Hey everyone,

We've been on the quieter side over the past couple months, but don't worry, we weren't hibernating. In fact, today we're excited to announce our biggest content drop yet, the Awakening Update. Due to its scope, it's taken a bit longer than past updates, but we're currently targeting a release in mid-to-late February.

Here's what you can expect:


We've heard your feedback on pacing and game flow, and have made some major changes to improve the player experience.

The largest change - Cassidy no longer wakes up between dreams. Instead, your dream is one continuous experience.

As for the waking world - we've done away with the concept of "time" as energy to be used. The waking world is much more freeform with lots of new things to do (more on that in the bit).

We've tried our best to retain the elements that are working, while adjusting other elements that needed some love, and introducing new elements to fill out areas of the game that were lacking.

Game flow is an area that we will continue to expand on in future updates to make sure the player experience feels well paced.


This is a big one - we've spent a lot of our time this update introducing layered progression systems that will alter the Dreamscape, increase Cassidy's strength, provide fun goals and drastically flesh out the Waking World.

Without revealing too much, 6 major new gameplay systems are being introduced to make sure that playing Dreamscaper over time is as satisfying as first picking it up!

Here's a sneak peak at one of those systems:




Our UI got a facelift across the Waking World. You can expect an improved user experience and new visual stylings for this coming update. Here's a look at our redesigned map:




Due to the size and scope of this update, there will be less traditional new content, such as items, enemies and levels, but we'll make sure to sneak some in before coming back to new content as a focus in future updates.

We'll have a more thorough rundown of all the cool changes you can expect for the Awakening Update soon! As this is such a meaty update, and has taken more time than our regular updates we want to thank you for sticking with us.

- Rob, Paul & Ian

We have some big things in the works for our next major update, coming in the new year, but in the meantime, we wanted to celebrate the Winter Holiday season with a small update.

Play Dreamscaper from the 22nd of December to the 5th of January to check out Cassidy's, limited time, apartment decorations and winter themed nightmares!



Our gift to you comes in the form of a new ranged attack, the Snowball:



And two new keepsakes:





The items are permanent additions to the game, while the enemies and apartment theming are just until January 5th, 10am PT, so jump in to try it out.

As for our next update, you can expect big changes to metagame, progression and our Waking World. We'll be showing off more soon!

As always, if you haven't yet, please leave a review, we love to hear what you think!

- Ian, Paul, & Rob

We're thrilled to be able to share our second major content release, "The Phoenix Update," with you!


Themed after the ideas of "fire" and "rising from the ashes," the The Phoenix Update touches on almost every part of the game. We've packed this update full of new content and quality of life upgrades.




We've introduced a brand new biome in place of the previous fourth level. The Nightmare Campground, is a dangerous, twisted memory of one of Cassidy's most cherished places. Discover new memories, obstacles and haunting environments as you push through this hellish landscape to dive deeper into Cassidy's subconscious.




Face off against the Oathbreaker, a deadly battlemage that haunts Cassidy's mind. The Oathbreaker is a cunning foe that mixes magic, mobility and melee to push you to your limit.




Coming in hot for the Phoenix Update is a major new combat system. Cassidy will need all the help she can get, and the Companion system gives her the edge she needs.

Companions mainly improve the flexibility of melee combat, stacking to provide increased damage and versatility, but others will passively buff, attack and defend for Cassidy as well.




Thanks to your amazing feedback, we took a good portion of time for this update to revise the combat system. Here are some of the biggest changes you can expect:

• Enemies now spawn into rooms with spawn animations.
  
• Projectiles are gone! Ranged weapons now use Lucid Meter that recharges.
  
• A new elemental type - Wind
  
• A new status effect - Off-balance (increase critical hit chance).
  
• Critical Extinguishes - combining elemental effects results in an instant critical hit, adding more depth and strategy to your builds and combat options.
  
• Visual overhaul for weapon skins breath new life into elemental effects.
  
• A robust damage number system.
  
• Ranged weapons and Lucid Attacks have visual indicators.
  
• Beam weapons are now affected by modifiers.
  
• Improved enemy pathing.
  
• Configurable aim-assist for ranged attacks.

You can expect to find 22 new items in this update, ranging from new weapons and abilities, to new dodges, shields and keepsakes!


The Phoenix Update is available for free immediately to all of our players who have picked up Dreamscaper. We will continue to release similar major updates every 1-2 months and if you'd like to join our Early Access journey, consider picking up our game:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1040420/Dreamscaper/

As the dust settles from this update, we'll soon reveal our plans for our third Major Update.


One of the most helpful things you can do is leave a review to let us know your thoughts so that we can continue to improve Dreamscaper based on your feedback.

