Gromnir

show us. we recall microsoft saying that they were considering the possibility, but we never seen a presser from them announcing je2. you might be right, and we will happily admit if you is, but Gromnir never saw no presser... and games don't get announced on the sly. oh, and bio said multiple times that they had no current plans to makes je for pc... and at the time it were probably true. but after je clearly failed to make money on console, no doubt alternate avenues were considered. fact that after bio said no je pc we now gots je pc should be further evidence for you that je were not a great seller for xbox. of course if you thinks bio lied about je pc development, then why would you believe 'em 'bout good sales of je? wacky. oh, and if alan can get rob to discuss what his impressions o' biowarian commerce with boards we would be grateful. HA! Good Fun!

"If JE's performance was sooooooooooo dissapointing to BIO why would they waste their time on a port?" 'cause they already did the work... is kinda like releasing a movie on dvd. the development costs has already been spent. also, as you noted, the je2 bit sounds like nothing, don't it? bio ain't working on it and there ain't no expansion. bio claims to have ip rights to je so unless bio is working on it... regardless, vol will believe what he wishes to... no matter how he is shown to be wrong. HA! Good Fun!

"After seeing this thread alone (and the numerous other JE units sold threads), it's not surprising that Bioware would instantly shut down any thread regarding the topic. Not much use seems to come out of them." oh sure, is no question that je threads that somehow gets side-tracked onto sales becomes pretty darn useless, but if uselessness were the prime requisite for thread life at bio, they woulds needs a team of 12 mods working 24/7 to clean up the mess o' pointless topics and posts. there is some truth to the suggestion that the boards is so polarized that finding useful criticism and intriguing new ideas is not likely, but that has always been the case. truth to tell, the most annoying portion of the bio boards is the nwn2 boards in which you gots the bis/obsidian developers doing the interacting with fans, so take that for what it is worth. dunno... Gromnir has been following the boards for a long time now and we cannot help but feels that there has been a shift in the developer attitude. once were that you could banter back n' forth with rob or bob or dave or drew or any number o' other guys and you would gets useful feedback and you could see that the developers seriously considered your ideas... but now? perhaps bio hired too many jackarses who once were bio fans. one would think that such guys would be the best folks to be interacting with on boards, but the reverse seems to be true. maybe Gromnir is right and biowarians is certain in their choices and not so much bother with fan input. maybe Gromnir is seeing some flaw that just ain't there. maybe. HA! Good Fun!

I don't think even that would change his mind. Why do you have the impression that Bioware is unwilling to accept criticism? I haven't really frequented the BioBoards for quite some time, so I'm a bit curious about that. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> there has always been some crazies who post at the bio boards. bio is successful, so they get lots of fans and some % just gotta be a little kooky, no? also, the biowarians actually interact with posters to a much greater degree than does other developers, so those folks who is simply posting to gets attention tends to find their way to bio boards. is understandable that the biowarians coulds frequently get frustrated by seemingly ridiculous suggestions or nutty posters. ... even so, we started to see a much higher % of threads getting locked seemingly for no other reason than 'cause a poster were disagreeing with a biowarian. recall krazy? he were an unmitigated arse... but sometimes he managed to have a good idea. the old bioware attitude were such that they considered krazy suggestions even though they knew that 90% of his suggestions were simply flame bait. heck, there is a clown named geo over at the bio boards that we disagrees with most times, but occasionally he manages to makes a point... gotta happen eventually, no? the thing is that whereas in the past the biowarians were willing to wade through the nonsense to get at those rare nuggets, now they simply ignore some folks or some topics. sure, the biowarians may post responses, but they don't really seem to take suggestions as serious as they once did. again, is not simply that some posters is dismissed, but some topics is as well. yeah, after almost a decade of board rehashing of some topics we imagine that some o' the love has gone outta bio's relationship with their boards. seems like the same/different folks is making same arguments we were seeing in late 90s. biowarians may be bored, but they seems to have given up on some topics regarding quest design and storytelling and any number o' other aspects o' game design. oh, and 'cause we has mentioned je... just try to mention je sales in a bio board thread. gets locked faster than pr0n. once it were that as long as you were following rules and on-topic, pretty much anything were fair game at bio boards. sargy and some other jokers never could figure that out, but it were true. is reason Gromnir almost never got locked even when we were being adversarial. bio boards has changed. is still better than any other developer boards, but still we sees that the biowarians seem to Know, where as before they were trying to Learn. oh, and we can understand the gut-level urge to disagree with vol simply 'cause he is vol, but that is bad reason, even if it is statistically practical. HA! Good Fun!

