When did change Subnautica something in their gameplay stuff? Did I miss something?
I haven't read through everything now, so I'll just feature some thoughts and experiences I had with Early Access and will reply to specific posts )if I see this necessary) later.
So, first I agree that Factorio is a very good example of an EA title done right. Factorio had, when it came out, already the ending and everything to reach that, in there. They later changed the ending/end game significantally (or they are currently working ont hat, I don't remember). To make it clear, before it was "Build rocket, escape from planet", now it's (or planned as) "build rocket, get extra research value from that". Or you get something from the rocket, I don't remember what it was but I think research. This solution was done, because people wanted to play on after reaching the "end" of the game, so this is more aof a convenient change. Besides that, the game hasn't changed much and is still in the "early" stages of EA according to their own build numbering (0.15). So... idf the game is in fact feature complete, what else do they want to add? For me it sounds more like 0.8 instead of 0.1.
Anyway, currently Factorio is a good example of EA done rigth. But seeing that they consider this an early build of the game, this might not last so. Or they just decide, that the game is finished anyway, "let's just slap '1.0' on it".
Now, here are some other experiences, I had with EA.
Best example (or worst?) is StarForge. the game was funded with crowdfunding (I don't think it was Kickstarter but it was something similiar) and then released the game as EA. Bougth it then, game was okay-ish. It was even one of the first games in Early Access. Game had soem early features, that worked but a lot of stuff, tht didn't and a lot of stuff, that was missing entirely. They had many planned features and a lot of that stuff sounded good. Fortress Mode, a Tower Defense Mode in Survival evironment (build your fortress during day, protect it during the night), the mode itself was already in the game and working.
The funny thing is, instead of adding stuff, they continued to remove stuff from the game. It wasa bizarre backward development process inw hich the game got only worse and worse. They added an RPG system that worked perfectly fine, just to remove it on the next patch again because they said 8they want to improve itfirst), then they said the entire thing didn't work out as itnended, so they scrapped the entire idea. Fortress mode was removed as well, probably because they couldn't figure out how worms could attack and destroy walls or tunnel beneath them which was, what they initially promised. The game is one of the most prominent examples how EA can fail and it was one of the first games, that did this.
Best part? they made another game, actually it is the same thing, bust instead of a sci-fi/space setting, it's a medival one. It was early Access. And it failed. They did the same thing, the same game with another theme and made the same mistake. And people bought into it. Midn you, I did not but others did. Oh, hey, and they praised the second one first. Just liek they did with Starforge. That lasted unti they "released" the game and the community realized, that they basically got scammed.
Still salty, forever salty.
Sunless Sea. The game is a good example how big the change in a game can be and how drastic this can change the way, the community views the game. Sunless Sea was never about the battles, but at the start it had a round-based battle system. Basically what JRPGs do, you traverse the overworld, you meet an enemy, you engage combat. Battles were very boring because there was no meaning behind your actions and basically everything oneshotted you anyway. They then added on-map battles in real time. Which I find a lot better except you have to circle enemies like crazy (more with ship types, less with creatures) but people got mad as hell and decided to shit on the developers for that. They really wanted a round-based battle system, soemthign with tactics and such.
Besides that, the game had almost everything fromt he start, there was an ending you could reach, there were stories and the gameplay elements, but not all islands and locations, they added this later. They also added additional endings between you can choose.
In general, the game is good and had a good EA phase but the period, where they changed the battle system, was very dark and led to a very toxic environment in the forum.
Fortresscraft Evolved, one of the best Voxel games I know, was EA. And the EA phase was probably the most problematic thign about it, especially the transition from EA to full release. The game had many concept/gameplay shifts, it started as prototype, were you literally had nothing to do, there were soem kidn of enemies, that you could shoot but these didn't do anything, neither did they attack you nor did they drop something, the whole thing was just there for testing purposes if gunplay would work. You could build stuff and you could conenct machines that did or did not work together. Most stuff was buildable but didn't had a purpose. or it simply didn't work. The whole thing was just a prototype. This is most likely because the game started as Creative game and only that. That whole survival mode was developed on top of that. This was planned from the start but the developer (who designs the game mostly alone) decided that he wanted to release creative mode, which was not much as work, first into EA and then add survival later, as he works on it. Wasn't very smart and people got a little mad about it. He constantly changed stuff, removed bits, added other stuff later. Eventually he was fed up with the constant criticism towards his game, which is funny because that's what EA is about. he released the game as "full rleease" and stated he did so, even if it's unfinished, because people complained about the game and he thougth EA would protect him from this. Lol, how naive can you be?
Anyway, appearantly he thought a full release would make up for it but of course, because the entire thing wasn't even done, he got more insults and complains. And when I say "not done" I mean it. the game had a lot of missing stuff, there were placeholders left and right, icons missing, UI not done, machines, that weren't there but were needed and I think the ending was not in there (or maybe it was). He added this stuff later in a monthly cycle but this didn't stop him to ask on Patreon for people to support him further, so he can keep developing the game. He basically begged that people pay for the completion of his unfinished product. Which is not okay. i love the game. I love everythign about it. But I hate the developer. And I hate the way how he interacts with his community. I've rarely seen a developer that does interact so negatively with his community, even thos, that support him. He simply shrugs off (and not ina nice way) suggestions, not because they are impssoible to add but because he simply does not want them. And he tells this straight to his customers, he tells them, he finds an idea stupid and because of that he will never ever change that. Other stuff that he mentioned was impossible to add, was later modded by the community into the game. He later admitted, he was just to lazy to do it and added the mod in the game himself.
