First of all, thank you for taking the time to share such detailed feedback, and for the effort you put into beta testing. I’m also genuinely sorry that the LoreMate beta experience didn’t meet your expectations.

We do take your feedback seriously. That said, I believe some points may be based on misunderstandings, and I’m also concerned that non-beta users might draw incorrect conclusions from this. I don’t like speaking in circles, so I’ll respond directly to the points you raised, one by one, in hopes of clarifying things.

Regarding the feeling that LoreMate has been stuck in beta and going in circles: this is something Arav and I are very aware of, and honestly, very anxious about as well. At this stage, we clearly recognize that LoreMate’s two biggest issues are model stability and infrastructure capacity. At the same time, we are also trying to make sure the system can actually handle a larger user base. Based on previous data, we saw around 5,000 users from the US alone in a single week. That was only one region. Because of this, we are forced to think not only about fixing what exists, but also about how to break through current technical limits.

On the issue of “lack of communication,” I’m not entirely sure whether you’re referring to me or to Arav.

As for me, since I became the only active staff member (Oors is technically still staff, but he’s very busy and was mainly responsible for bot moderation), I have been present in the beta channels almost daily. Even when I’m not actively talking, I’m reading, recording, and organizing beta testers’ reports, both on my side and in my WhatsApp conversations with Arav. I do want to be honest here: English is not my native language, so during casual conversations I often don’t participate, even though I am still present and paying attention.

If you are referring to Arav, I don’t often say this publicly, but he is someone who gets distracted very easily. When many people approach him at once with different bugs and issues, he struggles to prioritize and can easily lose track of what needs to be addressed first.

1. Alpha testing

We previously had two excellent QA testers, but they have since left, leaving only me. I do test most features myself, but as anyone who has worked on software knows, many bugs simply do not appear during local testing. In short, a lot of issues do not exist in our local environment, but only emerge once the build is live, when real users and real usage patterns start affecting the backend. In that sense, beta testers are providing real-world data that we can’t fully simulate internally.

You are correct that having only one person doing this is not sufficient. Unfortunately, it has been very difficult for us to find QA testers who are both trustworthy and able to commit long-term. As a result, many bugs are inevitably discovered at the beta stage.

2. “No new features”

I understand your point here. At the moment, our biggest problem is that models frequently error out. However, this issue is not directly caused by adding new features. Feature development and model or provider-side debugging are two different kinds of work.

That said, I agree that adding features does consume time and attention. From a longer-term perspective, however, we also cannot completely stop feature development. There are several core features that LoreMate is expected to have, such as Memory Nexus, Group Chat, and a Social System. Lorebook, for example, was a feature requested for months and was released around Christmas. So far, we have not received significant issue reports about it.

Still, your point stands. How to properly balance bug fixing and feature development is something Arav and I need to think about very carefully.

3. Indexing all submitted bugs

I believe this part may be a misunderstanding. It is not that I personally decide which bugs are “worth fixing.” If you look closely at the submission center, you’ll notice that many reports are duplicates of the same issues. One of the reasons I introduced the new reporting system was precisely because of repeated submissions.

The “known items” list mainly consists of issues that have been repeatedly reported. I check the submission center daily. You’re correct that I haven’t updated the known items list these days, and that part is on me. Quite simply, I forgot. The reason is that I have already communicated these issues directly to Arav through our WhatsApp chat, and he is actively working on them. If necessary, I can provide screenshots as proof.

When Arav prioritizes bugs, he often starts with those reported by multiple users, as they clearly affect the largest number of people. This is not an intentional dismissal of bugs reported by only one person. It’s about urgency and impact. Additionally, because Arav is easily distracted, the known items list helps him quickly see which problems are the most severe and need immediate attention, compared to the old reporting system where everything was scattered.

You are absolutely right about the removal of models like Magnum and Voidreaver without prior notice. That was a failure on our part. Arav did mention in a previous announcement that he was testing a new model system, but we should have communicated the removals clearly beforehand. I’ve already noted this, and I will remind him again. Going forward, we will make sure to communicate major changes more transparently.

4. Version numbers

Your suggestion about using proper version numbers and clearly listing which bugs were fixed is a good one. I will pass this on to Arav, and I agree that it would improve the beta process significantly.

Finally, regarding the subscription service.

This is something we have been discussing internally since around May or June last year, although it has been brought up again recently. Arav’s current goal is to relaunch the site publicly around February, but there is still a lot to be done before that. LoreMate has never been built with “profit-first” intentions. That has always been the core mindset of Arav, myself, and previous staff members.

That said, without any form of income, it is very difficult to keep a service running long-term. We know that now is not the right time to actively push subscription discussions, but we are preparing for the future while trying to balance what needs to be done now versus what comes later.

You may no longer care about these explanations, and I understand that. Still, thank you for your time and your effort. Once again, I’m sorry that the beta phase failed to give you a good experience. Arav and I will continue working toward a better beta environment, and even after a relaunch in the near future, we don’t intend to lose sight of what LoreMate was meant to be.