Question for Uber regarding Moon Breakers

Moon Breakers is a free to play game, distributed through Steam, that was developed by IMBA and published by Uber.

The game is unique, a space dogfighter that requires real piloting skill, and while it is raw around the edges it has huge potential. The developers were actively involved with the community, listening to feedback and releasing frequent updates. They promised new features in the near future that would substantially improve the game, and the player base was quite excited about what was to come.

That ended in early September, when the main developer simply disappeared. No more responses to users, no more updates, nothing. We don't know if development of the game is going to continue or if the servers will simply be shut off one day. What we do know is that people can still pay real money for ships - this money was to fund future development, but what is it funding now?

I'm asking because one of the Planetary Annihilation videos shows William Johnson, the Moon Breakers lead dev, working on PA's user interface.

So I'm respectfully asking what are Uber's intention regarding Moon Breakers? Will the game continue or will it be dropped? We your paying customers would really just like to know what it is you have planned for the game that many of us still enjoy even with its flaws, and which many have contributed money towards.

I also mirror these sentiments. I have been a loyal patron and very active in helping to start the Moon Breakers Community. I find it a bit disrespectful and a poor show of proper business ethics to take money for a game no longer in development. We have not heard any word from William Johnson for four months now, shame on you WJ. I don't know if you are contractually required NOT to respond to the emails but this cold shoulder is unfair. :evil:

A simple heads up would be appreciated. I was so looking forward to playing Planetary Annihilation but if this is how Uber deals with loyalist i can just imagine how screwed the early investors are going to be.

Respectfully ,

Golden Wizard :ugeek:

I know that feeling...but for a certain different game.

Well, I'd be happy to be proven wrong, but it seems Uber isn't interested. Their silence speaks volumes. Its a lousy way to treat loyal paying customers, but its their choice how they run their business I guess.

Oh jeez you impatient bastard.

It's Christmas, everyone is at home with their families. They have better things to be doing that coming to your beck and call.

Yes you're right, my last post was probably too soon especially at this time of the year.

However please be aware that I and many others have been trying every means we can think of to get in touch with IMBA and Uber for months about this. Imagine you'd paid money towards PA only to have all updates & communication from developers cease, then find out they're working on some other game, ask yourself how you'd feel?

Anyway, I guess I'll just exercise my impatience some more & wait on them to answer...

IMBA is completely separate from Uber. Uber published it on steam for them, and that's as far as the connection goes.

So in other words, you're wasting your time posting here.

From conversations I had with the IMBA lead dev William Johnson (before he disappeared to work for Uber), it seemed evident to me that the relationship between the two companies was quite close - to the point where they had to ask permission from Uber to work on new features of the game. The former creative lead on Moon Breakers (Ed Byrne) previously worked for Uber on MNC. I get the strong impression that IMBA now exists in name only - anyone who previously worked there has either left or been absorbed into Uber.

Furthermore you can't say that because Uber are just the publisher they have nothing to do with the game. They're the ones who accepted (and continue to accept) money from players, same as a book publisher receives the sale proceeds. They quite possibly hold the rights to the Moon Breakers title & game assets. I think its reasonable to ask them to clarify the situation.

Nevertheless you're right, we're probably wasting our time :|

This project should be continued.
Great game.
Devout following.
Massive potential.

Personally I find the lack of communication disrespectful to the community who have followed and contributed to this game.
A simple post on Userecho would be appreciated to keep the Pilots happy.
Even if it is a deferment or cancellation of future development.

Someone needed to/needs to show some substance from IMBA/Uberent and address this oversight...

this is an absolute disgrace. there is no argument for what has transpired, if you're looking for one i will prove you wrong.

the last we had heard from IMBA or UBER on this game, we were promised more features and were of the understanding that budget had run out for this game even before then. that is a bad situation but one the moonbreakers community can understand and accept. i could ask 'hang on, if there are so many people paying, where did that money go towards in the last 4 months?' but that isn't even the main issue.

fact is, the plug was pulled on this game as far as development is concerned, without any official notice to anyone. fact is, uber is the publisher of this game and money spent on it by players goes to uber. fact is, uber has done jack all to stop people paying for a game that is all but forgotten by uber. that is unforgivably shameful - accepting money from people and staying silent on the future of said game, which i believe most players put money towards with the impression it would help the game grow.

and while it may not have been written explicitly that money spent on this game would go towards developing it, money was the biggest perceived barrier to this game (from the point of view of the community for this game) that was preventing it from gaining any new features, which is something that was stated by WJ. if WJ was working under uber (read: paid by uber to work on this game, directly or otherwise) then whether he intended to or not he has implicitly officially stated that more money into the game = more development on the game.

and im back to square one - NO PROGRESS MADE ON THE GAME, OR ANY NOTICE FROM IMBA, UBER, OR WJ IN 4 MONTHS AS TO THE FUTURE OF THIS GAME AND PEOPLE ARE STILL PAYING FOR IT THINKING IT WILL HAPPEN.

tread carefully uber... this is a friendly warning that what you're doing is grey-legal at best, selfish at the least and totally pissing off the community built around this game. all it takes is ONE SENTENCE to say where this game is heading. sod the cash flow and sod your PR, you very well know you owe everyone who has paid for this game an explanation if not a refund and a formal apology, by email, to every paying player / account.

