Enshrouded AMA: Come ask the developers your questions about the world of Embervale!

10 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Greetings, Flameborn! 🔥

To help you all learn more about the world of Enshrouded, the Keen Games world and level design team will be hosting an Ask Me Anything in this thread on Wednesday the 18th at 4:00PM CET! (10:00AM EST)

You’ll be able to post questions in the comments from now until Wednesday next week. Once the event starts, three developers from our world and level design teams, as well as our community managers, will sit down for a couple of hours to answer as many questions as we can about the world and lore of Enshrouded!

Because the design team will be answering questions this time around, this AMA will have a focus on the design and world of the game. So try to keep questions more in their ballpark, for example the way we designed the world, level design, world building, stuff like that!

If you’d like to learn more about Enshrouded, the Keen Games team, or just what goes into making the world of Embervale, don’t hesitate to ask and upvote some questions. And don’t forget to check out the thread again on Wednesday to watch us answer your questions live!

Edit 1:
It begins!

Hey everyone, it's time to get started and answer some questions! Today we're joined by several talented developers from our world team, including our Art Director Jonas (who you might recognize from this old YouTube Video), as well as two members of our level design team: TopCat and Maracujahaha. And of course, our community team members CoolUsernameBro, Toast and Frog, will also be helping to gather all the questions and answers to make sure everything goes smoothly. Feel free to keep asking questions, and we'll try to answer as many as we can. Let's go!

Edit 2:
The AMA is over!
Our lovely developers spent several hours answering as many questions as they could, but since it's getting late in Germany, we had to release them back into the wild 😅.

You can use our comment bot pinned to the top of this thread to quickly glance at all the answers, but we answered so many that the bot actually hit its character limit, so there will be a few that are missing. Either way, thank you all so much for participating, we are delighted with how much love and great questions we received.

Until next time, Flameborn!

External link →

10 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Greetings, Flameborn! 🔥

Edit 1:
It begins!

Until next time, Flameborn!

External link →

10 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Hey guys, friendly reminder that this AMA will involve the world and level design team, and because of that, will have more of a specific focus on those topics as that what those devs specialize in.

We'll still do our best to answer as many questions as we can, but questions about things like console release, or upcoming features and the like, fall outside this team's purview and aren't the focus of this AMA. But believe us when we say that the moment we know when we're releasing the console version, we'll tell everyone, everywhere! 😉

9 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by thatferrybroad

I'd say not everyone understands what the scope of "world and level" actually means, but I include myself in that lol, as you can see in my own questions.

Would it help to expressly clarify what the world/level team DOESN'T handle?

We aren't drawing a specific line in the sand. Like I said, we'll try to answer as much as we can :)

But in our last AMA we had our lead producer and creative director, meaning they were much more in tune with the "big picture" parts of the game, like what the long-term feature plans were and such. Our world and level design developers have a much more specific focus on the artistic and technical side of things, for example the process of creating the game's map. So they might not have as much knowledge on like, what the next public roadmap would look like, for example.

3 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by The_Nights_Path

What is the goal for final player level, and with that how many skill points?

TopCat: That stays a secret for now, but 35 is for sure not the maximal level cap we are planning with. :)

3 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by Mis73

Hello Keen!

I'm not a big gamer but I love Enshrouded. I play with a group of friends and we have an absolute blast.

My question is, will you ever add the ability to type/chat? Usually we use Discord voice while playing sometimes people simply can't be on voice due to RL circumstances. The ability to type to each other in game would be awesome.

Thank you!

We totally understand the need for in-game communication! It's something we are actively looking into.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by GregariousJB

Any chance we're getting the QoL building and storage features of other games?

Signs!

Build Camera from Grounded and modded Valheim

"Quick stack to nearby chests" from Grounded, Terraria, modded Valheim

Renaming chests/symbols on chests from Grounded, Terraria, and modded Valheim

Thank you!

We're always looking to improve the experience of Enshrouded, and we have brought and will continue to bring QoL features to the game. Signs have been part of our roadmap for a long time, so I can definitely confirm that they are coming. I can't speak to these other features, as they will have to be evaluated against other features and content we're developing, including suggestions from other users, but what I can say is we're far from done when it comes to making Enshrouded better for everyone.

3 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by Creepy_Pin_1572

What is your typical day at work ?
Do you place every single piece by hand or do you use assets for towns or houses ?

Coffee or tea ?

