End of the Beta

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IainMcNeil
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End of the Beta

Post by IainMcNeil »

Hi guys,

we are finally there! tomorrow will see the release of Pandora on PC, Mac and Linux! We are all very excited. We expect to be ready about 3pm tomorrow so make sure you are here to join in the fun!

The team have done an outstanding job and the game is ready for release. However it would not have been possible without your great feedback. The community has been a huge help to getting us through the final stages and catching all those bugs and giving great suggestions.

As a small token of our appreciation we have sent out discount coupons to everyone on the beta for 25% off the price of the game. Please please check your mail for your coupon BEFORE you buy. We cannot apply a discount after you have purchased! If you do not want to use your coupon feel free to share it with a friend!

The game will be available here:
http://www.slitherine.com/games/PandoraPC

You can use your coupon for the PC, Mac or Linux version and even use it to upgrade to the boxed edition which comes with a full colour printed manual and personalized disk label with your name and serial, plus a free digital download so you can play immediately! Nobody else offers a service like this - it is truly unique. The Pandora manual is a thing of beauty so I can highly recommend getting a copy!

That's the good news. The sad news is that the beta as we know it is over. Tomorrow the beta versions will expire and the beta serials will become inactive. We will be looking for help to test patches after release but we'll announce more about that in the coming days.

For now go and grab the full version and enjoy it with the wider community.

Please tell your friends about this great game and help it to reach its full potential!

Have fun!

The Proxy Studios & Slitherine Team
dalves
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by dalves »

Question:
IainMcNeil wrote:You can use your coupon for the PC, Mac or Linux version
When I buy I must chose the OS?

By the way, it was a pleasure work in this game. I hope to have helped.
IainMcNeil
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by IainMcNeil »

Yes - currently we are only able to deliver one file per order. We're discussing with our payment provider how they could provide additional files but currently we don't have that option.

Glad you enjoyed it!
jdmillard
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by jdmillard »

I too have enjoyed testing the game. I have high hopes for the future of Slitherine and Proxy Studios. I hope the best for you guys tomorrow at release. Good luck with everything!
MizzouRah
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by MizzouRah »

Very excited for this game and to the Pandora team!!!
dalves
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by dalves »

IainMcNeil wrote:Yes - currently we are only able to deliver one file per order. We're discussing with our payment provider how they could provide additional files but currently we don't have that option.
This scares me a bit. Does it mean that I can download only once? By the way, if you want to distribute the three kinds at the same time, couldn't you have a zipped file with three installers, one for each system, and a data file which is used by the installers?
IainMcNeil wrote:Glad you enjoyed it!
You had logs and save games organized in a way to facilitate bug reports and answered quickly to bug reports. I wish you all the luck.
jdmillard
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by jdmillard »

dalves wrote:
IainMcNeil wrote:Yes - currently we are only able to deliver one file per order. We're discussing with our payment provider how they could provide additional files but currently we don't have that option.
This scares me a bit. Does it mean that I can download only once? By the way, if you want to distribute the three kinds at the same time, couldn't you have a zipped file with three installers, one for each system, and a data file which is used by the installers?
Same thoughts here.
Starbuck11
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by Starbuck11 »

many thanks for letting us test the beta
wish you best fortune ;)
drolfs
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by drolfs »

Thanks for the beta invitation and I wish you all much continued success with the game design. It certainly has great potential! : )

I know the pregame Beta is over but here's my final pre-release take. This is a priceless diamond in the rough and I'm glad you're going to continue improving it. I'm happy to hear the diplomatic military alliance/assisted goal component will be one of your first priorities in the first patch and I hope you continue to polish/improve the victory condition schema so it better matches the plot, beef up the game manual with more game mechanics, shortcuts, etc., and continue revising the sound system (voice over is a start but doesn't seem fully worked out and I still think it would be cool if the individual units had their own native sounds that were occasionally/briefly heard when selected). Most importantly, one of the aspects I found most appealing about the original description was the story line about the marauding wildlife (need more of those restless alien attacks) and especially the more advanced Alien races returning to the planet and intervening (Deus ex machina) in the factional conflict and/or introducing their own devastating tech/agendas to the Pandoran conflict. The latter would/will make for an awesome sequel.

