Hello everyone, happy Friday.
We’ve had a very busy week preparing the build for next week’s update.
This month in particular, we’ve been focusing development around the Unreal Engine 5.6 update that many of you helped test, with a strong emphasis on overall stability and optimization.
We’re improving the system so that settings can be better tailored to different hardware environments. On high-end systems, the goal is to provide smoother performance, while on lower-end systems, we’re working to maintain visual quality while ensuring stable gameplay.
However, as this update includes new features, there may be conflicts with existing settings. Because of this, you will need to reset your graphics options once after the update. We appreciate your understanding.
We are also working on a feature that allows graphics settings to be saved and shared. However, we cannot yet confirm whether this will be completed within the current schedule. Our top priority through August will remain stability improvements.
We take seriously the areas where we have not been able to improve enough so far. For us as developers, a game is not just a finished product, but something we are continuously responsible for.
We hope you have a wonderful weekend. Thank you.
— kjun
Kjun’s Reply to Your Comments
Hello everyone,
I’m writing this right after uploading a new build for you. To be honest, I feel both anxious and apologetic—wondering what kind of feedback will come this time, and knowing that I still haven’t been able to address all of your requests.
That said, you’ve once again shared a large amount of thoughtful feedback and suggestions regarding the latest update of inZOI. Thank you, as always. This week’s feedback mainly focused on improvements to core game systems, requests for new features, enhancements to graphics and interface, and expanding the depth of social and personal interactions within the game.
Regarding system improvements and bug fixes, many of you pointed out that several existing systems—such as the court system, business management, NPC autonomy, genetics, personality traits, and the career system—feel incomplete or contain bugs. There were also many detailed suggestions aimed at improving realism and immersion, including driving and parking systems, as well as vehicle theft mechanics.
In terms of interaction, there is strong demand to increase both the variety and realism of interactions between NPCs and players. For example, many of you want NPCs to engage in more diverse conversations and behaviors, and for life events such as marriage, childbirth, and family relationships to progress more autonomously as part of the game’s narrative.
As for new features and future plans, we recognize that systems like the court and legal professions are still underdeveloped. We are currently considering expanding this area, including roles such as lawyers. Since the foundations for careers, freelance work, and business systems are already in place, we plan to carry the court-related systems through to full completion.
We recently identified a critical bug affecting business operations, caused by issues in autonomous behavior. In the April update, we made adjustments to prevent players from incurring losses during business activities, but if further issues arise, we will respond quickly.
Regarding NPC autonomy, we have long been aware of a fundamental issue: NPCs currently evaluate all possible interactions around them without sufficient consideration for context, leading to unnatural behavior regardless of time or place. We are working to improve this so that NPCs act appropriately based on time, location, and role. If you share examples of awkward or desired behaviors, we will review them for future updates.
On genetics, we understand the feedback that current inheritance makes characters resemble their parents too closely, sometimes appearing almost like duplicates. In the future, we plan to improve this through CAZ by allowing players to easily explore a wider range of genetic combinations, gather feedback, and refine the system further with adjustable parameters.
For personality and individuality, we are aware of a major limitation: characters are currently assigned random traits at birth that persist unchanged throughout their lives. We are preparing systems where personality evolves based on actions and outcomes, with distinct developmental stages for children, youth, and adults, including changes driven by shifting values.
We also received many suggestions related to realism features such as driving, parking, and vehicle theft. We plan to develop interaction systems that allow players to experiment with more realistic and immersive behaviors, ultimately enabling actions that meaningfully affect both people and objects in the world.
In addition, there is strong interest in making NPC relationships more dynamic. We are preparing systems where nearby characters can approach the player organically, initiate plans, visit homes, and form schedules. Our goal is to allow characters across the city to autonomously create their own stories. Feedback on how these interactions should feel is especially valuable.
On graphics, interface, and user experience, there was significant feedback on visual quality, minimap and phone UI improvements, camera controls, distance culling options, and custom content management. This new build includes a number of graphical improvements, and I sincerely hope they meet your expectations.
There were also detailed UI/UX requests, such as clearer tool color distinctions in build mode, terrain editing improvements, better mirror and reflection systems, and more natural customer behavior in clothing stores and salons. We are expanding the team responsible for terrain systems with the goal of completing this within the year. As for mirrors, they rely on Lumen, a relatively new technology that continues to present challenges. This remains a known issue we are actively working to resolve.
Finally, regarding community and creator support, there were requests for stronger copyright protection within the canvas system, prevention of unauthorized reuploads, improved translation quality, and better multilingual localization. While I was not able to review all of these personally today, I have already asked the relevant teams to investigate and improve these areas.
Thank you again for taking the time to share your thoughts this week. Releasing this build was not easy, and I feel both grateful and apologetic toward those of you who have been patiently waiting. At the same time, your continued support motivates us to keep pushing forward.
Unlike many games that lose communication after release, this ongoing dialogue means a lot to us. This month, we focused heavily on optimization and stability, and I hope this build reflects at least a small part of our appreciation for your support.
Kjun 
(In reality, Barber would have already been beaten up for this or the police would have been called)
, but criminals don’t go to crimes in the clothes they usually wear in order not to be recognized by their clothes. Maybe it’s worth making an additional clothing slot specifically for crimes?
