Originally published at: http://statelyplay.com/2018/03/12/abstract-gem-feud-heading-to-early-access-and-launching-ios-beta/
iOS, Android, PC/Mac/Linux •
We talked about an unassuming little abstract game called Feud back in November and, turns out, it was pretty good. And this is coming from someone who doesn’t like abstracts. The game was designed by Dave Cordell originally as a tabletop game, but was quickly moved over to the digital realm where it’s a much better fit. Feud should be heading to Early Access fairly soon, but Bearwaves is adding a healthy heaping of goodness before that happens. Oh, and it sounds like an iOS version is coming down the road as well, and they’re looking for testers.
Now, to be fair none of this is news. We already knew that Feud was heading to PC/Mac/Linux as well as iOS and Android. What is different, however, are the deets [deets? Are you kidding me? Dave is trying to seem hip when he, literally, just found out what hentai was this morning. Even I’m not going to ask him why he was googling that. -ed.].
For example, they just sewed these shiny buttons onto the current alpha build:
We've spent the past few months working on Feud's online multiplayer, and it's finally ready to share with you. Here's what's in it so far:That's right, all those alpha testers can now make online matches with friends or get teamed up with complete strangers. Truly, Feud offers the best of both worlds. [He's going to try and slip a Star Trek reference in here for no reason at all. Please make sure he doesn't get away with it. -ed.]
- Playing matches
- Matchmaking
- Inviting players by username
- Cross-play between desktop and mobile
LOCUTUS! [He did it. -ed.]
That’s just what was in the latest alpha build, but Bearwaves is planning on polishing the brass before it goes to Early Access:
Not a bad list for something just walking into a live beta, eh? [oh, god, if he even tries to do a Bob & Doug McKenzie reference here I'm going to kill him -ed.] We don't know when the Early Access build is going to take off (you hosers!) [Ugh! Why do you people read this site? -ed.], but from the sound of it, we're not too far off from a PC/Mac/Linux version being available for everyone.
- Turn timers
- Support for Steam, Google Play Games and Game Centre on iOS
- Cross-platform login
- In-game reactions
- A ranking system
- Rewards and progression
So, what about iOS? They’re already testing Feud on Android, but there’s been nothing to indicate an iOS version is on the way other than their assurances. Well, now we know that the iOS beta is about to get underway, as Bearwaves explains:
Don't think we've forgotten you, Apple friends. iOS has been one of our development targets from the very beginning, and we really want to get people testing on iPhones and iPads.The good news is the iOS version is now fully working! It runs really nicely on Joel’s iPhone SE. This means we should be good to keep iOS up-to-date in the same way we do the other platforms.
The bad news is we haven’t quite got set up on TestFlight yet. We’re working to sort this out as soon as possible, so if you’d like to get ahead of the game make sure you’re TestFlight ready. We’ll have more to share in the very near future.
They also have a link where you can sign up for the TestFlight program and get in on polishing Feud until it’s ready for Cupertino’s icy stare. You can sign up yonder. Or even here, if yonder is too far away. [insert eye roll emoji here -ed.]
Update: Here’s where I have to admit that our rather dickish editor is mostly correct. Yes, I am a hack. The links above will take you to the TestFlight app, not a signup for the beta. I misread Bearwaves’ email which included that link so potential testers would have it installed and have signed up. The iOS beta is coming and there should be signups for the TestFlight soon. Sigh. You can, however, sign up for the closed Alpha on PC/Mac/Linux right now if you don’t want to wait for that iOS beta to arrive. Head over this way.
Go sign up and get on that testing bandwagon! Why is it so important, you might ask. Or, you might say, I need to watch the Food Network and don’t have time. Well, listen here, sous-chef de cuisine: right now Feud’s online multiplayer is real-time only. That got your attention, didn’t it? Yeah, and they’re only going to add asynchronous play if there’s a clamor for it. If I know one thing about the Stately Players [I can’t leave him alone for a minute -ed.] it’s that they love to clamor about asynchronous play. Feud is a cool game and it deserves to be played, so get out there and start testing so you can clamor for that asynchronous goodness right into Bearwaves’ earholes.
