"Update delayed until tomorrow (Weds). Sorry, ran into some bugs which took more time than anticipated." - incarnate
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"I'm glad you guys choose not to release a patch that hasn't been well tested. VO has been COMPLETELY (I kid you not) bug free in my history of playing it, keep it up.

I wish the same could be said for Blizzard and World of Warcraft... jeez..." - Apex
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In the 3 and a half months I have played Vendetta Online, I came to realize some things that are quite astounding. I think they are the reasons why I stuck with one last MMORPG after I got tired of all the crap that went on in the one I played for 7 years before I heard about VO:

-The guys who run this game are smart, they are PROGRAMMERS designing the game and choosing when to release stuff instead of CORPORATE GUYS who only think in short term how they can raise their stock a thousandth of a percent.
-There is much more than simply the shiny "cool" stuff you might find in WoW or Evercrack or SWG or any of those games I have refrained from ever supporting. Most importantly to me there is a sense of community.
-Bugfree gameplay*. So maybe BP gives more money than intended when credits already have almost no point. In the long run of bugs I have seen or heard about in other games, really that is just amazingly trivial. You guys who are basically GOD to this universe(you know who you are.. *wink*) don't release new updates that wreck the game with all sorts of crashes or exploits or neon-rainbow spacebats flapping their wings and yodelying just to try to make a quick buck while incidentaly ruining the gameplay for the players.
-once again I have to give props to the staff because they directly talk to the players, and know that their customers are concerned about various issues and truly enjoy hearing reassuring statements from the people in charge to put their minds at ease. The devs don't hire people just to keep the players out of the loop but still paying money, they do their job and make a great game. For that we thank you.
-Greatest potential for growth than any other MMORPG out there today or being released any time soon. I can just imagine 7 years down the line with a LITERAL universe at our disposal instead of just a small corner of a galaxy, hundreds if not thousands of players online, and thinking back to the days when I recognized nearly everyone's name and enjoyed the simple pleasure of having a friendly 1v1 duel in Sedina B8. Do any of you people reading this know just how damn much these great guys we pay $10 a month to can accomplish in 7 years?

I just felt that I had to say something about my love for this game, feel free to add what you love if I left anything out!

*bugfree gameplay should be read as, "free of all bugs that have a significant impact on gameplay". As all of those minor bugs that I know of(nav jump bug when jumping was changed) have been fixed in a very timely manner, if you argue that VO is not bug free then you are a douchebag.

Overall, I love Vendetta b/c it's an MMORPG with awesome combat. How melee combat is enjoyable really baffles me. Instead of just pushing a button and waiting to see who dies in the end, you have combat that requires you to have quick reflexes and be able to manage your time/credits for your optimal ship.

This game has so much potential, and I'll miss the days of a small comunity where you would actually see the guy that just ran from a fight again and be able to blow him to smithereens =P

And, of course, you guys are awesome!

having been a hardcore VO supporter for over 3 years now I completely understand mainbutter. And I suspect that those of us who have been with VO the longest can really understand how far our devs will take us. The distance it's come so far is astounding, and my money will continue to go to guildsoftware. I played UO (before they carebearized it with the non-pvp world) and it was horribly buggy in comparison.

Yeah, I can think of 3 things: (5 things sir, 5!)

- MMORPG that runs on frikkin LINUX and Mac as well. Yay.

- Um, you can actually TALK to the game designers? I remember how my jaw DROPPED the first time I got an email response back from Mr. Bergman, less than 24 hours after I sent him an email. (I expected to never hear from them after sending in my suggestion via email, being experienced with other game companies.) Never mind their participation on these forums.

- There's no real "grind". You don't HAVE to get to level 10 before you can go down to grayspace. You do what you want, and you can be as deadly at level 4 as you are at level 10+, for the most part.

- "Twitch" based game. At first I thought I wouldn't like this, but after repeated deaths at the hands of many (you know who you are) I learned to really like it once I stopped dying EVERY time. Far more fun than any flight sim.

- And yeah, bug-free. Exploits are available sometimes, sure. But the fact that you can put out an essentially bug-free game for years and years, keeping pace with changing technologies and such, is really quite awesome. (I'm no programmer but 4 guys doing this over the course of 3 years is just... crazy.)

- I'd also like to state that I cannot even fathom the awesomeness of what Guild SW would be able to do with 8 developers, or 16, or 100. When you reach that critical point where you jump into the market and make the marketing push and hire staff and go balls to the wall to make Vendetta-Online the #1 MMORPG ever, I'm behind you guys 110%.

Another thing I really appreciate about this game is that not only is it available on Windows, Linux, and Mac. but it is also easily played on a variety of machines. You dont have to have an uber top of the line new age puter to play this game. You can play on a slower machine and fully enjoy all facets of the game and for those that do have awesome puters you can turn the graphics all the way up and make it that much better. That in itself is an awesome feat.

Heres to the Devs I say!

indeed, I useally play on a iMac G5, wich runs the game beautifully with glow effects and high res backgrounds and stuff, but the game allso runs great on my old 400 Mhz Ti powerbook (1st gen) allthough I have to turn all the graphics settings down, but it runs great, love it!

