What does scope creep mean in MMO development?

In simple terms, scope creep happens when a game keeps adding new systems, features, or mechanics beyond the original plan. In general, this causes problems:

• Development takes longer than expected

• Core systems don’t get enough polish

• Performance and stability suffer

• Teams burn out or budgets get stretched

Most players have seen this before. An MMO promises crafting, PvP, housing, naval combat, and more. Then new ideas keep getting added, while existing systems are not finished. The result is usually delays or a weak launch.

Because Ashes of Creation already has a large feature set, many players worry it could fall into this trap.

Is Ashes of Creation still adding new features?

According to the developers, no. The team has clearly stated that Ashes of Creation is intended to launch with its current design scope.

Steven Sharif has repeatedly said that they are not extending development by adding new systems. In his words, he has a very clear vision of the systems and mechanics already planned, and they are sticking to that vision. This means the focus is not on adding “cool new ideas,” but on finishing what already exists.

In practice, this is important. Most players don’t need more systems. They need systems that work reliably, feel balanced, and perform well in real gameplay situations.

Why Alpha-2 is about stability, not new ideas

Many players misunderstand what Alpha-2 is meant to do. In general, Alpha testing is not about content quantity. It is about answering questions like:

• Does the core loop actually work?

• Can the servers handle real player behavior?

• Are performance and stability acceptable?

• Do the tools let developers build content efficiently?

Ashes of Creation’s team has explained that Alpha-2 is mainly about shoring up stability, performance, and system viability. Most players will notice bugs, missing polish, or rough edges, but that is expected at this stage.

The key point is that the team wants the foundation to be solid before scaling content.

Why content comes later, not sooner

One common concern from players is that the game looks “light on content” right now. In general, this is not unusual for an MMO in active development.

The developers’ plan is to finalize internal pipelines first. These pipelines include:

• Tools for building monsters

• Tools for creating gear and items

• Systems for buildings and environments

• Effects, animations, and sound workflows

Once these pipelines are stable and user-friendly, content creation becomes much faster. Most players don’t see this work, but it is critical. Without good tools, adding content becomes slow, expensive, and error-prone.

Why external teams are part of the plan

Another point that often confuses players is the use of external development teams. Some people assume this means the core team is struggling or cutting corners. In reality, this is a standard approach in the industry.

In general, external teams are commonly used for:

• Art assets

• Environment building

• Monster models

• Gear visuals

• Effects and sound

These types of content are highly “exportable,” meaning they can be created by outside studios if clear standards and pipelines exist.

Steven Sharif explained that once the internal tools are ready, onboarding external teams allows content development to scale quickly. This avoids the need to massively expand the internal team and then lay people off after launch, which is a common problem in game development.

Most players don’t care who made a monster model. They care that the game has variety, consistency, and polish.

How this approach helps avoid scope creep

By locking the feature set and focusing on tools and stability first, Ashes of Creation is trying to avoid classic scope creep problems.

In practice, this means:

• No new systems are added late in development

• Existing mechanics get refined instead of replaced

• Performance issues are addressed early

• Content production ramps up only when it is efficient

Most players would rather wait a bit longer for finished systems than get more features that don’t work well together.

What players should realistically expect at launch

Based on developer statements and common MMO patterns, players should expect the following at launch:

• Core systems fully implemented, not experimental

• A solid amount of content built using stable pipelines

• Ongoing content additions after launch, not everything on day one

In general, MMOs grow over time. Launch is the starting point, not the finish line. The important thing is that the foundation supports long-term updates.

Why rumors and misinformation spread easily

Ashes of Creation has a very active community, and that can be both good and bad. Because development takes a long time, speculation fills the gaps.

Some players see new art assets or updated systems and assume scope creep. In reality, many of these changes are refinements, not additions. Others confuse future post-launch plans with launch features.

It’s also common for unrelated discussions to get mixed in. For example, you might see people talking about progression speed, economy concerns, or even topics like finding a safe place to buy AoC gold U4N, even though these things are not directly related to development scope. This kind of noise can make it harder to understand what the developers are actually doing.

Should players be worried about delays?

In general, some delays are normal for MMOs, especially ambitious ones. However, the developers have explicitly said they are not prolonging development by expanding the design scope.

The biggest factors now are:

• Stability

• Performance

• Tool readiness

Once those are in place, content production becomes much more predictable. That is usually when development speeds up instead of slowing down.

is scope creep a real issue for Ashes of Creation?

Based on current information, scope creep does not appear to be the main problem for Ashes of Creation. The design scope is set, and the developers are committed to it.

Most players should judge progress not by how many new features are announced, but by how stable and functional the existing systems become over time. In general, that is a healthier way to build an MMO that can last for years.

If the team continues to focus on core stability, performance, and scalable content creation, Ashes of Creation has a better chance of avoiding the mistakes that have hurt many MMOs before it.