So how is the game doing?

[Zachagawea]

How is the game doing as far as population and sales? It seems like the population is rather low, is this game going to make it? I hope so it is a pretty decent game.

[manny the veric king]

Note: The following is written from a volunteer moderator* point of view. I am just a normal joe who has been following the game's development for almost a year, and these statements are my own and do not represent anything official from Ironclad (thus I might have gotten some facts wrong.)
*I am a moderator which gives me some power in terms of closing, moving, merging, and moderating threads. I have no development or publishing power, and I am not an employee of Ironclad.

In game development, there are usually developers and publishers.

Developers are the people that make the game. They create content, fix bugs, make sure things are running smoothly, etc.

Publishers are usually the guys that advertise the game. They usually are in charge of promotions, forums, marketing, etc.

Usually there is a deal struck between publishers and developers, whereas a popular publisher takes a portion of the game's profits in order to spread the word about the game.

A year ago, Sins of a Dark Age had IGP as a publisher. They are mostly known for Mechwarrior Online.

Soada had its own IGP launcher, with forums and IGP community moderators and support staff.

Around maybe September or October or so, there was an annoucement on the old forums that Ironclad and IGP were mutually splitting. Ironclad wanted to take the game in a new direction and decided that they wanted to self-publish on Steam.

There were dark times indeed for a few months. Many of us in the old forums were worried about what was going on behind the scenes.

Come December 2013, Founders got a nice email stating that Soada had finally arrived in Steam. Turns out those "dark times" weren't so dark after all, and we discovered that IC was hard at work transitioning the old IGP build into Steam basically from the ground up.

Ironclad self publishing on Steam allows them to decide how to promote and market the game at their leisure. They are allowed to run the show in whatever way they seem fit.

Early Access finally hit in March, and Ironclad is still working out and focusing on the development side of things. The purpose of a beta is to test things out. We are basically guinea pigs more or less. Having a small player base allows them to find and fix bugs and test things out with dedicated fan feedback.

As Early Access comes to a close, the publishing aspect of game design will go into full effect. They want to make sure the hardware is stable and all the bugs are squished before opening the floodgates to the masses.

Ironclad is a small company of ~20-30 people from diverse backgrounds. "Ironclad’s team members have worked successfully with a number of entertainment based companies such as Sierra Studios, Take2 Interactive / Rockstar Games, Disney Interactive, TNT Television, The Cartoon Network and Mattel." Source [www.ironcladgames.com]

My best advice is to be patient and optimistic. Spread the word, offer feedback. The game can only get better! :)

[Zachagawea]

Oh, I am not discouraged just wanted a little input and you gave me it ty

[Rivaris]

i think the game will do fine there is alot of stuff there giong to add, like pets ect giong to be lots of fun doesnt mean i hope they put massive bug fixes in place so they can bring the game to the masses

[Trucidus]

I just know that finding a game is difficult : (

[dv0l0ty]

This is a solid moba game. There is a lot of ♥♥♥♥♥♥ moba games out there, but this one is really good, give it a try.

[Buzzerker]

I just bought it and no one was online to play the darn thing not only that they want 8 bucks for a new skin !!! for any character you choose , the graphics from what I saw in the character choosing screen , are incredible. Can't wait to play it . they have three Regions of the Earth to play and there was no one online!

[Buzzerker]

this is like a cash making machine , like DOTA and League of Legends only it's newer and seems like it would be fun, I still hate being nickled and dimed to death for any change to the game I want to make to keep from getting bored with it. I think skins shouldn't be more than a dollar. or anything else for that matter. if they want to sell more , make more, let the inexpensive price be a creative incentive for new content. Dota is off the hook when it comes to stuff to buy , reminds me of those stupid beanie babies people were ape over in the 90's.

[manny the veric king]

Buzzerker původně napsal:

I just bought it and no one was online to play the darn thing not only that they want 8 bucks for a new skin !!! for any character you choose , the graphics from what I saw in the character choosing screen , are incredible. Can't wait to play it . they have three Regions of the Earth to play and there was no one online!

Skins are craftable, a feature unique to Sins of a Dark Age.

Skins can also drop outright if you are lucky at the end of a Quickplay match (you also get crafting materials or other items as rewards for playing Quickplay matches as well.)

The in-game Shop option to buy skins immediately is for convenience.

When the player base gets larger, buying and selling crafting materials on the Steam Market will be a big incentive for many players.

All the heroes present and future are free.

The player base will grow exponentially when the game goes free to play as Early Access comes to an end.

Another feature planned is Co-Op vs. AI mode, which will yield XP and loot as well.

[Ekko Tek]

I got a Spectral Dekain skin drop last night in fact - completely made up for several frustrating games in a row...