Early Access: the current state

    • Early Access: the current state

      We’ve made the decision to postpone the planned start of the Early Access phase for a few weeks, the reason being the standard of quality that we’ve set as a goal for the game. Currently we’re not 100% happy with a few game aspects - concerning both the performance and gameplay bugs. We are certain that we’re able to improve these areas considerably and think a little bit of extra time is the key to creating an optimal gaming experience for you.

      We’re specifically working on improving frame rates concerning vegetation (grass, fruits, trees). At the same time we’re implementing our dynamic weather and clouds system, creating tutorials and of course handling the internal test phases.
      At the moment, the programming division is working on gameplay elements such as a detailed feeding and fattening system, a realistic biogas plant simulation, the implementation of UI and AI systems. Most of these areas have been completed, others still require a bit of fine tuning.

      Meanwhile we’ve spent the past two months fixing, adjusting and tinkering with the vehicle physics and handling and have added significant enhancements. Vehicles and equipment use virtually real data in Cattle and Crops - be it the weight, the suspension or the engine power. Simultaneously we’ve added three realism levels that will allow great driving experience for both novices and established pros.


      All in all we’re planning to add a few weeks to incorporating the improvements and test phases mentioned above. An exact date will be announced about two weeks before release.


      In order to improve and speed up development further, we’re currently looking for people willing to add to our team. Do you have any experience in the game development sector? Are you a fantastic programmer? You’ve worked as a social media or community manager before? Then check out our job offers at cattleandcrops.com/jobs. (German speaking only, for now. Sorry.)
    • I never expected EA to be ready before mid-March. I do appreciate it when a dev pushes back release until they are 100% happy with their product. However, this is an EA (beta), so you should expect there to be bugs and for it to feel unfinished. Hopefully we do not have to wait until end of April.

      Would love to see some more screenshots or videos, or more details about the farm/map.
    • The post seemed to be a little evasive, and the job offer at the end is kind of off putting. However it really seems like these guys wanna create a quality farming game and if that's what they deliver, with good mechanics and physics, the wait is more than okay with me. Fact is that we just got FS17 not to long ago and only now are quality maps and other mods finally being released, rebooting the game in my opinion, so I have that to keep me busy until then.

      The bottom line is the press on a release of a broken or buggy game after all this hype would be far worse than a release date push back, so I for one say smart move.
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    • Atleast they don't just push out a buggy early access game. You can sense the quality they want to put into this game and I respect that. And to wait a few more weeks is fine for me. But yeah some screenshots or update about what's going would be nice. I guess they will listen to the community. Ah well let's just gossip on haha :D
      Proper Sim gamer. Rally games tractor and truck games. Bus games and train games you name it :)

    • rubberburner89 wrote:

      The post seemed to be a little evasive, and the job offer at the end is kind of off putting. However it really seems like these guys wanna create a quality farming game and if that's what they deliver, with good mechanics and physics, the wait is more than okay with me. Fact is that we just got FS17 not to long ago and only now are quality maps and other mods finally being released, rebooting the game in my opinion, so I have that to keep me busy until then.

      The bottom line is the press on a release of a broken or buggy game after all this hype would be far worse than a release date push back, so I for one say smart move.
      ooo yeah a fellow FS-UK visitor
      So is that a delay from the beginning of the month or the end of the month? March release is out of the window then?
      I think they have maybe bitten off more than they can chew. I would of been happy with a tractor and plough nevermind BGA, corn harvesting, cattle management and Ai plus weather all seems a bit much for a early release.
      I just want to see the soil tech...
    • As others have said it would be great to see some extra screen shots and perhaps another gameplay video soon. Remember quality over quantity and I'm sure everyone will be happy. At the end of the day it's beta and people will expect some bugs but knowing that you are delaying that for extra polish gives me more hope for the final product.
    • I prefer to wait two weeks or a month, and get a simulator as polished as possible. The quality is above all. As comrades commented, I would also like to see more photos and videos to see how the development of the simulator is going.
      Greetings from Argentina.

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    • Wow that is kind of interesting, how very much better the kind of comments are towards the decision of MBB for delaying the EA than they are in the german section ;)

      So yes all i can say that was the right way. even with taking thoughts in Upgrading their own team to highten the quality of their product.

