Hey everyone (devs and ...well not devs :) )!

Since I got into the Founding I've spent most of my gaming time (whatever little real life allows) playing the game, and as witnessed here you seem to be very forthcoming to feedback and thoughts, here I am giving my two cents on the game so far. Needless to say that these are my opinions and I'm trying to invite a discussion and not an argument, as I do really like where this game is going. 

First things first though, I'll list my system specs to add some context:

CPU:   Intel Core i5 3570 @ 3.40GHz

RAM:  16 GB DDR3 

GPU:   Sapphire AMD Radeon HD 7950, 3GB DDR3 VRAM

OS:      Microsoft Windows 10 Pro x64

(The OS and the game run from SSD drives)

With that out of the way let's get to it!

1. Combat & Camera

Although initially feeling a bit odd, the combat system gradually made sense to me. The core of it allows for tactics, something that I believe will be further highlighted by the addition of varied enemies further down the road. Some weapons need tuning in terms of them being viable (flamethrower I am looking at you), although this being very early days still they'll probably be re-iterated multiple times in future updates. Also the decision to not allow for loot and gear management in-mission, allows a deeper immersion, even with the limited tile sets included in the alpha. I could only foresee this improving, so no further comments :) 

The biggest issue I have with the combat is not purely combat related though. It has to do with how the camera cuts through high walls and doorways...or specifically how it doesn't. Having the freedom to rotate the camera is fun but I think maybe some automation to its movement could be implemented when coming through doors or when encountering corners. I understand the decision not to have the walls cut out when the camera turns is in order for the environments to convey the iconic sense of height that structures have in Warhammer 40.000. But maybe a middle ground could be found here?

I've also noticed that some abilities (such as the Assault Armor's Assault Jump) can't be targeted properly as to it being visually unclear to the player where the ability will land. Eventually you get used to it but I think AoE abilities such as the aforementioned should clearly indicate where and what they're targeting.  

Minor issues I encountered have already been reported, including inconsistencies in cover behavior (enemies can shoot through cover but the player can't shoot back), and the odd enemy stuck to a corner not attacking until hit hard. Finally I thoroughly second the argument made by Airsick Hydra and many others, that the combat sounds our weapons make should convey a better sense of impact. 

2. User Interface & Graphics 

From a design standpoint and -as everything else in this post- due to personal taste, I love the minimal aesthetics of the user interface, even with the placeholder ability icons. I agree with the argument that the icons should be visually memorable both in terms of design, conveying the effect of the ability and the main color of the icon. The crafting menu I believe is mostly clear, but it being bugged for me I can't say I've had much experience with it. 

The thing I am not really sure about is the inability to unequip items from your character. I've had the odd moment, specially early on in my experience, where I wanted to switch a signum from my first weapon to my second one, only to find out I couldn't do it unless I had a spare one in my inventory. I don't believe this to be enhancing the experience in any way. And I'm not suggesting scraping the whole thing as I believe that all in all it is interesting, but maybe for instance give the player the ability to unequip items while in the inventory, but don't allow for empty slots in the loadout before closing the window? There also seems to be an occasional bug where the edge of the window displaying the 3D model of our inquisitor causes the purity seal equipped to rotate and stretch in weird and funny angles. I believe that the visible area of that window should be increased a bit on the y axis as to allow for a better view of the model.

Talking about vanity views (gotta love them :) ) I think the camera in game should allow for some short of up and close vanity view of out character, especially given how awesome some of the armors look! Also in the inventory menu I believe the ability to rotate the model would add to that sense of joy we all get from looking how awesome our latest set of gear looks!

Another thing that -although is probably a placeholder- I found not to be as helpful as it should was the tutorial. Or the lack of it and the constant popping up of windows, which at the moment at times tended to blend into their backgrounds at times. 

*EDIT : I found out they're supposed to be smaller than average Space Marines, as they're normal humans wearing power armor (thanks SWINWEFLUE ), so feel free to ignore the next paragraph :)*

I noticed also that for some reason our inquisitor is kinda short! I mean power armor (and its wearer) are supposed to be huge...and you've have done this justice with the models of the Chaos Marines and Sorcerers, who look appropriately big and menacing. Or maybe it has something to do with the alpha stage of the graphics? Feels weird to be smaller than the other marines :( 

*EDIT*

Also I had a couple of instances on the outdoor planetside tileset where the lower right edge of the screen would bug out displaying a distorted image effect when land met water. 

I'd also like to ask if the devs could point us towards sections of the game they consider to be mostly done in the present build so the feedback can focus on those and not things that are placeholders or to be scrapped all together in later updates! Also will there be controller support in the PC version at some point?

As this is already a considerable wall of text I'll stop here, as many of other issues I could bring up have already been addressed. I hope there is something useful here and I have to say I am very happy to have joined Inquisitor Martyr this early. Once more let me say that these are my opinions on the game so far, and that they're meant as grounds for discussion and not argument. 

Keep up the great job devs! 

E.B.