Hi everyone!
We have closed out the first week of the Early Access launch and I think it has been very successful. I only have two testing desktops, so one of my biggest worries was running into difficult-to-solve technical issues on a wider range of setups. Thankfully, not too many of these popped up.
I also really appreciate everyone who chimed in with bugs and suggestions. Fortunately, many of the bugs seem to be restricted to a handful of common issues, the most critical of which have been fixed in the two patches released so far. I have also implemented several quality-of-life improvements and will probably be doing this on a rolling basis as needed.
Early Access is especially important for solodevs like me because I’m only working from my own perspective, which means a lot of things slip past me. Having a lot more eyes on the game to point out things I may have missed is invaluable. Personally, I’m a strong supporter of the Early Access model specifically because it allows smaller-budget devs a pathway to make their games, and the opportunity for the playerbase to provide input. I believe when this succeeds, it results in much better games.
Reviews are another valuable line of feedback, since very often they come from your most invested (or annoyed) players. The most common threads here seem to be about general roughness, bugginess, or lack of content. I take all these reviews seriously, and I will strive to improve the game so it reaches the level of polish it deserves. At the same time, I want to be transparent about the scope: this is a large and ambitious RPG being developed by just one person in UE5, not an AAA production. That’s why I try to set realistic expectations... even if I'm aiming for the moon in some respects.
I am especially encouraged by the fact that the vast majority of reviews, both positive and negative, talk about the potential of the game and how they want to see more. Which is exactly the result I was looking for and am excited to deliver as development continues.
I think overall the Early Access release has increased confidence in the project and that it is on the right track. It just needs more time to cook to reach its full potential.
Which for me, is the perfect place to be!
Thank you and looking forward to it,
ManlyMouseDan