Dear all, after having it on my todo list for the past years, I finally finished to compile my production notes into a comprehensive guide through A Room Beyond. On the one hand this guide is a plain walk through which tells you what to do to progress through the game, how to get
Dear all,
after having it on my todo list for the past years, I finally finished to compile my production notes into a comprehensive guide through A Room Beyond.
On the one hand this guide is a plain walk through which tells you what to do to progress through the game, how to get all achievements and which decision trees are available. On the other hand the guide is enriched with a lot of conceptual background info which explains my ideas, symbols and narrative interweaving.
So, some time may have passed since you completed the game. If you want to go for a second round, maybe take a look at the guide and discover some more details about the game.
During gamescom I found more things to improve, so I made this patch. CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.2 New Content & Design Changes Added small adjustments and options relevant only for showcasing the game at expos. Bug Fixes The item combination tutorial slide no longer collides with
During gamescom I found more things to improve, so I made this patch.
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.2New Content & Design Changes
Added small adjustments and options relevant only for showcasing the game at expos.
Bug Fixes
The item combination tutorial slide no longer collides with the spoken text bubble which happened when the rubber band was picked after the stick is already in inventory.
There was still a bug that allowed to pick a chestnut a second time under some conditions.
If a chestnut was collected earlier and remained in inventory, it is automatically dropped in episodes 2 or 3 now.
Known Bugs
I saw only once ever that the woman’s body is not rendered at the beginning of Episode 2. I have no idea why, when, how often and under which conditions this might happen.
Sometimes particle effects are missing which is still a total mystery, but just a minor decorative issue.
During gamescom I found more things to improve, so I made this patch. CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.2 New Content & Design Changes Added small adjustments and options relevant only for showcasing the game at expos. Bug Fixes The item combination tutorial slide no longer collides with
During gamescom I found more things to improve, so I made this patch.
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.2New Content & Design Changes
Added small adjustments and options relevant only for showcasing the game at expos.
Bug Fixes
The item combination tutorial slide no longer collides with the spoken text bubble which happened when the rubber band was picked after the stick is already in inventory.
There was still a bug that allowed to pick a chestnut a second time under some conditions.
If a chestnut was collected earlier and remained in inventory, it is automatically dropped in episodes 2 or 3 now.
Known Bugs
I saw only once ever that the woman’s body is not rendered at the beginning of Episode 2. I have no idea why, when, how often and under which conditions this might happen.
Sometimes particle effects are missing which is still a total mystery, but just a minor decorative issue.
Just a minor update that fixes issues found since the final release. Thanks again to everyone reporting these bugs. :) CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.1 New Content & Design Changes Design of kitchen puzzle in Episode 5 was slightly adjusted to give a better hint on how to solve it. Bu
Just a minor update that fixes issues found since the final release. Thanks again to everyone reporting these bugs. :)
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.1New Content & Design Changes
Design of kitchen puzzle in Episode 5 was slightly adjusted to give a better hint on how to solve it.
Bug Fixes
Fixed two spelling mistakes in English localization.
Achievement Locksmith is now properly gained in basement ending.
Just a minor update that fixes issues found since the final release. Thanks again to everyone reporting these bugs. :) CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.1 New Content & Design Changes Design of kitchen puzzle in Episode 5 was slightly adjusted to give a better hint on how to solve it. Bu
Just a minor update that fixes issues found since the final release. Thanks again to everyone reporting these bugs. :)
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.1New Content & Design Changes
Design of kitchen puzzle in Episode 5 was slightly adjusted to give a better hint on how to solve it.
Bug Fixes
Fixed two spelling mistakes in English localization.
Achievement Locksmith is now properly gained in basement ending.
Dear adventurers, today we celebrate the release of Version 5.0 plus moving from Early Access into Release! Episode 5: The Wolf and the Lamb ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents includin
Dear adventurers,
today we celebrate the release of Version 5.0 plus moving from Early Access into Release!
Episode 5: The Wolf and the Lamb
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents including the final ending.
Direct continuation of Episode 4, exiting the mirror portal.
Explore a brand new area: The (haunted) House on the Hill!
Episode 5 adds more than 60 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Transcendent Night Vision!
17 new achievements to gain!
10 possible endings depending on events and decisions across all 5 episodes.
