MMORPG: What is your focus on during this alpha?
Mark Jacobs: Depends of course on which stage of alpha we are in. Currently, we are in Alpha One. Our focus, up to now, was getting the core technology of the game set. With that in place, we will start slowly adding gameplay and other fun features. The great news is that yesterday, we had almost 1.1K backers and bots in a relatively small zone without crashes. As a matter of fact, the alpha server hasn’t crashed yet.
MMORPG: It appears you have deviated from the timeline proposed during the KickStarter? What does the revised timeline look like?
Mark Jacobs: We made that deviation six months ago when we had to delay alpha. Essentially, we just added six months to the old schedule. Right now, we are estimating a June 2016 launch. However, since we have about 8K alpha folks, well, there is going to be a whole lot of dying, building and burning going on well before then.
MMORPG: A lot of developers say their game is in alpha and it really just feels more like a marketing tactic than a true alpha. How is CU different?
Mark Jacobs: As per above, we were focused on getting our core tech done first, which we have accomplished. We have a standalone building system called C.U.B.E., a decent-sized zone map and a server that can already handle a large number of backers and bots . What we don’t have yet is the real game. That sounds pretty much like an old school alpha to me.
MMORPG: What ever happened to CU being a place holder name? Is it official now or should we expect it to change before launch?
Mark Jacobs: We are going to discuss this next week. It was always intended to be a placeholder, but the best laid plans and all that.
MMORPG: Now that people are in the alpha playing should we expect to see more information released on the game? Are the alpha testers under an NDA?
Mark Jacobs: Yes, the alpha testers are under a EUALA and NDA. We hope to start streaming either this month or next. If all goes well, we will lift parts of the NDA during alpha, and the entirety by the end time it ends. We’ll just have to see how it goes.
MMORPG: How can people that are just now learning about CU get involved?
Mark Jacobs: Easily. They can go to our website to see all the information we have posted there, and if they like what they find, they can buy a pledge. MMORPG: Is it too late to join the alpha?
Mark Jacobs: Not at all. Alpha is supposed to last for six months, and given the track record of almost all MMORPGs ever developed, the over/under on our sticking to the schedule isn’t great. So, if people are interested in an old school aAlpha that will also have lots of contests, prizes and fun stuff, youtheystill have plenty of time.
