Steam page is live

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-12 00:41:54

https://store.steampowered.com/app/5956 … _One_Life/

This also means the Steam forums are open.

Booklat1 · 2018-10-12 00:49:57

that should hype the game a bit

InSpace · 2018-10-12 03:45:05

I don't know the exact technicalities of screenshots on steam store pages, but I read about it a while back that developers had to avoid pre-rendered art, concept art and had to use actual screenshots. Want your game to have a smooth steam-life.

https://steamed.kotaku.com/steam-bans-m … 1788461735

InSpace · 2018-10-12 04:56:22

"The main mode in the game involves being born as a helpless baby to another player as your mother, but you can also play with your friends as twins, triplets, or quadruplets. One baby is hard enough to take care of---any mother that can successfully take care of quadruplets deserves the eternal gratitude of your and your friends."

Is "of your and your friends." supposed to be "of you and your friends."?

pein · 2018-10-12 05:43:04

whats your obsession with rabbit fur shawls?

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-12 06:05:46

Thanks for the typo check. Will fix.

I actually always have my mother read stuff like this to find typos, and she hasn't done that yet.

Pein, some of those screen shots are old. Back then, there were nothing but rabbit fur shawls in the game. No coats, no sweaters.

As far as concept art vs real game footage, etc..... those screens are all done in-engine, and could conceivably occur inside the game (people could build exactly that stuff, put on those clothes, and stand in those spots). And the UI bar at the bottom is hidden. They aren't pre-rendered or concept art, and they haven't been retouched at all.

Also, they may be place-holder, if better screen shots come along.

Hopefully you folks can take some good ones. Remember, the "=" key in the game saves a full-res, uncompressed TGA file that is pixel-perfect. If you get something really good, drop box it and post a link here.

Do please tidy up the village a bit first, though.... :-)

pein · 2018-10-12 06:16:55

give us multi zoom
at least to look around and screenshot would be nice
when i make a project/ station, especially eve camp, it wont fit in one screen

Last edited by pein (2018-10-12 06:29:05)

InSpace · 2018-10-12 10:45:48

If you need some inspiration on how to make your steam page to look, I'd suggest:
header_alt_assets_1.jpg?t=1536256857
Oxygen not included
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4571 … _Included/

header.jpg?t=1537843484
Hollow Knight
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3675 … ow_Knight/

header.jpg?t=1530082099
Slay The Spire
https://store.steampowered.com/app/6465 … the_Spire/

They have a mix of images showing gameplay, nice formatting using steams formatting tools. These are always my favorite store pages to look at.

featuresBanner4.png?t=1530082099
Slay The Spire has the same kind of update schedule as you, some kind of update / balance update every week, check out their news update pages if you got a sec, they are a fun read every week on fridays I think.
https://steamcommunity.com/games/646570/announcements/

Twisted · 2018-10-12 11:52:09

I can't help but notice that the game is not marked as Early Access. I don't know if this is just a quirk of the Coming Soon store page that we don't see it, or if it's really not marked as such. If it's a quirk feel free to ignore this post completely.

Not marking One Hour One Life as Early Access would be a mistake. It's a game that does not yet match your final vision, and it receives new content on a consistent basis. It is a game that you are still actively working on every week. That there is the definition of Early Access.

Non-Early Access games are games that are generally not expected to receive any new content updates, and when they do receive them they are usually smaller things that do not affect the overall game.

Early Access does NOT mean that the game is a proof of concept, that the game is super buggy, that the game needs heavy balancing (although it can be those things). Early Access means that the developer is still working on the game and that the developer intends to add or tweak features.

I know you said you plan to actively support the game for two years. It has been seven months so far, which means there's seventeen months of new updates and new content remaining. If that is still the plan, OHOL should be marked as Early Access.

If the game is not marked as Early Access you can't really modify the core mechanics or the metagame without upsetting people. When people buy a non-Early Access game they expect a game that is pretty much set in stone. Most OHOL updates add new features or change things in a meaningful way, and they do not really belong in a non-Early Access game.

The trailer that is currently on the Store Page shows things that are not yet in the game. People often buy the game expecting to encounter those things, and they get told 'Oh yeah the game is still in development, those things haven't been added yet.' If I were a person that saw OHOL and its cool trailer on Steam for the first time, bought it, and then realized that the game is still in development despite not having an Early Access tag, and that those things are not there and that they might never be added, I would feel betrayed and would probably ask for a refund.

I truly believe that not marking One Hour One Life as Early Access is a colossal mistake. Steam defines Early Access games as "games that evolve as you play them, as you give feedback, and as the developers update and add content." Is that not what One Hour One Life is? The One Hour One Life of today is very much different than the game I bought back in March. It's going to be different seven months from now as well. Fully finished and released games do not change that much over the course of seven months. Early Access games do.

I know I just keep repeating myself, but I really believe this is extremely important. It's the first thing that I felt was so important as to make a forum account. I was against the Apocalypse, but I did not make a forum account to comment on it. I disliked the first implementation of decay, but I did not feel it was important enough to make a forum account to discuss it. There are many aspects of the game that I have my thoughts on, but I never felt inclined to discuss them on the forums.
Not marking the game as Early Access is bigger than all those things, so here I am.

