So cowboy got removed, plague spitter got added and now plague spitter is removed and cowboy is being returned.
Jars added in, get removed and are now being returned again.
That is a very simplistic way to put it that doesn't really accurately fit what is happening. They did not remove the cowboy and then add in the plague spitter, and now are adding back that same cowboy. The plague spitter didn't replace the original cowboy. There were years between the models. The new model going in is a rancher wearing a cowboy hat but in no way contains any of the original code. The community complained that the Plague Spitter did not fit the lore and TFP agreed and created a brand new model. You trying to claim that they just brought back the old cowboy is silly.
When jars come back they will not be coming back in exactly the way they were implemented before. They are not simply returning the game state back to what it was before they removed the jars and added the dew collector. The new feature combines what we had with what we have now and is the result of community feedback plus the resources and development that happened in between. If TFP were to just revert then I agree that it would constitute a huge waste of time and money for them. But they are not flip flopping back to what was. It is a new game state coming out in 4.5 and in no way a simple return to what once was.
How much time and money was wasted on the plague spitter? Same with now having to back track and add in features most people didn't want removed yet the team decided to remove them anyway but then after so much backlash and negative reviews on steam they are bring back certain features and zombies which of course delays 3.0 which according to someone is our fault that these delays happen.
There was no waste. TFP still owns the asset and can use it down the road for any future game they create. As for the AI and behavior and animations, none of that will go to waste as they will be applied to the new model. The rancher will still vomit out bees so the new 2.0 feature remains intact while the community gets a character that is more immersive and fitting for the setting of the game.
The game has had a lot of experimental and partially worked on assets and systems and features removed. That is all standard fare for any creative production. Nothing that was removed is being returned now other than in name only. The empty jars are coming back but in a completely different way than they were implemented before. Smell is being implemented completely differently than it was before. It is not the same feature you might remember. Temperature, clothing, and wetness are all being redone and implemented in new ways and not just pasted back in the way they used to be. As I said, you are over-simplifying this. Only you know your motives for doing so.
Rick said words that could be taken as an explanation of what to expect or be taken as blame. He never outright stated that they are blaming the community for further delays of 3.0. He did state that because TFP has chosen to respond to the feedback, that they would need to delay 3.0 features and that people should expect that. The fact that only some people took the words as blame but others did not shows that the words themselves aren't blaming. It is simply the perception of each person.
I really wish the team would have stuck with what worked in alpha 16 and just built upon it instead of gutting almost everything that made this game good and turned it into the mess we have now where most PC players are relying on mods for a better experience and console players are stuck with whatever they got.
I'm so glad they did not. The modern game is so much better than A16 was in my opinion. As for console players, you needn't worry for them. The reviews are overwhelmingly positive with most who played the old Telltale version very pleased with the new version. Of course, you can't please everyone so there will be some who preferred the old game but they are the minority. Most of them don't feel stuck with anything inferior even though you feel it for them on their behalf.
No clue how much money went into the other game but it looks like its DoA and adds another blemish.
Despite the efforts of a certain influencer's crew, it isn't DOA. Seems like you are one of those trying to push that narrative. Time will tell but people like you said the same thing about 7 Days to Die back in 2013 and 2014 but here it is today alive and strong and wildly successful.
For a game that was in early access for 11 years and has been in full release since July 25, 2024 it is insane that we are still missing so many things and the team still doesn't have a proper plan on what to keep and what to remove.
There is a proper plan. That plan is on hold for a few months while the developers craft a community update but it hasn't been abandoned. It really shows that people like you will never be happy. If they stick to their proper plan you castigate them for ignoring the community and for making the edits and cuts and streamlining necessary for their proper plan. If they agree to implement some things that the community has been asking for then you criticize them for failing to follow their plan.
