Slumberer's Universe demo has been updated!

What's new

This version basically includes everything that the full game will, for example:

• save compatibility with the full game
• autosaving
• updated battle system
• general QoL updates to the whole game
• a few new features
• minor story updates.

If you've been wanting to play the game for a while now,

Now is the best time to play Slumberer's Universe!

This version will ensure you'll get close to the same experience as you would with the full game in 2025. Anyway, there's quite some new content available. Check the last progress update to see some of these! Now the only thing remaining is to get the last two chapters done (progress on the third chapter is going really well - it'll be finished in just a few weeks!)

[ 2024-09-09 13:40:51 CET ] [ Original post ]

Chapter 3 and whats next

Another year has passed, another teaser has come

Just like last year, heres a teaser for the next chapter!

[previewyoutube=MIfVw9YPO5U;full][/previewyoutube]

More to talk

Its been a year of radio silence. The game, however, is far from abandoned. The rest of the chapters are coming up nicely, and the plan for the rest of stuff has pretty much been finalized!

Updated stuff!

Besides having a new chapter done, theres been a lot of polishing to other parts during this year! Take a look of some of the updated stuff here: Updated menu:
Pixel talking animation:
An Ultimate attack!:
A new dodge mechanic:

Whats next

The game will feature a total of four chapters plus prologue and a short epilogue. That means theres only one chapter remaining! However, the game still needs a lot of polishing. Even though the main story might be finished earlier, the game will be released at a later date. The date hasnt been set in stone yet, but will be in the second half of 2025, depending on the time it takes to create the last chapter. Ive learned a lesson from the demo, and that is not to rush the release. I was unhappy with the initial release of the demo. I fixed most of the annoyances with the update 1.5, but I dont want to do that again. This time, I want to deliver a complete product that doesnt need updates. Oh, but dont take that the wrong way. Updates will absolutely come whenever necessary. I just mean that I want to make sure there is no big need for updates by making the game good enough on release. So, the development will continue on forward! I want to make more progress updates in the future, but we'll have to see if it'll work out. There will be announcements for the important stuff for sure. The focus has been on developing the game for the past year, and I haven't had enough motivation to write continuous updates about the progress.

The demo

The demo is complete, as far as I am concerned. It represents the full game well enough, even though there will be some changes to the first two chapters in the full game. (EDIT:) Uhh, Steam actually just published some new features for demos. Well, I might change something in the demo in the future. No promises though! As for the JP translation, Im taking my word back about that. Theres been some trouble with the translator, so I cant say anything if it is coming or not. Might come out one day, or might not. Well see. Ill publish another announcement if I hear something about it in the future. Better not get any hopes up though. Anyway, thats pretty much it. Only one chapter left! See you next year for the final teaser. Oh, and in about 1,5 years on the release! [spoiler]Hey Ralph, can I lend your main theme? I promise Ill make it sound different so that the teacher wont notice it! - Alph[/spoiler]

[ 2024-07-26 08:51:24 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi! It's not even been a year since the Demo release with Prologue and Chapter 1, but it sure feels like a long time. Having the experience from the previous chapters and motivation to try new things, this upcoming chapter is, in my opinion, so far the best one. Without spoiling anything, this chapter will focus more on the main story and drive that forward. The Chapter 1 was a bit 'meh' story-wise, and that will receive a rework along with Prologue! However, that won't come to the demo, except if I decide otherwise in the future. Here's a small teaser: [previewyoutube=ujpMaQmk3Tk;full][/previewyoutube] A lot of QoL changes have been made once again along with the new content, mostly to the battle system. These changes won't be ported to the demo due to the radical amount of changes made to the core components. It'd take time to get all these features working on the Demo's branch. Because of that, the demo won't be receiving any major updates anymore. Bug fixes will of course be published if bugs were to be found. Well then, it's time for Chapter 3 next! [spoiler](Also, is there another translation coming???? I heard Ralph say something about . . . or did I? Who was Ralph once again? I can't remember...) Alph[/spoiler]

[ 2023-07-26 12:42:16 CET ] [ Original post ]

The update 1.5.1 has been released to a public beta branch! Changelog: - Add Finnish translation - Nothing else It is currently on the beta branch only (due to a few grammatical errors and other minor bugs included in it) You can access it by right-clicking Slumberer's Universe Demo in Steam library --> select "properties" --> select "betas" --> select "fi-beta". After that, close the menu and wait for it to update. It will be released outside the beta after I manage to fix every known error.

[ 2023-05-17 15:12:21 CET ] [ Original post ]

The UX update 1.5 has been released!

Hi! This new update has a lot of improvements to the user experience. A lot of bugs and other clunky stuff has been fixed, and on top of that, many new features have been added!

Features:

These do not differ much from the initial announcement.

1. New content!

Some new content, like the new beginning of the game, has been added! While it doesn't include chapter 2, there are some new secret areas for you to find in this update!

2. 16:9 support

This is definitely the biggest change you'll see. I've ported the game from 4:3 to 16:9 to make it better on modern monitors. The game is only going to support 16:9 from now on, due to it being too hard to maintain 4:3 support too.