I don't build houses, just Reddit posts like this one 😅

And definitely tea, I have a whole cupboard of tasty caffeine plants that get me through each and every day.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by AyaseAsukaF03A

the addition of townsfolk in the last update is such a neat addition and brings life to our base, but will there be a further update on them like adding new features or mechanics surrounding them?

Reception of our Townsfolk NPCs has been really positive from everyone, which is something we expected, but perhaps not to that extent! We've already had numerous requests for extra features for our NPCs, such as putting them to work around the base and its surroundings, or having them guard the area from enemies and wildlife. We've even got several requests from players who want to go the whole nine yards and marry their favorite NPCs, which I think means we must have been doing something right with them? Anyway as I'm sure you've seen, the NPCs are bringing a huge amount of complexity to the game, and as a result they brought a slew of new unexpected behaviors, bugs, and other fun things. Emily Fray wasn't meant to be hanging out on a roof, and the blacksmith going out for cigarettes never to return is also not what we envisioned for him. Not to mention questions of pathing in a world that at any point in time can be remodeled, because it's so easy to throw a grenade inside your own home... (actually we have made a change to ignore the first click when alt-tabbing back into the game, I'm sure it has saved countless players from making the mistake... it's certainly helped me a few times already!)

So we're keeping an eye out for player requests and making notes for later, but right now, due to the added layer of complexity they add, we're looking at other areas of improvement when it comes to new features and content.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by DisciplinedWolf

Hey Guys,

Firstly, what a brilliant game. I hope you guys keep expanding this game forever.

Do you intend to add a blueprint system for building? It would be incredibly useful for setting down cool community made structures, or homegrown structures into your game as you travel.

It might also be a fun way for the community to interact and get more playtime in-between updates.

Thanks for the endless hours of fun!

We've been looking at ways for players to share their bases with one another, but I'm not sure we intend to have anything akin to a blueprint system. It is a popular request on FeatureUpvote, though, so definitely drop it a vote if it's something you're keen to see! https://enshrouded.featureupvote.com/suggestions/524261/building-blueprints-custom-blueprints

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by Cillercat1337

Will the hoe ever be fixed, so it doesn't make these small step like slopes?

If I understand your question correctly, the answer is linked to the size of our voxels: they're half a meter a side, like our blocks. So this pretty much locks how granular we can be with our tools.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by IllustriousScratch17

Hi! A friend and I are going through your game now, and it’s so fun! We’ve put in about 150hrs each on our first play through so far. You’ve done amazing work!

My one question is basic? Will there be a way to design specific boundaries for the NPC and villagers to move around, say if I wanted to keep farmers on a farm? Also, will yall make it so NPCs can do things for us like farming, such as giving them what’s needed and they go and plant it?

So Jonas confirmed with our creative director Antony that actually, after assigning an NPC to a bed, you can resummon them elsewhere and *there* set them a roaming perimeter... I never even knew that! It's huge!!

As for "can I get my NPCs to do chores for me", I've fielded a couple of similar questions elsewhere, please keep an eye out. ;)

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by KeenGames

Topcat: Simple answer : Yes.

Long answer: At this point we can't tell you when exactly that happens but it is on our todo list.

There will always be an area just out of your grasp that looks awesome and where you want to settle in, and eventually we NEED to find a way to make the world finite, and it will hopefully not be a painted wall and fake sky like in the Truman Show. So... keep in mind that if we make the inaccessible accessible, we will need another boundary and eventually, it can't be boundary turtles all the way down.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by AnxiousAcerola

Hey guys,

Thank you for the great game and also my biggest, sincerest thank you, hugs and kisses for including the arachnophobia mode. It improved my (and I'm sure many others) ability to play and enjoyment in the game so so much. I'm one of those people whose tried all the phobia treatment options already and nothing works, it's amazing to play a game without fainting or panic attacks!!

For my question; I'm wondering if there are future plans to make the citizens of our little villages a bit more helpful. I'd love it if Balthazar would craft things while I'm away, if Emily could plant new herbs, or if Athalan could cook some food. Do you guys see this as a possibility in the future of the game?

Very sorry we made the spiders bigger that one time. Happy to hear you're enjoying the game with the new accessibility options! As to your question, I've answered it elsewhere already, see https://www.reddit.com/r/Enshrouded/comments/1hbvfl5/comment/m1j8mnx/

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by Inside_Shake_3115

What about crafting recipes for ALL props that we have already in a game (talking about cool wooden fences, destroyed stuff from villages that we cant place again if we break it and many many more). It would be cool to have a small quest for each type of props (5-7 quests) which unlock all the recipes for them.

