TDZ development plans and developer diary.
It's time to announce plans for the next 6 months. By the time this post is published, some of the innovations may already remain in the game.
[h3]- Standardization of loot on maps/global map and adding an item store (world market).[/h3]
In-game items, as well as finding them, are an important element of the game. But due to the probability (randomness) of the spawn of this item, the location could be cleared many times and ultimately not receive the desired item. This had an extremely negative impact on the gaming experience.
The addition of the "World Market" in one of the recent updates should solve the previously described problem. Now it is not necessary to carry out cyclical uninteresting searches for “that same tool”, but rather open the desired building in the shelter.
But do not forget that the store’s assortment and prices for items will be updated with the release of each patch.
[h3]- New locations on the global map. New combat locations for skirmishes with opponents.[/h3]
The sore problem of the game is the cards. More than six months have passed since the game was released into early access, and the updates have not brought any new locations. The reason for this is the level editor - a separate program created on the game engine.
After releasing TDZ, the main efforts were aimed at improving and polishing the gaming system. The above-mentioned editor was already under confidentiality conditions at the time of early access, and updating it took a lot of effort and time, which was so lacking in the first months after the game was released into early access.
But despite this, the editor was slowly updated and improved. Soon, for the first time in half a year, a new interesting and unique location appeared in the game.
[h3]- Shelter and endgame content levels.[/h3]
Starting from early ideas, the current game mode includes sandbox cutscenes, but it still needs an ending or final stage of the game.
One of the planned updates adds a new progression mechanic related to shelter improvements. There will be a separate post soon with a description and ideas regarding this update.
[h3]- Guide update and introductory tutorial episode.[/h3]
The original idea of the player learning secondary mechanics on his own did not pay off. Most new players find it extremely difficult to get used to TDZ. This negatively affects the overall game dynamics. Thus, the average session in the game, according to the latest data, is 24 minutes.
Updating the tutorial and adding an introductory staged game level should change and make the first steps easier for a new player. A little later I will describe in more detail what the previously described content will be.
[h3]- Two important thematic updates.[/h3]
We are not ready to directly say the topics of future major updates, but many of you will have to find out the following: “Are you the hunter? Or the prey?!” and "How alone are you in this post-nuclear world"
[h3]- New mutants and neutral mobs.[/h3]
The main reason why there are still only two types of mutants in the game is the presence of environmental features. As planned, most mutants live in certain natural areas and their addition/updating directly depended on the map editor (there was a point about maps and the editor above)
[h3] - Reset progress. Economy rework and rebalancing.[/h3]
A very massive topic that requires a separate post.
[h3]- Fixed problems and improved stability.[/h3]
Our main goal as the developers of TDZ is to provide a fun and interesting gaming experience. Technical problems and shortcomings are the main opponents.
It would be unfounded to call the current state of the technical part of the game ideal.
A small portion of players still have problems with loading map geometry, and the nature of this problem has not been identified to this day. This is not a technical problem (I rewrote the content loading system twice, but the result remained the same). Some users find it helpful to reinstall the operating system or replace components. !But we do not recommend doing this!
This concludes the developer diary. It is extremely important for us to hear opinions regarding current plans and the game in general. We will wait and actively check the comments under this post. See you in the new dev diary!