Farming simulator 21 release?

[Achtung Baby]

Not at all. That's all I asked for.
[don't like the winking part of that smiley, but it's the most appropriate one.]

I'll just temper it slightly by saying that only accounts for the first 10 days after release and that periods of Steam sales and Epic Stores' giveaway might sway things slightly back towards PC since, though I still fully expect consoles to be out in the lead.

No worries, I'll link them up next time.

But the signs are already in that consoles will be a more defining factor in revenue for Giants. I'm ok with that, I've been in a minority ever since buying a iMac. It's a good thing because they now have another source of income if PC sales decline.

[Mobias]

Just remember when you're considering how much cash revenue Giants make from sales across all platforms Sony and Microsoft take a 30% cut for each individual console sale. PC sales may well be less over all but the profit margin may be greater.

[this_is_gav]

Just remember when you're considering how much cash revenue Giants make from sales across all platforms Sony and Microsoft take a 30% cut for each individual console sale. PC sales may well be less over all but the profit margin may be greater.

Especially when buying direct from GIANTS, cutting out store fees (Steam usually takes around 30% too).

[Bigrobmjca]

I’m not sure about y’all, but at least, for me, when 19 was released, there a growing period for the game. If they released a new game in November 21, it would at least Q2 2022 before many people would jump on board. Remember, when 19 came out, many people like myself bought it day one, toyed around with it, and didn’t touch it for many months to allow the mod community to work on it. I highly suspect that the next release will be the same.

[Bryan83]

I’m not sure about y’all, but at least, for me, when 19 was released, there a growing period for the game. If they released a new game in November 21, it would at least Q2 2022 many people would jump on board. Remember, when 19 came out, many people like myself bought it day one, toyed around with it, and didn’t touch it for many months to allow the mod community to work on it. I highly suspect that the next release will be the same.

Now I was different. I was heavy into 15, never did much with 17, but jumped wholly into 19 when I got it.

[farmerdonnie]

wait for a official announcement or speculate thats fun lol

[this_is_gav]

I’m not sure about y’all, but at least, for me, when 19 was released, there a growing period for the game. If they released a new game in November 21, it would at least Q2 2022 before many people would jump on board. Remember, when 19 came out, many people like myself bought it day one, toyed around with it, and didn’t touch it for many months to allow the mod community to work on it. I highly suspect that the next release will be the same.

Each game sold record amounts (by quite a margin) in the weeks after release. FS19 sold "over a million" in the first 10 days and it took half a year to double that.

A small hardcore community waiting for a few patches and essential mods or to see how it well received it is isn't going to put a dent in sales figures of over a million in the first month.

FS2x will be quite a significant release though as that "small hardcore community" (especially modders) want to see the game FS19 should have been as if they stop enjoying it then eventually they'll stop creating content for it. I think many are treating FS19 as a blip and thus hoping to get by with what we have (either FS17 or 19) and that the franchise hits the ground running with the next game, and with an extra year of feedback, development and testing there will be no excuses.

[Perbjorkhem]

what i should have said was there should be a free mode (aka what we have now) and story mode. I like the idea of going through the ages, but my idea was more of you inherit a old run down farm and you have to clean it up and upgrade the equipment.

That would be awesome!
A very good idea.

[Mobias]

I think people need to realise how much the additional game modes they added to FS-19, and certainly in respect to how they worked with the placeables system, mucked everything up for map makers. Its a big reason there's been fewer decent maps for FS-19 and its a big reason why maps have taken longer to make.

So I would say be careful what you wish for when asking for even more game and story modes be added into it and think about how that would impact making maps. If anything I'd like to see Giants row back on the game modes and placeables system. Just leave it to the people making the maps to do everything they want or need to do to make their maps great. The game will be all the better for it, as FS-17 proved.

[cwattyeso]

I don't agree with that Mobias, and in fact I heard a Streamer the other day commenting similar BS that due to the changes made by Giants in FS19 and the new placeable system etc it made all the map makers and mod makers quit, so no maps or mods came out for the game and because of that the game got boring and they stopped playing and it was such an awful disappointment for him. Well that guy must have stopped playing in the first week the game released because mods were coming out literally a week later on PC (ModHub mods took a bit longer, console mods longer still) from makers directly via their own pages and groups and other 3rd Party Sites.

