• Almost all floating texts are now using the new particle solution, improving performance
  
• Floating texts now animate differently depending on if it's a normal hit, critical hit or a heal
  
• Mesh and effect update to Tower of Midas, Bombardment Tower, Displacement Tower and Ice Launcher
  
• Added a fog of war effect for unexplored areas
  
• Added tower particle effects for Rapid Fire, Time Dilation and Nullification
  
• Added an adversary introduction overview when finishing act 1 and act 2
  
• Changed the main menu backdrops to be more thematic
  
• Added notification icons to unlocked commanders, towers, modules and artifacts
  
• Several bug fixes

A lot has changed since my last post, so I will have to cram quite a few things into this one. The biggest changes are that seed gathering has now been added to the game, and that the seed market in the port has changed a lot.

Starting with a follow-up on the last post, I finished the wild clusters for all current plants, and I have added them into the game (their spawn-chances are not finalised, but they all spawn and are in different biomes). This means you can now find tobacco, etc. in the wild, and can harvest them with your gathering hut to get access to these resources a little earlier than before.

Let me move on to the seed market. With the switch to artefact mode (some time ago), the way the seed market worked became a little.. awkward. It still worked in tiers, which you could unlock by sending money to the Queen - even though this was no longer part of the victory condition. To compensate, I added more seeds to each tier in artefact mode, which just meant that seeds were available permanently and without any challenge - which was not ideal.

I have now changed this for both score and artefact modes. In both modes, the seeds offered in the port are now linked to each ship - so each ship will offer between 0 and 3 types of seeds (ships are more likely to offer multiple seeds as your colony grows), and each ship offers these seeds at a different price. Some will be 50% more expensive than the seed’s base price - others will offer it for up to 30% less. This means you will have to consider whether you purchase a seed you need offered at a high price, or whether you want to wait for it to be offered cheaper.

With this change also comes a new way to gain seeds: Gathering them. As your gatherers can now gather any type of wild plant, they can also gather these wild plants in order to collect seeds from them. This means your gatherers will still collect the plants, but will no longer provide the produce to your village - instead, they will gather the seeds from them, and once they have enough, you will gain a new bag of seeds to make a field. As a result, finding a wild plant you are looking for can turn into a much more important event than before, as you e.g. race to collect the seeds from it to finally have a stable income of medicinal herbs for your defences.

This also means that you can now gather seeds for fruit trees and flax, meaning that both banana fields and flax fields can now be placed from the farm (see today's image). As a result, the linen maker also no longer comes with its own field, and instead requires flax plants to turn into linen.

Quantities provided by clusters/fields, quantities needed to get seeds, and prices of the goods are still a little experimental and all over the place, but I will upload the latest version to the experimental branch soon so you can try it and I will appreciate all feedback on it.

Until next time!

We are excited to share, that we just launched our very first playtest! Make sure to sign up on our Store page, to grant access as early as possible.
Over the next few weeks we will grant access to more and more playtesters.

The best way to provide feedback is to join our Discord:
https://discord.com/invite/cy25R6CyCG

Please note:

• Bugs and localisation issues are to be expected!
  
• For this very first playtest we only support English and German localisation in the Game.
  
• More locales will follow!

For Steam Deck/Controller users:

• Steam Deck and Controller support is in! If you encounter any issues with the Controls, please let us know via Discord.
  
• To Use/Buy/Sell Items use R1/RB
  
• If you find yourself stuck with D-Pad, use the Left Stick
  
• Reordering Letters/Stickers can be achieved by holding X/A and using the Left Stick
  
• PlayStation controllers should be working on Windows! If you encounter issues here, also let us know via Discord

Update 0.4.78 brings new features, visual upgrades, balance work, and AI improvements across Earth and space. From Exofighters to expanded councilor options, this update builds on the work done across our beta branches over the past several months.

Many of the changes in this update were developed and tested on our Beta branches, with community feedback playing a central role in their evolution. We are aiming for a 1.0 launch later this year, though the timing may shift as development continues.

If you'd like to follow development more closely, we encourage you to join our Discord — it’s the best way for players and devs to interact. We also post detailed patch notes there, as well as on our website, for those who want to track every update.

In the meantime, we’d love to hear your thoughts — whether on Discord, the Pavonis Interactive forums, Reddit, or the Steam forums.

