CoD:MW2 - No more dedicated servers

The reason for all of this is to make sure people can't mod the game, add custom maps, and allow players to download any map that they would otherwise be charging people for in map packs.

This is entirely so that they can start SELLING map packs on the PC. This is a MASSIVE change to the PC multiplayer gaming community just to monopolize on selling map packs. I'm not buying this, I was going to preorder tomorrow morning, but not anymore.

I run a clan, we were hoping to get a server going the day it's released, but this ruins everything. And there's hundreds of other clans out there that were getting servers set up just for this highly anticipated game as well, only to have their hopes of extending their community onto it crushed so IW/activision can bank off of map packs. Don't blame piracy, don't make excuses, piracy was never an issue with CoD4, they sold fantastic. MW2 would have only sold far more than CoD4 ever did, but now, I can't see it being very successful, and if they don't fix the system, I sure hope it FAILS.

 

I was going to pre-order the game today until I started reading this thread...I will not order the game until this issue is reversed...

 

How ironic would it be if all these get-rich-quick schemes employed by IW ended up crushing PC sales. It is doubtful, though.

Personally, I never had any problem with matchmaking services. Of course, for the most part I've played on console until now. One of the main aspects that convinced me to recently switch over to PC was the incredibly diverse community. With the ability to mod, you can extend a game's lifespan many years. It deeply saddens me to see all of this happen.

@usapatriot: You kind of remind me of Syme from 1984. You recognize IW's intentions and reasoning, which are regarded as a little underhanded, but you still support it. This is much like how Syme acknowledges the significance of Newspeak, and supports it for that reason. It is not an insult, merely an observation. Syme was one of my favorite characters in the book.

 

Face it guys they don't care about PC gamers anymore. I really enjoyed dedicated server due because when I find a good one I play on it constantly. So you get to know the people who play on it and such also admins can kick annoying people. Plus MODS are what keeps people playing your game for a really long time! This is definitely a way for Activision/IW to charge us for their 3 map packs that would come out months after its on console. Matchmaking is a love it or hate it, but I thinks its something for the noobs that don't understand how to connect to a server. Plus making us pay 60 bucks for a game, yea inflation and whatever, but pc market is leaning towards a digital distribution method where the prices could be much cheaper. And Acitivision seem to be the only company charging us 60 bucks for a game.

So if we do buy this game Activision knows they can rip us off and if we don't buy it they just won't make anymore games for us and blame it on piracy. Also usapatriot you remind me of John Kerry, you be flip flopping too much, lol.

 

I said it before in a recent thread and I'll say it again: Consoles are the cancer. Gaming companies have become complacent with PC titles because there are just too many console sheeple ready to rush out and buy the next biggest hype like herd to a shepherd. It used to be start with a full feature set, then port low, now it's start low and don't port at all. It's sad when developers set their standards to the lowest common denominator.

And to whoever said piracy is illegal - yes it is, but your attempt at justifying it immoral fails: by the same token, a company who's workers strike also have families to feed and also are robbed of substantial income, yet why are strikes not illegal? Word to the wise: understand the difference between morality and legality. One is merely arbitrary. That being said, I prefer to vote with my wallet.

 

Guys,

I know many of you are upset about this subject, but please note that bypassing the language filter is against the forum rules:

Several posts and been edited and some infractions have been handed out. Please continue the discussion using clean language. Thanks for understanding.

 

[removed because of language]

(clicky)

 

will buy it on console only now.

 

I don't see the reasoning behind this statement at all. What exactly changed your opinion? This may be a terrible system, and I certainly won't buy the game with it implemented, but consoles still have it 1000x worse. Heck, even this matchmaking system will no doubt be better than the ones on the consoles, that doesn't make it worth my investment though, as I'd settle for neither. Unless of course you were going to buy both anyway, in which case I don't really see why, but ok..

 

I was planning on buying both, one for ps3 for gaming with my clan and pc for mods and a bit of fun.

Oh well.

 

I don't know why IW shot themselves in the foot with this. So many people seem to be signing the petition and canceling their preorders.