      Carry on @masterbrain as also a good way to carry on with the behavour of the com ;)
      Mit freundlichen Grüßen MB-M@x von Schwabenmodding.de

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    • MB-M@x wrote:

      DrWow that is kind of interesting, how very much better the kind of comments are towards the decision of MBB for delaying the EA than they are in the german section ;)

      So yes all i can say that was the right way. even with taking thoughts in Upgrading their own team to highten the quality of their product.

      Carry on @masterbrain as also a good way to carry on with the behavour of the com ;)
      haha is that so. Aren't the Germans hardcore simulator fans So maybe higher expectations' and hence higher disappointment too. That or because it's a German team they hold them at a higher standard ....
    • MB-M@x wrote:

      Wow that is kind of interesting, how very much better the kind of comments are towards the decision of MBB for delaying the EA than they are in the german section ;)

      So yes all i can say that was the right way. even with taking thoughts in Upgrading their own team to highten the quality of their product.

      Carry on @masterbrain as also a good way to carry on with the behavour of the com ;)
      It's not that bad in the German thread either. There are only 2 or 3 persons there, who are negative about the news. The rest of the replies are like the ones over here on the English speaking side...
    • leviathonbeast wrote:

      but the thing is "Beta" means there is going to be bugs.. the purpose of releasing a beta is for this very purpose to let the community hunt for bugs and report back to you? if you want to fix all the bugs you know of you will never get around to releasing it in a beta state? surely or is my logic unfounded.

      the tease is strong with this one.
      I think that they whant a good trademark.
      When released they will have ratings and comments(recommendation). If you have many dislikes and bad comments on Steam, they wont sell as good.
      No one is better to find bugs as the players, so it wont be 100% when they releasing EA.

      But mysaelf rather wait for the frame rates to be more acceptable and the biogasplant to work. Though it would be nice to just plow a field ;)

      Whant to see much more pictures... =D
    • niklasohlsson wrote:

      leviathonbeast wrote:

      but the thing is "Beta" means there is going to be bugs.. the purpose of releasing a beta is for this very purpose to let the community hunt for bugs and report back to you? if you want to fix all the bugs you know of you will never get around to releasing it in a beta state? surely or is my logic unfounded.

      the tease is strong with this one.
      I think that they whant a good trademark.When released they will have ratings and comments(recommendation). If you have many dislikes and bad comments on Steam, they wont sell as good.
      No one is better to find bugs as the players, so it wont be 100% when they releasing EA.

      But mysaelf rather wait for the frame rates to be more acceptable and the biogasplant to work. Though it would be nice to just plow a field ;)

      Whant to see much more pictures... =D
      anybody that Rates a BETA game on steam badly because "oh its soo buggy its unplayable" need to relearn what the definition of BETA is.

      OK i agree the framerates should be 30fps or higher to be playable i can agree there but why not let the community decide what to fix next? get the community more involved with its development?

      I am really really looking forward to its release, I dont expect it to be 100% until its version 1.0 atleast but even then when is a game ever 100% at version 1.0?

      pictures is a tease if what we see we still wont be able to do in EA.

      I have already recommended this game to my friends and its not even publicly available, I know its going to be fantastic just based on what i have seen so far.
    • I get where they are coming from, it might be a BETA but it is still a public release which means they will be judged on it So it still needs to be a certain standard of BETA to protect their reputation.
      I would of preferred a strip back version sooner just like a field with a tractor and plough and that would of made me happy.... Nevermind I can wait unlike most people I still enjoy playing fs17
    • JohnKalel wrote:

      I get where they are coming from, it might be a BETA but it is still a public release which means they will be judged on it So it still needs to be a certain standard of BETA to protect their reputation.
      I would of preferred a strip back version sooner just like a field with a tractor and plough and that would of made me happy.... Nevermind I can wait unlike most people I still enjoy playing fs17
      I wasnt aware that there is a "Standard" for BETA other than allowing access to elements albeit however buggy.

      i just dont feel the realism in FS that i think CnC might bring. i anxiously await its EA.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by leviathonbeast ().

    • leviathonbeast wrote:

      but the thing is "Beta" means there is going to be bugs.. the purpose of releasing a beta is for this very purpose to let the community hunt for bugs and report back to you? if you want to fix all the bugs you know of you will never get around to releasing it in a beta state? surely or is my logic unfounded.

      the tease is strong with this one.
      It doesn't make sense to send out a version with known bugs. What Early Access or Beta testing is for, is to find bugs that you wouldn't find in normal testing. Because the general public has more different machine configurations than a developer can ever use for testing.

