The Next Chapter: New Files, Beta Testing & Our Future Plans

[Kse]

Dear Players!

In this announcement, we would like to share some additional information about our current development process, upcoming opportunities, and certain aspects of our work, as well as our vision for the future.

New Files - Greater Stability and New Opportunities

We have gained access to a newer set of Classic version files. These files are significantly more stable and include fixes for a number of long-standing issues left unresolved by the official developers.

Compared to the older files currently used by the Talking Island and Dion servers, we are fully confident that this represents the next stage of the project’s development. We believe this transition is clearly justified and will allow us to accelerate development while also improving overall server stability.

For example, during the transition to version 2.0, we introduced several systems that both we and the community were interested in, including the Achievement system, Compounds, Clan Bonuses, and various other mechanics. However, because these systems did not originally exist in our files, we had to develop them ourselves. This required a significant amount of time and resources and ultimately extended the development period of the update considerably.

Moving to the new files gives us access not only to systems that already exist, but also to entirely new possibilities. This greatly expands what we can do in terms of character progression, creating different types of events, developing equipment progression, and introducing new gameplay mechanics.

We will share more details about all of this at a later date.

Our Main Goal

Our project remains focused on the Classic concept of game worlds. That has not changed.

The Classic experience is what brings all of us together. We intend to preserve the foundations of Classic while gradually introducing new content and mechanics that are genuinely interesting to you, ensuring that the game continues to evolve and that there is always something meaningful to work toward.

We are not planning to simply take the new files exactly as they are and use them without changes. In our view, many decisions made in the later versions were not handled correctly and gradually moved away from what we consider to be the true Classic experience.

Because of this, systems that do not fit our vision for the project have already been removed, are currently being reworked, or will be significantly adjusted.

These include the three-castle siege system, the clan war system that prevented players from properly participating in PvP even during mutually declared wars, auto-farming, the new weapon rune system, the Sayha system, one Soulshots/Spiritshots type for all grades, and many other mechanics that we will discuss separately in one of our upcoming Dev Spotlight posts.

We want to keep only those systems in which we see genuine potential — whether they expand character progression, simplify or improve progression itself, or introduce new ways to develop and enhance equipment.

At the same time, we do not want to make every major decision without first giving you the opportunity to test these systems yourselves.

We already see your feedback, and we are actively responding to it. However, we also believe that some systems are difficult to evaluate properly until players have had the opportunity to interact with them directly and see how they function within the overall game environment.

For this reason, our current plan is as follows.

1. First Stage of Beta Testing

In the near future, we plan to launch the first beta test using the new files. The exact date will be announced separately.

The main goal of this stage is to identify as many issues as possible, give you the opportunity to personally experience the systems we have discussed in our Dev Spotlight posts, and allow everyone to form their own opinion based on actual gameplay.

Once you have a complete understanding of how these systems work together, we would like to receive more detailed and meaningful feedback from you.

When the beta test begins, a dedicated section will be created in Discord where you will be able to leave feedback and directly discuss any necessary changes with us.

2. Development After the First Beta

Once we have collected enough feedback from the first stage of testing, access to the new files will be temporarily closed.

During this period, we will begin implementing the necessary changes and continue working on the overall concept of the new server.

We have not forgotten your suggestions and concerns regarding our previous announcements, progression, and the general direction of the game. All of these topics have already been discussed internally by the team and will be taken into account when shaping the final concept.

3. The New Server and the Future of Talking Island and Dion

Many of you have been waiting for news regarding the merger of Talking Island and Dion. Naturally, we want to provide you with as much detailed information as possible as soon as we can. We have been discussing and developing the plan for a very long time and are already working through everything required to make it happen.

Once we have established a solid foundation on the new files, implemented the necessary changes based on your feedback, and launched the new server, we will move on to the final stage of our current plan:

Migrating Talking Island and Dion to the new files and subsequently merging the two servers.

We fully understand that a brand-new server and servers with already well-developed characters require very different approaches to progression, supporting systems, and overall balance.

For this reason, the version used for Talking Island and Dion will not necessarily be completely identical to the version used for the new server.

Your feedback will once again play an important role here. Depending on the needs and opinions of the existing community, certain systems may be changed, adapted, or disabled entirely.

Before any final decisions are made, we will discuss the merger concept with you in detail.

And This Is Only Part of Our Plans

Everything described above relates exclusively to the in-game side of what we are currently working on.

We sincerely hope for your understanding throughout this transition, and we are incredibly grateful for your patience, your feedback, and your continued support of the project.

Thank you for staying with us.
Your Classic Team

[Zace]

F R E S H ! ! !

[DonVito]

Superb news.

Immediate feedback: call the new server Giran or Fresh.

Thank you