Post by DeathsAdvocate (Admin) on Apr 3, 2020 23:06:41 GMT
sibon (utc 0)Today at 12:34 PM
The Current Vision and Plan for this project
Let us start this short letter by two important claims:
Debate is healthy
Division is bad.
We do genuinely want healthy debate about how this project should proceed. But equally, there are some matters which can be discussed to death with no end in sight. So points (1) and (2) are sometimes in conflict with one another.
If we spend all our time discussing matters nothing gets done. If we constantly delay major decisions nothing gets done. We need a clear vision for the project. At some point we have to stop talking and take action.
One versus Two Draw
One versus Two-draw is an obvious example. Both lead to fundamentally different games and the discussion about one or the other are endless. And we can’t really design a game without deciding one way or the other; the Sword of Damocles looms above our head.
So here’s the deal, the game is going to be 2-draw. Period. Only in exceptional circumstances would we revert this decision.
Now, I appreciate that this decision will delight some and disappoint others. The harsh truth is that it is impossible to make a game everyone will be happy with.
Managing Expectations
Also, one quick little point we'd like people to understand: this is a hobby project; everybody is a volunteer on this project. This means Developers are working on this in their spare time and none of the developers (at time of writing) are experienced game programmers.
The result? This version of Duelyst we create is likely to be worse than the Duelyst you once played; The art probably will not look as great, the animations not as smooth, the interface more clunky, and so on.
That is not because the developers want to ship a substandard product, it's just an unfortunate consequence of relying on volunteers and not always having the expertise required.
The only two metrics where our game may end up being better than Duelyst is (1) being alive and (2) have cooler cards and a more interesting meta.
We would love to promise more but it is important to be realistic.
Project Roadmap
So here’s the current project plan with an approximate timeline. Do note that plans can change and the time estimates are likely to be highly inaccurate. Part of the reason why the time estimates are inaccurate is that the dev team is both small and fielded by part-time volunteers. Just one new developer joining (or an old one leaving, for that matter) can have a dramatic impact on the speed of development.
Phase 1: Make a playable game. (June 2020)
In this phase of development, the plan is to make a playable game inspired by Duelyst. This phase will mostly be characterized by experimentation. Although many of the cards and art will be from Duelyst, we also will not be afraid to test new cards, mechanics and features.
The goal of this phase is to make a game that is competitive, playable experience. However, the game will be a bit ‘rough around the edges’, so to speak.
“Why not develop Duelyst straight away?”
Well basically it’s due to technical limitations; the card creation system is rather limited and it will take months of work to improve it. So instead of trying to ‘fight the tide’ we decided to roll with it and make the cards and mechanics that we can support.
Phase 2: Recreate 2-Draw Duelyst (August 2020)
In this phase we plan on trying to faithfully recreate a specific patch of Duelyst’s past, specifically patch 60.
While some gameplay and balance changes will be necessary, the goal will be to make as few changes as possible.
Phase 3: Add our own spin (September 2020)
In this phase we plan to add our own twist to the patch 60 experience. This may include expansions, balance changes, and some of the new shiny cards/mechanics we experimented with in phase (1).
Phase 4: Let’s not get Sued (January 2021)
With a stable, fun version of Duelyst up and running, the next aim is to replace all the Duelyst art assets with our own. Obviously replacing all the art is a huge undertaking which is why we stated the art creation process during phase (1).
With all assets replaced, the game should be on firm legal footing. At this point we can confidently start releasing this game to the ‘general public’. This may include things like a release on ‘Steam’.
Phase 5: Stability, Maintenance and Monetisation (March 2021)
Because it is an open source project, ‘monetisation’ is likely to just mean getting enough donations to cover the costs of the project. This is not a ‘for-profit’ enterprise.
Thus, the goals of this phase will mostly be about setting the game up for long-term success. Because it is an open source project, the idea would be to create a system where ‘any developer’ could pick up where the ‘core team’ left off.
Speaking of the ‘core team’ the idea would be for most of them to move onto phase 6 below.
Phase 6: Build our own game (June 2021)
Using the art we commissioned years earlier and the code we wrote for Duelyst the plan here would be to release our own game with its own lore, factions and mechanics.
Because it’s using the same core art assets and code it should be very fast to develop and release.
And moreover, because so much of the work is shared, it ought to be possible for the core-team to support both games simultaneously, at least in the short-term.
Please also note that this new game will also be open source.
