Your questions answered! Q&A with Byterunners
Dealers, it is time to answer your most pressing questions about the development. Rafał sat down and diligently wrote the responses, and we’ve also categorized them for better clarity, woohoo!
Not much point in waffling about, let’s go straight for the meat!
[h2]Performance / Optimization[/h2]
Question: Will you be making more optimization improvements?
Answer: Yes. We did some performance analysis lately, concluded the required changes and will be implementing more optimization improvements soon. Firstly we wanted to focus on removing sources of some of the crashes by addressing issues that could also affect general performance.
[h2]Bugs[/h2]
Q: When will the bug with the cocaine lab be fixed (Luka disappears)?
A: It was addressed and you can finish the quest. However, we still need to deal with “Search the jungle to find the hidden coke lab” not always disappearing from your task list after completion.
Q: When will the rain sounds inside a house with open windows be fixed?
A: This is not a bug, we just did not go as in-depth with the audio system. We might make some improvements on such details in the future, but for now, we are focusing on more urgent issues.
Q: When do you fix corrupting saves after a power outage?
A: We are looking into this issue, but we haven’t managed to reproduce the issue on our end yet and pinpoint the reason. The files should not get corrupted unless the outage or crash occurs directly at the moment the files are being saved or overwritten, but we are looking into this issue and will keep you informed.
Q: When are you going to fix the issues with multiplayer crashing?
A: We delivered fixes on some frequently experienced game crashes in the latest game update and are currently working on more broad improvements that will make game crashes less likely. Unfortunately, it’s a more complex issue than a simple bugfix and requires more broad architecture solutions and performance improvements. We are sorry for the issues you are experiencing.
Q: When will you fix the priest?
A: The priest bug has been fixed in the latest bugfix update.
[h2]Technical stuff[/h2]
Q: Can we expect the Windowed Feature in Graphics Settings? I have a large wide screen and can only play this game in Full Screen mode or Windowed (Borderless). Windowed Borderless doesn't seem to have any difference.
A: We will look into it and try to add this option as soon as possible.
Q: When do you plan to add FSR 2.X and FSR 3.1 to the game?
A: We are considering researching and implementing FSR but for now it’s a lower-priority concern, we’ll dig into it deeper after we solve more pressing issues. We will inform you if we decide to add it to the game
[h2]DDS lovers[/h2]
Q: Will mixing drugs (just like in DDS1) come to DDS2 with the same or even more eye for detail?
A: Initially we decided to shift the focus and weight of the mixing system to the complex production and lab setup system in DDS2 so as not to overcomplicate the layers of the drug production. For DDS1 the mixing was basically all there was, here the production is much more complex. We are receiving your feedback though and are planning to implement some improvements to the drug mixing, not sure about the time tho. We still have higher-priority improvements that we need to address first.
Q: Why does the game not have end-game sales? I'm still nickel and diming from the start to the end.
A: By design the economic progression in DDS2 is based on improving your offer to more profitable drugs, optimizing production cost and logistics, maximizing the number of clients and territories you have, and hiring dealers and distributors to make it manageable. The more drugs you make and create offers for the more clients you obtain and the sales and profits go up. We recommend looking up other player economic strategies and not relying on the DDS1 way of thinking, the DDS2 economy and progression are vastly different.
Q: Is there going to be a recurring Cartel buyer at some point?
A: As stated above that is not planned. For increased profits, you need to focus on maximising your territory and client base and hiring minions so you can sell as much as possible. A very important element is also obtaining recipes for high-profit drugs such as methamphetamine, cocaine etc.
Q: Will there be the ability to adjust the prices of our products as in DDS1?
A: Yes, we are planning to add that soon and base the price setup ranges to rely on your territory reputation.
Q: What changed in the game engine (UE4 vs UE5) to allow you to implement combat in DDS2 and what exactly made that impossible in DDS1?
A: This is not a matter of the engine and/or impossibility. The scope and budget of DDS1 were much smaller, the team was smaller and we had much less experience. After initial design considerations, we resigned from implementing any kind of combat in DDS1 due to its minimalistic nature, and we want to leave it that way. DDS2 brought more possibilities, and as far as we stand by our decision not to put shooting in the game, we decided that melee combat and some level of defensive or offensive options would fit in the world nicely.
[h2]DDS2 Iterating Endgame / Features[/h2]
Q: Will the big city from the trailer be in the game?
