Welcome to our 80th Ready or Not Development Briefing on this November 22nd, 2024!
We hope you’re all having a great day. We have some exciting updates to discuss regarding our game design philosophy with a focus on increasing player flexibility, details about the upcoming launch of our second DLC, which will be free for Supporter Edition owners, a free update coming next year for everyone, and the introduction of our prototype merchandise line.
You can already explore our inaugural release of prototype merchandise on our official website by clicking here. A more expansive and refined second line will be released later on.
Note: These development briefings keep you informed about aspects of our ongoing support for Ready or Not. Please note that they do not cover everything we’re currently working on. Be aware that the content in our development briefings may still be under development and could change.
Our second DLC, titled Dark Waters, is on the horizon with detailed information to follow soon.
[Image below: “SWAT, this is Air Support on call, you have eyes in the sky.”]
In Dark Waters, missions unfold in maritime settings as your team extends its operations along the Los Suenos coastline, working alongside the California Offshore Air and Sea Team organization (C.O.A.S.T).
At release, the Dark Waters DLC will be provided at no cost to Supporter Edition owners directly in their Steam Library, akin to DLC 1.
This gesture not only reflects our appreciation for early supporters of Ready or Not but also acknowledges the promise of DLC Weapon Packs that weren’t realized. This resulted partly from our decision to make new DLC-related weapons accessible for everyone at no charge.
However, it’s important to note that we will be discontinuing the unused Supporter Alpha playtesting Steam branch due to its outdated functions and the unintended issues it currently causes for some players.
This playtesting branch was initiated as an extension of the pre-Steam Early Access Alpha testing advantage for Supporter Edition owners, offering short testing phases prior to updates since the Steam Early Access launch acted as a transitional Alpha/Beta stage. After version 1.0, many years beyond our Alpha stage, we no longer support this style of playtesting.
Interestingly, many players unknowingly continued using this outdated branch, causing problems with matchmaking with those on the main game branch. Therefore, we are officially making this outdated Alpha branch unavailable.
Sharp-eyed officers among you might have observed that the features we’re adding with the Dark Waters update (such as arrest canceling and equipping multiple headgear simultaneously) and those planned for future updates subscribe to a broader theme of increased player flexibility.
In recent months, we’ve slightly adjusted our game design philosophy, shifting from superficial loadout and customization balancing to focusing on enhancing player flexibility. Our aim is to empower players to make more impactful choices and provide richer customization options across weapons, quality of life features, and gear.
The evolution of our game support benefits from augmented development capacity compared to when we previously implemented numerous other features.
High-quality gunplay has always been a key theme in the development of Ready or Not, with three main pillars being the customization fantasy, utility of firearms, and overall feel. When something doesn’t feel realistic, it is often a design choice aimed at maintaining the ‘right’ feel or fun factor for the game.
We recognized that forcing players to choose between different attachments for balance purposes wasn’t fun or engaging. This is a significant reason why we plan to introduce the capacity to use multiple rail attachments simultaneously, such as equipping both a flashlight and an IR sight. Although we aimed to include this in DLC 2, we couldn’t fit it in quite as we intended.
In the meantime, anticipate a few exciting upgrades to your weaponry with Dark Waters.
The alterations in gear flexibility pertain to the headgear changes highlighted in the last dev briefing, Vol. 79. For instance, compelling players to choose between NVGs or a gas mask seemed unnecessarily restrictive rather than enjoyable or realistic. The option to personalize gear to such an extent, including cosmetic benefits, just looks cool.
Our quality of life-oriented flexibility changes, such as enabling arrest canceling, are not designed to drastically change the deliberate pacing of gameplay. Instead, they aim to mitigate situations where the game might lock you into actions you no longer wish to perform. While arrest canceling is now possible, players must still quickly adapt and determine their approach to any immediate threats. Securing your area before proceeding with arrests remains the preferred strategy.
While several recent content updates have been released alongside a paid DLC, this approach is not planned for all future updates. Our next content update, scheduled for next year, will be free for everyone. More information regarding this update will be provided next year!
Once again, you can find t-shirts, hats, and a hoodie featuring RoN branding and designs on our website.
We are planning many more types of merchandise and designs for our second line, but you can purchase this prototype first line now! Purchasing this merchandising helps us determine appropriate sizes and quantities for future availability.
[Image below: One of the t-shirts from our first-line merch]
Player flexibility is an area we aim to continue exploring, and you can experience increased flexibility with our upcoming DLC, Dark Waters. We extend our gratitude once again to our Supporter Edition owners for their dedication during the early phases of the game, and are happy to offer the Dark Waters DLC free to you. We have plenty of exciting details to share in the coming weeks and in next year’s free content update accessible to everyone.
This concludes our 80th development briefing. Thank you for staying informed with us. Don’t miss the next briefing for more updates on our developments!
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VOID Interactive