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Sadly, because of the lack of steal, my defenses were poor and eventually Mecs came and wiped out the colony.

You do know that you can build turrets etc. from plasteel as well? They are even stronger afaik

Can you? Of all this time I've played RimWorld I never noticed that one!

Nice! The longest Volcanic Winter I have had was like 4 or 5 game months.

Sometimes, on rare occasions, you will hit the jackpot and have a LOT of PlaSteal deposits in a map. I had one that I had more PlaSteal than I had Steal. Sadly, because of the lack of steal, my defenses were poor and eventually Mecs came and wiped out the colony.

And such the story evolves in interesting and twisted ways! lol

With the info Tynan stated in his last Blog post, I suspect when he returns (which should be sooner than Later I hope) there is going to be a game breaking update due to the amount of content he will be adding, changing, updating. I was going through the source files and such and realized, he has the Steam Workshop system partially in place. This makes me believe this next update, besides adding Steam Workshop support, is going to be either the Steam release or a massive just before Steam release so we can help work the new content and polishing bugs out. As Tynan pointed out back in November;

So far, we've added:

• Self-reproducing, spreading underground insect hives
• Social relationships with friends, rivals, family, chats, arguments, and fights
• Many more animals, some of which will hunt people
• "Components" resource used for machinery and electronics
• Ground-traveling trade caravans from other factions
• Character records which keep stats on each character like number of kills, injuries, surgeries, etc.
• Extreme desert biome

This makes me feel he is fleshing out this project quite a bit. I can't wait for this up coming update. Even if it was only this, it would still be a massive update. I suspect better end game aspects are going to be added in this update as well.

While I agree, other than the one that threw a fit with threats...  I also agree the rest are legit worries, concerns, and complaints. I only wish Tynan would stop by the forums a little more often on his vacation so those who feel abandoned could gain a little more reassurance that Tynan is still with us, still working on the game, and hasn't gone the road that many Indie developers have. I for one feel very confident Tynan is still with us. His past actions proving he is a man of his word speak louder to me than words in a forum can. And yes, I have been burned on kick starter games and others. I'm still deeply saddened by the loss of the game Towns after the community nagging and whining that he wasn't developing it fast enough burned him out completely.

I'm also glad this is a civilized and rational conversation thread and not a hanging mob out of control!

Grey

subjective

Thank you SO much! I was trying to figure out that word from the description of the word in my mind... -.- For those familiar with Fibromyalgia and it fogging up the mind, you understand what I am saying about knowing definitions and can't remember the word!

Grey

That block of text was even scarier than the last one

LOL! I agree! 

Actually he DID say it is done; in his July 1st, 2015 blog. Check the Blog; here is a link:

https://ludeon.com/blog/page/2/

Here is the quote, "In the end, I think that a game is done when promises have been fulfilled, and there aren't holes in the design. And we're reached that point, so RimWorld is done."

Sounds like he said that Rimworld is done / finished.

He states earlier in that same blog how he looks at the game and all the major stuff are filled, and the rest of stuff are optional. However, he never has clarified what are the critical stuff and what are the optional stuff. What recent modules did he feel were critical, and why does he feel the other modules are only optional.

Yes. this is true. However read above that:

Having considered the feedback so far, there's a good chance I may release the game on Steam as a non-Early Access finished game. Read below for why. Nothing of substance would be different from how it's described here – it's just a labeling/PR issue.

Additionally look below that:

That said, just because RimWorld is done doesn't necessarily mean I'm done with it.

I like working on the game, you all like playing it, and it's profitable. So I probably will add more content to the game. In the meantime, though, I think it's time for a bit of a break. I've been working on RimWorld and its prototypes for going on three years straight now, and my hours are usually pretty long. I'm starting to feel a bit of burnout. I often seem to develop this dull ache behind the eyes after a couple hours of work. I have trouble concentrating for the lengths of time that used to be normal for me. For that reason – and just because I believe in having a life that isn't all work – I'm taking some time off from full-time RimWorld development starting in September. Currently it's looking like it'll be about six months. I'll still be around to interact, but I won't be developing constantly like I have been.

