Aleš Ulm

Hi, I keep working on the Monetization FAQ, trying to include an answer to every relevant question while describing even some of the features we and technical details and solutions we haven't mentioned yet. Unfortunately, the combination of the rapid team growth induced overhead (which is, thank god, just temporary :)) and the upcoming update being very close doesn't let me put enough time into it. Also, we are still discussing some of the details which I believe should be added in that FAQ to give you the whole picture. Since with the update getting near there's less and less time for this I decided to put the creation of the FAQ on hold before the update is released - also at that time some of the details I mentioned should be finalized. The update should be released in about two weeks. I'm sorry to keep you waiting but I believe it will be for the best. Thank you for your understanding. This doesn't mean in any way that the discussion needs to stop - quite on the contrary. Feel free to ask anything in here and I will do my best to answer all your questions.

@Shadow72 Oh, now I understand, thanks for clearing that up for me! Sorry for the delayed reply, we're being quite busy these days If someone starts releasing items we're selling as their own mods we would probably step in and take some action - but that is about the only case I can think of where we would intervene. If players create their own variants of items we sell and share them for free or sell them for coyns - it's perfectly fine with us. Actually, we kind of hope some will be able to come with something even better (we've already seen some pretty awesome things created by players) :). We introduced Workshop so that players would eventually have access to lots of user created content so we certainly won't be limiting the creators in any way.

Hi guys, here's an update about the current state of the dedicated server issues. At first, we thought we would be able to release a hotfix, but right now it seems that for some fixes/improvements you will have to wait till the upcoming update (it is planned to be released around the end of this month). Let me elaborate a bit... The main problem is that the issues you're experiencing, that many times result in dedicated server becoming unstable, are very likely caused by several issues and unfortunately the logs you (or our QA for that matter) provide contain no hints we could use to identify them. Because of that we had just finished rewriting the better part of the server monitor which should now work better and provide us with more detailed info. We were able to fix some of the possible problems but we need some more testing to find those that remain. Not only are the changes we had to make too large for this to be easily released as a simple hotfix, but we also don't feel like releasing something that could potentially fix only some of the issues. We'd like to do this properly, so please bear with us a bit longer - I assure you that it's our highest priority right now. Thanks

@Shadow72 I'm not sure I quite follow... Could you maybe elaborate a bit on what you're afraid is going to happen? Thanks!

@Achilles77 At the end of this week there should be (finally! :)) yet a Sneak Peek published about the upcoming update - there I'll go over what you can expect in detail.

Hi guys, from what you're asking it seems that many of you see coyns as something that we will be charging everyone for everything - which can't really be further from the truth :). I believe that many of you won't really feel the impact of the monetization system at all. Since there are actually several topics we're discussing here, I will create an official structured FAQ about monetization that will be regularly updated to answer your questions - I'd like to have it online sometime tomorrow (I will let you know in here when that happens). In its first version, it should (hopefully) answer all the questions you had so far in here. This thread will obviously stay open indefinitely so that you can keep asking additional questions and whenever there's something not covered by that FAQ we will discuss it and add it there for everyone to see.

@WijkagentAdrieIt's true that DLCs are a viable monetization for many games out there, but we feel it's not really a good one for Ylands. We are now releasing new large updates roughly every six-seven weeks (unless something big like the current big immediate team growth happens) each containing a lot of smaller and bigger features. We believe these features to be the essential part of the game and I think it would be extremely unfair to keep asking money for things like boats, cars, weather system... We want to keep giving you these features regularly and for free because we feel that by purchasing the game you are entitled to have the complete experience (and we still have a long way ahead of us before we will be able to call it that). It wouldn't even be technically possible - we have, for example, big plans for Exploration. If everything goes right, in early 2018 you will see that what you play now is just a fragment of what that game has to offer (we will tell you more about our plans for that later this year) and many of future features will be an integral part of Exploration. We also want you, the players, to be able to create sophisticated games without having to think about the fact that some of the players can't use ships, others don't have access to cars etc. Ylands should be the same experience for everyone and we believe that giving important things for free, while charging for things such as a glowing version of a sword is the right way to go. Another option would be to keep releasing features for free and release paid DLCs consisting just of objects and upgrades ("packs"). That doesn't make much sense as well since most player's needs will be satisfied with thousands of free objects that are coming into the game and if they decide to buy something even so, it will be just the specific thing they want. If they like a certain statue because they want to have it in their living room, they will buy just this one object. If someone crafts a nice sword, decides, that they will be using it for some time and will want to improve it, it will always be better solution for them to go and buy a visual upgrade just for that sword for few coyns than having to buy some larger pack that contains it for a large sum. We believe that players who decide to pay something extra should be paying only for things they know they need or going to use. You are right that the concept behind coyns is more complex than just going with simple DLCs but bear in mind that coyns are not meant to be used only for the purchases of objects, but they will be a way for players to create great, complex games, maintain and enhance them while getting something in return. They are also an integral part of some of our plans with dedicated servers.

