Why doesn't he just come back?

[Titus1108]

I go to MLB the show board frequently as I have the game. And I always see Russell and Co. on the boards commenting. Creating threads asking for suggestions for MLB 11 already etc... SCEA is the best period because of their overall game, and most important their customer interaction. I'm sure this thread will be closed, but seriously why did he leave the boards?

I heard it was czuz of certain ppl bashing him or whatever, but until they(EA) has the interaction that SCEA does, Madden imo won't ever overwhelm what are expectations are, and instead will always dissapoint year after year like it has for a while now. Please don't think I am creating this thread to bash EA cuz I didn't. I am just curious why he left?

IMO, Ian just has to suck it up and accept the criticism/bashing(and its over the internet so c'mon, seriously?) and interact with us gamers again.

[marktg30]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

I go to MLB the show board frequently as I have the game. And I always see Russell and Co. on the boards commenting. Creating threads asking for suggestions for MLB 11 already etc... SCEA is the best period because of their overall game, and most important their customer interaction. I'm sure this thread will be closed, but seriously why did he leave the boards?

I heard it was czuz of certain ppl bashing him or whatever, but until they(EA) has the interaction that SCEA does, Madden imo won't ever overwhelm what are expectations are, and instead will always dissapoint year after year like it has for a while now. Please don't think I am creating this thread to bash EA cuz I didn't. I am just curious why he left?

IMO, Ian just has to suck it up and accept the criticism/bashing(and its over the internet so c'mon, seriously?) and interact with us gamers again.

These comments are exactly WHY he isn't coming back....

[Madman55]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

Mark got it. There is a fine difference between bashing the game, and giving constructive criticism on how to fix what you find wrong with the game.

[Titus1108]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

These comments are exactly WHY he isn't coming back....

Ya, i get that. But I mean, if you are creating something that makes you alot of $ and the company money imo, you gotta put differences aside. It's like Ian is Replubic and we're the Dems or vice versa(you get the point). At some point they put their differences aside and work together on issues. I know that's a stretch for an example, but its the best one I can think of.

[MJenness]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

These comments are exactly WHY he isn't coming back....

Seriously, though, what did he and his "team" expect they'd get here, butt kissing and blind loyalty? Did they REALLY feel their game was above criticism?

ANY person in a position of power or authority is gonna' have to develop some thick skin. Man up, read between the lines of some of the idiotic bashing to find what the people are really TRYING to say, understand the anger and frustration, and do what they are PAID to do and fix the damn game.

Plus, IMO, much of the "bashing" they brought on themselves with the hype THEY created, the promises THEY made, and the statements THEY made regarding what WAS fixed and added (which in the end was not fixed or added).

[Titus1108]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

Mark got it. There is a fine difference between bashing the game, and giving constructive criticism on how to fix what you find wrong with the game.

True...so why not do this. Find a group of veteran OSers on here and have Ian and them go into a chatroom or somethin to talk about certain things that us on here complain about in a "constructive" way? Something just has to be done or like i said, this game will never overwhelm us(Like MLB the Show does every year).

[Titus1108]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

Seriously, though, what did he and his "team" expect they'd get here, butt kissing and blind loyalty? Did they REALLY feel their game was above criticism?

ANY person in a position of power or authority is gonna' have to develop some thick skin. Man up, read between the lines of some of the idiotic bashing to find what the people are really TRYING to say, understand the anger and frustration, and do what they are PAID to do and fix the damn game.

Plus, IMO, much of the "bashing" they brought on themselves with the hype THEY created, the promises THEY made, and the statements THEY made regarding what WAS fixed and added (which in the end was not fixed or added).

EXACTLY what I am saying. If you're in authority you have to expect criticism from people who buy your product. No game is perfect, and we all in here know that. But to basically run away from your problems is not cool with me and alot of us.

[stlstudios189]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

I don't think he ran away I think Ian just figured that nothing positive was coming about the board interactions.

[HitDoctor]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

when is the exclusive contract up again? (seems to roll on like iPhone to verizon)

[The Gunslinger]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

Question:

I'm a EA shareholder, so am I allowed to criticize Ian and other EAsports developers because their work directly affects my return on investment on Electronic Arts?

Thanks

[Titus1108]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

I don't think he ran away I think Ian just figured that nothing positive was coming about the board interactions.

Was? Or never could be? I don't about all that, but now there's no chance of anything positive going to come out of him not being here. Do you think he reads these boards? I doubt it

[SmashMan]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

He still reads the boards. You'll see him on the Online Users list pretty often. Not as frequently as last year, but he's still here.

And the reason he's toned down his interaction is because there was an INSANE amount of bitching and moaning; and it drowned out constructive criticism. It's easy to throw around the blanket statement like "He should have thick skin" but that's far from the whole story. Because he was the most visible EA person here, he felt the brunt of the ****storm of people angry about the exclusivity deal. A deal he had nothing to do with.

If certain posters (most, if not all banned now, I think) had stepped back and had some perspective in terms of how they interact with people instead of hiding behind the anonymity of the computer screen, I'm sure Ian would be around more than he is.

As it is, he still reads the board and posts occasionally...but he's also working on the game. Just because he doesn't post as often doesn't mean he can't read the community feedback.

[Crimsontide27]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

I dont really think it matters. EA has more than enough " constructive feedback" to know what the issues are with the fans. People have reached their tolerance level with the " maybe next years ".

EA has brand loyalty and they know it. Each year their will be people that get fed up with the football franchises and lose a customer , but there are new consumers to fill in the gap.

I dont really think they have anything to gain by being here. Everything that needs to be said has been said, both positive and negative. The rest is nothing more than rehashing exactly what has been said...again...both positive and negative...year after year.


There is really no other way to look at the football genre and say that next gen has been anything but a diaster. The last generation Madden and NCAA are still better than their next gen counterparts.

TLDR version. They have no reason to come here, they stand to gain or lose nothing.

[kcxiv]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

They dont have to do anything. As long as they read the complaints on their game and try to fix what is wrong, there is no need for him to post frequently here.

[Bellsprout]

Re: Why doesn't he just come back?

A) Why is this still open. It's going to go to a bad place.

B) I think it's because a small minority of people here decided that rather than giving Ian constructive criticism, they figured they'd just be dicks and belittle him. Yes, constructive criticism is good, hell it's necessary, but when you put all that hard work into something and then people cut you personally down, it has to be hard to take. I'd have left too.