Greetings surveyors!

Im excited to announce the release date for the first free content expansion for Periphery Synthetic, titled: Wards of Andromeda. The expansion will debut on August 15 with exciting new features! Explore two evolving new worldswith fresh abilities that change how you move and progress through the EP.

Continue reading for a short teaser trailer and a breakdown of what to expect with the expansion.

Announcement trailer

[previewyoutube="uP58y1kmN9A;full"][/previewyoutube]

The trailer begins with quick zooming cuts of portals on the familiar worlds of Alpha Periphery. Emerging from the portals, it changes focus to a new world which exists inside them, with longer shots showcasing its non-Euclidean terrain. Its focus then shifts to the new moss planet, contrasting its dynamic and colorful terrain against its explorable alien structures. A recurring theme of these shots is how both new worlds combine land and water exploration. The trailer closes with a silhouette of the moss planet on the redesigned title screen.

The trailer is set to an excerpt of the soundtrack for the new moss planet. Its music system is heavily inspired by Brian Eno (Music for Airports) and Steve Reich (Music for 18 Musicians), combining warm synth pads with the randomness of wind chimes. The result is an always-evolving, never-repeating piece of music thats unique to each play. The expansion also reimagines the EPs title screen music within the new portal world.

The Wards of Andromeda

Periphery Synthetic is an award-nominated exploration of ambient music thats couched within a non-violent metroidvania experience. Leading up to its 2024 release, the project had spent two years in early access, expanding from a barren prototype to three massive worlds filled with unlockable abilities and intrigue. It has since been recognized for its novel approach of using generative synthesis and terrain sonification to make it fully accessible to players who are blind.

Wards of Andromeda continues its legacy of feedback and iteration. The expansion offers many opportunities to improve the EP for new and returning players alike. Here are its main design goals:

• Expanded story. You became the Periphery Synthetic. By surveying the Alpha Periphery system, the EP introduced you to one side of a rising intergalactic conflict. Now its time to explore the other side.

• Improved economy. You collected raw materials to expand your abilities. New worlds and abilities provide more flexibility in where and how these materials are acquired.

• Improved feel. You overcame vast deserts, oceans, and mountains. Running, driving, swimming, and flying receive new playgrounds and enhancements to test their limits.

[img src="https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images/42877321/7b9475416f0520177c8b2f7f9ae522484db4891c.png"][/img]

Key features

These design goals are supported by several exciting new features:

• Alpha Periphery D2. This new moss planet offers a colorful world of evolving vertical challenges. Its massive terrain, dotted with aerial materials to collect, contrasts against the underwater labyrinths which drive its story.

• The Interstice. This new portal world evolves in size and complexity as you level up. Acting as both the thread and mirror of your journey, it gradually becomes a hub where you can celebrate all of your abilities.

• Synthesizers. This new system upends how abilities are unlocked. It introduces two new currencies to turn materials from one to another. And you can downgrade and uninstall abilities to tailor your experience.

• Aerodynamics. This new system provides more control over the flying abilities. With its Trajectors you may turn any fall into a smooth glide. And you will safely land from any collision with the ground.

• Aquatics. This new system provides more control over the swimming abilities. With its Spelunkers you may get navigational assistance while inside caves. And you will avoid collisions with the floor automatically.

By the numbers

These flagship features are complemented by a number of smaller features, enhancements, and fixes, which make it the EPs largest update yet. Here is a quick comparison between v3.2.12 and v4.0.0, which demonstrates the magnitude of the expansion:

[table equalcells="1" colwidth=",,,"][tr][th]

Metric

[/th][th]

Current

[/th][th]

Expansion

[/th][th]

Change

[/th][/tr][tr][th]

Worlds

[/th][td]

3

[/td][td]

5

[/td][td]

+2

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Materials

[/th][td]

30

[/td][td]

33

[/td][td]

+3

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Perceptions

[/th][td]

50

[/td][td]

78

[/td][td]

+28

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Systems

[/th][td]

9

[/td][td]

11

[/td][td]

+2

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Subsystems

[/th][td]

21

[/td][td]

33

[/td][td]

+12

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Max level

[/th][td]

110

[/td][td]

177

[/td][td]

+67

[/td][/tr][tr][th]

Milestones

[/th][td]

49

[/td][td]

54

[/td][td]

+5

[/td][/tr][/table][quote]

Beware! These numbers are mostly locked in, but they can still change.

