Folk Tale
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GF  [розробник] 12 черв. 2013 о 15:52
Frequently Asked Questions ( FAQ )
WHAT IS FOLK TALE?
Folk Tale is a sandbox fantasy city-builder RPG that controls like an RTS. You take direct control of your subjects, leading them in constructing a thriving market town and heading into the wilds on great adventures. Folk Tale includes building upgrades, city walls, inventory, crafting, and character levelling. It's not a mass-battle game such as the Total War series, it's more about the little people and the story of their lives.

Folk Tale includes both campaign and sandbox modes, both created with the in-game Editor that player-designers can use to create entirely new worlds to share with the community via Steam Workshop, offering new play experiences to those players who have completed the included world.

It is hoped that each world will take 6+ hours to complete at normal pace, providing players with significant value for money and longevity.


WHAT IS THE CURRENT STATE OF THE GAME?
Folk Tale is in ALPHA ( see below for definition ). We run two separate versions: the main public build, and an opt-in experimental build which we update regularly.

Campaign mode is a voice-acted, story driven play experience. Right now Act I is finished (other than polish), and Act II is nearing completion in the experimental build. Campaign provides several hours of potential play.

Sandbox mode is an unscripted, connected world comprising numerous locations. At the start of the game players can choose from three environments to start with, and later travel to other locations via portals. Maps include outdoor environments (snow, grassland, swamp at the moment) and dungeons to explore.

A separate tutorial is included to walk new players through the basics. In time this will be voice-acted too, but for now it's text-driven.


WHAT DO ALPHA AND BETA MEAN?
Definitions vary slightly depending on which developer you talk to, and refer to stages of a product's development lifecycle. For simplicity we use two terms, alpha and beta.

ALPHA - means that the deliverable/product/game is in development, and has missing features and content. It is likely to contain a lot of bugs.

BETA - means the game is approaching completion. The game is feature and content complete other than minor tweaks. All that remains is testing to iron out the remaining bugs.

Folk Tale is in Alpha.


DO I HAVE TO PAY TWICE?
No. The Early Access price includes immediate access to the current alpha, all development updates, the final digital retail release of the game, and all patch fixes thereafter.


IS THERE A DEVELOPMENT ROADMAP?
Yes.
Development Roadmap[www.gamesfoundry.com].


WHEN IS THE NEXT PATCH?
We aim to release a new patch every 2-3 weeks into the experimental build. Sometimes it may be longer, sometimes shorter, depending on what is being worked on, vacations, sick leave etc. Once the experimental build is stable and considerably more progressed, we copy that over into the main public build.


WILL THERE BE MULTIPLAYER?
Folk Tale is a single player sandbox game, as determined by a community vote following our graduation from Steam Greenlight. We will be reviewing our options for campaign and multiplayer modes based on the success of the final retail release.


IS THERE ITEM CRAFTING?
Yes - it's now implemented.


ARE STEAM ACHIEVEMENTS PLANNED?
Maybe.


HAVE YOU CONSIDERED MAKING A DEMO OR PARTICIPATING IN SALES PROMOTIONS?
We've considered it, but making a demo would take valuable time away from developing the game. There are a large number of potential players waiting for the game to be completed before buying, so there is a solid commercial argument to crack on with development rather than trying the hard sell right now.

Occasionally we run shallow discount promotions, mostly for increased exposure.


WHEN WILL THE FINAL RETAIL RELEASE BE READY?
Because the community is so heavily involved in shaping Folk Tale, the final retail release will be available when the community and we the developers feel it is ready. That is expected to be at some point in 2017. By joining us in Early Access, you get to enjoy the game now, and join the community in helping shape the future of the game.


CAN I FREE-BUILD (BUILD ANYWHERE)?
Yes. The fixed build plots from the original tutorial are long gone.


HOW BIG IS THE TEAM?
As of 5th November 2016 there are 5 of us. At peak there were 10, with freelance staff writers / character artists / musicians etc. only required for part of the development cycle.


WHY DO OPT-IN TEST BUILDS?
Some folks wonder why during Early Access ( when bugs are to be expected ) do we sometimes provide opt-in test builds prior to making updates public. This is because it provides a final 'sanity test' on a broad range of PC's and picks up any show-stopping bugs we may have missed during internal testing. It helps reduce the number of support incidents and saves us time in the long run. Further, not everyone has unlimited broadband, so it helps when we do release public patches to not have to then immediately release bug fix patches.


WHERE CAN I FIND ERROR LOGS/SAVE GAMES AND WHERE DO I SEND THEM?
Please visit the troubleshooting guide for more details:
http://steamcommunity.com/app/224440/discussions/8/


WHAT DO ALL THE NUMBERS MEAN IN THE VERSION NUMBER? ( e.g. 0.2.1.0 )
The first digit denotes the major version. 0.x are alpha and beta builds, leading up to the final retail release which will be 1.0.0.0. For the most part it can be ignored and during Early Access will always be 0.

