Interview with Browndust 2's PD & CEO Lee Jun-Hee at the Taipei Game Show 2025 about the game's 'resurrection' after the 0.5th anni
Source: https://gnn.gamer.com.tw/detail.php?sn=280135 (All web translated)
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The 2025 Taipei Game Show (TGS) will be held from January 23 to 26 in Hall 1 of the Nangang Exhibition Center, while the concurrent Asia Pacific Game Summit (APGS) will also focus on the latest industry trends, covering six themes: game development, marketing, generative AI, indie games, and esports.
This time, we specially invited Lee Jun-hee, PD & CEO of GAMFSN in South Korea, to reveal the development history of "Brown Dust 2", which celebrates its 1.5th anniversary, to share the key turning point from development difficulties to market success, and to discuss in depth how to improve the game experience through continuous communication with players, until it has achieved the acclaimed achievement.
Lee Jun-hee, PD & CEO of GAMFSN
Keynote speaker Lee Jun-hee is the PD and CEO of GAMFSN, the developer of "Brown Dust 2", and has served as the AD/project manager of "Rainbow Adventure" and "Ace Showdown", as well as the PD of "Brown Dust" and "Brown Dust 2", and established the company in 2013. Start a career as an independent game maker.
Timeline of Lee Jun Hee's works (when he was working on them)
Lee Jun-hee said that through the chart, it can be found that "Brown Dust 2" actually showed a downward trend in the early days of listing, and encountered a lot of difficulties, and it did not turn around until the 0.5th anniversary. And he also shared with you the opportunity for the real reversal of "Brown Dust 2", and the development trend of the 1.5th anniversary now.
The first thing he saw was a lot of well-known JRPGs from the '90s, which made him dream of being a developer. The original content and graphics of Brown Dust 2 were actually very different from what players see today, and it took a year or so to improve the technical level to achieve the ideal presentation. At the same time, in addition to the high difficulty of showing fun, it is also challenging to remove the inconvenience of players. After three years of development, the first closed beta test was finally completed in January 2023.
After absorbing feedback from players, we decided to adjust the game's perspective and camera quality, and added the automatic camera movement function, and finally ushered in the release opportunity in June 2023. While players were initially interested in the fresh visuals and production, the graphics spoke for themselves, showing that the game couldn't sustain the excitement. Despite a brief bounce in the first Summer Swimsuit Update, it was unable to sustain itself and began to slip.
Lee Jun-hee said that due to the high hopes placed on the game, despite facing many unexpected situations, everyone and RDs who did not give up easily began to actively find out the cause of the problem, and although many players left the game, they still actively listened to the valuable opinions of the players who stayed behind, and began to examine the cause of the problem one by one. Efforts have been made to eliminate the inconvenience of JRPGs, and the post-release version has been more convenient than the initial version, but this is obviously not enough, and there is still room for effort in all aspects, including the UI, but the game has been produced quite well.
Lee Jun-hee thinks that if the game works well, players may be able to accept the small inconvenience, but this is just the production team avoiding the real problem and falling into the illusion that Brown Dust 2 is actually not bad. Players already have games that they are playing, and they have developed a deep relationship and content with them, and the illusion that Brown Dust 2 is not bad is actually difficult to survive when they have to compete with these games.
"For example, going to a hotel to rest and regain strength in a JRPG is a default rule for familiar players. However, for mobile gamers, it has caused a lot of inconvenience. At the end of the day, this sensibility is just the romance of PD and can't resonate with the player." In addition, players also commented on the game's economic equilibrium, BM, and other depleted content, so the development team began a large-scale improvement project with the awareness of changing everything.
Lee Jun-hee: "The production team is actually working on improving the user-friendliness and improving the quality of the game, as well as the fatigue of the players. In terms of the charging model, BM has also relieved the previous forced repetition of activities to obtain items and other content, and the speed of game content changes is much faster when we are also the CEO, so that we can quickly make decisions on revisions."
Lee Jun-hee said that he will make correct judgments after confirming the opinions of users in each region, and he will revise the game content through testing, and meet challenges every day with a spirit of not admitting defeat and an open attitude, and the accusations and opinions of players will be the driving force for development. Although it was a lot of mental effort to take on the role of PD and CEO, I am still happy to have such an outcome today. In short, it is to accurately grasp the opinions of users, and make rapid improvements based on them, so that players can feel sincere, so that the company can make progress, and "Brown Dust 2" is actually the same, and RD has further narrowed the distance with players through this process.
"Although the game indicators continue to decline, we will continue to work hard and continue to see if the trough can rebound. With hope in mind, we have a fulfilling 0.5 anniversary, which is also the beginning of our rally. In particular, player feedback is the basic skill of developers, but it alone will not be able to retain users, so what is the nirvana of "Brown Dust 2"? That's the strong art and the interaction with the players."
Lee Jun-hee said, "When we were making the illustrations, we decided to develop them in a direction that players would love, and 99% of them were male. A crisis is a turning point, and this sets the direction for us. We're pretty good at quality, and you can see it everywhere on a large scale, but the high-quality 2D animations we present in Brown Dust 2 are made with the highest level of quality, and the quality of the illustrations is recognized as the best in this category."
The second advantage is communication. Lee Jun-hee said that service-oriented games, in particular, cost more to communicate than other aspects such as movies and television. He believes that the game is the work of the development team before it is released, but after it is released, it must be transformed into a concept created by players, which not only requires the reaction of players, but also has value beyond that of partners. Players can be cautious in their game choices for months or years, so in the new era, RD must be transparent in its communication with players. In various live events, he can be seen in a frank dialogue with the division manager, the story team leader, and the concept art team leader, and these real speeches are presented, and the charm of such content and "Brown Dust 2" has also been affirmed by players.