And specifically a little further into reading Tynan's book :

As I said, I like working on RimWorld, but I've also learned that the future is very uncertain and it's a bad idea to make promises you're not sure you can keep.

He has also stated in the most RECENT blog Post, November 12th, that work is ONGOING.

With the magic of laptops and Internet, and excellent work from coding prodigy Piotr 'ison' Walczak, progress on the game itself is continuing at full speed even while I'm not at home.

He also explained in that blog post WHY he won't go into details about what is coming beyond the list what what is being worked on currently:

We work iteratively, so things change a lot, often in unexpected ways. So I won't go into detail about exactly what's being added. But I can offer some generalities.

So, with the blog post and his interaction in the forums from time to time after that it is very obvious that he is still working on the game. The 'FINISHED' part is more of a PR statement in that all the promises are done, the game is fun in its current state, there are no holes in the coding or massive bugs, and there are still some 'optional' content that he plans to put INTO the game before he will say he is 'done' with the game.

Think of it as you are building a car. You put together the engine on a stand. You get the engine to start and run so it works. You build a body for the car. It sound and solid and can mount/support the engine. You  build the transmission. You put a seat in it you can set on, although just a piece of metal it works. You put the engine into the car. Attach it to the transmission. Attach a drive shaft to the transmission and attach it to wheels. The car now goes forward and back. You attach a steering system to the front wheels. Now you can turn the car. It goes forward and takes you places and also carries stuff for you. Car is finished. So once again, the word 'finished' is saying 'yes the the car is built' but now we can give it the optional paint job, the plush leather seats, a radio, a windscreen, and you get what I am saying. Yes, the game is 'Finished' but it is not done. Tynan says this himself that he plans to keep adding optional content to flesh it out.

Additionally Tynan states this:

I appreciate all discussion but please don't ask for more details on these! Check the FAQ for more info on why we don't release detailed descriptions of unreleased designs.

In the FAQ he states this:

I have a question about future developments.

– Ludeon uses an iterative, evidence-based, dynamic development process that changed direction often. This is the best way to create the strongest game design, but it also means we have no way of knowing how the game will develop before it does. So to reduce stress, wailing, and gnashing of teeth when the designs change (as they always do, for good reasons) we won't answer questions about future developments. Because honestly – we just don't know the answer! This leaves us free to iterate and change things as needed without worrying about pissing off players who were expecting a certain feature to work a certain way. It also saves us a lot of time that would otherwise be spent constantly managing and updating community expectations, which means that we can get the actual game to you faster and better.

This is why I said, ask him. He MAY give you a generalized plan of what he is still planning with Rimworld development. As for right now, he gave us what he is CURRENTLY working on in November 12th's blog post. For me, that is good enough. I don't mind the delay before release of it. He says he is going to release it on his return and that is good enough for me. Tynan has always done exactly what he has said he will do in the past. I don't see that changing over the next couple months before he returns.

Grey

Very good points.

Thank you.  And sorry in advance, this reply is going to get REALLY wordy.

The only gripe is that in all other cases of project development, there is a plan, or in the very least a progress "meter" of how much is left for a complete product. Tynan has never shared his "personal" plan for the game, nor has he stated how much the game has progressed to a finished state and how he defines a finished state. Most other projects have specific metrics for explaining how they define it as a finished state. Tynan hasn't explained how he defines the game as finished, just that he has stated it is finished. In the case of a house builder, they feel the house is finished when according to their plan that the plan says it is finished if it has X, Y, and Z, completed and until those are completed the house isn't finished.

To be honest, Tynan doesn't have to share anything beyond what was given in the update blog in the way of where the game is currently at and so on. He has done a very very good job of this and keeping active with what he is doing and working on between this blog and interactions within the forums with his customers. As for 'all other cases of project development'... Gonna stop you right there. Yes, all GOOD project developments have a sort of 'blue print' of where, what, when, and how to some degree. Is it something public? Unless this is a government funded public project or something done by a charity the answer to that is no it is not public UNLESS the project manager wishes to make it public. Now, does Tynan have some sort of plan that he is following? I think I can safely answer yes to this one. So why hasn't he shared this? Well, to be honest, for one I have never asked him to share it and I don't recall ANYONE asking to publicly share it or to give at the LEAST some sort of 'road map' to the plan he is following. I typically never see any sort of 'meters' on computer program development projects, and frankly I've beta tested quite a few over the years. I often see meters only in the case of fund raising projects and charity event type stuff where they are trying to reach a specific goal for a specific reason so I can understand where the idea of 'meters' come in to thought.