Localization now also includes Spanish
See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don't miss the new trailer for the whole game:
How to get Episode 5
Update to Episode 5 is free for everyone who already purchased the game! If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get all Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in one pack.
How to play Episode 5
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 5 continues Episode 4 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 5. You have to finish Episode 4 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
Best, -- René
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of
Episode 5: "The Wolf and the Lamb"
This also closes the main content development and turns the project status from Early Access into Release. All story based contents is implemented now.
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents including the final ending.
Direct continuation of Episode 4, exiting the mirror portal.
Explore a brand new area: The house on the Hill!
Episode 5 adds more than 60 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Transcendent Night Vision!
17 new achievements to gain!
10 possible endings depending on events and decisions across all 5 episodes.
Localization now also includes Spanish
Optimizations & Adjustments
Additionally to pressing CTRL on keyboard, Sparkle Hints now also appear while holding the secondary mouse button.
Wallpaper in intro is in teal color now for consistency.
Demo ends with a pitch video now.
Collectible text overlay now contains a small icon of the corresponding achievement.
Pixelfont was extended with spanish characters, German now contains proper character for 'ß'.
EULA/Privacy buttons' cursor was changed to website link cursor.
Manual is available as PDF document now, included in Steam Store page.
Bug Fixes
Cursor no longer freezes when leaving a running game through metamenu/quit button.
When exiting a zoom hotspot the visibility states of the player's meshes (weapons, lanterns) now recover correctly/more reliable.
Dear adventurers, today we celebrate the release of Version 5.0 plus moving from Early Access into Release! Episode 5: The Wolf and the Lamb ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents includin
Dear adventurers,
today we celebrate the release of Version 5.0 plus moving from Early Access into Release!
Episode 5: The Wolf and the Lamb
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents including the final ending.
Direct continuation of Episode 4, exiting the mirror portal.
Explore a brand new area: The (haunted) House on the Hill!
Episode 5 adds more than 60 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Transcendent Night Vision!
17 new achievements to gain!
10 possible endings depending on events and decisions across all 5 episodes.
Localization now also includes Spanish
See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don't miss the new trailer for the whole game:
How to get Episode 5
Update to Episode 5 is free for everyone who already purchased the game! If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get all Episodes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 in one pack.
How to play Episode 5
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 5 continues Episode 4 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 5. You have to finish Episode 4 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
Best, -- René
CHANGELOG for PATCH 5.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of
Episode 5: "The Wolf and the Lamb"
This also closes the main content development and turns the project status from Early Access into Release. All story based contents is implemented now.
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents including the final ending.
Direct continuation of Episode 4, exiting the mirror portal.
Explore a brand new area: The house on the Hill!
Episode 5 adds more than 60 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Transcendent Night Vision!
17 new achievements to gain!
10 possible endings depending on events and decisions across all 5 episodes.
Localization now also includes Spanish
Optimizations & Adjustments
Additionally to pressing CTRL on keyboard, Sparkle Hints now also appear while holding the secondary mouse button.
Wallpaper in intro is in teal color now for consistency.
Demo ends with a pitch video now.
Collectible text overlay now contains a small icon of the corresponding achievement.
Pixelfont was extended with spanish characters, German now contains proper character for 'ß'.
EULA/Privacy buttons' cursor was changed to website link cursor.
Manual is available as PDF document now, included in Steam Store page.
Bug Fixes
Cursor no longer freezes when leaving a running game through metamenu/quit button.
When exiting a zoom hotspot the visibility states of the player's meshes (weapons, lanterns) now recover correctly/more reliable.
Dear followers, today we celebrate the release of Version 4.0! Episode 4: The Cat in the Mirror … is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale i
Dear followers,
today we celebrate the release of Version 4.0!
Episode 4: The Cat in the Mirror
… is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale in episode 5.
Direct continuation of Episode 3, starting at the cave.
Explore a brand new area: The Swamp!
Episode 4 adds 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Portable Lightsources and Magic Mirrors!
Do you like popping bubble wrap? You will love new Mushroom Hunt!
7 new achievements to gain!
And new improvements that enhance all episodes (implemented from your feedback!):
Get better guidance with exit hints! Blue sparks show screen exits while CTRL key is pressed.
Double click on grounds to make the character run!
