Glorious Alpha Two Testers!

Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!

For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.

You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.

For All The Devs Doing The Little Things, We Appreciate You

AzheraeAzherae Member, Alpha One, Alpha Two, Early Alpha Two
From Some Gamers to Some Dev-Gamers,

We know that sometimes design is all about fixing the next big problem, and userbases talking in broad swaths about stuff that they can do in most games or get from other genres. Or the irritated people who stand out because they are the ones who take issue with the little things you do and voice their wish to tear them down amidst the silence of all us who just like to zone out and enjoy the world and not have to think about much, far less 'coming to tell the devs how much this tiny thing mattered'.

So, a heartfelt thank you to every one of you who tries to make sure that the ducklings wander about, who properly places the cows or makes joke references to the lack of cows. To those who write the mini family drama dialogue for random NPCs or make sure to give some of them individual names.

To everyone who makes sure the right fish get caught in the right rivers, who grind out the concept of "Aelan Spice" or "Scorpion Tail Fritters", and those who make sure NPCs can sometimes just stop and sit down for a bit. To everyone out there building the systems so we can randomly put flowerpots/vases on side-tables, and those making sure that we can personally make both the vases and the side-tables.

To everyone who asks, who surveys, who listens, who spends way too much time making sure long elfin ears come out of hoods properly and that we can choose which way to sheath our weapons. For each and every one of you who gets caught up and forgets to go to lunch because that one tree just isn't quite right and you know people will notice because you notice it every time yourself and have to make an entire case to bother adding the update for that one tree into the next build.

And for every producer juggling sixteen priorities, every networking specialist trying to shave off that one last frame of lag, for every soundscape designer making sure that the sound of the boat moving through the water as it pulls away from the dock is properly balanced to the sounds of the seagulls and the dock workers, and everyone else who are, sadly, unmentioned because there simply are too many things to mention when it comes to these games...

We see, we notice, we go 'That's so great' and 'I love this game, lol', but you don't always hear that because we're sitting in front of it and whatever tiny immersive beauty your hands crafted isn't something we want to step away from in that moment, that pristine moment where everything is just right, or at least right enough.

Hear it now.

We appreciate you.
♪ One Gummy Fish, two Gummy Fish, Red Gummy Fish, Blue Gummy Fish

Comments

  • LudulluLudullu Member, Alpha Two
    I'd like to especially call out the lighting people. Yes, there's a multitude of bugs related to it, but god damn sometimes I'll just be riding my horse and notice that it's right around dusk/dawn time and shadows are long and the sun is reddish and the horizon is clear and far - and damn does that look amazing, even on my shitty PC on minimal settings.

    So thx to whoever worked on those dusks and dawns.
  • ApokApok Member, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One, Alpha Two, Early Alpha Two
    edited November 5
    Ludullu wrote: »
    I'd like to especially call out the lighting people. Yes, there's a multitude of bugs related to it, but god damn sometimes I'll just be riding my horse and notice that it's right around dusk/dawn time and shadows are long and the sun is reddish and the horizon is clear and far - and damn does that look amazing, even on my shitty PC on minimal settings.

    So thx to whoever worked on those dusks and dawns.

    yeah it's nice seeing them work on this stuff, I've played ark: survival evolved for years and it's like all the same stupid graphical issues in the game for years that they just don't bother fixing. Game was the #1 survival game for a long time so it's not like they didn't have money for payroll. re-released the game on UE5 and made everyone buy it again and still the same issues and probably won't ever get fixed.

    and why is it so hard for games to do swimming, NW just got around to adding it in. Took FFXIV remaking the game and like 2 or 3 expansions before they did swimming
  • CawwCaww Member, Alpha Two
    Since I have no talent, I can honestly say that I truly appreciate the people that make it their actual life skill set to create these things - so in concert with the spirit of the OP - BUMP!!!
  • RedLeader1RedLeader1 Member, Alpha Two
    What about the Devs doing the big things, like elephants, they deserve credit too!
  • tinukedatinukeda Member, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One, Alpha Two, Early Alpha Two
    Amen to this thread!
    I cannot agree with the OP more!

    Infrastructure and foundational systems/content work is what makes all the "big" stuff come alive and work in the long run! "Big" folks get all the glory but it's the background folks making sure the underlying elements work who are the real heros imo!
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