[/quote]

Price increase

Importantly, the price of Periphery Synthetic will increase to $5 USD with the expansion release. This increase reflects the new value which these changes bring to the EP. And dont fret! Existing players will receive itand all future expansionsfor free!

[img src="https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images/42877321/85a250f3766ac9d10fa078da5455eb499bdb9f78.png"][/img]

Releasing August 15

Im very excited to present the Wards of Andromeda expansion to you on August 15. Its two new worlds will nearly double the size of the EP with their dynamic challenges. Its new abilities will expand your choices and control over your journey. And its story will unveil the true purpose of the Periphery Synthetic.

In the following week, I will support it with hotfixes for any critical issues that arise. Then after a short vacation, I will start planning the future of Periphery Synthetic and support it with smaller patches as needed. Im also hoping to start prototyping a few concepts for new projects in a shared universe. These might include more strategy- or action-oriented experiences that dont make sense within the EP itself.

In the meantime, Im excited to wrap up the writing for Wards of Andromeda. Thanks for reading!

[ 2025-06-25 01:56:14 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Im excited to share the final update for Periphery Synthetic in 2024.This release brings a vertical slice of audio and graphical enhancements to polish out a year of exciting updates. Be sure to upgrade your thrusters and check out the exospheres of Alpha Periphery B and C if you havent already. Enjoy!

v3.2.12 changes

• Core Gameplay
  • Prevented material distillation while in zero-atmosphere environments.
  • Decreased the time interval between automatic perception checks.
• Core Interface
  • Fixed a visual contrast issue with the system tutorials in dark mode.
• Core Graphics
  • Reduced terrain-related frame drops when moving at maximum speed.
• Alpha Periphery B
  • Remixed the music in the exosphere.
  • Improved the sun glow.
  • Reduced particle effects while quickly travelling vertically.
  • Fixed certain particle effects appearing at high altitudes.
  • Made a certain perception easier to find.
• Alpha Periphery C
  • Improved the transition to the exosphere.
  • Improved the sun and moon glow.
  • Re-routed cave sounds from the music channel to the sound effects channel.
  • Applied reverb to the cave sounds.
  • Fixed scan not guiding to uncollected artifacts.
• Alpha Periphery C2
  • Prevented snow and ice sounds while in the exosphere.
  • Reduced particle effects while quickly travelling vertically.
  • Fixed an inaccessible perception when vertical look is toggled off.
  • Removed dynamic panning from snow and ice sounds for performance.

[ 2024-12-31 18:10:44 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Im excited to reveal the trailer for Side D, the first free content expansion for Periphery Synthetic. The EP launched with three musical worlds to explore as you upgrade your abilities and reveal their secrets. The upcoming expansion significantly expands your journey with two new worlds, complete with new abilities and secrets to unlock! Continue reading for the trailer and major details about the changes arriving in 2025.

Watch the trailer

[previewyoutube=Wie-XzDt9Tg;full][/previewyoutube]

About the trailer

The trailer begins with flythroughs of familiar locations across the Alpha Periphery system. They are regularly interjected by title cards which actively describe the gameplay. My intent with this first section was to reintroduce folks to the EP while showcasing the diversity of its explorable environments. Compared to previous trailers, Im unafraid to share some surprises here, such as the exosphere above the desert planet. This is also the first trailer which Ive included environmental sounds and audio descriptions for each scene. These were created quite simply with OBS, Notepad, and NVDA, alternating succinctly between the Microsoft David and Zira voices. For future trailers, I would love to continue including these features to enhance their accessibility.

The new stuff

The middle sections finally reveal the new worlds arriving in the expansion: Alpha Periphery D2 and The Interstice. This pre-release footage demonstrates that their development is quite far along, with thoughtful displays of terrain generation, color selections, and particle effects. However, please beware that it may not be representative of them upon release. The trailer concludes with the portraits of each world which appear on the title screen of the EP. Newly added to the exosolar family is the green silhouette of the lichen sphere. I personally enjoy punctuating each trailer with these because it emphasizes how they are places that theoretically exist and can be touched. Notably, this excludes The Interstice, which is more of a metaphor than anything else.

