Among thelist of Early Access success stories, few games have set the bar as high asSatisfactory, which entered its full release in September after five years of testing and refining the game in players’ hands.
Snutt, community manager forSatisfactory, spoke to Game Rant about how Coffee Stain was able to set and clear such a high bar, and offered advice to other studios looking to do the same in the future.
A Satisfying Early Access
For all the success stories likeSatisfactory, there are innumerable stories of Early Access games having rocky development or outright failing to deliver, which hasearned the concept a mixed reputation. So how did Coffee Stain manage to navigate the controversial process so deftly that player support for the game has been high throughout? Snutt attributed it to things like setting clear expectations, a flexibility to take the game where the players are going, and a willingness to own the studio’s mistakes.
I think the biggest thing is setting expectations. Because I think Early Access still is sort of undefined for a lot of people. When you hear that a game is in Early Access, you don’t really know what that means–like, what the state of the game is. Is it going to be really buggy? I think there’s a lot of different expectations that people have when they hear that a game is Early Access. So it’s been really important for us to be sure to try and set expectations, temper what people want to see from a game that is in Early Access, and try to be as honest as possible.
He went on to say that Coffee Stain has approached the game with a willingness to admit where things haven’t worked, or if it has gone in the wrong direction. Because of how variable expectations on Early Access are, maintaining transparency and honesty, especially about its own faults, is critical to Coffee Stain’s strategy to keep its players’ trust through the process. That goes hand-in-hand with the other core part of its strategy–being flexible enoughto take the game where the players want.
For instance, Snutt explained thatSatisfactorywas initially envisioned to have a greater focus on combat, but when the game got into players’ hands, Coffee Stain realized that was less important to what people enjoyed about the game than it initially thought. Plans to introduce more creatures and combat mechanics got shelved so that the studio could focus more on things like traversal, efficiency, and cosmetics–things the players were clamoring for by comparison.
Another prime example of how Coffee Stain was responsive to the fans during Early Access comes in the form of the critter that arguably serves as the game’s mascot:the Lizard Doggo. As many players know, as designed, the Lizard Doggo was neither a lizard nor a doggo, but something closer to a shrimp bunny hybrid.
It’s funny how with some things people in our community really pick up on it, and then we just decide to roll with it and fully go with it. Like the name Lizard Doggo is not something we came up with, that was someone in our community that coined the term, and then we were like, “oh, cool, that’s a good term. Let’s go with it. Let’s roll with it.” YouTube commenter Chad Mojito coined the name. It’s funny how little Shrimpy became a big icon for the game.
Having a positive community to foster those kinds of interactions can be a struggle for some developers, and Snutt is aware that part of getting the right kind of community is luck. That doesn’t mean that Coffee Stain hasn’t done things to foster that positivity, however. Beyond just luck and good moderation, Coffee Stain works to humanize the effort that goes into Satisfactory, to make the game more than a product in the eyes of its audience. That humanity goes both ways, as Snutt doesn’t treat players as purchasers, but also affords the same level of humanization. The developers and players get to know one another, and the game represents this collaborative vision.
While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to a successful Early Access, to Snutt, the philosophySatisfactoryhas used throughout the process is the thing he’d recommend to other studios.
What Does Early Access Mean?
There are a lot of reasons why games would enter Early Access. Notably, it can help bridge the resource gap between indie developers and AAA studios. Early Access can help both in the promotion and marketing of a game as well as a funding source for late development costs. It can be a very appealing option forgames with initial funding from Kickstarterfor that exact reason. Snutt cautioned against viewing an Early Access launch in those business-focused terms, however.
It’s really important that you know what you’re getting into because it might seem like, “Oh, if we just go into early access,we can maintain support for our game, and we can just keep working on it, and blah, blah.” There’s many factors that play into whether or not a game will be successful in early access … If I have to give advice, I think you need to know that you can deliver on your promises. You have to be able to set expectations properly and be able to communicate, first and foremost. And you know, you don’t have to set up roadmaps, anything like that, because we didn’t. We had one roadmap at the beginning, but then we decided to not go with it, because we felt like we wanted more freedom and to be able to react more. Communication comes in many different forms.
Satisfactorywas a very different game five years ago, but it was a playable experience, which also was important to Coffee Stain, said Snutt. Players immediately got value from the title. From there, the way the studio collected and nimbly responded to feedback from its players helped it refine the experience in the way players sought out. This all laid the foundations for trust, which Snutt said is the most important currency between players and developers during Early Access.
While the precise thingsSatisfactorydid during its Early Access may not apply to or be replicable by all studios, that philosophy of fostering and maintaining communication and trust can be, and it proved essential forSatisfactory’s smash success. Toput numbers on that success, Coffee Stain sold over 6 million units of its satisfying automation game during its five years of Early Access.
And though Coffee Stain hasn’t decided what form its post-launch support for the game will take just yet, Snutt says it’s not walking away from the project. Future updates will be more scrutinized before they’re pushed to players, but they will be coming down the conveyor belt, to be expertly sorted into over 6 million games.
Satisfactory
WHERE TO PLAY
Satisfactory is a first-person open-world factory building game with a dash of exploration and combat. Play alone or with friends, explore an alien planet, create multi-story factories, and enter conveyor belt heaven!ConstructConquer nature by building massive factories across the land. Expand wherever and however you want. The planet is filled with valuable natural resources just waiting to be utilized. As an employee of FICSIT it’s your duty to make sure they come to good use.AutomateConstruct your factories with gracious perfection or build intricate webs of conveyor belts to supply all your needs. Automate trucks and trains to reach your faraway outposts and be sure to handle liquids properly by transporting them in pipes. It’s all about minimizing manual labour!Explore & ExploitVenture on expeditions to search for new materials and be sure to put everything to good use. Nature is yours to harvest! You have vehicles, jetpacks, jump pads and more at your disposal to make the exploration easier. Equip the proper safety gear as well, just in case you run into the local wildlife.
