Dev Blog丨New Pollution Zones and Existing Survival Environment Optimizations

Dear Metas,

When survival becomes predictable, challenges lose their meaning. We’ve decided to break the status quo by comprehensively upgrading the Pollution Zone gameplay and existing survival environment, ensuring every scenario journey presents a new excitement. On January 21(PT), after the version update, we’ll introduce you to a brand-new Pollution Zone experience. Details are as follows:

I. Pollution Zone Experience Optimizations

1. New Pollution Zones

We’ll add various types of Pollution Zones across different level areas on the map. After the January 21(PT) update, scenario servers (excluding RaidZone Mode) will randomly generate Pollution Zones, with each server having unique locations and quantities, creating a distinct experience for every scenario.

Description:

1) Scenarios like "Endless Dream," "Prismverse's Clash," and "Deviation: Survive, Capture, Preserve" will feature fewer Pollution Zones. This is due to their inherently high challenge and unique narrative pacing, ensuring balance and focus on their core experience.

2) New scenario servers will randomly generate Pollution Zone locations upon launch, with positions and types fixed thereafter.

2. Pollution Zone Trait Adjustments

In this update, we’re also refining the current Pollution Zone environment. Pollution value will now stabilize and no longer fluctuate with special resource quantities. Adjustments include:

1) To preserve resource value, higher Pollution value areas will yield more special resources, with increased chances of gold/silver ore spawns. Metas can use Stardust Miners for extraction in high-pollution zones.

2) Structures in Pollution Zones will continuously suffer Corrosion until destroyed. Metas can protect them by consuming specific materials, with Corrosion speed and material costs scaling with Pollution value.

3) If Metas remain in a Pollution Zone with resistance lower than the Pollution value, Sanity loss will slow significantly compared to the current version. However, the effectiveness of items, Deviations, and other Sanity recovery methods will also decrease.

4) The Fools will no longer spawn by default in low Sanity states and will only appear in [Wild Deviant] Pollution Zones. Additionally, their mechanics have been revised: new Fools will no longer instantly kill players, and they will not stop moving when observed by players. Detailed mechanics regarding Fools in Pollution Zones will be further explained in the [Wild Deviant] Pollution Zone section below.

3. Other Adjustments

In the January 21(PT) update, we have also made the following adjustments:

1) The effects of [Stardust Malt Ale]/[Stardust Corn Ale] have been adjusted to boost Pollution Resistance, while [Signature Ice Brew] now enhances Sprint Speed, better aligning with their food-themed naming (related crafting Formulas have been updated accordingly):

2) Based on the current Pollution Zone’s gameplay philosophy of "high risk, high reward, intense challenge," we have implemented the following comprehensive adjustments:

a. Increased rewards from Pollution Zones:

- Defeating Elites in Pollution Zones may drop Deviations.

- Defeating enemies in Pollution Zones will drop Stardust Source and Acid.

- Pollution Zone chests may now contain Fuel.

b. Adjusted Pollution Zone values to better reflect high-risk gameplay:

- Reduced Pollution Resistance provided by gears and adjusted the values of certain dishes with Pollution Resist effects, changing them from percentage-based to fixed values. Metas must now strategize more carefully when using dishes, Deviations and other means to counter Pollution.

0

- Gear degradation is more severe upon death in a polluted zone.

c. Streamlined and focused on open-world gameplay, removing the Mist feature: Based on long-term monitoring of online data and player feedback, we found that the current Mist feature failed to deliver the expected experience for Metas in terms of fun and playability, with consistently low participation rates. After careful consideration, we have decided to temporarily remove the Mist feature. The Deviations and items originally obtained from Mist can now be acquired by defeating Elites in Pollution Zones. We will revisit and revamp the Mist feature in the future to reintroduce it in a better form.

4. Survival Stats and Whim Optimization

In this update, we have also adjusted Survival Stats and Whims:

1) Adjusted the impact of different Survival Stats on characters: Energy primarily affects HP, Hydration mainly affects movement, and weight influences temperature resistance.

2) Characters now recover Sanity much faster while sleeping.

3) Reduced the speed of Heatstroke and Hypothermia progression.

4) The trigger condition for Whims has been changed to occur when characters perform specific actions under low Sanity. Whim effects will now have more distinctive visuals and entertaining impacts.

Example: After triggering a certain Whim, defeating enemies while having low Energy may cause them to drop meat instead of regular loot.

More intriguing Whims await you to discover!

II. Pollution Zone Types and Effects

After this update, multiple new Pollution Zones will appear on the map. Different types of Pollution Zones have varying Deviant effects. Higher Pollution value intensify these effects. Each Pollution Zone comes with one mandatory Deviant effect and 1-3 Deviant Traits (affecting survival, exploration, or production), with the number of Traits increasing alongside Pollution value.

Upon entering a Pollution Zone, players will see its type and Deviant effects displayed at the top of the screen (red pins for Deviant effects, yellow pins for Deviant Traits). Metas can click to view detailed effects in-game.

Below, we’ll introduce the new Pollution Zone types and their effects:

1. Wild Deviant

[Deviant Effect]: Damage falls off with distance from the target, while the mutation rate of wild plants increases.

[Deviant Trait 1]: When planted in Wild regions, crops have an increased chance of mutation.

[Deviant Trait 2]: Special trees appear in Wild regions, which are guaranteed to drop seeds/mutated plants when chopped down. If left unchopped for a certain time, these trees will transform into Fools. Fools no longer attack Metas but will devour crops planted by Metas.

[Deviant Trait 3]: When breeding in Wild regions, offspring have a chance to upgrade their Trait entries and an increased chance of obtaining rare patterns. Tamed animals lose Tameness more easily (Tameness may start decreasing even when Energy and Hydration are not zero), and higher Pollution value further accelerate Tameness loss.

2. Mirror Deviant

[Deviant Effect]: In Mirror regions, damage falls off with how frontal the hit is. Looting or gathering actions have a chance to yield double rewards.

[Deviant Trait 1]: Interactive magic mirrors spawn in Mirror regions. Interacting with them summons a clone that follows you, sharing damage taken. After the player attacks an enemy, the clone enters combat and Taunts the foe.

[Deviant Trait 2]: Morphic Crates with reflective mirrors on their backs spawn in Mirror regions. Defeating them grants rich rewards. Metas must use their wits to overcome them!

[Deviant Trait 3]: Backstab kills have a chance to double loot drops.

3. Phantasmal Deviant

[Deviant Effect]: All creatures (including Metas, enemies, and animals) alternate between Void and Solid states. Void reduces Physical DMG, while Solid reduces Elemental and Psi DMG.

[Deviant Trait 1]: More enemies spawn.

[Deviant Trait 2]: If a Meta Captures an animal while it is in the Void state, the animal gains the Trait: Phantom. Animals with this trait take on a Void appearance, and their attacks deal random Elemental DMG.

【Deviant Trait 3】：Elite enemy Frostella appears. Frostella will use different types of attacks based on the Metas' Void/Solid state.

That's all for this Dev Blog. After the optimization and iteration of the Pollution Zone, the new Visional gameplay will also be launched alongside the Pollution Zone. We will later reveal the new S3 Visional Wheel gameplay for the Metas. Stay tuned!

Once Human Development Team