Important BETA RELEASE DISCUSSION - DECEMBER 4TH (*ALL* beta discussion goes here. Other threads deleted)

My Beta Estimation.
12/31/13 at 11:59 pm

 

Someone already has a countdown timer set for that... also for 2047 or something... i forget.

I apologize for my own treason.

 

They are committed to Beta release in 2013

 

Yes, I realise they have said "beta will be this year", but there's no absolute guarantee that they won't meet with further delays which push it to next year. I'd rather that didn't happen, for a variety of reasons, but the possibility does exist.

 

Can't blame someone for thinking that there was an absolute guarantee with such language as "2013, no matter what." Even though they've changed that wording now for the full release I'm pretty sure that whenever beta is mentioned they still use absolutes when referring to a 2013 beta release.

 

Yes, that sort of language was ill advised, certainly. And if they miss beta as well, I'm sure plenty of people here will let them know about it.

 

I definitely expected the change in release date, and I'm not really surprised.

1) They just started on NPC work recently, it's quite clear they are no where near the polishing stage of development.
2) Beta needs to be a good length imo for a good stable release. If it was to release in 2013 you would have 1-2 months max, and that is not enough.
3) If they were to release it would be Holiday 2013. BAD IDEA. Steam sales drop everything in price, and no one would be buying a full priced game during the Christmas season.

My expectation right now is that beta will not release this year either at the rate things are going, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I want a good game, not a rushed game.
Full release will probably be Summer or Fall of 2014 if not later.

 

I agree with everything except this:

I also want a good game, however my expectations for the beta are not all that high, as they should be. If they don't release a beta this year, the excuse "we want to make a good, polished game" will mean nothing to me, because a beta is not supposed to be polished.

 

It does not matter when it comes out but a promise is a really big thing for me. If a company says we'll release this thing at blabla then they must release it at blabla. Cause you have already paid it and you put your hope in this thing. And we are not just customers, we are also fans and if you break your promise you'll loose everything.

 

Yeah definitely beta is not polished, maybe what I meant was a beta without core gameplay elements and features is not really giving the developer information about what they should tweak/change/add.
As much as I'd love to play the game, strategically moving the release date is a good move.

I see what you're saying here, and you're right, that the credibility of the developer is in question when they can't keep their word. But I think you have to build a thicker skin when you go into supporting a game through crowd-funding. Crowd-funding is not as risky as say venture capital, but there is still an element of risk involved that the game you supported will never come out and you will lose all your money. Every time I go into crowd-funding I think this way. I see a great idea, do my research, conclude it has potential, and put money in. I throw away my expectations at that point. I'm excited but have no expectation.

 

This is all irrelevant because we pre-ordered. This wasn't a kickstarter where if the goal isn't met everyone gets their money back or there isn't any promise of a finished product. It wasn't crowd funding, and you should maintain your expectations because you paid for a product.

 

Well I don't want to get into a pointless debate about semantics and such, but my main point is developing a thicker skin when getting involved in games during development ,especially when you are putting money into them. Lots of changes, ups and downs and the like. I maintain that I have no expectations, and with that I will feel better regardless of the outcome.

 

You Pre-ordered without a release date.

 

To be fair, we did. We pre-ordered with the intention that we would get it by 2013.

But uh

yeah.

That dream is dead.

 

Still not crowd funding.

EDIT: Furthermore, notice I'm not complaining about the release date.

 

Umm.... Who said October13???....

 

if beta is Oct 13 i would

for hours

but my $5 is on Dec ?? but i'm not committing to a year hehehe

 

Anyways, this game makes me every time crazy when i see it (in a posiitive way). So i don't care about the release date after all. But before i die in 2040 i hope they release some pre-betas to test it cause i want to die with a smile on my face.

 

My point about "not caring" about the release date is that if you have other things to do, you can wait easily enough. I am as excited about Battlefield 4 as I am Starbound for example, but there is (more than) enough going on in my life to make the wait more than bearable. Hell, I barely game anymore, whereas I used to game anywhere from 40-60 hours a week. These days, I am lucky to game 5-8 hours. A new game will make me make time for it, but in general, my life is busy.

Eventually, Starbound will be released, we will all play it to death, get bored of it and start waiting for the next "must have game we can't wait for! OMG release it now!". I am 37 years old and have been gaming since NES times. What I found works for me is to not follow news of a game until the last week or two.

 

Another lie.