We're happy to announce Project Winter will be leaving Early Access and launching into 1.0 on May 23rd, 2019! Check out our release trailer here!
Project Winter initially launched into early access on February 7th, 2019. The team took a look at the MASSIVE list of features we'd love to have in the game and organized them from absolutely necessary to "would be nice". The list as a whole could have kept the team busy for more than a year, maybe even two.
We decided early on that the last thing we would want is for this game to be perpetually in Early Access. The team had a clear vision for what the game was meant to be and we had a clear path to get there. The features we have decided that would make this game 1.0 was estimated at just under 3 months but of course the point of going into early access is to get feedback from the community! So we ended up a little late on our original estimate, but that was to ensure we were implementing the feedback as it came in.
We have had 4 major content updates and 2 major system overhaul/bug fixing updates since launch. We plan to have 3 more before 1.0 with a particular feature we've been working on for awhile coming in today :) .
Here is a brief overview of what has been added in the last 2.5 months:
Power Station
- In place of the objective locator, we have now added a new objective system! The power station can be found on the main tile of the map; once discovered, players will need to work together to repair the power station which will restore power to the grid. Once restored, players can then move on to the escape vehicle and repair that to escape.
- With the addition of the power station, we have also done an Objective UI overhaul to help with first-time user experience and clarity.
Truth Serum
- Confirm if your fellow player is a friend or foe! Find the Professor's Lab and work together to activate the consoles, gain access to the serum, and reveal a player's true role as either a Survivor or Traitor.
Swapping Clothes
- When a player interacts with a corpse they will now have the option to swap clothing.
- Swapping clothes will only exchange the players' clothing and hair, the body type will stay the same.
- After swapping clothes, the player will switch names with the corpse as well, and the player's role will be re-concealed to any player that had used a truth serum on them.
Mass Hysteria Global Event
- We've added a new global event where all characters are transformed into bunnies so that nobody will be able to tell who is who. The event is accompanied by a special music track and a psychedelic screen effect. It lasts for 90 seconds.
Ghost Mode Overhaul
- Teleport between living players, locate any traps that are placed, and switch between radio channels to hear the remaining players' conversations. Become a fly on the wall after you kick the bucket!
Survivor Airdrops
- An emergency airdrop for the survivors! This airdrop will spawn when there are 2 survivors left in a game that started with 7-8 players or when there is 1 player left in games of 5-6 players. The survivor airdrop will contain repair supplies, survival supplies and guns to help the remaining survivor(s) reach their rescue point!
Console Overload
- Traitors now have the option to overload a console instead of just helping the survivors use them. Once the consoles are overloaded they will emit a smoke PFX, and can't be used for 90 seconds. All of the connected consoles will be smoking so the traitor can't be immediately outed.
Server Browser
- Join/Host a lobby
- See open games that are looking for players
- See games that are currently in progress
- Easily switch regions
- Set passwords for lobbies
- Set language preference for lobbies
- Kick/Ban players from your lobby
Hot Spring Overhaul
- The hot springs can be activated to restore warmth or sabotaged to damage survivors.
And we still have a lot more work to do!
So what changes for Project Winter after 1.0 is released? Nothing really. The major change is that the team will be taking a bit of a breather and slow down on the release schedules. Up until 1.0, we have been doing major overhauls and adding brand new systems within a week then sending the builds to QA to test and bug fix for another week before release. This has been obviously quite stressful on the team and it has allowed bugs, exploits and unbalanced content to make its way into the game.
After 1.0, we will be selecting just one feature, completing it, iterating, and focus testing it to ensure it is not rushed and good for prime time. The future release schedule will likely be 3-4 weeks between feature updates.
If you are interested in the features we still have planned and wish to help us prioritize them you can check out this survey.
And as always, we want to hear any feedback and suggestions you might have so join us in our Discord to chat with us and meet new players!
See you in game!