We went quiet for two months to refocus and playtest. The result: a clearer, tighter game plan and a much friendlier loop. We cut features that weren’t pulling their weight, doubled down on what makes Hostile Mars sing, and fixed a bunch of “why is that enemy under the ramp again?” moments. Here’s the fast tour:

We put a lot of hours into hands-on testing and hard calls. The goal was simple: sharpen the core loop so you spend less time wrestling systems and more time building, defending, and expanding. We now have a locked-in direction for finishing: regions as the backbone, waves that stress your choices, building that scales without becoming a chore, and UI that tells you what matters.

*gameplay footage includes some block-out quality models/textures and placeholder UI

Regions are where the identity of the game shows up: different environments, enemy mixes, and pacing.

• Each region has a core and a wave structure that asks for different playstyles.

• Terrain and enemy types push you toward different solutions (tight corridors vs. open fields, fast bots vs. heavy haulers).

• Progression is about adapting, not just grinding. Expect to re-think traps, routing, and your combat loadout per region.

Building big structures piece by piece is certainly possible, but there's nothing like dragging to place a whole lot at once!
We're reintroducing group placement with the reworked build mode, allowing you to build at scale much faster without compromising on the new features.

We had disabled the drone camera when using the build mode due to a number of issues, like on HUD icons not updating properly or lighting artefacts when transitioning in and out of the camera.
We've brought it back with all issues resolved, and new features like a quick warp to the player!

We've wanted base destruction to happen during waves in various contexts, but every single time this brought a lot of frustration when playing, as it meant manually rebuilding everything.
The new building system supports different build stages, now including ghosts!
When a building is destroyed, it turns into a hologram that can be repaired outside of the wave.
Repairs cost fewer resources than fully dismantling and rebuilding something.

Paint mode, build priority, decoration pieces, "new unlock" icon, selection group actions, tooltips...
Many other invisible improvements were made to ensure other systems work as expected with the reworked buildings, such as properly refunding resources when dismantling buildings, setting up pathfinding colliders, optimizations for loading buildings from a save, and more.

As some of you may remember, physics-simulated enemies means they regularly get themselves in a pickle: stuck upside down in some crevice or shoved under something.
This has been long overdue, and finally, bots now add icons on screen when they get stuck or when they are lost! This is a first version, and the icon movement can be a bit jarring still, but it makes a world of difference when figuring out why a wave is not completing!
It even helped find a number of issues while testing.

The Hauler, which was only a concept in a previous devlog, appeared in the full glory of 3D!
It'll receive some more love to make the movement smoother in a later pass.

We’ve got a stack of sketches and blockouts to share: machine silhouettes, prop passes for conveyors and power hubs, and layout studies for region cores. Expect a more grounded, industrial vibe - “built to last until it didn’t.”

• Polish First: tighten what’s already in. Cleaner build flows, clearer HUD cues, fewer edge-case headaches.

• Player Controller: lock in a robust feel for movement, camera, and responsiveness across combat and build mode.

• Player Weapons: iterate on recoil, feedback, and upgrade paths so every shot feels purposeful.

• Enemy Behaviors: smarter pathing and role clarity (rushers, disruptors, heavies) to make fights readable and satisfying.

• Tuning & QA: short, frequent playtest loops to sand off rough edges and keep the core loop snappy.

– The Hostile Mars Team

You asked for it. You waited. Now it’s here: OG PG3D Season.

We took the spirit of classic PG3D, tuned it up, and wired it into everything—maps, weapons and avatars.

Dangerous Roads, Ant’s Life, Coliseum, Lab… Sound familiar?

Jump back in, hit the beloved maps, and bring the glory back.

Hello Officers,

With the recent launch of Season 5, we have just completed a seasonal reset of all Player Ranks.

As part of this process, your current rank has been reset to 0. You can now embark on the new season and battle your way up the ranks once more!

If you earned a Commander License in Season 4, it has been automatically carried over, allowing you full access to the Commander (RTS) role in online matches.

Note: Please be aware that any EXP earned in the past week will not be immediately reflected in your profile following the reset. Our team are looking into restoring all missing EXP to your account in next week's update. This will only affect players who played from 23rd October - 1st November.

See you on the Frontline!

Hello everyone!

We've updated the demo again based on recent feedback.

1) Added an interactive pause – you can now explore the world and explore it while pausing, otherwise the game will stop.

2) Fixed a volume bug.

3) Added a tutorial in three languages ​​(English, Russian, and Chinese).

4) Changed the starting resources, making it easier to start the game.

5) Added system and custom cursors to choose from.

6) Fixed a bug with the race to the city without an existing racing car.

7) Improved the representative's responsiveness; the manager now understands the route better.

If you see any old or new bugs, please let us know; we're actively working on them! Thank you!

• Order from & deliver to customers: You can now take and hand over orders directly to customers—not just from tables. Previously, ordering and delivery were table-only.

• Table numbering (tri-fold cards): Responding to community feedback about locating tables, we added clear, close-range table number cards on each table.

• Customer status indicators: Added concise status visuals (e.g., waiting, order taken, en route, eating) for faster, at-a-glance flow tracking.

• Eating animations: Customers now play eating animations, improving readability and ambience at the table.

• Recipes moved to Pause menu: The recipe menu has been moved from Settings to the Pause menu for visibility and quick access, reducing confusion.

• Recipe video corrections: Community-reported missing/wrong videos were reviewed and replaced; content alignment is now consistent.

• Outline persistence at day start: Fixed an issue where Table and UpgradeBench outlines could remain enabled at the start of a new day.

• Text polish: Corrected several typos and phrasing issues across UI and prompts.

