Just north of Cable, Wisconsin
Saturday, 6:37 a.m.
Dear Harp Isles Player,
I'd just traveled across the country to see an old friend. I opened my bag... and my mouse wasn't in it.
Now, most people would shrug and take a few days off.
I went mouse shopping.
I was deep in the grind for my first Apex - San' Dahyros - and I wasn't about to stop. Being a high-category creature and taking 35 Apex shards, getting Apex is many days of play and I poured in every one of them.
Today, I'm one of the owners of Harp Isles
I've acquired part of the studio behind the game, and I'm officially joining the full leadership team as lead developer. (I originally just offered to help with some code. Things escalated a little.)
You know me as Batman, and that's not changing.
For a little background, I've been doing full-stack development for over a decade. I was part of the Strucid team, which has over 750 million visits, and I've led a team of 15 developers at a software company I helped found.
So let's talk about the beta.
What the beta taught us
In its first month, Harp Isles had over a million visits. There's something really special here.
The goal of the beta was always to learn and to set a proper foundation for the future. And we've learned a lot... so let's be open and honest about it.
The bugs
There have been a lot of bugs. Not just two or three that keep coming up, but a whole bunch of them, all across the game. Every one of them pulled you out of a game you were trying to enjoy, and we're not going to pretend otherwise.
Running out of things to do
Right now, players just sort of run out of things to do. For new players, it's confusing to figure out where to even start. And for everyone else, there hasn't been enough reason to come back again and again.
The answer isn't to keep throwing new content at the problem. We're functionally changing the way you interact with the game, so it's far more engaging and exciting to return to, again and again.
Leaving you in the dark
Across the board, communication has been sparse. You've been asking what's going on and what's coming next... and too often, the community has been left in the dark.
That changes now. We're empowering our team members to actually answer your questions, and we're setting regular cadences for announcements and blog posts, so you're never left guessing.
The player count
Let's be honest: the player count is low right now. You've seen it, and so have I.
Here's the thing... I'm not concerned about the player count. I'm concerned about making the greatest game imaginable. The player count doesn't deter me in any way, shape or form, and it shouldn't deter you either.
All of this is on leadership. And leadership now includes me.
There are also some changes on the team. Vet is stepping back for now, and I'll be leading development for the time being.
What matters to me
At the end of the day, it really comes down to one thing...
Building the best creature survival game on Roblox.
Picture logging in after an update and everything just works. The game is exciting and fun to play, and you find yourself wanting to return again and again and again. That's what I'm here to build, and I'm extremely excited to build it with all of you.
What's next
This Friday, October 16, we'll be updating the roadmap. It covers how the beta ends, what you can earn before it does, and the road to full release. And I'll just say this...
Something big is coming.
See you in the Isles,
Batman
P.S. The updated roadmap drops Friday, October 16.