Automatically walk to hotspots: When clicking on a hotspot that is too far away, the character will walk to the hotspot and trigger it when reached.
See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don’t miss the brand new trailer for Episode 4
How to get Episode 4
Update to Episode 4 is free for everyone who already purchased the game! If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get Episodes 1, 2, 3 and 4 immediately (plus episode 5 when it releases in summer 2017).
How to play Episode 4
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 4 continues Episode 3 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 4. You have to finish Episode 3 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
This release was tested to be stable in common. However if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. 🙂
Best, — René
CHANGELOG for PATCH 4.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of Episode 4: "The Cat in the Mirror"
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale in episode 5.
Direct continuation of Episode 3, starting at the cave.
Explore a brand new area: The Swamp!
Episode 4 adds 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Portable Lightsources and Magic Mirrors!
Do you like popping bubble wrap? You will love new Mushroom Hunt!
7 new achievements to gain!
Get better guidance with exit hints! Blue sparks show screen exits while CTRL key is pressed.
Double click on grounds to make the character run! (‘Running’ may be unavailable for some regions like very small rooms or while diving.)
Automatically walk to hotspots: When clicking on a hotspot that is too far away, the character will walk to the hotspot and trigger it when reached.
Optimizations & Adjustments
A setting for exit hints was added to Game Settings.
Footstep sound changes according to ground now also in the cave at the end of Episode 3.
Footsteps in general are now faded when the player starts or stops walking.
It is now possible to gain Episode 2’s achievement Ghost Hunter later in the game, i.e. when spiders are killed on the beach in Episode 3.
"Explore the environment" tutorial slide is now shown for a longer time span in Episode 1.
Rendering of hotspot hints was increased in general for better perception. Sparks ignore soft particle settings now which makes them clearly visible all time. Also particles’ sizes adjust to camera distance now to ensure a property sizing for all scenes.
Motion quality of some player animations like walk and talk were slightly improved.
Sparkle Hints are darker now for some distant hotspots to improve spatial perception.
Sparkle Hints sound was redesigned/adjusted as feedback was given that the previous sound’s pitch was too high and therefore perceived unpleasant. A direct comparison of old and new sound can be found in this video.
All Quality levels for rendering have shadow rendering activated now as this is essentially required by the contents of Episode 4.
Quality-Dropdown in Launcher Dialog is no longer disabled on Windows.
In Episode 1 there is now an additional Tutorial text telling that some inventory items can be combined with each other.
Bug Fixes
In Episode 2 the player character walks properly around the cocoon now, no longer intersecting it.
Recommended is selected as default rendering quality level now. It was mistakenly set to Minimum before.
Some obsolete empty pointers were cleaned up in all episodes.
Capsules in Episode Tree do reflect the current status correctly. Previously there was a wrong fade-in of Episode 2 capsule each time the screen was seen.
Various other small fixes and improvements.
Special thanks to Third Comma Games for pointing out some bugs and improvement options!
Dear followers, today we celebrate the release of Version 4.0! Episode 4: The Cat in the Mirror … is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale i
Dear followers,
today we celebrate the release of Version 4.0!
Episode 4: The Cat in the Mirror
… is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale in episode 5.
Direct continuation of Episode 3, starting at the cave.
Explore a brand new area: The Swamp!
Episode 4 adds 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Portable Lightsources and Magic Mirrors!
Do you like popping bubble wrap? You will love new Mushroom Hunt!
7 new achievements to gain!
And new improvements that enhance all episodes (implemented from your feedback!):
Get better guidance with exit hints! Blue sparks show screen exits while CTRL key is pressed.
Double click on grounds to make the character run!
Automatically walk to hotspots: When clicking on a hotspot that is too far away, the character will walk to the hotspot and trigger it when reached.
See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don’t miss the brand new trailer for Episode 4
How to get Episode 4
Update to Episode 4 is free for everyone who already purchased the game! If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get Episodes 1, 2, 3 and 4 immediately (plus episode 5 when it releases in summer 2017).
How to play Episode 4
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 4 continues Episode 3 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 4. You have to finish Episode 3 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
This release was tested to be stable in common. However if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. 🙂
Best, — René
CHANGELOG for PATCH 4.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of Episode 4: "The Cat in the Mirror"
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline with completely new contents that guides storyline straight towards the big finale in episode 5.