We also encourage you to swing by our Discord if you encounter bugs or issues. We've built an incredible friendly community there and some of our best ideas come from members of that community.

Thank you to everyone for playing Dreamscaper and we look forward to expanding the Dreamscape with you!

- Ian, Rob and Paul

Hey everyone,

Hot on the heels of our mini-Halloween update, we're excited to announce that we have some major changes coming to Dreamscaper in mid-November.

In keeping with the theme of fire and reinvention here's a high-level sneak peek at what you can expect:


With this update you can expect a fiery new biome with new level and enemy layouts, events and memories to discover.


A major visual update has been given to item modifiers, along with a reworking of status effects and elemental combinations. You can expect a new element type and expanded abilities and weapons that will compliment it. Finally, we've expanded our Critical Extinguish system, making combining elements more strategic and deadly than before.




Ranged weaponry has received major changes this update. Gone are the days of finding projectiles lying around! Along with a completely different UX, all ranged weaponry has received large balance changes. On top of that, you can expect a different UX for Lucid Awakening as well.


A slew of updates to our combat system has improved usability across ranged and melee weapons.


Among the new content you can expect will be enemies, event rooms, memories, weapons, abilities, keepsakes and modifiers.



We can't wait to share more with you in the next few weeks!

- Rob, Paul & Ian

While we're well on our way to the next major update for Dreamscaper, we have a fun surprise to get you in the Halloween mood.

Check Dreamscaper out from the 29th of October to the 2nd of November to face down Cassidy's, limited time, Jack-o'-lantern nightmares!



You won't be going in without new items to help though. Summon a specter from beyond the veil with Cassidy's cherished, childhood Spirit Board to keep the nightmares at bay.



If you're in a devious mood, pick up the Trick-or-Treat keepsake and roll the dice for a chance to get a legendary treat, or a nasty trick.



The items are permanent additions to the game, while the enemies are just until November 2nd, 10am PT, so jump in to try it out.

For those of you looking forward to our next update, we'll have more info on that soon!

As always, if you haven't yet, please leave a review, we love to hear what you think!

- Ian, Paul, & Rob

We're kicking off the first of many future Major Updates packed with new content and features focusing on introspection:




Despite a more compressed schedule for this update (due to the Balance, Quality of Live and Engine Upgrade patches) we worked our butts off adding the following to The Reflection Update in the last month and a half since we launched Dreamscaper into Early Access:



Headlining our update is the new boss, "Negativity," which is the manifestation of how Cassidy feels about herself. Negativity has replaced the mini-boss at the end of the 5th floor.



Cassidy can now befriend an additional character who can be found in the new Waking World location, the local record shop. Rose adores music and that will be reflected in both the three hours of story she provides, as well as the items and upgradeable Influence she unlocks.



We've heard the feedback that players want more control over their builds. Therefore we've introduced a new shop with three services that can be used in exchange for sand:

• Upgrade Equipment to increase the level of items in your inventory, boosting the base stats.
  
• Reforge Modifiers for more chances to synergize your equipment.
  
• Destroy Keepsakes that you no longer want active in your build.

It's no secret that Dreamscaper has been heavily inspired by Binding of Isaac, especially when it comes to level generation and exploration. One feature that game borrowed from The Legend of Zelda was the ability to discover secret rooms in the map filled with extra goodies. Without ruining the surprise of finding and revealing them yourselves, we can confirm that they exist and we will continue to iterate on them across future updates.



An update wouldn't be complete without a sizable batch of new powerful items to unlock or discover in your runs. We feel that these items in particular are some of the most unique that you'll find in the game, from both a functional and thematic perspective:

• New Upgradeable Influence
  
• 4 New Weapons
  
• 3 New Lucid Abilities
  
• 10 New Keepsakes

We'd like to once again apologize for not being able to provide a loyalty discount to those of you who purchased the Supporter's Edition DLC for our free Prologue demo earlier this year. While the ultimate decision was unfortunately out of our hands, we take responsibility for not setting expectations correctly. It has been important for us to show our appreciation for your support in other ways, which is why we've introduced two new exclusive weapons: Severing Blade & The Gnashty Hammer:



Loading the the game on Steam using an account that also owns the Supporter's Edition DLC should unlock these rewards. In order to maintain game balance, they share spawn rates with existing weapons and can be turned off if you'd prefer.


The Reflection Update is available for free immediately to all of our players who have picked up Dreamscaper. We will be releasing similar updates every 1-2 months for the next 6-12 months and if you'd like to join our Early Access journey, consider picking up our game:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1040420/Dreamscaper/

Over the next few weeks we will be revealing our plans for our second Major Update.


One of the most helpful things you can do is leave a review to let us know your thoughts so that we can continue to improve Dreamscaper based on your feedback.

