Jan 14

Sea of Thieves: 2025 Edition - a-faddison

A new year is upon us, but before we can completely pack away the holiday decorations we have one last thing we need to do: round up the delights of December! The final month of the year is always jam-packed, so join us as we bid a final farewell to all its expeditions, events and excitements while filling you in on anything you might have missed…

Content Update

Cast your mind back all the way to the beginning of December (no small feat, we know) and you’ll remember our Pirate Legends were getting a little love with the return of Legends Week. Although it wasn’t just for Legends – anyone hoping to rank up with Athena’s Fortune or just get their hands on a little extra gold could set out on a hunt for special Legendary Message in a Bottle Voyages, then venture across the isles in search of high-value treasure.

Winding down for the year was no excuse to miss out on our usual monthly update, so we had the latest additions to the game ready to go before the holidays began in earnest. That meant some tweaks to the current Season’s features including the Grapple Gun, blowpipe and Merfruit, as well as an overhaul of the rewards available in Safer Seas! For a full breakdown of all the changes, have a read of December’s release notes.

Once the update was ready to go, it was time to get on with the celebrations. Events bundled up alongside this year’s Festival of Giving included rewards for supporting your favourite Twitch streamers, some merry gift givers taking to the seas and an exclusive Ship’s Crest for a few lucky Stream Team viewers. Even the Pirate Emporium team got in on things, with a fresh Extravaganza offering perks for dedicated patrons. All that in addition to the login rewards and daily Gilded and Lucky Voyages available throughout the Festival, and a subsequent Gold & Glory celebration! Enough to get anyone in the holiday spirit.

News and Features

There were a lot of moving parts to track in December, so to make sure everyone had an idea of what they could look forward to, we delivered a fresh This Month In SoT article at the beginning of the month with all the details.

Of course, not everything went quite to plan and the Mimic Darts had to be pulled from the December update. To explain what the future for this feature looks like, Production Director Drew dropped in with a State of Play article that laid out the situation – give it a read!

One of the major changes that did arrive with December’s update was how rewards are earned in Safer Seas. Having observed our single-crew mode in action for some time, we wanted to make a few adjustments to ensure the early game experience remains sufficiently rewarding for new players. So gold and reputation rewards have now been raised to 100%, while the Trading Company cap drops to 25 to maintain a balance between Safer Seas and High Seas. Why not enjoy a quiet sail yourself to get a feel for the changes?

Videos and Streams

Before we got to the special end-of-year videos, including a stirring overview of this year’s Festival of Giving, first we had to take care of the essentials – such as a new instalment of Sea of Thieves News! Once that had teed us up for the rest of the month’s delights, it was on to December’s update trailer and Pirate Emporium showcase, but not before Drew had a chance to deliver his latest Developer Update. Warning: you might need to watch it twice to get past the jumper situation.

We also took a look back over the last 12 months of the Sea of Thieves soundtrack. As an extra end-of-year treat, there was a new festive addition to help everyone get into the seasonal spirit, while a unique romance was explored through the medium of song and a holiday-themed playlist ensured all our jingliest songs were available in one place for your enjoyment – if the traditional crackling fireplace wasn’t enough to tide you over. In thanks for the loan of your ears, legendary composing corsairs Chloe and Robin also offered a sneak peek into the punishing work schedule responsible for all your favourite pirate tunes…

Social Channels

Pirates across the seas have had a little while now to get used to the new disguises in their toolkit, but we thought that everyone could still use a quick refresher course on the art of subtlety. Alas, we did such a good job, some pirates struggled to find us again, but no matter as we quickly reemerged with a caption challenge and an inspection of everyone’s Armoury.

As always, there was acclaim to be earned: a new Community Hub update saw four lucky craftspirates earning a fancy hat, while budding photographers braved the storm to get their best snaps of Pirates in the Rain for the latest round of #SoTShot. On that note, we’ve slightly changed the way we accept entries for our regular screenshot contest, so if you’re posting your snaps on Bluesky, you’re now in with a chance to win!