Also, he changes features drastically to make the game harder/longer than it was before (fakign actual gameplay time). You know why? Because, when people bug him about actual gameplay, he points to the fact, that the game has about XX hours of game time. Yeah, right, smart ass, but you forgot to tell them, thaz most time comes fromt he fact, that you made most stuff awefully slow and grindy.
The gameplay would be so good if no for the fact, that he likes to slow down the game pace more and more. Factorio does not have this problem, the player can decide their own pacing, if they want stuff to speed up, they build more miners, more factories, more research labs etc. Fortresscraft tries with it's fake game time to do the same thing, but people found more efficient and faster ways to do this, so he simply removed this stuff and made it slower. Ouch. If the game itself wouldn't be so good, I wouldn't have bought any of the expansions.
I recently started to play Emperyon which is what Starforge wanted to be but without the Fortress Defense mode (I have FCE for that anyway) or maybe it's mor eliek what No Mans Sky wanted to be. or maybe it's just another attempt to jump on a popular game release/genre (this happens all the times, a very famous/popular game comes out, other, independant developers try to make the same game in their own image and most of the time screw it up). I know NMS didn't get good criticism after release but before it came out it was literally praised as the coming of the next messiah of video games. So of course people would, even before release, start to make somethign similiar.
Emperyon is such a game. It's a good game, I give them that, maybe a little empty (as it's still EA but honestly, how much does this mean nowadays anyway?). Game features a complex base building system, your base has a computer core (that you have to build first) and you can tap into that computer and operate the base as you want, decide what is powered, what systems you want to use and so on. You need oxygen? Okay, turn on the oxygen. Your base is built aroudn that core but besides the usual building blocks you need of course other stuff, like an energy generator, energy tanks, oxygen tank, ventilators to pump oxygen into the base and so on. It's quite complex because you cannot simply "build rooms and are done" like in other games. However, if you are on a planet with oxygen, you don't need oxygen for your base of course.
This system applies for space ships as well but you also have to consider engines and stuff. The game allows you to freely create and design vehicles with various parts and the option to mod in your own parts. This makes the possiilities limitless.
Addionally, factions. You can create or join factions (from other playrs, NPC factions) which work together, it's actually similiar to ARKs tribes that multiple player form an alliance together. You could be traders, you could be priates, you could be something else. This is of course only interesting for Multiplayer purposes and as far as NPCs go, interactions are quite limited. You can trade with them, that's something I guess.
Some problems I have with the game right now: Dinosaurs. I don't like to see them on alien planets. Simply reminds me that the developers lack imagination for their own alien races. There ARE aliens but on your first planet you will dinosaurs.
Base building (and vehicle building) is a little overcomplicated for new players. It takes some time to get around all the base controls and to understand, what you actually need. On the first planet you don't need a base anyway because there is oxygen but on planets, where this isn't the case, you need one.
Mining is... bugged? I'm not sure if this is the case but the thing is, mining included terrain deformation (obviously) and since the game is not made of blocks, this leads to problems. If you try to mine horizontally or diagonally, you still mine vertically. I don't know why this always happens, I want to mien in a straight line and still mine downwards. I always have a shaft and it's hard to get out of these. The game even tells you not to do this because you can not get out of them easily.
Also, mined terrain is kind of bugged. It always seems slippery, even if it is almost horizontally arrenged. So in the end, you always slip back into your pit. I hope they improve this, since minign is so important. Besdes that, the ectual mining process works smooth and is supriringly fast.
I have mixed feelign with this EA, mostly, because I had a similiar game before that failed hardly. Still, game is good enough to satisfy my hunger.
I buy into a lot of EA. And I'm not always happy with the result. the thing is, happy with the result. The actual EA process as that. You have to udnerstand that EA existed before Steam. Developers had unfinished products that you could play before release if you preordered the game. Minecraft. They just had this on their own website. Steam now gives them a platform, so now developers use this. Scammers as well bu scammers use anything, asset flips, unfinished products, meme games, to get money really quick with less effort.
I'm mostly happy with the full release of games I own, tose that are still unfinished/unpolished druing release, fiy that later.
Big examples are FCE and War for the Overworld. Both came out as messy and clunyk games but both got fixed later to awesome stuff.
Other games had their gameplay changed but I kinda liked that, Sunless Sea and Starbound.
Only a very few a, even long after release, messes that I don't touch in any way. Starforge and Paranautical Acitivity.
EA is not the problem. Developers are. And the majority of games I bought in EA tell me, that there are more developers, who take this seriously, then those, who take it not seriously. Mind you, I rarely drift down the path were you find horrid abomniations of games. I hear from asset flips and such only from Youtube, I don't even find this stuff myself on Steam