About the expansion

The main objective of Side D is to wrap up all of the loose ends of Periphery Synthetic that began in a notebook in early 2022. This includes the last of the planned abilities and story beats. However, it leaves open new possibilities for future expansions and smaller content updates.

Key features

Overall, the expansion nearly doubles the size of the EP:

• Two new explorable worlds.
• Two new unlockable abilities with seven upgrade paths.
• Three new upgrade paths for existing abilities.
• Higher maximum levels for four upgrade paths.
• Two dozen new pieces of narrative text.
• Five new achievements to unlock.
• Rebalanced upgrade costs.

Alpha Periphery D2

The first new world arriving with Side D is one that I have previously discussed at length. With a surface gravity of about half of Earth's, Alpha Periphery D2 occupies a unique niche within the system. Throughout its brisk daylight cycle, the moss which covers its surface morphs through familiar seasons in color and form.

Falling with style

With the new xenotechnology found on its surface, a new gliding ability can be unlocked. By pressing any direction while falling, it allows changes in direction without using the thrusters. When fully upgraded, essentially any fall can be broken into a smooth flight. This is paired with new upgrades which increase the maximum velocity and reduce drag during flight. This new ability synergizes pretty well with how the collectables are placed on this world. Instead of gluing them to the ever-changing surface, they remain fixed in the air at the terrains highest point. These aerial materials offer a fresh challenge for folks who enjoy jumping and flying.

Revealing the architects

However, my best-kept secret with Alpha Periphery D2 has been its surface water. It represents quite an upgrade to the underlying engine and movement physics. Throughout the world, you may encounter shallow areas in the moss, which expose its artificial crust. These areas are pocketed with reservoirs of heavy water which sustain the moss. Perhaps these pools lead somewhere when fully examined? The artifacts found in these locations finally reveal the architects of the Alpha Periphery system. As if a laboratory to test their capabilities, it foreshadows the galactic protectors who The Pact must now face. With the history of the system now fully revealed, there are more possibilities to explore in future expansions.

Rebalancing the economy

A shortcoming of the EP at release was how it locked the materials for each upgrade to specific worlds. This forced folks to engage with content that they had no desire (or simply were not fully ready) to explore. Therefore, a major goal for the expansion is to make these materials more attainable through alternative means. Yet another unique quality of Alpha Periphery D2 is how it contains every possible material to collect. For example, it is no longer required to explore the ocean floor of Alpha Periphery C, because its materials can be found on the surface here. Its atmosphere also contains the largest variety of elements that can be distilled. This is due to its unique role as the elemental incubator for the Alpha Periphery experiment.

Transmuting materials

Another frustration with the EP at release was the relative randomness of how materials are received. There can be points where there is little agency over which upgrades to select when a material isnt appearing as expected. Often this can make the EP feel like an unnecessary chore. The second new ability arriving in Side D allows materials to be transmuted from one to another using one of two new currencies. When an undesired material is collected, it can be broken down into its corresponding currency, from which related materials can be fused. To keep things fresh, there is even a slight chance for a critical success!

Downgrading abilities

This new ability is rounded out with the choice to downgrade (or fully uninstall) abilities. For example, the attractors ability can be downgraded to offer more challenge while collecting the aerial materials on Alpha Periphery D2. Or perhaps returning players might downgrade themselves to more quickly unlock the new abilities. With this expansion, all of these choices are now fully yours to make. Adding fission and fusion also provides a unique opportunity to overhaul the material requirements for each upgrade. Although the overall costs have not changed, they have been realigned to play to the strengths of each world. Importantly, there is a greater balance of uses for each material, which has been carefully selected so that each upgrade path has a similar cost if transmuted from scratch.

The Interstice

Today Im excited to share the biggest secret arriving in Side D: The Interstice. Quickly its revealed that the worlds of Alpha Periphery are interconnected by mysterious portals. However, these portals were handwaved away by a mere loading screen at release. The Interstice replaces these loading screens with a fully interactive sequence that explores this unseen dimension of spacetime.

