Pre-Order OOTP 9 now!

[TETCHY]

Originally Posted by battists

Tetchy, I sent you a PM regarding this, please contact me!

Thanks!

Steve

Thine will be done.... shortly

[Charlie Hough]

I'll come to the defense of bleachercreature to an extent, although I can understand some people being a bit shocked by his remarks.

Marc Duffy has hardly endeared himself to me and many other people, not only among OOTP fans, but also among those of us who have been playing Championship/Football Manager for more than a decade. I actually remember the days before Duffy was an employee of SI, so I think I'm qualified to remark on his history.

Anyway, I've known Marc to make some grandiose claims that were not backed up in the end. Regardless of who was ultimately responsible for failing to carry out the work, as a project manager and marketing leader, he should have known better than to overextend himself and the company. But I've seen this happen on a number of occasions with multiple games. Sometimes he's been a bit too overconfident and has built up some expectations without delivering.

I also think he has struggled to handle some of the criticism that inevitably comes with his line of work, and I haven't always cared for his manner in handling input from gamers on the forums. I've always gotten the sense that he didn't take things as seriously as many customers would like. And I started to feel like he got caught up in the business and marketing aspects of SI's myriad projects rather than maintaining a focus on what put the company on the map, which is delivering phenomenal games.

Anyway, I digress. Not everyone can be the example of hard core productivity, dedication, and reliability of someone like Marc Vaughan, who has been a pillar of strength at SI.

The great thing about OOTP is that Markus has always struck me as someone cut from the same cloth as Vaughan. He seems to be a workhorse who remains focused on the core product and on satisfying a rabid fanbase. Those characteristics can secure a long and healthy life for OOTP, just as they have for CM/FM. Also, the departure from SI, despite some of the good qualities of that company, will help Markus maintain focus and get back to what made OOTP great.

So, while there are the occasional flaws with the OOTP releases or sometimes with the sales process or related issues, I maintain great confidence in the end product. I've certainly had my moments when I've been annoyed, mad, or disappointed, but those came mostly with OOTP 2006, which was a rough ride. Everything since then has been very strong.

So I'd be willing to bet that it's worth upgrading your system, or paying some extra Australian dollars, or working through glitches with the discount to get OOTP 9 and enjoy it.

[1998 Yankees]

Originally Posted by Charlie Hough

Marc Duffy has hardly endeared himself to me and many other people, not only among OOTP fans, but also among those of us who have been playing Championship/Football Manager for more than a decade. I actually remember the days before Duffy was an employee of SI, so I think I'm qualified to remark on his history.

Anyway, I've known Marc to make some grandiose claims that were not backed up in the end. Regardless of who was ultimately responsible for failing to carry out the work, as a project manager and marketing leader, he should have known better than to overextend himself and the company. But I've seen this happen on a number of occasions with multiple games. Sometimes he's been a bit too overconfident and has built up some expectations without delivering.

Well, he is a marketing guy after all. I don't have your experience in dealing with him, but I sure as heck have known marketing guys and what you describe is typical to my experience with them. But in that aspect, they are just doing their job which is to sell more products in any way they can. They don't mean to make promises that are not kept, as that is bad publicity and ultimately bad for sales. However, they will run with things far in advance of what can be delivered at times, that is for sure.

That does not make them evil people, but people who have to be monitored and supervised by the folks who are truly in charge, downward, upward, and sideways. I'm not saying that this was the case with Marc Duffy, as I am not in a position to know. All I am saying is that I have seen this type of thing happen before, if it indeed was like this at OOTP/SI.

Anyway, no one is entitled to call anybody names on this forum, no matter what the provocation. Doing so is ignorant and childish, and some of these folks better be damn glad that I am not a moderator here.

[Charlie Hough]

Originally Posted by 1998 Yankees

Well, he is a marketing guy after all. I don't have your experience in dealing with him, but I sure as heck have known marketing guys and what you describe is typical to my experience with them. But in that aspect, they are just doing their job which is to sell more products in any way they can. They don't mean to make promises that are not kept, as that is bad publicity and ultimately bad for sales. However, they will run with things far in advance of what can be delivered at times, that is for sure.

Unfortunately, you are correct that this can be a common experience for many people. But this behavior in marketing is absolutely amateur, and it indicates a clear lack of integrity, experience, and judgment on the part of those engaging in it. I have been working in the marketing and communications field for more than 15 years, and I can say unequivocally that the job of marketing professionals is NOT to sell more products in any way they can.