Later in the month we got a bit bogged down in names: naming pets, naming ships, naming songs and even renaming some items that can be a bit of a mouthful. We also mused on what the worst words to hear are when you’re away from your ship, as well as favourite instruments – with some linguistic liberties taken for the definition of ‘instrument’. All of which left us with just one more thing left to do: wish everyone a lovely holiday break and wonder at some amazing firework displays.

And that was December! We’re all looking forward to the year ahead and the reams of exciting updates we can’t wait to share – be sure to keep an eye on all our usual socials to hear about any new developments. You can always find us over on Twitter/X, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitch, or via the official Forums and Discord. If we don’t see you there, we’ll be back in a few weeks with your next round-up! Until then, may the new year bring you new treasures, new adventures and not too many new trips to the Ferry.

Previously in 2024:

Sea of Thieves Round-Up: November 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: October 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: September 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: August 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: July 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: June 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: May 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: April 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: March 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: February 2024
Sea of Thieves Round-Up: January 2024

Jan 14

Lunar New Year 2025: Year of the Super Snake Event

Super Animal Royale - Michael

It’s the Year of the Super Snake, and the island is ready to celebrate! Discover new Super Snake breeds, tackle three weeks of challenges, and uncover slithery surprises around every corner.

The Pixile team is also back from the holiday break, well-rested and (mostly) recovered from colds, and we're diving back into work on the Super Animal World expansion!

For a while now, we’ve been quietly refining our core features—some of which you’ve already caught glimpses of—like fishing, bug catching, NPC dialogue, and hamsterball racing. Now, those pieces are finally coming together in a cohesive, polished build (or “vertical slice,” as it’s called in the biz). In the coming weeks, we’ll have our first chance to run through the entire experience from start to finish—much like you eventually will. This milestone lets us see how every element fits together so we can finalize system designs, fine-tune how everything feels, and then build out the rest of the content. We’re beyond excited to share more soon, and we appreciate your patience as we wrap up this crucial phase!

We’ve also been brainstorming ways to keep you in the loop on our progress while still leaving plenty of surprises. Whether it’s a monthly newsletter, blog post or a simple video series, we’d love to hear what format you’d prefer—let us know! We’re hoping to have an update on this later in January or early February.

As for the release date? It’s still “when it’s ready,” but the next time we share one, we’re aiming for it to be locked in. Until then, we’re working hard to make sure it’s worth the wait!

In the meantime, let’s kick off the first holiday event of 2025 and dive into all that’s waiting for you on the island!

Year of the Super Snake Event

Each week brings five new challenges, including three that unlock exclusive event cosmetics. Complete them at your own pace—they’ll remain available until the event ends!
New Super Snake breeds debut weekly in the Research Lab! These permanent additions have no time limit, so there’s no rush—unlock them whenever you’re ready.
Hunt for red envelopes across Super Animal World—they’ll restore a bit of health when picked up and help you progress challenges. Plus, you’ll earn extra envelopes just for completing matches!
Firework crates are scattered around S.A.W. Bamboo Resort—shoot or destroy them to deal 40 damage in their blast radius and grab some extra red envelopes.

Now let's slither on into the Week 1 patch notes for what you can unlock starting today!

Year of the Super Snake Week 1

5 challenge rewards to earn

Lunar Dress (2025) | Collect Red Envelopes (1000)
1500 XP | Break Fireworks Crates (2)
Yusheng Gravestone | Get kills (12)
750 Carl Coins | Chop Bamboo Bushes (75)
Lunar Pompoms | Land at the S.A.W. Bamboo Resort

New Super Animal Breeds

Super Lunar Snake
Super Golden Snake
Super Iridescent Snake

Thomas’s workshop has been doing overtime to make all these robotic arms and legs, that’s for sure. All snake breeds are available in the Research Lab starting at level 50!

New in the SAW Shop

Super Snakes are stealing the spotlight, and the SAW Shop has stylish snake-themed cosmetics to match—guaranteed not to snag on any high-tech limbs!

