1.0 Build & Beyond

Hey guys,

I wanted to shed some light on what to expect from the future and what our plans are, including changes that will come to the subscription tiers (after the 1.0 build). Of course the next (full) build will be the 0.3 build featuring Neala and Dizzy, which is coming before the end of the year - so don't confuse with that!

1.0  Build:

So far we are looking to release the 1.0 build by February next year, which will tell Meridianna's story, Peter and Neala's involvement within it and where the current events all lead. There will be a heavy focus on the Otherworld, so expect a lot about the demons and monster girls that inhabit this world as well as Meridianna and some bonus stuff with Neala too.

I won't reveal too much more about it, but it should finish off the story, without "ending" the game (you can carry on playing even after completing the main story). UD has always been more of a sandbox game, with focus on the individual NPCs and their progressions rather than a big grand story, so while it will be a (hopefully) enjoyable contained narrative, I wouldn't expect any major grandiose story telling and big sweeping events. That said, the choices you make (and have already made) will have an impact on this narrative.

On top of that this will be where we add in all the repeatable events for each of the characters. Now that the characters progressions are in the game, it's easier to work out what can be repeated and when. Due to having the knowledge of the way their progression plays out (and how it actually looks in the engine) we can be a lot more concise on when certain scenes become repeatable and whether it makes sense for their character progression to be available at that moment.

Beyond the 1.0 Build:

This is the main bit I wanted to discuss, because at some point the artwork will need to be assigned for the new content coming after the 1.0 build. So in terms of what our content delivery will look like, right now I'm imagining something like this:

  • 1 Large DLC a year - This will be a large expansion focused on a specific setting, such as a beach episode, cosplay episode, things of that nature. It will revolve around a specific group of characters (some of which will be voted on by subscribers). It will be sold separately from the base game. 
  • 2 to 4 content patches a year (depending on how large the Large DLC is) - adding a smaller amount of content or a brand new character. Not necessarily focused on content heavy scenarios, but other things will that make great additions to the games. Such as sets of threesomes, extra scene for pre-existing characters, that kind of thing. I'd like to add at least 1 or 2 new characters each year.

I hope that all makes sense so far. Due to the 1.0 build taking up a part of 2027, I don't think we will manage to do all of this next year, but 2 or 3 content patches and a brand new Large DLC should be very doable. But I hope it gives you a good idea of what we want to achieve with this and how just because we reach 1.0 that doesn't mean its the end of the game at all!

Subscribers will be able to vote to impact what content we focus on, but there will be some changes to what the rewards will be after the 1.0 release. Which brings us on to:

Subscription / Reward changes after the 1.0 build:

All subscribers of the Legionnaire tier ($6+) will gain access to the 1.0 release as normal when it is ready. However it will only be available to subscribers for 30 days after its release, so make sure you have it downloaded and backed up! Any of the future updates / DLCs will only be available via itch.io (or anywhere else the game might be available). 

At that point, beta builds will only become available to Prince tier and above, and these will be actual beta builds, to be play tested and bug fixed before they are then put into the main game, they are not to be considered final releases of that particular DLC / content patch. 

Voting will become a crucial element for subscribers and will be the core way we decide what we work on. Every level of subscriber will be able to have their opinion voiced for content at a base level as a minimum. A general rule of thumb will be, all subscribers of any tier will be able to vote on the decision for the major content patch. But certain higher tiers may also get access to additional votes for which characters may appear in said content. 

To summarise the proposed tier changes:

Imp access:
  • Base level voting

Legionnaire access:
  • Base level voting
  • Sneak Peeks
  • 1 of the monthly sketches

Prince access:
  • Advanced level voting
  • Any beta releases
  • Sneak Peeks
  • Both of the monthly sketches

King Access:
  • Same as Prince
  • Monthly sketches vote

Devil Access:
  • Same as King
  • Minor NPC development
  • Preferred name in the credits

Just a reminder this is happening AFTER the 1.0 release, until then nothing will be changed.

The main driver behind this change is so that people don't have to stay pledged for months / years in order to gain access to what I perceive to be "base" content (like new characters), especially with the way the world is at the moment. We want the purchase of the game to be considered a great investment for the content it already has, plus all the content we hope to update it with over the years. 

Hopefully this all makes sense and you can see why we're going to make these changes in the future. Expect some votes coming soon in terms of what your general preferences are for DLCs, followed swiftly by the first DLC content vote!

I wanted to give people a long heads up about these changes, so try and reduce any confusion from the transition from the pre 1.0 build to the 1.0 build.

Anyway, this pretty much covers what I wanted to discuss and to give context to upcoming votes that will be appearing.  If you have any questions please drop them here or send me a message or drop it in discord. Look forward to hearing your thoughts!

 - Nergal