Perhaps, if someone were to politely ask Tynan if he could share some sort of general road map, as I am certain he won't be specific for good reasons, he would likely post a general road map. We do have that sort of thing if we want to dig through all the various past posts he has been actively involved within. And the reason why I am certain he won't be specific is for a very good reason which I will explain. You have a basic idea in mind for a game, you write out a road map for yourself and are quite detailed. Going along the road map you start hitting bumps, twists, and turns on the road that were never expected or foreseen. You then alter the road map to accommodate the bumps, twists, and turns. This changes the original road map but the desired destination is still there. In the way of 'bumps, twists, and turns' that Rimworld can run into is quite obvious. He is making the game in sections or as he called them 'modules'. This is VERY smart in the way of a plan or road map because if one of these modules proves to be very challenging, the game still is playable as he sits this 'module' off to the side for later development while he still works on the core modules. You probably can tell I'm use to making 'road maps' for projects. In the past I use to be a very active programmer. Was offered jobs coming out of high school, one as much as $75k (this was in 1990 so now you know my age). I use to own my own computer company that specialized in network security and P.O.S. development / implementation. Why am I telling all of this and what is my point?  The point is this; even when I use to set up store point of sales systems or computer network security, I didn't show the details of my plan to my clients. I showed them a generalized plan of what I saw would cover their needs. Why didn't I go into details? Simple, when in the process of deployment (or development) situations change. Sometimes VERY drastically where a good part of the original map ends up being scrapped for a new, revised one that still reaches the SAME destination and goals but from a different direction.  If I had shared all the details with my clients, they would become confused or even frustrated to the point of scrapping the whole idea or worse getting someone else to do the same thing I was doing setting the client back in time, money, and shattered nerves.  With programming there are so many possible 'could go wrong' situations, there is not sat in stone map that Tynan can share. No one has ever asked from, from my memory, for any generalized map beyond what he has already provided through the kick starter plan or through his development blog or through the forums. These road maps,  from experience,  only lead to confusion and frustrations worse than we have right now while he is off resting and programming at a snail pace. I'm actually sure if we all wanted to parse through the forums we could create a form of general map to what Tynan has planned and then fully understand why he says 'finished' in a general word. Remember, he didn't say the game was finished. Tynan has never said that and even emphasized that the game was far from done. In his mind this part of HIS map is finished. He has completed all the 'promised' parts of the Kickstarter program and can now focus on the details and harder 'modules' that he wants to place into the game as well as parts we the 'clients' and Rimworld Family want to see in the game. It has only been after he called 'finished' that a few people suddenly screamed WAIT! I personally think he chose a VERY poor word for what he means. I think he should have stated "This part of the game development is now done and I'm going to take a 6 month break before I start on the next set of goals and construction." In basic, he should have said something like "Alpha Development is done. When I get back from 6 months off and taking care of personal things I will begin with Beta Development. In the mean time, I will from time to time poke my head into the forums. I have hired on a second programmer to begin working on the game under my direction while I'm on break." Which is basically what has happened. If he feels it is out of Alpha I will note I am not sure. It is simply, this PART of the game development is done. We have a walking skeleton that is poking us in the butt with a sword. Now he has to put meat on the skeleton.

I hope this helped shine a little light on why there isn't some 'posted road map' to the game development currently. I'm sure if someone asked nicely, when he pokes his head back into the forums again he may actually reply with a generalized one or about getting something for us to glance at and have an idea what more Tynan's planning to do with the development of the game. I'm also sure he plans on adding to the game once it goes to full release and 'done' stage.

