STATE OF THE GAME.

[futurologists]

STATE OF THE GAME Hi, Futurology! If you've been with us for a while, you're probably wondering why this is only a State of the Game post and not a Post-Mission Assessment. We'll cut right to the chase: this post is to let you know that the 9 June log will be our last. Futurology will be closing in June. You may remember us mentioning the possibility of looking for another mod(s) several months ago. Since then, due to health concerns, decreasing availability, and a myriad of other reasons, the problem has grown large enough that the mod team decided the best course of action was to close Futurology rather than let it dwindle or give the players a sub-par experience. We assure you this is not a decision we made lightly; we discussed the topic at length and over the course of many months. Understandably, some of you may be upset or confused. We'll do our best to answer any questions you may have, as we always have. CAN YOU HAND THE GAME OVER TO SOMEONE ELSE? While this is certainly something that came up in our modside discussions, it's also something we had to dismiss. Before the problem grew too large to handle, we looked into taking on another mod. When we posted an interest check, the response was very limited, and though we are of course very grateful for those who did offer to help, the numbers were simply too small to replace the amount of mods necessary to do the modwork Futurology requires (which is a lot!). Creating a new world and new plot every three months is creatively exhausting, and we have quite a lot of list work as well -- we just can't drop that on so few people with a clear conscience. We also don't want anyone stepping up now simply because the game is closing; Futurology was a passion project for us, and we wouldn't want any future mods to have any less passion for it than we had. On top of that, Futurology is very near and dear to us. Admittedly, we would have qualms handing over something we have put endless hours of work (along with our blood, sweat, and tears!) into. However, we do give our full blessing to any spiritual successors that may pop up! We do respectfully ask for no direct sequels, however, meaning no one using ALASTAIR or Hathaway. They're sort of like our children in a way, and we're not ready to send them out into the world. WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN WITH THE META? Although the game is OOCly ending, ICly Hathaway will continue as usual! It's not going anywhere. You can assume your character is continuing to go on missions, if that pleases you. However, we're also giving the option for all players, no matter how long they've been here, to let their characters retire with their incentive as a "permadrop." Usually, this would take being in-game for at least 6 OOC months, but you can just assume Hathaway rustled up the resources more quickly than usual. WILL I BE KICKED OUT OF THE COMMUNITIES? Nope. You have as long as you need to finish up your threads. You may also continue making new logs as long as you need to in order to achieve closure or finish up character arcs; the mods will simply not be putting out new content due to our circumstances. There is no date by which you must be "out," so to speak -- we want you to have as much time as you require. DO I STILL NEED TO TURN IN MAY ACTIVITY? No, you don't! It would be pretty mean to kick you out during the home stretch. ;) We know this is somewhat sudden, but we have seen firsthand the decline in activity when players know a game is going to be 'closing' when we made the transition to Season 2, and we wanted to allow everyone the chance to play in our final mission without this hanging over them. We'd like Futurology to go out with a bang, so the 9 June log will be a celebration log, open to any characters, current or past -- including those who have previously permadropped (in Season 1 or Season 2). We'd also like to take this moment to thank you, all of you, for the creativity and ingenuity you've shown over the course of Futurology. It's been a pleasure to watch all of you tell stories within the setting. Our goal this entire time was to provide fun for you all, so we hope you enjoyed your time here! We certainly enjoyed modding it. :) Over two and a half years is a great run for a game, and it's all thanks to you, the players. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. We're still here for you 'til the end!