Neighbors: Suburban Warfare News

Hello NEIGHBORS,

Yes. What you are reading is correct. We are hosting a Mini-PLAYTEST this weekend!

To give you a quick overview of the timeline, what we're aiming to achieve with this playtest, and why we're calling it a "mini" playtest, our Community Manager Artjom put together a short video, which you can check out below:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]


[h3]WHEN IS THE PLAYTEST?[/h3]
Saturday, Dec. 14th, 12:00PM (CET) - Monday, Dec. 16th, 12:00PM (CET)
Damn. I said AM and even wrote it on the graphic assets... ːsteamfacepalmː


[h3]WHO WILL HAVE ACCESS?[/h3]
Anyone who had access to a previous playtest will be able to play again. In addition, we will open the playtest to a select number of players from regions in or near the Central European Time Zone. This will allow us to ensure a smooth playtest with moderation and technical support if required. The final number of testers is not set in stone, but we will try to keep the servers busy without overloading them.


[h3]HOW WILL THE PLAYERS BE SELECTED?[/h3]
We'll choose a few users at random from each country. We'll let them know by email or Steam that they're eligible for the playtest.


[h3]HOW CAN I PROVIDE FEEDBACK?[/h3]
We will provide a feedback form, where you are kindly asked to give us your opinion on the game and what you would love to see improved/changed for the bigger playtest next year.


[h3]IMPORTANT NOTICE: Since the build for the playtest is not final we kindly ask everyone to NOT record and share gameplay or content of the playtes, since it may depict unfinished features and designs and in the end spoil the experience for other players. [/h3] ːsteamsadː


The Invisible Walls Team will be online over the weekend, playing community games to get a feel for player sentiment. Join the Community Discord to hang out and talk about NEIGHBORS.



Hope to see you in the game or on the Discord server!
Artjom ːsteamhappyː

Greetings NEIGHBORS,

In this update we would like to introduce our newest colleague at Invisible Walls and give you an update on what we are currently working on:



As we mentioned in last week's update, we are very happy to welcome a new member to the Invisible Walls crew: Brand & Community Manager Artjom "ArtiMcFly" Schmatkow has joined the team and will make sure that the Neighbors community will be able to grow happily, celebrate events together and also receive regular insights into current and future updates.


Hello everyone!
My name is Artjom and I'm really excited to introduce myself ːsteamhappyː

I've been in the industry for roughly six year now and after moving from Germany to Denmark last year, I was looking for a job to work even closer with video game development and to be part of something really special. And after only a few short visits I am convinced, that I found the perfect spot here with the amazing team at Invisible Walls.

As soon as I stepped into the cozy studio right in the heart of Copenhagen I was wholeheartedly welcomed by the entire the team and I can really feel the passion and love they put into Neighbors: Suburban Warfare every single day. That's something I would love to share with you in future streams, on social media and on our beloved community Discord (link down below).

Whether it's sharing updates, gathering feedback, or just geeking out over games, I'm here to make this journey as engaging and fun as possible. So don't hesitate to reach out to me via Discord or the Steam Community Forum. Let's build something great together!
Me, our IT Wizard Spoisen and our CEO David "decorating" the studio for our Halloween Party.


[hr][/hr]


Last time we mentioned that we are working hard on delivering a build for future playtests. While we're at it, we'd like to periodically share a little bit of what exactly we're working on right now to involve you more into our day-to-day progress.



HOW TO DEFEND YOUR PROPERTY
One of our main focuses after the last playtests was to make the game as easy to understand as possible for newcomers. That's why we're currently working hard to create a tutorial that will give you the tools you need to defend your property.




For example, to fend off annoying neighbors, you will learn where to collect and buy items such as the good old bear trap.




Every house has its weak points, which the neighborhood can use to get rid of your important furniture. In the tutorial you will, among other things, learn where to place the traps. If not, you will learn the hard way when your TV is smashed to pieces.



