Dear WolcenStudio,
On 03.13. You announced that 4th Act will be the first new content after the bugfixing - so months from now.
But I think You should forget that, or do it but only if that 4th Act will be an open world. As i feel now a forced Act IV will not bring that improvement to the game's fame as You'd liked.
Problems with Act IV - You have to spend a lot of resources to made up a story, and as the first 3 acts worked - we will get an Act of grinding with Tube-system maps - where only 1 direction is available. 5-10 hours plus and we will arrive again to the Champion of Stormfall mode where most players spend most of their time in the game. And in this case the Champion of Stormfall mode will be the same as before the Act IV - of course we get a few new map templates in mandates and expeditions. And is that all what we have to wait from now 4-8-10-12 months??? I don't think that a good idea.
My opinion is the following: Do NOT spend a coin on a next Act's story, because no one cares the story in an ARPG. Every player run through the Acts and it can be interesting first, but the players play again the whole game several times - but after the first 15-20 hours of the first 3 Act - the story doesn't mean anything. I have now 145 hours in Wolcen - played through the 3 Acts 3 times - so that is about 60 hours - in which only 20 hours (first walkthrough) were about any story - the other 40 hours spent in the storyline does not affected by the story because I got it at the first time.
85 hours remained out of the story - in the Champion of Stormfall mode - and i would play it more very likely if more content would be added to that mode. But what is required - in my opinion - is not a new story - but new maps, new terrains, new enemy types, new textures - in a system, where my way is not completely determined, because i'd like to go on adventures in the world of Wolcen - without knowing what could await me in there.
So the best option for You - i say this as one of Wolcen's most enthusiastic fan - to expand the Champion of Stormfall mode with the possibility to go out the city. There are 3 options visible for me now.
1. - Farmlands - Let us go through the Farmlands to explore new territories beyond (Rocky Mountains, Muddy Swamps, Villages torn by necromancers)
2. - Beach - Let us go back the way where the player arrived to Stormfall - sure with options to explore further - there could be maps of waterside adventures which continue with a dark cave - and levels of dark caves we could emerge on the other side of a mountain where an other great city awaits (and more maps around it to explore)
3. - Sewers - Let us go down the sewers again, but now with an alternative way to not arrive to Anankis Halls, but to deeper in the sewers where the most disgusting minions await - one of the new levels of the Sewers should be and exit to the Muddy Swamps - as an alternative way there to Farmlands - and for example to not be a TUBE-game!
This way You can show Wolcen can break out from its closed world to an open one which was your original promise to your backers and players!
I hope someday Wolcen will satisfy that promise, and i will be happy to lost myself in the world of Wolcen!
Best regards and good work!