Chris Roberts Back in your wallet - STAR CITIZEN

[Nija]

This is almost too good to be true, but apparently his WIFE is the VP of Marketing:

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/12913-Meet-Sandi-Gardiner

Prior to this position she was a model/actress. Totally qualified, no doubt!

[Pennilenko]

It's like Sigil and 38 had a baby, and now it's all grown up.

[schild]

No one exists to "cancel" it.

[schild]

I mean, none of this should shock anyone. That people gave it money to begin with was shocking to me. Now look where we are. A non-existent game with more economic viability than Greece.

[Merusk]

"Actress"

Waitresses give her a run for the credits list she's got. Two of the "known for" appearances are as herself in her husbands hype series. The rest look like uncredited parts or filler one line roles.
http://m.imdb.com/name/nm1667407/

Man this game has everything. Ponzi-esk funding strategy, nepotism, crazy blind faith type customers, ridiculous scope, blown out release schedule.

Any other industry on the planet would cancel the fuck out of this thing.

Any other industry has to deal with adults rather than introverted adult- children and teens.

[Nija]

Apparently if you mention anything about hiring his wife/brother on their forum it's an instant ban.

[Khaldun]

I actually think any industry on this planet would envy the whole thing. As long as they didn't plan to be in business ten years later. Certainly every grifter on the planet is looking on this with awe and admiration and tender love.

[Margalis]

I'll also say that I only payed forty dollars for the game and alpha access. Every dime after that I consider payment rendered for getting to watch the fascinating process of a game getting made.

This is truly the saddest form of rationalization. This is the same thing Broken Age backers said - I'm funding a fascinating documentary! (The documentary was super boring and also eventually free...)

These people fund a game, then at some point they realize the game isn't what they imagined, but rather than just admit it they retroactively fit on another reason they spent money. It's like buying meat, finding out it's spoiled, then claiming what you really bought was the colorful packaging plus now you've learned a valuable lesson about spoilage.

The process here isn't fascinating at all, beyond how they've been able to manipulate people for money by making outlandish promises. But that's less game making and more scheming.

[Tebonas]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

Yes, this woman seems supremely qualified for a corporate job. 

[MisterNoisy]

At least he didn't place her in a department that actually has to do anything.

[Ginaz]

This is almost too good to be true, but apparently his WIFE is the VP of Marketing:

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/comm-link/transmission/12913-Meet-Sandi-Gardiner

Prior to this position she was a model/actress. Totally qualified, no doubt!

Good Lord.

"She is of Philippine, Chinese, Native American (mother) and Welsh, English (father) descent."  What?  No Italian, Spanish, Korean or Jamaican?  How about Mongolian?
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1667407/  

This is going to be so fun to watch.

[Velorath]

Apparently if you mention anything about hiring his wife/brother on their forum it's an instant ban.

Asking if Chris and Sandi are married also seems to be frowned upon by the mods.

[Falconeer]

This is the most irrelevant piece of information ever, but it doesn't seem so easy to find out if they are married or not. So basically, if it isn't mentioned anywhere, why are people speculating they are to begin with? Just a rumor?

[Cyrrex]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

Yes, this woman seems supremely qualified for a corporate job. 

If that comment is for real, then there isn't a facepalm big enough respond with.

[Tebonas]

Its a quote from their offical website. If they made that up because they think its cute thats bad marketing and even worse. Hope the president of Marketing doesn't get wind of this. 

[croaker69]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

Yes, this woman seems supremely qualified for a corporate job. 

I also lol'd reading that. So you're saying you don't understand standard corporate hierarchy and now you're at the top of one. Gold.

[Yegolev]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

Yes, this woman seems supremely qualified for a corporate job. 

Amazing.

[HaemishM]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

Yes, this woman seems supremely qualified for a corporate job. 

I also lol'd reading that. So you're saying you don't understand standard corporate hierarchy and now you're at the top of one. Gold.

Yeah, I couldn't read beyond that line. I'm sure all the people who are now under her just LOVE that she can't figure out why she has the title. Maybe she was trying to be "cute" but it really just came off as fucking clueless. I think Curt Schilling is going to have to go loan shopping. He's too competitive to let this much of a fuckup go unchallenged.

[Malakili]

And again...
EDIT BY SCHILD: DON'T LINK TO THIS WASTE OF OXYGEN.

My article which I wrote, was a result of my observation that there is another industry disaster brewing, and which is, once again, going to not only cast the industry in a poor light if we didn’t do something, but which threatens to make it that much harder for the inbound generation to find their footing, because a bunch of people who came before, pretty much made it FUBAR.

And during my research for the piece, and for which I have hundreds of web articles, forum posts etc in an Evernote notepad, I came across a lot of things that I wasn’t even aware of. And once the article went live, I started hearing from all kinds of people in media, game development, gamers etc. And the more I read, the more I came to the realization that my article, which was merely a technical wake-up call of sorts, hadn’t even touched the tip of the iceberg. Which is why I am adding this next paragraph.

