State of the Update Address #1

The time has come to make our last stand.

This will be the final project I will amass and organize in regards to an update for Team Fortress 2 on the Xbox 360. My dedication is such as that failure might leave a larger impact than success. But, before we begin, we must familiarize ourselves with our list of objectives. What is it that we really want?

Our simple demand is an answer. Overall, this is the most satisfying response we can safely hope for from Valve. Is it really coming, this update you promised? We agree, Valve, the sense of closure we would receive from a "no" would far outweigh any aggressive response or retaliation.

Having been in the dark for so long has provided ample opportunity for the pondering of possibilities, though, and I can see no reason to completely abandon us. I am a realist, I understand the issues, and I can see the optimum solution.

The best way, I have decided, to begin this proposal is to outline the issues to those who may not understand fully them. By doing so, I wish to produce an educated audience and, perhaps, move Valve to see the actions they could take to appease us.

THE PROBLEMS:

-Micrsoft is forcing Valve to charge for potential updates.
-The game changes are limited by the amount of RAM the XBox possesses.
-As Team Fortress 2 is an ongoing process, it is difficult to determine when, if ever, to update.

Having laid out the short list of true obstacles, it is easy to see that they can be solved and that compromises can be made that would not have been so well received before.

For instance, paying for an update may have seemed unfair in the summer of 2008, but that hardly concerns us now (within reason.) The other two problems have a joint solution that is more complicated and that I will spend the remainder of this article elaborating on.

My main concern is that RAM limitation is a massive (post-release) technical issue. Truly, if Valve would dedicate themselves to managing this, I would pity them. Their system of continually adding new content to the game entails an ever-increasing amount of RAM, which is impossible for the Xbox to keep up with.

I have presented a solution to this, and it was widely supported by the community. We attained almost 650 signatures on one petition, enough that I got tired of adding them to the list. We did have some success with this. Valve patched the game (for better or worse, you be the judge.) But you missed the point, Valve, and that has stalled contentment.

Forget anything that would greatly stress RAM requirements, Valve. This includes new weapons, animations, taunts, voice lines, ANYTHING. This idea is trudging steadily towards one year since its inception, and yet, you have ignored it just as long.

Most game developers must wish for such a clear, unanimous demand from their customers (that makes a task easier, nonetheless,) but having it, you've done nothing to appease us. Why?

Having said this, I will move on to the remaining issue: the feud with Microsoft over pricing. Judging by the latest news from Valve, it would be very large and not that expensive. Some people say that a priced update would force a split in the already-small playerbase, but I ask; whom would not buy this update? Show yourself if you exist.

You don't exist, I assume, unless you are one nasty troll, and, in an instant, the third problem disappears completely.

Leaving us, finally, with the last order of business, the substance of the actual update. What would it include?

That comes next time, readers, in full clarity.