Check them out tomorrow, January 15th, when they rotate in as dailies:

Snake Sniper
Snake Hat
Snake Scarf
Snake Hanfu

Legacy Event Items are Slithering into Carl’s Cart!

Carl’s Cart is stocked with Lunar New Year favorites from past events, guaranteed not to cost you an arm or a leg—thankfully, Super Snakes have neither!

The first batch of legacy items will rotate into the cart tomorrow, January 15th, so be on the lookout for them when they arrive.

Here’s what’s new in the Cart:

Coin Glasses
Gold Yuanbao
Peach Blossom Hat
Peach Blossom Branch
Lunar Dress (2022)
Mandarin Hat (2021)
Lunar JAG-7
Lion Dance Ball
Pipa

Gather your squad, hunt for red envelopes, and share your snake swag on social media:

Week 1 of the Year of the Super Snake starts now! Collect red envelopes, set off fireworks, and unlock new breeds and exclusive rewards as you explore everything the event has to offer. Don’t forget to check back next week for more surprises, including another brand-new breed to unlock. See you on the island!

Jan 14

Hyper Light Breaker is Available Now in Steam Early Access!

Hyper Light Breaker - Arc Games Europe

The highly-anticipated Hyper Light open world co-op rogue-lite Hyper Light Breaker is AVAILABLE NOW in Steam Early Access!

To give those who want the full Hyper Light experience, you can grab the Hyper Light Breaker Bundle, which includes Hyper Light Breaker and grants a Steam code for Hyper Light Drifter* is available now until January 28. As a thank you to fans for their patience for the release of this new entry in the Hyper Light franchise, for this week (January 14 – 21), the bundle is available for 10% off its retail price of $29.99.
*The bundle will give players a free digital Steam copy of Hyper Light Drifter if they don’t already own Hyper Light Drifter via Steam.

Before you jump into Hyper Light Breaker in Early Access, we wanted to cover a few key things you should know!

Make sure to tune into our livestream on our Twitch and YouTube channel today for a great walkthrough of the game, and to ask all of your Qs. If you can’t make the stream, we’ll have a VOD uploaded shortly after – but you can also check out our Early Access Release Date trailer for a nice high-level overview of the game. 😊

ABOUT EARLY ACCESS

Today’s Early Access launch is a very exciting moment for our team, but of course it marks just the beginning of Hyper Light Breaker! By joining us in Early Access, you will be able to experience first-hand the rogue-lite's evolution as you can share feedback directly with us to help shape and evolve the game throughout its Early Access period. We developed Hyper Light Breaker with Early Access in mind to get feedback from you and players around the world, and your feedback will be pivotal to shaping the game to its full potential before we’re ready to officially release it in 1.0. We’ve covered a good chunk of questions in the Early Access Q&A section on the game’s store page, but here’s just an additional Early Access FAQ.

Where can I share Early Access feedback?
Please share your feedback via our official Discord in the "hlb-support" channel, as we will be actively monitoring, collecting and responding to feedback that’s given there – and using the feedback to discover ways to shape Hyper Light Breaker during Early Access.

What content is available at Early Access?
By jumping into the game at Early Access launch from the very beginning, you’re able to choose from three unique Breakers (Lapis, Vermillion and Goro), experience multiple challenging playthroughs solo or with fellow Breakers via online co-op multiplayer, explore the vast, ever-changing worlds within the Overgrowth, get tons of gear and die and retry as you face hordes of deadly enemies, including Assassins, Elites, and two challenging Crowns (bosses).

What content is planned during Early Access? Will you share a roadmap soon?
Throughout Early Access, new content, including Breakers, Crowns, gear, story content, secrets, and more, along with gameplay improvements, such as new features, will be added via patches and periodic major updates. More content details will be shared in an Early Access content roadmap that will be revealed in the coming weeks which will reveal when the first major content update is expected to drop – along with when the release of a particular Breaker, codenamed “Crow”, who’s a highly-anticipated character amongst our community.

When will the game leave Steam Early Access (i.e., when’s 1.0/full launch)?
To be determined! Currently, we’re planning to have the game be in Early Access for about a year, but this can change depending on the community’s response and feedback.

