State of the Development, Future Plans
Dear Players of Salty Hounds,
Here is a short news on the state of this project and our steps going forward. You must’ve been worried about the lack of an announcement since the last patch note.
Firstly, we would like to apologize for the poor state of the game since its release.
As you know, we have diligently worked on improving the game with patches and content updates in the first weeks after release, but unfortunately, our efforts were rendered moot when the programmer refused to cooperate and instead demanded more money, even though he/they had/have already been paid much more than what was agreed on and still couldn’t deliver.
The programmer has denied his responsibility and refused to fix the game or fulfill his end of the contract, which entailed delivering a complete game - which he/they definitely hasn't/haven't done.
Furthermore, the programmer has actively worked against our efforts to improve the game as soon as possible, by refusing to send over the requested parts of the code, refusing to add even just a few lines of text and codes, and by implementing machine-translated texts without our consent.
However, we are pleased to inform you that we have successfully found a highly experienced programmer who is now rewriting the game from scratch.
The former programmer's code was in a dire state, making it impossible to salvage a single line for reuse.
But with our new programmer's expertise, we are confident that we can deliver an entirely new and improved build within the next 1.7~2 months, if not sooner - seeing how he has now achieved more progress in the last few weeks.
We kindly ask for your patience during this time.
While we focus on creating the best possible version of Salty Hounds from scratch, there will be no further patches for the current build on Steam, as the current build is not worth investing additional time and resources into due to its fundamentally broken codes.
*
We wanted to keep these internal circumstances to ourselves and deal with the repercussions of the programmer’s actions by ourselves, as a team.
However, we had no choice but to explain all this to you because you need to be informed about why no updates will be coming to the current build on Steam, until we can replace it September.
We will take all the necessary legal actions against the former programmer who has forced our hands.
The currently planned delivery timeline of the game updates looks as follows.
We are sincerely sorry for the delay.
2023 September: Update to version 0.8
We are going to completely remove the currently available version of the game, and replace it with an entirely new build that has been re-developed from scratch, with the help of the new programmer.
This version will feature improved stability, redesigns to the core gameplay with the goal of achieving a better pacing, and many more interactions across the map.
2023 End October: Update to version 0.9
There will be a major content update, including the dating feature.
2023 End December: Update to version 1.0. and official release
We plan to push the game to version 1.0 by this time.
The special phone call DLCs will also become available for purchase.
*
Once again, we truly appreciate your support and understanding.
Your enthusiasm and understanding for Salty Hounds has been our driving force, and we can't wait to deliver a truly exceptional gaming experience, as it should have been.
Warmest regards,
Your Game Development Team, Topping Palette.
Here is a short news on the state of this project and our steps going forward. You must’ve been worried about the lack of an announcement since the last patch note.
Firstly, we would like to apologize for the poor state of the game since its release.
As you know, we have diligently worked on improving the game with patches and content updates in the first weeks after release, but unfortunately, our efforts were rendered moot when the programmer refused to cooperate and instead demanded more money, even though he/they had/have already been paid much more than what was agreed on and still couldn’t deliver.
The programmer has denied his responsibility and refused to fix the game or fulfill his end of the contract, which entailed delivering a complete game - which he/they definitely hasn't/haven't done.
Furthermore, the programmer has actively worked against our efforts to improve the game as soon as possible, by refusing to send over the requested parts of the code, refusing to add even just a few lines of text and codes, and by implementing machine-translated texts without our consent.
However, we are pleased to inform you that we have successfully found a highly experienced programmer who is now rewriting the game from scratch.
The former programmer's code was in a dire state, making it impossible to salvage a single line for reuse.
But with our new programmer's expertise, we are confident that we can deliver an entirely new and improved build within the next 1.7~2 months, if not sooner - seeing how he has now achieved more progress in the last few weeks.
We kindly ask for your patience during this time.
While we focus on creating the best possible version of Salty Hounds from scratch, there will be no further patches for the current build on Steam, as the current build is not worth investing additional time and resources into due to its fundamentally broken codes.
*
We wanted to keep these internal circumstances to ourselves and deal with the repercussions of the programmer’s actions by ourselves, as a team.
However, we had no choice but to explain all this to you because you need to be informed about why no updates will be coming to the current build on Steam, until we can replace it September.
We will take all the necessary legal actions against the former programmer who has forced our hands.
The currently planned delivery timeline of the game updates looks as follows.
We are sincerely sorry for the delay.
2023 September: Update to version 0.8
We are going to completely remove the currently available version of the game, and replace it with an entirely new build that has been re-developed from scratch, with the help of the new programmer.
This version will feature improved stability, redesigns to the core gameplay with the goal of achieving a better pacing, and many more interactions across the map.
2023 End October: Update to version 0.9
There will be a major content update, including the dating feature.
2023 End December: Update to version 1.0. and official release
We plan to push the game to version 1.0 by this time.
The special phone call DLCs will also become available for purchase.
*
Once again, we truly appreciate your support and understanding.
Your enthusiasm and understanding for Salty Hounds has been our driving force, and we can't wait to deliver a truly exceptional gaming experience, as it should have been.
Warmest regards,
Your Game Development Team, Topping Palette.