A: The first trailer was cinematic and should not be compared 1:1 with the game. There is a large city containing favelas and colonial buildings far west of the map which is an endgame location, as well as a couple of smaller towns in the earlier areas.
Q: Why are dealer spots in the capital not marked on minimap like everywhere else?
A: We have a technical issue there, we will fix this and deliver this with many other improvements soon.
Q: Maybe add the possibility to work the way for a new drug demand in an area that does not have this drug already, just to make the game more interesting. It is very easy to fulfil demand in an area now and then you are done.
A: Seems like an interesting idea, we’ll consider it. If you have an idea of how would you like to see it implemented to be the most interesting you can share your thoughts on the game’s discord or Steam forums.
Q: Will we get something for that one unused equipment slot?
A: If you are referring to the walkie-talkie slot then yes, we will be adding walkie-talkies to the game soon, which will have a bunch of features. Will keep you informed.
Q: Will there be the possibility to sell the drugs in bigger amounts? Smuggle to other countries for example.
A: We do not plan wholesale sales features for now besides distributing large amounts by using employees, but we’ll consider it in the future.
Q: Will there be an easy way to collect money and give drugs to the dealers? You have desks but they only have a 500m distance and that is not even an island.
A: We are considering some QoL improvements in that regard in the future based on player feedback.
Q: Can we get a feature to pay corrupt cops to bust gang skulls? Maybe then they'd get the message to leave me alone!
A: We’ll consider it.
Q: Reintroduce influencers paying you.
A: You are probably referring to the demo. The influencers still do pay you if you bring them dope, the payments just go directly into your wealth. We changed this for QoL reasons so you don’t have to go around the influencers and collect the money manually. If you have a suggestion on how to change this to make it more interesting, feel free to post it on Discord or the game Steam forums.
Q: Can we get more workers to unlock? I personally was struggling to get enough of them.
A: There are more employees to be unlocked behind quests, rare finds, notice boards, dialogues etc. Some employees are easily obtained or unlocked by the default progression, others are harder to get. We will gather more feedback on the subject tho and consider if more options are needed.
Q: Any improvements to managing distributors, like automating putting cash in a safe after asking them to do so, like with dealers, but from different spots on the map to one hideout?
A: Yes, as stated above in another question we are planning some QoL improvements to both dealer and distributor management.
Q: Why did you remove the ability to jump in DDS2?
A: We did not, the regular jump is, by default, space, but it’s bound to button release as holding space activated auto-vaulting/climbing. When you tap space shortly you should jump normally.
[h2]DDS2 Future (New Features / Expansions)[/h2]
Q: What is the future of the game? Will there be map extensions or just DLC? A new story?
A: Future ideas are currently being planned, and some dev team reorganization is in progress to make them happen, but for now, we are mainly focused on the improvement of the base game and base content. We gathered your feedback and insight, thought about the criticism as well as suggestions, and want to address these first before looking too far into the future.
Q: Can we get markers on the world map for discovered & unpurchased hideouts?
A: There are markers for discovered hideouts, they are greyed-out hideout icons with a lock icon on them. If you have issues with the markers appearing or want to suggest a different way they should show up / unlock to be more useful, please provide us with more feedback.
Q: Will they add a person who will personally monitor production? Running, constantly buying, cooking - is no longer interesting, after all, it is a cartel. It is better to automate production and spend money on something interesting so that there is motivation to earn it and open new such points.
A: We are considering expanding the lab technician functionality to meet these requirements. We received a lot of suggestions for that. We will keep you informed on planned changes in that regard, we’ll get back to it when we’re done with more pressing issues and changes.
Q: This game is really amazing, but after playing it for a while, it started to feel repetitive. It would be great if you could make it more intense and challenging by adding more combat elements. For example, introducing rivals who compete with us and even attack us would add excitement. Also, consider adding guns and guards for our stash houses to enhance the gameplay experience.
A: We have a couple of ideas and more feedback from the players as well. We’ll keep you informed when we plan to drop new features like that when we get to them.
Q: Will there be more drugs? And a more possible way to sell them and get more customers?
A: We introduced a new drug lately and will possibly add some more soon. We will also be helping the modding community to add more items and variations for expanded game content. “Simply” adding a new drug isn’t very complex by itself, but to do it properly we have larger considerations like balance, adequate substance availability, economy and balance etc. Will keep you informed.
Q: What about the idea of using the west harbor (which you have to purchase) as long-term large-scale drug export?
A: Seems like an interesting idea for an endgame feature. Noted. Will inform you if we plan on adding this.
