Incline Battle Brothers + Beasts & Exploration, Warriors of the North and Blazing Deserts DLC Thread

[sser]

So no DLC...? Fuck

Unwise from a business perspective.

It's like, "hey, we've built a hungry fanbase and likes our game and would definitely give us more money for little additions, but instead we'll just funnel all our money/time into another game that may or may not succeed."

It'd be like if McDonalds stopped at making hamburgers and didn't offer you fries and a drink while you were there. Just silly.

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

 

[Ezeekiel]

So no DLC...? Fuck

Unwise from a business perspective.

It's like, "hey, we've built a hungry fanbase and likes our game and would definitely give us more money for little additions, but instead we'll just funnel all our money/time into another game that may or may not succeed."

It'd be like if McDonalds stopped at making hamburgers and didn't offer you fries and a drink while you were there. Just silly.

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

They mostly flop for good reason though... Banner Saga 2 is a great example.
People learn their lesson after the lukewarm first game after getting sucked in by the aesthetics and hype.

 

[Eyestabber]

So no DLC...? Fuck

Unwise from a business perspective.

It's like, "hey, we've built a hungry fanbase and likes our game and would definitely give us more money for little additions, but instead we'll just funnel all our money/time into another game that may or may not succeed."

It'd be like if McDonalds stopped at making hamburgers and didn't offer you fries and a drink while you were there. Just silly.

Yeah, the more I think about it the less sense this decision makes. These games tend to be hated or ignored by most ppl and loved to the death by a select few (the Codex, mostly). So you have a small but loyal audience. Releasing DLC/Expansions is the sensible thing to do. It's what Iron Tower did with Dungeon Rats and it's what Styg is doing with the DLC thing. That's what makes sense, at least from an outsider's perspective.

I'm curious to read Vault Dweller 's take. Why do you think they decided to just move on, instead of making some extra money off Battle Brother's popularity?

Just off the top of my head I could think of at least 3 possible DLCs for Battle Brothers. A new faction, a larger story driven questline and maybe a transition into a landed noble lifestyle (one of the ending slides hinted at that).

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

True, but you're talking about an entirely new game. "Lizard people DLC" or some other standard medieval fantasy race turned into a new faction and sold as DLC seems like a pretty safe bet to me. A story driven campaign to put the undead to rest once and for all would also be easy to sell, IMO.

 

[Teut Busnet]

So no DLC...? Fuck

Unwise from a business perspective.

It's like, "hey, we've built a hungry fanbase and likes our game and would definitely give us more money for little additions, but instead we'll just funnel all our money/time into another game that may or may not succeed."

It'd be like if McDonalds stopped at making hamburgers and didn't offer you fries and a drink while you were there. Just silly.

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

How high would the cost be to put out a purely cosmetic DLC though? (Honest question).

I think many fans would have happily paid 5 Euros / Dollars for new banners (hell, half of them could be the old ones that were cut...), a new big house or two, new weapon/armor art etc. .

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

The risk on making an entirely new game and marketing it is much, much higher than releasing DLC.

Unless of course your only concept of DLC is an expansion equivalent to the main game.

Again, it's the fries with your burger, not a pizza to go with it.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Yeah, the more I think about it the less sense this decision makes. These games tend to be hated or ignored by most ppl and loved to the death by a select few (the Codex, mostly). So you have a small but loyal audience. Releasing DLC/Expansions is the sensible thing to do. It's what Iron Tower did with Dungeon Rats and it's what Styg is doing with the DLC thing. That's what makes sense, at least from an outsider's perspective.

I'm curious to read Vault Dweller 's take. Why do you think they decided to just move on, instead of making some extra money off Battle Brother's popularity?

I think the reasons are the very same reasons that allowed their project to be successful in so many ways in the first place. Their clear and sober focus on their vision, their community engagement and communication was excellent but honest. They kept sane expectations and made the right decisions IMO. That doesn't align with the hopes of real fans, or follow the sad example of over-committing and under-delivering we see from so many teams. It is particularly notable that this level of maturity was shown by a fledgling studio.

It is the perfect time to move away from a successful project and ride their creative momentum into a next great project. Good for them I say.

 

[Alienman]

Could also be that they are burned out and want to try something else.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Yeah, the more I think about it the less sense this decision makes. These games tend to be hated or ignored by most ppl and loved to the death by a select few (the Codex, mostly). So you have a small but loyal audience. Releasing DLC/Expansions is the sensible thing to do. It's what Iron Tower did with Dungeon Rats and it's what Styg is doing with the DLC thing. That's what makes sense, at least from an outsider's perspective.

