A month after the release of Early Access (AKA Monthly Report)
A lot of things happened since the release. We’ve worked hard to fix the problems and bugs identified by the community, added a lot of improvements and increased the quality of the game itself.
In the next couple of weeks our team will be focusing mostly on Survival aspects of the game - the diversity of the gameplay elements as well as on extending gameplay. Remember, that the core of Early Access is cooperation with the players, in order to deliver the most fitted for their requirements game. We want you to be able to come back to Chernobylite with pleasure for as long as possible. We care about polishing those elements, to bring the Early Access phase to final shape.
We also encourage you to report the bugs and problems you’ve encountered during the gameplay on our Steam forum - https://steamcommunity.com/app/1016800/discussions/1/ - your feedback will really help us get rid of the issues you experience completely.
If you have an opinion about Chernobylite in your mind, please write a review of the game on Steam. We are trying to reply to every one of them. We take into heart not only the things you like, but also the ones you think we should correct in the future. Thank you for all the reviews so far. Let’s keep up the good work guys!
Work Progress so far:
At the very beginning, a week after the release, we announced our official Roadmap which reveals many details about the content you may expect in the upcoming months. Players were curious about the direction we will take for the game so we decided to announce what we are planning to do and when. Those who missed it can check the Roadmap below.
We added couple of language localizations: Russian, Polish, German, Hungarian, French, Dutch, and Spanish. We also corrected the localization issues from the previous versions. Of course, we know that there are still some things that need to be corrected, but we are doing our best to fix them.
We also added English voice-overs for those who prefer playing the game in English.
Some of you were experiencing problems with the save system, that’s why we modified how it works. From now on the game is also saved after every day, which should make your gameplay experience easier. You don’t need to hold on to the current save, you can start the day from the beginning, as well as go a couple of days back.
We added a lot of optimization fixes which will shorten the game’s launching time on different PC specifications. We also optimized the memory management system which corrected the issues with sounds and reduced loading times of the maps. The FPS count has raised a few % as well. “Ultra” settings are still a prototype but we stabilized their flow so that they can work on computers with lower specifications than before.
The amount of space game requires is also reduced. This means that the patches from now on should be much smaller shortening the time necessary to download and install them.
Players had some problems with a too high difficulty level, that’s why we started implementing changes. We created a system which allows you to set up your difficulty settings on your own. There are 3 levels available: Survival, Combat and Base Management. Additionally, we added an option to skip the tutorials.
Many of you had argued about the quality of the repeatable missions. Therefore we fixed a lot of problems thank to your feedback. That means that the missions at current state are much more playable, and exciting. Let us know in the comments if you like it!
Gameplay:
Many of you asked us if we can correct the way the scanner works, to distinguish those items you are currently searching for from the other ones. You want it, you have it! Now the resources you select in the PDA menu are highlighted in green, while the rest of them are in yellow. It will allow you to easily search for what interests you most during exploration.
The players thought that the system in which the game limits the possibility of moving around the location for a long time is a bit too strict. As a solution we introduced an option to create a special device that allows you to extend the time between thunderstorms. We also got rid of the timer counting down the time to the next storm and allow the players to observe themselves how much time they have until the next storm. The Black Stalker appearing during a storm has been significantly weakened, making the survival of the storm easier.
In terms of the crafting system we added a few very important items, which can be very useful during gameplay:
- Q-Wave Generator which allows player to extend the time between storms.
- Adrenaline Shots to prevent Igor from dying.
- Alcohol, which helps you regain the correct level of Psyche.
First of all, we introduced a system allowing the game to go on forever. During the game, as you progress, it will be getting harder and harder to gather resources. Also due to the increasing level of radiation every day, animals that you can hunt to get food won’t appear as often as before.
You commented a lot about the stealth system. We took it under consideration, divided it down into parts and corrected the general concept. Level design is now significantly improved in order to support stealth better. So far changes in this matter can be found in the Moscow Eye, Pripyat Port and in several places in Kopachi.
We started working on Igor's Psyche mechanics. Please keep in mind that these are prototypical solutions which are just the foundations for what we want to create eventually.
Igor's lack of solid food and hunger now causes mental decline.
When the psyche level reaches zero, Igor's health points will begin to decrease until he has 1 health point left. However, you can defend yourself from the damaging effects of starvation with the help of Alcohol, which you can create in your base.
Other details about latest Chernobylite patches can also be found in the threads:
Major update: Survival and stealth adjusted
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1610527415446563562
Major update: customize your gameplay style
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150351605587307
Major Update: Food drops and Stealth
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150984614261482
In the meantime we held a virtual photography contest. The community response was amazing with dozens, if not hundreds of entries! The competition was really tight, but in the end we were able to choose the winner and we announced the results of the competition in the thread below:
https://steamcommunity.com/ogg/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150351605587307
That’s all for this update, we’ll meet soon in the “Weekly Report #2!”
Chernobylite Team.