there IS a somewhat curious anti-bio bias element on these boards. some people ain't agreeing with Gromnir or disagreeing with vol... they just thinks that bio sux. am thinking that Gromnir and vol both lose some % to that crowd. HA! Good Fun!

HA! one does wonder what it would take for vol to admit that je were not the seller that the developer and publisher hoped for... short of an admission from the publisher or developer? am recalling how for years we had fergie trying to play edward norton's "illusionist" role every time the question of bg:da or ps:t sales were broached. were kinda commical to watch. heck, who would honestly expect a publisher or developer to admit that a game did not come anywhere near sales projections? again, Gromnir's concern is that the biowarians is as deluded as is vol... that they might actually believe their own fables and bedtime stories 'bout je success. they has become less and less willing to takes criticism over the past couple years and we fears that they may have reached that point where they no longer believes they need take constructive criticism. sure, they still cruise the boards for opinions 'bout content, but they does seem to be less likely to question basic assumptions 'bout game design. HA! Good Fun!

vis eventually claims that all bio games is crap, but he is such a game junky that he can't help himself when opportunity to buy game presents self. honestly, vis probably didn't likes je all that much, but just as some folks can't help but buy a game on day 1 o' release, vis cannot help but buy games... period. vis is a glutton... and more than a little wacky. vol is just plain wacky. HA! Good Fun!

getting silly. what is josh's interest? how does he benefit if je sold better than he suggested? also, while Gromnir has never claimed that je bombed, microsoft obviously already has for all practical purposes announced that je sales were underwhelming, or they woulda' pushed to gets a sequel or expansion released. 'course we has no idea what you could mean 'bout microsoft blaming bio. microsoft were simply the publisher. their mistake, if they made one, were agreeing to be publishing the game in the first place. heck, bio screwed themselves on this one as they is far less likely to gets freedom from publishers in future... publishers will wanna be more meddlesome 'cause bio games is no longer viewed as relatively sure commodities. and yeah, Gromnir is willing to have reasonable discourse far more than is vol. vol simply locks legs like an old mule and refuses to budge come hell or highwater. we can see how form your perspective Gromnir actions might seem similar, but we is atleast willing to discuss rational and reasonable, whereas vis and vol is completely impervious to any sorta evidence or facts that might makes a vol belief less tenable. vol will believe what he wishes to believe... regardless of any evidence to contrary. the mindlessness he wields like a weapon is just one reason the biowarians temporarily banned him. HA! Good Fun!

actually, even the aforementioned Gaider has noted that Gromnir has conceded more than a couple of points over the years. am willing to change pov if somebody gots better data and better theories. vol is just... wacky. HA! Good Fun!

vol may simply be following bio's lead on this issue. they refuse to admit that je failed to meet sales expectations and they comes up with ridiculous excuses likes how the game were okie dokie for a new IP. such silliness is understandable but frustrating... is frustrating 'cause we don't know if bio is swallowing their own pap. sure, maybe bio is fully aware that je failed to meet expectaions and they is just putting on a happy Kanadian face... then again, maybe bio has successfully deluded selves... maybe they thinks je were a wonderful success story, in which case it becomes more difficult for them to accept criticism, 'cause we all know that if something ain't broke... we don't blame vol. he were always kinda wacky and once he seizes on a notion he won't give up on it for nothing... is like vis that way. we blame bio for convincing the easily manipulated vol into buying into the je success fantasy. HA! Good Fun! "The only 'industry insiders' whose opinions matter are those in the know - Bioware, & MS espicially MS since they're the publisher. They seemed more than satisifed with JE's performance." for chrissakes vol... *sigh* if you want a relatively objective evaluation o' a person's or team's or company's performance does you simply accept the person's/team's/company's self-evaluation?