A different mirror

The main purpose of The Interstice is to thread the worlds of Alpha Periphery together with a common element which holds a mirror to your personal journey. Being the first world that can be visited after Alpha Periphery B, it is intended to be visited early and often as the remaining worlds are discovered. Even with all the destinations discovered, it aims to be a fun place to revisit purposefully. Graphically and mechanically, The Interstice is very much a non-Euclidean space. Best described as the inside of a torus, it functions similarly to the way the maze wraps in a game of Pac-Man. When moving through The Interstice, its terrain features grow more vertical as they get closer, evoking a disorienting psychedelic effect. Eventually the terrain wraps back onto itself into loops, as if walking along a Mbius strip. As the apparatus is leveled up, the size and complexity of The Interstice evolves alongside it. While the first visit may be a short walk across a flat plain, subsequent visits reveal massive environments of ever-changing mountains and cliffs to navigate. And as this space opens up, it fills with caches and trinkets to collect, rewarding time spent off the most direct paths toward its thrumming exit.

Finding yourself

A key consideration for Periphery Synthetic was for players to feel free to insert their selves into its narrative. This is emphasized by the consistent use of the second person throughout its text, with vivid descriptions of emotions and sensory details. It has also been careful to avoid prescribing any personal details or history onto the main character, hiding them behind a shroud of memory loss. As it expands, The Interstice regularly conveys perceptions which bridge the narrative gaps which identify the protagonist. Without spoiling the big reveal, they expound upon the true nature of the apparatus and its metaphorical relationship to the player. There are further insights that these could reveal about The Pact and Provenance One as well.

Coming in 2025

Beware! The price of Periphery Synthetic will increase to $5 USD when Side D is released. This is to reflect the new content and enhancements since the initial release. Thanks for understanding! The wait to reveal these details over the past six months has seemed like an eternity to me. However, I wanted to be absolutely sure of the feasibility of its ambition, before making any promises that could not be kept. Yet, it has finally come to focus at this stage in development, where the only major remaining tasks are sound design, writing, and some polish. To be clear: these are monumental tasks. Im also strongly considering a break from the project during the month of February to prototype a new concept for Games for Blind Gamers 4. Therefore, the expansion is likely not arriving before the summer of next year. Despite this, Ill continue to release a trickle of smaller hotfixes in parallel as needed. Im excited to share the release date with you soon. Thanks for reading!

[ 2024-12-28 00:36:05 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Here are a few extra improvements to share for Periphery Synthetic. These were found while storyboarding and collecting footage for an upcoming trailer that will reveal the two new worlds coming in the free Side D content expansion. I'm excited to share more about the expansion soon. Enjoy!

v3.2.11 changes

• Added a slider for collectable volume to the Audio Mixer screen.
• Added some screenreader tips to the manual.
• Fixed an issue with drawing stars at higher draw distances.

[ 2024-12-09 23:37:28 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I'm excited to share another batch of accessibility enhancements for Periphery Synthetic based on your feedback. Importantly, this release adds instructions for how to use each system, which reveal more information about them as you upgrade their subsystems. There are also some enhancements to the collectable and destination guide sounds to improve their audibility. Overall, I'm quite pleased with the number of enhancements I've made this past week to celebrate the EP's nominations for the Indie Game Awards and GAconf Awards. Your feedback makes this project better. Enjoy!

v3.2.10 changes

• Added instructions to the system screens that reveal as they are unlocked.
• Added modulation to the scan destination guide when facing the wrong way.
• Fixed an issue with material lock-on sound parameter calculations.
• Rearranged the manual so the controls come first.
• Reduced saturation of graphics when blurred behind a menu.