- the anger

Hey everyone, just wanted to point out Uber's social media outlets if you haven't already found them. I included the accounts of the devs that use Twitter often. Ekanaut is a troublemaker starting Valve rumors now and then. Forrest and Stackhouse mostly just tweet about latte...

Huh?

i found it alright. it came in an email announcing PA when they have yet to say anything on moon breakers.

edit - let me be more clear: i have a poor opinion of uber right now. they have not said anything about moon breakers even when directly asked on multiple channels. their response is silence everywhere. so you tell me... has uber said anything about moon breakers? are you going to trust them as a game publisher to take your money for the reasons they say? something to think about... so dont point to their social media outlets as if they are any substitute for an astounding silence from what appears to be a renowned game publisher / developer.

I started playing Moon Breakers with the steam launch and played it a lot. I liked the game so much i became very active in the community, on the official forums and assisted in creating and spreading both "Squadrons" as a community building exercise and in the Building of the Moon Breakers community site.

That said i have lost faith with both Uber as a developer and Moon Breakers as a game. I dropped a significant amount of money into the game for it to just cease development half way through. The lack of even comment from the design team on whether or not the game was dead or continuing development was a nail in the coffin. I will be avoiding Uber in the future unless they change they way they deal with their customers and support because I do not trust them anymore. I have actively encouraged others to do the same.

A comment, feedback some form of respect for your customers will go a long way to starting to heal the very bad feelings the fans of moon Breakers have been left with.

and the response from uber is overwhelming... i expected this on the game's official feedback forum (moonbreakers.userecho.com if anyone wasn't aware), but not on their forum...

had enough. 4 months of no response and they don't even check their own forum for slander (or can't publicly acknowledge there is a problem). im getting some legal advice on this situation and so help me if you're liable, uber.

omg Legal advice? GG guys, this kid's serious.

whether i am serious or not remains to be seen. sarcasm noted.

either way uber as a publisher needs to clarify why moonbreakers is accepting money from players, who are looking at the official feedback forum and seeing all these fantastic developments and features 'in the works'... and no development has been done in 4 months, nevermind actual updates to the game (last update was 8th-aug - almost 5 months ago). with no notice on there to say anything at all about whether the game will continue to be developed, uber is indirectly duping optimistic players into paying, which i believe makes them liable (legal advice will clarify that to me soon after holiday period)

I find it cute that you think there might even be a basis for any legal situation there.

All I wanted to know was whether or not they were going to continue developing the game. Seems to have gone a lot further than that now...

well...

uber published the game to steam, and therefore is responsible for it as well as being the most likely recipient of proceeds from in-game and game-related purchases. imba and uber had some relationship beyond publisher-developer as uber was making creative calls on moon breakers, giving the developer(s) permission to do certain things with it. imba is just a name now, leaving moon breakers as a responsibility of uber, both for publishing and, if any, further development for the game.

now then, if you look through the official channels of moon breakers, there is a very strong suggestion from WJ and possibly others that money was a factor in the game's progress. many who have read those comments felt that putting money towards the game would fund its development. this worked just fine until about 4 months ago, when everyone went completely silent on moon breakers. we would hear from WJ about once a week or so, and game updates were at most monthly, and all of a sudden he stopped responding altogether - to comments, to PM's, to direct emails from people who have even assisted with content for the game.

as far as it stands the official media and material available on moon breakers suggests development will continue, as uber or imba have failed to comment either way or clarify the statements made. every week i see more new players in the game, asking for features that have already been promised and encouraging one another to put money towards it on the belief it will help develop it. it sickens me that uber as a publisher could not spare 5 minutes to announce anywhere what is happening with this game. if the development is on hold pending some sort of secret, that's fine if they say just that, at least then players can decide whether investing in this game is a good idea. if development has stopped, it is fraudulent to keep the revenue open on the apparently deliberate implicit pretense that paying for this game may resurrect it.

so let me ask you this: does anyone here think it is alright for uber to continue to accept payments for moon breakers given the state of the game and the uncertain future of the game? does anyone actually know if it is legal for them to continue to do so? (i would like to know either way)

there are a lot of people out there who want a simple, direct answer. any at all. without that it comes off as fraudulent to keep allowing payments for this game since we can only assume giving no response is uber's deliberate reaction, because surely no respectful publisher would ignore questions about one of the games they have published for 4 months...