• Keep the feedback coming—the table numbering and content fixes were prioritized thanks to your reports.

We’ve been counting down the days, and it’s finally here, our Kickstarter campaign is officially live!

Your support can help us bring the full, cozy, puzzle-packed adventure of Packing Life to life.

Here’s what’s waiting for you:

• 🌏 A heartfelt journey: Each journey packed, each moment lived, a path to self‑discovery.

• 🧩 Cozy + clever game-play: Tackle relaxing suitcase puzzles designed to spark joy.

• 🎁 Newly upgraded rewards: Day‑one backers score exclusive gear, collectible rewards.

💖 Every pledge, big or small, matters. You’re not just backing a game — you’re joining a journey and becoming part of our story.

👉 Click here to visit our Kickstarter page and choose your reward tier.
Let’s make Packing Life together!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3482510/Packing_Life/

Hello, lovely players! I’m Ya Mao, and here’s the October game development update for Shiba Sweet.

This month’s progress has been amazing. I completed several major systems including the Recipe Unlock System, Bankruptcy Rescue System, and Ingredient-to-Trash System. I also improved the Ground Decoration System, fixed many bugs, and added a brand new event called Dog Day to the demo, making the game feel much richer and more complete.

When a recipe is unlocked, players can now enjoy a cute animation showing which new recipes, ingredients, and utensils have been unlocked. If the maximum number of desserts that can be placed has increased, that information will also appear in this animation.

Originally, I used a plugin that allowed 3D visual effects to be projected onto 2D widgets, but it caused conflicts during packaging and made the build fail repeatedly. I eventually decided to stop using the plugin and recreated the visual effects using Unreal Engine’s built-in tools instead.

The layout of the information panel has been adjusted to make it easier to read. Players can now continuously place the same type of object in build mode without having to reselect it every time, which provides a smoother building experience.

I also added anchor points for the player’s position so that decorations or furniture will not overlap with the player while building.

This month I fixed many bugs of different sizes, such as the flickering icon on the mixer, button safety checks, corrected tutorial images, adjusted the ingredient box collision, and fixed the problem of ingredients clipping through the table.

I also fixed issues observed during a game exhibition earlier this month, such as an incorrect day setting that prevented the shop from progressing and unclear tutorial messages that made players confused about how to place ingredient boxes. These improvements helped the game move in a better direction.

That’s right, the Shiba dessert shop can actually go bankrupt. When the player faces a financial crisis due to poor management, a hidden rescue system will automatically detect the situation and provide timely help. This feature allows the game to continue smoothly and prevents the shop from closing down.

To stay true to the game’s world and rules, I developed a system that turns unused ingredients into trash. If players forget to put ingredients into the storage cabinet before the day ends, they will find spoiled food the next morning that must be cleaned before the tables can be used again.

This system also applies to desserts left on the table, unfinished food in cookware, and ingredient boxes left on the ground. If these are not handled properly before closing, the kitchen will become a mess the next day.

In addition to English and Traditional Chinese, I added Japanese and Simplified Chinese versions this month. Each language uses carefully selected cute fonts that match the cozy and friendly atmosphere of Shiba Sweet.

Adding new languages took much more work than expected. Besides accurate translations, I needed to make sure there were no text conflicts, and I also had to redraw some UI textures for each language to ensure everything displayed correctly.

In the game, most customers are various types of cats and dogs. There was already a Kitty Day on the 12th, so I added a new Doggy Day on the 24th. On this day, all customers are dogs, and players need to prepare and pack delicious dessert bento boxes for them.

This has been a very productive month with lots of effort and progress. Looking back, I’m happy to see how far the game has come. The official release is getting closer, and my current focus is to finish the demo and start a playtest in December to gather valuable feedback from players.

If you would like to try the game early, please keep an eye on the upcoming announcements. A limited-time playtest is planned for December.

Thank a lot for reading this far. See you in next month’s devlog!

---

Follow my development journey:

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Maowoo-studio

TikTok Channel: https://www.tiktok.com/@maowoo_studio

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shiba__sweet/

• 
  Item Persistence: Bought items no longer disappear between rounds if they weren’t picked up.
  
• Room Joining Overhaul: You can now join friends while they’re already in a round, or even launch-join with the game closed.
Fixes & Improvements
• Fixed a bug that occurred when two players interacted with the sales area at the same time.
  
• Dancing system fixed (animations/triggers now behave consistently).
  
• Framerate stabilized and set back to 60 FPS.

This is the first in a series of updates to add special abilities. To use these abilities, press Q on keyboard and X on controller (Xbox Controller)

Aswell as these first abilities this also add a new playable species the stingray.

The stingray comes with the ability to bury hiding you from predators and prey.

Secondary sting attack damages anything above the ray.

The next species gaining an ability this week is the Goliath Grouper

The Goliath Grouper can now use its drum ability to stun all nearby fish to make for some easier meals.

I will be releasing additional abilities as I complete them.

Thanks for reading

-Colin

Hi everyone!

I’m Florian, solo developer at Aspic Games, and I’m thrilled to announce that Medieval StartUp is now live in Early Access! 🎉

This marks the beginning of a new adventure: manage your own medieval tavern deep in the swamp, serve your customers, brew your beers, hire your staff, and turn a small shack into a thriving hub of the kingdom.

👉 Launch discount -10% for 14 days
👉 Your feedback means a lot! The game will keep evolving throughout Early Access, with new content, balancing, and some mysterious surprises along the way.

Huge thanks to everyone who played the demo, shared feedback, and supported the project since the Steam Next Fest (and even before)!

Sit back, serve your first customers… and most importantly, have fun!

Florian
Aspic Games