2 years later we're at a point where there are now more maps and mods for FS19 on Giants own ModHub then there are Maps and Mods for all their previous entries in the series. Sure it took some map makers and modders a little while longer to get used to the changes and new features of the game, but since then we've had a lot of very high quality stuff come out and some very creative stuff with some very clever ways to do things in game with the systems it has.

I know there are still a few vocal people that play FS17 and try to make out it's the best game and FS19 is a massive fail and complete rubbish, but I honestly think they either need to start taking some medication or get whatever they are already taking checked because FS19 is by far the best entry in this series.

[this_is_gav]

Suggesting medication as a cause for a completely subjective issue doesn't paint you in a particularly good light.

Most of the (constructive) criticisms aimed at FS19 can be justified. I don't agree with all and clearly you don't agree with most and that's fine, but just sweeping them aside with zero context or reasoning comes across as rather defensive and fanboyish.

There are entirely justifiable reasons for preferring FS17 to FS19. Medication doesn't come into it.

PS, I prefer FS19 overall and probably 90% of my playtime has been on that, but have dabbled in FS17 since FS19's release too. Both have areas where one is stronger than the other.

[cwattyeso]

Most of the (constructive) criticisms aimed at FS19 can be justified. I don't agree with all and clearly you don't agree with most and that's fine, but just sweeping them aside with zero context or reasoning comes across as rather defensive and fanboyish.

Again the context here is that for whatever reason in the space of a week I've now seen/heard this factually incorrect statement that all the map makers and modders quit the Farming Simulator series after FS17 because Giants made too many changes and added two much new stuff to FS19 and it was too difficult and too time consuming to make maps and mods for the game, so Giants need to take the game back to FS17 because its the better game and better to mod for. When actually the numbers for FS19 mods speak quite clearly that there are people making maps and mods for the game, there are many new map and mod makers coming out all the time, with many new to the series. Certainly I'd wager we've gained more modders during FS19s life then we actually lost between the change from FS17 to FS19. It just seems that because a few High Profile ones still get a bit vocal and still remind everyone they still exist from time to time, that people believe that FS19 is rubbish for mods and is a rubbish game.

Now I too like you Gav have occasionally tried to dabble in FS17 since FS19s release, but usually just to remind me of what improvements the series has made. I for one think the placeable system in FS19 is a vast improvement to the game from FS17, where everything was baked into the map and players didn't have the freedom to add or remove their own stuff. Upon firing up FS17 I quickly become frustrated at not being able to remove objects from my farms, or place a handy new silo or vehicle shed where I want it. I like the fact in FS19 I have the option to have animals or not on my farm, I can play maps with no animal husbandry installed, where as with FS17 most maps have the animals installed and baked in, normally nowhere near the farm which makes it a trek and job to go fill and maintain them, nor can you remove them. Being able to put the animal pens where I want them and for convenience in FS19 is a nice improvement.

I will say FS17 contract system I enjoy more then FS19, not so much the time limits and the race against the clock, but the facts that when I do a contract for a farmer, I have a reputation with them which increases and over time with more jobs completed I can save money when I want to buy their land as they give me a discount. I wish that was in FS19, and would give another level of importance to players doing contracts. I also liked in FS17 when you "Borrowed" the Farmers equipment to do a contract it spawn at the field, and if it was a sowing contract or fertilising contract it was fully filled. The change in FS19 with contract equipment makes no sense, and I did open a report on it last year which to be Giants did acknowledge but said it's not something they could change in the game, but maybe for future entries. I'd like it if when doing contracts you had the option to Borrow the farmers equipment which could be old/small broken down rubbish but fully filled and ready to go at no extra cost to the player, or you could lease from the store some newer/bigger equipment at an obvious fee but be able to do the contract, or use your own equipment and be able to charge the farmer more for doing the work, as he's now having to compensate you for using your machines. I'd have loved it though in FS19 if the contracts over time, got me a discount on the field prices, that I miss more, because obviously in FS19 some maps and plots of land come with very step values. One thing however I don't like about FS19 contract system, is that when it comes to Borrowed/Leased Equipment it has such a limited pool offered to players, FS17 used to offer you DLC Vehicles and even Modded Vehicles which was very nice. FS19 doesn't even offer you the chance to lease any of your purchased DLC equipment when doing contracts, which is a great shame as some of that stuff is nice and was expensive to purchase.

