Initially planned for late Q2 2022, we are now finally settling on 27.10.2022 for our Early Access release date. Oddly enough, we were actually ready for release this month, but so many games postponed their launch into June, that with the Steam festival and the Summer Sale that follows, we decided to not try to squeeze in there as well.
We simply wouldn’t get the exposure we wanted to the game. With the release of our Food Truck Simulator on 14.09.2022 and new content for our Gas Station Simulator also planed in September, a Winter Survival release in October makes the most sense. It’s also closer to the actual winter :P
The upside of a release in October is more time to expand the version that goes into Early Access. The plan was always to deliver a complete gaming experience, but now we can expand the game world a bit and also work on the first major update to add additional game mechanics and a whole new chunk of the game world shorty after entering Early Access.
This in turn gives up more time to handle the initial feedback and make changes whenever necessary.
The graphics below gives you an idea about the initial size of the game world on launch day compared to what you might already know from the demo and which areas will be added during Early Access:
In the meantime, we continue to tweak the visuals, balancing and further expand on the sanity system which we consider one of the most important aspects of the game.
You know the drill in survival games, half the game loop is about eating and drinking and getting enough resources to fulfil those needs. Working with an experienced explorer like Marek Kaminski, a guy who claimed both the North and South Pole within a year unaided, gave us some much needed insights into how to better shape our game.
The reality of it is, that survival games get some aspects really wrong these days. Yes, keeping hydrated is extremely important, but it’s more likely that your mind goes way before you die of starvation. That’s an aspect of gameplay we tried to pursue in addition to the usual mechanics you would expect and have a stronger focus on the mental state with our sanity system.
There will be a series of DevLogs leading up to the release focusing on certain aspects of the game and its game mechanics. So stay tuned.