Beomjun Lee, Government Producer of The First Descendant, will current at GDC 2025 in San Francisco on March 20, sharing insights on overcoming challenges in live-service sport improvement. His session, “Persevering By way of a 57 Metacritic as a Reside Service Sport,” will tackle the looter shooter’s rocky launch and methods for enchancment, alongside a preview of the Season 3: Breakthrough replace.
Key Challenges & Options
- Participant Suggestions Integration: Regardless of blended evaluations at launch (57 Metacritic rating), the group prioritized addressing character steadiness, fight methods, and content material gaps.
- Three Core Focus Areas:
- Speedy adaptation to participant suggestions.
- Constant high-quality content material updates.
- Improved stability and efficiency.
- Enhanced Communication:
- Launched AMA classes on Discord for real-time Q&A.
- Launched month-to-month dwell broadcasts with group Q&A.
Outcomes of Participant-Centric Method
- Season 2 (December 2024): Day by day energetic customers elevated by 92.4%, with a 20% rise in returning gamers in comparison with Season 1.
- Structural Modifications:
- Prolonged replace cycles from 3 to 4 months for deeper content material refinement.
- Growth group expanded by 50% post-launch.
- Discontinued help for PS4/Xbox One to deal with current-gen platforms.
Season 3: Breakthrough (July 2025)
- New Open World: Discover Axion, an unlimited subject with distinctive monsters and mechanics.
- Mounts: Traverse environments quicker.
- Giant-Scale Boss Battles: Cooperative fights in opposition to colossal enemies.
- Collaborations & Content material: Crossovers with main IPs, community-requested weapons, and a participant lounge for showcasing collectibles.
Lee’s GDC speak highlights The First Descendant’s journey from a criticized launch to a revitalized live-service title, pushed by participant suggestions and systemic modifications. Whereas these modifications have stabilized the sport’s playerbase, the the sport is way from its preliminary launch numbers which peaked at 264,860 concurrent customers.
The upcoming Season 3 goals to solidify its place within the looter-shooter style with expanded content material and quality-of-life enhancements.