Your existing campaigns from earlier 0.4 builds should load correctly and otherwise be technically compatible with this update. Your nations' priorities may be reset and require updating. The balance and AI changes may change the direction of your campaigns.

• Exofighters Added: New small-craft ships that launch from planetary bases into low Earth orbit.
  
• Titan and Lancer Alien Hulls: Two new alien ship classes have been introduced for late-game combat. The Aliens can also deploy a new tier of advanced weapons during the endgame.
  
• Combat Formation Reordering: You may now select which ships are in your selected formation at the start of combat, and you may now select which ships arrive next when reinforcements are summoned.
  
• 35 New Traits & 2 Councilor Classes: Includes the Attorney, focused on influence and control, and the Engineer, who expands technical and construction options.
  
• New National Priorities: Nations can now invest in Government, Environment, and Oppression development paths.
  
• Regional Development Expanded: Nations can now grow core economic, oil, and mining regions for long-term infrastructure strategy.
  
• Diplomacy: Factions may now reach intel-sharing agreements with each other.
  
• Officer Transfers: Officers can now be moved between ships, albeit with a loss in capability.

• Victory Conditions:Adjusted victory conditions for most factions to key on control of major planetary systems rather than outbuilding and/or hunting down every enemy fleet.
  
• Habs, Modules, and Economy: Broad balance changes applied across key systems to support pacing and strategic depth.
  
• Hostile Takeover: This mission now targets specific orgs, rather than councilors. The difficulty of the mission now scales with the size of the org.

• Visual Overhaul: Most system interfaces have received updated visuals for improved clarity.
  
• Ship Designer Overhauled: Interface redesigned to support clearer shipbuilding workflows.
  
• Tech Tree Updated: Research paths reorganized for improved navigation and readability.
  
• Detail UIs: You have a full ledger of your incomes and costs available to help you manage your faction. Tooltips for nation stats now track causes of changes to those stats.
  
• Auto-Hunt Xenofauna: Armies can now be set to automatically seek and eliminate Xenofauna threats.

• Alien AI Targeting Improvements: Alien factions now choose space targets more effectively.
  
• Human AI Fleet Construction: Human-controlled factions build fleets more aggressively.
  
• Economic Stability: AI factions are less likely to go bankrupt during standard gameplay.

• General Bug Fixes: A large number of bugs resolved across systems and UI.

Life. Liberty. Public Health.
The sacred pillars of a civilized galaxy.

But the galaxy burns and the very survival of free space is in peril.

The CABAL has returned. Ruthless. Unseen. Absurdly dedicated to snuffing out all life. They move through the galaxy like a plague, leaving devastation, conspiracies, and plumbing catastrophes in their wake.

I'm afraid, Director, war is upon us…

Galacticare: The Voice Beyond. A brand new narrative DLC. Available NOW!!!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3334930/Galacticare__The_Voice_Beyond/


Do you have the nerve to outmaneuver the CABAL over three all-new fully voiced narrative campaign levels? Stitching together the pulped remains of war-ravaged warriors and holding the line against a galaxy teetering on the brink?

For you see, Director, as the fearless leader of Galacticare, you are no mere hospital administrator - the sick and wounded of this battle rely on you.

And so does the fate of the cosmos. No pressure.

They Ain't Fighting Fair

In The Voice Beyond, your enemy's tactics are dirty. Saboteurs - adorable ape-like aliens turned tiny Terminators - will overrun your facility FAST. Deploy Security Craftech to sniff out these foul fiends before they can do any real damage.

Seriously. These loathsome little lads love to blow up a toilet (and we don't mean in the post-kebab kind of fashion).

New Diseases Galore

That expensive intergalactic medical degree of yours? Let's hope it’s up to snuff. In The Voice Beyond, you'll be encountering stomach-churning new ailments the likes of which contemporary science is simply ill-equipped. Ha ha. That was wordplay. At any rate, "contemporary" for us means 200 years into the future, so - good luck, 21st century dweller.

• Rave Rash
  
• Voxelitis
  
• Fester Fungus
  
• Zynger Sting
  
• Good grief… and there are even MORE?

Amidst the madness, do your damndest to remain calm and ensure your patients stay healthy, happy, flirty, and thriving. Well, maybe not flirty.

