Fafhrd on 2/10/2011 at 22:33
Open Betas like this aren't really intended for testing the client. As the tweet Evaunit quoted says, first party submissions for the console version make it so the client is already, at a minimum, three weeks out of date by the time it gets in to the end user's hands. And they could use a more recent code branch for the PC beta, but then they'd have to reconcile the data they're getting between two vastly different versions.
The whole purpose is testing the server infrastructure. How do the matchmaking servers handle being polled by a couple of million people simultaneously, are the actual match servers reporting their ping and number of open slots properly, what happens when they time out, etc.
EvaUnit02 on 2/10/2011 at 23:38
Getting reports about bugs and balance issues from the community in a pre-release OPEN beta is still quite important though. As Mothra has established in his recent posts, SO many things can go unnoticed in CLOSED alphas and betas.
CoD4 had like a ~1 month long open beta on 360 prior to release and that seemed to help greatly since the developers made noticeable changes to balance based on feedback. CoD:MW2 on the other hand didn't have a pre-release beta and it's ridiculous how skewed the balance is in that game (not to mention that post-release support for that game was basically non-existent. It received like ONE patch that rebalanced anything).
Warren's Spectre on 3/10/2011 at 00:01
Sorry if this has already been covered but has anyone managed to play this both on their PC and console? If so, meticulously list the details for our chin scratching.
mothra on 3/10/2011 at 03:18
ok, so the real game will be more polished and have no bugs, register all mousebuttons and even detect a scrollwheel.....I just do not trust those PR betas.
It was the same with BC2. EXACTLY.
you could even copy/paste the twitter about "not representative of current prod build" I think.
What happened ? Everything anyone ever ranted about during the BC2 beta (in threads that got closed after a few minutes just like the Origin/battlelog sucks threads now) was still present at launch. After 4 patches over 1 year they got where they all told they already are during the beta.
anyways, something more positive :D :
(
http://kotaku.com/5845866/origin-account-bans-threatened-for-playing-on-modded-battlefield-3-beta-servers)
Tonamel on 3/10/2011 at 04:50
Well, I'm trying to enjoy it, but I seem to be consistently four seconds behind the server, regardless of ping.
Not exactly the best introduction to the Battlefield series.
sNeaksieGarrett on 3/10/2011 at 19:52
Quote Posted by Warren's Spectre
Sorry if this has already been covered but has anyone managed to play this both on their PC and console? If so, meticulously list the details for our chin scratching.
I've played it on PC and PS3. Here's what I have to say about each:
PC:
- Incredibly laggy, but that's probably because of my crappy machine? I even have the settings on low and it's still laggy. I think it's an issue with ram / CPU though, not graphics card. (I was running it on higher settings, so it's not the gfx chip.)
Tons of weird glitches or bugs...
- For example: When you die, sometimes it shows what looks to be some weird underground texture/geometry. Very bizarre.
- Major annoying bug for me is the "gun and body disappears" bug. Basically, I'll be running around, going to shoot, and then my gun completely disappears from the screen, as does my body. If I look down however, they return. So if you've been encountering this and don't know how to fix it, just look at the ground and it should return.
- Sometimes I will be moving, get shot (shows who killed me at the bottom of the screen in advance of me actually dying), repeats me moving in a direction, and then I fall over dead. Seems like a latency problem. Thing is, I usually pick a server with under 100 ping.
- Latency problems, not sure if that can be contributed to my machine or the server itself.
PS3:
- Runs much more smoothly, therefore I have a better experience on the PS3.
- Menu is easier to get to
- Does not have the same bugs as the pc version. For example, I don't get the weird geometry issue I talked about earlier.
- I haven't played the PS3 one too much to really comment further, but it appears to be more polished than the PC version IMO from what I have seen.
I'm sure I'm probably missing or forgetting some things on both platforms. Probably more so the PS3 version, but I guess that's because I'm just too engrossed into the game?
Aerothorn on 3/10/2011 at 20:56
Yeah, I think the lag is you. I've been pleasantly surprised: apart from my one time on Caspian Border (which was lagging like made and not at all ready for primetime) I've had no noticable lag on any of the servers, even ones not based in the USA. It's very impressive.
As far as bugs go, yeah, some are being changed (the falling through terrain, lots of server stuff - they just fixed the players/pings not displaying properly, apparently) but it's also clear that this could use another month, particularly the 64-player maps.
The other thing they're testing is the ranking/experience system, making tweaks to how quick you unlock things and such; you need a large beta to really test that system.
sNeaksieGarrett on 4/10/2011 at 00:26
That lag I was referring to was mainly just game lag, ala FPS. (Not internet latency, though I'm pretty sure there was some of that too.)
I'm not sure how you were able to join a Caspian Border server. The only map I've been able to play is Operation Metro.
Yeah, I'm finding it hard to believe that the game will truly be ready by the october 25th deadline. Course, they'll probably release it anyway and do a patch soon after like lots of games these days seem to do.
The Alchemist on 4/10/2011 at 01:25
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"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck." Hahaha.
Aerothorn on 4/10/2011 at 01:40
Quote Posted by sNeaksieGarrett
I'm not sure how you were able to join a Caspian Border server. I thought those were password protected?:confused: The only map I've played is Operation Metro.
Yeah, I'm finding it hard to believe that the game will truly be ready by the october 25th deadline. Course, they'll probably release it anyway and do a patch soon after like lots of games these days seem to do.
People leaked the Caspian Border password, which may be why they shut down the servers.
And they will release it on the 25th come hell or high water. EA has dug themselves a hole here - they've spent all this time positioning it against Modern Warfare 3 and they can't move the release date now. They'd rather patch later and lose some credibility than screw up their release cycle.