We have been trying our best to keep up in adding as many in-game props to the craftable stuff. It's a long and arduous job, mostly because of the amounts of things in the game! But we're doing our best to add stuff to the list with every update, on top of the new craftables if there are any, so we hope to eventually work our way through the backlog and give people to as many things as possible to craft.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by MorcristMeleth

You guys are amazing. You've done what Voxel Farm (or any of it's licensees) never did: get a working, voxel based game released that is FUN and very polished! Massive kudos to you guys!

With that said, I've only got a few questions.

1) Does Keen have any plans on monetizing the Engine used for Enshrouded? As in, allowing other teams/developers to pay money to Keen for the use of the Engine in their game(s)?

2) One of my mottos is: the more gameplay options, the more longevity/fun a game will have. The more things you allow players to do in your games, the longer they will keep playing them. It's one of the obvious reasons games that are easily moddable are played so long after release. Along that line of thought I was wondering if you have plans to allow more server world options like a toggle to build flame altars anywhere, or even a toggle to allow building WITHOUT a flame altar. One of the main draws to a lot of people (in my opinion at least) is the building freedom we have. It's hands down the best building/terrain modifying system I've seen ever, and I'm 52 yrs old and have been playing PC games since the 80s. Being able to build in the many Hollow Halls, or like many have already said on the suggestion website, being able to build all around the world wherever you want...it would just make it so much more of an already amazing game. Repairing the various broken down towns/villages, adding a bridge to a chasm somewhere in the world, or a small cave refuge. So much opportunity that as of right now is so limited by the existing altar system.

3) Finally, does the team have any plans on eventually adding dynamic world events to the game to keep things more interesting for the player(s)? Things like waves of enemies that could attack a player base/altar, or possibly dynamic "wars" between world npcs where maybe Vukah war parties will travel through the world to attack the npc men faction (can't remember their names by the ones that drop all the scrap metal). I could easily imagine an amazing scenario where waves of shrouded npcs leave the shroud to attack nearby encampments of Vukah or men or player bases! The player could choose to join in and help one side or the other, or both. On a possibly related note it would be a neat way to support a faction system where players could gain enough influence with a certain faction (i.e., Vukah) so they could enter their encampments without being attacked.

Again, you guys are amazing. Do you know how I know that? Because Enshrouded is amazing, and amazing games are created by amazing people. The quality and success that is evidenced by your wonderful game is an indicator of the kind of people you are! Thank you so much for Enshrouded, and for the time you are spending to make it even better.

Sorry, this is way outside the scope of this AMA and what the world team is working on!

The "build anywhere" option is probably not a very advisable one if you want your computer to remain in a functional, non-melted state. A lot of it will also be a question of ensuring the game runs well on the specs mentioned on our store page, as well as the upcoming console versions.

No spoilerinos for the world events part, you'll just have to see... I read in another comment that we're talking about our upcoming plans more early next year? Keep an eye out for that.

3 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by Front_Protection_423

Hey! How many biomes would you like to see by the end of 2025? What are your ideas for new biomes that could be added? Doesn't matter which ones end up being included or not!

Have a nice Day 🤗 Kontreck

At least five 😉

And nice try, but right now, it's too early to say which ones are coming next. That said, like Antony mentioned in this question, there's already some parts of the world that can give you a glimpse into what might be coming next.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by Karthull

Absolutely loving the game and can’t wait to see more of what’s next!

I get the progression of materials as you go up in levels and zones, but it bothers me how little use for the gems there are. Have you considered some sort of system where you engrave/embed/imbue gems into our equipment? With different gems perhaps providing different effects (this is assuming you plan to add future areas with missing gems like rubies, emerald, and diamonds etc)

As well as more decorations, recipes, maybe even some building blocks that make use of the gems. As it is now there’s very little use for lapis lazuli and amethyst. Maybe some different magic items or structures that provide some effect at or within range of a base? Could build some magic soldiers or golems that can defend an outpost to make a sort of siege camp, that use gems as fuel and could limit how many you can have at one location of balance is a concern. With different gem types being used for different types of soldiers or whatever.

And finally whenever you get around to the final epic legendary end game items maybe they require some of each gem from throughout the game and multiple different metals?

Gems in your equipment, you say...? What a fanciful idea of yours, some would say, a final fantasy, even...

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by Niggls

Are there plans to make the world (outside of your camp) permanent at some point?

