This is not an update with new features, nor a software release. In fact the game isn't changing at all, however it's now moving into being marked as released. Many have asked why there are no updates, and asked for more communication. And rightly so, as the game has been in early access for quite some time, and hasn't received an update for a lot of that time. So this is an official communication about the state of the game.
Master Bladesmith was always an experimental game. This is especially true for the game's mechanics. This is fitting since it's a virtual reality game, and this is a new frontier for gaming, where developers have tried many different game mechanics and designs. The development of Master Bladesmith can only be described and a mish-mash of experimental mechanics. The ones that worked stayed, and the ones that didn't were thrown away (also some stayed that were not successful, but as curiosities - like the ‘out of body movement’ that remains an option to try). What was left as a result; is something I'm very proud of and something that is fun from both a game play and progression style game loop.
However the above led to a conundrum; that in order to keep pushing the game into a direction that I had dreamed for the game, it would have to push boundaries with game design so much that the mechanics didn't work together well. In the original roadmap there were open world elements, and dungeon like manual mining areas. This doesn't work well with the current game loop. So it became more and more clear that in order to achieve this without destroying the current game loop, it would have to be a separate project.
This development has now moved into a completely different game altogether. This is something that is going to be a very special project that I have been working on for 3 years now. It is a spiritual successor to Master Bladesmith. However this project is so different that it cannot work with the Master Bladesmith code. This project is an open world RPG; with questing, and party building aspects.
Moving Master Bladesmith to release is more-so an end to a project, than a beginning. It means that there will be no more updates for the game.
I realize that Master Bladesmith is still rough around the edges, and I have some regrets about this. I was skeptical of whether releasing was the right move for the game, since this didn't fit for my personal definition of finished. However, the community expects that a game marked as early access means that more updates are coming. So now that I have decided there will be none, the right thing to do is mark the game as finished (released).
I am, however, also intensely proud of what has been achieved here with this project. Credit also goes to all those that helped with the game, and its development.
A word about the players; there are many skilled warriors out there that have fought their way all the way to level 1000 !!
(Screenshots by players at endgame)
This requires both patience and crafting prowess, but also great skill with hand eye coordination on the higher levels, and this is something I haven't been able to achieve myself, nor any on the dev team, but many players have, and provided proof! I'm glad that many have had such a great time with the game.
Special thanks to the moderators, and all those who provided useful feedback, and help with beta testing and updates.
Much love to the community.