The tier packages are pretty clear about which offers what. Alpha will probably be late summer early fall at best. The alphas will be wiped as the worlds will be temporary to test systems and mechanics of the game. The Dev journals explain where things are at and where they are planning to go pretty well. And congrats on testing so many games, I stopped counting after 100 and that was back in 2008ish as I've been doing it too since 1996. Master's as well and working an a PhD 🤓

I understand your thoughts on 'if you got it show us' however that can lead to the downfall of games because their development content is not up to par with fully released games just yet. The when isn't put out just yet either --- why bother releasing exact dates or even ranges when anything can happen in development? Many companies also fall into this trap 'you'll have it by [insert date here]' and then they fail to meet that goal due to unforeseen circumstances. of course, the game company receives a lot of hostility when this situation arises.

I agree with Joreel --- the packages are clearly defined.

The 5 stages are alpha 1, alpha 2, beta 1, beta 2, exposition. All alpha and beta will be wiped. When you click a package, it will show you all the stages included in that package. Exposition will not be wiped. Exposition is the 3 months before the normal player begin playing, so think of it as a 3 months head start. You get exposition if you purchase Bloodline package or above.

Sparks are like lifes. To start a new life, you'll need to use a spark.

Ep is a currency for the people that purchases the packages. We can use it to buy stuff like houses, wagons, mounts, land, starting packs, etc. The items and prices was released, but they decided to rework it. You'll be able to see the items in the future. Here is a link that shows what WAS offered before they decided to rework it: http://chroniclesofelyria.gamepedia.com/Exposition_Points. Also, once exposition is over, you can no longer use EP. There will be no in-game cash shop.

Packages are pretty well defined, and the timeline is incredibly loose right now.

My advice, just keep an eye on it and focus on your masters. I'm working on my PhD {like Joreel}, so I figure this will turn into an unfortunate present 2 years from now.

Posted By Shady Clown at 11:04 PM - Thu Mar 16 2017

The 5 stages are alpha 1, alpha 2, beta 1, beta 2, exposition. All alpha and beta will be wiped. When you click a package, it will show you all the stages included in that package. Exposition will not be wiped. Exposition is the 3 months before the normal player begin playing, so think of it as a 3 months head start. You get exposition if you purchase Bloodline package or above.

Sparks are like lifes. To start a new life, you'll need to use a spark.

Ep is a currency for the people that purchases the packages. We can use it to buy stuff like houses, wagons, mounts, land, starting packs, etc. The items and prices was released, but they decided to rework it. You'll be able to see the items in the future. Give me a sec, I'll try to see if I can find the old items. Also, once exposition is over, you can no longer use EP. There will be no in-game cash shop.

Alpha and Beta aren't going to be wiped in a normal sense. They are kind of like the prologue to the main story, with loosely related characters.

Posted By Kyxsune at 11:06 PM - Thu Mar 16 2017

Posted By Shady Clown at 11:04 PM - Thu Mar 16 2017

The 5 stages are alpha 1, alpha 2, beta 1, beta 2, exposition. All alpha and beta will be wiped. When you click a package, it will show you all the stages included in that package. Exposition will not be wiped. Exposition is the 3 months before the normal player begin playing, so think of it as a 3 months head start. You get exposition if you purchase Bloodline package or above.

Sparks are like lifes. To start a new life, you'll need to use a spark.

Ep is a currency for the people that purchases the packages. We can use it to buy stuff like houses, wagons, mounts, land, starting packs, etc. The items and prices was released, but they decided to rework it. You'll be able to see the items in the future. Give me a sec, I'll try to see if I can find the old items. Also, once exposition is over, you can no longer use EP. There will be no in-game cash shop.

Alpha and Beta aren't going to be wiped in a normal sense. They are kind of like the prologue to the main story, with loosely related characters.

Maybe. Well, I'm not exactly sure now that I think about it. I assumed alpha and beta would be wiped. I had thought it was only the MUD and the Kingdom of Elyria that would be passed down.

The people who put down that kind of money for the game put it down because they support it and they want thia game o succeed. You say it looks like a cash grab, but Caspian (Jeromy Walsh) funded plenty of it's initial development and he and his co-founder Eddie Smith have staked a lot in it. All the folks at SBS have their own livelihoods to support and it's been because of the continued support of their backers that they've been able to grow and thrive over course of the past year. Caspian and his team have been practically transparent when it comes to their approach to the game and it's development, as far as I can see, they don't intend to cut anything they've promised and haven't promised us anything on which they may not be able to deliver.

In terms of the store, they've given adequate information on the intended purposes and uses of the rewards that come with each tier, and most of them are pretty clear.

SBS is providing limited access (as far as I can gather) to higher backers because they want to provide the general community with a finished product, not a buggy testing phase. People backing are quite clearly showing that they want to be involved and help the game succeed (for the most part) and that will show in the Alphas and Betas

Anyone who's done their fair bit of research towards the game understands what the exposition phase is and what the EP store will be for.