Only The Strong Survive

This will be your toughest shift yet. Snatch entire species from the jaws of extinction, stitch their shattered bodies back together, and return them to the meat grinder of galactic war. From triaging Laserated Xil warriors to killing an ancient cosmic god, only the most professional healthcare professionals can turn the tide in this almighty engagement.

Wait a minute, what was that about killing an ancient cosmic god...?

Kill An Ancient Cosmic God

Something, somewhere, is pulling the strings. Their motives are unknown. Their reach is absolute. And yet, the question remains: why? And, more pressingly… yo, where can I buy this DLC? A launch discount for the next two weeks would be sweet, actually.

Oh we've got your back -

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3334930/Galacticare__The_Voice_Beyond/

And cor blimey, you can also purchase the DLC as part of the LONDON GAMES FESTIVAL sale on Steam, running April 2nd to April 13th. 'Ave a banana!


So scrub in, suit up, and prepare for the most chaotic hospital shift in the history of the universe. The fate of all sentient life is in your hands, Director. Will you rally your staff, heal the wounded, and defeat the CABAL? Or will your medical empire be reduced to space dust?

End transmission.

Calling all the fastest samurai (and speed demons)!
The dev team is hosting a Speedrun Contest for Shadowveil: Legend of the Five Rings, and we want YOU to put your skills and speed to the test!
Whether you’re a seasoned fighter or a new recruit, this is your chance to compete for eternal glory!

Wednesday, April 2.nd, 20.00 CEST

• Part 1 (24 hours) - Complete Chapter 1
  
• Part 2 (5 days) - Complete Chapter 1-4
  
• Part 3 (10 days) - Complete Chapter 1-9

All categories start at the same time, but Part 1 ends 24 hours after the contest starts, part 2 ends after 5 days, and Part 3 ends after 10 days.

Any% (Fastest Completion)

Record your run, and upload it to YouTube (a Twitch VOD is approved, if the recording is saved for at least the duration of the event), and submit the video in [[url=https://forms.gle/SQvykr17P8NKeisf7]this link[/url]].

The fastest player in each part will have their chosen alias(*) and represented faction immortalized in the game(**).

* Winning players will pick an in-universe name fitting for Legend of the Five Rings (respecting the setting and naming conventions of the universe). Players can not use the names of named characters in the franchise. The dev team and partners reserve the right to vet names before implementation.
** The winning players will be named in the game on a permanent “Heroes of the Wall” banner, visible at the Watchtower of Wistful Strife.

Runs must be performed on the latest patch of the game.
Mods or external tools that alter gameplay are not allowed
Participants must provide full, unedited video proof (Twitch VOD, YouTube, etc.).
The run must include (but is not limited to) game audio

Timing starts when selecting the save slot. Timer ends on the final hit of the last boss (or last chapter completion for All Chapters).
Segmented runs are allowed, but each video must be at least a full chapter.
We encourage using LiveSplit or similar to keep track of your time (LiveSplit can be added as an overlay on top of the gameplay).

Any%: All skips and exploits allowed unless they crash the game.

Submit via [[url=https://forms.gle/SQvykr17P8NKeisf7]this link[/url]] with:
Runner name
Run type (which chapters)
Final time
Video link
Email
Suggested in-universe name

Cheating, splicing, or falsifying runs results in disqualification.
Disputes will be reviewed by the dev team.

We invite you to discuss strategies, techniques and other related topics in the newly created #speedrun channel in the Shadowveil Discord

Good luck, and have fun!

In today's Steam post, Team17 sat down with Jumping Jazz Cat's development team at Le Catnip Collective to bring you a two-part Dev Blog Q&A! 🥳

In part one, we chatted with Arun, Le Catnip Collective's Co-Founder, Music Composer & Sound Designer, to speak about the game's Jazz references, music inspirations, sound effects, and how Arun's feeling in the build up to Jumping Jazz Cat's Steam launch!


"Lights Out was my favourite piece of music to create for Jumping Jazz Cats! It’s one of the ten fast-paced, jazz-inspired songs I wrote for the game.

