August has been a very busy month for us, digging away in the video games mines! We launched Hello Cruel World on SteamVR and Meta on August 1st, launched a new demo for the creature collector Nanomon and well, eight more stories than that! There is a ton to talk about for this month, so feel free to skip to your favorite story! (Or read them all because I worked real hard on them, OK?)
In this dev log we will talk about
- Hello Cruel World
- The Darkside Detective
- Zoeti
- Cabernet
- Nanomon
- Sorry We’re Closed
- Astrea
- Cryptmaster
- Rain World
- Ynglet
Launched on SteamVR and Meta
Hello Cruel World, our psychological horror in VR, launched on August 1st for SteamVR and Meta.
Hello Cruel World is the second VR title that we’ve developed in house, beaten only by Behind the Frame VR last year! Both of those VR titles are about as different as you can get from each other since one is about tranquil painting in a picturesque French apartment and the other is about… well, let’s just say spiderbot legs are needle-sharp.
In Hello Cruel World, you follow the adventures of a streamer who is a semi-professional urban explorer when they come across an abandoned fast food restaurant named the Crab N’ Grab. What seemed like an ordinary run down greasy seafood joint, all changed for the worst when they discovered what was hiding on the lower levels.
Check out Hello Cruel World on Steam and Meta!
Out on Mobile!
The Darkside Detective series have been following the clues and took a trip to Android and iOS on August 8th to solve the mysteries in Twin Lakes. You can now take Francis McQueen and Patrick Dooley on the go and now they can all fit in your pocket.
Each game has nine unique cases of goblins, paranormal, giant creatures, and more that the detective duo must navigate through in order to solve the secrets of the investigation.
If you are into satirical detective cases, then I would recommend the overwhelmingly positive The Darkside Detective series!
iOS
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark
Android
The Darkside Detective: A Fumble in the Dark
Out on Mobile!
Get your deck of cards ready, Zoeti alongside The Darkside Detective Series, also launched on Android and iOS on August 8th! Wow, there were a lot of launches this month. Take one of the three playable adventurers with you each with their own unique abilities to slice through waves of enemies. Each hero has tons of builds and play styles that make each run feel distinctive and fun– all with nary an ad or power recharging microtransaction in sight
Which builds will you use to save the world?
Check out Zoeti on iOS and Android!
Meeting our Latest Voiceover Star: Rue the Cat
Earlier this month, we met the amazing voice actor and friend of the felines, Rue the cat! Rue plays the important role of the fluffy, orange cat who pounces around town and lazily lays down wherever you want to sit.
You can hear some of their amazing voice acting here!
Laura and Arseniy from Party for Introverts, the developers of Cabernet, took a minute to tell you more about what they have been working on for Cabernet!
“Hello, fanged friends!
We are full speed ahead on all things polish in August.
From making sure character faces match on-screen text to working through the beast that is Liza’s VO lines, Laura is chipping away at her remaining tasks.
Similarly, Arseniy is ticking off his own list. In addition to his programming and VO implementation tasks, he is also working through the Save functions, making saves more organically work within the world of the game.
On a perhaps more fun note for you, the reader, we will leave you with another hello from Rue the cat. He is quite enjoying his newfound fame, and much like our in-game feline, he does love his scritches.
So long for now!
Party for Introverts”
I wanted to check and I am happy to say that the in-game feline also likes pets!
Updated Demo Available
Nanomon was part of the Wholesome Games celebration from September 15th to the 21st and to celebrate, we released a new demo which includes a new selection of activities, a new encounter system, and more!
Check out the Nanomon demo on Steam!
One more announcement! The community has finished voting on which Nanomon they preferred in the Nanomon Discord! I talked about a few of the winners in last month’s dev log which you can check out here! There are five new winners of Nanomon slotted in!
Drac-in-a-Box
Drac-in-a-Box is a Spooky-type and that bat is hiding some goodies in that coffin. It could be sweet candy or maybe something a bit more terrifying.
Stitch fix
Stitch fix is a Magical-type and they are loved by many children as a soft nanomon. They have been known to defeat many bullies to protect the child.
Golato
Golato is an Italian-type and they’re ready to smack down their enemies! I’m not sure if they are part giant Piñata or fully made of gelato?
Meat tooth
Meat tooth is a Wild-type with SUPER sharp teeth that can slice through almost anything. Do not stand in between them and food – or you know…you will end up being the meal.
Biblically Accurate Angel
Biblically Accurate Angel is an Italian-type with very powerful magic to decimate any foe that stands in their way. Please do not anger the powerful angel. I have to make sure they don’t damage anything or it comes out of my paycheck…
Fun fact with these polls: The community surprised all of us and actually managed to cause a draw between Meat tooth and Golato.
First Round of Feedback
à la mode games has been working hard in the game developer mines with Sorry We’re Closed taking feedback from a few people who have been testing out the prototype of the game and implementing those feedbacks.
One such example of excellent player feedback was that bosses and enemies looked cooler with the vision turned off as they would turn a solid black when using your third eye to see their weaknesses. The solid black also made it hard to see what the enemy was doing and sometimes what that threat was. The devs solved this by giving the player the ability to see into the enemy when their vision is open. Instead of the solid black silhouette, they are now given a pink outline which makes it much easier to see what they are doing and really fits well with the style of the art!
This change also transfers to angels/demons who don’t have human forms in the town area to make them easier to see.
Be sure to give Sorry We’re Closed a wishlist on Steam or the demons might come for you!
Almost One Year Since Launch
Astrea launched almost a year ago on September 21st, 2023. Since then there have been a ton of changes to Astrea that almost makes it feel a different game then when it launched. There have been four major patches with the latest one launching earlier this month on August 9th. Builds that used to be super weak have been buffed and some builds that were instant wins have been tweaked down a bit. You can read this huge balance change on Steam which includes some major reworks to each of the oracles!
We do have something amazing planned near the one year anniversary of Astrea but right now I’m holding the dice close to my chest and not revealing them.
If you want to keep an eye for Astrea news and what might be coming up, join the Astrea Discord or Akupara Discord.
Downwood Content Expansion
Cryptmaster launched three months ago on May 9th and has already seen amazing reviews from the community! In only three months, Cryptmaster has over 1,100 reviews on Steam with an overwhelming positive rating of 96%.
With this amazing positive support for the game, the developers Paul and Lee, are planning the next content update which will add a new tavern called Downwood and expand on the “Whatever” minigame which the community has been raving about.
The plan to expand Whatever includes new cards, new characters to play against and an advanced mode which takes a lot of the RNG out of the current game.
The update also features a new prominent NPC, a card playing highwayman who will teach you the advanced rules.
If you want to be kept up to date with this update, then be sure to keep an eye on the “Whatever” / Downwood Content Expansion / QOL Update Steam discussion as Paul keeps that post updated with new information.
If you like wandering around through a dungeon, trying to figure out word puzzles, while a snarky necromaster guides you through your adventures then Cryptmaster may be for you. Check it out on Steam!
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Something new in the workings?
Three months ago on publisher reveal day, Ynglet was one of the four titles that we revealed as becoming publisher for. While I have nothing major to talk about for Ynglet at the moment, you might be hearing more from this loved game soon.
Check out Ynglet on Steam!
If you want to hear more news on these titles, then join our Akupara Discord, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram!