[0102 Update & Roadmap]

Happy New Year, everyone! Though a bit late!

We sincerely apologize for the lack of updates over the past period. While there was little outward communication, our team has been relentlessly working behind the scenes to improve Deadly Trick.

The main focus of this update is improving overall polish and completeness.

Now that the game’s core structure has largely taken shape as originally intended, we are refining how the key systems are explained and addressing elements that felt overly rough or “too indie” in execution.

As UI and object-related work is currently in full progress, we ask for your understanding that it is difficult to share in-game screenshots at this stage.

1. Improved Mission Guidance

Steam post image (Please note that the visuals shown are design documents rather than actual in-game screens.)

We are improving how Class Activities (missions) are guided.

Previously, players had to frequently press the Tab key and switch back and forth between screens, often interrupting the flow of gameplay. Our goal is to remove this friction so that Class Activities can be completed intuitively without overthinking.

During Class Activities, players can now continuously check the current progress through the minimap and popup UI, without needing to press the Tab key. There is no need to constantly learn complex steps or open additional windows. Simply follow the minimap and popup guidance to proceed.

2. Further Mission Simplification

Based on feedback from the previous alpha test and the Beaver Rocks exhibition, we are making further revisions to several problematic Class Activities.

Given that even Standard difficulty already makes White victories challenging, there is little justification for keeping unnecessarily complex mission procedures. Even if it means significantly simplifying certain missions, we believe this direction is necessary.

For example, instead of requiring players to press Space to manually search through pages, missions have been redesigned so that required books are indicated via speech bubbles, and players simply retrieve the correct book. Following this philosophy, we have minimized structures that demand additional mental overhead across all Class Activities.

3. Character-Specific Speech Implementation

This is a feature that has been postponed for some time.

Previously, submitted statements often lacked the natural feel of spoken dialogue. We felt that when characters present statements, their individual personalities and speech patterns should be reflected.

With this update, all 12 characters will now present statements that reflect their unique personalities and manner of speaking.

4. Additional UI Improvements & Main Page Work

We are revisiting areas that were previously neglected due to our focus on core functionality.

While most features themselves remain unchanged, these updates focus on visual refinement and overall user satisfaction.

Areas being improved include:

Overall in-game main UI

Tablet UI

Statement presentation effects

Character detail UI during trials (this one is particularly stylish)

Investigation completion effects

Improved map readability

Clearer clue indicators when multiple clues overlap on an object

Visual effects for previously unimplemented special abilities

As development is still ongoing, there are limits to what we can share at the moment. However, once this work is complete, it will be reflected in the demo build and shared with you as soon as possible.

5. Other Technical Improvements

A number of smaller but important technical updates are also being implemented.

These include:

Addition of new objects

Cabinet repositioning and added investigation functionality

Additional baseline abilities for the Mastermind

Improved game flow for matches with four or fewer players

Changes so that the murder weapon continues to move as the game progresses

1) Steam Next Fest – February Edition

Starting with Steam Next Fest at the end of February, we will officially open the build to the public.

This will expand access from limited alpha tests for Tumblbug and Kickstarter backers to a broader global audience. We aim to gather feedback from a wider range of players.

At the same time, we will continue developing improvements and new features needed for the Early Access build.

2) Public Steam Demo Releases

Whenever major new features are introduced, we plan to open time-limited public demos.

These demos will be available to all users, allowing us to continuously gather feedback through the Steam Community. They will also serve as stress tests to ensure server stability in preparation for future services.

Through this step-by-step process, we will steadily move toward Early Access. We hope you see this period as one dedicated to strengthening the game’s foundation through demos prior to release.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who continues to support and believe in this project.

If the earlier stages were about organizing ideas and implementing them, we now believe we have entered the phase of transforming those ideas into a true game.

We will continue refining Deadly Trick with greater precision and attention to detail.

Please feel free to ask any questions about the game or the team in the Discussion tab. We will do our best to respond as quickly as possible.

Thank you very much.

Team Finalblow