Developer's Note #2

Greetings, Lords and Ladies.

This is JANG, the Executive Producer of Game of Thrones: Kingsroad.

We finally officially launched last Thursday! Three days have passed since the release, and there is something we would like to share with you first.

We sincerely thank you for enjoying the game.

You have explored Westeros tirelessly, preserved your memories in images and film, and charged toward the Altar of Memories with your allies. 

Because of your passion, our team is experiencing a launch weekend we will never forget.

At the same time, however, these past three days have been a period where our shortcomings were revealed more clearly than ever before.

From the state of the chat channels and inventory limits, the stagnation in growth, the barriers to longer play sessions, and questions regarding our monetization, we have heard it all. We have read every single post on Steam, the forums, and our communities. 

In those messages, the stern rebukes far outweighed the praise. These were issues we should have thoroughly addressed and refined before the official launch.

This developer note is our response to those criticisms. We offer no excuses. Instead, we ask that you read this as a solemn promise of what went wrong and what we will change.

1. Chat System : Protecting Our Shared Space

The in-game chat is not just a simple feature. It is the public square where countless adventurers meet for the first time. We should have acted much sooner to address the scenes that unfolded in that square immediately after launch.

We will apply those features at the 5/21 update.

- Strengthening the Language Filtration System

- Restricting Indiscriminate Ads and Spam via Chat Level Requirements

- Inspecting and Adjusting Chat Cooldown Functionality

We sincerely apologize for the delay in closing the doors that should have been shut before launch.

2. Inventory : We will ensure that your adventures are free from discomfort.

One of the most frequent reproaches we received was regarding the lack of inventory space. Having the flow of hunting interrupted by the need to manage inventory directly diminishes the fun of the game. This is an area we should have thoroughly verified before launch.

We will implement the following improvements in stages.

- Expansion of Base Inventory by 30 Slots (10 slots each for General, Equipment, and Materials) - Implementation on May 21

- Reducing Inventory Pressure by Improving Maester’s Archive Reward Distribution - Implementation on May 21

- Add Storage NPC in the each major castles - Implement May 21

- Add selling goods sale feature - schedule to be announced soon

3. Tempered Iron : it is not the stagnation in growth.

Tempered Iron is designed as a core resource for growth and a long-term progression axis. 

Our goal is to promote active jewelry trading between Lords and to preserve the genuine excitement of equipment farming.

Tempered Iron can currently be obtained through the following sources.

- Salvaging Equipment of Epic Grade or Higher

    - You can earn these by clearing weekly stages of Ferocious Beasts, Faction Hideouts, and Elite Hideouts.

- Salvaging Tier 4 Legendary Grade Refined Accessories.

    - Rewards are available through World Boss Drogon, The Challenger, Beyond the Wall Expeditions, and Elite Hideout achievements. 

For those reaching World Level 2,Echoes of the Past will also grant these prizes.

- Elite Hideout

- Regional Currency Exchange Store

- Weekly Mission

However, the data following the initial release deviated from our original expectations.

We have identified that the supply of epic grade equipment, jewelry, and honing materials has been insufficient. Furthermore, due to the complexity of the system, many Lords have been unable to fully utilize these features, leading to a visible stall in character progression.

As Tempered Iron is a cornerstone of the game’s economy, hasty numerical adjustments can be risky. However, recognizing that your discomfort may grow while we conduct our review, we will pursue a two-track approach simultaneously.

- Short-term: To provide immediate relief, we will quickly introduce special rewards and events to ease your current frustrations.

- Mid-term: We are thoroughly reviewing plans to expand both the sources and quantity of these materials. 

We will provide a definitive answer as soon as the adjustments are finalized.

We sincerely apologized for our frustration.

4. RP : More Playing, we will not limit your desire to explore.

The RP system in Game of Thrones: Kingsroad was designed to ensure that players do not fall behind, 

even without daily logins. This core philosophy remains unchanged.

However, the most frequent voices we heard were different from our intent after releasing.

“I want to play more today, but I’ve run out of RP. ”

While we focused on reducing the burden of playing every day, 

we did not fully consider the desire of those who want to play even deeper today.

Accordingly, we are planning to proceed with the following steps.

- We will add Summerspice to the Daily Mission rewards so you can craft Summerspice Wine more easily. - Implementation on May 21

* Summerspice Wine is an item that restores 30 RP. It can be crafted using Summerspice gathered from the field.

- To make crafting Summerspice Wine even more convenient, we will change the location of the recipe within

 the \[Workshop] of \[Estate Management].- Implementation on May 21

- We will add Summerspice Wine to the Alliance Token Exchange Store - Implementation on May 21

- We are planning to implement additional RP sources through active play for the long term.

5. Monetization Structure : We speak to you with the heaviest of hearts.

During the last few days, the sharpest and most frequent criticism we heard was about our monetization structure. 

We will not avoid this issue; we will speak plainly.

We were not good enough.

1) Battle Pass EXP Pack

Lords who purchased the Battle Pass felt that the structure was intended to encourage additional EXP pack purchases. 

We decided that this is not an issue that can be resolved simply by adjusting the price. Therefore, we will take the following measures to fulfill our responsibility.

- From May 21, we will change this product from a paid purchase to a free reward, and we will not sell any similar products in the future.

- We will provide a full refund to everyone who purchased this product before the transition.

- We will prepare the refund process to be swift and to minimize any inconvenience. Detailed information will be provided through a separate announcement.

We believe this is not about a price reduction, but about removing a product that should never have existed in the first place. We apologize once again from the bottom of our hearts.

2) The core structure of the Battle Pass : Achievement difficulty will be eased.

We will further overhaul the Battle Pass, in addition to the EXP Packs.