Graphics can be a subjective area of discussion I agree. I feel when I go back to FS17 it looks too "Cartoony" and think FS19 looks a little more realistic and nicer. However when FS17 came out and I first played it I thought it looked pretty damn good compared to FS15. The Graphics are
still not perfect, but I doubt we'll ever get truly photo realistic graphics in a Farm Sim game. I definitely think the vehicles and equipment look nicer in FS19, this is very noticeable anytime you get a mod of an FS17 vehicle that's been Cloud Converted in Giants Editor and then released without the author doing any more to bring it up to the correct standards. You put an FS17 vehicle next to an FS19 vehicle and the quality difference is noticeable by all.

[Illinois Farmer]

On the contract part for fs19 vs fs17. I think it is more realistic to have to go fill up your equipment before using it. Irl the person isn't going to come out and fill your equipment before using it. That's silly. You are repaid of your martial, fuel, etc, within the price of the contract. I don't know how many times you have worked for someone, but they just write one check of how much fuel and material it cost you. One idea though is with seed, usually they plant what they want. Since the game is all seed that doesn't matter and you still get repaid after you compete the work. Really I think they should take out the borrow equipment function, unless you get a lesser price for an hourly rate and a hire worker.

[cwattyeso]

The bit I didn't like was when in one of the early patches for FS19 Giants made it so the equipment you leased from the Store for a contract could not be used on other contracts of similar type. That's where the game and contracts got really messed up and confusing. If I'm Borrowing the Farmer's Equipment then firstly it should be at his farm/field and it should be all fuelled and filled up ready to go. I'm in this situation just a hired hand, collecting a day fee for doing something he could have done himself but is too busy doing something else. I should however not have to pay to use the farmer's own equipment to do his job on his field. I also accept if I'm borrowing Mr Jones' equipment he wouldn't like it if I then went down the road and used it on Mr Brown's field before returning it.

Now if however I decide to ignore the option to borrow the farmer's equipment and instead choose to lease/demo something else instead to do the job and wanting a bit more freedom then as to who else I can take work for after that job, then yes I expect to have to pay a fee for that or receive a reduction in the amount paid on a contract, I also expect I'd need to go to the store and pickup the leased/demo equipment and that I would need to fill it. I do however think if I have paid to hire a machine or several pieces of machinery from the store, I shouldn't be limited as to what field I can use it on. I'm not sure in real life a farmer would have to lease/borrow 5 combine harvesters if he has five fields to harvest. I'm sure he'd lease/borrow one and do all 5 fields with that one machine. I should be able to batch contract work if I'm leasing the machine. Yes I know this is still technically possible on PC with mods, but I think for Console Players that was quite a negative change that slowed their progression in the early game, before government subsidiary mods and other ways for them to boost their farms cash came along.

I also think that if I'm bringing my own equipment to do your contract, for example I'm bringing two harvesters, two tractors with auger wagons and a truck and trailer to do your barley harvest and then transport the crop to your customer I damn sure need to be paid more then the $2,000 your offering for me to do the job with your crappy Bizon Harvester and a single tractor and trailer. I've done the job in 1/50th time it would have took otherwise, so does efficiency and productive not deserve more reward?

[Illinois Farmer]

Miss the whole concept. If you don't own a piece of equipment than you wouldn't be doing contracting jobs irl. A dealer isn't going to let some Joe slow up to rent everything needed to go to everyone's farm and farm their fields. That's why in game you have to lease each farmers piece or do it with yours. If you use yours, you can go to other farms. Also I think you get over paid for using the farmers stuff. You should get like 10 to 20 dollars an hr. Also, on your bison example I'm guessing the field is small and that's anything under 40 acres. One, you don't need more that one wagon in that case. Two, once again you are a hire man, no way do you deserve more than 2000 dollars. You are overpaid already. Three, if you use your own equipment it still isn't worth 2000 dollars for a small field.