ToruTaru

Released: Sep 21, 2021
Platforms
Last updated: 13 Sep 2026, 09:49 GMT

Updates & announcements

17 posts

27 Jul 2025Developer post
0.7.8 Update Published
0.7.8 Update Changelog: Fixed run-destroying NPC conversation softlock bug. NPC conversations would sometimes become unclickable, this was caused due to improper canvas order. Added 12 new “attack voices” to enemies that do spirit damage Added pixel filter and resolution fixes to
0.7.8 Update Changelog:
Fixed run-destroying NPC conversation softlock bug. NPC conversations would sometimes become unclickable, this was caused due to improper canvas order.
Added 12 new “attack voices” to enemies that do spirit damage
Added pixel filter and resolution fixes to NPC conversation camera
Added additional but rare aggressive behaviors to angered spirits.
Added some weird noises that can occur when a spirit is particularly angry with you.
Dev notes:
Thanks for your patience! A bug has been persistent in ToruTaru for a while, where if the player initiates a conversation with an NPC, the menu can become unclickable, with no way to exit or proceed, thus softlocking the game. Last night while doing some thinking, I got a sudden idea about what might be causing it, and implemented it immediately. This should be the fix. It's a bit TL;DR, but essentially the menu items were "far back" on the canvas, so if anything else might be in front of it (e.g. blood screen effects, fade effects, etc) it could block the buttons. I've moved the NPC convo UI to the front of the canvas, which should be the fix. I haven't tested extensively yet, but it seems to work.
While I was in there, I figured I'd add some scary SFX that I've been making recently. I also have tweaked a random chance for spirits to become more aggressive, adding some behavior attributes that randomize when a spirit becomes angered. This can create new types of aggression (and also non-aggression/fleeing), making spirit encounters more diverse. Also fixed some other things, and added some rare occurrences.
Enjoy!
Original post
02 Apr 2024Developer post
0.7.6e Update - Beta Branch Launched!
0.7.6e has been pushed to the new beta branch! This includes a ton of new balancing changes, aesthetic changes, and more. I'm pushing this to a new branch because I'm still testing the difficulty and balance with some of these new changes, and it'll take a ton of testing to make
0.7.6e has been pushed to the new beta branch!
This includes a ton of new balancing changes, aesthetic changes, and more. I'm pushing this to a new branch because I'm still testing the difficulty and balance with some of these new changes, and it'll take a ton of testing to make sure this is what's right for the game overall.
The majority of these changes are to suit the vibe closer to the vision I have for the game, as well as to insist on a more mature and restrained tension.
Below is the changelog of changes that I can remember making in this version:

New NPC Conversation UI System. Click on NPCs to talk to them. It will either be a questgiver, or an NPC which opens a conversation window, where you can converse with and respond to NPCs. They will give positive and negative dialog, and you can respond with positive/negative/goodbye responses. The NPCs can give rewards, alert the player of stashes of items nearby, or alert the player of nearby spirits.
New "haunting level" system and difficulty rebalancing. Invisible haunting meter rises as the player explores, which is then the origin of most spirit and enemy spawns the higher it rises. Beating levels (-33%), collecting keys, and hanging out in blessed rooms are a few ways to lower the haunting level.
Subtle new effects on many talismans. New particle effects, and brief physics pulse (pushes phys objects) from used talismans. Warp talismans tosses objects around within the path of the warp.
Overhaul on many SFX. New ambient sounds added (creaks etc). Many of the old more aggressive ambient sounds have been made much more rare, making for a quiet experience when hauntings are not occurring. Ambient sounds on outdoor floors completely overhauled. New SFX upon beating a floor with a key. New SFX upon beating a floor with an elevator. Footstep SFX softened slightly. Some SFX reduced in volume.
Many new songs added to OST. Some songs removed.
New spirit behaviors and types. "Standing" ghosts which are little to no harm to the player (I think). "The haunting" which is an invisible intangible entity that moves around the level, makes sounds, imitates player footsteps, and interacts with objects like doors.
New TV animations. 16 new TV animations which can play on TVs. TVs will now attract spirits to it every 15-45 seconds that they are making sound, which can cause problems for the player, or can be used by the player to concentrate spirits in one spot (like a less effective Beacon Talisman). TVs can also now be smashed by throwing a physics object at it, which will stop its sound and stop it from attracting spirits.
"A door has opened somewhere on the floor" text removed, from floors without an end door / key. The door will now silently unlock with no text shown.
New room "Room5a" added to Japanese Mansion floortype. More rooms soon to be added.
Swinging wooden doors added to many rooms and floortypes. New sounds added to those doors.
New hanging decor added to many halls and rooms. New SFX when running through these objects.
Bugs fixed associated with particle lag, flashlight, etc.
Various changes to RNG and probability.
Other stuff I can't remember.
Known bugs:

