The Order: 1886 attracts "uncanny haterade" says director
The Order: 1886 is at the centre of multiple furores over game length, quick time events and cinematic narratives. Ready At Dawn calls this the "bandwagon of negativity".
According to The Order: 1886 game director Dana Jan, the question of the PS4 exclusive third-person shooter's length has been blown out of proportion by inaccurate or irresponsible reporting - such as the now infamous five hour play through not being labelled as a speed run, for example.
"We have this uncanny 'haterade' for our game no matter what," Jan told Develop.
"People are looking for something to throw at our game, some reason to hate it. I'm excited to hear what people who have actually played the game think about it, how do they feel about the quality and the quantity? I think by and large that most people are going to be satisfied."
"It takes a lot more effort to say something nice than to say something negative, and I think people are excited to jump on some bandwagon of negativity."
Jan said the negativity is more than just the usual pressure of a much-publicised platform exclusive.
"It's more just shocking that for a game that isn't out yet, for a franchise that is brand new, the amount of negativity is just..." he said.
"I just feel like these days it's so easy to be negative and I think the internet is the new playground for bullies. Who goes out of their way to really go and say something positive, right?
"If you go out to a restaurant and you have a good time, do you go online immediately to post something? But if you have a bad experience, you'll jump on because you want to warn people about it right? It takes a lot more effort to say something nice than to say something negative, and I think people are excited to jump on some bandwagon of negativity.
"I don't think people need to go out there and be unbiased supporters of our stuff or anything either. I want them to make up their own minds about the game period. It just seems like the pendulum swings the other way so frequently. I mean, we'll see, right?"
Interestingly, Jan also commented that the team places bets on how many posts into a NeoGAF thread they'll hit their first ridiculously negative comment. Several NeoGAF posters have been instrumental in revealing that five hours is a far from normal play time, so it's not all bad over there.
The full article contains much more discussion including a lengthy section on the game's length, if that floats your boat.
The Order: 1886 releases on February 20.