Waiting for Developer Mode

Hi.

Years ago, back in 2014, I helped moderate a Starbound RP server. This one, specifically. I knew the admin from my time in The Secret World MMO--he also runs a Planescape RP server in Neverwinter Nights, player-run and GMed. I probably don't need to explain what roleplaying is to anyone.

When Chucklefish announced Developer Mode as a future project idea, we were all really, really excited. As roleplayer geeks, we relish the chance to tell collaborative stories with game engines. There isn't much vocal demand for it, but Neverwinter Nights stands out as a shining example, and Divinity 2 has announced a dungeon master mode that I'm excited about too. But I've watched and supported the Starbound experience for many years, I've mined countless planets and dug up countless items and weapons, explored it as its vision was finalised and told my friends all about it. I think I've been a good, if mostly quiet supporter.

But the one thing promised back in beta, the one mode I desperately hoped and waited for, has yet to emerge. I'm still waiting for Developer Mode. And now I'm at an age where I'm tired of MMOs, which have immutable, overarching story-lines that are largely unaffected by its playerbase. I want to craft stories with other people. I want to go back to playing Starbound, not just as an adventurer game or a town/colony construction toolkit, but as a story toolkit.

I know it could be made. It's not as sexy a mode as space mechs or colony fabricators, but I have hope that it's still a gleam in the developer's eyes. And I wonder if there's anyone else here who's waiting with me.

This is probably my first post on the forum, so: Thanks for reading.