Well, we've reached a month since we released Terraria to the public. And in that time we have seen a large thriving community grow and come together all over the Internet, especially here on TerrariaOnline. So to offer you an idea of the size of the community on a while, we share with you the following numbers.
-By The Numbers- As of (06/16/2011)
Copies/4Packs Sold Total - 350,000+ (Copies Owned - 432,000+)
Days/Top Ten Sales List on Steam - 32 days
Days/Top Ten Played List on Steam - 32 days
Players Online at once - Peaks we have seen range from 14k to 32k a day.
Facebook Likes - 28,773
TerrariaOnline Members -
40,992
YouTube Trailer Views - (Old-Gameplay) 1,181,691, (Release Trailer) 866,285
We are very proud of these numbers and we would like to thank all of our fans and the community for the efforts they put in to spread the word of the game, and also contribute to it with suggestions and ideas.
We want to send a special shout out to the team at Valve who help us with out with the general advice they send our way. The way they treat others is a great tribute to gamers everywhere. With so many game companies focusing more on profit, its great to see a company focusing more on the gamer themselves. And their support of indie developers offers a great shining example to other studios. It's as if they are saying, "Don't lose site of why people play a game." And that is also our guideline here at Re-Logic, as gamers ourselves, we know what we want a game to be like.
As for what we want a game to be like, In my last Dev Blog I mentioned some things you could look forward to possibly be in 1.0.5. I would like to share some of the changelog items with you. Not all, mind you, as we like to keep some of it as a surprise of course. We are hoping everyone starts to see the concept for the game as we have envisioned it more and more with every update. As the game starts to come together and become more intuitive, lengthy and purposeful, we hope to quell any doubts some people have that the game will not be able to keep its 'staying power' and 'replayablity'.
To that end, We give you, Hardcore Mode.
I Mentioned it briefly in a tweet, to let everyone know it was on its way. I can verify now that It will be in 1.0.5 and it will offer to those who find themselves wanting more to do in Terraria, an option at just that. Yes, it will be an 'option' and wont be forced on everyone.
Here are a few things I can say about it.
Its a Character Based option, so your HCM character can move between servers. Be careful though. As a non-HCM players grief can end your run quite easily
Its set at character creation and can not be toggled off for that character afterward.
If you Die, thats it, game over. You must start a new Character at that point. Your world however will not be effected by this. So this means you may start a new HC mode character and utilize the house/chests your last character left behind. You will also see a gravestone where your old character met his fate.
It really changes the way you play the game, as every action could be your last. Caution is a good thing. Also, There is more of a sense of accomplishment as you play.
Now, for those of you who want to know what else is coming, here are a few tidbits from the change log.
Lighting code has been optimized to increase performance.
Servers now hibernate when no players are connected.
Bats, Hornets, and Eyeballs no longer enter water.
Slimes now float in water.
Spam detection is less aggressive.
New Item - Hellfire Arrow. (Boom!)
Also, Mr. Guide has become a friend to all new players. A new feature for this helpful individual, is that now he can tell you what specific items that you 'show him' are for. This should assist new players in discovering new recipes they can't yet make.
Furthermore, for those of you who like to know whats going on in your server, and are tired of simply seeing "MrMan was slain..." when someone else dies , will now have the satisfaction of seeing the likes of the following;
"Blue fell to his death." or "Blue had his head ripped off by a Green Slime."
PvP also becomes more interesting (and satisfying) with those kinds of specific death messages. :]
Lastly I want to mention that Redigit has laid the framework for having NPC shops change their inventory after certain world events. It isn't certain yet it the new feature will be implemented in 1.0.5 or not, but its something you can all look forward to.
Overall, we here at Re-Logic feel that offering to our players new interesting things to see and do, is the best way to keep them happy. And, by far, your happiness is important to us. 1.0.4 was hailed by almost all fans as a success, and we hope 1.0.5 will be as well. We have yet to set a date for that update, but more and more each day new things find their way into the change-log.
(Looks at his Dev chat window) Whats that Redigit just said?... New Potions, Buffs?... Oh my.