Maxx Powers's TFW v101 Review

[Irvine]

To those of you who havent read it yet, feel free to read it here. Actaully this review is very disgusting. No offense Maxx Power. I know that being a Mod Reviewer was not an easy task but the review for TFW was very degradable. I dont know how to describe it but though you've mentioned the good side of the mod, your bad comments totally eats whatever the good side that mod has. I think what you've done was actually a comment and not a review. A comment was actually an expression of what you really feel from inside of you and your own opinions and a review was actually the expression of what the mod itself has. So for me it appears that a comment is different from a review atleast. I know that telling the bad side of the mod was actually good because it will help the mod to make it better but telling to the public that you dont really like it and you dont recommend people to play it is not a good idea. SiLenTx and Deathscythe nor any other mod maker doesnt deserve that kind of review. Why do you have to say you dont like it or you're not recommending it? does it really important to say? we dont need your comments, we need your review. I dont mean to say that you should tell them that you like the mod eventhough its not. what i mean is just tell what the mod has and what the mod has not. that's all!. i hope you understand what I mean and why do you have to say you don't recommend it? Its for free so why shouldn't we try it? Planetdiablo will have a link to that review soon and the efforts of the modmakers will be useless with that kind of reviews because it is really degradable. In fact you can just rephrase it to unbalanced but fun or whatever. Besides, unmodded blizzard original Diablo 2 and any other mods out there will never be balanced! I don't know, but for me, if there's a twin word for a balanced mod, that word will be a perfect mod.

I hope you really understand what I mean. SiLenTx was taking a vacation as of now and he's really busy with his personal life so I hope he havent read it yet. Im sure he'll be sad if he have read it.

*sorry for my bad english but i hope you understand what I'm saying*

[SubSanity]

I quickly read through the review done by Maxx. I'd have to say that being a reviewer isn't an easy job for I review games for a local gaming network as well. No matter how much you try to keep objective, personal tilt actually counts eventually.

I believe that perhaps Maxx sounds rather blunt and brutal. This is only so because he only pointed out the flaws but did not suggest ways of improving or solving the problems. Being a mod-maker myself I know and appreciate efforts of "Why don't you do this instead of that" instead of "That totally sucks, you should just tear the whole thing down"

Well, Maxx just has to do his job and he's already prepared to face feedback from disgruntled fans. Just gotta say one man's meat may be another man's poison. Oh yeah, just to point out, when you comment on someone/something you're basically passing a judgemental statement. So you're effectively reviewing that someone/something.

[slot]

I think what Maxx didn't seem to realize, was that the super super super super hard monsters were meant to keep people interested; leave them with a challenge. Honestly, once you get to level 80 or so in D2, the game isnt much of a challenge, unless of course you're playing some obscure variant that takes 10 minutes to kill a zombie (I.E. a char that only uses elemental charms and fists). Personally, I think it's nice to have monsters like the priestesses that could ream my lvl 90 Zon in under 10 secs. The skills were edited to make up for the monsters having so much life. If it's too easy for you, why not try players 8? I'm sure monsters with 48x normal life would be somewhat of a challenge to your 20K Guided Arrow. The skill boosts are pretty much like those of Teknokyo's Ancestral Recall mod, but without the huge jumps after every 8 slvls. And as a little side note, those "7 pages of bug reports" are mostly random chatting as well as the same bugs being reported over and over again.

Show me a balanced mod, and I'll show you a game Bliz could only wish they could've made.

[Phrozen Heart]

I did contemplate not posting the review at all or at least getting it reworded but I decided to leave it as is for one main reason. Even after the negative points were listed, I still wanted to try the mod out which is the whole point in these reviews. The fact that SilentX actually told Maxx to be as honest as possible is also a factor as well. The reason we have a regular mod reviewer is so opinions are all based on the same criteria. If we had a alternate mod reviewers for each mod because the one doing the review didn't like it, where would the balance in that be. As the review says, it'll his opinion, not all sides of the story.

Personally if I was the mod maker in question, I wouldn't take it as an insult, but rather as a challenge. He listed all the good and bad points so if your target audience is only looking for certain things in a mod and the review says it has them then they'll play it. If someone doesn't like a mod being unbalanced, doesn't matter if they play it or read about it, it's still unbalanced. People aren't going to stop playing the mod just because someone wrote something bad about it, they just know what to expect when they do play. If the problems in question ARE disagreeable to the mod's fans than I presume the authors would want to fix them. I see no reason why the mod couldn't be re-reviewing at a later version if the authors didn't object.

