We promised that the M4 update would go live around Gamescom (so mid/late August), and now it's nearly mid-September. We want to get it out. Trust us - we've been working on it all summer. The M4 update is a huge deal. It brings SNOW into Alpha state, which means that SNOW will finally fully embody the core gameplay experience that, so far, we have been iterating on in each of the previous three updates.

By bringing SNOW to Alpha, the M4 update also lets us shift our focus onto content, progression, and all the great things that will carry the game into a Closed Beta state.

So, the M4 update is a really big deal, a really big milestone. And I know you've all been dying to get your hands on it. But, because it's so extremely important, we're going to have to ask you to wait just a little bit longer because we want to get this JUST right.

To give you a sense of what's specifically in the M4 update, and what's left to do before we release M4:

Completed

Four brand new, highly detailed areas to explore on the mountain

Sound effects and in-game music

Physicalized skis that react to the physical world more accurately

Improved air rotation system

New lighting

Oculus Rift DK2 support

Tons of small bug fixes, tweaks and performance improvements

Working on

Grinding

Yup, that's it. The one thing holding us up is a fully functional grinding system so that you can hit rails, boxes, and lots of different urban features. We're working towards a dynamic system that helps you lock on to rails but that isn't too noticeable, all implemented with the same real physics as the rest of the world - as few "smoke and mirrors" as possible- and all while maintaining the same great skiing experience which we've developed so far. Without this, M4 just wouldn't be complete.

So, I ask you to continue to be patient while we put the finishing touches on this milestone update. M4 will be worth the wait.