I'd just like to understand from Tynan's perspective why he feels the game is finished, and if he feels it is finished why continue development at all? Unless he is continuing development for an expansion, it doesn't make logical sense to call the game finished. Continued development implies that it isn't actually finished. Its like a house builder building a house, and then saying it is finished... and then later deciding to rip out the roof and add another floor to it.

I think I covered this well in the above book, but I'll answer it again. Tynan never said the game itself was 'finished'. It was simply this phase of the game development he felt was done and he could take a break before going on to the next phase of development. Remember, over 2 years of the game development was all by himself. Yes, now he has others helping which is why he decided that it was the perfect time to take a break while they work behind the scenes. I'm also sure while this is going on, there are a few core testers working with them but can't say anything because of legal agreements.

I'm not trying to be inciteful... I just want to understand his reasoning. His style of development is different than other development performed by video games and has stated before that he doesn't have a specific plan and prefers organic development. The issue is that with organic development there is NEVER a finished state; it is in perpetual development forever. That is why you need a plan; you need a clear end goal. I'm just curious what Tynan's End Goal was for a game that technically has no End Goal, and what caused him to reach this End Goal.

Well, the fact that you are not trying to be inciteful is obvious. It's why I'm taking all this time and trying to think of how to explain things from what it appears to be Tynan's point of view. Granted, it's mostly MY point of view but I think I'm understanding Tynan's to a large degree on this topic.

Tynan's style of development from what I have seen is a very dedicated and correct style for HIM in my opinion. He isn't posting 'we have this and this coming on this date' for good reason. Look through the past 'video game developers' and see how many actually came through with a solid date or 'plan' without the game being very constrained, or partially done, or other serious game breaking flaws. My favorite example of this was the game Stranghold 3.. Was so hyped up and when it came to release date, they were WAY behind because of good reasons however their project management company that contracted them said 'RELEASE' and so they reluctantly released a game that was still in 'alpha' development. It was a disaster. Sword of the Stars 2 did the same mistake. Granted they tried to say it was due to the head developer accidentally sending an old alpha  that over wrote the final beta, but come on... you can't delete ALL the code and backups on accident manually when trying to upload the finished game as he tried to say he did. Tynan also isn't advertising road maps or 'fixed development' promises and uses an 'organic' form of development as you call it because it is the one that ends up making the best games for some developers. If you build a house that is ridged without room to flex organically in an environment that changes over the seasons, the changes in the environment you are going to have are going to cause some very serious problems come up during the building (development) of it in that pieces won't fit together quite right and the people viewing the end product will see where these meshed locations come up. Perhaps in one game it is a story line that doesn't quite fit together between characters or scenes. Conflicts in story line with battles. Perhaps some device or thing that has to be done doesn't quite fit in to the atmosphere. Perhaps it is a problem that isn't scene from the outside of the game except with lost or corrupted save files due to a new thing that was added to fit the ridged constraints that didn't allow for the development to alter and grow around this change.  There are all sorts of arguments FOR and AGAINST the way Tynan is developing this game. Quite frankly, for some this style is the worst thing they could POSSIBLE attempt to do. For Tynan, this form of development is amazing. If it was ridged, OUR input in the game development with suggestions and such would be extremely limited. With this flexible, organic, style he has chosen he is able to listen to our suggestions. Observe and try out some of the mods for the game. Even add them INTO the game. If it wasn't flexible and organic, this would not be possible without problems. It needs to be able to organically flow and change and incorporate our input smoothly and effortlessly without causing conflicts or breaks in the coding. Can developing like this go on forever? Yes, if you don't have a generalized map of the end destination like Tynan has actually stated has come into view for him. Are we there yet? No, it's in view means we have come around the first turn and we see the lights of the small town on the horizon! (We are getting there in otherwords.)

And it is a good question. What IS the end goal that Tynan sees. Where is he taking us with this grand adventure across the galactic arm. I personally am enjoying the ride and looking out at the slowly passed star systems whenever I wake up from cryo sleep and the slime is washed off me.

Why don't we leave this thread with a polite question to Tynan and perhaps it will be stickied until he sees it and reads the question. 

