-Hello fam. Just a small update to address the chase filter, which has been suppressed lightly for better visibility and some updates to options menu text for better descriptions of Quality-of-Life features. Free demo coming soon!

[ 2025-04-18 19:51:00 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. Our latest patch has the following updates:

• ANALOG CONTROL OPTIMIZATION - Deadzone and auto-run options were not responding to player settings. This has now been fixed. In addition, greater precision has been added to deadzone and autorun control.
• IMPROVED UI ELEMENTS - More UI improvements have been added. You will now see prompts at Quick Travel events after a certain event occurs (hint: the Culture Tower) and more prompts have been added for story events so players miss less.
• OPTIONS BUTTON - The Options button menu will now not stick when selected with the keyboard or D-Pad on the Pause menu.
• SMALL VISUAL FIX - The prompt for the picture in Lydia's Solar is now at the correct level.
• IMPROVED CONTROLLER DETECTION - More updates have been added to text for when a controller is connected to reflect proper input. In addition, the Title Screen's "START" button is now "NEW GAME" as this caused confusion for analog input as the START button handles the ESCAPE button's function on keyboard.

Thank you for your attention. See you in the endless night. XOXO, NegDev

[ 2025-04-11 00:01:30 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. We have recently finished a new update with major UI improvements among other features ahead of schedule. This also features some more guidance at the start of the game as well as the end point and a host of other upgrades to make playing easier.

• [NEW UI FEATURE] - You can now see important player stats in the pause menu for those who like the nitty-gritty details. This includes STAMINA levels both current and max, stamina RECOVERY RATE, WALK SPEED, RUN SPEED, ENEMY SPEED and LUCK level. Previously only the TRUTHS level was available.
• [OPTIONS ACCESSIBILITY] - The Options Menu was previously only available to access from the title screen. Now you can access it on the pause menu to change preferences in-game.
• [END SCREEN] - The end screen also now returns to menu and has proper keyboard control.
• [GUIDANCE] - Some reviews have mentioned that it is difficult to figure out where to go from the beginning. We have added some highlight elements to give players some more guidance at the start without holding their hands too much. In addition, highlights and more prompts have been added to important points of the game [spoiler](like the cat AND the hidden stairs in the library)[/spoiler] and for additional lore.
• [BALANCING] - Some balancing has been addressed. Special story sequences now offer stat boosts and in addition, the end of the Isolation Room sequence now has different effects depending on what button you press. Thanks to a recent player for suggesting this.
• [ESCAPING CUTSCENES] - Early escaping has been added to the pre-Panic Room cutscene.
• [THROW EVENTS] - The attack events now always move towards the enemy, versus before where you had to face the opposite direction.
• ["LOSING TIME" [spoiler]WARP[/spoiler] EVENTS] - New "losing time" events have been added to the Lab and the Living Quarters. You will also now see prompts for them when you find a particular hint.
• [PAUSE MENU UPGRADES] - Save and Exit on the pause screen originally was quitting straight to the desktop and closing the app. It now will return you to the Title Screen instead. UI buttons are now highlighted and can be controlled with the keyboard correctly..
• [PERFORMANCE] - A shader for highlighting was slowing down the game considerably. This has been fixed or replaced where needed.
• [PLAYER HOLD] - Player will now stay still until pausing window has closed. Previously they could move while it was closing.
• [SOUND BUG FIX] - Music position was resetting every time the pause menu was opened. It will now hold its position when pausing.
• [CONTROLLER PROMPTS] - Additional areas have had their text updated for when a controller is connected.
• [OTHER BUG FIXES] - Patches can no longer grab a player if they are entering a special door - [spoiler] i.e. mystery door that teleports.[/spoiler] The Room of Truths label now behaves properly as well. Patches also does not show up in the Security Checkpoint where he would ambush a player as soon as they cam downstairs.

