Shadows of Doubt - detective stealth game set in "fully simulated" sci-fi city

[Jenkem]

Don't worry, as long as new genders get created there will always be new content to add.

 

[gooseman]

Disappointing. This could've been a really good game if it had a passionate developer who cares. Looks like they wont, and it will remain a skeleton of a good game in the "maybe mods will fix it" genre. But that was kind of obvious months ago.

 

[JarlFrank]

Tfw the developer puts more effort into adding non-binary genders than improving the actual gameplay.

 

[POOPERSCOOPER]

Seems like it's becoming more and more common for developers to just release 1.0 after years in EA for an influx of money even though the game isn't finish.

 

[HoboForEternity]

The Game has 10k reviews it should've sold in hundreds of K copies now if not near million. On one side there are projects like exanima that just goes on and on but they certainly could afford more content for this game

 

[Zombra]

This could've been a really good game if it had a passionate developer who cares.

You've got to be fucking kidding me. This is a solo dev who put 8 years of his life into this game.

 

[gooseman]

This could've been a really good game if it had a passionate developer who cares.

You've got to be fucking kidding me. This is a solo dev who put 8 years of his life into this game.

I'm talking about Dwarf Fortress type lifelong autistic dedication. I guess that is a big ask. It's also a weird thing to just drop it like that, because most of the hard work is already done, the rest is much easier and even a year or two more spent adding more stuff to do would make a massive difference. But very little has been added since EA started.
It's a cool game, but all this effort making it procgen was completely wasted if it's just going to get stale after a few cases.

 

[Zombra]

It's also a weird thing to just drop it like that

You mean sticking to the publicized road map over the course of several years, meeting all deadlines and delivering a feature complete game exactly in line with developer vision, then following up for as long as it takes after release to bug fix and polish? No one "just dropped" anything.

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

I'm talking about Dwarf Fortress type lifelong autistic dedication.

What do you have show for it mister joined Sep 5, 2024?

 

[gooseman]

I'm talking about Dwarf Fortress type lifelong autistic dedication.

What do you have show for it mister joined Sep 5, 2024?

I'm supposed to have something to show to you? Do you have something interesting to say, or just here to brag about seniority on an internet forum?

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

I'm talking about Dwarf Fortress type lifelong autistic dedication.

What do you have show for it mister joined Sep 5, 2024?

I'm supposed to have something to show to you? Do you have something interesting to say, or just here to brag about seniority on an internet forum?

I was expecting some evidence of you being an alt of older account(s), but that can wait.

 

[gooseman]

Why do you think I'm an alt and what does this have to do with the thread?

 

[Taka-Haradin puolipeikko]

Why do you think I'm an alt and what does this have to do with the thread?

There's just certain familiarity in overtly combatative writing style from relatively new accounts.
On the other hand paranoia is one of my better character traits.

 

[gooseman]

There's just certain familiarity in overtly combatative writing style from relatively new accounts.

Proving a negative is really hard, so I guess you'll have to live with the... shadows of doubt.
Anyway, what I'm saying is that I don't understand why he spent so long to make this game and then rushed it to release (seems it's still not very polished), when it has so much potential. Why make a procgen game if it gets samey after 1-2 playthroughs, if that? Did he never have any bigger plans for it, or was it because of the publisher deal? He could keep going, making paid expansions. He's not obligated to, of course, but I understand and partially share the disappointment of people reviewbombing the game now, though I won't join them.
It's still a great game. And people feel strongly about it, so it might inspire someone to fully realize the potential it had, through mods or a similar game.

 

[Zombra]

For the 2nd time, nothing was rushed. The plan was always to release it feature complete and then continue with postrelease support, not to stay floating in EA hell for decades on end like 7 Days to Die. Sometimes a project has a thing called a "scope", and when it achieves its scope you stop working on it.

 

[gooseman]

I wasn't talking about that, I was talking about the performance issues and bugs in general that are being reported.

 

[Zombra]

I wasn't talking about that, I was talking about the performance issues and bugs in general that are being reported.

For the 3rd time, postrelease bug fixing and qol support have always been part of the plan.