Tynan, could you please give us a basic road map of for development of Rimworld with your desired goals you have in mind before you call each part of the development 'complete' this way for those who are confused by the flowing style of development chosen can see there actually is structure in how you have planned this out?  It probably would ease some of their fears and frustrations caused by past bad experiences.

Grey

P.S. I apologize if I may have worded something in my post poorly or used incorrect words. I have Fibromyalgia and often will get words confused that mean different things or simply think I posted one thing and typed out something entirely not what I intended or not typing entire sentences (or more) thinking I did. I DO try to re-read my posts before I hit post to correct this but can miss things if my mind doesn't register the missing parts or wrong words. I'm also very fine with people pointing these mistakes out so I can try to correct them.

It never ceases to surprise me how you always have this two or three individuals who can't seem to accept or understand certain words or statements. They seem to gloss over them to read and hear only what they want to see and instantly focus on the 'worst possible situation' that usually is never the case. They then begin to make comparisons that are totally not comparable and often outrageous then can't seem to understand when people object and defend what they are attacking and call those people defending it various names in the end. Granted you do get a few 'attackers' who don't get to the name calling part however no matter how much proof the defenders throw into the argument something new is then found to attack or the proof is ignored.

Take the word 'Proposed' for example. It is a verb that means "put forward (an idea or plan) for consideration or discussion by others." By definition it is something intended to be used as a consideration or a discussion point. How often I see when someone is 'proposing' an idea it is then held to them in recent times as 'they promised this'. I then start hearing "How dare they promise this and not deliver!"  kind of statements and the persons pointing back to the initial description showing the promises and what was 'proposed' and even STATED 'may not be included' statements. Often those throwing the fits will claim those lines were recently added and still go on about 'proposed' ideas or other areas of attack. A good example of 'other areas' is attacking when a person changes the shift of the development to a new area and declares the area he or she is working as 'finished' by meeting the promised requirements. While often 'promised requirements' is a broad area, there are always those individuals who will attack the 'finished' statement as 'this is far from finished'. At what point does a project get finished? Is it up to the individuals making suggestions and what not into the project or the project manager who at some point has to say 'ok, enough suggestions now. We have met the criteria goals and are done.' While there may still be other areas that need work, the person never said they were done working on the overall project. They were simply stating that one area is 'finished' as they then take a break usually, to refocus their creative energies and resources, and then come back to begin the work on the new area. Kind of like building a house. The frame work is in place, the outer walls of the house are up, the wires are in the house and lights are on, the pluming is working... is the house finished? Not by a long shot but the builder often says 'the house is built' at this point and then begins to change focus on painting the place then putting in the floor, the kitchen counters, the sinks, the toilet and shower. While you often don't see a person building a house walking away for a few months, it sometimes will happen. A good example is winter has sat in. Now the good builder takes time off until the snow is done and the weather has returned to warmer, dryer conditions to resume building. A bad builder will track in the snow and moisture and what not which in years down the road causes problems for the house that was just built. It may not seem like much at the time it was done but it's kind of like a surgeon in an operating room not washing his hands before putting them inside someone. Yes, there is the possibility that nothing bad will come from it. However an infection will likely fester and develop. Same with that house, moisture gets trapped under a wood floor or behind the pain put on a wall. Perfect for mold to begin to slowly grow in a nice hidden area and not show up for a few years down the road.

While this 'small rant' if you want to call this has no one particular person in mind, I'm sure I'm going to get flamed by someone and accused of singling them out because they will take it personally even though I'm simply listing off the usual 'attacks' that happen in general of all the projects, be it computer games, houses built, or what not, that I've watched attacked by people. Often they (the project manager) have to at some point declare 'the promises are finished', but the over all project is not done. Often the project manager will say 'time for some rest so we can come back when the weather clears and our focus is strong' even if everyone is still capable of continuing the work. Often those few individuals come crawling out from somewhere to make outrageous comparisons with other unrelated projects that in their mind are perfect examples without actually digging into what they are comparing against which often is a very poor example of comparisons. While they often look similar on the outside, usually what went on and goes on unseen is very very different.