[ 2024-12-04 04:29:25 CET ] [ Original post ]

Im excited to share another round of improvements for Periphery Synthetic. These focus on improving the accessibility of its navigational audio cues by increasing their clarity, especially for extremely vertical spaces. Importantly, the filtering of many sounds now reacts to the look angle when vertical look is enabled. Similarly, there are some specific improvements if you had trouble navigating certain enclosed spaces. A few extra changes from the upcoming expansion have found their way here too. Enjoy!

v3.2.9 changes

• Core Gameplay
  • Increased effects of wheels axes upgrades.
• Core Audio
  • Improved clarity of scan destination guide sounds.
  • Applied filtering to collectable sounds based on vertical look.
  • Filtered out collectable sounds when idle.
• Alpha Periphery B
  • Prevented artifacts from spawning under solid ground.
• Alpha Periphery C
  • Added silent sweet spots for underground collision detection sounds.

[ 2024-12-01 23:55:11 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Im excited to share another vertical slice of improvements for Periphery Synthetic. The main objective for this release was to improve its hearing accessibility. It adds new sliders to the audio mixer for changing the stereo width and loudness of each ear. It also makes several enhancements to the audio mix to clarify important navigational sounds. These improvements are paired with a variety of smaller changes made during the development of the first free content expansion. Enjoy!

v3.2.8 changes

• Core Gameplay
  • Allowed New Seed Plus to be resumed from Prototype seeds.
• Core Interface
  • Added stereo width slider to the Audio Mixer.
  • Added left and right volume boost sliders to the Audio Mixer.
  • Removed the toggle for stereo or mono output from the Audio Mixer.
  • Removed unnecessary focus memory on the New Seed screen.
• Core Audio
  • Improved clarity of collectable sounds.
  • Improved clarity of navigational cues.
• Core Graphics
  • Animated portal effects while time is paused.
  • Improved wrapping of particle effects on Alpha Periphery B.
  • Fixed graphical pop-in of collectables at lower draw distances.
  • Improved sun glow on Alpha Periphery B and C.

[ 2024-11-28 04:30:37 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I'm excited to announce that Periphery Synthetic has been nominated for the Notable Achievement in Accessibility category at the first-ever Indie Game Awards. It joins five other independent titles which pushed accessibility forward in 2024 by prioritizing inclusive design. The inaugural event will be livestreamed by IGN on Thursday, December 19, 2024 at 6 PM CST. I'm looking forward to the final resultsand learning who takes home their prestigious Game of the Year award.
While I'm proud of my personal accomplishments with Periphery Synthetic, the EP would not have been nominated without the help of the larger community. From all of your feedback and the continuous improvements made throughout its development, to its inclusion at this year's Access-Ability Showcase and GAconf USA, it has surpassed all of my original expectations. As you might suspect, I don't care for the constant hustle of networking and marketing on social media, so it's deeply humbling when the project finds itself in places beyond my limited reach. Thank yousincerelyfor your contributions that led it to this nomination. By the time the event airs, I will be finalizing a special trailer that I'm preparing for the GAconf Awards in January 2025. The trailer will reintroduce the EP to the award show audience, ending with a significant reveal of the two new worlds releasing with the upcoming Side D expansion. I'm excited to surprise you with the secret fifth world soon! Cheers!

[ 2024-11-20 01:17:14 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! As I work on the first free content expansion, Im continuing to make improvements to the core experience based on your feedback. Im excited to share a vertical slice of those with you today, including: a new dark mode interface, a toggle for stereo or mono audio, and many improvements to the How to Play screen. Thanks for playing!

• Core Gameplay
  • Spawned caches at exhausted artifact locations in New Game Plus.
  • Fixed an issue with the destination name generator.
  • Fixed an issue with the trinket name generator.
• Core Interface
  • Added a toggle for a dark mode interface.
  • Added a toggle for stereo or mono output to the Audio screen.
  • Added a focus outline to the manual on the How to Play screen.
  • Added a button to open the manual in a new window.
  • Improved how focus is managed on the How to Play screen.
  • Increased speed of scrolling with the gamepad.
• Core Audio
  • Improved spatialization of portals when charging up.
• Core Video
  • Increased particle densities on Alpha Periphery B and C2.