UnnoticedShadow · 2018-10-12 15:18:56

+support for early access.

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-12 16:29:52

Yeah, you're probably right, Twisted.

I've been going back and forth about this issue.

Here's the problem (and I guess it's a non-problem).

The project was always intended to have weekly updates as part of an ongoing civilization-building process. That's the concept of the game. You explore the tech tree, while I keep making higher tech. An arms race between players and developer. Eventually, we'll get to robots and iPhones, together.

So, THAT is the experience of the game. If you wait until the game is "done," you missed the point. The point is that there's something new every week for a long time, and the game is constantly changing. If you take a break for a month and come back into civ later, it will look nothing like you remember.

That said, what we have been doing for seven months off-Steam is really a paid alpha. There were many bugs and growing pains. In the very beginning, there were even regular client crashes. Servers were laggy. Major new gameplay systems were added. Even controls were changed and improved. Tutorial added. It's a big, complicated game, and it took a long time to iron things out. And during that time, the "real" way the game is supposed to work (with huge weekly updates of content) has been operating at around 50%.

But now, I think most of that is "ironed."

There hasn't been a negative player review posted in more than 3 weeks. People can generally buy the game, play it right away without any issues, and enjoy themselves.

So now, all systems are GO for the real game experience.

My concern is that some people who boycott early access games will miss this. Maybe those people are a slim minority?

I realize that even the mighty Factorio is still Early Access .

Catfive · 2018-10-12 16:49:22

Just some pleb's opinion: I think your point about early access is very valid. I will usually only look at a game that is 'established' - ongoing development is part of the steam page statement (and part of the story), however maybe bolding or highlighting it in some way is a good idea to avoid 'no robots, no cars - Scam!' type negative press

Last edited by Catfive (2018-10-12 16:49:35)

Twisted · 2018-10-12 16:54:02

In my experience the people who boycott Early Access games are a tiny but vocal minority. Just look at Factorio or Slay the Spire. Both of those games are very polished and fun as they are right now, but since they're still being actively worked on they are in the Early Access program.

I believe the best way to do it would be to mark it as Early Access now, and once you decide you're done with updating the game and adding new content you can do a big 'full release' push. One Hour One Life is a bit unique and I don't know if you'll ever consider it to be truly finished - it draws inspiration from real life and there's always more things that can be added. That being sad it has more in common with Early Access games than with fully released games.

As I said Early Access does not necessarily mean that the game is buggy, it just means that it's actively being developed, and that's exactly what OHOL is. I'm afraid that if the game releases without the Early Access tag some people might feel deceived or disappointed, as they're probably expecting a fully finished package.

In the end it's your game and your call, but I truly believe that not marking it as Early Access is a mistake.

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-12 17:14:51

I asked my contact at Valve for an opinion here. We'll see what he says.

Rust is still receiving regular updates, but no longer in EA.

I think that EA does imply a certain amount of bugginess.

Booklat1 · 2018-10-12 19:36:28

My two cents on the issue is releasing it as early dev allows you to once again in the future draw some hype to the game when it's the actual release.

Maybe that would be the next time you need to take some time for some big fix/changes, those have happened before right?

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-14 14:45:33

Feedback from my contact at Valve:

I think it’s a philosophy thing.
Early access was always intended for a game that needed live customer feedback to make dev/design decisions.
I think given that spirit, it’s fine to just ship your game as a normal release. You’re not actually working towards some “finished” state in the early access sense- you’re already there and just plugging away at servicing the game.
So I’d recommend skipping early access but being transparent on the store page (as you already are on your own site) about the fact that it’s a live game, or game as a service, or always updating, or whatever terminology people prefer these days (:

Tramax · 2018-10-15 06:14:19

Fair enough. It's about as early access as Path of Exile for instance.
Big plus is you don't get cynics of games tagged as early access withholding their money for a few months waiting for it to come out, only for Jason to stop developing it at the end of the planned two years and marking it as "finished" and then the player base experiences entropy at an increased rate because of the updates ending.

Last edited by Tramax (2018-10-15 06:15:17)

PeaGirl · 2018-10-15 07:28:50

I see that some missed the point on his motives. He wants to keep updates weekly, because he wants to keep the interest on game for others. I am saying that quite many online games have sort of "evolved" in a way to progress like this... having weekly or monthly updates coming up almost every time, slowly letting game evolve and become better, fancier and efficient. (take on example of Mabinogi and roughly 10 year span of updates that evolved the game to the point it's hardly remembered as the same... Runescape with updates with new skills, new places and efficiency... even updated versions and servers for older school)
It's something that really differs between them and the Early Access... Early Access is still quite unplayable and requires fixes and thoughts from players who are testing it. These are already with a gameplay and a goal... only that it will still keep updating up new content to improve the gameplay to whole another extend.

