New World Interactive have released a news post going over the state of Insurgency: Sandstorm, along with announcing a bunch of features no longer being made.
To cut right to the chase here's what's not going to be added into Insurgency: Sandstorm:
- Story mode/Campaign
- Mac Support
- Linux Support
- Local Play on PvP modes
- Weapons on Back
- New foregrip upgrade options
Why? Apparently nothing in that list makes "business sense". They did expand on this a little:
We did not take this decision-making process lightly; all nominated cuts have been reviewed, re-reviewed, and discussed numerous times internally. At the end of these discussions, our criteria came down to “Does this proposed content present a reasonable business case in exchange for the additional development time required to deliver these features?” and in these cases, the answer was “No.” We recognize that these were things that, at some point or another, were promised by the studio, and we apologize for mismanaging expectations. Moving forward, we will be more deliberate in our messaging and our commitments to our players. We’ve grown a lot with Insurgency: Sandstorm, and we’ve learned a lot throughout that process. These lessons will make up our future projects going forward.
New World Interactive
This is a real shame, after Insurgency: Sandstorm was originally announced back in 2016 with Linux support and a story mode it really did look exciting but New World Interactive gradually cut back on what it would contain. Still, we patiently waited only to be repeatedly let down here.
In August last year Linux was planned in the first couple updates, moving into January this year they said they were working on it and hoped to have it out this year, then in May this year they still claimed they were "committed" to Linux and macOS and then again in June they said they would likely push out a Beta version first which would happen next year. Now it's not happening at all—ouch.
Of course, this is a reminder not to buy a game before it lands on Linux. Especially a multiplayer title that relies on anti-cheat. Even if you're perfectly fine using Steam Play/Proton for everything, anti-cheat support is still likely a long way off. Support developers that support the platform. Spend your monies wisely.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
LibertyPaulM 10 Dec, 2019
The sad reality is that for many game studios, linux does not represent a smart business move given the increased resources needed to develop for the platform vs the potential sales. If we want to attract gamers to linux we need to ensure they won't lose access to the games they already have otherwise our user base will always be low and developers will by and large ignore us.
Laboratoryo_ni_Neil 10 Dec, 2019
QuoteSupport developers that support the platform. Spend your monies wisely.
I agree.
I do buy native Linux games if I like the game, not because it's made by a developer that supports Linux. There are more Steam Play games than native Linux games in my recent purchases.
Supporting a game dev that supports Linux or has been supporting Linux for a long time is great but it's not a guarantee that the game dev will continue supporting Linux in the future. Some examples are Supergiant Games and Frozenbyte.
Quoting: EikeI love it.Quotemismanaging expectations
:><:
Will apply that every time I see broken promises now.
That goes right into the same drawer as "sorry that you are disappointed/angry", "surprise mechanics/gameplay", "pride and accomplishment", ...
"We are sorry for making you believe that you could trust us."
This is really quite something, a PR person deserves a pat on head here.
Given how much they cancelled, though, it seems to me this project is pretty much doomed, Linux or not.
Don't know of too many titles that had to cut so much stuff and then became a success.
Last edited by TheSHEEEP on 10 December 2019 at 1:45 pm UTC
herrorange 10 Dec, 2019
QuoteOf course, this is a reminder not to buy a game before it lands on Linux.
Truly have to be new moto from now on... Given current pace I don't think we'll see any AAA games natively on Linux any time soon.
Such a shame...
Quoting: Lord_PhoenixTruly have to be new moto from now on... Given current pace I don't think we'll see any AAA games natively on Linux any time soon.Just don't forget the ones we have gotten! Bioshock: Infinite, the Tomb Raider games, the Warhammer and Total War games, the list goes on.
Such a shame...
Quotewe apologize for mismanaging expectationsIt's more like illegal advertising, right? Their plea for forgiveness is for us to buy their next game and see how they've learned from their mistakes. They should be offering refunds. Whether a game contains a campaign or not is a pretty core feature and one that steers my buying decision.
Quoting: TheSHEEEPGiven how much they cancelled, though, it seems to me this project is pretty much doomed, Linux or not.That was my first thought as well. Does this game rely on community servers, or does the developer have to keep servers running? Hopefully, the game's financial stability isn't directly tied to the game staying playable.
Don't know of too many titles that had to cut so much stuff and then became a success.
Overall, I'm very disappointed. I see one of my Windows buddies play this game every now and then. We've played regular Insurgency many hours, but I can't join him in Sandstorm. I've waited a long time just to reach this sad+angry conclusion.
Quoting: BeamboomA lot of disappointing news in the Linux gaming world this year :(True, but the rapid pace of development of Proton/DXVK/D9VK and Valve still cooking Linux goodies are keeping me warm and cozy.
It always bears repeating: no Tux, no bux. In nearly 40 years of gaming ( :O ), I've only ever pre-ordered once.* And I'm pretty wary of early access too.
*Forza 4. And that was only a couple of days before release, after playing a demo. Come to think of it, in all that time I've probably only bought two or three games in the first few weeks after release, too. No offence to Liam & co., but I trust word-of-mouth far more than reviews.
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