Thanks, Heather! That post is still relevant, but I can offer a bit more that might help everyone.

Yes, life and work threw us a few curves over the last couple of years that put us behind (you might say waaaay behind). In a small team like this, a few disruptions have a much bigger impact than they do in a large studio.

We also put some new features into the game that everyone had been asking for, and those slowed us down, as well. In the end, we decided to delay a handful of the trickier features in order to finish the game and get it out there for everyone to play. Hopefully, VF3 is a success, and we will be able to add those features and more, just like we did with VF2!

For now, I'll comment on what we have in the Previews page, updated for where we are now:

Virtual Families 3: Our Country Home will be larger and more customizable than Virtual Families 2! (The map is roughly 50% larger than VF2's map to accommodate a larger home and provide room for outdoor things and activities.)

Some of the features we have planned are:
- More flexible options for families! Have larger families! (Families can include 12 children in VF3.)
- Improved social features! (Delayed)
- Modular, reconfigurable house (The house starts small and can be expanded. A couple of rooms need to be finished, and many other rooms can be added. Rooms can be changed to meet the demands of a growing family.)
- More advanced decor and furniture placement options (Partially delayed)
- Gardening and lawn care (Partially delayed)
- More of everything! (New furniture and decor, new and updated peeps, different story line, updated goals, new and updated behaviors and events, and many more!)

We are still working very hard to finish everything up in VF3, get it successfully through QA and beta test, and deliver a shiny, new game to all of you. We really do appreciate your patience. We know that it's been a long wait, but hang in there. VF3 will be in your hands as soon as we can possibly make it happen (but please don't ask for a date - we just don't have one yet).

Thank you sooo much for the update

12 children? it means one football team and one substitute!

This is what i was waiting for, wish it will not be a disappointment.

Sounds Amazing!!

Kewl. What about diversity; Brown people?

Haven't been around in a long time, but decided to come check up on the game. I'm glad to hear it's still coming along; I figured it was scrapped or something. I hope the game won't be rushed because I'd like to see as many new features as possible make it into the finished product. It sounds great, though.


I don't think that's ever going to happen unless they make an entirely new game, unfortunately.

OMG 12 CHILDREN?? I'M SO EXCITED HAHA AND THANKS FOR THE ADDED FEATURES <3333

Although ethnic diversity wasn't listed on the previews page, it's one of the often-requested (now-delayed, but not abandoned) features that we started working on. It turned out to be complex enough that it will have to come in a later update to the game.

The issue has been explained in the forums before, but our games have grown since then and an update might be helpful. The real complication is that the heads and bodies are separate images in the game, and any head can go with any body. Since the skin tones of the face and body need to match. we needed to come up with an entirely new way of handling skin tones in the artwork. Every peep in the game has at least 85 images making up their animations and portraits. There are well over 100 peeps in VF3, comprising almost 10,000 images - all of which have to be displayed with the appropriate skin tone when we implement ethnic diversity. If we made a separate set of animations and portraits for each peep in each ethnic skin tone, it would easily increase the game size to the point that it wouldn't fit on many people's devices. We have a better way worked out, but it will take time to fine-tune and get it ready.

Apart from the black people, will you also have pale skin with Asianish eyes?

There are already a few peeps with Asian features in the game.

For some reason I decided to fire up the old iPad and check in today. Must have been my psychic senses tingling to alert me of these updates!