Ever since the day I heard a rumor about Privateer Online, I thought "Now geez, there's something I could get into... flying aruond in space... ship is under MY control... and lots of other players kicking around making the economy work!"

Then the project folded and I was upset.

I searched desperately for a good online space game... Tachyon: The Fringe came around, but it's multiplayer support never goto to MMO levels like they had claimed it one day would.

Disappointed again.

I looked around again, and I stumbled across Jumpgate, which did not impress me at all, but found Vendetta Online shortly thereafter.

There's just a je ne sais quoi about Vendetta that keeps me around... the active participation with the devs, a stable, functional, fast-paced universe, the ability to do whatever the heck you feel like doing, and a not-ridiculous learning curve.

I love how the devs take feedback and suggestions... they understand that the ideas and creativity of hundreds is broader than one or two. The players get what they want to see, rather than some corporate milled and recycled ideas with a monthly fee that approaches car insurance levels.

Keep it up

LeberMac, I up your bid to %120.

Lt. M. Duncan

The lag is nonexistent compared to ANY other mmo.
My god EA I hate you.
Running three mmo's...
All on the same servers.
GOD THE LAG!

The combat.
It's no super cool mouse emotes.
Your actually flying.
I didn't think it was possible to do in an mmo.

/me puts 50 samoflange on sacrificial alter

-The guys who run this game are smart, they are PROGRAMMERS
Yep.

props to the staff because they directly talk to the players
Word.

Instead of just pushing a button and waiting to see who dies in the end, you have combat that requires you to have quick reflexes
Verily.

- MMORPG that runs on frikkin LINUX and Mac as well.
Testify!

Vendetta Online = spacecrack incarnate

If I ever win the lottery, Guild Software is getting all the staff they need. ;D

haha I was just thinking that Phaserlight!

aaah- the sweet support of VO- yes someday there wont be so few people experiencing this Game- it will be hundreds- once the word gets out-
i support you Guild- and yes- my donation from the lottery win/ hit rock and roll single will go to guild software-
GUILD_ you really are doing something special here- we are all behind you--and loving every minute
--btw-- UO was only PvP?- thank god for changing that!!

Yeah, I guess if I had loads of moneys, I would send it to guild software for stuffs :) even if its just funneh stuffs, like errrm, more coke fore the OCF!

What set it apart for me though was the community, and the devs input into that community. There have been a lot of simaler projects also I have seen like vendetta, a great idea to begin with - most dont get past posting on some forum/mail list *omg, my game will pwn* - look how far its come, thinking back, wow.

Thanks for all the support, everyone. Responses like this are a big part of what keep us working on the game. Watching excitement over the new features.. wanting to make the game of people's dreams. That makes it worthwhile.

Back before we released a public version (Vendetta Test 2.2.2 back in May of 2002), we worked in a complete vacuum. Just us, and a theoretical ideal of a game (and an idea of a game company, for that matter). I imagine it was much like the way other games are probably made, except with a smaller team and more tenuous financial ground. For us, opening things up and having a supportive community evolve completely changed how we worked on and perceived the game. All of a sudden we had this group of people who had emotionally invested themselves wholeheartedly into what we were doing.. and cheered when we did something right and booed when we did something wrong, and got to see it all play out week by week, release by release. And as much of a double-edged sword as that can be at certain times, the benefits have always massively outweighed the few grey hairs I've acquired now and then :). Our userbase *became* what was it all about.

There have been some pretty rough points for me (like Christmas of 2003 http://www.insidemacgames.com/news/story.php?ArticleID=8981 ), when I had a hard time staying enthusiastic about making the game in the face of difficulties. And any time when that happened, I have always been able to rediscover my enthusiasm, my love for building this game towards its lofty goals.. through YOU, our userbase. Through reading Suggestions posts and spending time in-game and really *feeling* the support and enthusiasm that so many of you have for this.. project or game or universe or idea or however you perceive it. The value of that is incredible. Without you all, and your enthusiasm for what we're doing, we would probably not even have made it to shipping the game last November. Thank you so much for that.

And thank you for your continued support. The very existence of this game is against all the odds. It really says something about the wonders of the Internet, and how people will support the tiny developer who takes the wild longshot and does things a little differently, if it's something that people really want to play. Seeing that gives me a lot of hope and excitement for all of us who go off in directions different from the established norm.

Somehow, from the typical active players we routinely, it doesn't feel like the situation changed much.

Has the game started paying for itself yet?

I really hope things turn out well for you guys because my wife having her own companies (2), I know what it's like when things take a downturn (and shelling out for the bills and rebuilding things up).

This is why I kept my subscription running although I've hardly connected over the summer (heavy schedule kept me away).

Now I'm happy to be back more or less regularly with the challenges of catching up with other players and trying to rebuild a guild that's had it's share of rough times.

Thanks for all your hard work guys. you're the only game (other than Burning Monkey Solitaire!) to have won my hearth.

Seeing that gives me a lot of hope and excitement for all of us who go off in directions different from the established norm.

Amen!

YARRRRRR

well put