Dark and Darker developer promises no pay-to-win and a tough stance on cheaters
A Hard Day's Knight.
Dark and Darker developer Ironmace recently took part in a Discord Q&A, where it shared a few more titbits about its upcoming Mediaeval extraction looter.
A lot of ground was covered, but some key takeaways from this discussion surrounded Dark and Darker's monetisation model and the developer's approach to cheaters.
On the monetisation front, Ironmace has promised there will be "absolutely no" pay-to-win elements included within the game, and its model will be one that "players can understand".
It did stop short of sharing any more details about how it will all actually look in practice, however. When asked for some examples of what Dark and Darker's monetisation could look like, Ironside admitted it was "hard to say right now" as the developer hasn't "fully decided" yet.
Meanwhile, while there won't be any pay-to-win shenanigans included in the game, the developer additionally stated game sales alone "can't cover the cost of running servers on an ongoing basis". As such, the Dark and Darker team will still "need to generate revenue at a level acceptable to [its] players".
Those partaking in the Q&A were also keen to discuss the potential cheaters that will inevitably try and slide their way into the game, noting that Escape from Tarkov has had a real issue with this.
Ironmace stated this is one of its "biggest challenges", but that fighting cheaters is its "destiny".
"It is impossible to 100 percent defend against cheaters in FPS games, but we will not spare any investment in defending against this," the developer declared.
Bertie had a shot with Dark and Darker earlier this year. "Wooden though it can be... it's a compelling mix," he wrote following his time with the game.
"The artwork in particular, on character portraits and loading screens, is very evocative - there's a bit of Warhammer about it, that same kind of grime. And while the reality of the gameplay experience doesn't quite match it, it's still capable of turning a look with torches flickering and stony hallways beckoning.
"How long it will prove entertaining for, I don't know, but I'm happy it's having a moment - I can see why."
For those keen to have a go with Dark and Darker for themselves, Ironmace has a playtest scheduled for this April.