Post by Eric on Sept 24, 2014 5:42:28 GMT -6
As I had mentioned in another topic on this board I came across this game that is part RPG, part sandbox and part RPG. This game was kickstarted in May of last year and raised about 750,000 on Kickstarter and at least another 50,000 through Paypal. It is being created by twin brothers Tom and Tony who quit their regular jobs as software developers about a year ago and created Radiant Entertainment, to create their first game Stonehearth that they had thought about for so long. I think with the success of the Kickstarter they have added at least 2 or 3 other member since then and they even bought and moved into an office space.
That is why I like about this Kickstarter. Do its success they are develpoing this full time not on the side or when there is time but complete full on development and focus on making this the best game it can be. Since December they have come out with 5 Alphas, with the current one Alpha 5 released this month. Each time an Alpha is released more features, bug fixes and more coolness is added to the game. If you do not know Alpha is usually one of the first stages that a game goes through in development, essentially the stage where the game is literally being put together, the features are being added and all systems that they game is to have is created at this stage. In the Alpha stage many things are missing, there are many bugs and much of the core game is still not in. As promised in the other topic I was thinking about preordering this game and I did. For $30 you can preorder this game and it will give you access to all Alphas, Betas until the final release of the game. Do I think its worth it? Yes, I definitely do. Even before you start the game, the great part is how often the developers post development news, as often as every week, livestreams that show gameplay walkthroughs constantly and the sense that these developers really care about the game. That definitey even before I begin the game is worth the $30. Have you seen other Kickstarters where the developers are doing a game they Kickstarted on the side, as they have day jobs, don't devote as much time to the game as they should and updates are few and are far between. Not the case here. Go to www.stonehearth.net and you will see videos of each stage of development, information on new features added and so much more.
As I started the game you can choose what area you would like to start building your city in, whether it has lots of trees or has more mountains or less trees and is more barren. You also do a quick start and the game will randomly generate an area for you. Once you start the game the fun begins. So far the game has no tutorial so often it is not easy to figure out what to do but as I said since this is an Alpha this may be added later. I am figuring out how to do thing by watching the walkthroughs developers have posted or by figuring out as I play.
You start the game by having to place a flag where you will start your new city. From their you have about 6 citizens who will be the workers who will be the main force in creating your city. You start off with a few items, such as a saw and other items. These items will be how you promte your citizens to do various jobs. For example having a citizen grab a saw allows you to promote them to a carpenter. A carpenter can then build houses, furniture and other items you will need to build your city. Citizens will need to also harvest items such as trees for wood or plants for resources that your city needs. So far you can a carpenter that builds and creates things, a trapper that hunts for food, a farmer that builds a farm and creates food your citizens need. So far I was not able to tell how much resources building requires such as a creating house or creating a bed but maybe I am missing something or this will be added later.
Once you harvest enough items you can set your citizens to go and build things like a house with floors, walls and a roof. I have gotten as far as building a floor, harvesting material. It was neat that a carpenter can create swords which allows you to create footment to protect and partrol your town. As eventually intruders make come into your town and invade. So you use how one profession can create other professions. So essentilly so far I created a footman, a carpenter, a farmer, a trapper, and a silk maker.
That is about it for the initial impressions as I played for about an hour. More to come in future reports but before ending this first report I must say I love the art direction of the game, very detailed voxel based technlogy for the look of the characters, worlds and items. I have never have liked other games similar to this where the world, art and characters where very pixely and grainy art direction. Here the art is sharp, very detailed and very well done. You can tell the creators are software developers because the art is beautiful and detailed and although this is an Alpha what is there is great, from the UI, to the world details, characters and other areas are nicely detailed. The music is also impressive and goes along well with the game.
In report 2 I will talk in more detail about the graphics, building the rest of the house, other details I missed here and more gameplay impressions I found.
That is why I like about this Kickstarter. Do its success they are develpoing this full time not on the side or when there is time but complete full on development and focus on making this the best game it can be. Since December they have come out with 5 Alphas, with the current one Alpha 5 released this month. Each time an Alpha is released more features, bug fixes and more coolness is added to the game. If you do not know Alpha is usually one of the first stages that a game goes through in development, essentially the stage where the game is literally being put together, the features are being added and all systems that they game is to have is created at this stage. In the Alpha stage many things are missing, there are many bugs and much of the core game is still not in. As promised in the other topic I was thinking about preordering this game and I did. For $30 you can preorder this game and it will give you access to all Alphas, Betas until the final release of the game. Do I think its worth it? Yes, I definitely do. Even before you start the game, the great part is how often the developers post development news, as often as every week, livestreams that show gameplay walkthroughs constantly and the sense that these developers really care about the game. That definitey even before I begin the game is worth the $30. Have you seen other Kickstarters where the developers are doing a game they Kickstarted on the side, as they have day jobs, don't devote as much time to the game as they should and updates are few and are far between. Not the case here. Go to www.stonehearth.net and you will see videos of each stage of development, information on new features added and so much more.
As I started the game you can choose what area you would like to start building your city in, whether it has lots of trees or has more mountains or less trees and is more barren. You also do a quick start and the game will randomly generate an area for you. Once you start the game the fun begins. So far the game has no tutorial so often it is not easy to figure out what to do but as I said since this is an Alpha this may be added later. I am figuring out how to do thing by watching the walkthroughs developers have posted or by figuring out as I play.
You start the game by having to place a flag where you will start your new city. From their you have about 6 citizens who will be the workers who will be the main force in creating your city. You start off with a few items, such as a saw and other items. These items will be how you promte your citizens to do various jobs. For example having a citizen grab a saw allows you to promote them to a carpenter. A carpenter can then build houses, furniture and other items you will need to build your city. Citizens will need to also harvest items such as trees for wood or plants for resources that your city needs. So far you can a carpenter that builds and creates things, a trapper that hunts for food, a farmer that builds a farm and creates food your citizens need. So far I was not able to tell how much resources building requires such as a creating house or creating a bed but maybe I am missing something or this will be added later.
Once you harvest enough items you can set your citizens to go and build things like a house with floors, walls and a roof. I have gotten as far as building a floor, harvesting material. It was neat that a carpenter can create swords which allows you to create footment to protect and partrol your town. As eventually intruders make come into your town and invade. So you use how one profession can create other professions. So essentilly so far I created a footman, a carpenter, a farmer, a trapper, and a silk maker.
That is about it for the initial impressions as I played for about an hour. More to come in future reports but before ending this first report I must say I love the art direction of the game, very detailed voxel based technlogy for the look of the characters, worlds and items. I have never have liked other games similar to this where the world, art and characters where very pixely and grainy art direction. Here the art is sharp, very detailed and very well done. You can tell the creators are software developers because the art is beautiful and detailed and although this is an Alpha what is there is great, from the UI, to the world details, characters and other areas are nicely detailed. The music is also impressive and goes along well with the game.
In report 2 I will talk in more detail about the graphics, building the rest of the house, other details I missed here and more gameplay impressions I found.