The inZOI team has shared another weekly development update, focusing on quality-of-life improvements, performance optimizations, and more natural interactions throughout the game. While the developers continue preparing the next major update, they also confirmed that bug fixing and stability remain their highest priority after discovering more issues than expected in recent builds.

Here's everything revealed this week.

📅 Developers Clarify Their Development Plans

The team first addressed some confusion surrounding last week's announcement.

According to the developers, the features presented in the previous roadmap are still planned for the late August update, while work on the previously announced Future Features (FF) list continues in parallel.

Around 40% of the FF list has already been completed, although many completed features have not yet been revealed because of the current release schedule.

Unfortunately, recent internal testing uncovered several unexpected bugs and stability problems. In fact, three major issues were discovered on the day of writing the post, prompting the team to prepare another hotfix over the weekend.

Rather than rushing to introduce additional gameplay systems, the developers say they will dedicate more time to improving the game's overall stability and polishing existing mechanics before expanding them further.

💬 Full Text Messages May Replace Previews

One of the biggest questions asked this week concerns the in-game phone.

Currently, incoming text messages only display a short preview. The developers are considering changing this so that the complete message appears immediately instead.

Since this could significantly affect gameplay, they're asking players whether this would feel more convenient or if another solution would work better.

📱 Phone Controls Become More Convenient

Several usability improvements have also been made to the in-game smartphone.

Players will soon be able to:

• 📲 Use ESC as a universal Home button.
• ⌨️ Press P (or click the phone icon) to instantly close the phone.
• ⚡ Navigate the interface much more quickly during gameplay.

These small changes should make everyday interactions feel much smoother.

🗣️ Conversations Will Feel Much More Natural

The team has also improved how conversations begin between Zois.

Previously, asking your Zoi to talk with someone who was already speaking to another character would immediately interrupt that conversation.

Now, existing conversations continue naturally while your Zoi simply walks over and joins the discussion instead.

It's a relatively small improvement, but one that makes social interactions feel considerably more realistic.

🚀 Better Performance While Moving Around the Map

Performance optimization continues to be a major focus.

Previously, moving the camera around the city forced the game to continuously load materials while the camera was still in motion.

After the update, assets will only begin loading once the player stops moving the camera, reducing unnecessary loading and helping improve overall performance.

This should make exploring larger areas noticeably smoother, especially on lower-end hardware.

🎨 Customize Any NPC with a New Cheat

Until now, players could only edit members of their own household.

A new developer cheat will allow players to customize the appearance of uncontrollable NPCs as well.

This gives creators much more freedom when designing neighborhoods, stories, and screenshots without relying on mods.

🎭 Create a Zoi Interface Gets Cleaner

The developers are also simplifying the Create a Zoi interface.

The Special Output Indicator, which currently occupies valuable screen space, will be moved to the upper-left corner, reducing visual clutter while creating characters.

The team is once again asking players for feedback before finalizing this change.

👒 More Accessories, Clothing & Hairstyles

Character customization continues to expand.

This week's additions include:

• 👒 A completely reorganized Headwear category with multiple subcategories.
• 😷 A brand-new Face Mask category.
• 💪 A new athletic tank top designed for gym enthusiasts.
• 💇 A brand-new hairstyle.

These changes make browsing accessories much easier while adding more customization options.

👶 Baby Animations Become More Realistic

Several animation improvements focus on babies and family interactions.

Upcoming changes include:

• 🧸 Adults now crouch down to interact with babies at eye level.
• 📺 Babies only watch television when something visually interesting is actually playing instead of staring at blank screens.
• 💞 Overall interactions with babies feel much more natural.

These additions continue the developers' ongoing effort to improve family gameplay.

⚰️ Improved Natural Death Animations

Although only briefly shown in the video, the developers also confirmed adjustments to natural death animations, making these moments appear more believable within the life simulation.