Hemmingway famously wrote that "The only kind of writing is rewriting.” That is just as true when refining a game’s design. You never get things exactly right the first time, and the whole of a game development process is a series of concentric, iterative loops - play, test, refine, repeat.
One of the most exciting things about working on Fights in Tight Spaces was building an exciting and dedicated community around the game, and learning from them exactly how they play the game. Not only how it differs from how I and the team play the game, but how it varies between different types of player.
This process began shortly after the game’s announcement when we opened up the game to small number of Alpha testers (some of whom have stuck around and are still part of our Beta program for KITS as well); the depth of their knowledge, their commitment to the game, and their willingness to engage all helped contribute massively to the success of the game when it launched into Early Access.
Then, during Early Access we were able to draw upon a much larger pool of feedback - on our Discord, in the Steam Discussions, by watching reviews and video playthroughs and streams - we were able to see how real people were approaching the game and we were able to make meaningful changes to improve the game at all levels so that our version 1.0 launch could be as good as possible for all the new players that we hoped to attract.
Creating a follow-up as we have done with Knights in Tight Spaces has created its own opportunities and challenges. How do we grow upon the existing base of the game and add meaningful changes but without alienating the people who made it a success in the first place? How do we make the game approachable enough for brand new players whilst creating a challenge for players who already know the ins and outs of how the games’ systems work?
So with that in mind, we’ve been working with players new and old to involve them once again in the “rewriting” phase, with an ongoing series of Closed Betas (and by checking people’s reactions to the game’s Demo as that has progressed). In doing so, once again we find ourselves marvelling at the inventiveness of our players and look forward to reacting to their feedback and observations as we approach launch.
BUT it’s not too late to get involved, we need MORE TESTERS, from across the spectrum of players, particularly brand new players who might be discovering the game for the very first time. So please join our Discord if you haven’t already but more importantly fill in this form and hopefully you’ll be able to join us on this journey.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2315400