Steam & Launcher Poll + Discussion
As you probably know, game development is progressing nicely and it won’t be long until Automation is released within the Early Access program of Steam. This version will include the feature complete, yet not content complete versions of the engine and car designer. In case you wonder what more things will be in this version compared to the current public release, please refer to this YouTube video: http://youtu.be/_CcFAQ-FGSc
With us moving onto Steam, there is the question what to do with our own game launcher and the possibility to have the game completely independent of Steam. So far the plans have been to keep the launcher as a separate option, but that doesn’t come with advantages only. So here we get to the point: You as our customer, weighing in the advantages and disadvantages of the two options, what would you prefer?
Option 1: Have the Steam version separately and retain the independent launcher.
This option has the advantage that everyone gets what he or she wants. People who can’t be on Steam or do not want to be on Steam can use the standard game launcher. People who prefer or do not mind Steam get their game keys converted into Steam keys. The disadvantage of this is that we need to maintain the launcher and separate databases, while making sure that players still can play multiplayer and communicate, independent of what platform they use. This takes away development time that could be spent on getting out the game quicker or to higher quality.
Option 2: Convert ALL keys to Steam and focus on that platform.
This option has the advantage that we can focus our efforts more on the game and its Steam implementation, rather than compatibility and refurbishing of our old launcher. It probably saves time and gives the better end product, but only on Steam. The disadvantage is that this means some people will have to create yet another account to keep track of.
We gladly clarify any of these things and encourage you to discuss the topic in this thread. Again, nothing has been decided yet and we would value your feedback in the matter.
Cheers!
/Killrob