As for the entire bias factor, you can't exactly call it down the line being brothers with one of the authors and all. Either/both of them are quite welcome to write a rebuttal if they wish and I'll post it at the bottom of the review. Please keep any flaming out of this issue though or possible corrective action may need to be taken.

[deathfile]

honestly, i believe this is the best mod review i have ever seen. and i am NOT being sarcastic. a review is a statement of your opinions on a mod. maxx did a very good job stating his opinions on this mod. though i think his comments were a little harsh, i didnt think they were so terrible, in fact, the intro screen and credits screens have GREAT graphics, amazed me the first time i saw them. hes right you know, the mod is very unbalanced. im not sure if maxx ever tried making a unique jewel with the recipe, but he would have been stunned by its overpowering abilities that make even hell priestesses seem like a cakewalk.

not that the mod isnt fun and all. i actually like blowing up whole screens in one shot, but thats just me, and most of the people here at the forums.

subsanity: you are right, a few more suggestions would have been helpful. the only one i saw was changing the skill cap to 40 rather than 30, and, obviously, fixing up some graphics. so, i will post what he did not:

lets start at the top.
graphics: these didnt bother me as much as they did maxx power. they were a little ugly, but the only thing that really bothered me was that the fury gems' names did not match their pictures. for example, jade was a light shade of gray. i have always heard of jade being green, maybe there is gray (almost white) jade, i dont know, but it is more commonly green (if it is ever a different color). i have some jade in a little case under my bed...

new levels: quick fix. change the names. the super multilevel dungeon in act one, and other acts, was very fun, but i didnt like entering "the cave level 2" after so many levels of dungeons. i thought to myself: this isnt level 2. i just went through 17 levels of monsters, and 3 levels of caves alone! why 2? this doesnt seem to bother other people, but it bothers me. maybe the entire place can be renamed to "the secret lair", and it could go levels 1-17. (there is 17 levels, right? or is it 16? or what?)

balance: this is a problem in all mods, and the original game. if balance wasnt so difficult, we wouldnt be up to patch 1.09D (and nearly 1.10) in diablo 2. here are just a few suggestions:

1. remove the leighann jewel, the one that requires level 90 and makes you insane. all those good stats would be fine for a unique, but when you can put 6 of those in one item, and more in others, it is a little too much.

2. im not saying unique jewels are a bad idea. put 5 or 10 in and we will all have a ball, but make sure none are that good. ski rune should be something worth putting into an item, rather than saying "nah, it sucks"

3. double all monsters damage and life, except for the ones that are so insane already that more life will go over the limit and bring them to 1, like elder diablo. and the priestesses have enough life and damage already

4. the hard levels are cool, but too easy with the right equipment. get physical protection and the secret tunnels are even easier than normal. get absorbs and the drifter cavern is easy as pie. why not make the drifter cavern a little bigger and put melee monsters in it as well? then it is hard for all types of equipment, but not insanely insane for any one type.

5. max skill as 40 would seem like a bad thing, but then you couldnt have every skill and its brother maxed out. my zon actually dreaded gaining levels because i had no idea where to put the points.

6. lower all passive skills (whats the word i am looking for?) insane powers with 2 skills per level, my zon had over 80% in all evade type skills, and they werent even near max. though i did have quite a few leighann jewels in my equipment...

7. the fury gems were all fun and great, but +1 all skills is too good until it is as rare as about a peaceful, rational middle easterner naw seriously, about as rare as a high level rune, like lum or so was in regular LOD.

8. comment: why do all the good cube recipes require zod if there is a rune higher than that?


and irvine: try not to flame everyone about having low opinions of TFW. i said that i was "a little sick of TFW" in another thread and you tried to kill me just remember: constructive criticism will help make any mod better.

and actually, i dont think many people would be happy with a balanced mod. everyone has different opinions: some may like mods that others consider way too hard, some may like mods that others consider way too easy, while others prefer right in the middle.

and the only real incorrect statement in this review was the one about the 7 page bug thread, because that is mostly talk and the same bug reported over...and over...and over...and over again because no one wants to read through 7 pages of bugs. i saw that a lot:

"I don't know if this has been posted yet, but I am going to report this bug that you all know about and has been posted 16 times before, in this very thread. I don't know if this has been posted yet because I don't want to skim through all those pages..."

well, obviously that is waaaaaaaay over exagerated, but you get the point.

cheers, and i wonder how this will end up

[enq]

The old question of should the news be subjective or objective comes to mind here.