Sometimes flashlight needs to be toggled twice to turn on after opening map.
Sometimes after entering an NPC conversation, dialog options cannot be clicked, softlocking the game.
Sometimes questgivers reward the player with notes, which have been removed from the game, so they drop nothing and say "here's a note".
Weird rubberbanding issue after beating some floors which softlocks the game. Very rare. Still trying to figure out what causes this.
To switch to the beta branch, right click on the game in your Steam library and click "properties". Go to the "betas" tab, and switch to the "beta" branch, as shown here:
Enjoy and let me know what you think! Feel free to start a discussion on Steam, join our discord, or reach out on twitter if you have any suggestions.
Original post
20 Nov 2023Developer post
ToruTaru Experimental Branch Update (0.7.5e1)
ToruTaru experimental branch has been updated with new sounds, visuals, ghost behaviors, and rebalancing / bugfixes. Here is a list of many of the changes: All spirits make distinct ambient foley sounds which reflect their state. Calm / benign spirits make soft rustling sounds, w
ToruTaru experimental branch has been updated with new sounds, visuals, ghost behaviors, and rebalancing / bugfixes. Here is a list of many of the changes:

All spirits make distinct ambient foley sounds which reflect their state. Calm / benign spirits make soft rustling sounds, while angered spirits audibly stretch the wood around them. Glitchy shortwave radio sounds removed from most ghosts.
"Cursed areas" (the fog that spawns a ghost) now appears as a sigil burned into the ceiling, which is dripping onto the floor. The player can hear the dripping. This makes cursed areas much more noticeable.
Matches are now more abundant; there is a 60% chance 1 matchbox will spawn on any floor, 20% chance two will spawn, and 20% chance none will spawn. Before it was 33% chance to spawn one.
Calm / benign spirits now have more possible behaviors, including avoidant and shy behaviors. Before, they would charge at the player if the player looked at them. Now, there are many different types of unpredictable actions the spirit can take when looked at.
Talisman effect hints are now seen from the pause menu, and some information (current floor and stats) is no longer shown on the pause menu.
Light spirits no longer have a spirit model, and are just light. Their sound cannot be heard past 1.5m, slightly larger than their damage hitbox.
Silly new cheat code that allows the player to hit a vape every 12 seconds.
Probably other stuff.
Hope you enjoy! Let me know if you run into any bugs, much of this is not fully tested!
-hV
Original post
08 Aug 2023Developer post
0741 Patch
Small patch to fix old player model appearing, pixel filter defaulting to off, and includes all Mac updates.
26 Jul 2023Developer post
ToruTaru 0.7.4 "Dimensions" Major Update
0.7.4 "Dimensions" Update Massive Update I don't even really know how to categorize these changes, and I probably missed many, but below is a changelog of everything that's changed. First, the bad news: The game's intro sequence has not changed, so certain quality-of-life updates
12 Jul 2022Developer post
Achievements bug fixed.
Achievements weren't working. Thanks rufus mcgayhee for pointing this out. It should now be fixed and achievements achieved while this was broken should come pouring in as you play.
26 Jun 2022Developer post
TORUTARU BETA 0.7.3.0 Coin Farmer Overhaul - MAJOR UPDATE
TORUTARU BETA 0.7.3.0 Coin Farmer Overhaul MAJOR UPDATE Summary Been a while since I've posted to the default branch. Thanks for your patience while I took my time developing a health system on the experimental branch, adding tons of new features, et cetera. This past week I took
TORUTARU BETA 0.7.3.0 Coin Farmer Overhaul MAJOR UPDATE
Summary
Been a while since I've posted to the default branch. Thanks for your patience while I took my time developing a health system on the experimental branch, adding tons of new features, et cetera. This past week I took a week off at my job, and hammered out a ton of new features and bugfixes. Very excited to show you the work that's been done. This update is going to the default branch as an official update.
COINS

