Wed May 14, 2014 9:41 am
Hey there,
We would like to share a few things with you about how well the game has done so far and where it is headed. You'll see that we have some very interesting things coming up in the next few months and beyond...
The beta has been open for three months now and the results are mixed. On the positive side, there is a core group of players who are enjoying the game and willing to spend money on it. In general, we also receive very positive feedback from those who try the game and, even after 3 months, we still get a decent number of new players everyday.
But there is a major negative: our game is just not "sticky" enough, which is marketing speak for "we lose new players too fast" (usually after the very first days). The player base doesn't grow like it should and revenues from the game remain far too small to support development costs.
We analyzed tons of data; did surveys; looked at the game from a variety of angles and, finally, made a list of our weaknesses.
1) It is way too complicated and costly (both in time and money) to build a company.
2) Leveling up units is a long and sometimes frustrating mechanism, especially when a newly leveled up unit brings your company over the AP limit.
3) The injury system is just not fun.
4) Our game modes are not as interesting as they should be.
We are not saying that these are the only issues, but they are the most important as regards to our main concern: players leaving in their first 10 days.
The patches we released since the start of the beta were attempts at fixing the issues we identified, but they were too conservative and ultimately didn't change the dynamics of the game. About a month ago we decided that we needed to bring something else to the game, something that would address all the issues at once and that would improve the overall experience without changing what it is: a true hardcore tactical multiplayer game.
So, what will change?
1) Units will be split in two categories: Troops and Heroes. Troops will be very cheap to purchase (approx. 100 ducats) and will make up the bulk of your companies. Heroes will be much more expensive (like legendary units) and will be key to the game (more on that later).
2) Troop units will be available in a variety of specialized profiles, each with specific skills, attributes and AP cost. These profiles will be even more specialized than those currently in the game.
3) Neither Heroes nor troops will level up: they won't gain experience and there won't be any skill tree... Troop profiles will be designed to give you plenty of options to build your company and to try and test whatever you want, without having to level up units first.
4) We will merge all current game modes (VIP, King of the Hill and DM) into one new mode that will become the main mode of the game. You'll need to play with only one Hero and a company of limited AP (probably around 250); there will be several different ways to achieve victory (snipe the VIP, kill all opposition units, score the most points,... ) and controlling the battlefield will have a significant impact. Note that other modes will still be available for friendly matches.
5) You'll need to have a Hero in order to play and, as I wrote above, Heroes will cost a significant number of Ducats or Cyans. But if you haven't purchased any Hero, there will always be one free in each faction.
6) No more injuries from battle. We're still thinking about whether to keep the other sources of injuries or not.
That just about sums it up. There will be other minor changes, mostly related to the six above. I don't want to go into too much detail here, but feel free to ask questions in the thread. We aim to release all this by mid-June.
Note that this will change the content of the game and previous content will become obsolete! We will, of course, refund everything that you have purchased in order to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Unless we're totally wrong, this will solve many of our problems and should mark the end of the beta and of our work on the "core" of the experience. Then we'll be able to focus on the addition of new Heroes and new factions.
We expect to release approximately one Hero per month and a new faction every 6 months or so. The first Heroes will be arriving during the summer and, after that, the first new faction. In case you are wondering, the first new faction to be released will be the Dwarves of Mid-Nor. It's difficult to set a date right now, but we aim to release them before the end of 2014.
Thanks for reading such an awfully long post. In the coming weeks I'll keep you up to date on developments and I'll give you more details about Heroes, troops and the rules of new game mode.
See you soon.
We would like to share a few things with you about how well the game has done so far and where it is headed. You'll see that we have some very interesting things coming up in the next few months and beyond...
The beta has been open for three months now and the results are mixed. On the positive side, there is a core group of players who are enjoying the game and willing to spend money on it. In general, we also receive very positive feedback from those who try the game and, even after 3 months, we still get a decent number of new players everyday.
But there is a major negative: our game is just not "sticky" enough, which is marketing speak for "we lose new players too fast" (usually after the very first days). The player base doesn't grow like it should and revenues from the game remain far too small to support development costs.
We analyzed tons of data; did surveys; looked at the game from a variety of angles and, finally, made a list of our weaknesses.
1) It is way too complicated and costly (both in time and money) to build a company.
2) Leveling up units is a long and sometimes frustrating mechanism, especially when a newly leveled up unit brings your company over the AP limit.
3) The injury system is just not fun.
4) Our game modes are not as interesting as they should be.
We are not saying that these are the only issues, but they are the most important as regards to our main concern: players leaving in their first 10 days.
The patches we released since the start of the beta were attempts at fixing the issues we identified, but they were too conservative and ultimately didn't change the dynamics of the game. About a month ago we decided that we needed to bring something else to the game, something that would address all the issues at once and that would improve the overall experience without changing what it is: a true hardcore tactical multiplayer game.
So, what will change?
1) Units will be split in two categories: Troops and Heroes. Troops will be very cheap to purchase (approx. 100 ducats) and will make up the bulk of your companies. Heroes will be much more expensive (like legendary units) and will be key to the game (more on that later).
2) Troop units will be available in a variety of specialized profiles, each with specific skills, attributes and AP cost. These profiles will be even more specialized than those currently in the game.
3) Neither Heroes nor troops will level up: they won't gain experience and there won't be any skill tree... Troop profiles will be designed to give you plenty of options to build your company and to try and test whatever you want, without having to level up units first.
4) We will merge all current game modes (VIP, King of the Hill and DM) into one new mode that will become the main mode of the game. You'll need to play with only one Hero and a company of limited AP (probably around 250); there will be several different ways to achieve victory (snipe the VIP, kill all opposition units, score the most points,... ) and controlling the battlefield will have a significant impact. Note that other modes will still be available for friendly matches.
5) You'll need to have a Hero in order to play and, as I wrote above, Heroes will cost a significant number of Ducats or Cyans. But if you haven't purchased any Hero, there will always be one free in each faction.
6) No more injuries from battle. We're still thinking about whether to keep the other sources of injuries or not.
That just about sums it up. There will be other minor changes, mostly related to the six above. I don't want to go into too much detail here, but feel free to ask questions in the thread. We aim to release all this by mid-June.
Note that this will change the content of the game and previous content will become obsolete! We will, of course, refund everything that you have purchased in order to make the transition as smooth as possible.
Unless we're totally wrong, this will solve many of our problems and should mark the end of the beta and of our work on the "core" of the experience. Then we'll be able to focus on the addition of new Heroes and new factions.
We expect to release approximately one Hero per month and a new faction every 6 months or so. The first Heroes will be arriving during the summer and, after that, the first new faction. In case you are wondering, the first new faction to be released will be the Dwarves of Mid-Nor. It's difficult to set a date right now, but we aim to release them before the end of 2014.
Thanks for reading such an awfully long post. In the coming weeks I'll keep you up to date on developments and I'll give you more details about Heroes, troops and the rules of new game mode.
See you soon.