While it would be nice if all things under development can add more and more and more to them,  at some point someone in charge has to say 'enough suggestions on this because we are finished'. In the specifics of Rimworld, I am glad Tynan was very clear that development was not over on his game. In the way of program development from my past experience, I have only taken this as 'we have reached the end of Alpha development'. For those lacking experience in this, once Alpha development is done it then goes on to Beta development where the skeleton of a program is now fleshed out and features which are very basic often are focused on until they reach a solid and whole feeling. Minor bugs and annoyances are focused on and corrected. Beta stages, just like Alpha stages, very in length. Often they are shorter than an Alpha stage because all the hard work has already been done. The best programs and games often take several months off between Alpha and Beta if they can afford it AND are not under the pressure of a deadline. Usually, in the case of a game developer, they have often made some sort of deadline for themselves which often turn into a hangman's noose because when they reach the deadline they find they have only made it a fraction into the beta stage because of many unforeseen problems with newly added features.

When Tynan returns in a couple months, I'm really looking forward to seeing the new update he has been working on while 'on vacation'. I'm also looking forward to the direction development of Rimworld is about to take.

Grey
p.s. Sorry for the LONG winded rant. We all need to get them out sometimes so long as they remain non-derogatory, fairly focused, on topic, and not disruptive. 

Please don't ban me for this tho i've got too many ban from other forum mostly from over suggesting and swearing at a troll. once i got permanent banned from mentioning piracy and got really freaked out.

but don't worry since i haven't got the game i won't speak a lot like i'm usually do

Well, first don't swear or use foul language, derogatory language, or so on. Also, don't flaunt 'pirated' or such and I'm quite sure you will not be banned here.   

I was once in the same shoes you are currently wearing about this game. It was actually Tynan and how active he was with the community, how he treated me equal to those who had purchased the game and paid their dues to his hard work. It was additionally the quality and effort he placed into this game (basically his heart and soul) that finally convinced me I didn't care that I may not get a 'Steam' code at release and bought the game anyway. I have never regretted tossing the 'pirated' versions over the paid one ahead of the 'Steam Release'. If Tynan manages to secure extra codes for those of us who bought after the fact, awesome. If not, Tynan deserved the extra he gets from my purchase directly from him through SendOwl. Not sure how much if any SendOwl takes out of the purchase but I'm sure it is less than Steam (Valve) takes from what I've heard from other indie type developers.

While I do encourage you to support Tynan, I do respect your desire to wait for the Steam Release. Tynan did say it would be 'soon' though he also hinted at 'soon' being a relative term. I would LOVE to have a Steam key on release however, I'll be just as happy if I have to pay a little extra (be it through a sale or 'Steam Upgrade' option) to get it if I don't get a key on release. Tynan in my opinion earned it and I have MORE than gotten my money's worth with the number of hours I have sank into this game.

Word of advice, nothing in life is 'free'. There is always some cost involved; be your time, money, or something totally unexpected (getting scammed). With that in mind, be cautious and enter things 'free' with open eyes and skeptical approaches. While there 'are' some things 'free', there is usually something the person giving the 'free' away gets in return.

Grey

Usually my 'snipers' have between 5 and 10 in shooting. Mele tend to be around this also but with mele if I plan to use them hand to hand. They don't hit 9 out of 10 shots but they are accurate enough to generally send the enemy running. Though I play with a LOT of mods added, this tactic works great in vanilla just as it does with the mods to make things more realistic.  I DO agree that once you hit about 15, snipers do MASSIVE damage and effective cover fire.

Armor, when you can afford it, get the best you can get and put your snipers into it. The mele / close range guns are not in the open as much until the enemy gets close. Armor them up second. First priority is best long range your money can get then best armor to keep those snipers alive and in once piece. Third will be the mele/close range personal. At least this is my pattern and most of the time this works beautifully.

I tend to stay clear of Area of Effect (AOE) weapons simply because if the enemy gets too close they tend to STILL use those AOE weapons which have no FoF (Friend or Foe) ability. Like grenades or doomsday rockets would know that your friend was standing NEXT to the enemy you just blew up...  (sarcasm here) I agree, currently a waste of money though 'Stun' and 'EMP' grenades I sometimes will arm someone with but keep that person as a base defense to give cover for retreating wounded snipers and close end combat personal.