Signed,
The development and design team for Project Cardboard
TL;DR - Game will be 2 draw. We will first recreate Duelyst patch 0.60 as best we can, then look to improve upon it before developing a spiritual successor to Duelyst using our own assets
The Current Vision and Plan for this project
Let us start this short letter by two important claims:
Debate is healthy
Division is bad.
We do genuinely want healthy debate about how this project should proceed. But equally, there are some matters which can be discussed to death with no end in sight. So points (1) and (2) are sometimes in conflict with one another.
If we spend all our time discussing matters nothing gets done. If we constantly delay major decisions nothing gets done. We need a clear vision for the project. At some point we have to stop talking and take action.
One versus Two Draw
One versus Two-draw is an obvious example. Both lead to fundamentally different games and the discussion about one or the other are endless. And we can’t really design a game without deciding one way or the other; the Sword of Damocles looms above our head.
So here’s the deal, the game is going to be 2-draw. Period. Only in exceptional circumstances would we revert this decision.
Now, I appreciate that this decision will delight some and disappoint others. The harsh truth is that it is impossible to make a game everyone will be happy with.
Managing Expectations
Also, one quick little point we'd like people to understand: this is a hobby project; everybody is a volunteer on this project. This means Developers are working on this in their spare time and none of the developers (at time of writing) are experienced game programmers.
The result? This version of Duelyst we create is likely to be worse than the Duelyst you once played; The art probably will not look as great, the animations not as smooth, the interface more clunky, and so on.
That is not because the developers want to ship a substandard product, it's just an unfortunate consequence of relying on volunteers and not always having the expertise required.
The only two metrics where our game may end up being better than Duelyst is (1) being alive and (2) have cooler cards and a more interesting meta.
We would love to promise more but it is important to be realistic.
Project Roadmap
So here’s the current project plan with an approximate timeline. Do note that plans can change and the time estimates are likely to be highly inaccurate. Part of the reason why the time estimates are inaccurate is that the dev team is both small and fielded by part-time volunteers. Just one new developer joining (or an old one leaving, for that matter) can have a dramatic impact on the speed of development.
Phase 1: Make a playable game. (June 2020)
In this phase of development, the plan is to make a playable game inspired by Duelyst. This phase will mostly be characterized by experimentation. Although many of the cards and art will be from Duelyst, we also will not be afraid to test new cards, mechanics and features.
The goal of this phase is to make a game that is competitive, playable experience. However, the game will be a bit ‘rough around the edges’, so to speak.
“Why not develop Duelyst straight away?”
Well basically it’s due to technical limitations; the card creation system is rather limited and it will take months of work to improve it. So instead of trying to ‘fight the tide’ we decided to roll with it and make the cards and mechanics that we can support.
Phase 2: Recreate 2-Draw Duelyst (August 2020)
In this phase we plan on trying to faithfully recreate a specific patch of Duelyst’s past, specifically patch 60.
While some gameplay and balance changes will be necessary, the goal will be to make as few changes as possible.
Phase 3: Add our own spin (September 2020)
In this phase we plan to add our own twist to the patch 60 experience. This may include expansions, balance changes, and some of the new shiny cards/mechanics we experimented with in phase (1).
Phase 4: Let’s not get Sued (January 2021)
With a stable, fun version of Duelyst up and running, the next aim is to replace all the Duelyst art assets with our own. Obviously replacing all the art is a huge undertaking which is why we stated the art creation process during phase (1).
With all assets replaced, the game should be on firm legal footing. At this point we can confidently start releasing this game to the ‘general public’. This may include things like a release on ‘Steam’.
Phase 5: Stability, Maintenance and Monetisation (March 2021)
Because it is an open source project, ‘monetisation’ is likely to just mean getting enough donations to cover the costs of the project. This is not a ‘for-profit’ enterprise.
Thus, the goals of this phase will mostly be about setting the game up for long-term success. Because it is an open source project, the idea would be to create a system where ‘any developer’ could pick up where the ‘core team’ left off.
Speaking of the ‘core team’ the idea would be for most of them to move onto phase 6 below.
Phase 6: Build our own game (June 2021)
Using the art we commissioned years earlier and the code we wrote for Duelyst the plan here would be to release our own game with its own lore, factions and mechanics.
Because it’s using the same core art assets and code it should be very fast to develop and release.
And moreover, because so much of the work is shared, it ought to be possible for the core-team to support both games simultaneously, at least in the short-term.
Please also note that this new game will also be open source.
Signed,
The development and design team for Project Cardboard
TL;DR - Game will be 2 draw. We will first recreate Duelyst patch 0.60 as best we can, then look to improve upon it before developing a spiritual successor to Duelyst using our own assets