We also encourage you to swing by our Discord if you encounter bugs or issues. We've built an incredible friendly community there and some of our best ideas come from members of that community.

Thank you to everyone for playing Dreamscaper and we look forward to building the next chapter in Cassidy's journey!

- Rob, Ian and Paul

Hey everyone!

We're excited to share with you that our first major content release, the Reflection Update, will be going live on October 2nd.

Thank you to everyone who has continued to give us great feedback, you'll be seeing a few of the most popular community suggested features making it into this update.

Here's what you can expect to see in the October 2nd update:



As we get closer to the launch, we'll be revealing more about some of these major pieces. Expect to see teasers of the new boss, secret rooms and new items.

In the meantime, drop by our Discord server and let us know what you think of the game! What would you like to see in future updates?

And as always, if you haven't had a chance yet, please leave a review for us, we love to hear your thoughts and are actively improving Dreamscaper with your feedback every day!

- Ian, Paul and Rob

Hey everyone,

As many of you know, Dreamscaper is built on Unreal Engine 4. More specifically, we started building our game on UE4.21 two years ago. Since then, Epic Games has made numerous improvements and fixed countless bugs / crashes and, earlier this year, they released UE4.25.

Normally once a game has been released into the wild, game developers won't take on the risk or the workload involved with upgrading engines. Two years of engine updates amounts to thousands of file changes and hundreds of thousands of line changes. You'd have to be crazy to try to upgrade that many engine versions.

So naturally we decided to upgrade directly to UE4.25 within the first month of our Early Access launch. Now, why would do that?

1. We love our players and want to get you the most up-to-date crash/bug fixes.
   
2. It lays the groundwork for future console ports.
   
3. We're hoping Early Access gives us some leeway when it comes to regressions.
   
4. Rob is very stubborn and was convinced he could pull it off. ;)

Thanks to the help of some incredible Dreamscapers in our Discord Server, we've spent the last week testing this new engine upgrade and today we've released it to all of you. While this update isn't as "sexy" as our content updates, there are some very important fixes and improvements:

• Numerous GPU compatibility crashes should be fixed (D3D Device Lost).
  
• Numerous PhysX crashes should be fixed.
  
• Numerous miscellaneous engine fixes (e.g. drop down list bug w/ gamepads etc.)

• 2 years worth of optimizations by Epic Games
  
• 25% reduction in file size on disk.
  
• Logic to prevent Cassidy from getting stuck in geometry.
  
• Logic to allow Cassidy to dodge out of corners when being mobbed.
  
• Better support for future console ports.

Now, it's very likely that there will be some regressions from this upgrade. This means that new bugs will pop up that didn't exist before because those engine changes that we were relying on get moved around and create unintended consequences. Hopefully these are all just minor visual issues, but be sure to let us know when you find one and we'll be sure to fix them up by our next big content update at the latest.

A huge thanks to the following Discord users who already caught and helped us fix numerous regressions over the past two weeks: Shadow Sorcerer, notop, UnseenOak, Grimicus, Exvaris, FinW, jimminy, Goldy, Totes & JonJonLovesFood. We will always have those bloomed out Disco Nightmare memories. <3

Thanks again to everyone for helping us continue to improve Dreamscaper. If you haven't yet, please leave a review, it's very appreciated!

- Rob, Paul & Ian

Hey everyone,

The Dreamscaper OST is now on sale!



If you've enjoyed the beautiful work of Dale North, this is a must have! Over the course of Early Access, just like the game, you can expect the OST to be updated with new tracks.

As for the game, we've gathered a lot of fantastic feedback this past weekend and got right to work on adjusting things thanks to your help.

This mid-week patch that we just released focuses primarily on balance changes that improve the play experience. Let's dive in:

• Crafting the lowest tier for loadouts is now free. - thanks Decadent Darko & Adroit!
  
• Players can no longer be killed by Poison or Burn - thanks Sacha & Exvaris!
  
• Challenge Reward Chests spawn away from danger - thanks Nym & TheStash
  
• Adjusted Breaker Sword second hit knockback to ensure third hit connects - thanks Exvaris!
  
• Only Treasure, Choice and Merchant rooms spawn behind Locks or Reinforcements now - thanks j0hnnyclaymore!

• Fixed collision across many levels - thanks Sacha & Totes
  
• Fixed up the Crystal Barrier Text
  
• Invisible Mage Bug Fixed -thanks JonJonLovesFood!

• Decreased all enemy damage at later levels
  
• Decreased enemy health at later levels - thanks soil%)(*!
  
