Why Early Access?

“"The Bell Echoes is a title that deeply integrates narrative-driven SRPG gameplay with Roguelite deck-building cycles. This hybrid genre relies heavily on fine-tuned balance.

We hope to use Early Access to polish the core experience alongside our players. This includes refining the strategic depth of our high-density 8x8 grid battles, smoothing the difficulty curve, and balancing the power levels between different builds. Additionally, player feedback will help us optimize the pacing of our 'chapter-based Roguelite' flow, ensuring that the dual experience of 'heavy narrative + tactical depth' remains both stable and highly replayable."”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“"We expect Early Access to last for approximately 6 to 12 months. The exact duration will depend on our development progress, optimization efforts, and community feedback. If we feel that more time is needed to polish the content to meet our quality standards, this timeline may be adjusted."”

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

“"The Early Access version already contains a complete and playable core loop. We plan to further expand the content volume and improve overall polish for the full release. Our update roadmap generally follows a 'New Chapter + New Character + New Map' release pattern:
-More Main Story & Maps: We plan to complete the storyline in the full release. Typically, each new story chapter will be released alongside a corresponding Roguelite map (Run) for exploration.
-Expanded Character Roster: We plan to introduce new playable characters alongside new chapters, each with their own exclusive skills and tactical roles.
-Content Expansion & Polish: We plan to add more enemy types, boss fights, and random events, while continuously refining numerical balance, drop rates, and tutorials based on feedback.
-Optimization & Support: We will continue to fix bugs and plan to gradually improve controller support and Steam Deck compatibility (specific progress will depend on development realities)."”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“"The current Early Access version features a complete core tactical combat and building loop, where single Roguelite runs are selected based on chapter maps. The launch version includes:

-Main Story: Contains the complete storyline for the Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and Chapter 3.
-Maps & Levels: Offers 3 replayable, independent Roguelite maps corresponding to the chapters above, featuring 6 bosses and nearly 40 types of enemies.
-Characters: The launch roster includes 5 playable characters.
-3 characters are obtained by clearing the Prologue and Chapter 1.
-1 character is unlocked by progressing through Chapter 2.
-1 character is unlocked by progressing through Chapter 3.
Players can already experience full team-building strategies, combo attacks, and Roguelite randomization elements. During Early Access, we will focus on polishing combat feel, balance, and narrative presentation."”

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

“"We intend to keep the price stable during Early Access. As the content volume (new chapters, new characters) and system polish increase, we plan to moderately raise the price upon the full release. We will announce any price changes in advance."”

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

“"We value community feedback highly and plan to establish a traceable loop for communication:

-Multi-Channel Feedback: We will collect suggestions primarily through the Steam Community Hub (Discussions) and our social media channels (such as our official QQ group).
-Prioritizing Key Issues: We will prioritize critical issues that impact the gameplay experience, such as difficulty spikes, lack of guidance, bugs, and performance issues.
-Transparent Patch Notes: We will explain the direction of our changes in patch notes (e.g., why a certain build was nerfed or a mechanic added) so players can see how their feedback shapes the game's iteration.
-Encouraging Sharing: We encourage players to share their build strategies and gameplay footage, which helps us quickly identify balance blind spots."”