Blessed fountains - drop a coin into it to gain a passive buff, which spawns more useful items in random places (talismans) over time. At the end of the buff, coins are spawned in a random place. This buff stacks, so dropping many coins in will produce many talismans spawning on levels. Lasts a few minutes.
Standing in blessed fountains heals the player, up past max HP to 6++ HP.
Cursed fountains - drop a coin into it to gain a passive debuff, which spawns drifting spirits (idle, nuisance spirits) in random places over time. At the end of the buff, a black angered spawn cloud is spawned in a random place. This buff stacks, so dropping many coins in will produce a chaotic swarm of spirits spawning all over the level. Lasts a few minutes.
Standing in cursed fountains causes the player to hallucinate, similar to the effects experienced when the player is at 1HP.
Jukebox - insert a coin into it and music will play, and the jukebox will dance around. Within a radius (shown by purple particles) spirits will not come close to the jukebox while music is playing. When song is over, the buff is disabled until another coin is inserted.
Small chance that jukebox plays cursed music, which spawns drifting spirits (idle, nuisance spirits) and calls them to the jukebox. Music will appear backwards and downpitched.
TALISMANS

Dispel talisman no longer wipes the whole floor. Instead, it produces a bubble (about 15 feet radius), and anything within the bubble is dispelled.
Changed beacon talisman behavior to make it trap spirits better.
Protection talisman secondary ability now pushes physics objects around.
HEALTH

Player now starts with 6HP as max HP.
Using the heart talisman, or by standing in a blessed fountain, player can heal past 6HP for a total of 8HP. (6+ and 6++ HP)
Health meter graphics changed.
Health meter buffs and debuffs changed.
FLOORS

New floor type "Grandpa's Wooden House" which features 111 unique wall decorations
"Hedgemaze" floor type now spawns with 1 of 3 daytimes - day, night, or redsky.
All floors now have "Large Furniture" objects, which are either bookshelves or cabinets. Cabinets can be opened by walking up to them. They contain either talismans or coins.
"Hedgemaze" and "Villa" floor types can spawn fountains. Rare in Hedgemaze floor type, VERY rare in Villa floor type.
Floor generation has been slightly altered for better generation.
New room types can spawn in "Villa" floor type.
Many small "clutter" physics props removed or changed, including the fishbone and food container. New props have been added, like randomly sized books and others. Colors changed on remaining props.
All floors which can spawn Large Furniture objects have a small chance to spawn a Jukebox.
MISC

2 new "alone" songs added, played on dulcimer.
Over 30 new "death tips" written, bringing the total death tips to 51.
6 new character models with unique voices added. (Although I haven't seen them spawn yet so I don't know if they work yet)
Backspace key can now be used, in addition to the ~ key, to "study" talisman effects. (I did this because someone on Steam complained that they have no ~ key. I still can't program user-rebinds, sorry, bad programmer, everything's hardcoded, I'm stupid, I know)
BUG FIXES

4k resolution no longer has glitched dialog boxes or cut off screen effects
Probably more stuff
Original post
27 Apr 2022Developer post
Experimental Branch Update 0.7.2.0.G - "Heart" Major Overhaul
0.7.2.0.G Experimental Branch HEALTH Player now has a health meter (instead of just dying after standing near enemies for too long) Player starts with 8 HP, shown in the top left of the screen as a circle with 8 pieces. The health meter shows only when taking damage, or when look
0.7.2.0.G
Experimental Branch
HEALTH

Player now has a health meter (instead of just dying after standing near enemies for too long)
Player starts with 8 HP, shown in the top left of the screen as a circle with 8 pieces. The health meter shows only when taking damage, or when looking at inventory by pressing TAB. When this meter reaches zero, the player will die.
A new death animation occurs when player is dead, where the player collapses and is attacked one last time by a screaming spirit.
When player is at low HP, they will hallucinate.
At 3HP and lower the player will have a heavier head sway, and dirt effects will appear on the screen. They will also run slightly slower at 4HP and below but will actually run faster than normal at 1HP due to an adrenaline rush.
Blessed rooms (talisman rooms) slowly heal player to max health by the player standing in them.
New Heart Talisman can also restore health (see "Talismans" section of changelog)
Zombies now strike the player, instead of killing with aura damage
When spirits damage the player, new graphics are displayed
Enemy attack/damage speed is determined by "Difficulty" setting from the main menu
Girlfriend's HP has been dropped from 30 to 7.
Girlfriend's HP can be restored by talisman rooms, as well as Heart Talisman's secondary ability.
TALISMANS