3. Improved UI

The UI is now consistent everywhere. The menus, title screen, battle system, text box and everything has been updated to follow the new UI guidelines! A lot of animations have been added too.

4. Improved battle system

Some updates have been made to the battle system as well, featuring a combo system, new animations, and improvements to the dodge system. These changes will make the fighting experience much more fun! On top of that, the enemies have been balanced.

5. Other smaller (but not unimportant!) stuff

The graphics got a noticeable upgrade. They are much sharper than before! The soundtrack got a few updates, with one new, one remade and one improved song. On top of that, some optimizations have been made under the hood that will provide a faster and stabler, less buggy experience. There's been stuff done for easier and faster developing too. There are a lot more minor improvements and/or fixes, but those aren't worth mentioning.

Q&A

Are the saves compatible with the new version?

Unfortunately no. The game has got so many changes that some things will be broken beyond playable in the upcoming update. You can keep playing with your old saves on the old version, or you can start from the beginning.

I don't like the new stuff. Can I revert to the old version?

Sure! You can download the old version either by entering the beta 1.0.1 from Steam or downloading the old version from Itch or Gamejolt to keep using this version.

Is chapter 2 be released?

Nope. Chapter 2 will be released with rest of the chapters in the future. The release date is still TBD and will take a few years at least.

Is Ralph featured in this update?

Yes? No? Maybe???? That's all for now.

[ 2023-04-22 13:19:08 CET ] [ Original post ]

A lot of new UX improvements coming in the next update!

Hi! I'm currently developing a new update featuring a lot of improvements to the user experience. The current version (1.0.1) bugs, inconsistencies and other stuff that make the playing experience much worse. I'll try to fix all of those in the upcoming update.

Features:

Warning! These are a subject to change.

1. New content!

Some new content, like the new beginning of the game, has been added! While it doesn't include chapter 2, there are some new secret areas for you to find in this update!

2. 16:9 support

This is definitely the biggest change you'll see. I've ported the game from 4:3 to 16:9 to make it better on modern monitors. The game is only going to support 16:9 from now on. I've asked about this change on Reddit and the majority voted for 16:9.

3. Improved UI

The UI is now consistent everywhere. The menus, title screen, battle system, text box and everything has been updated to follow the new UI guidelines! A lot of animations have been added too.

4. Improved battle system

Some updates have been made to the battle system as well, featuring a combo system, new animations, an improved dodge system. These changes will make the fighting experience much more fun!

5. Other smaller (but not unimportant!) stuff

The graphics got a noticeable upgrade. They are much sharper than before! The soundtrack got a few updates, with one new, one remade and one improved song. On top of that, some optimizations have been made under the hood that will provide a stabler, less buggy experience. There's been stuff done for easier and faster developing too, so I can now make more in the same time as before! That's all for the features! There might be even more stuff on release.

Release date

Probably in a week. Might be in just a few days. It can take two or three weeks if I become lazy.

Q&A

Will the saves be compatible with the new version?

Unfortunately no. The game has got so many changes that some things will be broken beyond playable in the upcoming update. You can keep playing with your old saves on the old version, or you can start from the beginning.

I don't like the new stuff. Can I revert to the old version?

Sure! You can download the old version either by entering the beta 1.0.1 from Steam or downloading the old version from Itch or Gamejolt to keep using this version.

Will chapter 2 be released with this?

Nope. Chapter 2 will be released with rest of the chapters in the future. The release date is still TBD and will take a few years at least.

Will Ralph be featured in this update?

a That's all for now.

[ 2023-04-01 16:20:03 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello! A new update to Slumberer's Universe demo has been released alongside the MacOS and Linux builds. Changelog: - Made the chapter 1 forest puzzle easier and better. - Made the navigation in certain parts of prologue easier. - Fixed some minor bugs and grammatical errors. - Minor changes to dialogue in certain parts. The improved trailer has been released too! Watch it on the Steam page or watch it on YouTube.

[ 2023-01-14 16:54:28 CET ] [ Original post ]

The demo of Slumberer's Universe is now released! This is the biggest game project we've worked so far so it's quite a milestone. Now, the demo only has the prologue and the first chapter. Let's discuss about what's next.

The future

Okay, there's a lot of things to do. Here's a quick summary of what we've planned to do next and what will the full game include:

The upcoming full game

Starting with the chapter amount, there's no precise information of how many of them will come in the full product. The estimate for those currently are 4 (apart from the prologue and possibly an epilogue). The rest of them will be published within the full release. We're not sure when the full game is coming, but the current estimates are between 2024 and 2025. That, however, is a very rough estimate, and it could come during 2023, but that right now seems very unlikely. The price of the full game will also be decided when it's done. Might be free.

The demo

The demo's complete right now. It won't receive any more feature updates or any other major changes. Sure, there will be bug fixes and other small patches but that's probably everything. And no, we're not releasing another demo with the upcoming chapters to the public. You probably already have noticed that the game is only available for Windows right now. I'll start working on the MacOS and Linux releases soon. If you're using linux, you should be able to play the game with Proton without any issues too.

[ 2022-11-07 16:16:41 CET ] [ Original post ]