If you feel that you have been misled when you backed the Star Citizen project after Oct, 2012, and you want a chance to get your money back, the FTC has setup a special department that deals with crowd-funding complaints. You can fill out this form. Then select “Internet services, online shopping, or computers” then “Online shopping”. You can read more about that over here.

Cloud Imperium, LLC
9255 Sunset Blvd STE 803
West Hollywood, CA 90069
http://robertsspaceindustries.com
ir@cloudimperiumgames.com

 

Also, that VP of Marketing thing is just fantastic.  I mean, really, just great.

[Ginaz]

Maybe Roberts can get a job at the Pentagon designing military equipment.  I think he'd fit right in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=225&v=aXQ2lO3ieBA

[justdave]

And again...

My article which I wrote, was a result of my observation that there is another industry disaster brewing, and which is, once again, going to not only cast the industry in a poor light if we didn’t do something, but which threatens to make it that much harder for the inbound generation to find their footing, because a bunch of people who came before, pretty much made it FUBAR.

And during my research for the piece, and for which I have hundreds of web articles, forum posts etc in an Evernote notepad, I came across a lot of things that I wasn’t even aware of. And once the article went live, I started hearing from all kinds of people in media, game development, gamers etc. And the more I read, the more I came to the realization that my article, which was merely a technical wake-up call of sorts, hadn’t even touched the tip of the iceberg. Which is why I am adding this next paragraph.

If you feel that you have been misled when you backed the Star Citizen project after Oct, 2012, and you want a chance to get your money back, the FTC has setup a special department that deals with crowd-funding complaints. You can fill out this form. Then select “Internet services, online shopping, or computers” then “Online shopping”. You can read more about that over here.

Cloud Imperium, LLC
9255 Sunset Blvd STE 803
West Hollywood, CA 90069
http://robertsspaceindustries.com
ir@cloudimperiumgames.com

 

Also, that VP of Marketing thing is just fantastic.  I mean, really, just great.

Is it racist if I say 'pot, kettle, black' too loudly in response to that?

[Fabricated]

Ðerek Smart has another long rambling missive on facebook and it is pretty good.

[Fabricated]

Also why do we word filter his name it's like the year of our lord 2015 not 1997 or some fucking shit where he could find us searching for his own name

[Trippy]

Cause he has Google Alerts turned on for his name.

[schild]

And because he is human trash. The waste product of misspent DNA.

[Abagadro]

But...he has a TESLA!

[Falconeer]

If I am reading this right, he issued an ultimatum to Chris Roberts, with a deadline. Failing to meet his requests will unleash to the media an open letter with the dirty secret truth about Star Citizen, which according to Smart should interest the US Federal Trade Commission.

EDIT: He claims it's worse than 38 Studios.

[Sir T]

If people at to look at the dark ones blog indirectly you can look at this article which uses part of his points to talk about what they call legitimate issues.

http://www.pcinvasion.com/star-citizen-will-never-get-made

Also the Star Citizen Reddit is quite vocal at the moment, quite amusingly so in fact. 

[Jeff Kelly]

Once you get past the self promotion of the rest of his blog about how awesome he and his games have been, he does have a lot of valid points about Star Citizen.  I'm willing to bet his MMO will be released and have more people actually playing it than SC ever will, which is really kind of  .

Well he has put the 10,000 hours in that are needed - at least according to Malcolm Gladwell - to make you be great at what you do. Well it only made him be somewhat less shitty at his job than when he started so maybe Gladwells theory needs some additional work. It made him more competent than Chris Roberts when it comes to actually release games though, which is a scary thought.

[Jeff Kelly]

This is almost too good to be true, but apparently his WIFE is the VP of Marketing: Prior to this position she was a model/actress. Totally qualified, no doubt!

You wouldn't believe just how common it is for small or medium sized businesses to employ the wife or girlfriend (or mistress) of the President as the person responsible for marketing or human resources.

[Jeff Kelly]

As VP of Marketing (although I’m not sure about the title VP as it stands for Vice-President and there isn’t anyone above me in the Marketing Department)

You are vice president because you are one rung below the president of the company you stupid dolt!

[Jeff Kelly]

EDIT: He claims it's worse than 38 Studios.

Which wouldn't suprise me at all.

[IainC]

Yeah 38 studios, didn't get enough money to make a game and then didn't make a game. It wasn't any kind of surprise to the people watching. It only blew up because of public money being thrown at a celebrity, some shitty treatment on employees around the time that the money ran out and Curt Schillings breathtaking hypocrisy. SC on the other hand has had far more money than they needed to make the game they (initially) pitched and still haven't made it.

[KallDrexx]

I didn't realize the kickstarter was 2 years ago already

[Falconeer]

Way closer to three years ago. Kickstarter ended (raising 2.1M) on November 2012.