[ 2024-11-10 21:57:55 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I was delighted to be invited to speak virtually at GAconf USA on Ocober 28, 2024. The conference was filled with a diversity of perspectives covering topics such as inclusive design, assistive technologies, and behind-the-scenes looks at accessibility in games. It was an incredibly informative experience which reminded me that people are awesomeand we have so much to learn from each other. I'm deeply grateful for the organizers who produced this must-see event. You may find more talks from the conference in the GAconf USA 2024 playlist. Im excited to share more details about the upcoming free content expansion with you soon. There is a lot more to it than Ive revealed. Enjoy! [previewyoutube=6G1qtnBUm-E;full][/previewyoutube]

[ 2024-10-30 04:32:15 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Recently I started working exclusively on the new planet and mechanics coming in the first free content expansion. This release merges a number of general improvements from my secret development branch into the public builds. I'm excited to share a larger progress update about how the expansion changes the entire game with you soon. In the meantime, thanks for playing. Enjoy!

v3.2.6 changes

• Added a Danger Zone screen that's accessible from the Settings screen.
• Added dangerous buttons to reset progress in the Danger Zone.
• Fixed demo save not being continued in full version.
• Fixed the criteria for the Archeologist and Elementalist milestones.
• Improved when screens forget their last focused element.
• Improved the title of the New Seed screen.
• Revised order and quantity of cache rewards on Alpha Periphery C.

[ 2024-09-21 02:09:35 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! This release wraps up loose ends and the feedback that I received from you in the first week since release. I'm excited to read what folks think about the EP from Steam's Space Exploration Fest next week. Thanks again for your feedback and support. Enjoy!

v3.2.5 changes

• Required core reactors to be upgraded for other upgrades to appear.
• Fixed edge cases of system and subsystem upgrade availability.
• Ensured numpad enter key clicks all interface elements.
• Expanded numpad control mappings (see manual for details).
• Decreased falloff of scan guide volume when close to its target.

[ 2024-08-30 02:43:08 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! This release brings a vertical slice of new features, enhancements, and fixes based on your feedback from the first week since release. It includes three new milestones to gauge your progress, auto-targeting for the scanner, a new visual status bar, and a lot more! Following this larger update, I will be taking a short break from the project to recharge for its next phase of expansion development. Thanks again for your feedback and support as I work through your feedback and make performance optimizations. In the meantime, I'd love if you could write an honest review just in time for Steam's Space Exploration Fest, beginning on September 2. Enjoy!

v3.2.4 changes

• Core Gameplay
  • Added milestones for collecting artifacts.
  • Reinstated scanner auto-targeting with some improvements.
  • Decreased deceleration while drifting with wheels repulsors.
  • Increased effects of thruster gimbals at lower levels.
  • Increased minimum range of attractors casters.
• Core Audio
  • Increased clarity of multiple sounds.
• Core Graphics
  • Required collectables to be scanned to be drawn at full distance.
  • Animated in faraway collectables when scanned.
  • Increased default draw distance for Steam Deck to maximum.
• Core Interface
  • Added toggle on Graphics screen for displaying status at bottom of screen.
  • Switched toast notifications to a monospaced font.
  • Moved world seed to bottom of the Status screen.
  • Fixed focus order on Graphics screen when graphics are off.
  • Fixed exiting pointer lock interfering with pausing with escape key.
  • Fixed a potential hard lock on the Destinations screen.
• Alpha Periphery B
  • Added more ways to perceive a certain object.
  • Revised some perceptions text.
• Alpha Periphery C2
  • Added more ways to perceive certain terrain features.
  • Reduced particle limit.

[ 2024-08-29 02:20:22 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! This release addresses some feedback that was collected over the weekend from folks across various channels. Thanks again for sharing your experiences with the EP and how it can be improved. With this hotfix, it's beginning to seem that I can take a step back, and focus on larger updates along the way to the first expansion. Enjoy!

v3.2.3 changes

- Increased overall size and visibility of collectables on screen. - Split audio mixer and performance settings into separate screens. - Defaulted audio performance to lowest settings on Steam Deck. - Allowed material costs on subsystem screens to be clickable. - Improved compatibility with unsupported browsers.

[ 2024-08-25 23:42:39 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! This build fixes the ability to earn Steam achievements. You will earn your previously-earned achievements upon starting the EP, and all future achievements moving forward. Thanks for understanding, enjoy!

