Next Steps SNF 2024
Article

Insights from the alpha preview and Next Steps

We want to take a moment to thank each of you for being part of this journey.

We have been working on Beyond Astra for five years, and since our official announcement in early September, your support has exceeded all our expectations. Within days, our YouTube video went viral, and in just a few weeks, more than ten thousand of you added Beyond Astra to your wishlists.

In October, we released an alpha preview of the game to showcase the innovations we’ve developed over the years and give you a taste of the gameplay while exploring new features we have in mind. Beyond Astra is our first game, and also through this alpha preview release we wanted to try out our approach to project publication.

Thanks to your support during the October Steam Next Fest, we ranked in the global Top 100 and Top 3 in the 4X category of the event, and now tens of thousands of you have Beyond Astra on your wishlist!

From the alpha preview, we received hundreds of valuable feedback, which we’ve read one by one. Many of you are enthusiastic and see the game’s potential, and you’ve also highlighted improvements needed to ensure Beyond Astra becomes the best version it can be. We cannot thank you enough for the time you’ve taken to share your ideas, advice, and suggestions. Your input will significantly impact the final game and our plans moving forward.

Here are the changes we plan to implement based on your feedback:

Gameplay

  • Redesign of Ground Combat System: We are shifting to an RTS ground combat system with larger individual units, each with specific roles and utilities from start to end game. This will create a more cohesive gameplay experience between space and ground combat, allowing for a better understanding of what is happening during battles and adding depth to the gameplay.

  • City Defense System Overhaul: We will replace city garrisons with turret modules (which you can choose) surrounding cities and space stations. This change will help distinguish between space/orbital and ground ship production, as all units will now be produced directly from the city and deployed immediately (removing the need for garrisons).

UI/UX

  • User Interface Redesign: We’re making the UI more colorful and clear, with added overlays and explanations for each item, as well as key at-a-glance information like attack notifications and enhanced management alerts. Feedback for actions will be improved with better building distinction, visual effects upon building completion, unit path indicators, and clearer enemy identification.

  • Quality of life Improvements: A single click on the planet will enable unit landing, with an option to specify a landing area where an unobstructed point will be automatically chosen. Expedition Builder will build in queue. City production queue will be expanded to ten times their current capacity. Auto-link extractors with the nearest city. Module lists will appear directly on slots in ship designer.

  • Spaceships: We’re adding spatial pathfinding and improved unit formations. And yellow gravity zone that rotates with the planet will serve as a speed boost.

  • Camera Control Enhancements: We’re enhancing unit selection from space, enabling instant arrival in cities and quick actions from space. We’re also improving mouse fluidity, adding scroll speed options, and clarifying control shortcuts. (Note: The camera is closely tied to Beyond Astra’s unique features. While we aim to make it as intuitive as possible, it may require a brief adjustment period).

Macro Management

  • We confirm that interfaces for performing group actions across your galactic-scale empire are planned.
  • A copy-paste system and automation for city designs will allow you to easily replicate cities across planets.

Miscellaneous

  • Improved visuals on the dark side of the planet to ensure it looks as beautiful and clear as the sunlit side.
  • We will move away from lengthy dialogue quests, favoring shorter context paragraphs instead.
  • We confirm a save feature will be included.

Thank you for all the enthusiasm you share with us! We sincerely apologize to anyone who felt frustrated during the alpha preview, and we are committed to doing much better in our upcoming updates. Your energy and support inspire us to strive for excellence, and we look forward to meeting and exceeding your expectations for the final game.

Best,
Alex & Valentin