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Steam News27 March 20251y ago

DLC has been canceled due to technical challenges, and the future plans.

It has been 2 months since the game's release. I’m sorry to bring you this news, but it’s not entirely bad—please read through to the end.

In this update3

Full notes

Full Subway Exorcist Girl update

Read the full published notes in a cleaner layout. The original post stays linked below.

What changed

0 fixes6 additions5 changes0 removals
  • Balance
  • Events
  • UI and audio
  • Performance
  • Gameplay
changedOverview of the Situation:Breaking promises and complaining to gain sympathy are terrible behaviors , so despite the hardships, I kept pushing forward. Even yesterday, I was still working on the DLC, hoping to fulfill my commitment. However, due to health issues and, most importantly, the limitations of RPGmaker MV, I’ve encountered constant challenges in development.
addedOverview of the Situation:Today, a new technical issue arose: I created parallel events for new levels to animate traps and mechanisms during gameplay. These took a long time to finish, but I discovered today that their presence corrupts save files or prevents saving entirely—a problem with no easy fix. This forces me to delete many completed parts and redo them. This was the final straw.
changedOverview of the Situation:I’m not a professional programmer, but I tried every trick to make RPGmaker support a high-resolution side-scrolling game. I even used a clunky method for multilingual localization: creating separate "rooms" for each language. Players are teleported to a Chinese, English, or Korean "room" based on their language… though this led to the awkward situation where Korean players were initially sent to the Chinese room. Hahaha, my apologies!
changedOverview of the Situation:Additionally, RPGmaker struggles with multi-frame animations. Even with plugins, it’s extremely difficult. Many Spine animations I made (like the smooth animations for the "Ghost Sister") couldn’t be implemented, leaving only crude 3-frame animations in-game. Performance issues are also severe—oversized PNG sprites caused frame rates to drop below 60 on some PCs.
changedOverview of the Situation:I’m not attacking RPGmaker—it’s a fantastic engine. Without it, I couldn’t have started making games. But it’s not suited for my project, and its simplicity became a shackle. Half my development time was spent fighting engine limitations.
addedOverview of the Situation:The thought hit me: “If I spent these months battling technical hurdles on a new project instead, I might’ve already finished a demo.”

Subway Exorcist Girl changes

changedBreaking promises and complaining to gain sympathy are terrible behaviors , so despite the hardships, I kept pushing forward. Even yesterday, I was still working on the DLC, hoping to fulfill my commitment. However, due to health issues and, most importantly, the limitations of RPGmaker MV, I’ve encountered constant challenges in development.
addedToday, a new technical issue arose: I created parallel events for new levels to animate traps and mechanisms during gameplay. These took a long time to finish, but I discovered today that their presence corrupts save files or prevents saving entirely—a problem with no easy fix. This forces me to delete many completed parts and redo them. This was the final straw.
changedI’m not a professional programmer, but I tried every trick to make RPGmaker support a high-resolution side-scrolling game. I even used a clunky method for multilingual localization: creating separate "rooms" for each language. Players are teleported to a Chinese, English, or Korean "room" based on their language… though this led to the awkward situation where Korean players were initially sent to the Chinese room. Hahaha, my apologies!
changedAdditionally, RPGmaker struggles with multi-frame animations. Even with plugins, it’s extremely difficult. Many Spine animations I made (like the smooth animations for the "Ghost Sister") couldn’t be implemented, leaving only crude 3-frame animations in-game. Performance issues are also severe—oversized PNG sprites caused frame rates to drop below 60 on some PCs.
changedI’m not attacking RPGmaker—it’s a fantastic engine. Without it, I couldn’t have started making games. But it’s not suited for my project, and its simplicity became a shackle. Half my development time was spent fighting engine limitations.

It has been 2 months since the game's release. I’m sorry to bring you this news, but it’s not entirely bad—please read through to the end.

Overview of the Situation:

After release, I promised to develop and update free DLC. Over these two months, I’ve worked hard for this goal, facing many difficulties. During this time, I fell ill and still suffer from tinnitus due to stress and exhaustion.

Breaking promises and complaining to gain sympathy are terrible behaviors, so despite the hardships, I kept pushing forward. Even yesterday, I was still working on the DLC, hoping to fulfill my commitment. However, due to health issues and, most importantly, the limitations of RPGmaker MV, I’ve encountered constant challenges in development.

Today, a new technical issue arose: I created parallel events for new levels to animate traps and mechanisms during gameplay. These took a long time to finish, but I discovered today that their presence corrupts save files or prevents saving entirely—a problem with no easy fix. This forces me to delete many completed parts and redo them. This was the final straw.

I’m not a professional programmer, but I tried every trick to make RPGmaker support a high-resolution side-scrolling game. I even used a clunky method for multilingual localization: creating separate "rooms" for each language. Players are teleported to a Chinese, English, or Korean "room" based on their language… though this led to the awkward situation where Korean players were initially sent to the Chinese room. Hahaha, my apologies!

Additionally, RPGmaker struggles with multi-frame animations. Even with plugins, it’s extremely difficult. Many Spine animations I made (like the smooth animations for the "Ghost Sister") couldn’t be implemented, leaving only crude 3-frame animations in-game. Performance issues are also severe—oversized PNG sprites caused frame rates to drop below 60 on some PCs.

I’m not attacking RPGmaker—it’s a fantastic engine. Without it, I couldn’t have started making games. But it’s not suited for my project, and its simplicity became a shackle. Half my development time was spent fighting engine limitations.

The thought hit me: “If I spent these months battling technical hurdles on a new project instead, I might’ve already finished a demo.”

So, I’ve decided to pause DLC development and start creating a 3D new title using UE5.

I’ll share screenshots and completed assets for the DLC below to prove I’ve worked tirelessly these two months and didn’t deceive anyone.

Plans Moving Forward

You might feel it’s a shame to abandon these DLC contents.

But don’t worry! These assets will still be useful. For example, I might use UE5 to develop a full 3D sequel to 《Subway Exorcist Girl》, incorporating these parts as 2D mini-games. Freed from engine constraints, I could achieve far better results!

These assets won’t go to waste—I’ll find ways to use them in future projects.

What kind of new project will I develop next?

I’ll use UE5 to create a brand-new 3D bishoujo (beautiful girl) game, delivering a modern, polished experience—unlike this title, which struggled with basic actions like running or smooth interactions.

For the new project, I’ll ensure high-quality art and modern, comfortable gameplay. Follow my progress here:

bilibili: https://space.bilibili.com/19549149 (China’s YouTube equivalent. I post game-related videos here.)

X: https://x.com/LINLUSENSHAN (Non-Chinese players can follow my X/Twitter for updates. I might also share artwork!)

Weibo: https://weibo.com/u/3954619380 (China’s X/Twitter equivalent.)

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LINLUSENSHAN

Thank you to all players worldwide who supported and encouraged me after the game’s release. I shared my development journey—especially your help—in a Bilibili video. Guess what? It hit 1,800,000 views! It even trended as one of Bilibili’s most popular videos. Chinese viewers were deeply moved by your support, calling those who helped me “HEROES.”

I also owe thanks to the Chinese players who bought the game after that video. Despite its flaws, your passion carried me through tough times, enabling me to continue developing new projects. You are HEROES too!

Source

Steam News / 27 March 2025

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