Hylis wrote:We decided it sooner to make the open beta, but because of many other topics to be discussed, decisions to be taken, we did it just one day before the last day we can do it. Until last week, the open beta was scheduled for the 6th of February, for example. But some new information made it better for the 12th. Alinoa threatened me last Friday in order to be able to say it to players right now ^_^ And while I agree it would have been better, it was too difficult with many people to be synchronized on the announcement for the information to be translated and relayed around.
Even if you didn't know the date of the open beta, it would have been better to announce earlier that the release date was pushed back and that there would be an open beta.
Indeed, it sounds like you decided to open the beta at the last moment and you don't know how many times you will need to be able to release this game.
But, like I read, the most important is we can still play the game.
IMO you are right to not release it today with the +0 rail vs rockets subject which seems to have not convinced everyone. If you let it as it is or corrected it without more beta phase, it should be worst
Ps : Rail was horrible for defense in Beta1 and horrible for attack in Beta2. You be perfect for the next release
Ps 2 : Please, correct the Alt key issue with XMLRPC command for Manialink management
Am I the only person who thinks having a "release" date for a game after it's already publicly available kind of silly? It's not unusual, but I really don't see how it's that important.
I mean the game will continue to be improved after the "release". So I don't really see the big deal, or why any players in the community are at all concerned with the date. It's like people act like they're finally going to get to play the game when it's released. Well we've been playing it for months. What's the big deal, really! I guess the release date is more of a marker for Nadeo than it is anything substantial for us.
But I must admit, the Open Beta is a great idea! I have high hopes that it will grow the community a lot.
I'm looking forward to Valley and Stadium too of course, but to be honest... I have a lot of fun in ShootMania since the beta2 update. I've seen the game grow since the Alpha with more complex movements and more blocks and it went from a game that I somewhat enjoyed to a game that I really have a lot of fun playing now. I even enjoy mapping in ShootMania now, which is something I can't really say I was into during the Alpha.
Anyway, I'm getting a bit off topic, but I feel like I should say my feelings about the current state of things since some people seem to have a very vocal opposing view.
Well, I'm looking forward to what this Open Beta brings!
SiH13, you are right about the fact that once a game per genre is done, it is quicker and our computation were based on that (and it was 4, to have one environment per year per genre, but by some mistakes there and there, it was said 3) However, what took us the most time was also the Maniaplanet system. Without it, it was too difficult to have multiple environments, and it is quite complex: custom ladders, custom datas, custom news, clouding, hierarchical server browser, custom scripts etc. There is still some job to be done, but that first iteration was much longer than anticipated.
The 12th of Febuary is the launch of the beta of this system with a lot of people. We will have some work to do on it on performance side probably. Once this beta is done, then Maniaplanet will be live. Meanwhile, the environments of Storm, Stadium and Valley are being prepared to be released in order to go around of the launch of the Maniaplanet system.
Akbalder, you have to keep in mind that if you want to communicate outside of the forum, you can not send press release all the time. So it was better to send the information all at once, so people would see the interest of publishing it. And if you announce stuff in the forum earlier, some sites publishe them, but makes the news less interesting to be published for others after. It is not a perfect world and we are trying to do our best in it in order to communicate with people that are in the game and people that have to come into it ^_^
Hope you understand, and if you don't do it now, I hope you will when you see what will happen if what I hope happens. Lot of hope here ^_^
Eyebo, like you see, I am with your hopes. I agree that there is something strange at having a release date for something that will be open to everyone, but there is a difference between a beta and a release. I think that being in beta enalbes us more easily to try things and make evolutions. You question more about if it is that important of a difference and I think I am more on your side of thinking, and this is why I decided to make this change in the planning. For me, the version of the 12th of Febuary will be on par with the expected version of the 23rd of January. We had to develop some specific stuff for some other topic that players will be informed on time, and it combines well with the open beta. But if someone expected the game we wished to do to be there today, he only has to wait 3 weeks, not 3 weeks and 2 months. These 3 weeks are somehow what is loss on Trackmania as well. But otherwise, things are like before on the development side.
Home stretch... I'm surprised everyone at Nadeo isn't burned out and dropped to the floor with exhaustion.
We do appreciate all you're doing for all the games, and realize there are pains that come with trying to build different genres to exist on one ManiaPlanet platform.
Keep up the great work and we look forward to some seriously solid TM2 Canyon and SM Storm in April. And even more looking forward to some new TrackMania with Valley and Stadium!
Home stretch... I'm surprised everyone at Nadeo isn't burned out and dropped to the floor with exhaustion.
We do appreciate all you're doing for all the games, and realize there are pains that come with trying to build different genres to exist on one ManiaPlanet platform.
Keep up the great work and we look forward to some seriously solid TM2 Canyon and SM Storm in April. And even more looking forward to some new TrackMania with Valley and Stadium!
Good luck with the coming months!
Cheers.
Yup you go girls and boys
Also agree with Eyebo
Having fun playin already
If you think my English S*cks than you have to watch my driving and shooting