Direct continuation of Episode 3, starting at the cave.
Explore a brand new area: The Swamp!
Episode 4 adds 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play elements Portable Lightsources and Magic Mirrors!
Do you like popping bubble wrap? You will love new Mushroom Hunt!
7 new achievements to gain!
Get better guidance with exit hints! Blue sparks show screen exits while CTRL key is pressed.
Double click on grounds to make the character run! (‘Running’ may be unavailable for some regions like very small rooms or while diving.)
Automatically walk to hotspots: When clicking on a hotspot that is too far away, the character will walk to the hotspot and trigger it when reached.
Optimizations & Adjustments
A setting for exit hints was added to Game Settings.
Footstep sound changes according to ground now also in the cave at the end of Episode 3.
Footsteps in general are now faded when the player starts or stops walking.
It is now possible to gain Episode 2’s achievement Ghost Hunter later in the game, i.e. when spiders are killed on the beach in Episode 3.
"Explore the environment" tutorial slide is now shown for a longer time span in Episode 1.
Rendering of hotspot hints was increased in general for better perception. Sparks ignore soft particle settings now which makes them clearly visible all time. Also particles’ sizes adjust to camera distance now to ensure a property sizing for all scenes.
Motion quality of some player animations like walk and talk were slightly improved.
Sparkle Hints are darker now for some distant hotspots to improve spatial perception.
Sparkle Hints sound was redesigned/adjusted as feedback was given that the previous sound’s pitch was too high and therefore perceived unpleasant. A direct comparison of old and new sound can be found in this video.
All Quality levels for rendering have shadow rendering activated now as this is essentially required by the contents of Episode 4.
Quality-Dropdown in Launcher Dialog is no longer disabled on Windows.
In Episode 1 there is now an additional Tutorial text telling that some inventory items can be combined with each other.
Bug Fixes
In Episode 2 the player character walks properly around the cocoon now, no longer intersecting it.
Recommended is selected as default rendering quality level now. It was mistakenly set to Minimum before.
Some obsolete empty pointers were cleaned up in all episodes.
Capsules in Episode Tree do reflect the current status correctly. Previously there was a wrong fade-in of Episode 2 capsule each time the screen was seen.
Various other small fixes and improvements.
Special thanks to Third Comma Games for pointing out some bugs and improvement options!
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 3.0! Episode 3: The Voice from the Deep ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magic
Hi everyone,
I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 3.0!
Episode 3: The Voice from the Deep
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magical character.
Direct continuation of Episode 2 starting at the monastery.
Introduction of the brand new area Twilight Atoll and the Sunken Labyrinth.
Episode 3 contains 80 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play modes Swim & Dive allow the exploration of elsewise unreachable areas.
Reveal what is hidden in the island’s guts with new game play mode Treasure Hunt!
Weather changes cause variations in visual impressions and interaction options!
Interact with various animals and creatures from the island!
Meet our episode guest star: Cthulhu!
7 new optional achievements to gain!
Improved translations (esp. French).
...and much more. See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Update to Episode 3 is free for everyone who already purchased the game. If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get Episodes 1, 2 and 3 immediately (plus episodes 4 and 5 in 2017).
How to play Episode 3
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 3 continues Episode 2 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 3. You have to finish Episode 2 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
This release was tested to be stable in common. However we are still in Early Access and if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. :)
Best, -- René
CHANGE LOG for PATCH 3.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of Episode 3: “The Voice from the Deep”
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magical character.
Direct continuation of Episode 2 starting at the monastery.
Introduction of the brand new area Twilight Atoll and the Sunken Labyrinth.
Episode 3 adds 80 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play modes Swim & Dive allow the exploration of elsewise unreachable areas.
Reveal what is hidden in the island's guts with new game play mode Treasure Hunt!
Weather changes cause variations in visual impressions and interaction options!
Interact with various animals and creatures from the island!
Meet our episode guest star: Cthulhu!
7 new optional achievements to gain!
Optimizations & Adjustments
An episode specific header image that matches the current promo artwork style is now integrated into the startup launcher dialog.
Sound annotation texts are now limited in time for some very long sounds. A text display for a few seconds is still sufficient to know what is happening.
When moving between different grounds, i.e. grass and concrete, footsteps sounds change accordingly.
Screen fonts appear less blurry now due to changed font settings.
