As a studio we’re familiar with Early Access. We did it on our last game, creating several Major Updates between the initial launch and the v1.0 release and we'll utilise a similar format for SENTRY. Feedback from the community is a crucial part of that process.
Essentially, our goal is for you to be able to play SENTRY and think “Wow, this is great” and as more gets added over the course of Early Access for you to think “Wow, now it’s even better!” :)
[h2]The Plan[/h2]
Our initial plan is to be in Early Access between 9 and 12 months. That could change depending on feedback of course, and we expect to ship a Major Update roughly every 2-3 months.
For us, a Major Update comprises both new systems and content. We package these up into a release that feels like a big event and is the perfect excuse for you to return to the game. This worked really well on our last game so we’d look to replicate the format.
On the run-up to a Major Update, we’ll make these available in pre-release form on an opt-in beta branch. This will give the community a chance to get a sneak preview of the upcoming additions.
[h2]Roadmap[/h2]
The initial period after release will have a heavy focus on hot-fixes and patches. We’ll make these live individually or in small groups with a prompt turnaround time.
While we always read every single post on our various channels, this will be a particularly intense period of noting your feedback and planning what to prioritise.
[h3]Major Update 1[/h3]
Our first Major Update will be a combination of new content (i.e. weapons, deployables, gear, enemies, levels) and systems. The new features would focus on areas that would help provide the biggest and most meaningful improvements to the game.
[h3]The Co-op Update[/h3]
Our most popular request! Co-op has been functional for a long time, but the effort required to get it ready for EA release would have severely compromised the singleplayer experience. This is the issue with a tiny team with a single programmer, we have to be very careful what we choose to tackle and when. At least doing it this way makes for one hell of a great Major Update :)
This Major Update will be focused on Co-op and any supporting systems such as customisation. It’s likely an update that will have a long period of beta-branch testing available to help iron out any bugs before we officially launch it.
[h3]Additional Major Updates[/h3]
These will likely take a format very similar to Major Update 1, in that there’ll be additional content combined with new systems that holistically improve SENTRY.
[h2]Planned Tasks[/h2]
Aside from loads of new weapons, deployables, gear, enemies and levels, here are some other tasks that are on our radar – this isn’t an exhaustive list, but enough to whet your appetite…
- Additional Campaign gameplay – more sectors and more campaign features, including some difficulty mechanisms so you can tailor the experience somewhat
- Crew Menu – gives you the ability to see your crew and supplemental information (like their name). This is where the Newsletter Subscriber names will be added and you can rename them too
- Customisation – The original plan was to focus on different SENTRY skins, but we’ve had a lot of requests for customising the weapons too, which we’ll certainly consider
- Emotes – Another feature that’ll go well with co-op, you may have seen an early implementation of this in some trailers where you see a SENTRY giving a thumbs up gesture
- Additional modes – other ways to play the game, such as an Endless mode, Challenge modes etc.
- Full controller support. You can play combat with a gamepad, but not the strategy layers.
- Full Steam Deck support. It’s playable but we want to lavish attention on this
There will of course be swathes of smaller features and improvements in our plan that are too numerous to list, but we’ll tell you about them as they get added :)
[h2]A note on Major Updates and Saves/Profiles[/h2]
SENTRY has two levels of saved information. At the top level is your profile, which stores your existing playthrough and any equipment you’ve banked. We then have a save, which records where you are on your run.
While your profile should always be safe, there is a chance that a Major Update may impact your save. You won’t lose meta-progression (i.e. your profile and its equipment) and because of the structure of the game it means you shouldn’t ever lose much. We’ll also leave each version of the game up on Steam as a branch. This means you can play to a point where you can bank your equipment to your profile and won’t lose anything – and then upgrade to enjoy all the new content.
We’ll clearly communicate in advance anything that’ll impact the escape-run you’re in the middle of.
While we have our own plans for Early Access, the community feedback is an
absolutely essential part of this process – so please tell us what you think in the
Steam forums, our
Discord or any of the other channels we’re on!
Thanks for all of the support, we can't wait for you to get your hands on the game!
