Next storyline part.

[pagohogo]

Hi all. Is there at least an approximate release date for the final part of the storyline? I'm almost on my 50th game day of playing and the plague is spreading like a prairie fire. It's very frustrating removing the green mist by inches while it grows by meters at the other end of the camp. At this stage, the game is no longer fun at all.
I was commenting in another thread that I would really like a mod of the game completely plague-free. Just peaceful building, exploring, hunting (fishing). The current frustration confirms me in this opinion.

[Altor]

The storyline should have an option to at least stop the blight. You can come up with something to eliminate it later or maybe change it. If this poison is everywhere, performance will also become worse. I am getting FPS down till 40.

[Salvatos]

Early Access has only just begun and this is a solo dev project. Plus I believe he’s said that the rest of the story would come closer to final release and now most of the work would be on features and mechanics (which makes sense, you don’t want people finishing the story years before you finish implementing mechanics). So, respectfully, I would say you need to revise your expectations, and maybe come back to the game later, because it won’t come anytime soon.

If you want to play without Blight (the clouds, anyway), you can go off the map and play at a more leisurely pace there. You still have to deal with contaminated food and Blight storms, but you don’t have to worry about spores encroaching on all your favorite places. And in case you missed it, Easier mode slows down the growth of Blight and the depletion of hunger/thirst as well as reduces the number of predators, so all good choices for a more relaxed experience.

[Acidophilus]

If it's going to be a while before the quest continues (which is absolutely fair enough) it would be great if at least the blight would stop spreading once we got to the end of the current quest, so that we can continue to try out the new features as and when they're developed without having to start a new game or risk the blight encroaching too much on our existing bases.

I've already got my money's worth several times over, so the developer owes me nothing at all, but it would still be a shame for players to lose their enthusiasm for this awesome game while they wait possibly many months for it to become fun again. Even on easy mode the blight spreads a lot after 40+ days and the game becomes very laggy when you're near to these huge blight clouds.

Would just be nice to have something to keep the game playable indefinitely while we wait.

[Altor]

Originally posted by Acidophilus:

Would just be nice to have something to keep the game playable indefinitely while we wait.

Yes I agree. Otherwise we have to start always a new game.

[PewPr]

Oh no, you can't stop it? I'm waiting for Eric's raven that's supposed to explain how to clear the blight around cities, which I was hoping would be some mega blight bomb clearing thing... I also have a wall of green slowly closing in on my base from a nearby town. You're saying there's no way, in the game's current form, to stop it? Oy. Maybe a good time to hit pause for a bit then

[pagohogo]

Originally posted by Salvatos:

So, respectfully, I would say you need to revise your expectations .....

I had no expectations. I just asked if there was an approximate release date for the final story part. And I mentioned that after a certain point the game is basically unplayable.
But I really didn't expect to get stuck in the middle of the game. The developer is doing a great job, but he rushed the release of the game in my opinion.

[Salvatos]

Originally posted by pagohogo:

But I really didn't expect to get stuck in the middle of the game.

I mean, it’s Early Access. The store page says there’s content for 30-50 hours of gameplay at the moment and the developer is aiming for at least 100 at final release. So if you feel like you got stuck halfway there, it sounds about right for what is advertised.

(And it also mentions that "it will take at least a year for it to be fully ready".)

[pagohogo]

I understand EA differently. Yes a game during EA may have some flaws, some imperfections, something may not work as the developer intended. The game may not contain some mechanics that the developer intended to have in the game, but I certainly don't see it as releasing a half-baked product. Forgive my honesty, but then that's not EA, that's just an extended demo.

[Salvatos]

It varies from game to game. I never buy Early Access games because you never know how long it will take to finish, how much it will change in the process or if it will reach completion at all. I made an exception here because I got my money’s worth from the demo alone.

[Pluto]

Originally posted by pagohogo:

I understand EA differently. Yes a game during EA may have some flaws, some imperfections, something may not work as the developer intended. The game may not contain some mechanics that the developer intended to have in the game, but I certainly don't see it as releasing a half-baked product. Forgive my honesty, but then that's not EA, that's just an extended demo.

Definition from wikipedia,
"Early access, also known as alpha access, alpha founding, paid alpha, or game preview, is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can purchase and play a game in the various pre-release development cycles, such as pre-alpha, alpha, and/or beta, while the developer is able to use those funds to continue further development on the game. Those that pay to participate typically help to debug the game, provide feedback and suggestions, may have access to special materials in the game. The early-access approach is a common way to obtain funding for indie games, and may also be used along with other funding mechanisms, including crowdfunding. Many crowdfunding projects promise to offer access to alpha and/or beta versions of the game as development progresses; however, unlike some of these projects which solicit funds but do not yet have a playable game, all early access games offer an immediately playable version of the unfinished game to players."

[pagohogo]

Guys, this discussion is going somewhere I didn't want it to go. I just wanted to ask if there was any approximate estimate of the release date for the last part of the storyline. I've accepted the current state of affairs and just want to know how long I'll be waiting.

I really like the game. If I didn't like it, I would ask for a refund and would have no reason for any discussion here on the forum at all. Again, the developer is doing great job so far. I have played over 100 hours since release on EA. I think that proves everything. I'm just a little impatient.

[WindyBlod]

I don't think anyone's having a go at the Dev, it's a fantastic game and that's why we're all invested :)

I don't think it's unreasonable to ask that the blight be "paused" until the story line's completed so that people can enjoy the game while it's in development.

[Altor]

Originally posted by WindyBlod:

I don't think anyone's having a go at the Dev, it's a fantastic game and that's why we're all invested :)

I don't think it's unreasonable to ask that the blight be "paused" until the story line's completed so that people can enjoy the game while it's in development.

I agree and you can make also a nice story about it with nice challenge. For example, there are 2-3 places of contamination on the map, which are marked on the map by Eric. To reach the spot you may also have to fight your way out or forge a lid out of steel to seal it or burn it, etc. Once you've sealed a spot you can slow it down and when you've done it all it stops the whole. This would initially satisfy the players. The developer can then come up with a suitable final task for the story to clean it completely or even not. For this you will have time enough later.

[PewPr]

Originally posted by WindyBlod:

I don't think anyone's having a go at the Dev, it's a fantastic game and that's why we're all invested :)

I don't think it's unreasonable to ask that the blight be "paused" until the story line's completed so that people can enjoy the game while it's in development.

Exactly. It's a great foundation and EA entry, good enough that we all just want to keep... Surviving. Which says a lot. I would think, from a product perspective, you'd want people to keep playing while they wait for new updates. This blight thing stops us cold in our tracks. But, I may try the off-map thing. However, I'm guessing you'll no longer have a map in these areas?

[Salvatos]

Originally posted by PewPr:

But, I may try the off-map thing. However, I'm guessing you'll no longer have a map in these areas?

Correct. I wrote a whole essay about it if you want to pick up some pointers :)
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3351429471