• Balanced armor across all shields
  
• Increased all ranged weapon damage
  
• Increased health drops in Campground and later levels
  
• Added more weak enemies to hometown
  
• Rebalanced all exchange rooms to be more favorable to players
  
• Increased parry trigger chance on Blowback
  
• Reduced recovery on Feather-Foot Flip
  
• Increased cooldown on Coldsnap
  
• Increased leech effect chance of Vampire Fangs Keepsake
  
• Increased shatter effect chance of Steel Ball Keepsake
  
• Increased effect of Roller Rink Keepsake
  
• Increased effect of Boxing Ring Keepsake
  
• Increased effect of Bandage Keepsake
  
• Increased effect of Pashmina Shawl Keepsake
  
• Increased effect of Royal Flush Keepsake
  
• Spring Feet Keepsake now confers Red Pit immunity
  
• Tuned nightmare enemy configurations to be less overwhelming
  
• Moved enemies away from doors to prevent players being hit on room entry - thanks YQMaoski:!
  
• Further increased auto-fire ranged weapon damage to offset projectile consumption - thanks DaddyDeGrand!

Tomorrow we'll be answering your questions on an AMA over at Reddit at 1PM PT / 4PM ET, look for a link once it's live!

Next week we'll be releasing another stability and quality of life patch, before taking a break to work on larger pieces of content. Look for an announcement with more info soon!

As always thanks for sticking with us as we improve Dreamscaper, and keep your feedback coming. If you haven't yet, please leave a review, it's very appreciated!

- Ian, Rob & Paul

Hey everyone!

Very excited to share our first major post-launch patch!

We spent the last week gathering your feedback and making improvements to Dreamscaper, here's what you can expect from today's patch:





How else could we celebrate the launch of Dreamscaper into Early Access than with some sweet dance moves from Cassidy?


You may need to reset steam to trigger the update to the right version.


Health of enemies on the first two levels has been reduced. - thanks TheLastoftheRomans!
Thunder Step triggers much quicker, but has reduced damage.
Modified difficulty of Minibosses on Campground Pt 2 and Nightmare City Pt 1.
Decreased enemy spawns in certain Nightmare City rooms.
Decreased Spear enemy's leaping attack frequency.
Decreased Ranged enemy's instant laser attack frequency.
Bottle Rocket has faster recovery.
Black Hole now applies status modifiers to enemies caught in its pull.
Cooldown on Kilonova has increased.
Cooldown on Rain of Blades has increased.
Cooldown on Frost Fracture has increased.
Cooldown on Skyfall has increased.
Fear has slightly lowered health.


Isolation (Campground Pt. 1 Boss) has new moves that make the fight more challenging and dynamic.
Unlocks can now be toggled off in the dream journal so they no longer spawn. - thanks SniperFox47!
Red pits now have a short window before damaging players that allows for more forgiving dodges. - thanks UnseenOak!
Lucid attacks now have a "cooldown ready" sound. - thanks HolyForce!
Items now display what class they belong to when interacting with them. - thanks Sup3rN3rd!
Bosses are no longer resistant to status effects, with the exception of freeze. - thanks UnseenOak!
Tile puzzle has clearer visuals.
Many lucid attacks now have a more forgiving cooldown trigger window. - thanks Xii Alpha iiiXx!
Bosses drop rewards further from Ascension Stones to prevent accidental ascensions.


Numerous crash fixes, stability should be much higher overall.
Numerous fixes for hitching.
Crystal Barrier no longer spawns with parry window modifier.
Boss attacks now disappear when bosses are defeated.
Fast Travel now works to and from visited Boss rooms.
Fixed issue where sometimes Previous Inventory spawned in next run.
Resources Tab in Crafting Menu is now populated correctly.
Waking World collision fixes.
Nightmare City occlusion, movement and collision fixes.
Fixed hit react and audio bug with Stalwart Shield.
Fixed visual bug when using two Coldsnaps in a row.
Fixed visual bug where Cassidy blends up onto the bar stool when talking to Eve. - thanks VraelTheRider!
Tutorial turret has firing sound now.
Fixed visual bug with Isolation's blackout ability.
Added missing VFX to Loss intro and outro sequence.
Fixed numerous typos across the memory system.
Fixed numerous typos across items.
Fixed numerous typos across dialogue sequences.
You can no longer parry Red Pits. Sorry.


We'll have more news about our first major update shortly, we'll be breaking down what content we plan to add and what the timeline looks like.

Today, we'll be streaming Dreamscaper on Twitch and answering your questions. Join us at 5PM EST / 2PM PST:

https://www.twitch.tv/dreamscapergame

Thank you all for playing Dreamscaper and spreading the word.

If you've had a chance to play, please leave a review, we'd love to hear your feedback!

We are 100% committed to making Dreamscaper a better game with your help and really do appreciate your early support.


- Ian, Rob & Paul