In the next couple of weeks our team will be focusing mostly on Survival aspects of the game - the diversity of the gameplay elements as well as on extending gameplay. Remember, that the core of Early Access is cooperation with the players, in order to deliver the most fitted for their requirements game. We want you to be able to come back to Chernobylite with pleasure for as long as possible. We care about polishing those elements, to bring the Early Access phase to final shape.
We also encourage you to report the bugs and problems you’ve encountered during the gameplay on our Steam forum - https://steamcommunity.com/app/1016800/discussions/1/ - your feedback will really help us get rid of the issues you experience completely.
If you have an opinion about Chernobylite in your mind, please write a review of the game on Steam. We are trying to reply to every one of them. We take into heart not only the things you like, but also the ones you think we should correct in the future. Thank you for all the reviews so far. Let’s keep up the good work guys!
Work Progress so far:
Roadmap:
At the very beginning, a week after the release, we announced our official Roadmap which reveals many details about the content you may expect in the upcoming months. Players were curious about the direction we will take for the game so we decided to announce what we are planning to do and when. Those who missed it can check the Roadmap below.
Localization:
We added couple of language localizations: Russian, Polish, German, Hungarian, French, Dutch, and Spanish. We also corrected the localization issues from the previous versions. Of course, we know that there are still some things that need to be corrected, but we are doing our best to fix them.
We also added English voice-overs for those who prefer playing the game in English.
Save System:
Some of you were experiencing problems with the save system, that’s why we modified how it works. From now on the game is also saved after every day, which should make your gameplay experience easier. You don’t need to hold on to the current save, you can start the day from the beginning, as well as go a couple of days back.
Optimization:
We added a lot of optimization fixes which will shorten the game’s launching time on different PC specifications. We also optimized the memory management system which corrected the issues with sounds and reduced loading times of the maps. The FPS count has raised a few % as well. “Ultra” settings are still a prototype but we stabilized their flow so that they can work on computers with lower specifications than before.
The amount of space game requires is also reduced. This means that the patches from now on should be much smaller shortening the time necessary to download and install them.
Difficulty Level:
Players had some problems with a too high difficulty level, that’s why we started implementing changes. We created a system which allows you to set up your difficulty settings on your own. There are 3 levels available: Survival, Combat and Base Management. Additionally, we added an option to skip the tutorials.
Food Supplies:
Many of you had argued about the quality of the repeatable missions. Therefore we fixed a lot of problems thank to your feedback. That means that the missions at current state are much more playable, and exciting. Let us know in the comments if you like it!
Gameplay:
Scanner/PDA:
Many of you asked us if we can correct the way the scanner works, to distinguish those items you are currently searching for from the other ones. You want it, you have it! Now the resources you select in the PDA menu are highlighted in green, while the rest of them are in yellow. It will allow you to easily search for what interests you most during exploration.
Chernobylite Storms:
The players thought that the system in which the game limits the possibility of moving around the location for a long time is a bit too strict. As a solution we introduced an option to create a special device that allows you to extend the time between thunderstorms. We also got rid of the timer counting down the time to the next storm and allow the players to observe themselves how much time they have until the next storm. The Black Stalker appearing during a storm has been significantly weakened, making the survival of the storm easier.
Crafting:
In terms of the crafting system we added a few very important items, which can be very useful during gameplay:
- Q-Wave Generator which allows player to extend the time between storms.
- Adrenaline Shots to prevent Igor from dying.
- Alcohol, which helps you regain the correct level of Psyche.
Survival:
First of all, we introduced a system allowing the game to go on forever. During the game, as you progress, it will be getting harder and harder to gather resources. Also due to the increasing level of radiation every day, animals that you can hunt to get food won’t appear as often as before.
Stealth:
You commented a lot about the stealth system. We took it under consideration, divided it down into parts and corrected the general concept. Level design is now significantly improved in order to support stealth better. So far changes in this matter can be found in the Moscow Eye, Pripyat Port and in several places in Kopachi.
Psyche
We started working on Igor's Psyche mechanics. Please keep in mind that these are prototypical solutions which are just the foundations for what we want to create eventually.
Igor's lack of solid food and hunger now causes mental decline.
When the psyche level reaches zero, Igor's health points will begin to decrease until he has 1 health point left. However, you can defend yourself from the damaging effects of starvation with the help of Alcohol, which you can create in your base.
Other details about latest Chernobylite patches can also be found in the threads:
Major update: Survival and stealth adjusted
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1610527415446563562
Major update: customize your gameplay style
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150351605587307
Major Update: Food drops and Stealth
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150984614261482
Community Related Informations:
Virtual Photography Contest (FINISHED)
In the meantime we held a virtual photography contest. The community response was amazing with dozens, if not hundreds of entries! The competition was really tight, but in the end we were able to choose the winner and we announced the results of the competition in the thread below:
https://steamcommunity.com/ogg/1016800/announcements/detail/1607150351605587307
That’s all for this update, we’ll meet soon in the “Weekly Report #2!”
Chernobylite Team.