Thank you all for playing. See you in the endless night. XOXO, NegDev

[ 2025-03-28 21:04:56 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. The latest update contains the following improvements: [UI Improvements] - A recent review mentioned that puzzles did not give players enough guidance when completed. Major puzzles that have unlocks now have announcements and the truth announcements have been made larger and more prevalent to emphasize their importance. Thanks for the suggestion! [Sound Improvements] - Various events in the Maze and the Library (*such as the Isolation Room and the Fantasma Communis] were not reflecting global sound values. This has been fixed. [Patches] - The enemy was appearing in the Circulation Room but not responding to the player. This has been fixed. [Birbs] - The birds in the Maze were not responding to running, but to walking and only upon input. This has been fixed. [Lydia] - Lydia's breathing sound when exhausted would stop when entering another room. This is now fixed. [Maze] - Passages in the maze now have a buffer to prevent accidental input when entering another maze section. [Book Puzzle] - On the book sorting puzzle, some answers were appearing upside down. This has been fixed. COMING SOON - The full /R Soundtrack will soon be available on Steam. More info coming soon as it is pending store approval. Both lossless WAV and MP3 will be included. It will also be spoiler-free. See you in the endless night. XOXO, NegDev

[ 2025-03-27 22:28:53 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. A small update just pushed out. This update will now detect if joypads/controllers are connected and will update input prompts accordingly to reflect the current input. In addition, a recent review (and others) have mentioned the default sound values are uncomfortable when first starting. These settings have been changed to be quieter at the start for a more comfortable starting experience. Thanks for playing and see you in Whitaker Manor. XOXO, NegDev

[ 2025-03-21 20:28:54 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. We just pushed a small patch for /R to fix some bugs. We have also added some UI features to make things better for players. A summary of updates: - The quick travel system was soft locking when players used it. This has been fixed. - Quick travel now has a timer attached for auto-progression and a prompt when opened. - Patches no longer auto-catches you in the stairwell when coming up from the 1st floor of the library. - The Moon Blocks event is functional again. The programmers will be beaten shortly. - The Second Chance item is now working as intended. It also now returns you to your last location. - For some reason, Patches was stuck in the Hall of Resolve for longer than necessary. This has now been fixed. - Patches' speed was changing after so many rooms at higher levels. This has been fixed. - Doors are no longer blocked when winning a Last Chance if the enemy is in front of them. - Yumiko's portrait no longer shows up on top of Patches during chase scenes. - When the Revenant appears, Lydia could get stuck when running back to where they first appeared. This has been fixed. - NEW FEATURE: Frame rate locking can now be controlled via the Options Menu. In addition, the information on the Steamworks launcher has been updated. Two options for launch were displaying for players instead of the system auto-launching the correct version. The launcher should now correctly auto-launch the right version for your OS. Happy exploring.

[ 2025-03-13 16:50:43 CET ] [ Original post ]

Yes, folks, I promise I am a professional. Here's the (hopefully) last bug fix today. [Chimney Sweep] - This item was incorrectly labeled "Chimney Brook." Fixed. [Flashback] - In a flashback story sequence, a door appeared on top of a character if they walked towards it. Fixed. [Yumiko's Vista] - A one-off event was causing a lock if a player entered during a pursuit before the event was logged. This has been fixed. [Subtitles] - A couple of subtitle sequences had some text slightly off from what was being said. These have been fixed.

[ 2025-02-27 19:48:01 CET ] [ Original post ]

Yeah.... just a slight quick fix as a line of code was edited that was unintentional. This has already been fixed. No one saw that? Ok, good. xD

[ 2025-02-27 18:55:10 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical Family. We have been working hard to fix the latest problems and bugs with /R and this latest update squashes some major ones. [Hiding] - Players were able to hide in the same room as the monster when it was stunned. This has now been fixed, preventing players from getting trapped when doing so. [Viewing] - View events could be spammed repeatedly causing players to keep going in and out of them, sometimes when exiting a view event ax well. A buffer has now been added to prevent this when entering a room. [Stairs] - Stair events could sometimes overlap and become confused with view Events, sometimes taking players to a viewEvent instead of the stair destinations. This has now been fixed. Stairs also now have a buffer preventing input spamming, which could cause players to keep going up and down stairs. (Particularly at the Chapel room in the South Hall). [Doors] - Door events could sometimes be overridden by view and searching events. Doors are now always prioritized over these events and also have been given a buffer to prevent spamming inputs. [Searching] - You could search in a room with an enemy, and the enemy would move when you came back. This was not intentional and has now been fixed. [Audio Fix # 1] - The intro audio has been capped at a level and also now reflects the global BGM level set by the player. This should make that creepy opening screech far less damaging to the ears. [Audio Fix # 2] - The splash screen audio was not reflecting player preferences. This has also been fixed. [Audio Fix # 3] - Some door sounds were not reflecting player preferences. This has also been fixed. [Audio Fix # 4] - Chase music audio was coming through way louder than exploration audio and the discrepancy was notable. We have now made the chase music quieter than the exploration music for better balance. Thanks to the dedicated community for reporting these bugs. Keep us posted in the main BUG REPORT thread or email us with issues at negativedevelopmentgames@gmail.com. XOXO, NegDev