I'm curious to read Vault Dweller 's take. Why do you think they decided to just move on, instead of making some extra money off Battle Brother's popularity?

As a player, I'm disappointed. BB is a great foundation that begs to be developed further and build upon. The possibilities are truly limitless, from more battleground like proper forts to more complex contracts and relationships between cities and factions.

Having said that, I'm not sure how well DLCs for an indie game would sell. I suspects that the answer is 'not a lot' unless you have a top seller like Darkest Dungeon. So they might end up working for 6 months and release a DLC that would sell 15% of what BB sold. Might as well focus on the new game while BB is still selling.

Most DLC's and sequels I see on Steam flop and those are from games that are market-wise much larger than Battle Brothers. There are some that don't, but many do, and for a small team like Overhype that's not exactly an affordable risk (hi there Banner Saga 2 and threeeeee???).

The risk on making an entirely new game and marketing it is much, much higher than releasing DLC.

I'd say the risk is very low. A cool new game from the makers of BB would sell like hotcakes whereas a DLC would appeal only to the diehard followers (10-20% tops).

 

[Ezeekiel]

On the other hand, making a new game, with a different setting (that could be incompatible with the BB engine and such) may require a lot more initial investment. BB could use a lot of big additions still, as there's not really a whole lot to it right now. If the DLC was a large expansion, maybe they could save money and time vs. a new game and actually sell much more than just to the 10-20% you mentioned.

I don't think they really have the programming oomph to make the necessary additions happen, though (plus they clearly have a different vision for the game than it's hardcore fanbase). Same reason they aren't in the game now after such a long development cycle. Hence the new game which is probably going to end up similar to BB: A basic framework with lots of potential but too little content.

Or maybe I'm wrong and they've learned from their mistakes, but when does that really ever happen... :D

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

It is not a mistake to make mature business decisions. Nothing is easier than having all the answers when you shoulder none of the responsibility.

 

[34scell]

I'm guessing they're going to let some time pass and then make a sequel reusing the old assets with new features.

 

[thesheeep]

It was really a strange decision of them not to plan for mod support to begin with.
Rarely has a game screamed for that feature as much as this one.
Of course, it is fully understandable that they don't want to spend months now to rewrite half their game to support mods.

Oh, well. It's still great fun, but I doubt it will have much longevity without mods except for a few players who just can't stop playing.
Hoping they don't repeat the same mistake with their next game - and take less than 5 years to develop it

 

[vonAchdorf]

I think many fans would have happily paid 5 Euros / Dollars for new banners (hell, half of them could be the old ones that were cut...), a new big house or two, new weapon/armor art etc. .

I think that would be a risky move. The hardcore crowd which likes Battle Brothers doesn't really like DLC and cosmetic DLC even less. For now they have the underdog / indie bonus, but releasing a cosmetic DLC still wouldn't be well received. (See Tyranny's cosmetic DLC). With the $40 edition, fans already have a way to support them if they want to pay more than the base price, so a cosmetic DLC wouldn't even fall into the "supporting my bros" category.

 

[Dr Skeleton]

No modding really sucks. So many things could've been done with the current form of BB as a starting point. So many pacing problems could've been solved. Still, I'm very interested in the next project and hopefully it will be made with expansions and modding in mind, BB was their first game so I'm not really that surprised they'd rather start something new with that experience than expand on a game that might be held together with duct tape just beneath the surface.

 

[Teut Busnet]

I think that would be a risky move. The hardcore crowd which likes Battle Brothers doesn't really like DLC and cosmetic DLC even less. For now they have the underdog / indie bonus, but releasing a cosmetic DLC still wouldn't be well received. (See Tyranny's cosmetic DLC). With the $40 edition, fans already have a way to support them if they want to pay more than the base price, so a cosmetic DC wouldn't even fall into the "supporting my bros" category.

As long as they're honest about the DLC, I don't think it would be much of a problem. They could even call it 'purely cosmetical DLC', for example.

I guess I fall in the 'hardcore' category and the DLCs I have the least problems with are the cosmetical ones. It doesn't feel as if something was ripped out of the game just to make the customer pay twice.