The second digit is the minor version number, which we usually use to denote milestones. For example the initial Tutorial patches were all 0.1.x, the first sandbox editor builds are under 0.2.x, and the tower-defense mini-game will be under 0.3.x. They represent significant steps in functionality and/or content.

The third digit is the revision number. These tend to be added features and content within the context of a minor version. For example 0.2.1 will add new features and content to the sandbox editor, 0.2.2 will add yet more. We refer to this as the "0.2.x" release cycle. When the minor version increments, the revision number resets to zero.

The fourth digit is the build number. These are minor bug fixes. For example the opt-in sandbox editor test build provided to the community was 0.2.0.0, however the version released in the normal public update stream was 0.2.0.1 - it contained a minor bug fix.

Version numbers are not representative of progress. For example, version 0.5 does not mean development is 50% complete.


HOW DO I ACCESS HIDDEN CONFIGURATION OPTIONS?
In your Steam Library, right click on Folk Tale and select Properties. Under the Local Files tab click Browse Local Files.... Left click "Folk Tale.exe" ( or Folk Tale.app on Mac ) once with the left mouse button to highlight it, then holding down Left Shift on your keyboard ( Left Alt on Mac ), double click to start the game. Before the game opens, you will be shown a configuration panel.


LET'S PLAY/STREAMING VIDEO MONETIZATION
We encourage community produced Let's Play videos as they are incredibly helpful in seeing what aspects of the game need to be improved. Video hosting services such as YouTube require that you first obtain permission from the copyright holder ( the developer ) before publishing your Let's Play video to your channel. To help you produce legitimate videos, we've prepared this helpful Video Policy[www.gamesfoundry.com].


DOES THE GAME INCLUDE MAPS DESIGNED BY THE DEVELOPER?
Yes.


DOES THE GAME HAVE LOAD/SAVE YET?
Yes.


WILL CONSTRUCTION PHASES BE ADDED, INSTEAD OF BUILDINGS RISING OUT OF THE GROUND?
At the moment we have a lot of assets to fit into memory, including 3d model geometry and textures for both buildings and professions. Once we've added all the buildings and professions, we'll have a much more accurate measure of memory consumption. If we have enough left over, then phased construction would become an option.

However, we also need to manage our budget and development plan. If you think each building has 3 tiers (only the first is currently unlocked in game although you can see the others in the website Game Guide[www.gamesfoundry.com]), with each tier requiring say 3 phases of construction to look good, and 20+ upgradable buildings, that's 3 x 3 x 20 = 120 assets that need creating. That is further complicated by the different LOD models that we produce, although they may be forgone because construction is a temporary state, and most of the time buildings appear in their rendered state. So that's a considerable production undertaking that shouldn't be taken lightly.

For now, we're focusing on gameplay mechanics. Construction phases, while looking nice, don't contribute to gameplay, and so aren't a priority. They are however something we'll be reviewing towards the end of development.
Автор останньої редакції: GF; 5 листоп. 2016 о 2:22
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Показані коментарі 115 із 72
Good information, indeed.
Nice rundown and explanations...thank you very much.
Great game! Looking forward to the changes and the sandbox mode!
Guys, We love your game and your work!
Take your time, do it right... just not so long that I get bored with the tutorial. Seems like a great game so far, losta potential!
awesome work so far guys keep it up!!
Thank you for the information! I look forward to seeing the new presentation!
just cant wait till they add the new tutorial elements so i can play through again to see if it causes any bugs to help these guys out
GF  [розробник] 20 черв. 2013 о 0:38 
Updated with new section on demo and sales promotions.
not having a go at you as i do love the game just wondering though why you would release something to the general public that is clearly not ready and is not going to be finished for at least another year according to you? I would have thought a closed beta would have been more along the lines of bug testing
That's rad that you guys are so progressive-minded regarding sex, race and sexual orientation. Makes me feel even better about supporting your game by buying the pre-release. Keep up the great work!
GF  [розробник] 21 черв. 2013 о 15:53 
Цитата допису Matheryn:
not having a go at you as i do love the game just wondering though why you would release something to the general public that is clearly not ready and is not going to be finished for at least another year according to you? I would have thought a closed beta would have been more along the lines of bug testing

Had we not, Folk Tale would have ceased to exist from a lack of funding. By launching on Early Access, the community has made the game a reality.

Why stay on Early Access? ( answer for Stratego ) While we have enough funding to support the current small team, expanded funding can support a bigger team, and the quicker sandbox can be made ( or the more content can be included ).
if i were u i would advertise the game in the steam summer sale if possible - 10-20% would be enough - and you will need that money in the end. u sell games at release dates and some weeks afterwards and sales, so take the opportunity
Great explanation! I truly appreciate it when the decs take their time to address their intentions to the consumers :)
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