Across the 10 songs, I took a fairly loose interpretation of the genre ‘jazz’. With Lights Out, for example, it’s a kind of acid jazz with a Mission Impossible-style melody. Beneath that melody, there is a thumping bass line repeating the root note of one chord. With so little variation in the chord structure, it was therefore important to add a lot of dynamics with the other instruments. To do this, I built up layers as if a DJ had sampled horn lines, a piano hook, a crazy clarinet riff, flutes, guitar, organ, and a crisp drum beat.


Although all of the music in Jumping Jazz Cats was composed note-by-note using MIDI, I wanted this song to actually sound like it was made up of a bunch of samples. To enhance that ‘sampled’ feel, you’ll hear throughout the song the crackle of an old record player (it’s also one of the coolest vintage sounds that exists, in my opinion!)

But what really makes the music special in Jumping Jazz Cats is that, during the chorus, something exciting changes in the game. It was therefore important to have a distinct pre-chorus to indicate that ‘something is coming’. Signalling this in Lights Out is a horn-filled breakdown, with the rhythm dropping back to some swinging hi-hats.

The all-important chorus event then kicks in at the sound of a finger click, which sounds really similar to a light being turned off. After all, the song is called Lights Out! The screen goes dark, and the players can only see a small area around themselves unless they eat the carrots that appear. To match the ‘dark’ vibe, the instrumentation drops back to a muffled drum and bass, and the record crackle really stands out. Then, at the end of the chorus, you hear that finger click again, and the game returns to normal. The final chorus is extra long and crescendos to one last finger click to cue the lights, and the round is over.

As you can tell, I had a lot of fun with this one!"


"In the 2000s, I did a lot of Swing dance, and the music I danced to has stuck with me ever since. In fact, Dan (Le Catnip Collective's Director & Co-Founder) still does a lot of Swing dance here in Montreal where there’s a really happening scene!

But ‘Swing’ is like an umbrella term: there are all these other amazing styles pioneered by the Black jazz musicians and dancers of the first half of the 20th century. For example, there’s Balboa (a gorgeously cute style with small but blurrily fast foot movements), Lindy Hop (often danced to the big band classics, characterised by acrobatics, flashy swing-outs and incredibly cool breaks), Charleston (furious speed and fun flashiness), and Blues (very cool, very sexy, very slow).

The music of Jumping Jazz Cats is, at its heart, a tribute to Swing. I’m not actually a jazz musician, but in the 10 Song Events/gameplay songs (as well as a dozen more that play in the lobbies and menus), you’ll hear a lot of what inspires me about jazz: the organised chaos, the complexity and the catchiness, and the sheer joy of musical release."



"At first, I tried using sounds from a soundbank: these were useful as placeholders, but they usually lacked the stylised, handmade feel we wanted to achieve. So, I then settled on an approach where most of the sounds were either A) somehow made with a jazz instrument, B) done with a voice, or C) improvised with some random object in my apartment.

Jazz instruments are great because they have the ability to capture the cartoony silliness we were looking for. For example, with the air-dive, I used a slide whistle. To give bouncy surfaces their ‘bounce’, I used a very high note plucked on a double-bass. For the tornado boosters, I used a bass trombone slide. For the cat loaf power-up (where you get to fly) a fluttering bass trombone sounds surprisingly like a prop plane! And for the footsteps on wooden surfaces, you can tell it’s just me tapping the body of an acoustic guitar with my finger tips!

Sometimes, an effective approach was to make up sounds with my voice and then play around with effects like pitch and equalizer. For example, listen to the sound of going into and out of a nap, and you’ll realise it’s just my voice modified a bit. The catnip power-up is mostly just me doing a tongue-rolling purr. Nap in the sun and you’ll hear me doing a 3-part harmony in meows (much harder than you might think - I had to sing it extra slow so that, when I pitched it up a lot, it played at the right speed). And the hound dogs? You guessed it: it’s me barking into my microphone!


But my favourite use of voice is that of my daughter’s. She was 5 years old when I started working on Jumping Jazz Cats - and you can hear her cute meows by using the emote buttons (you’ll also hear her meow in our studio Le Catnip Collective’s animated logo!). Listen closely to the Lion’s Roar and you’ll hear it’s a mix of her roaring and a sample of a real lion with me growling underneath. The bee in the mini-game Cat Tree Capture is another sound featuring her voice. But, at the time, she was missing all of her front teeth, so it didn’t sound bee-ish enough. I added in a real bee sound, and I wrote a flute part playing something like Flight of the Bumblebee, et voilà!