[ 2024-08-24 01:06:51 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! This release addresses the most commonly-reported issues on release day. If you are experiencing issues with audio performance, please try toggling off Ultra Quality and Reverb from the Audio settings screen. Thanks for your support and understanding.

v3.2.1 changes

• Fixed an issue with starting a New Game Plus.
• Added toggle for Ultra Quality to Audio settings (defaults to enabled).
• Tweaked various sound voice limits based on the Ultra Quality setting.
• Fixed panning of collectables in scan results.
• Fixed collectables not receiving targeting on scan.

[ 2024-08-23 00:38:29 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I'm excited to announce the immediate release of Periphery Synthetic for Windows, Linux, and Steam Deck. Explore a planetary system, synthesize new abilities, and uncover its past in this interactive EP that draws inspiration from your favorite metroidvania, walking simulator, and interactive fiction. This release follows two years of early access updates which saw it grow from driving a buggy in a desert to a full system of planets where you can surf waves, explore caves, climb mountains, and even visit space. I'm deeply proud of this accomplishment, and I'm excited for where this project goes next.

Expansion reveals

My biggest goal with Periphery Synthetic was to create an experience that can be easily expanded with new worlds and abilities that further diversify its nonlinearity. This model was tested twice during its early access period with the incremental release of its worlds. These have always arrived as free content expansions for existing players, and coincided with a base price increase of $1 USD per expansion for the EP. Today I have two of these free content expansions to reveal for you. Both expansions will introduce challenging new worlds which feature dynamic vertical environments to explore. They also include a new xenotechnology to collect, and new abilities to unlock that change how you play. These will also be released for free with a base price increase.

Side D reveal

Here is an exclusive first look at the Side D release:
Alpha Periphery D2 is a small terrestrial world covered in an ethereal moss. Throughout its day the moss undergoes colorful seasonal changes, morphing between two distinct planetary surfaces. Importantly, it features aerial materials to collect, with an overhauled aerodynamics upgrade system which allows for finer control while falling. The update intends to also reexamine the material economy.

Side E reveal

Next is an exclusive first look at the Side E release:
Alpha Periphery D3 is a large airless world lit only by an ocean of molten lava. The magma rises and falls in an oscillating manner to reveal materials on its extremely vertical terrain. As this expansion is much earlier in production, I'm still determining the best upgrades to include here. The ability to manipulate the flow of time is a major possibility, as it would be very useful on all but one of the worlds.

Information forthcoming

Beware that these are not merely pieces of concept art! The worlds are connected by portals, mostly sculpted, and fully explorable. However, they need their music, environmental sound effects, new abilities, unique points of interest, perception and milestone triggers, trinkets, and narrative text. Both will be extremely large endeavors to finish from here. Soon I'll also be thinking more deeply about when development on the EP should come to a close. Since the beginning, I've planned for there being six explorable worlds. Ideally, a hypothetical sixth world would combine elements from all worlds into one, such as an Earth-like world that has an equal amount of land and underwater areas to explore. Ultimately, getting there will depend on the success of the EP, and whether I have the stamina to reach it. It may end up needing to be its own spinoff project. I'm looking forward to sharing more details about these expansions soon. In the meantime, I will continue to support the EP with new features and bugfixes while the expansions are in development. Thanks for playing!

[ 2024-08-22 17:00:36 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Im excited to announce that Periphery Synthetic will be released for Windows, Linux, and Steam Deck on August 22, 2024. The EP offers a chill and non-violent metroidvania experience across procedurally-generated musical playgrounds, which feature purely synthesized music and sounds that evolve and react to your input in real-time. Closer to release, I'll be revealing the first look at the EP's first expansion. It has been under active development for a few weeks now. The expansion will be a free content update for all players, which includes an all-new world to explore with a variety of new features. While developing the expansion, I will continue to support the EP with smaller updates. I'm excited to reveal more soon. Thanks for playing!

