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What's Up, Bot?

Autonauts
A downloadable game for Windows, macOS, and Linux

How do.

It’s been at least a month since we last got together to discuss progress and the status of Autonauts. What have we been up to since then?

Short answer: the usual (essential):

  • Firming up the game structure to give purpose to play.
  • Finding funding to keep development going.
  • Searching for a kindred spirit to help us better share Autonauts more widely with the world; for example, a publisher.
  • Exploring possible practical solutions for world peace to help make the planet a better place for everyone.

That last one’s proving awkward, so we decided to concentrate on the first three instead.

Inflame Game

The ‘mission’ flow is coming together slowly but surely. It feels like every one of them we make, no matter how simple, seems to highlight more issues for us to solve - not least how best to present key information to players. We do now have a sweet little system for feeding information and objectives to players without being too naggy or patronising.

The ‘missions’ we’ve made so far take you up to bringing colonists into the world (remember the Folk who used to lounge making demands?) and looking after them by getting your Bots to do all the work for you (AKA ‘The Power of Automation’), primarily forestry, basic food production and science (research, basically). We’re doubling down on that portion to tighten it up and make it as solid as possible before expanding on it.

Fond Fund

Not much to say about development funding really, other than it’s necessary and we’re always looking at ways to keep the wolf from the door. The downside is it takes time away from making the game, but at least it means we get to keep making the game.

Swell Sell

We’ve been out and about, seeing some publishers, trying to find a possible partnership with anyone who shares our vision. We ended up at the Develop 2018 conference in Brighton, England, where we impressed people with Autonauts as it was and as it stands now, which was nice :)

See you next month - or earlier if there’s news worth shouting about.

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