At this point, I am not going to cancel my order, but if things start to get worse and worse then I may cancel it, or return it when I get it.

 

Ohhh... i was going to buy this game for when i go home during my winter uni vacations... this is really a bummer. I have only previously purchased call of duty 1 and call of duty 2 and still play 2 sometimes online. The biggest part of the game for me was the DLC and therefore an ability to do what i want with the game's environment. Same with operation flashpoint, same with counter strike source, blahblahblha list is long. But does IW actually think tht i will do what my silly friend Sam does with his XB360 and pay for DLC online everytime i want something new added to the game??????????? Im afraid i will be skipping this game as well. Just gonna go back to playing BF2 and BF2142.

 

This sucks man. Had they released this critical piece of information sooner, less ppl would have pre-ordered it. I cancelled mine as I wont be getting this game anymore. If I wanted everything to be picked for me like their doing, I wouldve got it on console. I hated the way COD4 was on the console, its the reason I play PC only.

 

Sign the petition, get on the IW forums, grab a protest signature, and make a few post/threads, and make as much noise as possible about this.

and

Most importantly, if IW does not seem to budge, CANCEL you pre-order before it ships and preferably call to cancel and when they ask why tell them why (Especially good at GameStop or Amazon).

And if you are wondering why, well it's because if they get enough of the same reasons why, when IW asks them why they are losing pre-orders they will tell them what the majority complaint was.

 

Every PC gamer I know who pre-ordered MW2 has canceled. I made my mind up a while ago not to buy it and I have no remorse.

I couldn't have said it better myself. PCs are NOT CONSOLES so stop treating them like they are.

This is a disgrace.

 

God damn, I had some hopes for this game. Ah well, looks like I can go ahead and pre-order Left 4 Dead 2 instead.

 

75,637 PETITIONERS 2:08 pm PST

 

Crazy stuff, I've signed the petition also. I dont buy a PC as well as anything else, to play the exact same game and way as a console. 80000 petitons even with copies says Im not the only one, my preorder has been cancelled, as the single player of MW, good as it was, lasted me a week, the multiplayer with clan matches, tournaments etc kept me playing for 6months to a year.

Cutting part of the longevity of the product and charging MORe for it, does not gel with me at all.

 

**Official Response** to Petition Thread from 402

edit-could be a hoax
Link brings you to IW forums. Favorite post from thread. Love the gg part.

 

I'm loving the way our gaming community has banded together to show IW that we don't just compromise and buy into a blatant mistake.

 

Its what makes the PC such a great platform, its unique and tightly-knit community.

 

Yeah you cant get away with mistakes like that and expect a community that has been built up from dedis to just roll over like dogs. I still won't buy this game til it is confirmed that dedis will be in it. Fourzerotwo's response doesn't guarantee it will be fixed and so I'm waiting for a public confirmation. Until then my order is still canceled.

@Kevin
Nice new avatar. Looks like me when I ordered my W860CU.

 

81,114+ signers 5:55 pm PST

 

So, don't buy, don't buy, don't buy! If you buy then you are a real traitor.

 

A phone call to IW. Props to the user over at IW forums. Doesnt speak to Robert but a good listen none the less.

http://tinypic.com/player.php?v=2ugfmmr&s=4

 

Thats a very good listen indeed. But then again, how can someone make any sort of official or unofficial statement right now. This response is slightly more than expected and IW needs more time to prepare.

 

between the twitter and this it seems they know whats going on so the ball is in there court to get this major issue fixed. Question remains do they really care? My guess is the reason this IW.net stuff came out so late is because they figured they would take a small loss in pre orders and cancells and move on. but what happened was they are now taking huge losses because of it.

 

oh man I wonder how many emails Robert at IW is going to get....

 

Impressive, 87,000 signers now.

