Hello Night Drivers!
It’s been a week since the launch of Midnight Racer. I am incredibly grateful for every purchase, your trust, bug reports, and the positive reviews!
I’d like to summarize this first week so you can stay informed about the project what’s happening, what’s changed, and what’s next.
What went well?
- The number of major bugs was small. Only one critical bug that blocked a track was reported, and it was patched within a few hours.
- The overall reception of the game has been positive! Thank you so much for this.
- Performance has remained at a very high level. The game runs smoothly even on lower-end hardware.
- Within the first four days, 11 positive reviews were posted, which is an absolute win!
What didn’t go so well?
- Resolution issues. On launch day, the game only worked properly on 16:9 monitors. Other aspect ratios made the game unplayable. (This issue was resolved within two days of launch, and now the game works correctly on all resolutions.)
- No Steam Deck support. Midnight Racer is a perfect fit for Steam Deck, but I didn’t consider this during development as I didn’t own the steam deck. (I’ve decided this support needs to happen. I borrowed a Steam Deck, and support for it will be added within two weeks.)
- Custom controllers issue. The game fully supports Xbox and PlayStation controllers, as well as most PC controllers. However, certain custom controllers confuse the game, leading to unusual input mappings. (I’ll work on fixing this issue, though my top priority will remain Steam Deck support.)
What’s next?
Here’s the roadmap I’ll be following step by step:
- Bug fixes and game balance will be my focus through the end of January.
- Starting in February, I’ll dedicate my efforts to optimizing the game for Steam Deck.
- After that, I’ll begin adding content to the game: new maps, QoL improvements, more music, and further game balancing.
- I’d like to add Steam friend leaderboards and a coach co-op mode for collaborative play.
Once these points are complete, I’ll see what’s next. If the game continues to develop as well as it has, I’ll consider adding new game modes and potentially expanding the progression system.
Stay awesome Night Drivers!