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MMObility: Tiny Speck explains Glitch's big unlaunching
If you've kept up with Tiny Speck's unusual browser-based game Glitch, then you might be familiar with The Announcement. The developers have decided to unlaunch the game in the hopes of retooling and redesigning many of its core features. I'd bet that this decision was not made lightly, not at all, but I wanted to get more of an insight into the decision. Thankfully, Tiny Speck's Stewart Butterfield was prepared to give us just that. Even after speaking to him, though, I am still a bit confused about the announcement. Is my confusion due to the fact that many developers would never do such a thing as going back to beta, or is it the offer for full credit and subscription refunds that boggles me? Either way, players have to find their comfort zone with the announcement and decide what they want to do. Click past the cut for my thoughts on the interview and feel free to leave your own in the comments section!
Glitch 'unlaunches' to add new features
Tiny Speck's popular and unusual MMO, Glitch, is being unlaunched. What does that mean, exactly? Well, to put it bluntly, the developers -- including Katamari Damacy designer Keita Takahashi -- have recognized that there are some things that the game lacks. Namely, the team wants "to make the early game reveal itself more easily to new players" while also adding more robust creative tools that can be used "to change the world in more tangible ways." In light of these realizations, Tiny Speck is taking Glitch back into the beta stage of testing. Why? As the press release notes, "making radical changes to core game mechanics is something that's a lot harder to do while the front doors are open and we have to focus on scaling to support growth, stability and providing the quality of service we aim to achieve for the live game." To round it all off, the team understands that this move will disappoint some people, especially those who have put money into the game. With that in mind, the devs will be giving a 100% refund to players who bought something from the Glitch store and who want their money back. For the full details, head on over to the announcement at the Glitch official site. And keep an eye on MMObility later this week, where our own Beau Hindman will be interviewing Tiny Speck's Stewart Butterfield.