[ 2025-02-27 18:21:52 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, Whitaker Metaphysical family. A new build is live today with some small, but important updates: [Endings] Four endings were meant to be available on Easy, but only three were available. This is now fixed. [Post-Game] After beating the game, an additional options mode is unlocked but this information was saved in the options file, meaning if you did not save options at some point after, you would lose access to this menu. This has been fixed as it now autosaves the options data after unlocking this mode.

[ 2025-02-20 19:28:57 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, folks. Sorry for two updates in the same day, but I am a bit OCD about the quality of the game. More updates pushed for bug fixes: - Exposure level in the Maze is NOW WORKING PROPERLY. (It was dropping below Zero due to a bug) - Bill will no longer move or change from idle animation during his sequence with Rose. - Visitor platform now has correct alpha during visitations. - Exit prompt on 3d glasses now not visible when not open. - You can now select options at the Room of Truths door with keyboard input. - The room name in the Room of Truths is now behaving properly. - A room in the Final Sequence no longer blocks your progress. Keep us posted for any bugs you find. Also, thank you for your patience. I am a one-person team and am on my dev PC four days out of the week, so bear with me as I action these bugs. Please keep me posted.

[ 2025-02-16 21:20:06 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, /R fans! NegDev here, exterminating dastardly bugs as we see the need arise. The latest build, 1.02 is up, and some major bugs have been fixed as well as some small QOL improvements. - The intro sound (the screeching on a new game) has been dropped in volume as it was WAY too loud. - Some search events (looking at items and seeing a text description) were causing soft locks for players. This has been fixed. - The gallery had a bug where a player could trigger a portrait event when entering a room, causing a soft lock. This has been fixed. - Players would get stuck outside the walls in the Nurse storage when being chased and escaping the enemy. This has been fixed. - The hiding place in the Reference section was allowing players to hide when the enemy was present, causing players to be stuck. This has been fixed. - A prompt was added to the 3D glasses event so players know to hit "Enter" while exiting. - Mouse inputs were not responding on the Difficulty select screen. This is now working. - There was a bug that caused Yumiko's Old Room to send players to an incorrect destination when going upstairs. This has been fixed. - Exposure levels in the Maze were not changing properly during the enemy sequence. This has been fixed. Thanks to the astute players who provided descriptions about the bugs so we could fix them promptly. Remember you can also always email us at negativedevelopmentgames@gmail.com.

[ 2025-02-16 19:59:59 CET ] [ Original post ]

Howdy, /R fans. NegDev here. We recently fixed some bugs in the game post-launch. We have also made some difficulty adjustments. BUG FIXES: [Enemy] - Enemy non-response bug in Circulation fixed. [Visitation] - Visitations no longer occur when enemy is present, sound bugs also fixed. [Puzzles] - Bookshelf puzzle graphics no longer invert on completion. [Flashback] - Bill no longer changes animation if inputs are made during cutscenes. [Revenant] - Exposure level now changes accurately upon capture and escape. BALANCING: [Revenant] - The Revenant's speed has been lowered at its top levels. Its speed still changes based on progress in the game. In some rooms, their animation pattern has been altered as it was "trapping" players a bit too well. [Puzzles] - Some of the bookshelf puzzle answers may now be "hidden" on higher difficulties or further game progress. This feature did not have enough variation to apply to multiple playthroughs for my taste. As always, please note you can email me at negativedevelopmentgames@gmail.com with any critical bugs you may encounter.

[ 2025-02-14 20:07:53 CET ] [ Original post ]