Matrix Games Forums

Weren't we supposed to get news about Universe's release date and price today?

I was really hoping to...

I think the event was running over two days? Assuming that it does then I would not expect the press to have anything published before Saturday or more likely Monday.

Must admit, I was assuming there would be an announcement somewhere on these boards pretty much as soon as the news was available at the conference ...

Hi guys,

The press event goes for multiple days. Yesterday was a general corporate strategy and message day and we live streamed the question and answer session on Twitch, per the announcement in the HOW2014 forum and our site announcement. Today the game-specific presentations start. I would expect news either later today or tomorrow regarding Distant Worlds: Universe.

Regards,

- Erik

Sweet, thanks for keeping us in the loop.

Ok, so here's some info:

tm.asp?m=3610056

Let me expand upon this.

Distant Worlds: Universe will release through our Online Store as well as, for the first time, through Steam. As this includes both the new Universe expansion with greatly expanded modding support and the Ancient Galaxy storyline plus all previous releases, it will give new customers and existing customers a unified installation for future support and modding.

The base price of Distant Worlds: Universe will be $59.99 Download / $69.99 Physical. The Physical version is only available through our store and includes an updated and full color printed Distant Worlds series game manual.

For the release, it will be available at a pre-order price of $49.99 Download / $59.99 physical. This will be the pre-order price through Steam. As we don't do pre-orders through our own store, this will be our release price as well, with a post-release promotional period as with past Distant Worlds releases that allows early adopters to get the game for a lower price, after which it will revert to the permanent $59.99 / $69.99 price level.

We will also be offering existing customers a discount based on what parts of the series they own. It's a $10 discount per release, so if you own everything that's been released so far (Distant Worlds + Return of the Shakturi + Legends + Shadows) then during the post-release promotion period, your price to upgrade to Universe would be $9.99 Download or $19.99 Physical ($49.99 or $59.99 - $40 discount for four previous releases). There will be a page on our site where you can get the upgrade discount coupon. This upgrade will be available through our store only, we don't have a way of doing this through Steam. All you will need to get the upgrade coupon is the serial number for each release.

The release will be on May 23rd.

We plan for there to be one more Shadows update, but all future modding/feature/performance improvements will be based on the Universe level.

Regards,

- Erik

If we buy the upgrade, will we receive a Steam key?

Woah? Through steam?! Oh my god that's fantastic!

Is there a chance of workshop integration in that case?

Yes, if you purchase/upgrade through our store we will offer a Steam key as well. We and Elliot earn the most revenue when you purchase directly through us, but we want to make DW available to the larger community and many new players as well, while offering the most flexibility to our existing community. There will be a page on our site to use your Universe serial number to retrieve a Steam key after you purchase Universe.

Regards,

- Erik

ORIGINAL: ChildServices
Is there a chance of workshop integration in that case?

It's possible - though we need to spend some more time on that. We want to make sure we do what's best for the community. The new Universe Theme structure works well. We'll see what the modding and wider community prefers as far as mod availability and integration once Universe is released.

Regards,

- Erik

Thank you Erik & Elliot!

(and double thanks for clarifying that you earn the most money if we purchase here, and we will also get steam keys)

ORIGINAL: tbrass

Thank you Erik & Elliot!

(and double thanks for clarifying that you earn the most money if we purchase here, and we will also get steam keys)

Seconded! And while my cost for Universe will be minimal (I already have all previous versions), I will be upgrading through the store.

This is awesome news. I will buy the upgrade (bought the game and the add-ons here). But the best part aside from Universe itself is your decision to release on steam. I´m sure this will give this game a big boost that it really deserves.

Congratulations on all this. Very exciting news.

Fantastic - and seems like a good pricing strategy to me...

Chris

That are very good news [:D]

Good good... Also another vote for Steam Workshop when you guys get the chance down the road. [:)]

Can't wait! Thanks for taking care of us loyal DW fans Erik and keep up the great work! [&o]

I downloaded all four parts so don't have a printed manual or physical disk. Buying Universe for $19.95 is a no-brainer. Thanks for taking care of past buyers, that's a class act!

I won't use the Steam key for reasons a lot of people share, but hope it will bring a great game to a larger audience.

I am excited about Universe and to see it on the "upcoming" list under Steam was an electrifying shock!

Now I have just one question about registering it on steam. Will you get a Distant Worlds Universe exe file that you can run without logging on Steam? (Useful for various reasons which is not limited to travel and other reasons) It would just be convenient to be able to run it outside of Steam when Steam is down or something.

Even if you don't do that I will still buy it.