I think that if Maxx is going to up upfront and honest then the community can only beneift from that. I would have no problem with getting my mod reviewed and the mention of negative aspects as long as I got some direction out of it. I personally have had training in critiquing and being critiqued, but even so I think most people would welcome feedback of any kind as it all helps (at least in my experience).

I do agree that comments on how to go about fixing problems are a good idea - perhaps a thread for them could be set up in the mods forum after the review is posted.

Also from reading other reviews you can get a feel for what Maxx likes and dislikes and thus judge for yourself as to what you like in a mod based on his opinions - good or bad.[/quote]

[SiLenTx]

I have just come back from a vacation so I was really surprised about this review "issue".

Personally I was quite taken aback by the review, though I must admit that it was good but then again I believe that some sentences needs a lot of rephrasing or choices of words should at least had been considered. I am not surprised that my kid brother, Irvine, had reacted that way after all he's just 11 yrs. old and knew the time and effort we have spent in creating the mod, so my apology for some of his posts.

I have read some of his past reviews but ours was the only one that stood out. How? Well go figure it out for yourself. I won't say he's completely wrong but neither will say that he's 100% accurate. The mod really has some flaw that is why the TFW ver. 1.02 is now for completion and soon to be released. That 7 pages bug report he's been talking about --- " If you think I’m joking about how bad the balancing is, just visit the official forum, and take a quick peek at the seven page bugs report forum." --- as some has previously disputed are mainly chats and the same bug reported over and over and over again. Which made me think if he really did check that particular bug report hence played the mod itself.

But as they say, you really can't please everybody and obviously the "reviewer" is one of them. Like one of the post I have read regarding this, a review should end with suggestions on how to improve the inefficiencies of the item being reviewed, and I should say that he somehow forgotten that part. Moreover, he ends it up with his opinion. Biased or not? Read it for yourselves.

Anyway, I still would like to thank the “reviewer” for his time and effort in releasing this one. It also goes for the time he spent in playing this one out. I would not comment on what he thinks of the gameplay itself because I know that there are many players whom I made happy and are continuously emailing to thank us for releasing the mod. I also am contented to the output of our hardwork since our prime motives in creation of TFW are to give fun and give new dimension to LOD. Also, I didn’t know that this mod caused disarray in our community as the “reviewer” has pointed out --- “It is a travesty to the many other mod makes out there, who spend so much times perfecting the balance within Diablo, for something like this to come along and cause disarray within the community.”

I would end this still by saying thanks to the many players that supported our mod and continually do so. The same goes for Phrozenheart for giving his opinion. And to those who thought that the review on our mod was done in excellence, I guess its up to you anyway this is a free world and everyone is entitled to have their own opinion. By the way, I believe it was Deathscythe who told Maxx to review our mod with all honesty. If TFW received it, which I think Maxx actually did, so thanks to him because it will be included as one of our main reasons on why we have to accomplish a better mod versions in the near future

To Irvine, cheer up and be cool.

[Phrozen Heart]

SX> You're quite welcome to post some form of rebuttal to the review which I can add to the bottom of it maybe explaining a few points and inviting users to try it for themselves?

One thing though is that even with all the negativity mentioned, reading the review actually made me want to go out and try the mod rather than the opposite (almost using some kind of accidental reverse psychology).

[SiLenTx]

Thanks for the offer Phrozenheart. But I think I'll leave it as it is for the people to try it for themselves just like you've said (serves as a reverse psychology thing). If that review will lead the reader's interest to try it, then there's no reason why do I have to defend ourselves from the reviewer's personal opinion or comment to the review.

In fact, I would love it if Maxx would re-review the future releases of TFW

Thanks for all of you who gave time for posting your opinions through this thread and in our forum's thread...

[Maxx Power]

Holy ship! I can't believe this! Already I've got three posts devoted to little ol' me in the forums! Amazing! Well then, its about time I saw some kickback from the review. I guess I'm up on the plate, so heres my testimony.

Firstly, I have been getting a few emails and pm's of people congratulating me on a job well done, so I don't think everyone is as annoyed about the review as this forum makes out, so there. Also, people in the staff have also been giving me some props on a good review.

