All the things you’ve been dying to ask about our blast-off into Early Access, answered.
So firstly, why exactly did you decide to release the game via Early Access?
Early Access allows us to build the game with the community, not simply for the community. Early Access lets us grow and evolve the game alongside our players. What does the community respond to positively? What do they want more of? What needs more work? We can answer these questions in Early Access.
Furthermore, Second Extinction was always intended to be a community-driven game. Our War Effort has been front-and-center of our design from day one and Early Access lets us trial this mode out in the wild sooner than having to wait for launch. It means our Early Access players get the first sample of the War Effort - they’re our frontline troops, heading into Boot Camp with us - and when the game launches fully the experience will be ripe and ready for more new recruits (who just might need some pointers from our war veterans by then, too).
Does this mean you’ll potentially release an unfinished, or at least rough-around-the-edges game?
Quite the opposite: When Second Extinction leaves Early Access it will be a more complete experience than we had initially dreamed of, and our Early Access players will still have a really robust rock-and-roll shooter to play with. Early Access not only lets us tune the experience of The War Effort, but it also allows us to dial in our core gameplay and mechanics to the perfect frequency at launch.
I signed up for the Beta, what happens now?
Now, we offer you some compensation (check your inbox for details) and we ask you to bear with us, and hopefully join us, as we craft the best possible experience.
Will I still receive my other rewards from The War Support?
Yes, earned rewards will be able to be redeemed when the game is in Early Access. You will receive them via email to the email address you signed up to The War Support with.
Why should I buy the game in Early Access, and not wait for release?
That is up to you, and we’re just delighted you want to join us on this adventure, whichever point you wish to come aboard the dropship. Early Access will allow you to direct the shape of the game more and we plan to action whatever recommendations and requests we can logically entertain - and it allows us to see how you, our community, plays and make any necessary changes accordingly. If you wait for release, awesome, but just don’t complain if your Early Access squadmates are already experts at dinosaur slaying!
How long will Second Extinction be in Early Access?
As long as it takes: When the community is happy with the overall direction, and when we are ready to welcome more players to the party, we will leave Early Access.
Will the progress in Early Access move over to the game when it’s fully released?
Yes, any progress you make in the game will be saved on your account and stay there. So you’ll be able to show off and strut around the community when all the full release noobs show up.