As for Bionics, typically I don't use those unless someone lost a leg, arm, or what not.

Section "The biology of plants and animals"

I'm still looking forward to finding my colonists on a world dominated by Transanimals who lay siege to the invading 'humans' in an attempt to either enslave or wipe them out.

Something yet to come by Tynan.

To answer the initial question, yes. Sometimes I WILL start from a previous save when I have an early colony that barely has anything going right for it to survive and bam... psychic drone drop. -.-   REALLY...

Often I will take the beatings as they come, even losing my favorite colonist. This is, after all, the story of the colony not the one colonist. Do I feel frustrated sometimes and simply reload the previous save to keep the colonist? Yeah, sometimes. But more often the colony struggles on or sadly dies.

Grey

My preferred method is to send a team of 3 or 4 out, 2 or 3 with long range Sniper / survival rifles and 1 or 2 with shotguns or mele-weapons. I then send them out immediately in an effort to intercept before they set up camp completely. The snipers begin picking them off from extreme distance while the shotgun/mele wait near the snipers in safety to intercept anyone getting too close. Often the damage my snipers do send the siege into panic and fleeing before they even get near shotgun range.

Does it work every time? No sadly. Sometimes they have completed a mortar and rain hell on my snipers and short range attackers.

In the case that they start taking hits and begin to bleed out, I have them fall back to camp to receive medical treatment while the camp is fortified to resist the siege when it comes knocking at the door. Often the snipers stopping to fire occasional shots into them while covering the retreat. Discretion is the better part of valor, wise words to live by and keep living.

Grey

Well stated JonoRig.

While you can't argue against a person's emotions, arguing against an apple compared to an orange has merit.  While I love Prison Architect, it is a larger team from a more experienced development company.

If you want the details:
Game was announced October 2011 and crowd funded on September 25, 2012 with updates scheduled every three to four weeks, officially released October 6, 2015. I suspect that in 2011 it started development. The Game was developed by British video game studio Introversion Software with a team of initially 3. The game was developed under the fear of they were ACTUALLY going to jail for trading insolventy. For those not knowing what that is, it is where you trade stock for your company while having the knowledge your company was NOT going to survive. http://www.pcgamer.com/prison-architect-how-introversion-avoided-jail-by-embracing-their-hardest-project-yet/ If you want to read about that last statement. Under this fear, they came up with this game to make a last ditch effort to pay the bills and to avoid getting sued and put in jail for illegal trading. Tynan isn't under any kind of fear to develop Rimworld. Rimworld is his baby, his child. Tynan is making this game not to keep himself out of prison, but out of his love of the idea and dream of what this game will be when development is completed.

That being said, Prison Architect has 1 extra year of development time under the blankets and three times the initial development team.  There was a lot of incentive initially to release a game and gain FAST cash to avoid real prison. Once it was a hit, they slowed down and hired more help to make the game even better. I remember the INITIAL Prison Architect as I was with it from early Alpha release. It was extremely basic and not very entertaining after a short period of game play repeat playability was low in the fact that the only differences was the way you built the prison. You could actually build it the same way every time and the game would turn out the same every time. Yes NOW it is a remarkable game. But then, they grossed over $4,031,925 (£2,679,730) in early 2013, not even a YEAR after Alpha release and by the end of 2013 over $9,000,000 (yes over 9 million US Dollars). This is now 2016, if in under 1 year they made $9 million through Steam release, imagine how much they made now. Tynan hasn't made anywhere NEAR that much yet, but then, unlike Introversion Software he hasn't released to Steam in Alpha yet because he wants to release THERE in a finished, polish state better than where it is now. Rimworld doesn't get the publicity that Prison Architect gets by any means. Rimworld's publicity is merely WORD OF MOUTH.

Now, that is a FAIR comparison of Prison Architect to Rimworld. Not so similar in developmental situations now is it. This game is far better than expected, for more complete than expected, and Tynan is far more patient with US than expected considering the comparisons. 

