How the BETA server works

Objective of this server:

• To allow the DOFUS team and the players time and opportunity to check that upcoming updates work as intended.

How the server works:

• BETA test phases often last between 2 and 3 weeks.
• Characters on the BETA server are removed before the launch of a new BETA phase and new characters are uploaded from the regular servers when a new BETA phase launches.
• Any and all progress made on the BETA server (experience, items, etc) is then lost in-between BETA phases.
• During a BETA phase, the server is entirely accessible to unsubscribed accounts (with the usual server population restriction applying) in order to maximize the number of potential testes on the server. When a BETA phase ends, the server falls back to its regular workings and unsubscribed accounts can only access unsubscribed content (just like a regular server).
• The server is updated very often, sometimes several times a day during a BETA phase. Maintenances are unannounced, they are made by the DOFUS team as soon as the team needs to test one or several major modifications.
• Sometimes, we put on this server NPCs whose sole purpose is to facilitate testing (the Maho Snowfoux NPC for instance), by making some actions much quicker (moving around, character progression, etc). These NPCs can be pulled off at any moment, when we think they are no longer necessary to do the tests we require.
• The sever itself can be suspended at any moment and for any amount of time.

This server's goal is not to offer players a viable and lasting game experience, it is to check whether updates work as intended. We fully understand that some players may take pleasure in playing on that server, but its first and foremost vocation is to test upcoming updates.

FAQ:

The Maho Snowfoux allows one to, for example, quickly and simply test any and all character classes, why would you pull him off?

Some NPCs are specific to the BETA server and facilitate the players' testing because we think we should help maximize the number and efficiency of the testing that is done. Testing an update takes time, and can prove bothersome, which is why we try to make this process more easy and user-friendly to players who invest their time into helping us improve updates.

But we do not want the BETA server to be a tool to circumvent the whole character progression system. The game experience that we want to offer is the one available in the regular servers, as well as in the Heroic and Epic servers.

Why aren't most dungeons available on the BETA server?

The BETA server isn't meant to allow players to make personal testing (check an item's power, a gameplay's viability, a monster's pattern, etc), it is meant for global testing, to check that an updates works right, that a content is correctly balanced or that a game system is enjoyable.

When the regular dungeons were all available on the BETA server, we noticed that some players were taking advantage of the particular way the test server works to undergo tests or high-scale training on this server, consequence-free. Training and the testing of content that is already available in regular servers must take place in regular servers. We think players should not use a BETA server with beneficial rules to circumvent the difficulties that arise in the game in the regular servers.

Why are BETA server characters deleted after an update and before the launch of a new BETA phase?

In order to improve the testing conditions on this server, we need players to be able to use recent characters, from regular servers. The characters created on the BETA server are deleted because we want to discourage the use of this server as a permanent play server, and because our priority is to test the impact of a coming update on characters already existing on regular servers.

But why would you want to discourage the use of the BETA server as a permanent play server?

The BETA server is a test server, and therefore we cannot guarantee optimal game conditions, or even just good enough to offer a durable, satisfying game experience. The BETA server can prove to be very unstable, have issues with disappearing or duplicating items, and suffer from heavy unavailability (because of its many maintenances). Some game mechanics may even be unavailable for weeks on end. Besides, the BETA server may sometimes be used for very specific testing, heavily impairing the server's performances. These conditions are not compatible with the game experience we wish to offer to our players.

Why do you switch the server to Heroic mode (permanent death) at the end of the BETA?

We occasionally need to test the way the Heroic or Epic modes work with a new update. Switching the BETA server to Heroic mode allows us to check that the update works as intended with this particular game mode.

Why don't you advertise BETA server maintenances ahead of time?

We update the BETA server as soon as we deem it necessary, which is whenever we have important modifications to test. Modification testing on this server takes priority over everything else, and we have decided to not constrain ourselves with a delay before announcing a maintenance, because we do not want to delay our testing on this server.

We would like to thank all the players who take part in these BETA testing phases, and who help us improve our updates with their feedback.