The status indicator GUI was generalized to allow additional icons (i.e. air status bubble) to be integrated easily.
When more items are carried in inventory than can be displayed on screen, items are arranged in rows. Players may scroll between the rows using arrow keys, mouse wheel or graphical buttons on screen. It is possible to expand all lines to full screen grid view to make drag & drop across different rows easy.
Support for special inventory items that trigger specific actions was added. This way it is possible to carry i.e. a map in inventory and view it anytime. It's also possible to pickup objects that can be deconstructed in sub-objects.
Inventory Items' appearance animation was technically improved and contains an additional color transition now.
Book & letter reading was extended to display of areal maps.
Door hotspots now support locking and the need for keys.
Added support for interactive waterline rendering and animated mesh deformation to display deformable objects.
Resolution of the Play More banner in Demo version was increased.
A soft ambient sound was added to main menu.
In Episode 2 Valerian's voice shows a dialog indicator now and the speech bubble was adjusted in position.
Icon for the dialog indicator ('thinking bubble') was improved to be prettier and more in line with the cursor designs.
Progressbar on bootscreen is purple now, active task description got brighter to improve visibility.
Developer Logo Animation on Bootscreen can now be skipped with Click, Space key or Escape key.
Revision timestamp of the language file is now included in version info page.
The game's license agreement is now replaced/covered by Steam's standard EULA.
French Localization was completely reworked and optimized for better language.
Bug Fixes
Speech bubble overlays are hidden in zoomed views now.
Whisper Voices sparkling no longer causes a null pointer exception under certain conditions.
The capping threshold for walk/stand animation synchronization was lowered.
A bug was fixed that was hiding the other savegame slots when scrolling after selecting a slot item.
Thinking bubble icon, indicating available dialogs, was optimized so that it is never rendered when the talking character is not in camera viewport.
A bug resulting in too frequent autosave slots is now fixed.
When loading a savegame where the player's health is zero the game now no longer locks.
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 3.0! Episode 3: The Voice from the Deep ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents: A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magic
Hi everyone,
I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 3.0!
Episode 3: The Voice from the Deep
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents:
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magical character.
Direct continuation of Episode 2 starting at the monastery.
Introduction of the brand new area Twilight Atoll and the Sunken Labyrinth.
Episode 3 contains 80 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play modes Swim & Dive allow the exploration of elsewise unreachable areas.
Reveal what is hidden in the island’s guts with new game play mode Treasure Hunt!
Weather changes cause variations in visual impressions and interaction options!
Interact with various animals and creatures from the island!
Meet our episode guest star: Cthulhu!
7 new optional achievements to gain!
Improved translations (esp. French).
...and much more. See below for full details on bugfixes and changes.
Update to Episode 3 is free for everyone who already purchased the game. If you only played the free demo yet, purchase a full version in the Steam store now to get Episodes 1, 2 and 3 immediately (plus episodes 4 and 5 in 2017).
How to play Episode 3
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game. As Episode 3 continues Episode 2 it is not possible to directly start in Episode 3. You have to finish Episode 2 to continue to the next chapter via the Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
This release was tested to be stable in common. However we are still in Early Access and if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. :)
Best, -- René
CHANGE LOG for PATCH 3.0General
The full version release of the game was extended with the complete contents of Episode 3: “The Voice from the Deep”
New Content & Design Changes
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents, including a brand new magical character.
Direct continuation of Episode 2 starting at the monastery.
Introduction of the brand new area Twilight Atoll and the Sunken Labyrinth.
Episode 3 adds 80 new camera perspectives/screens!
New game play modes Swim & Dive allow the exploration of elsewise unreachable areas.
Reveal what is hidden in the island's guts with new game play mode Treasure Hunt!
Weather changes cause variations in visual impressions and interaction options!
Interact with various animals and creatures from the island!
Meet our episode guest star: Cthulhu!
7 new optional achievements to gain!
Optimizations & Adjustments
An episode specific header image that matches the current promo artwork style is now integrated into the startup launcher dialog.
Sound annotation texts are now limited in time for some very long sounds. A text display for a few seconds is still sufficient to know what is happening.
When moving between different grounds, i.e. grass and concrete, footsteps sounds change accordingly.
Screen fonts appear less blurry now due to changed font settings.
