A lot have already be said and we start to repeat the same points again.
Still I feel compelled to mention my two cents and why I am disappointed.
I am in the camp of too many recent European DLC and would like to see some thing about the rest of the world. Also I am in the opinion that every civ should have a campaign.
So I was very glad that an Asian DLC was teased, finally the Chinese (and with luck Korea and Japan as well) would get a campaign.
The Jurchens and Tanguts were teased everything seems on track.
While the Tibet and Bai speculation was very thin, I would have love to see how the Devs would have made a very unknown civ like the Bai for a western audience.
I think the fall out could have been minimise if marketing has approached it differently.
Instead of teasing Jurchens and Tanguts, the Three Kingdoms should have been teased, that is the main focus of the DLC anyway.
Then the devs would probably sense the temperature and learned that the only way we accept the Three Kingdoms if it was a Chronicles DLC (and they would have more time to rectify it, if that was not initially the case.)
And if then as a bonus surprised added the Jurchens and Khitans outside of the Chronicles, people would have received the new DLC way better.
Now it feel like a rug was pulled out from under.
For me this DLC destroy the identity for the game that I hold very dearly.
I have noting against a Three Kingdoms DLC, I think that will be great and I am confidence that the devs can tell a great story with it.
Only it should not have been their own civ and if it would be their own civ, then it needed to be “outside” of the game, like Chronicles.
What I think could be a realistic change before the 6th of May is to move the Three Kingdoms civs to Chronicles, where they are a way better fit.
That will disappoint the people who want 5 civ in rank. But I think preserving the identity game is better for the long run.
There are people who want to change the Three Kingdoms civs to a more time appropriate civs, but I don’t think it will be realistic to have that properly before 6th of May.
Beside I am afraid those civ would feel a bit “Frankensteined” and not have the proper civ identity that it should have. (But then again, I would have zero problem if the DLC would be delayed if they will properly fix the DLC)
For the Heroes, I think a special game mode like Regicide could be added.
I understand the appeal for trainable Heroes in game for some people. I know, me as a kid would have loved that!
(I remembered a mod for the CD version that made the The Accursed Tower buildable and you could train a civ specific hero after 200 kills, I loved that mod as a kid).
But now I would not like that, if that would not a specific game mode.
A trainable Heroes tournament would be a great novelty to watch.
But keep it out of standard games.
For the Khitans, I hope that they moved the camel Mounted Trebuchet to scenario only unit. So it can be given to a future Tanguts Asian DLC and the castle can be switched when the Devs are able. In this hypothetical future Asian DLC, it would be Campaign focus, where the Chinese, Koreans, Japanese, Jurchens, Khitans and the newly added Tanguts get their deserving campaign.
I feel like since the Return to Rome DLC, AoE II have a marketing problem, if they had said things slightly different or emphasise their teases on slightly different things would make a big different.
The franchise lost quite a lot of good will with that, especially what happened with AoE III!
But with the Chronicles: Battle for Greece and giving the impression with the teases that the Devs were listening to the community, a lot of good will was build up again. Only to throw everything out of the window with this missmatch DLC.
As for now I have cancelled my pre-order.
What I said, I was very exited to get a non European focused DLC and on the store page, under the campaign part, it says:
- Train your favorite heroes from the Three Kingdoms era in the new Hall of Heroes building.
But then I saw the video’s that was not the case. After that sinked in, and the consequences of this DLC will have, made me feeling betrayed and disappointed and I don’t want that in my beloved game that I played more than 20 year.
But ending on a positive note, the update looks great and it shows that the Devs (still) care for this game.
(but it looks like there is a huge disconnect with the higher ups and marketing).