Well well well! It's been a little while hasn't it!?
A lot has happened since the last post in May! Hokko Life got released into Early Access! Crazy stuff!
I thought I'd spend this devlog just giving my thoughts on how things have been going since then, how the launch was, and some info on things moving forward.
Launch
To be honest, the launch ended up being pretty chill, haha! I had prepared the launch build a few days in advance, and so when it came to launch time there were thankfully no last-minute surprises or frantic bug fixing going on. As Team17 handles releases there's a nice process in place where each build we make live has to be verified and approved by their test department. Without this it would be very tempting to work on the build up until the very last second, which given the size of the game could mean the introduction of new bugs, and that's the last thing we want!
I think having the beta not too long before Early Access meant that the impact of the release was far less stressful; I'd gained some experience from doing a launch, and seeing players enjoy the game and report bugs etc for the beta meant that when it came to the "real thing" I was thankfully not overwhelmed! At the same time, I've been through a fair few game launches now to know that they're actually not as crazy or scary as one imagines!
For the actual launch itself, Team17 handled the process so all I could do was sit back and wait for the game to go on sale; which was definitely a very weird feeling. Being so disconnected to a big event for something you've been building by yourself for 4 or so years, no buttons for me to press, was a tad surreal! I spent my time eating some lovely Vietnamese food and watching streamers play the game, while hanging out in Discord chatting to everyone. It was definitely a very cozy launch!
RawX put on a lovely little show to celebrate the launch of the game!
Post Launch & July
I'm sure you've noticed, but the rest of June and July was a little bit frantic! I did a lot of bug fixing, trying to solve some of the biggest issues quickly so that more and more players could enjoy the game; for a period of time we were putting out weekly patches, which is very tiring, especially as a solo developer!
Alongside the patches I was working on the Farming update too. Farming was one of the areas that had been started a long time ago, but sadly could not be finished in time for the June release date; but this meant that thankfully the ground work was already there. That's not to say there wasn't a lot of work and bug-fixing involved, but luckily it wasn't as much work as building new features from scratch!
Moving forward
So now the initial launch and first-update craziness is out of the way, how are things looking? Well, I've been working with Team17 to finalise the roadmap over the Early Access period; setting dates to each update and generally getting a plan in place for how I'll be working for the whole duration. Getting this plan in place also means that marketing, sales etc all know when big events will be hitting and can plan their activities accordingly.
With the dust settled a bit, I've been spending this month getting around to fixing some of the larger, more complicated bugs that have been hanging over me and stopping some players from enjoying the game. It feels great to have been able to get those fixed and I'm looking forward to getting the next patch out so that I can finally put those bugs behind me!
Like I mentioned, releasing a patch every week is very tiring, and it really isn't something that's sustainable. After the initial burst of fire-fighting patches the goal moving forward is to release larger, less frequent updates; alternating between Quality of Life & bug-fix updates and bigger feature updates. This means I can sustain a good pace without destroying myself; we get more time for updates to be properly tested before being released; and there's a reliable pace that players can expect, rather than everything being a bit uncertain and muddled.
With things calmer now, and having shipped the first big farming update, it makes good sense for me to take a little bit of vacation and recouperate. It's been a very exhausting year or so up to release and there have been a lot of difficult hurdles, stressful weeks and frantic workdays. I can feel I'm definitely in need of some rest and relaxation; I'm pretty tired, and I could do with a recharge! I'll be taking two weeks now, and my plan is to do as little as possible; hopefully if the weather stays good I can spend some time at my allotment, gardening and generally enjoying the fresh air!
Reception
I wanted to finish this devlog by thanking everyone who's supported the game! I'm always blown away by the kindness and encouragement of the community and it makes me so happy to see everyone sharing their creations, as well as suporting and helping one another.
On the subject of creations, I have no befind-the-scenes development images to share this month, so I wanted to share some shots of some of the amazing objects that have caught my eye over the last few weeks!
I hope you're all keeping well, take care of yourselves and I'll speak to you soon!
Robert ♥
Amazing ice cream van from Shubi
These amazing farming creations (TRACTOR!!!) from SudzMaBalls
Amazing tiny mobile house from Junimo!
Spirited Away street buildings from Shubi