Hey everyone,
First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who's played the Malware Tycoon Demo. Steam Next Fest was an important point of exposure for the game, and I am overall happy with the results. All the feedback I've received (and continue to receive) over email, the Steam reviews, and the in-game "Take Survey" option has been very humbling and insightful. I seriously thank everyone who's reached out using any one of these methods to provide feedback, both positive and negative, about the game.
Game Delay
While I was initially confident about the March release time-frame, I have realized that there is some additional work to be done. Whether that's implementing quality-of-life improvements based off of your experiences with the demo, changing how things work, or just overall providing more content to the game, I cannot realistically say that I can get all of this done to my standard of quality within the next two weeks.
I do not want to rush things, and I do not want bugs on release. When Malware Tycoon releases on its new release date, April 30th, 2026, I want the game to be perfect. I want there to be many more websites than what's available in the demo. I want all of the quality-of-life suggestions from everyone who's played the demo to be implemented. I want the game to have a sense of replayability, so that, for example, someone could play it for 10+ hours, and still come across new mechanics, or new ways to play.
I do not want to be the type of developer who releases an Early Access game that may or may not have bugs, or is otherwise, incomplete on release. I've done it twice already with my two previous games, and while I of course patched those games and added player suggestions, I want to come out of the gate with a full, complete, bug-free, accessible experience from the start. This extra time will allow me to do exactly that, ensure everything is perfect, allow some more time for QA, and release a fully baked product from day 1.
For the sake of transparency, the plan going forward is quite simple. I release the game fully baked, add some content here and there, fix any bugs that may have slipped through the cracks, and that's it. I want everyone who's interested in the game to be able to just pick it up without saying, "Oh, that feature is missing," or "Oh, that thing is broken." I want to provide a fun experience for all players and nothing more. For me to release the game this month would be detrimental to that vision. I do not wish to release "Day 1/10/30/60" patches just to fix things or iterate things that I could've otherwise done should I have had more time until release - hence, this delay.
Please forgive me for this news, but it's for the best in the long run. Based off of the conversations I've had with those who've taken the survey, Reddit, etc. I can tell there are some of you out there who are passionate about the game, and like it. Thank you for this support, and I hope that I can continue to earn your support until release day and hopefully beyond. I am a purely solo developer, so I also appreciate your patience while I work hard to meet your expectations.
The Demo/Feedback
For those who have yet to play the demo, I encourage you to do so. There is an extreme chance that your feedback makes it into the full release of the game. I'd like to think I'm very engaged in the community, and, as always, I desire to make a game that appeals to everyone. At this stage of development, I am confident in saying that the demo is bug-free. So, if you get around to it, give it a shot, and let me know your feelings through the in-game survey, or through Steam reviews. All of this feedback is taken to heart especially during this critical development phase, and if you want to be heard, I'm all ears.
In Conclusion...
Thanks for your understanding and support. I feel like I'm repeating myself, but please, any feedback you have, find a way to get in touch, leave a review on the demo, post on the Steam discussions, whatever you want. I read every piece of feedback I get, and will continue to do so. If you have ideas, suggestions, whatever, I don't care, tell me about it.
That's enough yapping for one day. Until the end of April, enjoy the demo.