why not just give it up vol? for a console title je were a mediocre seller at best. for a console title that got TV commercials it were clearly a disappointment by any reasonable measure. you thinks that josh sawyer were lying to you when he gave you a industry insider perspective on je sales? please note that in that recent codex thread even Gaider didn't try to claim that je had great sales, and he didn't even claim that it met expectations. Gaider pointed out that the game met bio goals not necessarily related to sales numbers (*chuckle*) and he pretty much BSd his way 'round the sales issue, but he didn't try to concvince Gromnir that sales were good... so why does you try so hard? HA! Good Fun!

eldar were probably being a jackarse... but maybe not. having been involved in coaching of football for some number o' years now, we cannot say that we has seen a systemic decrease in parental annoyance. in fact, the opposite is true. almost every parent thinks there kid is gonna get a scholarship to play sports in college, and every team gots one or two "stars" and the parents of those kids is seeing pro dollars everytime their kid throws a strike or kicks a goal or rushes for a td. is all parents jerks and know-it-alls? 'course not, but the % has not shrunk over past decade. ... coaching kids would be much more fun, and we suspect that playing sports would be more fun too, if parents were forbidden from attending games. HA! Good Fun!

it is lakota HA! Good Fun!

there has been the occasional rogue lion or tiger or bear that has chosen to stalk and eat humans, but polar bears is the only species that does so. if an indian or chinese guy feels better telling folks that his hair is red rather than black, well more power to 'em. maybe such a thing won't fly with the dmv, but if makes you feel better then no harm done. we were always a little embarassed that our hair weren't black like the other kids'. very dark brown, almost black... but in summer it always would lighten up a bit. not very imaginative, but we got stuck with the "wasichu" nickname as a kid. HA! Good Fun!

you must not be familiar with the gay community. is generally nice folks, but like any identifiable demographic they does gets militants. some gays gets real angry if you point to suspect scientific studies that show that gayness is genetic 'cause then that somehow equates with gay folks being defective. present a different study, one that shows that gayness is mostly the result o' environmental factors and you gots equal and opposite problem, 'cause then you is telling the gay community that their difficult life is simply a matter o' choice... which is currently the big difference between the Constitutional protections afforded to minorities and even women as 'posed to gays. am having a sister who went to Cal shortly after Gromnir went to that university. her 3rd year had her move into a place affectionately and appropriately known as roachdale. were communal living

"Bad analogy. You must be out of shape, Grom. Too obvious an attempt to get the upper hand in a losing Internets Battle

moral responsibility. see a child steal candy in store... not our child. does Gromnir ignore, or does Gromnir say something? am knowing that child not want Gromnir to chastise. should we stay quiet... get own son so we can correct bad behavior we see? get tat is not criminal, just stoopid. is different than child stealing candy? perhaps, but if we sees child or adult acting foolishly we not feel shy 'bout throwing our 2 cents as hard as we can. is not 'cause we thinks that you will listen that we offers advice... is 'cause to not offer advice would be irresponsible. annecdote: were visiting an old friend of ours... friend is a football coach. while we talk with friend we notice some kid on his varsity squad make same mistake over and over in backpedal drill. were not a big thing and kid were fast enough that most coaches missed bad technique, or didn't care. so we go over to kid and ask him a few questions, and then we hit him with some unsolicited advice. am knowing that the kid were thinking, "who the heck is this guy?" nevertheless, he listened. no doubt our friend gave our bona fides after we left, but the kid were smart 'nuff to listen to advice, unsolicited or otherwise. you gots an opportunity each time you get advice to take or ignore... is not bothering Gromnir much if you take or don't. HA! Good Fun!

