Hello, Screamers!
Firstly, thank you for your incredible support for "DON'T SCREAM". This journey has been beyond our wildest expectations. When we launched this game as a short UE5 horror experience, we never imagined it would capture your attention the way it has. Your enthusiasm and ideas have not only been inspiring but have also highlighted the potential for even greater depth in the game.
As much as we've achieved, Joure and I are aware of the limits of what we can accomplish alone, particularly regarding content and technical enhancements. We're proud of the improvements we've made so far, yet we recognize that there's a broader scope for development. This was a challenging realization, especially as our initial vision was for a short, engaging horror experience built-in UE5.
After careful consideration, and with the above in mind, Joure and I have decided to pursue different paths to best utilize our individual talents and visions. Joure will be moving on to new projects, beginning his own adventure in the indie dev scene. I wholeheartedly support him and thank him for his dedication and remarkable contributions to DON'T SCREAM. You can continue to support and follow his future endeavours on his Discord and Patreon platforms. Thank you, Joure!
As for me, I will remain actively involved with DON'T SCREAM, now with additional help. I'm excited to announce a collaboration with Digital Cybercherries. They will come on board to help develop and publish the game. This partnership marks a new chapter in the game's journey, promising to improve and expand the gameplay experience, overcoming the technical limitations that once hindered us. So, it's time to talk about the first major update and the future of DON'T SCREAM.
Please let us know on our Steam Forums or Discord if you encounter any bugs. Thank you!
WHAT LIES AHEAD FOR DON'T SCREAM
Over the past two months since the launch of DON'T SCREAM, we've learned that you all really love the concept of the game. However, you've told us that its execution could be better. We've spent these months analyzing your feedback and identifying the most common points of interest. The most common feedback focused on performance, better microphone calibration, an improved user interface, and more subtle, tension-based scares instead of too many abrupt jump scares. There was also a desire for more backstory and lore, explaining why you're exploring the forest and understanding your purpose there. Many comments also suggested adding other dangers in the forest, which can kill the player if not cautiously avoided. Additionally, we noticed requests for objectives to motivate players to delve deeper into the forest's mysteries.
With this in mind, and with the assistance of Digital Cybercherries, we're now confident that we can implement the following improvements and content throughout 2024, each with more significant polish:
Here's our development roadmap for the enhancements and additions we plan to make in 2024, based on your ongoing feedback: (click the image to enlarge).
If the image won't open, here's a text version:
DON'T SCREAM DEVELOPMENT ROADMAP 2024OPTIMIZATION
- Vastly improve performance for lower-end systems to ensure smoother gameplay, while further optimizing medium and high graphics settings.
- Ensure consistent performance across all platforms, potentially including VR and consoles.
- Optimize 3D models and textures to enhance performance without sacrificing detail. And more...
IMPROVEMENTS
- A more user-friendly and intuitive user interface.
- Scarier scares with a focus on tension and buildup of atmosphere. Less “in your face” jump scares, more creative ones.
- Redesign of the entire sound for more immersive sound experience
- Improved microphone calibration and implementation. And more...
STORY / OBJECTIVES
- Enhanced environmental storytelling.
- Introduction of objectives. Not only is the main goal to last 18 minutes without screaming, but soon you must also complete objectives to beat the game.
- A deeper focus on lore and background story.
- We're considering adding new threats to the game, like enemies that can chase, stalk, and kill the player if not carefully avoided. These enhancements aim to increase the game's suspense and challenge. And more...
WHAT’S NEW IN MAJOR UPDATE #1?
We are thrilled to announce our first major update, developed with the expertise of Digital Cybercherries. The update significantly enhances performance on lower-end systems, making 'DON’T SCREAM' more accessible to players with less powerful PCs. This is a crucial step in our ongoing efforts to optimize the game. Key improvements include:
Enhanced Performance for Low-End Systems:
Players with lower-spec PCs can now enjoy a smoother gaming experience. This update marks our commitment to making the game more accessible and enjoyable for a broader audience.
Progress in Optimization:
While the game is better optimized for medium and high settings, we are still refining these aspects. The most noticeable performance upgrades in this update are on low-graphics settings.
Reduced Loading Times and Cleaner Assets:
We've significantly cut down loading times and streamlined game assets and textures. This results in a cleaner, more efficient gaming experience.
Players Can Now Run Much Faster with "Sprint":
We have significantly increased the sprint movement speed. This speed is not final, as we are testing to find the optimal balance for gameplay.
As we continue our journey toward full release, we are excited to further improve, optimize, and add more content to the game, thanks to your feedback.
Stay tuned for more updates, and thank you for your continued support! Have a wonderful festive season ahead! - Joe
- Digital Cybercherries