Finally, as all sound designers know, sometimes you just end up raiding the kitchen or other rooms in your home to find things to make sounds with. For example, with the scratching posts (you scratch them to change teams), I originally tried recording the sound of Velcro being ripped apart. Eventually, I settled on the sound of poppers on one of my daughter’s old onesies being unbuttoned (credit to my wife for this one!)"


"It’s a strange feeling!
As the co-founder of a tiny studio - we have 2 artists, 2 programmers, Dan as the director, and me doing sound design and admin - we each end up wearing many hats, and a lot weighs on our shoulders. I won’t lie: it has been stressful at times. To launch a game after almost 3 years of working on it, to have all of those hours and weeks and months and years… all leading to one single day… it’s nerve-wracking, to say the least!


But for all the hard work and stress, making this game has been the most rewarding musical experience of my life.

Music is important to any game. But I am particularly proud that the music gets to be a gameplay feature in Jumping Jazz Cats. I am privileged to have worked on it with Dan, a friend of some 25 years. And I’m super proud of the wonderful and brilliant up-and-coming devs we have found in our local Quebec community. It’s a real thrill to be shipping our first game!

We also have the great fortune of being backed by Team17. They have so much publishing experience and expertise in the party-game genre (anyone heard of Overcooked?!) In the lead up to release, it’s a huge relief to have their support with the business end of things like QA, localisation, marketing etc.

Lastly, I will say that having thousands and thousands of people around the world playing our demo during Steam Next Fest was incredibly exciting! The feedback on the demo was really positive, and it felt validating of our crazy decision to make a jazzy game about jumping cats. We just hope that players will love the full game even more when it comes out on 10 April 2025!"

We'd like to say a huge thank you to you for supporting Jumping Jazz Cats! We've loved seeing your feedback, suggestions and excitement during Steam Next Fest and in the build up to launch- not far off now 👀😺

We hope you enjoyed this Dev Blog Q&A with Arun around the music and sound of Jumping Jazz Cats! Next up, we'll be chatting with Dan, Le Catnip Collective's Director & Co-Founder to discuss Jumping Jazz Cats' origins, gaming inspirations, the party game's cat animations, and the upcoming launch on Steam! 💜


https://store.steampowered.com/app/1951780/Jumping_Jazz_Cats/

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🚀 Solitary Sentinel Demo is Here! 🌌
Attention all explorers, strategists, and thrill-seekers—it's time to embark on an unforgettable journey! We're beyond excited to announce the release of the demo version for Solitary Sentinel, our sci-fi game that promises an immersive dive into rogue-lite tower defense.

💠 What to Expect in the Demo:

[8 enemy types][12 weapons][30 perks]

This demo will give you a sneak peek into the unique mechanics and compelling challenges we’ve been tirelessly crafting for you.

💡 Your Feedback Matters:
As this is a demo, your thoughts and experiences are invaluable to us. Share your feedback and help us shape the game into its ultimate form. Together, we’ll make Solitary Sentinel the masterpiece it’s destined to be!

We have just deployed a very special patch to our Public Beta Branch of the game, which adds Windblow's first NEW Biome!

We'd like to Introduce...



Now with this being the Beta Branch it means that content isn't final, and we're looking for testers to help us refine our eerie new Biome.

As with most of our updates, we're also adding a bunch of new content and changes too (which we'll detail below). Meaning we need to know if everything is working, are there any major issues, and most importantly, is it fun and challenging?

Now, we won't deep dive into all of the new content, but we'll give an overview of what's new and what we'd like you to test. Check it out! 👇

• Biome - New enemies and Boss
  
• New Weapons
  
• New Trinket
  
• New Enemy Variants
  
• New Skin
  
• Revenge Mode Update
  
• Loads more!

• Go to your Steam game library.
  
• Right click on Windblown and click "properties".
  
• Select the tab "Betas".
  
• In the first dropdown box select "public_beta"
  
• Click close and wait for the upload to finish downloading.

Want to stay up to date on all things Windblown? We've got you covered!

Discord
Twitter
YouTube

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1911610/Windblown/

Added a new map and some optimization on the old maps.