After several delays that left many VR players in anticipation, Team 21 Studio has finally announced the launch of the Beta 1 testing phase for their virtual reality MMORPG, Ilysia. The delay was originally attributed to MagePortal updates, which had caused a stir in the community, but the developers have now resolved the bug that pushed the Beta back several weeks.
In a series of Discord messages, Kosmos, the T21 Community Manager, detailed the new schedule and reassured players of the team's commitment to a smooth experience. Beta 1 has finally began on August 12th and will run through August 16th, with the servers going live at 5 pm EDT. Following this, Beta 2 is slated to go live from August 18th to August 23rd.
To compensate for the short notice and previous delay, both Beta 1 and Beta 2 have been extended by a couple of days. Additionally, players who purchased a Beta 1 Bundle will have access to Beta 2 as well. However, even after fixing the Mage Portal issues, the team has since responded to reports of users that are unable to download the game by requesting they clear cookies and try again.
The focus of Beta 1 is large-scale network stress testing, and the team anticipates instances of disconnections during the tutorial phase. Players encountering any issues are advised to wait momentarily and try reconnecting.
Despite the issues many players are expected to counter (and some issues that will undoubtedly be unexpected) Beta 1 is a tremendous step for Team21 Studios as they charge towards a full release. Judging by the response from players in the official Discord, the excitement surrounding Ilysia's Beta launch is palpable. The developers' communication and willingness to extend the testing phases has certainly resonated well with the community. For more details on the previous delay, refer to our previous coverage, and stay tuned for more information on Ilysia.