Mathew just reminded me it's time for a monthly update! My response was "What month is this?"

As you may imagine, things have been intense as we continue with the development of Alganon. Over the past few weeks, we have been working hard on data-sets, the server technology, client bugs and features, and enhancing MyAlganon. Writing a MMOG from scratch is probably some of the most difficult development a company can undertake. We are fortunate to have some of the most skilled developers available working here at QOL. Of the few delays we've had so far, most have revolved around server performance and stability, getting the multithreaded system rock solid and functional, playing nice with script processing (BTW all our server code is C++, including the scripts). We also have loads of fun debugging the load balancing and network communication issues that come up. Even so, we're building a robust and solid server infrastructure that should act not only as the foundation for Alganon, but future QOL games as well.

We've also been focusing on lots of visual enhancements; particle FX for combat, casting spells, animation interpolation and blending, all of those little things that make the world "feel right". We are excited to see all of these features finally coming together. This milestone will give our dedicated testers exactly what they are looking for; complete immersion within the world of Alganon, and simply a chance to play a great MMOG. Even if you are not currently in the Beta Program, we appreciate all your suggestions and concerns on the current website design, exclusive articles from around the community, and dev blogs such as this one.

For those of who have received Beta keys, make sure you continue to check out the Library system in MyAlganon. The information there is being built upon on a daily basis: quests, items, creatures, loot drops, and more. It will continue to be expanded upon to include all skills, actions, studies, abilities, etc. as well, so keep your eye on it. We look forward to bringing more of you into the Private Beta soon and Public Beta for the vast majority of you!

That about wraps it up! Next month should be pretty exciting as we will have more beta participant feedback for you as the game nears Public Beta, as well as distribution of beta keys and other fresh exclusives we are currently developing!

- David Allen, CEO of Quest Online