you asked if Gromnir spoke chinese. we answered your question. you not like the additional advice we gave? tough. ask your dad same grammar question and how did he respond? HA! man-up and either take advice or ignore, but quit complain. HA! Good Fun!

if your dad gave you same advice, then maybe you should consider that he and Gromnir know more than do you. maybe not, but the possibility is worth reflection. HA! Good Fun!

Gromnir is flawed it saddens me to say. Old fashion as well. A shame. HA! Good Fun! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> *pats dark_raven on head* maybe when you get older you will understand. HA! got nothing to do with fashion in any case, old or new. folks of all ages do silly things 'cause they thinks such actions/expressions is kewl. fine. no harm. if is a mistake, then you learn and move on... but tattoos is permanent. dumb. heck, you gets drunk in vegas and gets yourself married and you can gets annuled with little fuss, but try to get rid of the that superman logo painted on your kiester and you out o' luck. you loves goth music or picasso... not make no difference to Gromnir. just as bad to get silly goth tat as a the entire Guernica mural on your back. download a tune or buy a print, but turn yourself into walking advert is just foolish. HA! Good Fun! btw, we know you all hang on Gromnir's next responses, but we multi-task... you children gotta learn patience.

no offense to josh, but tattoos is stoopid. you want inner strength, happiness and love? okie dokie. great. why not just get out a permanent marker and write, in english, "inner strength", "happiness", and "love" on your forehead. no doubt more people would gets your message that way as you is obviously not in/from china. sounds silly? write in chinese makes kewl... show ethnic pride and makes an esthetic statement? ... if you is from a culture wherein a tattoo is earned after some sorta manhood ritual then yeah, we get it... gots more meaning than just some sorta fleshy billboard advertisement. otherwise tattoos is little more than a very visible and permanent expression o' the folly o' youth. however, to answer your initial query, no, Gromnir is not fluent in chinese. sorry. HA! Good Fun!

it really ain't a spin on taxation w/o representation at all, is it? meta trys for pith and just kinda misses. oh well. in any event, it is simply good sense to benefit from the labor o' others w/o real contribution, if you can pull it off. such a basic grasp o' economic efficiency is why Gromnir is management. am supposing we could send a nice check to the bbc and maybe a nice letter thanking

am rather lucky. a friend of Gromnir's bought a home 2 years ago and then turned around and sold it after he passed the initial capital gains time limit. the house was... odd. every wood surface in house was hand-carved teak from thailand, though there were some redwood panneling in the living room that were quite impressive as the pannels were seamless +20' high clear-heart redwood. in any event, the house came furnished and all of the furniture was likewise hand-carved teak (though any sort of dresser or desk piece actually had walnut drawers. Gromnir don't know much about furniture, but am told that walnut is a sturdier wood than is teak.) the thing is that our friend didn't want the furniture, and he didn't wanna deal with the sale o' all that furniture (the house is 8,500 sft.) the new owner were gona gut the house and change all wood stuff and so furniture were not part of his purchase. we gots to pick and choose what we wanted. got some very nice stuff. more than a couple items might be a bit over-sized for Gromnir's place as they were meant to be in much bigger rooms, but there were no way we could pass up such a deal. HA! Good Fun!

as has been pointed out, an American already owned that crappy football team, and as for a couple of tv shows with really horrible production values... sadly, there is some english tv that i do like, but it is best to let the bbc produce those programs as their commercial viability is suspect. i still get to watch those few good programs, and no American company has to suffer a financial loss. HA! Good Fun!

there really isn't much in england that Americans want. ford bought aston martin a few years ago and there pretty much weren't nothing left worth buying in your country. if there was, we would probably have bought it by now. HA! Good Fun!