Worst-First (Alpha) Testing Begins in July: We will begin with a small outside testing group with Atriarch in July. The closest industry term for this phase of testing is alpha. However, a shirt I saw at Game Developer's Conference (GDC) last week captured the essence of early testing phases more accurately. Lucent Technologist and AI Programmer, Neil Kirby, was wearing a project shirt that read "Worst-First Testing Team". I think the phrase speaks for itself, and I decided to adopt the philosophy for Atriarch testing :-)

Of course, don't let the fact that we are calling it worst-first testing fool you. We are eager and excited to get the ball rolling again on testing. The sooner we get this into your hands, the faster we get your feedback and know if we are on the right track. While technical aspects of the game need testing, the fun factor is also very important to validate. Woo Atriarch Fun!!!

Many of you know that we had a brief flirtation with testing quite awhile ago. It was suspended while we worked out some issues. Now finally, the flirtation has turned into a date ;-) Of course, the original group of testers will still be included in testing, but will be phased in when it comes time for beta. We still have everyone's info and will update you as the schedule moves forward.