Oh well, I hope the release tomorrow is a huge success, and thanks again for patiently working with all of us beta folk and tolerating our sometimes excessive but well-intentioned feedback and suggestions. I just may have to order a copy myself
MizzouRah
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by MizzouRah »

Will our saved games work with the retail game? Please say yes! :)
SephiRok
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by SephiRok »

Thank you guys.

The save games will most likely work, even though you'll have to copy them over manually and it will say they are not compatible. But don't hold me on it.
Rok Breulj
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heyhellowhatsnew
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by heyhellowhatsnew »

This was a fantastic game to Beta and I really think it's going to be big. Just needs some more word of mouth. I'm proud of the Devs. You made a great game that I can't wait to buy tomorrow. Hopefully EARLY in EST America time ;p

PS: If my MS isn't weighing me down tomorrow i'll do an LP tomorrow and post it on some sites I know that love games like this, and i'll post it here.
Last edited by heyhellowhatsnew on Thu Nov 14, 2013 3:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
MizzouRah
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by MizzouRah »

SephiRok wrote:Thank you guys.

The save games will most likely work, even though you'll have to copy them over manually and it will say they are not compatible. But don't hold me on it.
Thanks, it's worth a shot. Would I just save the savedgames file?
IainMcNeil
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by IainMcNeil »

Hi guys,

when you buy from us you can re-download as often as you like and do not have a limited number of installs though obviously each game is a single user license. Your link is valid for about 2 weeks but if you need it reset just contact support. We are still issuing links for users who bought games from us 10+ years ago. There is no charge for this - it is just part of the service. Hope this allays any concerns.

Cheers

Iain
Flavorable
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by Flavorable »

It was fun. Great game with a lot of untapped potential. Any plans for a steam release? It would be a shame if the game doesn't get the sales it's capable of because of a lack of exposure.
ElegantCaveman
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by ElegantCaveman »

As much as I would love to have it on Steam, it might be better to wait until they have more content implemented, especially if they have to go through Greenlight (no idea if that would be the case or not).

Pandora actually does have the potential to become a proper spiritual successor to SMAC and an amazing game in its own right, but in its present state and at its present price, I'm not convinced it would be well-received on Steam.

If it wasn't a self-styled spiritual successor to SMAC, it might be a different story (though the price might still be an issue). But considering that it is, people would expect a lot more from it.

A lot more which, as far as I understand, Proxy Studios intends to deliver. But if it's not in the game when it goes live on Steam, that could cause some ruckus.

No offence meant to either Slitherine or Proxy Studios, but considering that the release has already been moved back twice, from what I understand (originally slated for release in spring, and then summer, no?), the impression I'm getting is that there's some pressure to release even though the game is kind of lacking a bit of content (which I can understand; I'm not blaming). What's presently there is very nice and polished (good job, guys), but there's still a considerable way to go for Pandora: First Contact to become a true spiritual successor to SMAC.

I believe this will happen, so I'm not worried about that. But in its present state, for the asking price, I can already see the Steam forums full of posts of "Don't buy! Too expensive! Not SMAC!".

Just my two cents.
Arcitens
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by Arcitens »

IainMcNeil wrote:Hi guys,

when you buy from us you can re-download as often as you like and do not have a limited number of installs though obviously each game is a single user license. Your link is valid for about 2 weeks but if you need it reset just contact support. We are still issuing links for users who bought games from us 10+ years ago. There is no charge for this - it is just part of the service. Hope this allays any concerns.

Cheers

Iain
That's really awesome of you guys. And thanks again for finally bringing an awesome game of yours to Linux.

One question: If we buy now and the game does end up on Steam, will you issue Steam keys for those who have already bought the game? Thanks.
IainMcNeil
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by IainMcNeil »

If Steam permits us then absolutely yes. Obviously its not in our control but as I understand others do this so it should be ok!
MizzouRah
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by MizzouRah »

I'm at work.. anyone from the beta able to test to see if a saved game works with the release? I was getting ready for domination! :)
IainMcNeil
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Re: End of the Beta

Post by IainMcNeil »

We have tried it and it worked in our limited tests. However we can't guarantee it will work and cant support it if things go wrong :(

Good luck! :)
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