With the mini Early Access FAQ wrapped up, let’s go over tips you should know before jumping in!

TIPS YOU SHOULD KNOW BEFORE GETTING STARTED

Jump into a co-op multiplayer session – we highly recommend playing via co-op to get a good feel for the game

Hyper Light Breaker was made with co-op multiplayer in mind, and we believe it’s the best way to experience the game – especially if you’re a newcomer. Try jumping into a co-op session or two (or more!) to get a better feel for the game, including the gameplay loop, in general. Playing with a friend or two is always helpful, and with Hyper Light Breaker that’s certainly the case.

To start or join a multiplayer session, go to the robot next to Pherus Bit (green hooded character) in the Cursed Outpost and you’ll be good to go.

If you’re looking for a co-op buddy or even just looking for advice, our community is extremely positive, friendly and open to helping out – so feel free to join our Discord for any help you might need.

Make sure to get Medigems in the Overgrowth and get Medkits

Medigems are arguably the most important resource you’ll need to get as they’ll get you Medkits. Make sure to pick up Medigems as much as possible as you’re exploring the Overgrowth. To get Medkits, you need to either collect enough Medigems to convert the gems into kits or buy kits via vendors within the Overgrowth. Below are more details on both methods.

Medigems Method: As mentioned below, they can be found throughout the Overgrowth. If you interact with a Shrine, you can convert Medigems into Medkits. Note: You can only do this once per Shrine. Additionally, you’ll automatically be able to convert Medigems into Medkits right after you ready up at the TelePad in the Cursed Outpost. Via Pherus Bit, there is an EXE ability that allows you to upgrade your Medkit capacity – for those looking to heal often, we highly recommend unlocking and equipping this ability.
Vendors in Overgrowth Method: You can find vendors throughout the Overgrowth that sell Medkits that you can buy with Bright Blood. The vendors are usually in areas that you need a Key to unlock. As mentioned below in the “Collect Resources” tip, you can get keys by defeating Crowns, you can find them in treasure chests and you can also buy them via vendors in the Overgrowth.

When the going gets tough in the Overgrowth, head to the Extraction point to go back to the Cursed Outpost

The Overgrowth can be challenging and sometimes it’s better to get out of it before it’s too late! When you’re really struggling or want to make sure you keep your gear, head to the Extraction point marked on the map and activate it so you can head back to base. But be warned...there’s no turning back once you start the extracting process – as once the process started, you have to fight waves of enemies to successfully teleport to base. By successfully teleporting to base, you don’t lose a Rez (life), you can keep all the resources you earned, and you don’t have to worry about losing durability for your hard-earned gear.

Know the gameplay loop in a nutshell

Prepare for run in Cursed Outpost > go into Overgrowth > explore and get Prisms to unlock Crown gates > Use the Extraction point / Telepad to evacuate the Overgrowth when things get tough > fight Crowns > End Cycle > repeat!

Collect resources in the Overgrowth and learn about them in the Menu

The Overgrowth is overflowing with resources (items) that are extremely helpful to have for unlocking and upgrading several elements – from gear to abilities to vendors and Breakers. As you’re exploring the Overgrowth, make sure to take time to collect resources in the Overgrowth by opening treasure chests, defeating enemies and even finding hidden areas.

Ending a Cycle (either by losing all your Rezs or by beating all bosses) isn’t the end of your adventure... it's the beginning!

No matter how you end a Cycle, you’ll always make progress after finishing one. All the progress you made in a Cycle will be used to give you a rare resource called “Golden Rations” that you can use to unlock AND upgrade abilities at Pherus Bit (“PB”).

Keep an eye on the Death Meter below your mini map... it fills up when you make progress in the Overgrowth and causes a unique, challenging event to occur

The more you do in the Overgrowth, the deadlier it will get! The Death Meter fills up whenever you kill enemies, get gear, find secrets and more. When it fills up at certain points, an event will occur that will present a new challenge. NOTE: After you defeat a Crown, the meter will fill up all the way, so we recommend evacuating/extracting out of the Overgrowth before it’s too late.

