Dev Diary 4/20

This has been a week of beta bug clean-up mostly, which is boring, so it's the perfect opportunity to talk about systems that you will hopefully find less boring!

Progression in Agraria

A lot of balancing work went into the progression system this week - making sure rewards feel earned but not punishing. A few people have asked me about progression in Agraria, so I thought I'd lay out the two primary progression systems.

CM3K - Cultivation Motivation 3000

Agraria Inc.'s primary professional development program, CM3K is available to all partners as soon as you arrive at your farm. There are rumored to be eight ranks of agricultural mastery, though only five will be available from the beginning. Each rank is made up of a number of trials. Fulfilling the final trial at each tier unlocks the next rank, but every trial unlocks something - new seeds, more storage, new tools, livestock, etc. Each trial requires something different, and sometimes more than one thing. Some focus on crop quantity, some on quality, some on organic certification, some on livestock production, some on financial growth... every aspect of your farm will be tested through the program. But the results are worth it - you'll slowly unlock everything you need for an authoritative automated agricultural apparatus (say that five times fast!) There are no timers or deadlines; you can progress at whatever pace you want.

GigFarmer

You'll earn Aggies from farming and Ranks from CM3K, but for the really good stuff - tool upgrades, sprinklers, livestock pens, push tools, etc. - you'll also need company Scrip. You can trade Aggies for Scrip, but the exchange rate isn't favorable unless you really like to maximize profits. The best way to get Scrip is to fill private orders. These come from the GigFarmer system, which you can unlock at Rank 3. GigFarmer orders request specific crops or products, sometimes at a specific quality level, with a deadline. Most private orders compensate with Scrip; deliver the product on time, get Bronze, Silver, and Gold scrip. GigFarmer orders rotate every day, and as you rank up more and higher-value orders become available daily.

The Bottom Line: Focus without Pressure

Progression in Agraria has been designed with one overriding goal: provide meaningful focus without pressure. CM3K will always give you something to master for new rewards, and GigFarmer will let you take timed orders when you want, but the game never holds it over your head. You won't miss a date and have to wait a year for it to come around again, or find yourself stuck on progress if a crop goes badly. I'm hoping this makes the game scalable for as many preferences as possible. Your farm plot might not technically belong to you (yet!), but you should still decide how to enjoy it!