popped into my mind when I saw your post was "what the heck is a tootsie pop?". Now I know
I think you missed out on something big, @elminster... but, then again, if I had to choose between indulging in things like tootsie pops in my youth, or eventually growing up to be a 29th level Mage and one of the Chosen of Mystra...
Yes, we are making progress. These things take time, though, so don't expect that to mean that you'll suddenly see the game back on sale with a patch tomorrow, or even next week.
Honestly, you'd think that all of us saying "We're working as hard as we can to get the issues resolved" would tell you that much.
@JonSnowIsAlive If we can't reveal the details of the issue (or its resolution) beyond "This is what's going to happen", that's a legal concern; it's not that we don't want to tell you what happened or why.
This is a significant piece of information. I mean, I can tell you that I'm trying to roll a 2 ton boulder up a hill with my bare hands. It's quite different if I tell you that I'm making progress. Well, I guess it could depend on my definition of progress...
I have been on the sidelines reading about all of this and came in here to say my piece. I am frustrated to say the least with all of this. I have bought a game and expect it to be supported. You can go on gog.com and get all 3 of the series for what I paid for here. I understand that there are some legal issues and you had to pull the game from the store but that shouldn't of affected people who already paid for your game and deserve that it be supported with patches and bug fixes. I was really ready for BG2:EE but after all of this happening, I may revisit other options at my disposal instead of supporting your business and your game.
Lastly, I love how you throw in the face of everyone how wonderful the patch is that you are withholding, on the main page in the faq, from people that have paid for the game. That is wrong and I sure don't like it.
Aren't courts public thing ? So if someone suing Beamdog because BG:EE, is it public thing and you can tell as why. Also as BG:EE buyers, we are ultimate consumers so we can demand answer about ours merchandise.
Now, I don't mean to blame Beamdog for anything here, as I know that if anyone's bummed out by the situation, it's these guys.
I just wish the whole embargo didn't prevent them from releasing a patch as it seems like a dick move on Atari's part. It's one thing to prevent any further sales until whatever disagreement is solved, it's another to forbid a company from improving or properly supporting the customers who have already purchased the game and have nothing to do with it.
I think it's a game of forum telephone: "asked to remove the game" turns into "forced to remove the game" turns into "legal injunction" turns into "lawsuit."
Aren't courts public thing ? So if someone suing Beamdog because BG:EE, is it public thing and you can tell as why. Also as BG:EE buyers, we are ultimate consumers so we can demand answer about ours merchandise.
lol Okay. You've bought and, I assume, downloaded BG:EE. I suppose you are free to ask any questions you like about the merchandise you've downloaded, and Beamdog will be able to answer those questions!
Regarding the patch, however, and the current legal tussle with Atari, they can't say much. Which has been said, like, a bajillion and four times already.
The producers of BG:EE cannot give you a patch. It's not that they don't WANT to give you a patch, it's not that they don't have the capability of giving you a patch, it's not even that they don't have a patch ready to give you.
It is that they are not allowed, by Atari, to give you a patch.
I appreciate that the only entity involved in this with a forum you can come onto and blast your pissyness at is Beamdog/OverHaul, but honestly you'd think after hundreds and hundreds of messages and a main page that covers this, we'd all come to realize that BeamDog is not withholding support and being bad people...
*** They are legally not allowed to give you what you want. ***
If you do not understand this, try to do something illegal, get caught at it, then try to use the defense that you feel it was owed to you and see what happens. Beamdog is not allowed to give you a patch, if they do legal action can be taken against them which could include massive fines, jail time, or the permanent shutdown of their company/development studio.
This has been said many, times many ways...and if I can get one more person to understand this, I'm happy to continue posting it over and over again...but eventually it needs to sink in.
Your anger and frustration is being expounded at the wrong people. You are pissed, angry, upset and frustrated with Atari...not BeamDog. Welcome to club with the other 1000 or so of us here. Coffee and Donuts have been provided at the back of the room, feel free to mingle amongst the rest of the club members.
