Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone - Message from Game Director

[HiddenX]

The Early Access game Chernobylite 2: Exclusion Zone got a lot of critical comments - the game director reacts:

Message from Game Director

A step back in order to make a leap forward

Hi,

It’s been three months since the Early Access launch of Chernobylite 2. I won’t sugarcoat it - these have been extremely difficult months, possibly one of the hardest periods in The Farm 51’s history. During this time, we’ve been analyzing every post you’ve written, every review you’ve submitted, and every video you’ve uploaded. We’ve done everything we could to fix your issues, implement your suggestions, and expand the game with new content and mechanics. We’re convinced that thanks to you and your feedback, Chernobylite 2 is a much better game today than it was three months ago. But still not as good as you expected us to deliver…

The abundance of critical comments has made it clear that we can no longer confidently follow the roadmap we initially laid out and simply hope that in the end, everything will magically fall into place as the game of our - and your - dreams. In trying to meet the expectations of all our fans, and after numerous studies and focus tests, we went too far and lost sight of what made you love the first Chernobylite. The prequel was a brutal and grounded survival experience that offered freedom in how players tackled challenges. That experience was lost under a pile of limiting stats, “bullet sponge” enemies, forced co-op, and unclear gamey mechanics. We want to return to that experience, but to do so, we need to take a big step back.

What does that mean in practice? Some elements of the game will be cut, others will be completely redesigned, and some will be pushed to a later stage so the beginning of the game feels less overwhelming. We’ll rework and trim down the story. We’ll entirely rebalance the game and shrink the map to make the core areas denser and more engaging. We’ll darken the lighting and tone down the colors. In short: we want to prioritize quality and atmosphere over quantity and mechanical complexity.

I expect not everyone will like the changes, so I’m asking you to give us honest feedback on each of them as they start appearing in upcoming updates.

Thank you all for participating in Early Access. We truly needed this experience.

Artur Fojcik, Game Director



P.S. Despite all the upcoming changes, we’ll continue doing everything we can to preserve your saves and maintain your progress.

Thanks Farflame!

More information.

 

[skally_wag]

Why so much negativity for an Early access game, if you don't have the patience for the game to develop, wait for a full release. I fear the direction the devs will now take the game in is not what I was originally exited to see.

 

[Couchpotato]

I agree with you as that update is bad news. Sound like the scope will now be smaller, systems will be removed, and it will be more like Chernobylite 1.5. Very disappointing.

 

[Farflame]

Sound like the scope will now be smaller, systems will be removed, and it will be more like Chernobylite 1.5. Very disappointing.

There is/was a lot of criticism from hardcore fans of shooters/Chernobylite 1 who didnt like the move to ARPG genre. Unfortunately it seems that these ppl invested more into EA version and now devs cater to them.

Well, it makes some sense if there is not many RPG players on board... This is risky and misleading part of EA release. There could be many players waiting for finished game but meantime the game could be remade because of feedback from very small group of active players.


"experience was lost under a pile of limiting stats" - it sounds like devs dont have or lost clear vision... or stopped believing in it... or they never really understood RPG genre and just tried to be bigger (open world) and copy other ARPGs for second title. And they were unprepared for the reception from shooter fans.

 

[Couchpotato]

Correct but I'm sure it will affect sales as they hyped it up as an ARPG only to turn it into a shooter. It just highlights as you said a vocal minority changing EA once again.

The developer also has or had no clear vision or have no experience with making RPGs.