Weekly Development Update 9.25.2026
Another busy week for NeonStrip, with work across the world, AI dialogue, NPC behavior, gameplay systems, combat, and UI.
Here's a look at some of this week's progress.
Environment & World Development
Development continued on several areas of the world, including the buildings housing Veloura and Obsidian, the game's women's and men's clothing stores.
Work also continued around the Player's Starting House, including the new jacuzzi and surrounding backyard area.
New Waypoint Indicator System
Based on player feedback, a new Waypoint Indicator System has been added to make package drop-off locations easier to find during Random Encounters.
The indicator tracks the direction and distance of a destination even when it's outside the player's current view.
While initially created for package deliveries, the system is being built for broader use with mission objectives, vehicles, followers, destinations, and other gameplay mechanics.
Save/Load & Wardrobe Improvements
The new Save/Load Slot Window is now fully implemented, allowing multiple saves with screenshots and save information, along with the ability to delete individual slots.
The Wardrobe and Dressing Room also received several fixes, including player positioning and functional body-part camera controls for viewing clothing.
AI Dialogue Improvements
Two important additions were made to the AI dialogue system this week.
Players can now use the new Interrupt button when an NPC response takes too long to generate, immediately returning control to player dialogue.
NeonStrip now also supports player-provided compatible LLM models. Players can add their own models and select which one they want to use for the game's local AI dialogue system.
NPC & Character Improvements
A new character, Nia Carter, has been added to NeonStrip, with more development planned for her character and role in the game.
NPC-to-NPC socializing also received several improvements. Conversations now occur less frequently, have improved cooldowns, and are prevented during situations such as combat or death.
The interaction highlight previously shown around NPCs has also been removed for a cleaner presentation.
Gameplay & Combat Improvements
Several smaller gameplay and combat improvements were made this week:
Reduced stamina costs for running, jumping, and dodging.
Added new collectible item and weapon icons.
Improved the consistency of blood effects from weapon hits.
Continued improving transitions between cinematic character interactions to prevent incorrect poses or facial states from carrying between animations.
A lot of different areas received attention this week, but one of the biggest additions is custom LLM support. Giving players the ability to choose their own compatible local AI model opens up considerably more flexibility for NeonStrip's AI dialogue system going forward.
More development continues next week, plus a Test Build for T3 members and higher before the end-of-month release.
— Blast.