If you want to do something, try the following:
1) Do not purchase the game from steam. Do not purchase the game from GoG.com or any of Atari's other distribution methods. BeamDog does not make much/anything from those methods because they are Atari's distribution channels, not BeamDogs. All you are doing is supporting the culprit in this mess by doing so. If you want your voice to be heard and to vote with your wallet, show Atari they made a mistake by NOT BUYING FROM THEM.
2) Wait patiently for the issue to be resolved. Feel free to join in the multitude of discussions this community is hosting and in the conjecture about the how's, what's and why's of the legal matters, it helps pass the time.
3) Hold your money, wait your time, and when BG2:EE does finally get released for sale, buy it...from BeamDog...multiple copies. Maybe, just maybe, we can help them raise enough money to buy / obtain / finagle the sole distribution rights for these and future D&D Based games. That way, this never happens again.
4) Find a better outlet for your anger. Help others here to understand where the anger should be put and how they, too, can make this a stronger community with a single voice.
The "bad guy" in this discussion is Atari. Not BeamDog. Were it not for Atari's legal wrangling, you would have a patch in your hands and even potentially BG2:EE in your hands at this point.
No one here is holding BeamDog / OverHaul Games blameless in the initial release of the software. No one here is suggesting that there weren't release problems, bugs, patch issues, multi-player issues, slow graphics, or problems running the game on some systems. No one here is suggesting that the game is perfect or BeamDog/Overhaul is a perfect development company. They DO have a lot of ground to cover with their customers (us) when it comes to another release. There have been significant issues with the software and there are still significant bugs that need to be fixed.
It HAS been a rocky release.
I have 2 points to make on this:
First, you can find a post on these forums by BeamDog/OverHaul ownership APOLOGIZING, and I mean a heartfelt REAL apology, for the issues surrounding the release and subsequent problems we have felt with the game. When was the last time you saw ANY OTHER DEVELOPMENT COMPANY apologizing for issues with their releases? Don't tell me no one else has done it this bad...I've been involved in MULTIPLE releases much worse than this.
Second, the issues that plagued the initial release of this software have NOTHING to do with the current state of distribution rights or the state of the legal matters between Atari and BeamDog. Whatever or however you feel about BeamDog/OverHaul as a company based upon their rocky release, those feelings have no bearing on the release of the next patch or the issues surrounding it.
This is, first, last and only, a legal issue. For anyone who's spent any time in the US and/or delt with the US Court system, you know it takes a LONG time for anything going through the US court system to get resolved. It's also, by and large, a mostly secret process other than the public documents that get published by the courts. Those documents are out there (see earlier in this thread for a link).
Trust or not, it's not in BeamDog's best interest as a company to hide information on this or to hold this patch for longer than they have to. If you still don't believe this, ask yourself what benefit you feel BeamDog/OverHaul is gaining by holding the patch or not communicating with us. If you come up with an answer to that question, please feel free to post it, I'd love to hear it.
But you won't. Because there is no benefit, no financial gain, no publicity gain, no customer service gain, no corporate gain, no gain at all to withholding information or withholding the patch. You don't have to trust BeamDog, you don't have to have faith in what they're saying.
You simply have to follow the money and realize that this situation does NOTHING but hurt BeamDog as a company to understand that it really is out of their hands...otherwise, they'd be doing something else.
--Illydth
p.s. For those still looking for an update on status..."Still working on it."
@Sandman: Either you didn't read what I posted or you're ignoring it. Lets try again...shorter as I might have lost your attention.
You have every right to be pissed. It does you no good to be pissed at OverHaul/Beamdog...you are pissed at the wrong people. No one doubts you're a paying customer, but being pissed about the situation at Overhaul gets you nothing. They aren't the ones causing the problem nor denying you your patch/support. Everyone at OverHaul is as frustrated as you are at this situation.
Atari is the culprit, Blame them. If you don't understand why and/or you still don't get it, read my post in it's entirety. I promise you, it will explain.
