Welcome to our 80th Ready or Not Development briefing, dated November 22nd, 2024!
We trust you’re all in good health today. We are keen to share comprehensive insights into our game design philosophy, emphasizing player adaptability, details on the forthcoming DLC 2 launch, and exciting news regarding free content updates next year, not to mention the debut of our prototype merchandise line.
You can purchase our initial prototype merchandise collection from our official site here. A more extensive and refined second lineup will be introduced soon.
Note: These development briefings aim to keep you informed about our enduring support for Ready or Not. However, they don’t cover all the aspects we are currently working on. Please remember that elements within our development briefings might still be in progress and subject to change.
Our second DLC, Dark Waters, is on the horizon, with more information to be released soon.
[Image below: “SWAT, this is Air Support on call, you have eyes in the sky.”]
In Dark Waters, each mission is set in a maritime environment where your team will broaden their duties along the Los Suenos coastline in cooperation with the California Offshore Air and Sea Team organization (C.O.A.S.T).
Upon launch, the Dark Waters DLC will automatically be available for free to Supporter Edition owners in their Steam Library, akin to DLC 1.
In addition to expressing our sincere gratitude to the early supporters of Ready or Not, making DLC 2 free partly acknowledges the DLC Weapon Packs that were never realized—a reflection of our decision to offer new DLC-related weapons without charge to everyone.
Please be aware that we will be discontinuing the Supporter Alpha playtesting Steam branch due to its outdated objectives and unintended issues for players still using it.
This particular branch was initially created as a goodwill extension of the pre-Steam Early Access Alpha testing perk for Supporter Edition owners. It allowed brief testing periods before updates during the Steam Early Access phase, which was, in a sense, a transitional Alpha/Beta stage. However, this playtesting perk style is no longer supported after reaching version 1.0, long beyond our Alpha phase.
Unfortunately, some players remained set to this outdated branch, unaware of its obsolescence and unaware it could hinder their ability to match-make with players on the current game branch. Consequently, we will be officially making this outdated Alpha branch unavailable.
As the more observant officers among you might have noticed, several features to be introduced with the Dark Waters update (e.g., arrest canceling, simultaneous multiple headgear) and others planned for future updates reflect a theme of enhanced player flexibility.
In recent months we’ve consciously adjusted our game design philosophy, transitioning from superficial loadout and customization balancing to a focus on player adaptability enhancement. Our ambition is to empower players with meaningful choices and richer customization options, impacting weapons, quality of life features, and gear.
Part of supporting our game involves a degree of evolution, fostered now by increased developmental capacity compared to when we were previously adding numerous features.
Quality gunplay has always been essential to Ready or Not’s development, centered around three core pillars: customization fantasy, gun utility, and feel. Sometimes, realism is set aside in favor of the game feeling ‘right’ or ‘fun.’
We acknowledged that forcing players to choose between different attachments merely for balance could be neither engaging nor realistic. Consequently, we plan to implement the ability to use multiple rail attachments simultaneously, such as combining a flashlight and IR sight. Although this was intended for inclusion in DLC 2, we couldn’t incorporate it properly.
In the meantime, anticipate new up-caliber enhancements to your arsenal with Dark Waters.
The changes in gear adaptability were featured in the previous dev briefing, Vol. 79. For instance, making players choose between NVGs and a gas mask appeared more restricting than entertaining or realistic, including the aesthetic benefits of such customization flexibility. It looks appealing to wear both together.
The flexibility changes focusing on the quality of life, such as adding the ability to cancel an arrest, are not meant to disrupt the deliberate pacing of the gameplay significantly but rather to lessen times where the game might lock you into an action you no longer wish to pursue. Although you can now cancel an arrest, you must quickly reassess and decide how to handle any immediate threats. Ensuring your surroundings are secure before proceeding with arrests remains the optimal approach.
While many of our recent content updates have coincided with a paid DLC, this isn’t the plan for all future updates. Our forthcoming content update is slated for next year and will be freely available to everyone. Look forward to more details regarding this update as we embark on the new year!
Once more, on our website, you can discover t-shirts, hats, and a hoodie featuring RoN branding and designs.
We have numerous other merchandise types and designs planned for our second line, yet you can currently procure our initial prototype lineup! Purchasing this lineup aids us in determining the sizes and quantities we should plan to have readily available in the future.
[Image below: One of the t-shirts from our first-line merch]
Player adaptability remains an area we intend to explore further, and it is something you can anticipate experiencing with our second DLC, Dark Waters. To our Supporter Edition owners, we express our gratitude for your support during the game’s early phase and are delighted to offer the Dark Waters DLC free of charge. We have plenty of exciting information to share over the coming weeks and in the free content update for everyone next year.
That concludes our 80th development briefing. Thank you for your attention. Make sure to join us next time for more development updates!
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VOID Interactive