New Heart Talisman, which can either heal the player for 3HP immediately (primary), or create an aurea which heals over time with a small area-of-effect (secondary) which can heal both the player and the girlfriend.
Currently the Object Talisman cannot spawn Heart Talismans.
COINS

Coins have been added to the game, a rare collectible item which will be used for many optional but helpful features.
Coins can be collected from NPCs and quests, and can also be collected by spirits defeated by the Dispel Talisman's secondary ability "Talisman Slap". Object Talismans can also drop coins.
Coins are dropped or thrown by pressing the V key. Short press for drop, long press for throw, hold for very long throw. There are 3 levels of throwing power for coins. They can be picked back up after thrown.
If a coin is dropped in the black fog which spawns angered spirits (e.g. rooms with burning candles), the spawner is disabled, allowing the player to pass through. However, if the coin is picked back up, the spawner will become active again, triggering an angered spirit spawn.
More functionality for coins to follow in coming updates including secret coin-unlocked rooms, jukeboxes, bartering with NPCs, and more.
NPCs & QUESTS

All human NPCs now have random unique AI-generated voices. There are 37 voices total, and are assigned to NPCs randomly based on gender and age of the NPC's sprite.
Questgivers will have more to say to you after the quest is completed
Quests have new graphics which appear when quest is accepted
Quest items are now specifically stated by name when picked up (e.g. "GOT STUFFED CAMEL") instead of "FOUND IT"
OBJECTS

New small objects have been added, which add to the clutter of levels. Yes, they can be spawned with the Object Talisman
Objects can now be moved around by the player by left clicking on them
Angered spirits now hurl objects through the air when close to them, sometimes creating a whirlwind of props
Quest items are now specifically stated by name when picked up (e.g. "GOT STUFFED CAMEL") instead of "FOUND IT"
MAIN MENU & OPTIONS

Main menu has been completely revamped and remade from scratch
Player can now adjust mouse sensitivity ;0
Player can cycle between 4 levels of graphics quality, in the hopes of reducing lag for players experiencing it
Intro can now be turned off before having completed it
Level generator on main menu now fully random (spawns the same exact levels as in-game), and cycles between random levels and songs as the player sits on the main menu for maximum comfy. It also has failsafes in place so the camera doesn't infinitely fly into space.
New graphic showing controls on the main menu, as well as when the player presses the zero key in-game
Placeholder for upcoming "Tutorial" mode on main menu
MISC

hiddenVisions intro images changed to have a total of 484 variations
Map now has a "paper" overlay effect
Every floor now has a name which appears in the lower left after taking a few steps into the floor. There are 988 unique floor names.
Dialogue has a black background to make reading easier.
New level type "Temple1" was included in this update by accident but I'll leave it.
New room type "room8" on some floor types, which is a square hallway which sometimes has a room in the middle of it, and sometimes spawns a wall.
Pretty sure that's everything but I bet it's not - been chiseling away at this and losing sleep over it for the past couple of weeks, very excited to be sharing this build publicly.
Once I am sure health/difficulty is balanced, I will be pushing to the main branch and rolling this out as a major update, with bugfixes and additional content.
If you want to play this update and don't know how to switch to the experimental branch, you can follow this guide.
Feel free to report any bugs, ideas, feedback, screenshots, etc on the Steam discussion page. You can also feel free to join the hiddenVisions discord, or reach out to me on Twitter.
Thanks for playing and enjoying, I hope this update makes you pupe your whole pant.
So long for now.
-hV
Original post
26 Dec 2021Developer post
0.7.1.9 "CURSES AND COMPANIONS" Update
0.7.1.9 Patch Notes LEVELS - All levels now have more dynamic lights SPIRITS - 24 new spirit graphical sprites added - Spirits can now interact with lights. These interactions include turning lights on and off, popping light bulbs, and surging power (causes light to be much brigh
20 Dec 2021Developer post
0.7.1.8 "Sorry Cody, Yolo" Update
0.7.1.8 Patch Notes LEVELS - 3 new floor types added, "luxury trailer", "velvet emporer", and "locker halls" - All floor types now have an equal chance of generating (they used to have weighted odds for certain rooms) - If a "dead end floor" is generated, instead of a travel tali
28 Oct 2021Developer post
0.7.1.7 Pre-hallo
When tilde (~) key is pressed while holding a talisman, talisman info will be displayed. New voices added to spirits Secret stuff added
When tilde (~) key is pressed while holding a talisman, talisman info will be displayed.
New voices added to spirits
Secret stuff added
Original post
10 Oct 2021Developer post
Released Patch 0.7.1.7 - "BLACK SNOW" Update
Patch 0.7.1.7 Changelog Less scary spirit models removed. 21 new spirit models added. Pain effects (e.g. "glitching") look cooler and there are more types. Bright spirits leave a distortion on the player's vision and a filter on all sound for a short time. Many spirits jerk their
Patch 0.7.1.7 Changelog

