Rebel Bots’ August AMA: Key Highlights
Rebel Bots recently hosted an AMA over Twitter on August 9, 2022. In the lead-up to the Beta testing launch, the team took time to answer some great questions from the community and provided updates on the current stage of development and what players can expect.
AMA Q/A Summary
Q: When is the Beta version scheduled to be released?
A: There is no set date as of yet but very soon. Though previously some dates were released, looking at the current stage of development and gamers’ expectations, we reviewed some aspects of the game and identified further improvements to make which resulted in extended development time.
We are following a comprehensive and sophisticated development process with more than 40 developers working on different aspects of the game i.e. marketplace, renting system, card explorer, matchmaking, and much more.
We want to serve a true gaming experience to our community and for this purpose, the team is working beyond its scope of roles and responsibilities and investing extra hours to get the game off the ground as soon as possible.
Q: How many people will be granted access in Beta?
A: We don’t have a fixed digit as of yet. The number will be anywhere from a few hundred to 2000 to test the game. The reason for a restricted Beta is so we can collect and process feedback from all our testers to ensure the game is the best it can be when we fully launch.
It is important to note that there will be no ‘earning’ while playing the beta testing version. However, we will look to reward our most active players who provide useful feedback to fix issues and bugs during Beta testing.
The primary objective of the beta will be to test the PVP (Player-v-Player) functions. Aside from that, we’ll also test the bot building process, challenge mechanisms, MMR functionalities, Leagues, Leaderboard, etc.
The Rebel Bots team will be carefully monitoring the card performance to see how balanced the gaming environment is. Ideally, we want all cards to have a 50% win rate so every card gets a fair shot at winning or losing the game.
If a card gets too strong, we’ll be increasing the CPU cost (similar to mana/in-battle energy) of that card or decreasing its capabilities to keep the competition fair.
We’re also excited to share with you the passive skills that Fighting Bots will have in addition to their parts-based skills. There are 12 potential passive skills available in total, divided into three classes with each class of your fighting bot having 4 potential passive skills.
Q: Will there be mechanisms to prevent individuals from having multiple beta access?
A: We want to ensure that our users have the best chance to enter the beta and share feedback. Hence, we don’t encourage or think it is of use for individuals to have more than one access and we will be limiting it by verifying each individual who we provide access.
Q: Is there any language barriers? Is there going to be a language translator in the gameplay?
A: The game will be launched with in-built support for 5 languages. Other languages shall be adopted depending on demand from the community. We don’t want the language to be a preventing factor for players.
Q: Will the game be locked region-wise?
A: No, everyone will be able to play no matter where you are.
Q: What does the compatibility of the game look like on different devices?
A: Given that the game is developed using the Unity game engine, there will not be any device-specific restrictions. Depending on the screen size, resolution, and device capacity, the in-game environment may slightly vary.
Q: How long will the battles last?
A: 8 minutes on average.
Q: What happens if the players experience glitches or server issues?
A: If something like this happens on the player’s end, they will lose the battle as long as the opponent is active. Also, if a player is inactive for more than 2 minutes, a notification will be sent and if not responded, the opponent will be declared the winner due to inactivity.
Moreover, we will have a bug-reporting system so players will be able to report any game bugs/errors if they encounter them.
Q: Do fighting bots have a lifespan or some sort of maintenance requirement?
A: Yes, this is one of the key features of the game to support a healthy NFT economy. There will be a set amount of charge for each fighting bot so that it doesn’t run perpetually. The charge that bots will come with is reflected by a set amount of spark — an in-game resource.
Every game a player loses, the amount of spark in the Fighting Bots who battled will be reduced. Once the spark gets completely depleted, the player will have to recharge the bot to use it again.
If a Fighting Bot runs out of charge completely a timer will begin — if this reaches zero the NFT will be destroyed permanently from the blockchain. This helps to prevent hyperinflation of NFTs which we saw destroy the economy and a floor price of many other games and removes less powerful Fighting Bots from the supply.
Q: How do you unlock the passive skills?
A: The passive skills are in-built with the bots that players build. Depending on which class the bot belongs to, there will be 4 possible passive skills a certain bot can have. Once a player unlocks a passive skill, it’ll be permanently added to the player’s profile.
Q: How does Morale work?
A: The morale function has been assigned for the next version of the game and won’t be available in the current one.
Q: Will a stablecoin be used for Season rewards initially to avoid sell pressure on RBLS?
A: RBLS tokens are planned to be awarded to season winners. The idea of a stablecoin makes sense for a possible initial reward instead, however, no decisions have yet been made. The core team is keeping a keen eye on the crypto market and will make a decision closer to the launch.
Q: Will there be friends vs friend matchmaking features or some sort of a custom game room to host events?
A: As of now, the answer is no. You can stream your games on Twitch or Discord to share the experience with your friends. The core team is focusing on making sure the current version works seamlessly before integrating advanced features.
Q: When will the merchandise be released?
A: The team is currently focusing on the successful launch of Xoil Wars so are prioritizing all our time on this. Once this milestone is accomplished, the marketing team will focus on creating some cool merch for the players and the fans.
Q: Where is the company head office located?
A: Rebel Bots is a very decentralized working space with team members from 14 countries. The development team is based in Israel and Ukraine, while other team members are joining us from Australia, Canada, and various parts of Asia and Europe.
Q: The Ukrainian team has suffered due to the current crisis. What’s the update there?
A: The team members are doing better than before, however, the crisis still exists and circumstances are still complicated. Amid such hardships, the team from Ukraine continues to do a commendable job taking Rebel Bots forward with more vigor.
We are looking forward to a peaceful resolution of the crisis and hope everything will be back to normal as soon as possible.
We’re planning to host a couple of members of our Ukrainian team on a future AMA so the whole Rebel Bots community can share their gratitude and listen to their stories.
Q: What is the news from the investors’ side? How are they reacting to the delays?
A: Our seasoned investors who have had the experience of working with teams building sophisticated tech products including games are “relaxed” as delays are extremely common and generally expected. We’re in regular contact with them and they have pledged their support throughout everything.
Q: Is there any specific cliff and vesting period preventing investors from 100% allocation after the private sale?
A: The cliff and vesting period is standard. Investors can sell their 100% holding only after January 2023. However, we’re confident that our investors have much higher expectations from us and won’t be pulling out so soon. Out of the dozen investors, only one of them has sold some tokens, so that is a great testimonial of trust from the investors’ side. The true demand for RBLS will begin once the game has launched as this creates the utility for the token.
Q: Is there staking features available in the future?
A: Yes, staking features will be made available for holders. However, the team hasn’t yet decided on the specifics yet so it will be declared later on — right now the game is the top priority of the development team.
Want to Know More?
Join us and your fellow Rebel Bots in preparing for the launch of Xoil Wars. Use the links below to follow our social media pages and join our community.
You can learn all you need to know about the game on the Rebel Bots website and in our game whitepaper.
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