Lee Jun-hee said that because he is also the project leader, he sometimes worries about whether he will say the wrong thing, and under this pressure, he mostly communicates with players through text rather than face-to-face. Now, as long as he sincerely conveys the distressing matters or stories, most players can accept them calmly, and this is also due to the fact that he can participate in shows and offline events with a relaxed mood. They also regularly interact with players through live streams, and have held events in South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. He also cosplayed as the in-game character "Justia", which players commented on as quite weighty. On the occasion of the game's 1.5th anniversary, I also came to Taiwan to participate in the Taipei Game Show, set up a booth with the theme of hot springs, and held a face-to-face autograph session with players, which made me very excited and glad to be able to repay all players through this event.
(Glupy Diner and GluTalk, new 1st pov with bonding/affection system modes)
Special Interactions (Interactive L2D)
(Vampire Survival like minigame)
"Since August 2024, we have received a lot of feedback from our players. In general, players think that no matter how beautiful the art illustrations are, if the setting or story is insufficient, it will not evolve into a love for the characters, but simply make the development team happy. This is a powerful opinion for us. With these feedbacks, we've gone to great lengths to make up for these parts in the 1.5th anniversary update, and we're going to do our best to do what we can't match, and we're working on a development that no other mobile game can match."
"First of all, we introduced a beautiful girl love simulation style story, but originally "Brown Dust 2" was performed in the third person as a group drama, which also caused some limitations to the sense of involvement. To reinforce this, we have added the GLU TALK chat system, which provides a new story experience to enjoy love from a first-person perspective, and the most popular feature in 1.5 years is the special interaction system with characters. We've provided a new experience that goes beyond touching a specific part, which adds to the fun of having a hidden strategy. In addition, based on the feedback from players about the monotony and tedium of the event, we have also advanced the seasonal events, the most representative of which is the mini-games made with care. Many players want to enjoy the mini-games through the standalone mode, and considering that the mini-games are loved by players, there are also players who feel that the mini-games are not necessary and are still available in a non-built-in way."
Massive growth through nov 2023, half anni, anni and 1.5 anni
Lee Jun-hee said that it has been more than 1 year since the rebound of "Brown Dust 2" in the chart since the 0.5th anniversary, has such an effort been communicated to players? During this time, what the team did was to actively communicate, diversify and improve, and update, and maintain an upward growth curve. In 2025, "Brown Dust 2" will continue to optimize the pace, and players will be more involved in the story experience of the characters with the expectation of transcending artistry, and I hope that you will continue to support it in the future. That's it for Brown Dust 2 since its 1.5th
"Speaking of which, that's Brown Dust 2>> 1.5 Years of Service since the Anniversary of the Service. If the game goes fairly smoothly from launch, there will be no problem, but if it is a developer who is in a similar situation to us, I would like to use it as a reference version. When the game indicators continue to decline, the most important thing is transformation, and the most important thing is how to stop the decline and rebound and create opportunities for rebound. We must stand in the user's shoes, and although PD needs to be insisted, how to maintain the relationship with players in the game operation stage is more important. In addition, if the game is snubbed by players, it is a sign that there is something wrong with the game and must be improved gradually. The romance of PD can only shine when the basics are solid."
Lee Jun-hee said that the mental management of PD is actually quite important, and the killer features produced while the basic skills are solid need to be redoubled. In the process, you need to soothe the players' reproaches and deal with the team's grievances to move forward, which is a long-term battle, so mental toughness is very important. When communicating with players, it's important to listen to their voices and questions, but it's also important to say that it takes time to deal with them. At this time, it is better to communicate quickly and frankly than to make invalid arguments the best solution for players to understand and communicate truthfully. During the 1.5 anniversary update process, players were disappointed by frequent bugs and poor drawing quality, and if there were repeated mistakes, it would lead to distrust among players.
(Landscape and portrait modes)
"Overall, Brown Dust 2 Through various efforts to make up for the lack of basic skills in the early stage of operation, and gradually improve the relationship with players. At the beginning of the service, the romance of PD hindered the development of the game due to the lack of solid basic skills, but after a year of hard work, the advantages that had been dusted up to that time were revealed one by one. In the early days, the game was designed to be an emotional JRPG, but it was in conflict with the mobile game system, and the development team put a lot of effort into improving the situation. Among these efforts, the hidden advantages such as the map, music, and SD characters show the originality of the game, and it has been well received. In addition, Brown Dust 2 also takes into account the needs of players to support both vertical and landscape graphics, bringing the convenience of one-handed operation and meeting the needs of players."
Lee Jun-hee concluded by saying that there will be many high-quality games coming out in 2025, and in a highly competitive environment, he is looking forward to Brown Dust 2 more than becoming the number one player in the market>> Attract users through the charm of differentiation, naturally drive new players, and become the NO. 1 in the hearts of players. Silence is also a strategy, and instead of wanting to be the main game in the player's mind, it is better to show off your charm in many games. As long as it has a unique charm, I believe that players will continue to pay attention and enjoy the game content. Many games peak in the early days of the market and then try to reduce the downward trend, but Brown Dust 2 is still on an upward curve of growth, with little by little progress after initial setbacks. For them, the goal is to do everything they can to maintain the upward trend with the players, and hope that the players will continue to support them.