MMORPG.com: Going to your own game then, when can we expect to get some hands on with Das Tal to see how it plays, and whether sandbox fans will be happy?
Alex: We're right now moving over to testing the MMORPG / sandbox part of the game. The core features (resource warfare, player settlements, crafting and char development) are super raw and they'll need A TON of iteration and polish but our closed alpha testers will get their hands on them on February 1st anyways - and dev supporters even earlier.
We're also going to run a semi-public stress test of this build of the game on February 8th - that's definitely the fastest free way to get in for brand new testers. All details can be found on our Square Enix Collective page.
I expect these tests to be tough for us since we're handing out a super early version of the game to first-time players. This is in no way comparable to Blizzard's HotS "technical alpha test" that already features a cash-shop and millions of players. If we were in a normal studio environment then we' probably be a year away from even showing screenshots. But that's the deal with being independent: You have to show your cards early on and grow your game on a solid base of real player feedback in public. Some of it is super enthusiastic* and some of it is soul-crushing. But all of it makes the game better.
)
MMORPG.com: As I understand it, Das Tal will be using the seasonal server model, much like A Tale in the Desert or Travian. And you're not the only game coming up that's doing this. Care to comment on the trend?
Alex: I think it's about time that the Seasonal Server Model makes its way from Browsergames like Travian and from AtitD into a lot more MMOs. I'd even say that we could witness the birth of a completely new genre here (we need a name for it!). MMOs have long suffered from the "we _have_ to simulate a world like the one outside my window" problem. While this is interesting for some players, for most players who want a compelling PVP experience a periodic reset will be way more fun. It will allow us not only to get rid of a lot of the grind cruft that has plagued so many MMOs before but also to finally start experimenting with really interesting unique server concepts for way smaller parts of our player base. Interestingly both games doing this have learned the same lesson from my favorite MMO, Shadowbane, and I'm super excited to see us change the world of PvP MMOs. It's going to be awesome.
