Pete said on twitter regarding Skyrim..."it's pre-alpha and far from done".

Now this concerns me. I'm no pro when it comes to the stages of development but is it normal for a game to be pre-alpha nine months before release? You have to cut out at least two months for bug testing, manufacturing, and shipping especially because those stages have to take even longer for a worldwide release.

When does a game typically go into alpha stage? How many months before release? After alpha its goes to beta so skyrim is still pretty far off from that.

Linky?

Yeah, I have to agree with you. For there only being 9 months left, it seems kind of odd for them to be "far from done".

I don't see why there'd be a playable beta considering it's a singleplayer game.

Pre-alpha just means it's still in development. For instance, I doubt they could play from one end of the game to the other, which would technically qualify as "pre-alpha"

9 months is easily enough time to finish a "far from done" game.

http://twitter.com/worm82075/status/36453985690976256



http://twitter.com/DCDeacon/status/36455029074432000

Things like MMO's have extensive beta testing. I don't think Skyrim needs as much. They probably test as they go, especially when working out the functionalities of the new engine.

The screenshots don't read Pre-Alpha to me though. But if the game is in Pre-Alpha, then I suppose the finished product will be much, much better. I'll let them worry about their time constraints.

Yea definitely alarming. Cut out a couple months for bug testing, manufacturing, and shipping and that leaves seven months and its only PRE alpha not even alpha. They intend to release this game simultaneously worldwide, which is a huge undertaking itself, in nine months and development is far from done? Let alone all the bug testing and manufacturing that needs to get done?

Seems to me the comment is about the screenshots from the G.I spread, and not the state of development the game is currently in.

As long as the game is finished by 11.11.11 or sooner I am happy :celebration:

A lot of internet experts in here. :rofl:

They have to bug test and manufacture and ship for a simultaneous worldwide release. Then throw in the fact that's its not even alpha yet?

From our good friend, worm82075:


Pete Hines:


worm82075 on Pete's response:


Pete Hines:

Links to what Pete Hines said http://twitter.com/DCDeacon/status/36445632025731072 and http://twitter.com/DCDeacon/status/36455029074432000.

EDIT: I knew I was going to be ninja'd. :ninja:

Video Games are complex beasties with dozens, if not hundreds, of interconnected modules. Pre-alpha pretty much just means they're actively developing it and it has not yet entered the more testing/enhancing beta stage.

Building your engine from scratch means there's a [censored]load of work to be done before you get anything to the testing stage, but once it starts coming together it all starts coming together very quickly.

Yea I've heard that simultaneous worldwide launches are a big project in of itself. So its is bizarre that its pre alpha still.

Pre-alpha basically means that they're still implementing features, trying new things, etc. If they reach their goals/feel comfortable with their amount of features they can forego into Beta (which for a single player game won't need as extensive of bug testing).

I wouldn't be surprised if it was in beta around June or July, and gold by September.

It's really down to the developer on how much time is spent in Alpha and how much in Beta. You could release a game having never had any Beta testing in the official sense, because a game as popular as Skyrim is going to be played on by plethora of magazine companies before it makes it to release.

You then have to take into account what Beta is used for in games of today. It's usually multiplayer tweaking/debugging, but i would suspect mostly tweaking. Online Betas have been pretty popular with first-person shooters of late. Now this really doesn't fit into Skyrim. Using out-house persons to debug and evaluate Skyrim for the sole purpose of completing it would be very inefficient, compared with in-house debugging software of the Alpha stage. I mean cmon. This isn't an online Beta, this is a 200 hour-long game.

It also depends entirely on Bethesdas direction in terms of bugs. It could be quite likely that much or at least some of the debugging can take place in stages before the whole game was put together, so they might have a lighter load than you may assume.

Either way, I think they are very aware of the time constraints put in front of them, and I think they will know more than anyone here the typical time-frames that game franchises need, from alpha, to beta, to release.

Yeah thats a bit worrysome.
Sure its in regards to the screenshots, but by now I'd like to think they would be near done and just adding polish now.

:lmao:

I love all the sudden traffic threads like this generate.

A title like....SKYRIM STILL PRE-ALPHA?!!...is the equivalent of a major car wreck on the highway. Everyone has to slow down and inspect the carnage as they drive by.

And for all you anonymous lurkers down there...I see you behind your tinted glass trying extra hard to sate your dark desires and catch a glimpse of a charred corpse or a piece of mangled flesh---you sickos---move along there's nothing to see here. :toughninja:

I wouldn't worry too much. If the team is confident it will be done, I have confidence it will get done.

Seeing as Skyrim was kept very secret, and only really the people that read the speculation topics in the old section of the forums knew it was (probably) going to be called Skyrim, then why would BGS give a definite date, if they thought it wouldn't be done by then??

They aren't even alpha yet they are still PRE alpha.

Well...he did put it in quotes. Maybe he was being sarcastic/not serious?

Yes well spotted, but i knew that.

That quote is referring to one of the screenshots, the waterfall/pond one I believe. I would be really surprised if their not getting through the Alpha stage, and there's a difference between Beta, and a Public Beta which most MMO's tend to do because a large part of those games is interacting and playing with a large group of players. Beta is the stage when you have the game pretty much done but their looking for bugs, and just making last minute tweaks.

They picked a date. Beth never picks a date. They usually pick a time of year, until they know they're sure they can make a date. Question though, why would game designers be handling the marketing? Cause...usually marketing people do marketing, while game designers work on the game. The designers just pass the word to the marketers on when they can get it done. Todd is just...well, Todd. He's got mad skills on both sides of the spectrum.

Skyrim could be pre-zeta alfa code wolf beta for all I really care. They picked a date, and unless they hit a serous road bump, like the npc's actually going to war with each other, they'll make the date.