After I first performed the demo of colony sim Havendock (opens in new tab) a pair weeks in the past, I used to be struck by how rapidly it hooked me with its allure. It is a recreation about constructing a bustling, pleasant little city over the ocean: gathering sources as they float by, setting up a dock, organising crafting stations, and ultimately attracting different settlers to affix your rising village.
I used to be shocked to study that Havendock, which is at present in beta (opens in new tab) and is planning an Early Entry launch later this 12 months, is the work of a single developer, Yeo Ying Zhi (aka YYZ). I used to be much more shocked that Havendock has solely been in growth for a couple of 12 months, particularly contemplating how a lot there was to do within the demo and the way effectively all of it labored.
The surprises did not cease there. Whereas skimming via the updates on Havendock’s Steam web page, I discovered an invite to gamers to satisfy with YYZ and members of his publishing group, Completely different Tales (opens in new tab), in voice or video chat periods that might doubtlessly last as long as 45 minutes.
Gathering suggestions from gamers in boards, subreddits, emails, or on Discord is not new, however I would by no means heard of a dev providing one-on-one video chats with particular person gamers earlier than. So, I arrange my very own video chat with YYZ, plus Konrad Wałkuski and Krzysztof Masternak of Completely different Tales, to ask them about it.
The non-public method
Since Havendock is a colony sim with mild survival methods, useful resource administration, crafting, and manufacturing traces, the publishers have been anticipating the suggestions to give attention to the gameplay methods and options. However they rapidly found gamers principally wished to speak about how they felt whereas enjoying the sport, relatively than about particular methods like farming, constructing, or automation.
“Typically these conversations have been fairly surprisingly private.”
Krzysztof Masternak, Completely different Tales
“We have been form of approaching this from this sort of strategic, perhaps technical perspective,” stated Wałkuski. “And all of these interviews have been actually extra in regards to the vibe that you simply’re getting as you play.”
“These interviews, these face-to-face conversations with gamers simply enable us to know their personalities, who they’re, why they play video games in any respect,” stated Masternak. “Typically throughout these conversations they open themselves up, generally these conversations have been fairly surprisingly private. Typically they instructed us ‘I’ve a number of stress in my work and [Havendock allows me] to take a deep breath, to take a seat again, to get pleasure from, to chill out.'”
Permitting gamers to talk at size revealed greater than a written suggestions type or survey might, the publishers instructed me, and discovering out what their gamers are getting from Havendock is each helpful to YYZ as he develops it and the way Completely different Tales ought to speak about and put it up for sale.
“Even now, we’re nonetheless form of slightly bit torn after we speak about Havendock,” stated Wałkuski. “Is that this a colony builder? Or perhaps is it a bit extra of a life sim, the place you form of have extra of an emotional expertise, relatively than a strategic technical expertise? And we preserve going backwards and forwards on this, listening to [from players]: what are individuals specializing in? What are they saying? That is the place the reply can actually come from.”
The reply from a lot of the gamers they interviewed is that they don’t seem to be essentially attempting to construct probably the most environment friendly colony or min-max manufacturing traces, they’re simply chilling out and dropping themselves within the recreation. One participant stated they loved enjoying Havendock whereas doing different issues like watching TV or cooking dinner. One other participant unwinds for an hour after work simply by catching fish and gathering provide crates as they float by, virtually utilizing Havendock as a ‘clicker’ recreation, a type of stress aid. A number of gamers in contrast it to Stardew Valley—not within the core methods however within the chilled-out, stress-free environment.
“It simply helps us to know the participant’s wants higher,” stated Masternak. “As a result of we have now this consolation that we all know the sport is nice. We all know the sport is nice. We all know it’s going to be even higher than it’s proper now.”
The place we’re going, we do not want roadmaps
The weird methodology of gathering group suggestions suits in with the considerably uncommon growth of Havendock itself. As an example, YYZ nonetheless is not completely positive what the completed recreation will appear to be or what options it can embrace, and he by no means created a standard recreation design doc for it.
“In certainly one of our weekly conferences, Krzysztof requested ‘What is the imaginative and prescient of the sport? What is the roadmap?’ And I had a number of problem answering that query,” YYZ stated. “As a result of I do not suppose I’ve any thought what the ultimate product goes to be as a result of my course of is extra of an iterative course of.”
It is the explanation why the Discord button within the recreation is definitely virtually as huge because the play button.
Developer Yeo Ying Zhi (YYZ)
For YYZ, what followers consider the sport and need from the sport is as essential as what he desires. “It is the explanation why the Discord button within the recreation is definitely virtually as huge because the play button,” YYZ stated. “They’re each essential, enjoying the sport and with the ability to construct this group and collect suggestions, as a result of a number of the sport is definitely pushed by group suggestions in the way in which that I develop it.”
“YYZ does one thing completely totally different and counterintuitive even, so he invited gamers to the sport very early,” Masternak stated. “You may construct one thing for a really very long time and preserve it hidden in your drawer, or you may simply present it to individuals and see how they react. And from there, you may iterate, you may change it, you may pivot it sooner or later.”
“I launched the sport in a really early stage, I feel it was similar to six or eight weeks. Then I put it up on Itch.io. It was really very, very buggy,” YYZ stated. However regardless of all of the bugs current within the recreation’s extraordinarily early state, individuals stored enjoying. “And from there my course of is usually iterating with the gamers, listening to what they need.”
“That is one of many explanation why we love the undertaking, as a result of it really does not have a selected roadmap that’s set in stone, and we [don’t] know precisely what will occur,” Masternak stated. “YYZ’s method from the very starting, he was very trustworthy and simple in that he stated, ‘Guys, I am unsure the place it’s going to finish.’ So, we embrace it, truthfully, and it just about depends upon the gamers how the sport goes to evolve.”
The group plans to proceed speaking to gamers one-on-one sooner or later they usually encourage different builders and publishers to provoke the identical varieties of prolonged, private interviews with the individuals enjoying their video games.
“We love information. Everybody loves information. And we’re occupied with numbers [because] that provides us the large image. However generally if you wish to actually deeply perceive a participant or only a particular person, [it’s as] easy as that: discuss to her or him and attempt to perceive her or his wants,” Masternak stated. “We’re positively going to repeat [the interview process]. And I’ll positively advocate it to anybody.”
Parts of this interview have been edited for readability.
