Community Q&A: December 19

 Happy Holidays, ark hunters! You’ve asked, we’re answering. We’re back with another action packed Defiance Dev Q&A.

1. Instances mentioned in expansion announcement, will they allow more than 4 players?

   They will be designed for four players. The system is expandable to larger groups, but we’re building our environments to work for groups of four players for our initial Expedition release.

2. Are there plans to see more world effects such as lighting, razor rain, or deadly meteorite ark debris?

   Not currently. We’re focused on the Alcatraz content.

3. Will we see more Ark Falls that we can go into in the future, and is it to far out to think that they can one day be randomly generated?

   We are developing additional arkbreak interiors as we speak. These new arkbreaks will be used in future arkfalls and expeditions.

4. What inventory improvements are planned?

   We have a few inventory changes in the works.

   1. (Complete) Salvage Matrix access from Inventory – access all salvage matrix actions directly from the inventory screen.
   2. (In Progress) Synergy labels and icons in Inventory – Appending synergy names to the items which have them as well as an icon to indicate whether that synergy is a loadout synergy or a mod synergy.
   3. (Not Started) Tabbed Inventory menu – Adds tabs for different kinds of items based on weapon type, shields, consumables, etc.

5. Will HD textures be added for PC in the future?

   HD textures are still on the back burner.

6. Can you tell us more about what we can expect from the Alcatraz update?

   Trick and Scapes discussed Alcatraz on the Livestream today, and we will reveal more information in future blog posts and livestreams.

7. Could we get an update on the future of Caeruleum Cores and other currencies?

   We will continue to have these currencies. We are adding a new currency, the Hunter Requisition, in the Alcatraz update. Hunter Reqs will be used to access Expedition content.

8. Could you implement a "killing bonus system"? For example, every time you kill 1000 enemies of a particular kind, you'd gain a 1% damage bonus against them that would have a fixed percentage limit.

   Definitely possible, but not in our plans at the moment.

9. Will any Defiance merchandise be available in the future?

   Trion Worlds doesn’t directly sell Defiance merchandise, however be on the lookout for merchandise becoming available from 3rd parties when the next season of the TV shows kicks off.

10. Would it be possible to implement weekly or monthly code hunts? Something that would not hurt game economics and would bring back the thrill of discovery would be ideal.

    We are adding hidden ark chests and golden skitterlings around the world for the Alcatraz update. These will encourage exploration into the harder to reach places of the world.

11. Will we see a boost to core drops in the future?

    Not likely. Caeruleum Core drops are designed to unlock access to top-tier weapons on a very specific schedule, and we’re in no hurry to accelerate that process.

12. Will there be any new competitive/shadow war maps added?

    We are not currently developing additional competitive content.

13. Can we see Emergencies spawn in groups together? Why are they so far apart?

    Since emergencies have such varying enemy populations, they are spawned far apart so that they will not enter combat with one another.