Nice rant. Factually solid, etc.
That said, you missed the punchline. The punchline is that … when we see Bethesda scorn these principles, it really is all over. Is Bethesda scorning these principles? Yes, but … I would not agree that these things are examples of that …
- Fallout 76. Wanna make an MMO and sell it as an MMO? Fine.
- Elder Scrolls Online. Wanna make an MMO and sell it as an MMO? Fine.
- Creation Club. Wanna sell DLC a la carte? Fine. (I’ve never seen any sign these licenses “phone home” for validation.)
But …
- Mislead us re: 76 by promising moddability, when it actually looks like the end of the road for moddability? Bait and switch. Bad. (No, client-side UI mods don’t count.)
- Rumor: Bethesda is angling for a Minecratft-like store for its solo games where creators can get paid. Fine, but are they really doing that so creators get paid? NO. They’re doing it for their percentage of each sale. Otherwise they’d leave us to the Patreon-driven economy. IF the new store rumors are true, they’re going to price me out of my 2000 mod Skyrim build and my 1000 mod Fallout 4 build. So no, they’re not aiming to be helpful.