There’s one thing in general I feel is forgotten when “Is this it for Stonehearth” is discussed. And I’m guilty of it as well.
That is that this game could have been finished years ago. And with that I mean done, development over, with some quickly thrown together support for promised Kickstarter features. It would have been a buggy mess, but it would have been done.
Thank you for not doing that. For sticking around, way after the Kickstarter founds for development were gone, and venture capital was raised instead. For finding Riot, that has founded development for years now, despite sales probably being slow.
Stoneheath is a game that inspires, and it’s easy to see its potential. I remember playing alpha 1 and thinking, not much here, but this will be a great game. To me, starting Stonehearth still gives that impression. Sure there’s much more here, but there’s infinite room for expansion.
That, along with the core system taking long to get in shape (building, performance, multiplayer, mac support, the list seems endless), is what I think is fueling the disappointment present in so many steam reviews. Because the game can be so much, any change is trivial compared to the possibilities. And with so many possibilities, someone always wants something else than what’s currently being developed. Especially when you have been fixing things that worked, but need improvement.
So with that I want to say: Thank you Team Radiant. Thank you for developing this game, with a larger than ever team, 5 years after a Kickstarter that brought founding for a small team for a year or two.