Supreme Commander 2 Demo Arrives on Steam, Steamworks DRM Confirmed

My demo review/rant/message to Chris Taylor and the SupCom2 Devs:

I'm 29 and I've been gaming since I can remember. I still remember the days when I played the original TA in 1997. That game, its expansion, and the original SupCom were fantastic games. I've played TA via the Spring engine a bunch as well, and playing the game with friends always resulted in epic memories and battles.

People complained about some of the changes in SupCom and the way the tech tiers progressed, but balance issues aside, the gameplay felt very similar to the original. This fact along with the recent videos made me pretty excited for SupCom2. I thought the new experimentals were interesting, and the research/tech/upgrades system sounded like a great way to add depth to an already awesomely complex and engaging series. I was completely ready to buy a new, upgraded version.

However, having played the demo, I just can't help but feel as though everything is too simple. The depth the series had is gone. What's left is just a shell. The feeling of accomplishment of building a gigantic unit is gone due to the low cost and low hitpoints of the experimentals, which are now basically flashy mass produced crap.

The economy that always made the series unique has been trashed in favor of the same old standard RTS resource model. Whatever happened to deficit spending? Queueing up giant forests of turrets/dragon's teeth/walls/etc is gone. Partially building stuff and having to stop and watch it decay because you need the materials for some other emergency is gone. Setting up a never ending queue or loop of units is gone.

WHAT THE HELL were you thinking when you stripped away everything that made the TA series unique and wonderful? Is nothing sacred in the world of multi-platform gaming? Gaming has gone from an art form to mass produced crap just like the rest of mainstream America. Do yourselves a favor and stay away from this thing.

Huge points for actually putting a demo out before the game's release, though. That does say you stand by your product and you're willing to let people try before they buy. Way too many game companies hype up sequels people end up regretting purchases of because there wasn't a demo. I'd be willing to say 50%+ of game piracy numbers are people wanting to try games or sequels to awesome games that don't have demos, confirming their disappointment in the new game and uninstalling it.

If this is the intended direction for the TA franchise and the devs are honestly behind the changes, then good for you guys and I wish you luck or something...I'm just extremely disappointed and I will not be along for the ride.

I hate posting TL;DR versions since it feels like I'm dumbing down my post for idiots, but if you're having an ADD moment, it's CRAP.