 

105k as of this posting

 

sucks for you... ill let you know how awesome the game is when I get it and you can be depressed and not play... see how long that lasts.

whaaaa whaaa whaaa... grow up peter pan. Companies have to make money and the fact is there are just to many pirates out there. This game is still going to rock its going to make ATVI a TON of $$ and even if all those petition signers don't buy (which I betcha at least 80% will break down and buy anyway) it wouldn't scratch the total amount of copies this game will sell.

ps. ill sign the petition but no way im not gonna buy this game... even just single player would be worth it imo. Though ded. servers would be cool in no way does not having them affect my decision or the decision of the vast majority of potential buyers. sorry folks!

105k signers woopedie doo.. Now only 14,895,000 copies will be sold! $893,700,000 will just have to do i guess.

 

I thought about that too...No matter how many people get mad about this, including myself, they will still go through with it. They are that big. They don't need the people who made the original games work well in the first place. I have been a loyal Call of Duty Fan since the beginning...But, I see this as a wrong step for PC gaming.

To be honest, I think that what we have to do is hold our breath and hope no other company follows them...If they do, we are all screwed.

Here is what we can really hope for: A really good crack. We need someone to develop a crack that will release MW2 to the masses on a dedicated server. This is the only way we are going to have the glory days of PC gaming to hold onto...Beware all...the dark days are coming soon...First activision...Who next? Who next to split us all apart....

I SAY REVOLUTION! WHO IS WITH ME?

 

Consoles have really spoiled software developers. Granted some are easier to plan and write for than others. The problem is the PC world doesnt have force that it used to when it comes to gaming. Yes I know that WOW is 12 million members strong but each of those people dont play COD. The bottom line is that people must refuse to buy the product if they want their voice to be heard. Plain and simple... Purchasing the product in any format is your stamp of approval for that product.
StevenX

 

Official response from Robert Bowling aka FourZeroTwo:

http://www.fourzerotwo.com/?p=745

Basically, they are not going to change it. IWNet is going forward.

 

Let's see how much more these companies take away in the future before YOU finally get fed up. They can get away with charging $60 for this and taking away dedicated servers because they know this game will sell well, and that is a very bad thing. They will keep milking you and screwing you over as much as they possibly can and they completely get away with it at that!

It does stink that they can undermine the PC version so much and yet they will still make so much money, especially from the console versions where they can get away with their purposely evil actions scot-free and laugh all the way to the bank.

I enjoyed the SP in the first game but wouldn't pay full price for it. And the problem is is that I don't play MP at all, never have but maybe I should get into it. No way I will pay $60 for a short SP campaign.

 

so who hosts the main servers? individuals while also running the client? or does IW host the servers?

(obviously IW hosts the matchmaking, but I'm talking about the actual game)

 

sorry BF:Bad Company 2 is on my list now. Nice try though

 

How long do you think it will take until someone finds a way around this? It seems like something many, many hackers and programmers are going to try to do.

 

Can't wait to see the amount of hacks and cheats made for this. The lackluster ability of the persons in charge on maintaining the network of actually doing their policing. And the eventual demise of the system calling for a return to the server client structure we EVOLVED to.

I'm sorry, do these people not even remember HEAT or similar 'matchmaking' games....the players chose the SERVER CLIENT structure. This is a step backward.

Oh well, their money, not mine.

 

The right thing to do would have dedis and a matchmaking system(if thats even possible). That would be a nice step forward that welcomes everyone.

 

The automatic matchmaking actually sounds like a possibly good idea to me. As someone who just wants to have fun and play, I care more about the game than the clans et. al. The problems I see with the current system are that, one, it's always annoying to find a game just to find out they don't allow Last Stand or whatever other perk your favorite custom class has, and two, that it's not very fun to join a game where you/your team gets absolutely destroyed (they often go together in my experience). It sounds like this would address those problems.

However, the ability to have both modes would be a nice compromise, as ZP=WIN suggested, and keep everyone happy. And they probably could address at least the first of the issues I listed above simply by adding more filtering options - Allows All Perks and Maximum Ping would be a nice way to sort them, and further options to hide games that allowed/disallowed a particular perk would be even better for satisfying everyone (keeping these options hidden by default, to keep it simple for those who want it that way). The unbalanced teams thing really isn't that big of an issue, either - it tends to even out in the long haul, and it's always fun to get on a team that is actually dominating for a change.