      But sending out software with known bugs should be illegal, and punished with the use of medieval torturing equipment.
    • Wild Chocolate wrote:

      leviathonbeast wrote:

      but the thing is "Beta" means there is going to be bugs.. the purpose of releasing a beta is for this very purpose to let the community hunt for bugs and report back to you? if you want to fix all the bugs you know of you will never get around to releasing it in a beta state? surely or is my logic unfounded.

      the tease is strong with this one.
      It doesn't make sense to send out a version with known bugs. What Early Access or Beta testing is for, is to find bugs that you wouldn't find in normal testing. Because the general public has more different machine configurations than a developer can ever use for testing.
      But sending out software with known bugs should be illegal, and punished with the use of medieval torturing equipment.
      LoL love the medieavl punishment idea lol. That could go a long ways I think. We have been waiting this long so a few more weeks or a month(s) won't hurt. At least they are holding themselves to a standard. Much more that other companies do.
    • Hi guys,

      I know your after more team members for programming and such but If your interested in some help in promotion for this game I can help you via YouTube and Beam. I have an upcoming channel on YouTube and we are all into simulation games so if there is some way I can help you please let me know.

      I have sent an email to your team but have not heard anything back. I hope to talk to you soon.
    • Wild Chocolate wrote:

      It doesn't make sense to send out a version with known bugs. What Early Access or Beta testing is for, is to find bugs that you wouldn't find in normal testing. Because the general public has more different machine configurations than a developer can ever use for testing.
      Agreed. No one (with any common sense) expects perfection in an EA/Beta release, but there's a lot to be said for getting known and fixable bugs out of the way first, even if it means an extra couple of weeks delay. That way the testers aren't distracted by them, and can give better feedback and spot other issues.
    • I also want to say that I appreciate this judgement call you made.

      Damn if you do and all that ....

      Early Access can mean bugs but not everyone accepts that and the forums can get weird and emotional ....


      Was I disappointed to see the news update ... honestly, of course. Hey, if I didn't care, I wouldn't be writing this.

      Over the 2015-2016 period, this EA/Beta has been used a lot and in the case of some titles from that period, it has not been well managed.

      I am happy MBB has decided to take the additional time.

      We are all looking forward to it and we will speculate and discuss out anticipation. All to the good and the day the access drops, a whole new conversation starts. And this is what I think MBB will surely have a good understanding of.

      The quality measure which MBB first makes available (early release for final release, it's immaterial here in this case) is the measure by which the community will judge MBB with going forward.

      A short term disappointment and all of any discussion, speculation or whatever that comes with it becomes irrelevant if the first release quality is there. If the quality is not there, then it's a sad day.

      Looking forward to the next update.

      March is 31 days long and 25 remain still. (that's 3 weeks right there)


      Jack


      axlpanico Don't know about VR myself in CnC ...your question might be better asked in another thread or in a new one.
      This thread is about early access release ....
      Go Handy & Give 'er Lolly

      The post was edited 1 time, last by JackWall ().

    • Well, I agree that it's not in particular a bad decision to wait with an EA until the product is at least stable enough. But I must say that the amount of communication from the side of the developers spreads very thin lately. It's getting a little too quiet. Hopefully it's because of the amount of work they try to achieve for making the EA, but if you want people to be enthusiastic about the game, then some form of commercial approach would be nice.

      But in the end, this is just my 50 cent.

      I'm still looking forward for the final product. Hoping to find those key features that I missed in some other simulators. So keep up the good work and hopefully you guys will surprise us even more.
    • Tenevie wrote:

      Well, I agree that it's not in particular a bad decision to wait with an EA until the product is at least stable enough. But I must say that the amount of communication from the side of the developers spreads very thin lately. It's getting a little too quiet. Hopefully it's because of the amount of work they try to achieve for making the EA, but if you want people to be enthusiastic about the game, then some form of commercial approach would be nice.

      But in the end, this is just my 50 cent.

      I'm still looking forward for the final product. Hoping to find those key features that I missed in some other simulators. So keep up the good work and hopefully you guys will surprise us even more.
      i totaly agree with u. its almost two weeks since that last MBB's post. i was hoping for video or few pictures at least. Like u said....its little too quiet