If they took the time to explain every item in detail, things would be over-complicated at best. We don't need to know everything at this point, the general info they've given us is more than enough to satisfy at the moment.

Posted By Kyxsune at 11:06 PM - Thu Mar 16 2017

Alpha and Beta aren't going to be wiped in a normal sense. They are kind of like the prologue to the main story, with loosely related characters.

The Alphas and Betas are wiped, KoE, ElyriaMUD, and Exposition are the ones relating to the actual launch.

Hail, crazycuban64, and welcome to the community! Thank you for being interested in our game :)

If you go to our shop, you should be able to view the different pledge packages in greater detail by clicking the gray 'View Pledge' button at the bottom of each tier. Similarly, at the top-left of each pledge you can view the earliest testing phase you have access to at that tier. Within each pledge are blue arrows, typically point right-facing, which you can click to reveal more information below the drop.

The game is currently in pre-alpha development, and there is no release date as of yet for alpha. The package that grants you access to the earliest alpha, Alpha 1, is the $500 Magistrate pledge beneath the Aristocracy section.

Following that is Alpha 2 at Gentry > Proprietor for $225, Beta 1 at Adventurer > Founder for $100, and lastly Beta 2 at Adventurer > Pioneer for $75.

The timeline for the development phases goes like this:
* Alpha 1 (Closed Alpha, wiped)
* Alpha 2 (Open Alpha, wiped)
* Beta 1 (Closed Beta, wiped)
* Beta 2 (Open Beta, wiped)
* Exposition (NOT wiped)
* Launch

The rewards generally aren't explained in greater detail because, quite frankly, Chronicles of Elyria is a game with numerous, complex mechanics and features, and the rewards granted with each tier are explained in greater detail within the updates we've posted.

I've similarly tested over 50 games in my time, and I am a part of the team that's developing Chronicles of Elyria :) Congratulations on achieving your masters! We can't show everything we've got, as the process of development is rather a messy thing, especially at this stage of development, and not everybody would like to see how the sausage is made!

@Everyone, thanks for the correction.

Posted By crazycuban64 at 10:30 PM - Thu Mar 16 2017

Look i am all but down for putting down money on this game but whens alpha, what package do i buy to get access? Why isnt each item explained in detail. Everytime i look at what is offered i feel like the game is a cash grab for limited access. >I know im not the only one that feels this and i love the updates. Im very much think this game is a few direction in RPGs but you really need to explain more about when and the whats on the marketplace. and here we are with sparks, and coin buying but what does that get us in game and if we spend more can we play sooner. Is the game going to get wiped after each stage of testing. >Look i have tested over 50 games in my time and am a professional graphic designer (with a masters to boot). If you got it show it and if u want us to buy in we need more...Right??? (english bad and getting tired.)

Welcome crazycuban64!

I'm glad you have taken an interest in CoE! I'm sure you're as excited as all of us.

I would like to point out though, as you can see by the numerous comments above, the answers to your questions are already available on the site/wiki. That said, the community doesn't mind helping you locate the information but you can't come in blasting the way you did here.

As you can tell by the numerous down-votes on your OP, the community doesn't take it kindly. The down side of doing so is that the majority of the community will think twice before taking THEIR time to help you.

Please keep that in mind for future posts! If you have questions, just ask and we'll do our best to help give you any data we have available to us.

Thanks!

tbh if he indeed truly has a masters in Graphic Design and has tested 50 games he would understand why you don't show absolutely everything. I've been on several game development teams, I've been testing games since modding was a thing for Quake 2 and I am similarly qualified in Graphic Design and I knew why you don't give everything away all at once before I even started down this path of following games.

Like you would have done with all those other games, and during your educational studies.... do a bit of research and you'll find the information that you want.... just don't click on a website expecting to find a big flashing DOWNLOAD button to give you exactly what you want without even trying. :S

Posted By Nagash at 08:16 AM - Fri Mar 17 2017

tbh if he indeed truly has a masters in Graphic Design and has tested 50 games he would understand why you don't show absolutely everything. I've been on several game development teams, I've been testing games since modding was a thing for Quake 2 and I am similarly qualified in Graphic Design and I knew why you don't give everything away all at once before I even started down this path of following games.

Like you would have done with all those other games, and during your educational studies.... do a bit of research and you'll find the information that you want.... just don't click on a website expecting to find a big flashing DOWNLOAD button to give you exactly what you want without even trying. :S

I hate to appear rude as well but I agree with your statement as well, every time I see people posting how many games they've tested and the professions they are in(things we have no way of confirming) and now they feel they are entitled to more information at this very very early stage. Most people aren't in a game this early, this is production, not alpha or beta. They don't need you to test their product, they need you to believe in their ideas and abilities. That's it.

I've not tested 50 games but I have tested games in various forms of ready and this is not even close to the worst I've seen, and from much further along games too.

Not a believer in NDA's i guess