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Dark and Darker won't utilize pay-to-win in future monetization

In a recent Discord Q&A, Ironmace revealed that it needs a reasonable monetization model to keep the servers going, but it won't resort to pay-to-win features.

TJ Denzer

March 7, 2023 10:50 AM

Image via Ironmace

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During the last Steam Next Fest, Ironmace exploded onto the scene with its PvPvE medieval fantasy title, Dark and Darker, sharing a multiplayer demo of the game during the event. The studio is still working on the game and preparing it for an early access release at some point, but there’s still a lot to work out, like monetization. Ironmace recently claimed it needs some sort of pay model to keep the servers running on Dark and Darker, but it isn’t sure what form that takes yet. Nonetheless, the studio added that no matter what, monetization in Dark and Darker will never include pay-to-win mechanics.

Ironmace devs shared their thoughts on Dark and Darker monetization during a recent Discord Q&A, the questions and answers of which were collected in a convenient Google Doc. In said Q&A, Ironmace answered to a number of various questions, including revealing that it was working on adding more fun tools to the Rogue, introducing a Bard class, buffing Mages, and more. However, it was the team’s answer on monetization that should leave most players relieved at what that might come to be.

“Game sales alone can't cover the cost of running servers on an ongoing basis,” Ironmace said in response to a question about post-launch revenue. “We need to generate revenue at a level acceptable to our players. There is absolutely no P2W.”

Ironmace further went on to explain that the studio has currently not figured out what its monetization model for Dark and Darker would look like. The team could only reveal that it’s shooting for “a monetization model that players can understand.”

It’s likely easier said than done, but Dark and Darker has a winning formula so far with gameplay that enticed a lot of players, ourselves included, in the recent playtest. As Ironmace continues to develop the game, its pay model for Dark and Darker is sure to emerge eventually. Stay tuned as we continue to watch for what form that takes, as well as other updates on the game.

TJ Denzer

Senior News Editor

TJ Denzer is a player and writer with a passion for games that has dominated a lifetime. He found his way to the Shacknews roster in late 2019 and has worked his way to Senior News Editor since. Between news coverage, he also aides notably in livestream projects like the indie game-focused Indie-licious, the Shacknews Stimulus Games, and the Shacknews Dump. You can reach him at tj.denzer@shacknews.com and also find him on Twitter @JohnnyChugs.