The status indicator GUI was generalized to allow additional icons (i.e. air status bubble) to be integrated easily.
When more items are carried in inventory than can be displayed on screen, items are arranged in rows. Players may scroll between the rows using arrow keys, mouse wheel or graphical buttons on screen. It is possible to expand all lines to full screen grid view to make drag & drop across different rows easy.
Support for special inventory items that trigger specific actions was added. This way it is possible to carry i.e. a map in inventory and view it anytime. It's also possible to pickup objects that can be deconstructed in sub-objects.
Inventory Items' appearance animation was technically improved and contains an additional color transition now.
Book & letter reading was extended to display of areal maps.
Door hotspots now support locking and the need for keys.
Added support for interactive waterline rendering and animated mesh deformation to display deformable objects.
Resolution of the Play More banner in Demo version was increased.
A soft ambient sound was added to main menu.
In Episode 2 Valerian's voice shows a dialog indicator now and the speech bubble was adjusted in position.
Icon for the dialog indicator ('thinking bubble') was improved to be prettier and more in line with the cursor designs.
Progressbar on bootscreen is purple now, active task description got brighter to improve visibility.
Developer Logo Animation on Bootscreen can now be skipped with Click, Space key or Escape key.
Revision timestamp of the language file is now included in version info page.
The game's license agreement is now replaced/covered by Steam's standard EULA.
French Localization was completely reworked and optimized for better language.
Bug Fixes
Speech bubble overlays are hidden in zoomed views now.
Whisper Voices sparkling no longer causes a null pointer exception under certain conditions.
The capping threshold for walk/stand animation synchronization was lowered.
A bug was fixed that was hiding the other savegame slots when scrolling after selecting a slot item.
Thinking bubble icon, indicating available dialogs, was optimized so that it is never rendered when the talking character is not in camera viewport.
A bug resulting in too frequent autosave slots is now fixed.
When loading a savegame where the player's health is zero the game now no longer locks.
Bonjour France & Ciao Italia! Thanks to the great team from RuM Corp.se Localization Pro we now have full French and Italian language sets in the current release of A Room Beyond! All in-game texts, menus and dialogs for Episodes 1 and 2 are available in four languages now. ː
Bonjour France & Ciao Italia!
Thanks to the great team from RuM Corp.se Localization Pro we now have full French and Italian language sets in the current release of A Room Beyond! All in-game texts, menus and dialogs for Episodes 1 and 2 are available in four languages now. ːsteamhappyː
Additional fixes The new release also includes a couple of minor bug fixes and optimizations, check out the details below.
Best, René
Changelog for Patch 2.1General
This update integrates Italian and French language packs!
Optimizations & Adjustments
Hotspots inside the empty house now have hand cursor instead of eye which fits better to the actual action triggered.
Language was approved for some sentences in English and German localization.
Fixed a typo in the bathroom book illustration ‘Conciliatio’.
The game boot screen now shows the developer logo during loading.
Inventory Items are now sorted in the same order as they were taken. A new item is always added to the end of the list.
Mouse wheel scrolling works for Settings list as well as for SaveGames list also when the mouse pointer is over the list itself. Previously it only worked when the pointer was over a scrollbar. Also scrolling speed was fine-tuned and adjusted for a better interaction experience.
Cursor icon for the bathroom boiler was adjusted. Cursor now also changes depending on the current interaction possibilities.
The grayish middle pixel between each pair of eyes below the bed in opening sequence was fixed to pure black.
Implementation for episodes retrospect was reworked in preparation for future episodes. Starting with episode 3 a choice will be offered to also see the ‘what happened before’ slideshows of the earlier episodes, not only the immediate previous one.
Layout of items in Settings page was adjusted for better support of text length variation depending on different languages.
Language picker listbox now correctly adjusts its width to variable screen aspect ratios.
The first slide of the item Interaction Tutorial in the cave has changed in vertical position to create a visible jump. This helps to improve recognition of the second step in the tutorial. Previously some players did not recognize that the slide had changed.
Title credits and full game credits include the localization team now.
Bug Fixes
Screenshots are now triggered with Shift+F12 to avoid collision with Steam’s screenshot function (F12).
Screenshots do no longer include the ‘screenshot was made’ message.
Risk of cut-off text in status messages (game was saved, etc.) was reduced by adjusting the text rendering to character cut-off instead of word wrap.
