Development Update - 8th of January

Hey everyone,

We thought we'd share a development update today instead, and this weekend we'll share a broader look back at 2025 and ahead to 2026 on Saturday or Sunday.

As of now, the next planned release covers the remaining few side paths. If you followed our development updates in November/December, you will know that the original plan was to launch this in December on both Patreon and then update everything on Steam before the end of the month.

We were somewhat vague last month about why we were unable to release, expressing only that our art director was unable to work. We won't share any personal information, but we think it is important to explain to you why we were delayed.

Our art director was unwell in November and returned from the hospital during the last week of the month. They were working on the side paths at the end of November and were on track to finish them for release in December; however, we have not heard from them since the start of December. We have no alternative means of contacting them, so we don't know whether their absence is due to the illness from November or to something else. We don't know their current situation, and if/when they will be able to return to work. We're very worried to have not heard from them in so long, and we hope they are ok, and that we hear from them soon.

As mentioned in previous posts, the side paths have all been posed, coded, and translated. The animations are also finalised. The only outstanding tasks for them are the final lighting and camera work on the still images. With our art director's absence, and in the interest of updating as soon as possible, we plan to launch the side paths using the current preview images we have, to allow you all to play it. We'll adjust the lighting in the future to ensure consistency between the paths.

Regarding Realm 4, we now have a team member working on its lighting and camera work. This is their first time working on lighting for the main game, so we don't yet know their pace, and there might be some slight inconsistency with our usual work, but we hope to have the first Realm 4 update with you in the next couple of months. We mentioned this a while ago, but Realm 4 will have fewer updates, each significantly larger than those of the previous Realms. So when we do launch, you should have a good amount of play time ready for you :)

We plan to have the side paths out within the next month. Realm 4 Update 1 within the next couple of months, and the first episode of ACTC within the first half of the year.

We are extremely sorry for the delays. We hoped to start this year with the side paths done and to jump straight into Realm 4. The past year has been a little rough for our overall development. We really appreciate everyone being patient. We've faced several setbacks, but once we get past this hurdle, we expect to get development back on track!

Thanks so much for your continued support!