------
@JonSnowIsAlive, I've love to see the same thing. However, as several of us have theorized in this and other threads already, I don't believe the distribution rights for BG and other D&D Electronic IP's are for sale. If they WERE for sale, you'd see them among the listing in Atari's statement of assets they filed along with the Bankruptcy. Atari is under license from Hasbro to sell these games. As far as I can tell, BeamDog ALSO has a license to sell these games, or they wouldn't have their own Distribution Channels.
More conjecture / background in another post, simply because I don't want this one to get mucked up.
Comments
I'm not saying that -- I don't know what's going on -- I just question the premise that vague claims of something happening would satisfy anyone.
When the issue's resolved -- *however* it's resolved -- it seems highly likely someone in authority will let people know. Anything other than "This is what's happening going forward" is pretty much irrelevant in practical terms.
I understand the desire to know what's going on, but... well, odds are we're never going to find out what's going on, just what the end result is, when there is one. Best to make peace with that and get on with life.
Honestly, you'd think that all of us saying "We're working as hard as we can to get the issues resolved" would tell you that much.
@JonSnowIsAlive
If we can't reveal the details of the issue (or its resolution) beyond "This is what's going to happen", that's a legal concern; it's not that we don't want to tell you what happened or why.
2) It might not be ghastly. It would probably be boring and/or aggravating, especially for the people actually involved (a number in which I am not included, I hasten to repeat).
3) I could be wrong. Maybe the people who know what happened will be eager to discuss it once things are resolved. Personally, I'm more interested in the resolution itself than the process that resulted in it.
*Insert standard disclaimer re: the opinion expressed above being solely that of the writer, anything herein does not represent the opinions of Beamdog, Overhaul, or anyone else. I'm only 80/20 on whether it represents the writer, actually.*
What I really want to know is if there is some activity at the moment from Beamdog's side to solve this or if You just waiting for some decisions to make and Your hands are truly tight. Besides I get a feeling that only Trent Oster knows what is really going on but maybe it's just me beeing paranoid.
But as I've said - my final attempt and I'm letting it go.
It's like the 'how many times do you lick a tootsie pop' question, and the answer is the same. The world will never know.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0322.html
(Sorry about off-topic intervension, I semi-promise it will be the last. Carry on, nothing to see here...)
I'm completely boggled by the number of people who are asking for information and not reading the thread. There's 15 pages here folks, several very good posts (even those not mine!
We've all pretty much done the legal discussion to death, and most of the conjecture runs us to the same points. It's ALL in the posts above this one. If you really want to know the ins and outs, go read...I realize it's a lost art in society today to actually read for information instead of just expecting someone to give you all the world's knowledge in a single sentence. (and by this point in my post I've already lost half of my readers since I've gone longer than 6 sentences).
If you don't want to know the ins and outs, that's great too...skip the thread and read @Dee's post above. Yes, stuff's happening. No one is going to give you a time line, no one is going to give you a date, no one is going to give you a working project plan.
@AndrewFoley has the right of it also: Telling you "Yep, it's progressing" isn't going to do the majority of you any good either. How long are you going to listen to "Yep, it's progressing" before someone says "you keep saying that but without more detail how do we know you're not lying to us?"
Wait wait, let me see if I can get the argument right!!!!
"OMG BeamDog Lied to us on when they were going to publish the game and they published it with BUGS so why should we trust their update that says they're working on it!"
(I think I did that justice)
What you're asking for is relevant information that will give you some clue as to what is happening and when it will happen. That information is not in the hands of anyone (moderators on down) on this or any other thread on these boards. Most people CAN'T give you the information you want, those who could aren't posting here. Those who would post here who COULD give you the information you want STILL CAN'T because they are either under legal agreement NOT TO or it would be a REALLY BAD IDEA to do so.
I can't put it more clearly than this. The information you want is not out there. It is not public knowledge, it cannot be public knowledge, it would be harmful for it to BE public knowledge. Furthermore, giving you the information you want could very well change the answer from "We believe this will get resolved" to "This will now never be resolved because we've pissed off everyone would would have considered allowing us to continue selling this game."
