Why Early Access?

“Arms Dealer is roughly 85% complete. However, certain key aspects of the game are not finished yet, such as the storyline for the campaign and the tutorial. DO NOT BUY IF YOU CAN'T WAIT FOR A STABLE BUILD. We have the financial stability to remain hidden and finish the game but we are compelled to include the community in the decisions surrounding the tutorial in particular. Additionally, we have only been able to test the game on 50 different computers. Early Access allows us to find any compatibility issues and solve them immediately. Our highest priority will always be fixing the game to address anyone who cannot run it with the minimum specs. You WILL have crashes. You will find bugs. There will be placeholder content or missing graphics. This is a work in progress and you are part of the team making it. As an added benefit to you, we are also going to seek feedback on additional content to add to the game before and following release. There are not a lot of tycoon games, biz sims or trading games available on Steam and many of those on offer are simply not very good. This is our chance to work together and make something innovative and fun. Let's set the the new standard together.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“The game is expected to be in Early Access until December 2014 or January 2015. The game will be released when it is finished and”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“The Early Access version of the game has roughly half of the trade content in place. The final release of the game will have all final art and assets in the game along with a complete storyline campaign and a functional but non-intrusive tutorial.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The game currently runs on all PC hardware with the minimum specs and higher. It features around 50% of the final number or weapons and vehicles to trade and has roughly 70% of the final art and sound effects in place. 95%+ of the game mechanics are working but require balance. The competing AI arms dealers and AI law enforcement are in game but will require fine tuning for the difficulty levels based on user feedback. You WILL EXPERIENCE BUGS and you MAY NOT BE ABLE TO PLAY THE GAME for short periods of time due to bugs or patches that break compatibility for your unique system. Every computer is a unique creation of many components, pieces of software and settings. Even two identical machines will not have the same experience due to the user's individual settings and use history. Every time you download something, update something or change a setting, your computer deviates from the expected norm. We cannot predict the billions of possible variations out there and can only respond to your individual reports of issues. I promise you that we will prioritize anyone who cannot play the game and will work as diligently as possible to solve your issue as fast as possible. Please be patient with us as we have limited resources and are human just like you. When someone asks you to do something you can try 110% but sometimes you may still need more time. Please remember this when communicating with us. There are hundreds of hours to be enjoyed in the game as is due to random behaviors and an enormous scope of play.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“We will offer a launch discount of 10%. 1 week after launch the price will return to the normal price. We will not put the game in any cut-rate bundles for at least 9 months out of respect for our consumers. We have already priced our game as low as we can in order to provide you with a valuable experience. We have priced Arms Dealer as low as possible in order to enable as many people to play as possible.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“Feedback from the Steam forums will provide us with direction for current and future development. Based on community input we will also make decisions on free content updates post launch and any requests for major expansions. Read the forums, we take your feedback very seriously and WANT to work with YOU on an individual and group level. I chat with dozens of fans who have friended me daily and answer forum posts around the clock. I am the creator of the game and the team lead. My job is to talk to you and relay your thoughts and feelings to the production team so they stay on track and we actually make the game you want. This is a true cooperative enterprise and the primary reason for Early Access for us. We legitimately have plenty of money to finish the game on our own, but then it will be the game we want and not the game you want. Aren't there enough games in this genre like that?”