Blade Runner is one of my favorite films. It might even be my favorite film, because I’m an absolute sucker for a sense of place and how cyberpunk cities feel and Blade Runner has both in spades. So you can imagine I’ve been almost vibrating with sheer excitement over chill dystopian city builder Dystopika, Now, a new update has upped that excitement, with a brilliant new addition that unlocks a way to customize the game’s animated billboards.
Just like Blade Runner and other cyberpunk games like Syndicate Wars, the cities in Dystopika are filled with animated billboards hawking various products and services to the masses. It wouldn’t be cyberpunk, really, without a giant video above your head telling you to drink Coke or buy a 6000 SUX. Dystopika understands that very well and is going one step beyond by letting you upload your own videos to be played in-game.
Today’s 1.0.2 patch introduces an experimental feature that allows you to slap your own videos into the game’s billboards. Obviously the first one I’m going to try is the lady chomping on a pill from Blade Runner but it appears you can upload almost anything to the game. Supporting H264 .mp4 and VP8 .webm files, the only warning from the developer is that high resolution videos may cause potential performance issues. Optimistically in an accompanying announcement the developer states “I cannot wait to see what you’ll all come up with,” which seems either incredibly naive or shows a willingness to endure the worst of the internet.
The Steam post also confirms that more updates are in the works. “I’ve made a promise that the 1.0 launch is not the end, but rather a starting point. I am now working on the first major update and I will keep you all in the loop on how it’s tracking,” the developer says. “I have some ideas on where I want to take this update, with some of these ideas shaped by you. Keep an eye out for more info in the near-by future.”
The latest patch for Dystopika is out now and you can read the full update notes over on the Steam announcement. You’ll find a few bug fixes in addition to the beta feature detailed above, as well as a few details on how to use the video upload tool.
Why not also take a look at our guide to the best city building games you can play as well as our recommendations for the best sandbox games out there right now.
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