Q: Will we get guns?
A: No, DDS2 will not feature gunplay. For more detailed argumentation reach out to multiple earlier FAQ’s and interviews where I addressed this broadly.
Q: Will there be the possibility to physically store the drugs, additionally to the substance storage, packaged on shelves or tables?
A: We’ve gathered player feedback on this matter and are thinking about adding some form of physical/visual drug storage form to the game. We moved it to the substance storage in UI due to the large amount of available substances and complex production setups in comparison to DDS1, but we understand your preferences and we are currently thinking about how to address it to keep the QoL and convenience but also make the drug storage more immersive.
Q: Will there be new houses to buy, more villas, with adequate furniture, and their buildable garden?
A: Lately, we added a new villa with a private Island attached to it, we are also constantly adding new furniture and decorations to the furniture shops in updates. Keep in touch with changelogs for updates.
Q: Will there be land that can only be bought for cultivation, like fields for sativa?
A: You can surely use the private island for that, but we’ll consider adding more agricultural land-based hideouts.
Q: Will there be new laboratory equipment to process more products in larger volumes?
A: We are considering adding some mass production setups, but after we address higher priority issues and requests.
Q: Vehicles! More vehicles, the possibility of custom, add planes or helicopters which make us travel live like cars, add more luxury objects. Where do I get a helicopter?
A: We are having talks on some vehicle and travel improvements, a quick travel helicopter is a possibility, but we’ll keep you informed on planned changes. No promises for now.
Q: Do you plan to add laundering businesses?
A: We initially resigned from the idea of money laundering for DDS2 and combined it all in the form of the wealth pool. We are not sure if we want to revisit the idea of laundering and if it’s necessary in the DDS2 setting.
Q: Will we get some way to buy mass amounts of products at once?
A: As there are multiple requests for more late game and production wholesale and automation, we’ll consider adding such options, for example maybe in street cred-based shops, etc.
Q: Will the DLC be free or paid?
A: There are both free and paid DLCs in plans. More details will come in the form of the official publisher communication. The DLC content will be mostly developed by separate teams, the core Byterunners team is focused mainly on the base game and content delivered in free updates.
Q: Will there be full controller support?
A: Yes, we are constantly making changes and improvements, but other priorities make the work on it slow. When we manage to put more time into it to fully polish it we’ll announce the support officially.
[h2]Additional[/h2]
Q: How are you all doing?
A: Thanks for asking. The game's complex development and the premiere hit us pretty hard, but we’re alright. After the initial post-premiere support we desperately needed a break so we could function normally and now we’re getting back on track. We went pretty ambitious with the game especially since it was our first co-op, and that can kick back hard.
Q: What inspired you to make a drug dealer game?
A: It was initially a base idea from our publisher, which I (far back when I was still a solo dev) found interesting and decided to pursue. I discovered a concept for a compelling gameplay loop in the drug trade formula and made it work. DDS2 basically expands out from there.
Q: What do you enjoy the most about making games?
A: The complex challenge of forging a dream about a game into a fully fleshed-out, functional, and enjoyable game. It’s never the same, always challenges your creativity which we find very fulfilling.
Q: What do you enjoy the least about making games?
A: The stress, I think, as well as there are a bunch of must-do time-consuming tasks when finishing up, completing and polishing the game that may be frustrating and tiring, but it’s still worth it.
Q: Do you think game devs should bow to the pressure from the community, or do you think there needs to be more understanding from the community with regard to game design/pressures etc?
A: There isn't a simple one-way answer to this. In my opinion, the devs and the community should be in a constant state of dialogue and empathy with one another, be respectful to each other and consider good and bad points in the discussion on both sides. Both sides have their rights and wrongs, the role of the devs is to conclude what is best for the specific subject and for the game by both standing their ground where it’s necessary but also listening to the community and seeing our own mistakes. Both mindlessly bowing to the community or on the contrary being stubborn and refusing to listen are recipes for a catastrophe.
Q: Do you believe in some transparency to your community to let them help you shape the game?
A: Yes, we do. I believe the response to the earlier question sums it up.
Q: Do you have plans for a 3rd game, or to expand upon things to do in DDS2?
A: We have multiple game ideas, but for now we are only focusing on DDS2.
Q: Will the DLC be available in Poland? It's illegal to promote gambling, so I'm curious what the legal situation is and I'm afraid I won't be able to play.
A: It’s also a game about drug dealing… ;)