@Miguel Preguisa Good point. Yes, I know about Tickets and you're right that they are one of the possible solutions - unfortunately, they are quite far from being an ideal one and without going into details the most important indicator as to whether this is the right way to go is that Roblox (which is in many ways similar to us) found out that it wasn't really working for them and removed them from the game. Some of the reasoning behind the removal can be found here

Guys, once again I'd like to thank you for your feedback. The mature, nice and constructive tone of this discussion about such a "delicate" matter makes it obvious that a great community is forming around Ylands and how much it cares about the game. Since we want Ylands to become something really special and big that will keep growing for many years to come, we understand more than well enough that having such a community is our greatest asset - so you don't really have to ask for this topic to be kept alive - it won't get suddenly locked or abandoned. We will keep discussing this (and anything else) as long as there are questions to be answered. We will be discussing it continuously after the system gets implemented to see if it's set up properly or needs changing. These discussions are not empty gestures - for over a year now every single day the designers meet at 10 am to discuss everything you suggested or asked for (and many of you know that there have already been many features and adjustments brought into the game based solely on your direct feedback) so please keep asking and suggesting. Also, no matter what the system we implement in the end looks like, it won't be set in stone. If it doesn't work, if it's flawed in a major way, if the community is unhappy about it. we'll do something to fix it. We won't suddenly stop answering on forums and stick our head in the sand, we will keep talking to you about what the situation is and what we're going to do about it. The important thing to know is that even though we're not a very small company, we're still an indie dev who has the final say about everything in the game, so we can be pretty fast when it comes to fixing or changing anything. As a side note: since many of us here started our gaming journey with 8-bit computers (or even earlier) looong time ago it's nice to see there are also players like us present in our community! We probably won't be able to respond that much during the weekend but don't let it stop you from posting here - we'll get to answer everything at the beginning of the next week. Have a great weekend!

@WijkagentAdrie It is indeed valid point but because this all is very new and we're coming to you with this early, many times (just like right now) we just won't be able just to say yes or no right away. Things like these we need to discuss first, but be assured that you will get your answer soon (but please bear in mind that it's Friday evening here ).

Adrie, you're welcome! As for protecting your creations - I'm sorry but we'd really rather discuss this inside a separate thread in near future as we feel (and the quick reaction shows ) that there's already enough to process and discuss. Let me just say the concerns you've raised we've taken into account and that we really understand that for the system to work properly protection of rights needs to work. "Especially in freeplace mode certain blocks can be useful to create nice montages, so certain colors can impact what you can design and build a lot" This may be a slight misunderstanding - we want players to be creative and create great things ... without having to pay anything extra . At this very moment, we're working on a new system, that will let player recolor a great number of items so if for example, you were lacking blocks of certain colors, it would be super easy for you to get them. The same goes for additional shapes of building blocks that are in the works. We want to you to be able to customize things yourself - we'll be massively improving the painting workstation. We want the players to have every single mean to express their creativity and if we find that they are missing some objects or tools we will add them as soon as possible - for free, obviously, . The monetization system isn't in any way about asking money for "basic" things, things that make Ylands what it is. And you can trust me when I say that amount of "free" content that will come to the game in the next 12 months will be enormous.

Hi Adrie, thanks for your feedback and questions! As I said in the post - we posted this early enough so that when the system will appear in the game you will have all your questions answered (and we might learn a thing or two from discussing these issues with you as well) so please ask every question you have... Myrik has already addressed the servers, let me elaborate on other topics: The first thing to say is that we fully understand that when we let players sell their creations we need to make sure they will be protected enough from people who would try to make money off something they didn't create. We have thought this through well enough and we will have means of making sure your rights will be respected - I won't go into details in here, it will be a topic of yet another Dev Diary post but know that we believe that some protection of the creator is an imperative prerequisite for this system to work (actually some features that will help with that, although not visible from the outside, have been already implemented in the game). I'm not really familiar enough with Black Desert monetization system and at this moment I can't tell you any specific numbers but just from what you wrote, I believe our model will be different. Just as stated in the post, many objects will be simply visual upgrades to existing items. Sure, once this system is online and there are enough upgrades, you could count the price of every single upgrade being sold there and probably end up with quite a high number. The question here is, though, in order to enjoy the game do you really need access to every single visual upgrade of every item that has one? Unless you're using Cube to get your items you need to take into account that you can use/enjoy only upgrades for items that you found in the game. If you, for example, never acquire a certain sword there is no point for you to buy an upgrade for it or regret you don't have it... And as for decorations - those are planned to sell cheap so the question is, again, if, hypothetically, 12 months from now there are 50 different paintings sold as decorations (in addition to many "free" ones that we'll add over the time as well) do you have to buy all of them? What I am trying to say is that we feel player won't really have no need to have every single object that is being sold. The way I see it - if you're building a house and want to have one or two paintings there, you will be able to pick from many free ones available in the game (and you can bet that those will be pretty as well ). You will be able to pick some that other players may offer for free at the Workshop. And if you really won't like any of those only then you'll probably buy two paintings for some small fee. At no point, there will be any need for you to invest large sums of money into the game to enjoy it. Also, it should be said that Ylands is no ordinary game - eventually there will be MANY games created by us or by other players where having upgrades and decorations will make nt sense or won't even be allowed (if the creator decides so). Younger players: Ylands is first and foremost a family-friendly game. We have already planned some sort of parental controls that will let parents limit what can their kids do in the game.

