[News] Progress + New Song + Question!

Hello everyone, Corintio here!

I’m bringing you some updates and also looking forward to hearing your ideas!

As many of you know, we’re currently refactoring the game systems—this includes how NPCs are spawned into the world, along with various smaller systems, all to ensure the game runs butter-smooth when Early Access begins. While the programmer handles that side, I’ve been focusing on pushing cutscenes forward and writing new quests!

We’ve also been working on a new soundtrack for the prologue. As we aim to launch Early Access around June or July, we wanted to enrich those tense moments in the opening chapters. The new music leans into early industrial punk influences, inspired by the works of bands like Einstürzende Neubauten.

Now, onto something I’ve been documenting and where I’d love your input: weapon upgrades!

If you played the legacy demo, you might recall that Fara offered an option to upgrade your equipment. In the prologue, however, it’s Ilreth Baequianea who will be handling Kalyskah’s gear enhancements.

Here’s the concept: there are 11 types of Iathori Crystalas (Star-Crystals) scattered across the world. Each one offers a unique enhancement when used on weapons. Our current plan is to keep upgrades relatively simple, such as altering the type of damage or adding passive effects that trigger during regular attacks.

Here’s a breakdown of the Iathory Crystalas you can find and what they represent:

• Aspect: Water and Emotions

• Properties: Influence emotions, control water elements.

Green Crystals

• Aspect: Dimension and Fortune (Fate)

• Properties: Manipulate space and affect luck. They also increase the presence of ghosts, especially when combined with white crystals—favoured by necromancers.

Brown Crystals

• Aspect: Earth and the Body

• Properties: Strengthen physical form and control earth elements. Commonly used in military gear to bolster physical might. Found in regions built upon impossible terrain.

Red Crystals

• Aspect: Fire and Willpower

• Properties: Channel willpower and wield fire.

White Crystals

• Aspect: Spirit and Sound

• Properties: Manipulate spiritual energy and sound waves.

Light Blue Crystals

• Aspect: Time

• Properties: Temporarily suspend time and allow divination.

Purplish Crystals

• Aspect: Mind

• Properties: Linked to the astral realm, these aid meditation and out-of-body experiences. Oh, did you notice in the demo that there's a purple Crystal where you find Nemesis? Hm.. that might mean something!

Faint Orange Crystals

• Aspect: Fundamental Forces

• Properties: Manipulate gravity, electromagnetism, and other fundamental forces of nature such as strong and weak nuclear interactions. Used in advanced magi-tech devices.

Yellow Crystals

• Aspect: Light

• Properties: Radiate intense light, harmful to vampires. They enhance virtues and are common in holy places, making them dangerous for the undead.

Black Crystals

• Aspect: Darkness and Shadows

• Properties: Grant control over shadows and concealment. But also the dark aspects of one's psyche. Used to shape hallowed ground and draw out hidden desires.

Mixed Crystals

• Aspect: Composite

• Properties: Merge aspects of multiple crystals, combining their effects.

So that’s the lore! Now here’s my question to you:

What sort of upgrades would you like to see for each crystal type?

Would a Red Crystal cause enemies to ignite occasionally? Could Green Crystals randomly dodge fatal blows? I’d love to hear your creative ideas and see how far we can push these systems without making things too complex too early.

Let me know in the comments what ideas come to mind!