Barbara no longer intersects the church bank models in praying room, but walks properly around them.
Bonjour France & Ciao Italia! Thanks to the great team from RuM Corp.se Localization Pro we now have full French and Italian language sets in the current release of A Room Beyond! All in-game texts, menus and dialogs for Episodes 1 and 2 are available in four languages now. ː
Bonjour France & Ciao Italia!
Thanks to the great team from RuM Corp.se Localization Pro we now have full French and Italian language sets in the current release of A Room Beyond! All in-game texts, menus and dialogs for Episodes 1 and 2 are available in four languages now. ːsteamhappyː
Additional fixes The new release also includes a couple of minor bug fixes and optimizations, check out the details below.
Best, René
Changelog for Patch 2.1General
This update integrates Italian and French language packs!
Optimizations & Adjustments
Hotspots inside the empty house now have hand cursor instead of eye which fits better to the actual action triggered.
Language was approved for some sentences in English and German localization.
Fixed a typo in the bathroom book illustration ‘Conciliatio’.
The game boot screen now shows the developer logo during loading.
Inventory Items are now sorted in the same order as they were taken. A new item is always added to the end of the list.
Mouse wheel scrolling works for Settings list as well as for SaveGames list also when the mouse pointer is over the list itself. Previously it only worked when the pointer was over a scrollbar. Also scrolling speed was fine-tuned and adjusted for a better interaction experience.
Cursor icon for the bathroom boiler was adjusted. Cursor now also changes depending on the current interaction possibilities.
The grayish middle pixel between each pair of eyes below the bed in opening sequence was fixed to pure black.
Implementation for episodes retrospect was reworked in preparation for future episodes. Starting with episode 3 a choice will be offered to also see the ‘what happened before’ slideshows of the earlier episodes, not only the immediate previous one.
Layout of items in Settings page was adjusted for better support of text length variation depending on different languages.
Language picker listbox now correctly adjusts its width to variable screen aspect ratios.
The first slide of the item Interaction Tutorial in the cave has changed in vertical position to create a visible jump. This helps to improve recognition of the second step in the tutorial. Previously some players did not recognize that the slide had changed.
Title credits and full game credits include the localization team now.
Bug Fixes
Screenshots are now triggered with Shift+F12 to avoid collision with Steam’s screenshot function (F12).
Screenshots do no longer include the ‘screenshot was made’ message.
Risk of cut-off text in status messages (game was saved, etc.) was reduced by adjusting the text rendering to character cut-off instead of word wrap.
Barbara no longer intersects the church bank models in praying room, but walks properly around them.
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 2.0! Episode 2: An unusual Profession ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents exclusively available in the full version: A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely n
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 2.0!
Episode 2: An unusual Profession
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents exclusively available in the full version:
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents.
Direct continuation of Episode 1 starting inside the eremites' house.
Expansion of the wood zone into new area Village, including explorable house interiors.
Introduction of the brand new area monastery, the biggest place in this episode, including 7 puzzle filled rooms to explore.
Episode 2 contains 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
Extended NPC interaction allows cooperation game play with friendly characters and combat against demonic evocations!
Meet over 50 critters and characters with four different creature types and one new complex personality.
Support of story branching through non-linear options, resulting from direct and indirect player decisions.
Interactive dialog trees with selectable topics deepen the storyline and give hints for puzzle solving.
Various new puzzles with individual types of interaction.
7 new optional achievements to gain.
A new exclusive soundtrack by Spencer Bambrick increases the game's atmosphere.
Michelle Lewis significantly improved English language of the game. Also check out her concept art design portfolio!
...and much more. See below (or website) for more details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don't miss the brand new teaser trailer for Episode 2 here in the product description or on YouTube.
How to play Episode 2
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game.
As Episode 2 continues Episode 1 it is not possible to directly start in 2. You have to finish Episode 1 to continue to the next chapter via the new Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
There is no new contents (only general bugfixes) in the demo, Episode 2 content is exclusively included in the purchasable full version.
This release was tested to be stable in common. However if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. ːsteamhappyː
Best, -- René
CHANGE LOG for PATCH 2.0General
The full version release of the game contains the complete contents of Episode 2: “An unusual Profession”
General optimization and fixes apply to all episodes and may also be included in the free Episode 1 demo release.
