State of the game: Clearing up any confusion.

[[ICE]_Beastman]

Dark Matter was originally planned to be a self-funded game, but in able to elaborate more on the immersive story-line, a Kickstarter project was devised. The idea was to make it a larger, more epic title, with significantly more levels and selling at full price ($30). Sadly, the Kickstarter project failed to reach the target amount and this idea had to be abandoned.

The idea was then formed to make Dark Matter an episodic series, with episodes selling at a budget price of $14.99. Any further episodes would, however, need to be dependent on the success of the previous instalment. The first instalment is what has launched recently on Steam and is simply called Dark Matter.

We would like to stress that the game is exactly as described on Steam (including that it contains 14 levels) – it is simply not true that the game is unfinished, or unplayable. Some people have misquoted the developer as having admitted that the game is incomplete; we should reiterate that what was meant was that this is not the $30 full-priced game, but the episodic budget version (currently selling at $13,49 at 10% off).

There are presently something like 5-9 hours of absorbing and highly entertaining gameplay to be had. However, like with all games, it is possible for the game to take longer or indeed a shorter time to complete, if you do not explore all areas and collect all pick-ups. We still feel , like many gamers have also posted, that the game offers value for money and is an enjoyable gaming experience throughout.

It is true however, that at present, the end of the game may cause confusion and is not satisfactory. We sincerely apologise for this, as it is not of the standard we would expect. We are working to offer a more conclusive and satisfying ending to the game as we speak and expect a fix to appear as soon we are able to.

Erik Schreuder
CEO
Iceberg Interactive

[gusgreco7]

stll confused. is this the full game or are you planning on releasing more episodes?
its exactly the type of game i enjoy but all these discussions about the ending have made me wait

[himmatsj]

Nice. I totally love how $15 is considered a "budget price". FTW!

Also, are you now CONFIRMING it is episodic in nature? Earlier on, you or another dev said this is the end product and there are no immediate plans whatsoever to work on an Episode 2 or any continuation of some sort.

Finally, can you please address accusations that the version currently being sold on Steam is almost 100% the same as the DEMO that was sent to journalists and vloggers around the time of the Kickstarter campaign?

[Djavo]

so its not a finished product. i understand like that. the thing is, i like the game but not the attitude of developers. the end of the game is like developers are making fun with us. shame on you.

[[ICE]_Beastman]

It is a finished product, but not as big nor as expensive as it could have been. Any sequels will depend on this game's success.

Any references to sequels should not have been left in, nor are we happy with the current ending. This will be patched, just as minor bugs will be fixed.

[Djavo]

so why didnt you make the ending reasonable first and then sell it? did you ever check the ending before the official release as a CEO of Iceberg Interactive? Have you ever played the ending?

[Arrakis]

You guys might've gotten a lot less outrage about this if you had sold it as "episode 1" instead of just dark matter. I can understand a lot of people feeling ripped off by this, which sadly isn't good publicity for you guys and makes the chance of an episode 2 less likely :(

[TheUncleanOutcast]

This clears up a lot of questions I had, I'm currently enjoying the heck out of this game! I however do agree that perhaps changing it's title to Dark Matter: Episode 1 or something like that may help prospective purchasers, other than that good work! (sucks that your kickstarter didn't go as planned)

[himmatsj]

I am with @djavo

If you aren't happy with the ending, why did it even make it to retail in this manner? Can we trust the games that you decide to publish in the future?

[[ICE]_Beastman]

We have considered labelling it Episode 1 but we felt this could also be constrived as misleading as it isn't certan that there will be an Episode 2. So we had to make a choice. Like with any new gaming universe there are always more stories to be told but finances will dictate its viability.

I do hear you about the ending and this is a severe oversight on our and the developer's part. This is certainly not typical for our games and we definitely strive to better ourselves in that regard. The ending-situation will be rectified as soon a humanly possible.

[Kemp_J]

So basically, "this is all you're getting unless you convince everyone else to buy it"? Great business strategy...

All someone has to do is look at the state of the game (not just the ending) and look at how the game is advertised on the store page and it's clear that 1) the episodic thing is something you thought of just now and 2) the game isn't leading in to other future content, it's simply incomplete.

[Shylaar]

Right, total backpedalling then, okay. So what about as himmatsj said, how the game appears identical to the demo build released months ago?

[Anti02Gang]

You should've put this on Early Access. Now all you're getting is bad names and publication.

Good luck defending yourself from internet's wrath.

[himmatsj]

Początkowo opublikowane przez ICE_Beastman:

...we should reiterate that what was meant was that this is not the $30 full-priced game, but the episodic budget version (currently selling at $13,49 at 10% off).

See, another big fat lie right there. The Kickstarter backers who paid $12 were promised the full game on release. Generally, Kickstarter backers get games for slightly cheaper (or the same price) as the final version. If you are saying the full price was to be $30 (come on, who're you trying to kid, eh?), then backers got it for almost a third! Which is a joke, isn't it?

I can safely assume $15 was the intended price all along, and now you guys are caught in a terrible web of lies that there is a point of no return.

PS: Kickstarter games usually cost $5 less than the final version (and usually the same as the pre-release price). So that's why I deduce $30 seems unlikely.

[Krelian]

imagine buying "Alice in Wonderland" book with the part about Wonderland being ripped off. There's a glued post-it right after the rabbit hole sequence that says "Alice discovered a magical land, made many friends and ultimately escaped the fury of the Queen of Hearts. THE END"
It IS a finished book, delivers the story of Alice going into Wonderland "as advertised", but still...

[popcornAC]

Początkowo opublikowane przez himmatsj:

Początkowo opublikowane przez ICE_Beastman:

...we should reiterate that what was meant was that this is not the $30 full-priced game, but the episodic budget version (currently selling at $13,49 at 10% off).

See, another big fat lie right there. The Kickstarter backers who paid $12 were promised the full game on release. Generally, Kickstarter backers get games for slightly cheaper (or the same price) as the final version. If you are saying the full price was to be $30 (come on, who're you trying to kid, eh?), then backers got it for almost a third! Which is a joke, isn't it?

I can safely assume $15 was the intended price all along, and now you guys are caught in a terrible web of lies that there is a point of no return.

The Kickstarter failed. So that no longer matters