This week we've switched to a new mode of development:
* identify the area
* have everyone in the team work just on that area
* flag issues that are a must for the Playtest starts, move the rest to 'desirable'
* focus on mission-critical issues; the rest is for whenever there's extra time
The area of our focus right now is the Main Menu, and whatever happens before the actual session.
Mission-critical items:
* Multiplayer lobby
* Single-player challenges (including unique leaderboard for each challenge)
* Medals that players can unlock during the Playtest ("meta" for motivation)
* Gremlinopedia (which also moonlights as tutorial for those new to the universe)
Nothing on this list is rocket science, but everything takes time to line up properly.
With 4 builds assembled during the week, on Friday morning we arrived to version 179.1.
Each of us still plays a session a day, and on most days we assemble new builds, to catch all the UI improvements. Basically, we now need to have the patience to iron out most of the known issues before we invite you guys to the Playtest, so that your feedback is more about the game itself – the balance, the flow, what do you find counter-intuitive, and so on – rather than on the technical issues which we ourselves already know about.
Another week is about to start, and we're going to get a few steps closer to making this game ready for you guys.