Anyway, I played over 600 hours and it would have been a nice way to say 'thanks' (and maybe get something for it), looking forward to their next game.

 

[Infinitron]

It's what Iron Tower did with Dungeon Rats

http://steamspy.com/app/230070

Price: $29.99
Owners: 69,372 ± 7,667

http://steamspy.com/app/531930

Price: $8.99
Owners: 13,520 ± 3,385

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

i found this underwhelming. very few skills to play with, railroaded builds, not enough variety in equipment, all the game is replacing losses hoping for the best, using always the same tactics.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

I think that would be a risky move. The hardcore crowd which likes Battle Brothers doesn't really like DLC and cosmetic DLC even less. For now they have the underdog / indie bonus, but releasing a cosmetic DLC still wouldn't be well received. (See Tyranny's cosmetic DLC). With the $40 edition, fans already have a way to support them if they want to pay more than the base price, so a cosmetic DC wouldn't even fall into the "supporting my bros" category.

As long as they're honest about the DLC, I don't think it would be much of a problem. They could even call it 'purely cosmetical DLC', for example.

I guess I fall in the 'hardcore' category and the DLCs I have the least problems with are the cosmetical ones. It doesn't feel as if something was ripped out of the game just to make the customer pay twice.

Anyway, I played over 600 hours and it would have been a nice way to say 'thanks' (and maybe get something for it), looking forward to their next game.

I envy your free time.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

i found this underwhelming. very few skills to play with, railroaded builds, not enough variety in equipment, all the game is replacing losses hoping for the best, using always the same tactics.

How many hours did you play to both understand fully how all the build combinations work an find it underewelming?

 

[Sarissofoi]

What a disappointment. Especially a lack of ANY modding possibility.
Expected and predicted but still.
But its fine(not really).
All we need is for THEM to release that compiler/re-compiler tool that THEY were using. So some Russian autist would code new stuff for donations of vodka and seeds. Because clearly Germans(as history prove) can not deliver.
Seriously all we get are some colored helmets. If I was in mood for ranting I would write in detail where they can shove it.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

i found this underwhelming. very few skills to play with, railroaded builds, not enough variety in equipment, all the game is replacing losses hoping for the best, using always the same tactics.

How many hours did you play to both understand fully how all the build combinations work an find it underewelming?

finished it.
build combinations? there aren't really many, some perks are mandatory, others are absolute garbage, you either tank or gank, but considered how easy it's to lose a man in the end it's gank or gank. or do you mean "build a line of men and kill enemies with swords to their faces, maces to their faces or axes to their faces. totally different strategies"?

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

i found this underwhelming. very few skills to play with, railroaded builds, not enough variety in equipment, all the game is replacing losses hoping for the best, using always the same tactics.

How many hours did you play to both understand fully how all the build combinations work an find it underewelming?

finished it.
build combinations? there aren't really many, some perks are mandatory, others are absolute garbage, you either tank or gank, but considered how easy it's to lose a man in the end it's gank or gank. or do you mean "build a line of men and kill enemies with swords to their faces, maces to their faces or axes to their faces. totally different strategies"?

I find 'underwhelming' mutually exclusive to playing a game for long at all, let alone long enough to finish it.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

It will be interesting to see how much they can re-use old assets and code in their upcoming projects.

Probably not that much since their new game will probably be about combat with modern/sci-fi firearms.
They'll need to re-do LOS because some people found the way it worked in Battle Brothers confusing.

 

[Jimmious]

I highly encourage anyone starting a new run to play medium economy - medium starting gold - hard combat and ironman of course.

 

[MadMaxHellfire]

i found this underwhelming. very few skills to play with, railroaded builds, not enough variety in equipment, all the game is replacing losses hoping for the best, using always the same tactics.

How many hours did you play to both understand fully how all the build combinations work an find it underewelming?

finished it.
build combinations? there aren't really many, some perks are mandatory, others are absolute garbage, you either tank or gank, but considered how easy it's to lose a man in the end it's gank or gank. or do you mean "build a line of men and kill enemies with swords to their faces, maces to their faces or axes to their faces. totally different strategies"?

I find 'underwhelming' mutually exclusive to playing a game for long at all, let alone long enough to finish it.

yeah, because you never wasted your time with something you didn't really like because you had nothing else to do.
of course you get out of the cinema after 5 minutes if you don't like the beginning of a movie. you throw away a whole book after 2 pages. you break a cd in half after the first bad song.