By the way. I hope you remember to have "non nude" added for steam version, just to keep the "kid friendly" playground. My little sister especially likes this game, so I don't want her to feel little disgusted by nude looks... they are not bad but it's still sensitive for young audience... don't get me wrong.

pein · 2018-10-15 08:43:19

this one looks good, showing some of the advanced clothing

VioletLily · 2018-10-15 08:59:11

PeaGirl wrote:

By the way. I hope you remember to have "non nude" added for steam version, just to keep the "kid friendly" playground. My little sister especially likes this game, so I don't want her to feel little disgusted by nude looks... they are not bad but it's still sensitive for young audience... don't get me wrong.

I hope so too. I personally use the "no nude" version because I play the game around children and others who may be sensitive to the original 'nude' game. If it wasn't given as an option, I wouldn't have bought the game. I know there will be others out there who would appreciate the 'family friendly' version being an option on steam, like those who also have children around or those who want to upload videos of the game on YouTube.

jasonrohrer · 2018-10-15 15:27:23

This is a tough one for me.

I really don't want to censor my own game.

I sent some sample screen shots to Steam, and they said it does NOT need to be flagged for "mature audiences."

I did post a nudity mod, because of the realities of YouTube. But it is a mod, not the real game.

Still, that mod will be harder to get and install for Steam users. Maybe there's a way I can have a free DLC or something that installs the mod on Steam.

Potjeh · 2018-10-15 16:39:30

I really don't get the whole deal about nudity, it's not graphic and it's not pornographic. Shouldn't a far bigger issue for people concerned about the kids be how you can stab and murder people in the game?

Izzytok · 2018-10-15 16:46:37

First off, congratulations on getting the game steam-ready. I think it's going to be great both for you and us. I just hope the surge of newbies won't be too overwhelming. I really hope the game gets big on steam, I'm rooting for ya!

As for the nudity, Rust is in a similar position to OHOL regarding tiny weiners. IIRC Rust has censoring on by default and you can turn it off in a settings menu. A DLC to turn off nudity seems like an alright idea, however, steam and it's comunity seem quite puritan regarding such things. I get that it's part of your artistic vision and the choice is of course yours, but nudity off by default seems like the safer choice to me.

xclame · 2018-10-15 17:21:32

Is the nudity in this game really an issue though? I can understand some people wanting to hide it, but the nudity, is literally what a young child would draw there is very little there, just lines, that very basically represents things.

Has YouTube really gone that crazy (Maybe they weren't before, but with the recent craziness about saying things like "kill" in a video about say call of duty and things like that who knows).
I've been streaming without nudity mod with no issues on twitch, but that could be because nobody at twitch has seen my stuff and nobody has reported it, but I highly doubt it would actually be an issue

Last edited by xclame (2018-10-15 17:28:22)

VioletLily · 2018-10-15 18:31:43

jasonrohrer wrote:

This is a tough one for me.
I really don't want to censor my own game.
I sent some sample screen shots to Steam, and they said it does NOT need to be flagged for "mature audiences."

I did post a nudity mod, because of the realities of YouTube. But it is a mod, not the real game.
Still, that mod will be harder to get and install for Steam users. Maybe there's a way I can have a free DLC or something that installs the mod on Steam.

I think it would be a good idea to look into it.

Not only will people on steam possibly face issues with uploading to YouTube, there are people in a lot of different circumstances that would encourage them to use a no nudity mod.

The problem I had was that there were many times when I was playing around other people's children. I don't have the right to make those kinds of parenting decisions for them. I used the no nudity mod to avoid the issue entirely.

It is up to you of course. I'm just afraid you may turn some away if it isn't an option.

Last edited by VioletLily (2018-10-15 18:33:27)

One Hour One Life Forums

#1 2018-10-12 00:41:54

Steam page is live

#2 2018-10-12 00:49:57

Re: Steam page is live

#3 2018-10-12 03:45:05

Re: Steam page is live

#4 2018-10-12 04:56:22

Re: Steam page is live

#5 2018-10-12 05:43:04

Re: Steam page is live

#6 2018-10-12 06:05:46

Re: Steam page is live

#7 2018-10-12 06:16:55

Re: Steam page is live

#8 2018-10-12 10:45:48

Re: Steam page is live

#9 2018-10-12 11:52:09

Re: Steam page is live

#10 2018-10-12 15:18:56

Re: Steam page is live

#11 2018-10-12 16:29:52

Re: Steam page is live

#12 2018-10-12 16:49:22

Re: Steam page is live

#13 2018-10-12 16:54:02

Re: Steam page is live

#14 2018-10-12 17:14:51

Re: Steam page is live

#15 2018-10-12 19:36:28

Re: Steam page is live

#16 2018-10-14 14:45:33

Re: Steam page is live

#17 2018-10-15 06:14:19

Re: Steam page is live

#18 2018-10-15 07:28:50

Re: Steam page is live

#19 2018-10-15 08:43:19

Re: Steam page is live

#20 2018-10-15 08:59:11

Re: Steam page is live

#21 2018-10-15 15:27:23

Re: Steam page is live

#22 2018-10-15 16:39:30

Re: Steam page is live

#23 2018-10-15 16:46:37

Re: Steam page is live

#24 2018-10-15 17:21:32

Re: Steam page is live

#25 2018-10-15 18:31:43

Re: Steam page is live

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