Why Early Access?

“Drone: Remote Tactical Warfare has the potential to become a great(er) game. The thousands who up-voted during the Greenlight campaign clearly agree! Despite the potential, taking Drone to the next level will require help from the Steam community and this is why the decision was made to release Drone as an Early Access title.

Currently Drone is being worked on in the spare time of the development team. If Early Access is successful the small but highly skilled team of artists and designers working on this title will be in the privileged position of being able to divert our entire energies into making Drone the best experience it can be.

Aside from financial help we need the keen-eyed testers and brave QA volunteers of the Steam community to help produce a balanced, refined and highly enjoyable experience.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“As shorter time as possible! The hard part is done - the core gameplay is very polished, playable and fun but needs more testing, tweaking and refinement. But overall, no major changes/features to core mechanics are required meaning that those last kinks can be ironed out as an explosive expansion of content is implemented.

If all goes to plan Drone should be in Early Access for around a year. ”

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

“The Early Access version will initially consist of an 'Arcade' mode with 3 zones, 12 levels and 20 unique unlocks. This will allow access to some of the weapons, items and mechs that will be available in the full version. More importantly it will allow Steam users to stress test, respond to and help improve the core mechanics of Drone without giving away the narrative.

The highly requested Multiplayer mode will also be made available as soon as is humanly possible during the Early Access phase. Multiplayer will include deathmatch and coop modes.

As mentioned earlier, the full version will include a single-player campaign mode which will be navigated by a world map and have varied mission types and super-secret bonus levels to discover.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The current state is the near-completion of Arcade Mode. Non-affiliated QA testers have all said how they found the current state of Drone to be a highly polished experience.

The core gameplay mechanics are highly developed, bug free and locked-down. All that remains is the task of higher-level game logic balancing which will require the help of input by the community to formulate a challenging but fun experience.

New content (a new zone, enemies and weapons) for arcade mode will be released in the next update and the campaign mode has its functional framework in place. Improving the art assets for each update will be also a major focus.”

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

“The price will most likely increase for the final release version but only if warranted or necessary.”

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

“Drone would greatly benefit from the input of the Steam community to ensure a fun and polished experience. Direct contact with the developers will be made available via a dedicated email address and, of course, Steam Community Hub which will be checked at least daily.

Be sure of this: constructive feedback from the Steam community is welcomed and will certainly be taken into account throughout the Early Access phase of Drone's development.”