There are technical limitations for this. The game has to be playable, stable, and have decent performance for not only the maniacs out there who stole a supercomputer from NASA, but also for their little bro who's playing on something that barely scrapes by the min specs. And that's even without factoring in the fact that we're also going to be releasing on consoles in the future, which means that *those* also have to be stable, etc etc.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by ArmConnect9353

Hey Keen team,

FIrst off just wanted to say thank you for this game, fell in love with it very quickly after I bought it a month ago.

After 150 hours and not yet having finished the game I only have a few questions mostly relating to QoL.

Are you planning on enabling us to change the keybind for closing menu's ie: boxes and crafters with ESC being the default?

Is water in the works for 2025 or has development on Voxel water been scrapped for the foreseeable future?

Can we ever expect to see weapon transmogging?

1 & 3 are somewhere on our backlog, no ETA yet.
2: We're still working on water, but as Antony replied elsewhere, water is *very* complex to make interact in a meaningful way with a voxel, fully terraformable world.

3 days ago - /u/VeryCoolUsernameBro - Direct link

Originally posted by SaraRainmaker

Hi There! Thanks for taking some time out of your busy work week to talk to us.

I actually have two (somewhat related) questions for you.

I was wondering, Having seen so many amazing builds from players that have been posted on the discord... Did you have any idea that the building system that you were creating, and the POI's you made would inspire such creativity and beautiful work from the player base? And did you expect so many people to take over and rebuild some of your own creations in the way they have?

Have you ever considered using player-made buildings to add into the base game?

I think we knew we were working on something special even before the reveal, and that a lot of the player fantasy of restoring the kingdom would naturally lead players to want to take over ruins and renovate them. Having said that, there's a difference between knowing something is good, and having three million players play your game because the building is cool! From the interior design goblincore chalets to the community that rebuilt Minas Tirith, and all the others working on things from fiction... it's a lot and we're just so happy to have given so many players the tools to create cool stuff. I think personally the only thing I'm yet to see is someone build a 1:1 replica of Star Trek's Enterprise.

TopCat: Yes we have thought about that opportunity but since one of our core aspects of the game world is a lore which makes sense it would certainly break the immersion when a player travels the abandoned lands of Embervale in order to search for the next Metal Scrap and all of a sudden, they find the aforementioned Enterprise. :P

3 days ago - /u/KeenToast - Direct link

Originally posted by Enshrouded_Bot

This post contains replies from employees of Keen Games, you can see them here:

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: We have people working ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: We know that many players ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahahah: Some things were anticipated ...

/u/KeenToast posted a comment: TopCat: That stays a secret ...

/u/KeenToast posted a comment: We totally understand the need ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: We're always looking to improve ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: We're happy that you love ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: If we're talking DNA, ...

/u/KeenToast posted a comment: I don't build houses, just ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: Maybe finding a balance ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: Yes, we have a ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: We've heard your feedback and ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: We obviously hoped for a ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: For now, no. Especially in ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: The original worlds size ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: in terms of world ...

/u/KeenAntony posted a comment: We can't reveal yet which ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: [Jonas: there is an older ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: Exactly, we often used ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: TopCat: In all areas we ...

/u/KeenAntony posted a comment: At the moment, the Shroud ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: We plan to polish ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: I remember asking the ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: TopCat: We kept the passage ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: Reception of our Townsfolk NPCs ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: We've been looking at ways ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: If I understand your question ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: So Jonas confirmed with our ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: Simple answer : Yes. ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: There will always be an ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: This is in our backlog ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: At this point it ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Currently, there are no design ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: We plan to add more ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: We have plans for ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Yes! We're actively working on ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: Very sorry we made the ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: Hallo, ja du hast ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: TopCat: Technically there is no ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: We've recently made experiments ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: You're absolutely right, when ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: In the beginning we ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: We have been trying our ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: You're right, the new ...

/u/VeryCoolUsernameBro posted a comment: Sorry, this is way outside ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: Hey, thank you for ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: Although its the least ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: The map definetly evolved. ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: I'd say its really ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: We have taken some ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: If you haven't done ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Jonas: Actually we just recently ...

/u/KeenToast posted a comment: At least five 😉 And ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: Visually we were inspired ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Maracujahaha: For non-quest areas, there's ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: We have taken some ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Antony: Not much to talk ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: We kept the passage ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: Topcat: The first thing we ...

/u/KeenGames posted a comment: **TopCat (this is a long ...