It is most certainly NOT finished in Tynan's mind. It is only finished in that he said he met all the goals from the initial crowd funding. This is why he took his time off. He has spent over 2 years, non-stop (no vacations / holidays off) developing this game. When we hit June, I will say he has spent 3 years. For a solo developer building a game of this complexity for his FIRST release, this game is amazing. I can only imagine what his next release will be like years from now after he pulls in money from a Steam release, hires a team to work on the next release, then spends another 2 or 3 years with a team putting the next game together. Can he afford to take time off finally now that he has met his legal requirements of the Kickstarter promises? Yes, and it is his right and prerogative. If you take the accumulated time off that he has not 'used' from the on-start of this project, 6 months off is no longer very long but about right. Three months is a LOT of time off for someone in the United States, as we are only use to getting at most a week or two off a year of PAID vacations... but in other countries, Three months is a lot but not unheard of per year though the average is over 1 month (30 days) of paid vacation. Google this if you want to see that I have already done the research and numbers.

Tynan earned this time off over the last two and a half years, he needs this time off, and has already proven he isn't simply sipping sweet tea on some sunny beach laughing at us for funding his paradise. He is still actively working in the background on Rimworld, just not as actively as he was doing earlier. He has another doing the active part and checking in with Tynan to make sure it is on track and what Tynan wants done. So you may say he is on partial vacation, just not keeping as alive in the forums as he normally is, developing this game still for us. Something he doesn't have to do while taking time off but wants to do.

If you want to verify all I have stated, Google it. You will find a lot out there in the Wiki alone on Prison Architect including the numbers. I gave you ONE of many sources. The rest, you can do the leg work on as I did unless you are afraid to find it and to extend a little earned trust to Tynan.

Grey

[is]

Considering Tynan DID state at some place that while he was on his vacation that the work WAS continuing behind the scenes, I will wager there WILL be an update when or shortly after his return. His return is certain. This is not someone being hopeful, this is someone looking at a person's past behavior in doing what he says and saying what he means. Tynan said he was returning and wasn't done with Rimworld so that means Tynan IS returning and Tynan IS continuing work on Rimworld. Even working on it DURING his vacation. Just as many people I know still tend to do some work while on a vacation. (Considering he DID say he was doing SOME work while the majority was being done by another helping on the development.)

As for being finished, he stated very clearly, it is finished as in all the promised goals are met. Is it finished in HIS eyes? No in that he wants to flesh out the factions, add polish to many of the components, and add something else that I admittedly cannot remember and can't find the post... Will it ever be 'finished' in his eyes? Probably not when you consider most developers always will see something that can be or should be added or can be polished better. This is where he has to become his own project manager and make a decision that 'it is done'. Will he add more to it after Steam release? I personally think he will, considering how much he loves Rimworld.

It took a long time before I bought on to Rimworld, waiting for the Steam release. Why did it take so long? I was burned by one of the burned out indie developers who kept bending to the will of the mob in an effort to make them happy. That being said, it was Tynan's ability to deliver what HE promised and not bending to the will of the mob that got my attention. He would listen to the community, look at the game he was developing and then deciding if  it would fit in with the goals he sat up or would interfere. Only after that would he add things in that the masses wanted or suggested. It took every suggestion into consideration, which in my opinion, was remarkable. Tynan was also VERY active in the forum community. This was something I've only seen with one other developer so I kept watching. Finally, after I was convinced by his actions that even though a Steam release was not out, the game was well worth buying into and was convinced it would be finished though not as quickly as I had hoped. Tynan, in my opinion, has proven himself good to his word. He said he would return once his 6 month time out from the board and obsessive development was done. He said that development was still going on while he was away from the board, I believe this is true as he has always been true to all he said in the past.

In its current state, I play the game all the time. Why? Because it has the feel of a finished game and even feels better developed than most commercial projects. I play the game all the time. Why? Because it is fun and never the same game twice. I play the game all the time. Why? Because I still have high hopes for an Android Port of the game so I can play it even MORE all of the time! (Ok, that last one is a stretch...)