The other item they haven't made clear is how they'll implement what map the matchmaking system assigns. I know some systems make it entirely random, which is good in principle, but sometimes you just want to play Chinatown or Pipeline and not Creek or Overgrown.

And though I've never played a modded PC shooter (only having played modded Halo 3 on XBox before), as someone who enjoys strategy game mods I can see why fans would be disappointed if this did in fact make mods impossible. But it seems a lot of people are assuming that bridge has already burned when it's not clear that it has burnt.

I'll take a wait and see on this (not that I was planning to buy until the price fell, anyways). It might end well yet if they implement it in a proper fashion. Doesn't seem like as big of an issue as EA's Spore DRM to me, though.

 

This is like L4D with no choice of dedicated servers.

"Cheat / Hack Free Games: The biggest benefit of using IWnet by far is the fact that you don’t have to worry about joining a server full of aim-bots, wallhacks, or cheaters. Or relying on the server admin of the server to constantly be monitoring, banning, and policing it. Modern Warfare 2 on PC allows us to control the quality of the game much more than ever before as well as utilizing the VAC (Valve-Anti-Cheat) system to keep games clean of hackers and cheaters."

I don't know where fourzerotwo is getting this idea from, but VAC is doing so well to control other VAC games like CS, RIGHT? Eh, no. Absolutely not. I'd rather have ADMINS policing servers (which is more frequent and reliable) when it comes to problems. How long would we have to wait for a hacker, cheater, exploiter, or a spammer to be kicked (or VAC'd)? In VAC standards, 6-12 months. That's enough time for the next COD. Not to mention, there will be no admins around in the server. Who will maintain control of the server?

IW has gone retarded.

 

Even worse. Some hacks have the ability to constantly updating and have warning systems to tell the hacker if the hack has been compromised and does not allow it to run.

In essence, with an unsupervised server and pompous idiots believing that their system can never fail, you will have a hacker indefinitely causing havoc and droves of individuals going straight back to COD4.

 

It all comes down to money...If they can have a controlled system on their game...Then they can charge an extra $10 on map packs....Think about it...Say they release two map packs...That is $20 a pop...Then they come out with some other mod for $10...That is $30 that they will make off of a game originally $60...They are going to make an another 50% profit. over time on people who buy the game upfront.

Ah...Capitalism...It works oh so well....Or does it? Money makes this country go around...

 

Yeah even on COD4 you rarely see hackers but only on a non punkbuster server but seriously with no dedicated servers on MW2 its not going to sell well especailly to people that are not from USA because they will have very high ping and wont be able to play multiplayer. I already decided to not to buy it at all because they are making it like the console versions the game costs $60 just like the console versions which i do not like unless they allow dedicated servers and then i will buy it. The PC version of COD4 was much better than the console versions because of the free patches, custom maps, dedicated servers, modded servers, and better community which im still playing as of today. The console version they have to pay for the extra maps

IW is just being plain retarded if only they just do the same things as they did with COD4 and then MW2 it will sell more than COD4 did because everyone knows that the game is going to be awesome. What in the are they thinking anyways

 

IW has gone to where the money is.

 

IW has gone to hell and is never coming back.

Is $60 worth it for a 6-10 hour SP campaign and a crippled, automatic match-making MP mode?

HELL NO!

 

Friends all will be well when BF:Bad Company 2 comes in '10 and BF:3 '11. The PC community needs to support Dice if you havnt already.

 

hang on, VAC is awesome.

it basically works as a great ban-hammer tool and a great deterrent, since the ban-hammer is permanent.

however, implementing VAC has nothing to do with ditching dedicated servers. Many valve games have dedicated servers that are *also* running VAC.

So VAC is NOT a reason to drop dedicated server support, but that doesn't mean that including VAC is bad, just that IWs comment doesn't really make sense.

 

Good point masterchef341.

Again, it is going to be about making more money on selling their own additions instead of letting users create their own. I could understand this if IW was struggling to stay out of the red...But they are making ALOT of money as is it. This is just being greedy.