There is plenty already said about Suicide Squad Kill the Justice League, and much of it has not been good. Fans of the Arkhamverse are concerned because the game took a live-service route and are also skeptical of the game as it didn’t feel like a Rocksteady product.
The game entered Early Access on January 30, and the launch was more than just tumultuous. Various issues affecting the gameplay and the core aspects, such as the game’s progression and playability, were reported. To reward players and incentivize them to stick with the title, Rocksteady also gifted players 20$ worth of in-game credits. This was because of the downtime caused by the window required to change the game’s server.
Rocksteady’s compensation after a goof-up with Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
As is the case with many titles, recently, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League offers a Premium / Deluxe Edition that, apart from cosmetics and in-game content, also offers Early Access. Now, the game entered Early Access on January 30. Still, as soon as players could boot the game, a server issue caused a bug that would automatically complete the game.
It was most certainly as annoying as it sounds. It sparked outrage because fans couldn’t even step into the first minute of the gameplay without experiencing a game-breaking / game-completing bug. This happened when the game went live in selective timezones: New Zealand and Australia.
As expected, after such a massive disruption to the players’ experience, Rocksteady was forced to take down the game temporarily and get their toolbox to fix the title’s unplayable state. It was a hefty issue to rectify, requiring upwards of six hours of continuous downtime on January 30. and one hour of downtime on January 31.
As reported by VGC, Rocksteady expressed a heartfelt apology and thanked the Deluxe Edition players for their patience. Not just this, the studio also offered them compensation that followed an in-game message. The message was addressed, and compensation was issued to all its players who were bound to have experienced some inconvenience playing the game early despite having paid extra just for Early Access and some cosmetic packs.
The message stated that:
Thank you for being one of our first console players during early access of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League…We recognize that you’ve been patient with us during our initial launch server updates and we’d like to show our appreciation for your patience with a special gift of 2000 LuthorCoins. Thank you again!”
If one were to convert the 2000 LuthorCoins that form the in-game currency for the game into real-world currency, they come in at 20$ or 16£. It was most certainly something that was called for, as the downtime was bound to be frustrating for the players.
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is a testament to the sad state of the modern AAA gaming experience
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League comes from those who created the Batman Arkham games. The game has been in development for nearly seven years, comes in at a 70 USD price tag, and costs 100 USD for the Deluxe Edition.
It makes sense to ask why such a game that was most certainly built on a considerable budget and comes in at a AAA price tag disappoints on the first day it enters Early Access. Top gaming studios like Sledgehammer Games have used Early Access to incentivize pre-orders of Modern Warfare 3. Rocksteady is one of the many companies charging extra for Early Access.
Incredibly, the studio was considerate enough to offer compensation using in-game currency. Still, it doesn’t make a lot of sense that it came after a total of 7 hours of downtime across two days. As games get heavier and more complex, issues are expected and fixed with time. Early Access is also promised to players with an asterisk indicating the game is almost complete and is mainly ready to play. This, however, is far from it.
Many issues have been reported with other games in Early Access. What do you think of this? Do you think the trend of Early Access releases should be stopped? Or should buyers know better than to invest extra for Early Access? Let us know in the comment section below.
Follow us for more entertainment coverage on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