It has been CLEARLY stated in this thread and on these boards, but I will state it again:
1) The developers, producers, owners and employees of BeamDog/Overhaul are interested in continuing to produce and develop BG:EE and sell it to us, their customers.
2) There is a legal issue preventing this from happening.
3) They continue to believe that there are doors open allowing this process to continue at some point down the line.
4) As soon as something official happens it will be announced.
As @Dee and @AndrewFoley mention above no news, in this case, is good news...they continue to believe a resolution is possible, they continue to work toward it, and nothing has happened that would negate those beliefs. That is how the official word has left it, and nothing has been posted to the contrary.
"We're still working on it" is neither a good nor acceptable update to assuage anyone who DOESN'T believe things are continuing into believing that. For those of us who have faith that BeamDog/Overhaul is as good as it's word and continues to work toward a resolution, we don't need to hear it. And for those who don't believe this, hearing this won't change their opinions in any way.
I'm sure someone is smart enough to create a thread and script a daily timed job that posts "Still working on it" to that thread once every 24 hours.
Would that help any of you? As a service to this community I'd be happy to take that job unto myself...
"Still working on it!"
--Illydth
Even better: you can skip the forums altogether and just go to the main page at www.baldursgate.com, because there's an FAQ. That FAQ probably addresses most of the Qs in this forum that are A-ed with the greatest F. Like it was designed for exactly that, or something.
Lastly, I love how you throw in the face of everyone how wonderful the patch is that you are withholding, on the main page in the faq, from people that have paid for the game. That is wrong and I sure don't like it.
So if someone suing Beamdog because BG:EE, is it public thing and you can tell as why.
Also as BG:EE buyers, we are ultimate consumers so we can demand answer about ours merchandise.
I just wish the whole embargo didn't prevent them from releasing a patch as it seems like a dick move on Atari's part. It's one thing to prevent any further sales until whatever disagreement is solved, it's another to forbid a company from improving or properly supporting the customers who have already purchased the game and have nothing to do with it.
Regarding the patch, however, and the current legal tussle with Atari, they can't say much. Which has been said, like, a bajillion and four times already.
The producers of BG:EE cannot give you a patch. It's not that they don't WANT to give you a patch, it's not that they don't have the capability of giving you a patch, it's not even that they don't have a patch ready to give you.
It is that they are not allowed, by Atari, to give you a patch.
I appreciate that the only entity involved in this with a forum you can come onto and blast your pissyness at is Beamdog/OverHaul, but honestly you'd think after hundreds and hundreds of messages and a main page that covers this, we'd all come to realize that BeamDog is not withholding support and being bad people...
*** They are legally not allowed to give you what you want. ***
If you do not understand this, try to do something illegal, get caught at it, then try to use the defense that you feel it was owed to you and see what happens. Beamdog is not allowed to give you a patch, if they do legal action can be taken against them which could include massive fines, jail time, or the permanent shutdown of their company/development studio.
This has been said many, times many ways...and if I can get one more person to understand this, I'm happy to continue posting it over and over again...but eventually it needs to sink in.
Your anger and frustration is being expounded at the wrong people. You are pissed, angry, upset and frustrated with Atari...not BeamDog. Welcome to club with the other 1000 or so of us here. Coffee and Donuts have been provided at the back of the room, feel free to mingle amongst the rest of the club members.
If you want to do something, try the following:
1) Do not purchase the game from steam. Do not purchase the game from GoG.com or any of Atari's other distribution methods. BeamDog does not make much/anything from those methods because they are Atari's distribution channels, not BeamDogs. All you are doing is supporting the culprit in this mess by doing so. If you want your voice to be heard and to vote with your wallet, show Atari they made a mistake by NOT BUYING FROM THEM.
2) Wait patiently for the issue to be resolved. Feel free to join in the multitude of discussions this community is hosting and in the conjecture about the how's, what's and why's of the legal matters, it helps pass the time.