This is a challenging rogue-lite: prepare to die and try again (and make progress along the way!)

We set out to make a challenging roguelite where you’ll die and retry – and where death doesn't mark the end of your adventure. Instead, death is just the beginning, as you'll be able to make progress in multiple ways in between runs back at the Cursed Outpost. From improving your stats to getting new abilities and gear or decoding memories to piece together each Crown’s story. Dying and retrying will allow you to get stronger, help the Cursed Outpost flourish, and be one step closer to completing your mission. Along with this, the Overgrowth will completely reset, so you'll be able to explore a new version of it with biomes that have changed from the last cycle.

Avoid taking damage by dashing, parrying or even hoverboarding away

When in the thick of battle, you’ll need to know remember to be on the defensive at times. Dashing is one quick way to quickly get out of harm’s way, but there are benefits to parrying attacks. By parrying, you can do some stagger damage to the enemy and even stagger them immediately – but not only that, if you time your parry just right you can do a Perfect Parry that will allow you to regain health! When all else fails and you’re just not ready to fight (or you’re at low health!), there’s always the option to jump on your hoverboard and zoom right out of a battle.

Read the tutorials & explore the game to the fullest

We recommend reading the tutorials and looking over the different menus to get a better understanding of the game’s core mechanics and systems. Note that like in Hyper Light Drifter, Hyper Light Breaker encourages you to explore to discover and understand certain elements rather than explicitly tell you things from the get-go. We’ll share some key elements to be aware of below, however, but when playing, make sure to explore as much as possible to uncover secrets and find answers to questions you might be looking for.

Make sure to be on the lookout for secrets... like Phantom Fragment monoliths, underground labs, and more

There are many secrets to discover in the Overgrowth! Make sure to explore every nook and cranny of the Overgrowth to see what secrets you can uncover. We recommend being on the lookout for Phantom Fragment monoliths which get you pieces of Crown’s (bosses) memory (story/lore) -- and lookout for underground lab pads that let you drop down into special areas with rare gear to pick up!

Don’t forget to piece together the narrative to uncover who the Crowns are

Like in Hyper Light Drifter, Hyper Light Breaker’s narrative is told visually rather than via dialogue. By decoding memories, you can see beautiful storyboard manga-like panels showing the history behind each Crown. Collect and assemble the scattered memories of the Crowns of this world, and find out why you play as a Breaker, a warrior and explorer who helps to bring order to the world within Hyper Light Breaker.

Learn enemy and boss attack patterns

Whether it’s a small, feeble enemy or a main boss (Crown), every foe in Hyper Light Breaker has their own unique set of attacks you need to watch out for. When facing off against foes, make sure to take the time to learn how each one attacks, so when you come across them again, you’ll know exactly how to strike them down making each run attempt easier than the last. Once you get their attack patterns down, try to parry their attacks!

Every run is different, take some time to get familiar with The Overgrowth and loadout possibilities

You’ll start your first Cycle with one procedurally generated version of the Overgrowth, but after that, you’ll come to find that after each Cycle -- either from when you lose all your lives or you successfully defeat all Crowns -- you’ll discover the Overgrowth will completely reset from before thanks to the game’s procedurally generated biomes. In the beginning of your adventure, we recommend getting familiar with all of the game’s mechanics, including the various loadout options.

Don’t forget to collect, buy and upgrade gear plus try out different loadouts/builds

Like with resources, make sure as you’re exploring the Overgrowth to collect as much gear as you can! Even when you fail (die), you’ll still keep all the Bright Blood (game’s main currency) you’ve earned in your run. Make sure to use your hard-earned Bright Blood from each attempt to buy new gear if need be and take a moment to upgrade your gear as well. There’s a lot of different types of gear you can have in your loadout, so definitely take some time to find the best gear and loadout overall that suits your playstyle. Find out more details about loadouts in this dev blog.

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Watch: https://www.twitch.tv/HyperLightBreaker