Dropzone FAQ

[Dropzone Official]

Q. How can I get this game?

Just visit the store page and download it! It is Free to Play now!

What do I get when I download the game now to start playing?

As a new Commander, you will have 4 pilots unlocked with their corresponding gear to be able to set up your own Squad with 3 of them for a 1vs1 or pick one of them to play the new "Team 3vs3" mode.

How do I unlock more pilots and gear?

You will be able to buy more pilots in the shop either with Feds or Jovians. You will earn Jovians as you progress in the game playing matches. You will also receive more pieces of gear as you level up in the game. You will also be able to buy Crates in the shop which will provide you with more pieces of gear.

Q.Is this really an RTS? There’s no base building, or huge armies.

We started out making Dropzone as a game we wanted to play, with inspiration from games we loved -- spanning many different genres -- without worrying about what genre it would fit into. We love the feel of classic RTS games (we've even worked on some!), and with Dropzone we wanted to capture the essence of a strategy title and distill it into something new.

We asked ourselves a lot of questions during the design process: how short of a session can we have that still feels satisfying? We ended up at 15 minutes, and set about replacing various elements with new ideas. Instead of building up a fixed tech tree, we allow you to design your own by customizing your Pilots with gear, giving additional depth to the meta game. We found that giving players 3 units they care about, encourages those strategy staples of map awareness, micro, and split attention span. Players gather "resources" in the form of XP and Cores by farming and killing the alien Kavash. Our goal was to take some of the fundamental mechanics of RTS and reinvigorate them: we call it, "RTS Deconstructed."

Q.So you say you want to go Early Access to get feedback, how do I (and where do I) give feedback, and how can I tell that anybody’s listening?

Please post in our Steam forums to let us know on what you are thinking. We’re also regular Dropzone players, so you’ll often bump into us in the game chat, on Discord[discord.gg], and on Twitch[www.twitch.tv], where we answer questions, debate strategy, and try to help players have a great experience.

Q.I think I’ve found a bug, where do I report it?

Please have a look at the Bugs and Issues section on the Community Hub and post it there if your issue isn't mentioned yet. Thank you, your help is greatly appreciated!

Q. How can I contact the Dropzone support?

If you need further assistance with any issue, feel free to contact us via our support system[y.gfsrv.net]. Simply login via the Steam Sign-In, click "Contact Support" and you are ready to go. Our support team will be glad to help you out!

Q.How often will you patch/update?

Typically, we do a new Release every week. We may scale this back to every 2 weeks, but we tend to move quick and respond to feedback as much as possible. Some Releases are bigger than others but we are constantly working to address issues or suggestions, large and small.

Q.Will there be wipes or resets during Early Access?

We do not plan on any more Wipes or Resets once we enter Early Access.

Q.I’m a streamer and I’d like to stream or make videos while playing Dropzone?What resources are available to me?

We are putting together a “starter” package of assets for streamers. Please stay tuned.

Q.I’ve got a great idea for a pilot, piece of gear, map, etc.Are you going to support Steam Workshop?

We will likely support Steam Workshop but not at the start of Early Access.

Q.Can I play PvE offline (I fly a lot and like to game on the plane)?

No. All matches (regardless of whether they are 1v1, 2v2, PvE or vs. AI) are played on the server, so that we can maintain security and raise the difficulty for hackers/cheaters to mess with your games. By the way, Jason (President/Founder of Sparkypants) has played Dropzone from 30,000 feet on airplane wifi, and it does work, though we do not recommend it for tournament play :-)

Q.What do I do while I’m waiting in queue for a match?

The goal is that you can do WHATEVER YOU WANT! Work on your latest loadout or build.Go play a PvE scenario.Go watch another live match or a replay. Go play a solo match against the AI. Once you’ve put yourself in the matchmaking queue, we’ll notify you when a match is ready, and if you accept the match, we will save the state of what you were doing, and return you to it once your match is over.

Q.What’s the history of Sparkypants studio? Who are you people anyway?

Sparkypants Studios began with a handful of experienced game developers led by President and CEO Jason Coleman. The founding group consisted of game developers who’d created a number of high-profile games (Alpha Centauri, Civilization II, Rise of Nations, Rise of Legends, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning) but wanted to create something new. We built Sparkypants around the shared philosophy that the best way to make a game is to play it every day with your friends -- and we still do. Now, with a team of more than 50 developers and staff, Sparkypants continues to believe in fun, creativity, openness, iteration, responsibility, civic-mindedness, and hard work. We love what we do, and we hope you will too.