- We also plan to further ease the progression difficulty of the Battle Pass. By adding core missions with lower difficulty requirements, we will ensure that you can earn Battle Pass rewards more easily and quickly.

When planning future Battle Passes, we will carefully re-examine and adjust the requirements for daily and weekly missions. We will refine the system so that you can complete the Pass without feeling pressured.

3) New Bundled Monthly Discount Package : We will lower the pressure of monetization

The \[Convenience Support (7.99 USD)] and \[Battle Support (13.99 USD)] packages are our most representative monthly subscription products, currently utilized by many of our Lords.

However, both products do not have any extra discount benefits when purchasing. Therefore, we empathize that Lords feel the pressure of monetization is excessively heavy.

Based on this, we will change the product structure starting June 10 to fully receive and implement our Lords' feedback.

- We will offer the same benefits at 15.99 USD, discounted approximately 25% when both are purchased together.

Also, for those who purchased \[Convenience Support] or \[Battle Support] before June 10, we will extend the expiration date of each product by 7 days.

Detailed information regarding the launch schedule and product transitions will be shared promptly through a separate notice as soon as preparations are complete.

6. Other various bugs and inconveniences (Implementation May 21)

Combat & Class

- Fixed the issue where characters would temporarily freeze after using an evasion skill.

Growth & Character Growth

- Fixed the issue where the Maester Archive’s red dot does not disappear.

- Wormwalks challenge guide mission difficulty relief: The required steps for the guide mission have been adjusted from 5/10/15 to 1/2/4.

World & Exploration

- World Level Guide Notice Improvement: Challenger and Avenger content will now be announced separately for each region.

(World Lv.1 = North Region, World Lv.2 = Reach Region).

- Storage NPCs will be added to core castle towns. In addition to Renan’s Rest, you can now access storage directly in Last Hearth, Winterfell, Dreadfort, White Harbor, Oldtown (South/North Gate), Brightwater Keep, and Highgarden.

- Fixed an issue where the White Raven would stop moving after returning from another region in Gods’ Haven and Forest of Illusion.

- Fixed the issue where the previous clear time was incorrectly displayed when a Lord retried the same difficulty in the Beyond the Wall Expedition.

- Fixed the issue where the time limit was not displayed after resurrection in the Brightwater Keep Elite Hideout (Seven Sunsets) boss kill mission.

Repositioned the Fireplum that were spawned in inaccessible areas around the Dreadfort to accessible locations.

Inventory and Storage Item

- Added Key Mapping to the \[Store] button: Keyboard F (Store) / Space (Rapid Store), Gamepad Y (Store).

- Changed to allow Draughts to be stored in storage

- Organized the storage attributes for Shop and Exploration reward items: Items from the Alliance Shop, Relic Shop, Regional/Braavos Coin Exchange, Ferocious Animal Byproduct Exchange, 

and Exploration rewards have been adjusted to be storable or non-storable in storage as intended.

Community

- Normalization of party leader information in Party Recruitment posts: Fixed the issue where the leader’s level and 

nickname were missing in certain recruitment posts, and the interaction popup did not appear when touching the nameplate.

- Fixed a settlement error in the Exchange: Resolved a logic error that occurred when a single item sold for 1 Golden Dragon resulted in a 0 Golden Dragon settlement due to tax deduction. 

(A minimum settlement amount of 1 Golden Dragon is now guaranteed.)

- Fixed the issue where other Lords' mounts were exposed during dialogue cutscenes when entering a multi-user space.

Convenience and Option UI

- Option: Activate ‘Navigation Path Indicators’ feature (BETA) - You can now turn the ‘Navigation Path Indicator’ ON/OFF in the Option menu.

- Normalization of the mount location icon on the World Map and Mini-map- Fixed the issue where the location icon was not displayed when the mount was first summoned.

- Fixed the issue where the screen would freeze when repeatedly entering and exiting the Stable screen in quick succession

Sound and Cinematics

- Fixed the issue where the sound effect (jingle) would not play when the Altar of Memories reward UI animation was triggered on the second page or beyond.

- Fixed the issue where unintended environment sounds were played from the wooden bookshelves in the Oldtown City basement secret passage.

PC Stability

- Fixed the issue where characters would get stuck between Castle Black NPCs and become unable to move after reconnecting.

In Closing
Our development team wishes to build the Game of Thrones: Kingsroad into a journey that we can walk together with all of you for a long time to come.

To achieve this, we believe our first priority must be to acknowledge the inconveniences you are experiencing and to address them swiftly.

It was a lacking start. However, we believe that acknowledging our shortcomings is where good service begins.

There are still many opinions and feedback that we haven't been able to cover in these notes.

We look forward to meeting you all directly through a Live Stream on May 28 (Thu) to share our vision and hear your voices.

Please share your various thoughts and opinions on the community boards. 

We will carefully review every single one of them and address them during the Live Stream.

While you wait for these improvements to be implemented, we have prepared a 'Developer Note Reward' for everyone as a token of our apologies. 

Although it is a small gesture, we hope it helps you enjoy your journey in the Game of Thrones: Kingsroad.

- Summerspice Wine 4 EA (14 Days)

- Sealed Maester's Scroll 1 EA

- Complex Concoction 3 EA

- Tempered Iron 100 EA

- Copper 500,000

* Claim Period: Until May 27 (Wed) 23:59 (KST)

* Rewards will be given to Lords of Level 10 or higher.

* The reward will be delivered to your mailbox.

We wish to spend much more time with you here in Westeros. We sincerely ask that you look far ahead with us and continue to walk this path by our side.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

JANG
Executive Producer of Game ofThrones: Kingroad, and the Development Team.