The unofficial Pokémon MMO Temtem celebrated its release in Early Access. However, it was plagued by technical issues. Our editor Leya stood in line with thousands – why she still liked the launch, she reveals here.
I have been following the development of Temtem for a long time, as my heart has been with Pokémon since my earliest childhood. I have not missed any of the single-player RPGs and recently reported on the new raid feature in Sword and Shield.
Of course, I immediately sat down in front of the monitor for yesterday’s release of Temtem and wanted to be part of the start. I have long dreamed of a Pokémon MMO and Temtem looks like a promising Pokémon clone that could fulfill this wish.
As an MMO player, I should have known better… A release in online games rarely goes smoothly. Just as rarely does a disastrous release run as harmoniously as with Temtem.
Of Huge Queues and Crashes
At exactly 7:00 PM, the servers go online, and I start the quick download on Steam. While I boil my tea in the meantime, I already wonder which will be my starter Temtem. Because this concept is also borrowed from Pokémon.
The download is done. I eagerly start the game and land directly in the gigantic queue of death. I left my screenshots on my home PC and am currently in the office. Therefore, unfortunately, here is just a pixelated photograph of my monitor for you:
As the waiting time drags on, I first check the Twitter profile of Temtem. Here, the developers write shortly after the launch that already over 20,000 players are starting their adventure within the first minutes. Temtem even shoots directly to one of the current top sellers on Steam.
After about half an hour, I finally manage to get into the game and create my character. Here, I’m offered a few options for body, face, hair, and clothing. My character is ready, let the adventure begin! Or maybe not? No, because the screen is black, and the server wants to reconnect. Thus, the queue and I meet again.
Back to the Twitter profile of the developers. New tweets are now appearing almost every minute, in which the developers talk about hotfixes and problems and ask the players for patience.
Community Remains Warm and Takes It with Humor
I was considering whether I should just start another game. After all, I want to improve in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, too. But then I just have too much fun with the comments from the Temtem players.
The community reacts with much affection and humor to the overstressed servers. Rarely do I find a few nasty comments under the tweets of the Temtem team. With some comments, I even have to laugh heartily.
Even on Reddit, where players are usually inclined to be in a bad mood, the atmosphere remains good. Here, a post that is titled “the worst launch ever” receives much support. The player complains here about the fact that he cannot give his character a bald head and that this has thoroughly spoiled the game for him – of course, this is said with a wink.
I look at the time. It is now 11:00 PM, and since the launch, I have made it briefly back into the game. I give up. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the launch because I was thoroughly entertained by the community contributions and shared in the excitement with the developers who tried to fix their game throughout the night.
I would have liked to give you a first impression of Temtem today. Maybe another time.
Players Don’t Remain Patient Forever
Temtem comes from the Spanish developer studio Crema. The funding for the “Pokémon MMO” mainly came through a successful Kickstarter campaign, as many believed in Crema and Temtem.
The studio has the advantage that they do not belong to the big players out there. Players are usually still inclined to forgive launch difficulties and bugs.
Experience shows, however, that such an atmosphere can turn quickly if problems persist for too long. For the moment, the atmosphere is good.
Those interested in Temtem should maybe wait a few more days until everything runs smoothly and stably. I look forward to the development of Temtem with excitement. Because even if I was only able to take a very brief excursion, what I have seen so far has pleased me as a Pokémon fan.
What do you think about the future of Temtem?
