Mr. Gogeta34 wrote...
EA interference would be "internal pressures" wouldn't it? Since Bioware is owned by EA. Budget reallocation (to a multiplayer mode for instance) would definitely hinder what Bioware can afford to do with its singleplayer campaign.
I'd consider it external interference because EA is not a part of the development team, nor are they actively creating content for the game.
I would say though, that Ray Muzyka referring to "artistic integrity" when addressing the criticism of the ending itself was indeed shielding against gamer criticism.
I disagree. Ray's blog post didn't tell people to stop criticizing, nor did it say that any criticisms of the game were wrong. Instead, he focused on his support for the development team at a time when lots of different groups were talking about how bad the game was or how the developers needed to be fired.
Same thing goes with terms like "vocal minority" to describe/marginalize the vast majority of feedback from virtually all online websites where gamers stated their opinions (non-press). The "majority" of gamers that were "vocal" and on the web had a negative reaction to ME3's ending. Likewise, the vast majority of gamers thought Mass Effect 3 was excellent up to that point.
Again, I disagree. Just because those online could easily band together and create a larger voice, they did not necessarily constitute a majority of players, nor did they necessarily speak for a majority of players. From my experience, the "vocal minority" argument was used to address those stating categorically that "a majority," "most fans," or "everyone" hated the endings (or, really, expressed any other opinion about the game) or wanted this or preferred that, so BioWare
just has to change the game or correct their mistake or acknowledge the gamers are right. No one can really make that claim except BioWare, and they had gameplay data to back up their statements.
Even in your post, your "majority" is a subset of a vast minority of players (ie. those who complained online and were "vocal"). This is why most any "majority" claimed by those making a complaint can be considered a "minority" of the total number of players. That doesn't mean the complaints are wrong or not important. It means that they have to be taken in certain context, which includes the number of people making those complaints, because lots of people are saying a lot of different things about the game. (And contrary to popular online belief, repeating an argument louder and more frequently does not magically make it more important, true, or valid.)
That's not to bash Bioware at all, but if talking about how proud someone is of the hard work a team did (and the artistic vision they're sticking to) when that person's supposed to be addressing the negative backlash is a shield in my book...
... or just really bad timing.
And in my book, talking about how proud someone is of the hard work a team did is just that--talking about how proud someone is of the hard work a team did. Ray Muzyka is not obligated to quell the flames of the internet's opinions, nor does every individual negative comment require or deserve rebuttal or acknowledgement (see again my comment about "vocal minority," above). But if you wish to believe otherwise, that's your prerogative.
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