There's a school of thought that it's better to have fewer but bigger updates to software. I tend to be in that school of thought.
But as a developer, we really enjoy sharing what we do with our customers as quickly as humanly possible.
For example, in v1.02, if you're using it right now, you hopefully noticed that we were able to vastly improve the per turn times over v1.01 and earlier. We thought that a big deal (we came up with a different algorithm for finding units more efficiently which, late game, is a big deal). v1.02 also starts out using a lot less memory due to dynamic memory caching, a technique we have been working on for awhile but wasn't expected to be ready until v1.1 but actually got done early so we included that.
Right now, for v1.03, we're working on a new way of storing compressed textures and clearing the texture cache (right now, we cache textures for the entire game session which gives a slight performance improvement but over the course of the game can eat up a lot of memory). We're doing this because we know how many users like really big maps and we'd like to pave the way to larger sized maps eventually.
So anyway, are these regular updates annoying you? Would you prefer if we slowed down and had fewer, bigger updates?
Thanks!
are these regular updates annoying you?
Yes. As a consumer, I demand unreliable, tardy service!
Obviously I am kidding and the regular updates are awesome Considering that they take hardly any time to download, I see no downsides with the present method. Rapid, responsive updating also means that you guys can react quickly in case one patch inadvertently creates additional issues.
Keep 'em coming.
Love the updates!
If you're willing to release them, I'm willing to play them!
I think rapid deployment and continuous integration are the trends these days.
I love the rapid updates - i especially love he littel things as well. I can't tell you how much i appreciate having the spells cast on the wrold map give you some feedback.
I prefer to have useful updates when they are ready instead of waiting six months for the accumulated patch.
Fishing for compliments, aren't you? Well, you've certainly earned them!
Thanks for the update!
The game runs MUCH better on my XP laptop. It was already running fine on my Win7 PC. But I am also very, very happy about the balance updates and the fixes that 1.2 delivers.
As for your question, as a programmer, I believe in large updates. As a gaming customer, I very much prefer the way you're doing them.
PLEASE keep the updates coming. While I can't say each update is like night and day, I can notice performance going up a bit every time.
Yes it's very annoying, that I don't have enough free time right now to play the game as much as I want!
The update size is modest (for those on limited bandwidth) so can't see any reasonable objections. Please continue
And great news on larger map sizes.
Update away. Only dilemma is whether I can finish a game inbetween the updates.
yes please
The time between update 1.00, 1.01 and 1.02 have been just perfect, to be honest any quicker than that is ok, but gets painful with mods.Talking about features, come on and fïx those bugs instead
Sincerely~ Kongdej
Very nicely done! I am really looking forward to the larger maps. I have quad core system but an old Nvidia 9800 vid card. How much difference will it make for this game if I move up to a 5600?
For this kind of game where you not only have bugs to fix and performance to improve but also a complex balance and AI to improve, quick iterations with a lot of feedback seems to be the way to go.
Also it's good to remind regularly to your customer that you care about them and what they think. Fickle creatures those customers, they need a lot of attention
Regular updates means quicker feedback for you.
We get occasional emails to support complaining that we need to quit "spamming" updates and instead wait until they're bigger and then release them. It's hard to know how representative that is.
I like the frequent, incremental updates. In fact, the thing I hate most is to hear a developer say "yes we are aware of game-breaking bug xyz, and it will be fixed in our next update sometime next month or the month after."
Well, you really need to balance how much a performance increase/ content increase/ bug squashing is done per release, as you already know. The changes that you have made since version 1 have made a huge difference in the smoothness of gameplay. You created the engine from scratch and now your getting a chance to really flex your muscles with it. There are going to be bumps in road and things you didn't originally think about that now come to your attention.
I will again tout the little change that has a big impact for me. The ability to have some spell interaction when you cast it in the world map. When you cast destiny's insight on your champion you now know immediately what bonus he received. You don't have to open up the character sheet, write down your statistics, close down the sheet, open your spellbook, cast the spell, open up the sheet again and look at every stat to compare what you have written down. When you do this 8 times in a row it gets very frustrating and time consuming.
You have a new, stable platform that people want to mod and make changes. Sometimes they come up with new ideas that you guys never thought of, and you decide they are in fact a neat idea, and you want to expand on it. So you add new code and streamline the engine even further. You are at a place now where lots of little things will have a big impact improving the game engine. Sometime ai behaviour is highlighted to show an unexpected flaw, sometimes it's a quick fix, other times you have to gut and rewrite portions to fix a mistake. These are valuable. People don't have to download every single patch when they arrive. There are game companies i would kill people for to get the kind of patching dedication you guys are putting into this.
Hehe. Pools of Radiance: Ruins of myth dranor.
Unistall ==> Oops sorry we reformatted your hard drive.
WORST
BUG
EVER.
I tend to agree with this viewpoint. More precisely, I actually do think that the recent rate of updates (intervals between 1.0, 1.01, and 1.02) have been about right.
Having any less time between updates would begin to seem inefficient, and perhaps slightly annoying, to me personally, because of the impact on my ongoing Game-play. However, it also appears to me that there is a pretty strong concensus among respondents to this thread that most folks want updates quickly. They don't want you to "sit" on features and fixes, for roll-up into *BIG* updates.
Keep walking that tightrope, guys ... and thanks for asking.
I think the same. If there is a good amount/quality of buf fixes and general improvement, I find it very cool to share with us. But I think that having some time to test it, play it and keep feedback for possible new issues is important too.
My impression is that the game has improved a lot in many aspects, balancing many fronts (bugfixing, general improvements, tweaks, polishing, AI, forum feedback, and other ones that I just can't reaiize of), and with a good rythm -not excesive, not scarce...as said Kondej
I'm really expecting the map pack, and maybe some kind of news about new content too -perks, traits, paths, units...?
I can't avoid telling it: The colour of the pony...I prefer a different color for shop (champs) than for the units. All are the same white now!
Anyway good work, so thanks a lot
Isn't rapid iteration the way to do things these days?
Yes, keep the updates coming please! I also think smaller incremental updates are preferable to big ones that get released less often. More iteration means faster responsiveness to issues and less stale feedback.
Love the updates, especially now that I (seemingly) don't have to start an all-new game just to get an improved feature. If you can keep that going, that would rock.
I'd have to say I'm so thoroughly impressed with how the game engine continues to evolve. Performance efficiencies, new features, etc. really show how the new engine is really capable as an engine for future game development (hopefully).
On my wish list is some continued improvements in pathfinding, like displaying # of turns to a resource or allowing monster AI to avoid destroying a city because it's on the way. I'd also love to see some of the End Turn graphical jarring removed (at times it's like the game lurches into action and then stops suddenly); the cloth map does a better job of that than the 3D version.
Keep 'em coming!
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