We are not dead. It may not be obvious due to the infrequency of posting, but this project is still alive, although it hangs in the balance by a couple steel threads. The last two "focus on a feature" articles have revealed at least some of the new things we want to try in Crescent Dawn, but they haven't given a clear picture of the actual game. I still plan on writing a few more "focus on a feature" articles. There are quests, combat, the social aspect, the economy, so many topics to discuss. But looking at each of those things really isn't going to convey what Crescent Dawn is.

There is a good reason we haven't so far been able to express what this game is all about. We don't know! I have finally realized this point, and when I realized it, it smacked me in the face like a wet fish. The primary reason alpha 4 is still not out after a year, is not a technical one. I have not wanted to released alpha 4 until we have a game, but I failed to realize that I don't know what that looks like at this point. Doogs has a hard time designing the world when we don't know anything about the world. I have a hard time designing features because I can't picture what it looks like. All we have are some ideals, some nice features we'd like, a decent technology base to build upon, and a severe lack of free time. We know what Crescent Dawn isn't, but not what it is.

It's time for a change.

So the game is currently undergoing a quite massive redesign process (or maybe just design process, we have done very little design up to this point). We are finding our way, clarifying goals, getting at the root of the matter, and doing tons of world building. When this is done, and we have a decent sketched out Crescent Dawn vision, we will clarify exactly what is going into alpha 4. And a lot of this new design and the alpha 4 laundry list will be revealed to you as soon as we know it. At that point we will also give a timeline for alpha 4.

The gears of Crescent Dawn have gotten rusty, so we have brought out the oil. (Crescent Dawn Online will have both gears and oil, but that's another topic.) We are fumbling around in the dark, so it's time to light a match. (Crescent dawn will have those too.) We have lost are way, and need to chart a course back to land. (Ditto.) If you have been following us, you have been scavenging on the smallest of scraps, but soon there will be a feast. (The feasts in Crescent Dawn Online will be a sight to behold.) Enough metaphors that sneakily reveal some of the future features of CDO.

We are building a foundation on which to build a great game. Ok so i suppose that could be related to the game too. Anyway, I believe that at the end of this, development will pick up, and soon enough people will actually be able to enter the world of Crescent Dawn again.