[ 2024-06-25 02:42:01 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! The demo for Periphery Synthetic has been updated to v3.2.0. It includes a final round of new features, enhancements, and fixes to prepare the EP for its full release this summer. Here is a summary of the 50+ changes which improve the demo:

• Unlockable milestones. Earn lifetime achievements for exploring, experimenting, and completing objectives across the Alpha Periphery system.
• Collectable trinkets. Find lesser artifacts throughout the worlds which set the stage and progress alongside the story.
• Audio enhancements. Use new audio cues to locate unexplored destinations and explore them in three dimensions. The mix has been boosted significantly to bring out the finer details.
• World rescale. The worlds have been expanded with more space between destinations. Materials have been more evenly distributed based on their rarities.
• So much more. Play the instrument while in-game. Earn more materials from caches. Enjoy improved loading times and new scanning visuals.

This update was prepared for Access-Ability Summer Showcase 2024. Please tune in to the livestream on Friday, June 7, at 10:00 AM CDT to celebrate accessibility in games. I'm excited to share the rest of it with you soon. Enjoy!

[ 2024-06-04 01:45:39 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! The demo for Periphery Synthetic has been updated to v3.1.0. It received a plethora of new features, enhancements, and fixes. Here is a summary of the changes:

• Material screen. Click on individual materials from the Materials screen to learn more about them. This screen relocates their discovered locations from the Perceptions screen to a table here. It also includes previously-hidden information about the materials, such as their atomic symbol and weight.
• Graphical improvements. The planetary bodies of Alpha Periphery are now visible from each others skies. Their skies have also been reworked to behave more spherically. While subtle, the improvement is most noticeable when looking straight up or down.
• Audio improvements. The collectibles are easier to hear and attenuated when they cannot be collected. This release also fixes some bugs reported by folks since the last update.
• Accessibility improvements. Some of the access hotkeys that were available to keyboard users are now available on gamepad by holding Y and pressing a directional button. Overall the interface received a variety of smaller enhancements.
• Manual revisions. Every section of the manual was revised. The revisions focused on using plainer language, expanding on missing details, and improving the accessibility of its markup.

I'm excited to share the release date with you soon. Enjoy!

[ 2024-04-05 05:36:08 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! The demo for Periphery Synthetic has been updated to v3.0.0. Unlock the ability to double-jump and drive sideways! The desert planet has also received a number of enhancements. This coincides with a huge content update now available in early access. The EP is now entering its final stages of development before general release in Spring 2024. Here is the latest trailer: [previewyoutube=4-U_RKGXe7E;full][/previewyoutube] Enjoy!

[ 2023-12-16 19:32:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I am shiftBacktick, the developer of Periphery Synthetic. I use web technologies to create accessible and interactive audio experiences. Please join me for a special livestream where you may ask me anything. During the stream, I will play the game more casually while interacting with you in the chat. Enjoy!

[ 2023-06-20 18:00:00 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! Please join me for a special livestream where I will attempt to complete the first world as fast as possible. Depending on our progress during the stream, we may experience content from the full game as well. Although the game is intended to be a relaxing experience, it has the potential for both Any% and 100% speed runs. By visiting each world, our Any% run is complete. Then by completing all secondary objectives, our 100% run is complete. Enjoy!

[ 2023-06-17 16:23:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings surveyors! I'm excited to release the demo of Periphery Synthetic for Windows and Steam Deck. Periphery Synthetic offers a chill metroidvania experience across otherworldly musical playgrounds. It could also be described as a generative music album, walking simulator, or visual novel. In the demo, you may freely explore its first world with zero limitations. When the game is released, you may take your progress to explore its siblings. After release, their planetary family will grow with free content expansions. [previewyoutube=k_0dpr6fKbs;full][/previewyoutube] Shown in the trailer are the worlds launching in the full release:

• Alpha Periphery B: A desert planet with shifting sands and hidden structures.
• Alpha Periphery C: A water world with waves to surf and caves to explore.
• Alpha Periphery C2: An icy moon with steep cliffs and mountains to scale.
• Future worlds will be announced after release.

Each world introduces a new set of upgradable abilities which change the way you play. For example, in the demo you may unlock and upgrade the wheels system for a speed boost and drifting ability. There are discussion threads for providing feedback and reporting bugs. Enjoy!

[ 2023-06-09 19:53:19 CET ] [ Original post ]