For those waiting for their Kingdoms of Elyria Alpha Invites that were originally planned to hit sometime at the end of May, you may be waiting a couple more weeks in the least. In the latest Chronicles of Elyria blog, CEO of Soulbound Studios, Jeromy Walsh, details the reason for the delay, and looks back at Milestone 2A.
The latest blog provides some lengthy information regarding the progress Soulbound Studios has made up to this point. What many fans and detractors may find most notable of the latest blog, is the explanation for the absence of Kingdoms of Elyria’s Alpha. Walsh points to some technical issues that will push the Alpha release back another ‘week or two’, while they put together a launcher, installer, an in-game feedback form, and update their authentication services. Sometime later this week, Walsh plans to release more information related to the exact timing of the Alpha, which has been pushed back twice thus far from its initial planned testing phase in April.
While we sit with bated breath and await the release, or additional delay, Walsh has provided some hefty reading material with a Milestone 2 retrospective, similar to the reflective post he did regarding Milestone 1. The blog introduces players to the KDA, which Soulbound Studios uses as a scoreboard for their progress. The KDA stands for Kills, Deaths and Assist, and really relates more to where Kingdoms and Chronicles stand in terms of developmental features:
- Kills - The things we killed it on
- Deaths - Things we saw, dove for, and ultimately overcommitted on
- Assists - Small, incremental improvements that while maybe didn't go according to plan, ultimately will help our success
- Jeromy Walsh CEO Soulbound Studios, Chronicles of Elyria
Some of the features that SBS believes they’ve ‘killed it’ on refer to NPC diversity, sound effects and soundtracks, and biodiversity. Some of the deaths refer to failures in implementing the AI due to technical details, and implementing contracts in time for the Alpha. In the end, every aspect of the KDA scoreboard appeared to have some sort of positive outcome for Walsh, but how those outcomes will translate into the broader community following this game, and awaiting the Alpha, is yet to be determined. More information related to the milestone retrospective, and the potential for a more concrete Alpha timeline is planned at some point this week.
