Talk:Hardcoded (video game)

Released in 2018 - receiving updates
@Waxworker

The game was released in 2018 and reviewed by several publications. The fact that it is still receiving updates does not negate this fact. In fact, it could not receive updates if it was never released.

Example of reference saying game is released

Hardcoded, which was released in 2018 but is still receiving regular updates, is an open-world visual novel starring a cast of trans women.

https://www.wired.com/story/indie-lgbtq-games-sex/

Jonpatterns (talk) 08:49, 17 July 2022 (UTC)
 * The game is still being developed, and thus isn't released; Kotaku states that the game is "in development", and The Daily Dot says that it is "still in active development". There's a difference between a game in early access getting updates and a game that's done getting updates - updates for Hardcoded have been adding the main story. For example, the release date of Minecraft is given as 18 November 2011 - even though it was first publically available in 2009 - as that's when the end was added, coinciding with its 1.0 release. The latest version of Hardcoded is version number 0.0.82, and the main story isn't finished. Waxworker (talk) 11:53, 17 July 2022 (UTC)
 * @Waxworker A game still being developed does not mean it can not have already been released. The Minecraft article states  "The game was first released to the public on 17 May 2009 as a developmental release on TIGSource forums." Wikipedia can not predict the future so how could it ever say a game has finished getting updates. Maybe it would be best specify what has been released and what the developers plan for the future. Jonpatterns (talk) 10:03, 18 July 2022 (UTC)
 * Pinging Nomader for their input, as they created the article. I'm not sure how WP:CRYSTAL applies here. I'm not saying that the game is considered 'unreleased' until it stops receiving updates, I'm saying that these updates are adding core parts of the game and the game is still in development, and sources have noted as such. In the case of Minecraft, the date it was first available is noted, but 2011 is given as the release date as that was when it came out of beta and released version 1.0. For Hardcoded, it could probably be noted under development/in lede that development builds of the game & a demo was released in 2018, but that shouldn't be considered the release date of the game, and I think it should still say 'upcoming' in lede and release date TBA in infobox. Waxworker (talk) 16:13, 19 July 2022 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the ping, . I originally wrote it as "released", and I meant it in the same vein that Subnautica was "released" in early access -- but I don't think the prose I wrote made it clear then, and I actually prefer the version as it stands here a bit. It's still very much in active development. Maybe it's worth sourcing when it was originally released in an "alpha" state (or whatever the developer put it out as) in the infobox with the date? TBA feels a little misleading here though.
 * This honestly might be something to bring up for wider discussion at WT:VG. Nomader  ( talk ) 18:05, 25 July 2022 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the reply. Maybe in the infobox under release date it could say 2018 (alpha), or 2018 (early access) ? Jonpatterns (talk) 14:14, 26 July 2022 (UTC)
 * I think that makes sense to me! I'd go with early access -- because it's more broad and we don't want to get in the habit of more detailed milestone dates in the infobox, feels like detail creep to me. Nomader  ( talk ) 13:30, 1 August 2022 (UTC)