ITEM SHOP OVERHAUL
Items are a core element of Neighbors: Suburban Warfare to either fend off annoying neighbors or to "redecorate" their homes and furniture. Currently, we are looking to streamline and optimize the shop system where you can get all of your weapons, tools, and utilities such as baseball bats, automatic baseball pitchers or the infamous Seagull-130 Gunbird.

As you can see below, we are experimenting with visualizing all unlocked items in the item shop and making it more easy to navigate. Right now we are working on a new closet that will pop open when you run by.





ITEM EXPLORATION FEATURING "THE PLUNGERGUN"
We love taking everyday objects you might find in a sleepy suburban neighborhood and turning them into silly tools and traps. Regularly we are looking to either create new or adapt existing items to enable the chaotic neighborhood scuffles we all desire.



One of the items we are currently testing is the handy "Plungergun" that shoots... well, plungers. Why you ask?


So you can pull LITTLE SH*TS Kevin players shooting at you from above down from the roof. OR you can pull yourself up to higher ground to teach them a lesson. With your fists...




NO PARTY? NO PROBLEM. QUICK PLAY IS HERE!
In previous builds, players could only host or join lobbies to fight each other. These are still viable options, and ideal if you are looking for custom experience. However we have been hard at work at adding a "quick play" option so you can jump directly into 3v3 suburban clashes.





FUTURE UPDATES
Expect regular development updates in the coming weeks as we strive to deliver a playable build for future playtests. We really appreciate the interest in the game, and until you are able to pester your beloved neighbors (in-game!), we want to share as much as we can about the game.

We get a lot of questions asking for a playtest date, and we promise to be transparent with updates as soon as we have some.



Be sure to also Wishlist & Follow Neighbors: Suburban Warfare on Steam to stay on top of any notifications and receive similar behind-the-scenes updates like this one.

Until next time!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1732430/Neighbors_Suburban_Warfare/

Hello NEIGHBORS!
We are absolutely thrilled for the excitement and feedback we have received in the days following our name reveal at theSPILL a few weeks ago.

The interest in Neighbors: Suburban Warfare have blown our minds and we can’t wait to bring this project to fruition together with you all.
Moving forward we will begin to be more present across all social channels and you can expect updates on development and playtests both here and on our discord channel: https://discord.gg/bWRYnuxS

Troels and Katarina before we went live at theSPILL - find the link below to see how it went



Since the reveal we have received a lot of questions and therefore felt that a FAQ format could be a good idea for us to post to get all our new neighbors on board. So here goes:


[h5]WHEN CAN I PLAYTEST THE GAME?[/h5]
We are not ready to give a date for the next playtest yet. We are hard at work implementing feedback from our last playtest to the game. Since the reveal, the number of playtest signups have increased more than we anticipated. While this is awesome in every single way it also puts more stress on our systems. We want to get this right and we will do our best to give access to as many Neighbors as possible. That said, the wait might be longer for some of you. We will update you as soon as we know, promise.


[h5]AM I ALLOWED TO STREAM AND SHARE CONTENT FROM PLAYTESTS?[/h5]
Good question. Neighbors: Suburban Warfare is like a baby to us. And while we love it dearly, others might still find it a little rough around the edges. For this reason there is a chance that we would kindly ask for your discretion during the early playtests so that we can address your feedback before we spread it wider. If you are a streamer/content creator looking to stream the game, our IW Prelude Program might be of interest to you. Sign Up here: https://www.invisiblewalls.co/prelude



[h5]WHAT TYPE OF GAME IS NEIGHBORS: SUBURBAN WARFARE?[/h5]
Neighbors: Suburban Warfare combines all our favorite elements from established Shooters, Brawlers, MOBAs and Base Builders into a light-hearted setting where everyone can play along. It does not necessarily fall into a neatly definable box. Regardless of what type it is, we like it. And we hope you will too.


[h5]IS IT A MULTIPLAYER GAME?[/h5]
Yes, Neighbors: Suburban Warfare is a team-based multiplayer game for 2-8 players. There might come free-for-all game modes as development moves on if it works well during testing.