At the end of the day, its impossible for me NOT to be subjective, as I'm only me, and I do have feelings you know If I wasn't so passionate in my review writing, everyone would be bored stiff whilst reading my reviews. I'm not here to pick up a review and say "This mod has new weapons, monsters, blah blah blah please download it so fileplanet gets more traffic, thank you", I'm here to say wherever or not a mod is good. I've been playing Diablo since the very beginning, and I have a very clear idea about what I like to see in a mod. However, this is just me. I can't account for anyone else. As people say, its supposed to offer a challenge for higher-level characters. What about a good majority of people who don't want to spend hours upon hours just killing monsters until they reach high levels with their char? What about those who simply want to play through Diablo again, with brand new suprises which are enjoyable and compelling, while still being challeging.

I DO understand the effort that goes into these mods, don't get me wrong. I know how long people must spend staring in endless hex-editors and excel spreadsheets, systematically changing each and every value possible. But, this is going to sound evil as hell, but here it is... I don't care. I'm here to review the mod, and as such if I were to let my heart spill out and give a good review on the basis of effort, every single hunk of turd claiming to be the next big thing in mods would get ten out of ten, thumbs up, the nobel prize etc.

At the end of the day, the popularity of a mod is down to those who play it, and if the mod happens to be popular before I review it, then nobody will take any notice. Infact, as Phrozenheart pointed out, it could make people want to play it, instead of the opposite. That's why when I do write a review I go into specific detail about both sides of the arguement. This is so people can read the review, and if there is something in the bad section they like, then they may like this mod. And all power to them, I'm not here to tell people what they should like and what they shouldn't, that's up to them. If you read another forum that someone plastered up about my reviews, they said I should leave the old system of detail behind, and go into some kind of decimal system. The above reason is exactly why that can never happen. Mods can be a fickle thing to work with, especially with something such as Diablo, where there are an infinite amount of different playing styles people like.

As for my choice of words, you can blaim the Oxford Thesaurus for that! Simply put, the words I use are varied in such a way that it just seems worse. Let's take an example from the review in question now. Here's a sentance directly from it...

OK, so the monster graphics are above the normal call of duty, and the brand new levels included add to the Diablo experience as a whole, the disgraceful item graphics and the utterly abysmal balancing within the game sours it to the point where any enjoyable new inclusions are eclipsed.

Now here's a re-written quote, with a more simple dialiect

OK, so the monster graphics are good, and the brand new levels included are also good, the bad item graphics and the bad balancing within the game makes it badder to the point where any good new inclusions are not as good as the bad ones.

See, no where near as offensive, but infinitely boring and samey. If I'm making a good point, I make it sound good using language which makes it sound good, and vice verca for bad points. As long as I have a brain which hasn't been dissolved by drugs, radiation or sinelity, then I'll use it to the best of my ability.

Just for the record, there are two things I look for in a mod

1) Originality:- i.e. something more than the usual "add more monsters, uniques and sets", which is why I rate Sir General's Rune Mod as one of my favs

2) Enjoyment:- There's a little test I did once. I got someone who has never played Diablo before, and got them to play through the first act with a mod. Then I dud the same thing with another friend, who has played Diablo to death. The results were suprising. When they played one mod, both of them thought it was good, whilst playing another one, they both thought it was a worse playing experience. If that doesn't prove my point about universal enjoyment through a mod, I don't know what does.

As far as the reviews go, I pull no punches when it comes to writing them. I had talked to SilentX and Deathscythe (sort of) before the review, and they seemed like decent guys. However, they knew before hand that I would do an honest job when it came to their mods, and I wouldn't hold back, and I didn't. Thankfully they've been nice enough to take it on the chin and say "sure, we'll see what we can do". They could have taken this to JBouley or Phorzenheart and said "I want that son-of-a-{filtered} fired!", but they haven't (at least, not to my knowledge). They can take the insults and learn from them, and so can I. If there's one thing I've learned from this, its that there will be two kinds of people when it comes to your work. Those who like it, and those who don't. I'm fine with that. So long as no-one get's violent about it, were all cool.

BTW, Can any admins please close this topic? I want my word to be the last one.

Thanks

Maxx

[Myhrginoc]

If there's one thing I've learned from this, its that there will be two kinds of people when it comes to your work. Those who like it, and those who don't. I'm fine with that. So long as no-one get's violent about it, we're all cool.

Indeed those are fitting words to cap this thread. So far everybody is doing a reasonable job of stepping back from the verge of a flame war, but it would be difficult to reiterate your positions without descending there. My primary reason for locking the thread though, is that further discussion wouldn't support the forum's goal of feedback to improve the Keep. Maxx Power has submitted his first review, people have reacted, Maxx has responded. Now let the man get back to work with another mod review, so we can see whether the points everybody has raised are followed through. The TFW developers are already working on the next version, and at a later date it may well be reviewed again.