October Development Report
Eyes up, Steel Dragons! We know things have been quiet on our side for the past few months and we appreciate everyone who's been checking in, waiting, and wondering what's next. The good news is: yes, development is very much alive. Developing a game is tricky especially since we
Eyes up, Steel Dragons!
We know things have been quiet on our side for the past few months and we appreciate everyone who's been checking in, waiting, and wondering what's next. The good news is: yes, development is very much alive.
Developing a game is tricky especially since we announced Project Haven very early on. Back then, we wanted to gauge how much interest there would be in a game like this. And honestly, we didn't really expect it to get this much attention! We've always loved tactical games and were set on making one no matter what, and we're truly grateful to everyone who's been part of the conversation since. However, showing our work so soon has brought extra challenges and expectations, which have sometimes been hard for us to fulfill.
The truth is that it's been so many years that we've been through just about everything: from true excitement seeing players enjoy the game, to burnout, to life getting in the way and everything in-between. We may not have a fixed release date just yet, and we know we’ve missed past estimates. Given where things stand, it’s clear that our current timeline for a 2025 release is not realistic. We’re genuinely sorry for breaking your expectations. But rest assured, we’ve never stopped making progress, and we want to make it clear: the game will be released.
So let's dive into what's new!
Enemy Class System Overhaul
In our last devlog, we teased the new class-based system for enemy factions, and that system is now fully functional in-game:
Each enemy class now has a distinct look, with variations across both male and female models.
Each class comes with its own behavior and AI scripts: Shotgunners rush, marksmen hold angles, and brawlers close the gap. So now, they not only look the part, they act the part too!
We’ve also added UI icons that indicate each enemy’s class: No more zooming in to squint at someone’s weapon to figure out what kind of threat you're facing.
We see this as an important step toward better gameplay clarity. Being able to quickly tell what you’re up against makes a big difference in tactical decision-making, and this work really helps support that.
Character Models
Our work on the game’s character models continues - and with such a big cast, you’ll probably be hearing about this again.
Here’s a look at the new Brotherhood models, now fully represented across all classes and genders.
We can also share a look at the Iron Dogs, currently still in progress and shown here in their high-poly form (detailed 3D versions we create before optimizing them for the game), and once we move on to the low-poly and texture passes, they’ll be ready to join the other factions already implemented in-game.
More characters were made (some still only in high-poly others already in low-poly), but we’ll keep those under wraps for release!
We’ve also been updating older character skeletons and fixing long-standing issues with modular meshes (particularly with civilians).
It’s not the flashiest task, but it’s a crucial one. These updates fix persistent animation issues we’ve been dealing with and help streamline the entire animation and cinematic pipeline for both main characters and background NPCs.
Merc Skills
If you’ve played previous demos, you probably noticed some skills were still unimplemented or marked as placeholders - well, we’re finally addressing that.
We’re reworking the mercenary skill trees: adding what was missing, removing what no longer fits, and refining the structure to better support tactical builds. It’s a major update, we've completely overhauled the attributes, reducing them to just 3 (Body, Speed and Focus) that change your core stats. Then, we have a tiered system for the skills, where you need to spend points in the tree to unlock higher tiers. We'll go into more detail on the available skills and skill trees in the future. It's a crucial part of the game and we look forward to your feedback when you get to see it in more detail!
Improved Sound and Spatial Audio
Since we've finished all level design we’ve been rolling out a round of audio improvements aimed at making Project Haven’s world feel more alive and more tactical. This work is still ongoing across several levels, but here's what we have been working on:
Attenuation tweaks: Zoomed-in vs zoomed-out sound perception is now more dynamic. Gunfire, voices, and explosions behave differently based on your camera distance.
Sound cues: We’ve added and adjusted several cues to help you better read the battlefield, even without visual confirmation.
Occlusion: We’re working on making sure that audio behaves properly around walls, doors, and other obstacles.
It’s not just about sounding “cool” - good audio is tactical information. We want sound to be something you can rely on to make smarter decisions in combat.
Other developments
We have also been working on background things like AI fixes, performance optimization, online co-op syncing, and other gameplay fixes that are core to making the game feel smooth and responsive.
Addressing Recent Feedback
We’ve seen the latest wave of feedback and questions coming in and we would like to again thank you for continuing to engage with the game and share your thoughts.
Some of you have expressed concerns about feature scope, pacing, and whether we’re still staying true to the original vision of the game and that’s fair. We want to assure you that everything we’re adding or refining is in service of that original goal: delivering the game we set out to make from the beginning: a deep, tactical experience set in a compelling world and with strategic depth.
We’ve also seen renewed discussion around pre-made characters versus full customization. We totally understand the appeal of creating your own character. That’s something we enjoy too. But from the very beginning, we made the decision to go with a fixed cast of mercenaries. At the time, we were just a two-person team, and full character customization would have required far more resources (more models, a larger voice cast, extra UI support) that would cost us more time and investment on our part. So instead, we focused on building a roster of hand-crafted mercenaries with strong personalities, unique dialogue, and personal story arcs. That said, tactical flexibility has always been a core focus and we’re ensuring players will have plenty of room for expression through loadouts, skill builds, and tactical approaches.
Still, we want to remind you that Project Haven will be moddable. So while it’s not something we’ll be adding officially, players who want to create and share their own characters will absolutely be able to do so post-launch.
Thanks for sticking with us. We’re getting there, and when we do, we want to make sure it’s something worth the wait.
Stay sharp, mercs!
We will see you in the next update,
Code Three Fifty One