The law and the marketplace do not allow for such recklessness. You cannot use any means necessary to market your product, and you cannot make false claims. Eventually it can destroy your career or your company, and you may even find yourself on the wrong end of consumer protection laws. In any company with appropriate leadership and understanding, this kind of behavior is not tolerated, and the proper tone is set in every meeting and with every project. Unfortunately, there are many examples of companies that lack some of these characteristics or do not have a structure to monitor and manage this.

Anyway, I want to get back to bleachercreature's complaints. Bleachercreature, if you have been outraged by Duffy, then take solace in the fact that OOTP has returned to its status as a very small crew that is working hard to deliver exactly what its core fan base wants. Duffy is long gone.

I have a suspicion that you would consider OOTP 9 to be more of an upgrade than a new product, because it's not going to completely undo everything that has happened over the past few years. But that's a good thing. There were some great developments during that time.

There are some products that are worth buying, even if they're only a major upgrade rather than an overhaul. It can also make sure that the developers can still pay the bills and keep working on those other changes we want. I put OOTP in that class, but your mileage may vary.

As others have pointed out, you don't have to pre-order. That's really for the faithful fans that already trust that they will get a great product. You may have some perfectly legitimate reasons not to trust the game yet, so you can certainly hold off and try the demo when it's released. You could also sit back and wait to see the feedback on these forums after people have played it. There is no harm in that, and in the meantime you could set aside your money to earn interest until the game is released.

[84Hammy]

This question was asked, but I must have missed the answer...how long do we have to preorder? I too would like to have this come out on the first of may....

[BruceM]

Originally Posted by 84Hammy

This question was asked, but I must have missed the answer...how long do we have to preorder? I too would like to have this come out on the first of may....

*

OOTP 9 is NOT yet available, you will be able to download and play the game once it is released during Spring 2008. The pre-order price is only available until release, the game will cost $39.99 afterwards.

[battists]

Originally Posted by 84Hammy

This question was asked, but I must have missed the answer...how long do we have to preorder? I too would like to have this come out on the first of may....

Preorder lasts until the game is released!

[kq76]

Originally Posted by battists

Preorder lasts until the game is released!

But will there be a notice of when the exact release date is before it actually comes around?

[battists]

Originally Posted by kq76

But will there be a notice of when the exact release date is before it actually comes around?

Yes, that is the plan.

[HolyCow98]

Sweet....looks like I should be able to wait till Thursday without missing out on the sale. I'll actually probably breakdown and get it Wednesday.

[curtains]

Any word on what the flexible new postseason options are? This is the only thing that I am interested in....if they are what I'm looking for I will pre-order right away. Few bugs are:

1. 8 teams per league: 1 playing against 2 in the second round instead of the third.

2. Inability to schedule a series of more than 9 games.


Other things would be nice as well, but those are the main problems for me, and am just wondering if they will be altered.

[zekester91]

Can we get some pre-order bonus?

Ctrl+Alt+Del

[TETCHY]

Originally Posted by TETCHY

I pre-ordered via Pay-Pal. Here is an excerpt of my receipt (nice math here by the way) ......



The line items are correct but as you can see the final total did not seem to take into account the $15.00 discount. Whom do I need to speak to to get this rectified?

Anyone else have this happen?......

Am I the only person using Pay Pal for this?

Anyways, the issue has been resolved. Thanks to "battists" for his timely assistance.

[Vezna31]

Pre-ordered!

[Caporegime]

I've pre-ordered, although I still don't feel like I've gotten adequate mileage out of ootp8 yet. I was a latecomer to 2007/8, and I didn't take the plunge until I bought a new PC last December.

Then again, the excruciatingly painful two year wait for v.2006 to be released is still fresh in my memory, so being able to play two different versions of OOTP within a six month period will actually be kinda cool.

[Tyke]

You're not the only one to use PayPal, Tetchy; I did so with no problems.

[TETCHY]

Originally Posted by Tyke

You're not the only one to use PayPal, Tetchy; I did so with no problems.

Thanks.

[LFC1892]

I think I'll wait for the "Outside North America" $$$$ clarification. I understand the UK issue with VAT etc, but down here in Oz, I dont think we should be charged the same as the UK. When I ordered my first version I paid in greenbacks(those were the days) but best of luck on the release and hope to order in $US .

[LFC1892]

Ooops, nevermind...found the other thread on page 2....

Guys, I cannot walk into a computer games store and ask the games to be cheaper just because in the US they cost less! €39.99 / €24.99 is a perfectly fine price for a PC computer game... and in the US it's $39.99/$24.99 ...

We've had this discussion many times. Thread closed.

[twister]

How come there is no thread specifically for OOTP 9? If it is that close to coming out shouldn't they create a section for 9?