[Dev Note] Part-13 : Tasks Following the 2nd Global Test

[ Intro ]

Hello everyone, I am Kwon Dae Ho, the Executive Producer.

Before I begin, I sincerely thank all the testers who participated in this test with great interest.

Black Stigma conducted its 2nd Global Test (hereafter referred to as ‘CBT’) across four regions—Asia, North America, Europe, and South America—from July 19th for four days.

Since its early development, BoldPlay Games has been identifying what users find enjoyable and trendy through Alpha tests and Global Testing Tours. This CBT was effectively the final test to finalize the game plans.

We analyzed the results of this test to reevaluate what testers thought about Black Stigma. Here, I share the insights gained and the development direction that will be reflected in early access.

[ Results Overview ]

Despite minimal advertising, many testers have joined in and enjoyed the game as they did in the last Global Testing Tour, providing clear and sharp feedback from their varied gaming experiences.

Positive Responses

The positive feedback about Black Stigma was mainly made in these two areas.

Character design and art style
The concept of pistol-based shooting combined with melee combat skills

Negative/Improvement Needed Feedback

There were significant issues with game optimization and network quality. We apologize for not accommodating and preparing for various possibilities, which led to difficulties in conducting smooth tests.

We've summed up other complaints and suggestions for improvement like this.

Lack of intuitiveness and tactile satisfaction when using guns and active skills
Frustration with using active skills
Lacking structure in PVP modes
Unrefined and user-unfriendly interface
Service quality issues

[ Improvements to Make ]

We will adjust the balance to make both pistol shooting and melee action meaningful and improve targeted shooting to enhance the tactile experience of firing a gun.

Active skills will be made quicker and more intuitive, allowing players to proceed or cancel at will, reducing frustration.

All these changes aim to make Black Stigma an intuitive game that allows players to engage enemies without lengthy learning.

< 'Hardworker Crush' was the most lacking in intuitive skill usage - our goal is to improve the delay and operability of most skills so that they feel more intuitive to use >

We plan to modify PVP game modes to be more dynamic and fiercely competitive.

This includes revising the rules of each game mode to minimize the repetition of the same combat scenarios in a match.

Additionally, improvements to the PVP mode map structures are planned to foster more intense battles. New maps are also being developed with this basis.

< New map creation process for an underground waterway concept - we are making a map with multiple layers and will install materials that bullets can penetrate to create more variables >

We also think that we need to work on improving gameplay to add more elements that boost showmanship and competitiveness in combat, especially in places like Get 'em All, we're working on adding devices to better showcase your performance.

We will improve the overall interface and notifications to naturally convey the basic game systems. Instead of easily-skippable tutorials, we aim to use intuitive expressions to explain the features of Black Stigma.

< We tried to help new testers get settled in CBT with a tutorial - in the next version, we want to deliver game information through a more intuitive UI/UX >

We will also improve the UI design and fonts that contributed to a poor first impression, focusing on color schemes and layouts and applying appropriate fonts for different languages.

4. Enhancing Details for a more Standard and Completed Game Service

We will address the deficiencies in in-game content and basic service standards noted during the beta test.

This includes adding announcer voices to help players grasp various combat situations and introducing character-specific voices suitable for the hero shooter genre.

We are also committed to optimizing the game itself, eliminating bugs, and ensuring there are no unpleasant experiences during gameplay.

And lastly, efforts will be made to minimize delays/disconnections due to server communication or network issues.

[ Conclusion ]

Beyond these improvement plans, there are many other concerns we need to address to achieve commercial-level game service standards. The content shared here represents major development directions, and we are preparing to refine these details further. We will continue to communicate with you and finalize the game production through ongoing updates.

We received exceptionally insightful feedback during the test period, which helped us understand the level of quality and gameplay our testers expect. Once again, I want to sincerely thank everyone who participated in the four-day test and left valuable feedback.

Producer Kwon Dae Ho