[h5]WHEN WILL THE GAME RELEASE[/h5]
Another good question. Right now our focus is on getting the playtest going so we can get a feel for the remaining work we have in front of us. For this reason we will not speculate in possible release dates yet.


[h5]IS LELOI A REAL DOG?[/h5]
Yes, Leloi is heavily inspired by a real dog. We love animals and we love pets. We have several on a regular basis at the office, one of which is Leloi. Will we add the rest as well? Very likely.


[h5]WILL YOU BE ABLE TO PET THE PETS?[/h5]
Yes.


[h5]WILL THERE BE A ROADMAP?[/h5]
Yes. We are currently working on fleshing one out. It will most likely change during playtesting but we aim to have something to steer us.


[h5]WHERE CAN I FIND MORE INFORMATION?[/h5]
You can read more about the game and the Neighbors on our website: www.neighborsgame.com


You can also watch (or rewatch) our segment from theSPILL here: https://www.youtube.com/live/pTBCH6PKev4?t=10215s


And finally, you can join of Discord community where we discuss and show new stuff from the game:



On behalf of the entire Neighborhood, we want to thank you for reading. We expect to be back next week to introduce a new member of the team and show what we are cooking for the playtest.

If you haven’t done so already, please consider to wishlist the game!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1732430/Neighbors_Suburban_Warfare/

Hello Heartsville!



It’s been a busy few months for all of us at Invisible Walls. We set our sights on running a playtest, and the whole team came together to pull it off. We also owe a thanks to those of you who made it for some of the test sessions. It was so wonderful to see people enjoying Just Perfect, and it was even more wonderful to get all of your feedback.

We want to make sure Just Perfect starts off on the right foot and achieving that will require a lot of humility. We received a lot of feedback during the playtest - some good, some bad. We know the art team appreciates the praise, and we know that our Game Designer appreciates everyone’s patience and willingness to learn..

Sebastian: It was nice to see how many players joined our last test and showed up with enthusiasm to play Just Perfect this early in the development phase. We are very aware that the game currently does not tell you how to play, guide you or inform you in terms of what is going on around you. The next big step we are taking with the game will include making these matters more clear. I was surprised by everyone's patience to learn the game and once players got the hang of it, many stuck around and played for hours. We also got an overwhelming amount of feedback from everyone and this is truly very helpful and something we are basing our development and planning on, so thank you very much for helping us and Just Perfect on the correct path towards a great game🙏

We learned a lot from the playtest. One of the biggest things we learned was just how hard Just Perfect is to learn. This was a little expected as we haven’t prepared a full tutorial for the game. What we noticed though turned out to be a major gap whenever newer players were up against someone with even a little bit of play time. We don’t expect Just Perfect to be an overly complex game, but we’re aware of the nuances to it. The team will be looking into different options for tutorials to help make life easier for those who move into the neighborhood later on.

We can’t reveal everything we learned, but we can say there was so much more. Every piece of feedback we’ve received will help make Just Perfect into a better game at launch.

We want to wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year. We’re looking forward to what the future holds for Just Perfect and we’re so excited to share more with you next year.

Thank you so much for reading. If you’re interested in Just Perfect, please add the game to your wishlist and follow us on your preferred platforms to stay up-to-date.

invisiblewalls.co Twitter Facebook Instagram Discord

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1732430/Just_Perfect/

Welcome to Heartsville!

This weekend is the first set of Playtests for Just Perfect. You can request access to the playtest on the Store page for Just Perfect if you haven't already.

We will be running two sessions a day until November 28th. The first sessions will be from 14:00 CET (8:00 AM EST) to 16:00 CET (10:00 AM EST), and the second sessions will be from 10:00 PM EST (04:00 CET) to 12:00 AM EST (06:00 CET).

We have channels in our Discord to allow you to communicate with other players. There is currently no in-game voice chat so you can join a voice channel in Discord to play: https://discord.gg/J52K9A7vCb

We also ask that anyone who participates fill out this questionnaire after playing for a little while to help provide feedback: https://forms.gle/y4wFNaV32HiyY9Cg7

Thank you all for participating!