#Mount and blade warband optimization series

Before launch, the development team was incredibly transparent about what to expect. ItвЂ™s a slow process, one that not every fan of Mount and Blade: Warband is happy about, but itвЂ™s working.Д«aldurвЂ™s Gate 3 from Larian Studios launched for the $60 price tag вЂ“ its overall team size started at 200 developers internally and was stated to cross 300 in external developers. TaleWorlds Entertainment has been fairly transparent on all of this, providing regular updates on goals and breaking down major upcoming features. Impressions were very positive but it still faced issues with optimization, bugs, crashes and lack of content. Mount and Blade 2: Bannerlord has been in the works for years and launched into Steam Early Access last year for $50. But thereвЂ™s certainly a precedent for big-name titles entering early access. One might think this is only applicable for titles (like Hades)В which are decidedly indie (and still incredibly worth your time and money). Are milestones being met? Features being dropped? How is the performance and optimization shaping up? It helps provide some much needed information on the actual development during this time. Furthermore, if someone is interested in an early access title, thereвЂ™s that feeling of waiting until the game is complete before venturing forth. The amount of feedback that can be garnered is also much higher вЂ“ at least, depending on how many people play вЂ“ and certain issues can be ironed out before the final release. Development is also at a stage where things can change pretty significantly. Expectations are more managed in this regard вЂ“ the consumer knows what theyвЂ™re getting into, after all.

Granted, the development team could still push out features that donвЂ™t make sense while not offering the complete game at release.

The challenges of optimizing for current-generation hardware also canвЂ™t be overstated and when crises like the current global вЂњsituationвЂќ come up, development is bound to be affected.ДЇrom that perspective, early access makes some degree of sense. Development teams number in the hundreds with budgets easily exceeding tens of millions of dollars. One has to ask the question then вЂ“ why donвЂ™t such titles go into early access? It sounds like a joke but triple-A titles are becoming bigger, if not more ambitious. Other complaints also cite the problematic audio and animation quality. Then thereвЂ™s AssassinвЂ™s Creed Valhalla which, despite critical acclaim, launched with its own share of bugs from progression blockers to floating ships (which have been addressed recently). The development team made the decision to delay multiplayer to focus on polishing the base game and fixing bugs, which should indicate just how many problems there were.

#Mount and blade warband optimization series

Complaints of lost progression would continue to be an issue on Xbox Series X/S (and itвЂ™s not clear whether theyвЂ™ve been addressed yet or not). Watch Dogs: Legion also had a number of bugs when it launched, not the least of which included saves becoming corrupted. Multiplayer is a different matter altogether вЂ“ from the initial alpha till now, itвЂ™s been criticized for its map design, lack of content, balance issues, matchmaking, the list goes on. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War received some positive feedback on Zombies and the campaign but thereвЂ™s no denying that it was rife with bugs and issues including crashes. However, itвЂ™s important to look back on several other problematic titles that were released last fall. Whether itвЂ™s performance issues, bugs or missing features, thereвЂ™s a sentiment among numerous players that the game will likely be вЂњcompleteвЂќ by 2022 (if not later). The latest title to be derided as launching into вЂњearly accessвЂќ is CD Projekt REDвЂ™s Cyberpunk 2077. However, single-player titles are no stranger to the same. ItвЂ™s been a joke for a while now, how certain titles require so much work post-launch that the initial buy-in may as well be considering вЂњearly access.вЂќ MarvelвЂ™s Avengers, The Division, Ghost Recon Breakpoint, Destiny 1 and 2, Fallout 76, Anthem and Diablo 3 have been through this.