About pre-order discounts for mods

At the moment, I have no plans to pay for any mods especially tracks, but I can't help but be curious about why pre-order? Why give away have your income to get money early? All I see is downside. Customers may feel manipulated and may also feel cheated if prices are lowered later. Modder income is cut in half and final price feels locked in because of pre-order discount so can't drop price. Bad idea I think. Am I wrong? Only reason I can think of to discount pre-orders is to fund development that is otherwise impossible but wow that is expensive financing. And of course there is corporate purely manipulative pre-order discounts so people buy for cheaper price without thinking because pressure and before knowing how crappy game is and before a competitor's product is released, etc. All very ugly dark nefarious commercialism type evil bad things. Am I wrong?

 

Not so sure if these pre-orders are ugly dark nefarious commercialism.

Prolly just modders wanting to see of there is any interest at all. lets say only 2 peeps pre-order in the a month, then its perhaps better to refund and not spend countless of hours on a project.

Not everyone on the Interweb is evil

 

I've recently preordered Sergio Loro's tracks as a way of saying thanks for all the enjoyment I got from all his previous work, which he gave away for free.
I also love historic tracks and Sergio has a good feel for them.

 

please can you share the link argo0 for Sergio Loro's tracks?

 

You`ll find them all here:

http://isiforums.net/f/forumdisplay.php/77-Locations

The pre order tracks and some others too.

 

Do you feel manipulated & cheated that rfactor2 is currently 20% off?

 

I have to agree, that the possibility of pre ordering mods and tracks probably isn't an evil commercial conspiracy. I pre ordered too, both to show my gratitude towards the tremendous work the creators put in, and also because I don't mind paying for things I want to have.

 

Good points. Makes sense if that is what he is doing. See response to Hex below regarding evil...

Not in the least. Should I? Don't see how that relates to pre-orders by modders...

Did anyone read my post? It is entirely regarding how pre-orders do not make sense FOR THE MODDER. This is the OPPOSITE of saying a modder is evil. They are giving away content for lower price for no reason. It DOES make sense why EVIL corporations to it because it is in their interest. It does NOT make sense why a modder would do it because it is NOT in his interest.

 

Well I think it would be best if ISI takes care of the sales and find this idea from Tim interesting:

"There is quite a big scope for rF2s future. What I am working towards is addons, not developed by us, while we continue making our content alongside. A company that might consider licensing our engine to make a standalone could just use their license to build content for rF2, we sell it, we protect it (easy if we handle purchases, you join a server running a mod, we know whether you bought it or not), and rF2 gets that content. How bad do things feel thinking about that? Legal mods could do the same thing. To be honest, those external devs making standalones would probably make more money for less work. We get rF2 sales, maybe a cut, they get to not pay us a licensing fee for our engine, or do engine work at all.

That is one of the things I am hoping to see happen with a number of places we have incomplete series'. Obviously supporting it, is on us. But I personally think you'll get exactly what you're asking for at some point."

 

I don't see how it differs.

If you go and buy a G27 at full price in June, you don't feel cheated and manipulated that it's on sale for Black Friday in November.......

 

Well I have thought this for years n years since GTR beta days for freeware " unofficial official approval I call it " ..

Then as a way to separate official servers and accepted add-on content from " the rest"

rF2 system would just make it all that easier to block invalidated rfmods with illegal content

I mean it is a great idea ISI doing it and taking a cut. I like it in principle.

But imho you can't do it without first protecting the people that buy rF2 and the payware.

If you going to allow "anything" on the official servers what message does that send to the legal modders and people pay hard earned for legit mods so ISI can make money ?

By diluting the server with any quality no permission track and mod, that would be your thank you ?

You can see my dilemma.


I wonder how many iracers would want unofficially accepted content let alone freeware ?

My guess not many.

 

I give you another warped logic...........

How is it right to ban or block threads, have links deleted for some content deemed inappropriate while at the same time allowing the same content up on official servers, any rooms they like............

Am I the only one that does not sit well with ?

What message does that send me how much ISI cares for my quality of time online. ?

Not a good one I can tell ya.


Yes it is a free world, you free to go buy a dedicated server, don't have it announced to match maker and no- permission mod your life away ...........I won't stop you ? lool ( cheeky )

 

So how do you suggest policing MODs ? Having a handfull of full time payed staff members download and check every single .rfmod/.vmod/.rfcmp packed when people wish to host a specific combination of cars/tracks ?

Seriously...

And you know who ends up paying that bill, right ?

 

i thought the perfect solution was you MSG Tim and he will look into it. enough said.

 

Why full time staff ?, it would be minimal time once mods were set.

Couldn't members get off their arses and do a bit.

You could have a group made up of ISI , modders and a few experts.

They could check and add any new additions once a week or fortnightly, not like it would take that long.


I was not inferring for rF2 anyways .

Maybe rF3 ..............

Who pays the bill..well if I had a version of RF2 that had a server where only offical and approved addon content was allowed I would pay 50 DOLLARS MORE FOR IT !!

Theres ya money.


Make me a no aids no BS menus no hud no stop to esc version I pay another 50.

 

Perfect solution

Enough said


Phhftttt

Buy dear payware to be on same server with ripped mods ? ....no thanks.

What , so you want me to subside no permission crap by buying mods ? ....... you got a hide to ask who pays. lol


Its a joke, you can't talk about Cadwell..... but you can host it even download it . !

Makes perfect sense to me ??? weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee lol

Keep doing it the same old way <<<<<<<< sarcasm

 

Why would one even start doing pre orders?
Nobody is going to run out of digital content and the reason why most high end companies push pre orders so hard lately is because they know their product is inferior so they try to make back as much as they can before the actual release of the product. And the people who BUY the pre orders... Well, giving money to something you don't know anything about, want me to PM you my bank account?

So why would a track modder do this or even think about this?

 

Why should someone that makes a good legit payware mod have to pay for the privilege while at the same time someone rips anything they like, hosts it and makes a GET MOD for nothing, how is it remotely fair. lool

I would charge every approved freeware mod a modest fee as well for getting a mod slot, that would help cover costs as well.

Then you would finally weed out all the substandard and no permission stuff, wouldn't that be worth paying a few dollars more for on top. Less content = better mean room average. p

Other benefits over time, it may improve the overall quality of mods.

Thing is if you keep to the same old concept for 20 years you will never know.

Rippers and quick converters would need to be brainwashed, may take a while. hehehe

 

And you're supposed to be the native english speaker.

 

QFT appears to make no sense whatsoever and potential side effects seem risky...