3) Hold your money, wait your time, and when BG2:EE does finally get released for sale, buy it...from BeamDog...multiple copies. Maybe, just maybe, we can help them raise enough money to buy / obtain / finagle the sole distribution rights for these and future D&D Based games. That way, this never happens again.
4) Find a better outlet for your anger. Help others here to understand where the anger should be put and how they, too, can make this a stronger community with a single voice.
The "bad guy" in this discussion is Atari. Not BeamDog. Were it not for Atari's legal wrangling, you would have a patch in your hands and even potentially BG2:EE in your hands at this point.
No one here is holding BeamDog / OverHaul Games blameless in the initial release of the software. No one here is suggesting that there weren't release problems, bugs, patch issues, multi-player issues, slow graphics, or problems running the game on some systems. No one here is suggesting that the game is perfect or BeamDog/Overhaul is a perfect development company. They DO have a lot of ground to cover with their customers (us) when it comes to another release. There have been significant issues with the software and there are still significant bugs that need to be fixed.
It HAS been a rocky release.
I have 2 points to make on this:
First, you can find a post on these forums by BeamDog/OverHaul ownership APOLOGIZING, and I mean a heartfelt REAL apology, for the issues surrounding the release and subsequent problems we have felt with the game. When was the last time you saw ANY OTHER DEVELOPMENT COMPANY apologizing for issues with their releases? Don't tell me no one else has done it this bad...I've been involved in MULTIPLE releases much worse than this.
Second, the issues that plagued the initial release of this software have NOTHING to do with the current state of distribution rights or the state of the legal matters between Atari and BeamDog. Whatever or however you feel about BeamDog/OverHaul as a company based upon their rocky release, those feelings have no bearing on the release of the next patch or the issues surrounding it.
This is, first, last and only, a legal issue. For anyone who's spent any time in the US and/or delt with the US Court system, you know it takes a LONG time for anything going through the US court system to get resolved. It's also, by and large, a mostly secret process other than the public documents that get published by the courts. Those documents are out there (see earlier in this thread for a link).
Trust or not, it's not in BeamDog's best interest as a company to hide information on this or to hold this patch for longer than they have to. If you still don't believe this, ask yourself what benefit you feel BeamDog/OverHaul is gaining by holding the patch or not communicating with us. If you come up with an answer to that question, please feel free to post it, I'd love to hear it.
But you won't. Because there is no benefit, no financial gain, no publicity gain, no customer service gain, no corporate gain, no gain at all to withholding information or withholding the patch. You don't have to trust BeamDog, you don't have to have faith in what they're saying.
You simply have to follow the money and realize that this situation does NOTHING but hurt BeamDog as a company to understand that it really is out of their hands...otherwise, they'd be doing something else.
--Illydth
p.s. For those still looking for an update on status..."Still working on it."
Your diatribe a side, of which I care not, I have every right to express my "pissyness" as a paying customer.
http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/dont-buy-stuff/n12020/
You have every right to be pissed. It does you no good to be pissed at OverHaul/Beamdog...you are pissed at the wrong people. No one doubts you're a paying customer, but being pissed about the situation at Overhaul gets you nothing. They aren't the ones causing the problem nor denying you your patch/support. Everyone at OverHaul is as frustrated as you are at this situation.
Atari is the culprit, Blame them. If you don't understand why and/or you still don't get it, read my post in it's entirety. I promise you, it will explain.
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@JonSnowIsAlive, I've love to see the same thing. However, as several of us have theorized in this and other threads already, I don't believe the distribution rights for BG and other D&D Electronic IP's are for sale. If they WERE for sale, you'd see them among the listing in Atari's statement of assets they filed along with the Bankruptcy. Atari is under license from Hasbro to sell these games. As far as I can tell, BeamDog ALSO has a license to sell these games, or they wouldn't have their own Distribution Channels.
More conjecture / background in another post, simply because I don't want this one to get mucked up.