 

[gooseman]

The "release" version of the game is expected to have a greater level of polish, have fewer bugs and better performance than EA. It's about the same. Support fixing the rushed "release" does not make it any less rushed. Or is this also part of the plan?

 

[Gostak]

There's this public bug tracker which is nice because you can see what is likely to get fixed soon-ish. https://shadowsofdoubt.notion.site/...-Bug-Tracker-bed0749047ab4c2b82de820d55dbf7d8
Yes, to be fair the game is good to have. It's just the wasted potential that disappoints.
Modders should be able to tinker with this to their heart's content with the mono builds.

 

[Zombra]

The "release" version of the game is expected to have a greater level of polish, have fewer bugs and better performance than EA. It's about the same. Support fixing the rushed "release" does not make it any less rushed. Or is this also part of the plan?

Yes. Some devs push their release date back over and over until all bugs are vanquished. Others stick to their release date and provide postrelease support. Others don't even announce their game in the first place until it's ready for final release. Others never release out of EA at all.

The decision made here is really, really not a shocking or unprecedented state of affairs. It was not a rushed, panicked, or desperate action. If how this could possibly happen is truly an insoluble mystery to you, it's no wonder you didn't get much mileage out of the game. It's okay if you would have preferred for them to do it differently but it shouldn't be this difficult to understand.

 

[gooseman]

It isn't shocking, you don't have to talk down to me in this passive aggressive manner to get your point across. It's standard practice these days, to release unpolished games with many issues. It's then a gamble if the dev will stick with the game and to what degree it will be polished. For this reason, the reactions to this decision aren't shocking either. When a game is released and doesn't meet people's perception of a product that is ready to be released, it will be called rushed.

 

[Zombra]

it will be called rushed.

Ah yes! I misunderstood before. We agree that some people will call it rushed. Luckily you and I have known all along that those people are mistaken.

 

[Zombra]

WELL. I started a new game yesterday and regret to report that there are still a lot of minor irritations. Not so much major bugs but design issues that still glare pretty bright. Examples, the hitbox to hide under a bed is still really tiny - it's a literal pixel hunt to do something that should be very smooth and easy. There still isn't a dialogue option for "I need to speak to your roommate". The option to turn off the quest arrow still doesn't work. I'm compiling a list and planning to get involved in the feedback system again.

 

[Gostak]

Yup, I also played some of this one dot zero.

Well, the no loitering in shops is indeed different than not being allowed to use the quick-pass-time feature there (good!).
In fact if you do use that feature and miss stopping it when the staff zips in front of you and get red outlines because they got really mad at you you will find yourself getting
killed and your potential permadeath run ended that way (horrible!).
One more to the list of the missing polish this rushed 1.0 still has.

Do they expect the new-consoles people to have an online service that they can use somehow to patch all the bugs?
I guess not, just shows how much the publisher cares ...

Oh, and you still cannot ask people to write something down for you, so you can check their handwriting.
Homeless people have next to nothing handwritten around or on them (unless maybe an ID with a signature - dunno. Do IDs even exist beyond business cards?).

Some means of acquiring money (theft) or social credits (some specific job types) are way easier than anything else and you do not need to mix it up.
So, if you are inclined to go the way of least resistance it will get tedious and repetitive. You gotta combat that with your own motivation.

Hmm, motivation is a keyword.
Only few of the case types feel like there is good evident motivation for the perpetrator. And it's mostly just shallow and the exact same for each type ...

So, of course a bi of this wide as an ocean deep as a puddle.
But at least it does somehow have enough bits to feel lived in and offering immersion qualities.
So many simulated people going about their days with some schedules/ routines.

One of a kind, looking forward to more fixes and stuff for sure.

Also tempted to at least give an honest 1.0 rating on gog. Still have none put up on Steam.
If it's not selling there will be even less incentives for the dev to keep at it, I guess.

 

[Kev Inkline]

Why do you think I'm an alt and what does this have to do with the thread?

There's just certain familiarity in overtly combatative writing style from relatively new accounts.
On the other hand paranoia is one of my better character traits.

Peikko here means to say that you're some aggressive variant of gay, and your argument is inane and devoid of facts.