Nice!!

Hi, thanks for your kind words! As for the military stuff: on one hand, we want to Ylands to be kids-safe and family-friendly, but on the other one we want to give players the means to create pretty much any game they like and (modern) warfare is definitely an important part of mankind's history. We are planning on adding parental controls that will let parents filter out some content from the game - after taking this step it will be possible for us to add wider selections of objects into the game.

Hey there, fellow ylanders! The 0.5 Rainy Roads is still a few weeks away (we're aiming for end of July) even though originally we planned to release it one of these days. So what‘s the deal, you may ask? The weather system is in place; we drive cars in the game, you can build on them... If the only place you‘d ever drive those were nice flat roads (just like the one in the trailer), we would be able to release the update way sooner, but if you take a look at how a common yland looks like, you‘ll see they don‘t look anywhere near this. The problem with making anything driven by a physical simulation is that it‘s quite difficult to make it right. There‘s also another reason behind the delay. The team has been growing rather fast lately - no, that‘s not the word - it‘s been growing incredibly fast. Just to give you the rough idea of what‘s going on, two new designers will be joining our team just this month. New animators are coming onboard, new programmers as well... everywhere the headcount will (at least) double. We thought we would be able to put all our effort into releasing Rainy Roads and that only then we would fully focus on all the time-consuming things that rapid team growth invariably brings. But the changes gained momentum incredibly fast, and so now we‘re bringing new people to the project, adjusting plans and shifting priorities while we‘re getting 0.5 ready at the same time. Just to be clear - we're not complaining, quite on the contrary! It‘s astonishing to see all the new skilled people come in; one can only try to imagine what we will be able to achieve with so much manpower! With the pieces we're adding your car can look like this... but just like with ships you can use almost anything to build the vehicle of your dreams I‘d also like to use this opportunity to tell you more a bit about our updated plans for the Steam release. Our current plan is to enter Steam Early Access sometime in November (you can tell it's serious with us giving you the exact month ). As you might have read in one of the previous Diaries, those who already own the game will get their Steam key before that. Before Steam there will be two updates: 0.5 Rainy Roads and 0.6 Uknown Update. It is too early to talk about the latter - let‘s just say that it will introduce a new great feature that especially our designers have been looking forward to for a long time ;). A lot of effort will go into both polishing and bringing you small but important features that you‘ve been asking for (for more information about those look here). And that‘s it for now - in the next week‘s Sneak Peek we‘ll look at what engines will be available in the next update and how much fun you‘ll have with them. Until then, my fellow ylanders, stay classy and have a great time!

Oh boy, that is some impressive work! I can't wait what will you guys come up with once we enhance some more the scripting in the Editor!

Sure thing - unless it's fixed really close to 0.5 (I hope it will be fixed way sooner though, we do feel it's a priority) Official whitelisted serve running by a third party: sorry, not at this time (I'm not saying it can't happen in future though )

You're welcome! There are still some stability issues with the dedicated servers in general (that affect even the ones that players are running) - we're trying to fix these issues first before we run our own as it would be rather unfortunate for the official server to be accessible only at certain times

There should be at least one official server up and running very soon (hopefully couple of days )

Hi, modding is definitely something we will have at some point - there's actually even a very subtle hint on our Workshop website We're more than ready to implement it - we know exactly how we're going to do it and were ready to start working on it but in the end, the modding support was delayed in favor of general game polishing we need before we get to Steam. Once we let users import their own assets into the game we will have to support it and keep enhancing the tools for a long time and we don't feel we would have enough time to do it now (not with the user-friendly tools we want to have). Also, we want to have related things ready when it comes out - a website space dedicated to content creation with at least basic tutorials and hints. Long story short - my guess is we may add full modding support sometime in Q1 2018.

Hi, thank you for your report. We will look into the memory consumption. As for the sharks - I believe those will be fixed in the upcoming update.

Thanks! NPCs are definitely planned and although I can't promise you will be able to do this with their first iteration, this is definitely something we want to have - the ability to use NPCs to create stories and interactive adventures (actually we are extremely excited about this - just to think how many unique games will the players be able to do with this...).

Thanks for the suggestion! Normally when you're placing building blocks, they "harden" after a short while and can't be picked up after that. Doesn't waiting for a bit for them to harden before interacting with objects over them help to (at least partially) resolve your issue?

Yes, it's just like Myrik said What you're seeing now is just small bit of what our plans are for the Exploration - we'll be discussing our plans with this further in one of the upcoming Dev Diaries...

Thanks, I'll tell it to the composer, he'll definitely want to hear this