Less scary spirit models removed. 21 new spirit models added.
Pain effects (e.g. "glitching") look cooler and there are more types.
Bright spirits leave a distortion on the player's vision and a filter on all sound for a short time.
Many spirits jerk their bodies around.
Spirits emit a violent dust.
Some sounds removed.
Some various bugfixes.
Original post
27 Sep 2021Developer post
Released Patch 0.7.1.6 - "Rooms And Beacons" update
Patch 0.7.1.6 Changelog Mac version patched up to date New rooms added to "villa" type and "cursed home under construction" type maps. Curtains and cloths with cloth physics have been added to various areas. Grass added to hedgemaze areas. Hanging talismans added to talisman room
Patch 0.7.1.6 Changelog

Mac version patched up to date
New rooms added to "villa" type and "cursed home under construction" type maps.
Curtains and cloths with cloth physics have been added to various areas.
Grass added to hedgemaze areas.
Hanging talismans added to talisman rooms.
Beacon Talisman (L Talisman) new behavior F - Drop talisman on ground. Produces light and sounds which attract spirits to the talisman. E - Illuminate area around player, but attract spirits to player every 20 seconds. Light has been made brighter. Attracts new type of light spirit.
New type of spirit New type of light-producing spirit that explores, attacks, or escapes randomly. Spawned by random hauntings, or by L talisman.
Original post
26 Sep 2021Developer post
0715d Elevator & Item Talisman Fix
Fixed bug where elevator would not bring player to next floor Fixed bug where object talisman's secondary ability would become interrupted if the talisman is dropped When "impossible" levels happen on "villa-type" floors, the N talisman will appear in a more random place.
Fixed bug where elevator would not bring player to next floor
Fixed bug where object talisman's secondary ability would become interrupted if the talisman is dropped
When "impossible" levels happen on "villa-type" floors, the N talisman will appear in a more random place.
Original post
25 Sep 2021Developer post
0715c Softlock Fix
Fixed a bug where the esc key was causing the mouse to lock up.
23 Sep 2021Developer post
9/23/2021 Patch 0.7.1.5b
Fixed on PC version: Dropped mouse sensitivity by 33% Made object talisman never drop a blank object Fixed "freeze" glitch when trying to open map and pause at the same time Made intro slightly less confusing Mac fixes coming by end of week
Fixed on PC version:

Dropped mouse sensitivity by 33%
Made object talisman never drop a blank object
Fixed "freeze" glitch when trying to open map and pause at the same time
Made intro slightly less confusing
Mac fixes coming by end of week
Original post
20 Sep 2021Developer post
ToruTaru Early Access coming this Tuesday !!
Early Access Release Excited to announce that the randomly generated horror game ToruTaru will be released for early access on Steam Tuesday. We have a giveaway of 3 copies going on on twitter, the winners will be announced monday evening. Click here to check our twitter, there's
Early Access Release
Excited to announce that the randomly generated horror game ToruTaru will be released for early access on Steam Tuesday.
We have a giveaway of 3 copies going on on twitter, the winners will be announced monday evening.
Click here to check our twitter, there's a tweet you can retweet to enter the giveaway.
The changelog between the old free version and this version would be insane to write in detail, but we may write one soon.
Looking forward to this release. If Steam permits us, we will also be participating in the Halloween Sale event on Steam. Will keep you updated.
What is ToruTaru?

ToruTaru is an infinite randomly generated haunted mansion which takes place in the belly of a demon!
Every playthrough is completely randomized - no two playthroughs are alike!
Fend off dozens of randomized spirits using talismans and get to the highest floor you can!
Indie horror experience which will always surprise and terrorize you!
Why early access?

The game's foundation is fully fleshed out and playable
We are excited to bring this terrifying experience to you as soon as possible
Over time the story will become concluded
Levels, talismans, enemies, and other content will be added
Enjoy and be afraid!
- hiddenvisions
Original post