Hello new adventurers!
Our launch on Steam and Epic Games marks a major milestone in the availability of Dark and Darker.
We would like to address the Free to Play label. We’ve heard your feedback loud and clear, and would like to explain the reasons behind our current Free to Play model. We would also like to clear up any misunderstandings and layout our plans going forward. We apologize to anyone who felt misled by the game being marketed as Free to Play and acknowledge that we should have chosen a better method to introduce it in that regard. Throughout the game’s Early Access development, the game was always a paid product, and we intend for the full experience to remain this way. This ensures we uphold our promise to our loyal early adopters, and helps combat cheaters along with RMT to keep the dungeons clean for all to enjoy.
The main reason we released our game as Free to Play (F2P) was because we made a promise to our early loyal adopters on Blacksmith, that we’d do everything possible to not force them to repurchase the game again if it went to major platforms. We do not believe in double-dipping or taking advantage of our fans who are the sole reason we’ve come this far.
When we had the opportunity to release the game on the Epic Games Store and Steam platform we were thrilled to be back on large global platforms. However, due to the large number of previous customers on Blacksmith, it was not feasible nor fair to our platform partners for us to distribute thousands of keys to Blacksmith customers for free, increasing their risk with little benefit to them. The solution to overcome the technical, logistical and contractual hurdles we faced was to transition to a Free to Play model which would allow our current customers to naturally transition to a partner platform of their choice without the use of any abusable keys.
When we designed our current free to play system, our intention was to ensure that previous customers did not feel as if they were taken advantage of for supporting us. We wanted to make sure they felt properly compensated for their loyalty while still feeling excited for the new transition to a free to play version.
As a bit of context and history, we implemented the current Normal game mode that restricted items to common grade back in November of 2023 where it quickly became a fan favorite. Our Blacksmith players saw the mode as a solution to a divisive item gap disparity and many viewed the mode as the most fair and balanced mode rather than a limiting system. We decided to open the Normal mode to the free version precisely because of its high value to the community. We naively thought this mode would be compelling enough for incoming players since they got access to the most popular and accessible mode in the game for free. We had failed to take into consideration how brand-new players not knowing the development context would have a different perceived value for this mode, and how it could easily be construed as us trying to bait and switch them. This is the farthest thing from the truth as we are continually striving to find fair and open ways to run an online game while respecting our loyal customers.
A secondary reason for restricting free players to the Normal mode was to act as a barrier, and lower the incentives for hackers to disrupt the game. Like many other competitive online games, we face the challenge of fighting those that look for advantages through unfair means. We knew that once we went free to play, we would be sending an open invitation to hackers around the world. In our quest against hackers, our bans show they almost exclusively attempt to exploit the High-Roller dungeons as that was where their exploits would bear the most fruit. Limiting hackers with free accounts to the less disruptive Normal modes was also a preventative measure to try and compartmentalize the damage they could do.
When releasing our Squire and Legendary account models, our intent was to offer a free version of the game that had no time limit. This would give players a commitment-free opportunity to see what Dark and Darker has to offer. The free account status allows players to experience Normal mode dungeons with a single character, stash the loot they acquire, and complete quests. This improves their standing with the merchants - improving pricing and wares, while also expanding the arsenal of items the Squire merchant provides players with.
Despite our intentions, we failed in anticipating the expectations that new players would have when approaching our game. We did not intend to deceive our players, and we now realize that the current Normal/High Roller bifurcation is not well designed for F2P players. We built a full loot extraction game and then forced upon a large contingent of the player-base the inability to utilize their hard-earned loot without any workarounds. We now understand the absurdity of that situation and are looking to make amends.
We are currently working on solutions that take into consideration both the needs of existing and new players. Our goal is to give new players the ability to experience a complete loop of a full loot extraction experience and risk their loot while still respecting the loyalty of our existing players. We’re still working on the details for that plan that will address access to the High-Roller dungeons, the ability to unlock character slots, and will make an announcement very soon as the details are finalized. Our goal is to be fair and just with our players, and we’ll do our best to show our appreciation. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your incredible support over the past two years as we work to make Dark and Darker the best it can be. We could not ask for a better, more passionate community – thank you for holding the line!
IRONMACE