New Content & Design Changes
Fighting adds a complete new gameplay element to the game. At some story points enemies appear. It is possible to fight these enemies with different weapons and strategies. Enemies’ attack and defense actions become stronger in proportion to player’s progress.
Attacks by enemies or contact with hazards now lower the main character’s health. When health is zero the character dies and the game is over.
NPCs are able to fight for or against the player.
Gameplay now supports flexible dialogs. For some characters players can choose various topics to talk about.
End of Episodes screen was completely reworked for a much more appealing look. Each episode is now represented by a node in a tree. Labels and icons show the states of the episodes, locked, unlocked/playable, completed, etc. For the demo there is also a new teaser panel that links to the shop.
End of Episodes banner were removed from the full version. In demo version they were adjusted to work as simple links to the online shop for purchasing the full version.
A new setting can be used to switch off optional background music.
A visual interface for reading books and letters was added.
Seven new achievements are included in Episode 2. For Episode 1 a new achievement is gained when completing the episode.
Episode 2 includes a soundtrack produced exclusively for the game by Spencer Bambrick.
Optimizations & Adjustments
Speech bubble icons floating over the speaker’s head now have a darker border for a more appealing look.
Texts on Credits page got some improved formatting and are rendered now in Arial font for easy reading. Design of page selection buttons was adjusted to look more like actual tab controls.
Tutorial slides system was technically improved. Additionally there is a new tutorial mode that is offering optional help in a info Button.
Design of text slide confirmation cursor was adjusted as players often missed that they have to close any text slide before proceeding.
Color of audio annotation text was adjusted to improve contrast between text and background.
Settings contain now options to limit the frame rate or to enable VSync.
Links that open a website are now indicated with a new ‘web cursor’.
Game Title at boot screen is now in high resolution.
Opening credits shaders were reset to the legacy shader model which draws the good brilliant colors from the first releases again.
Round buttons (MetaMenu, Health, Tutorial, …) were adjusted graphically to have a more consistent shape.
Text that is ‘spoken’ by any virtual character in the scene is now presented in a capsule having the best fit flag. This should decrease the risk of text cut-offs in different languages.
As complete auto save support for every camera continued to cause lots of trouble, it is limited to selected backup points now.
Bug Fixes
The Whisper Voices Tutorial slide that was missing in 1.10. It is now included again.
When the same sound clip is about to play multiple times at once, the game software now takes care that only one sound instance is played. This avoids very loud sounds resulting from adding up volumes in some circumstances.
The eye pointer is now properly centered at the mouse cursor’s hotspot.
Text labels in savegames dialogs now masks text that is too long by the available screen space. In previous versions long text was cut by word/spaces which caused an unnecessarily big loss of visible information.
Bottom ornament in main menu is no longer grayed when social network is inactive, but stays in clear white color.
A bug in startup of cutscenes was fixed. As side effect the mouse cursor now properly hides during the intro as intended.
The end of opening credits actions are played only once now. A minor bug before triggered the same script multiple times under some conditions.
When the game window is maximized on Mac using the window’s green title bar button, the game should stay playable now and no longer loose inventory display. However it is recommended to change the game resolution in the startup window to get a proper fullscreen rendering.
Cliff fog in Episode 1 now appears also when loaded from savegame.
In savegame dialog a bug was fixed that allowed to only delete the first item in the list properly.
Anchoring of the delete button was fixed in savegame dialog.
Returning from in-game to the main menu is now less error-prone. By returning into interactive mode for a very short time during fadeout there was a high risk for data interferences before.
Minor fixes in language and translation. English localization dictionary was proof read by a native speaker.
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 2.0! Episode 2: An unusual Profession ... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents exclusively available in the full version: A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely n
Hi everyone, I am very happy to finally present the release of Version 2.0!
Episode 2: An unusual Profession
... is now live on Steam and contains a big pack of new contents exclusively available in the full version:
A new chapter extends the storyline and introduces completely new contents.
Direct continuation of Episode 1 starting inside the eremites' house.
Expansion of the wood zone into new area Village, including explorable house interiors.
Introduction of the brand new area monastery, the biggest place in this episode, including 7 puzzle filled rooms to explore.
Episode 2 contains 56 new camera perspectives/screens!
Extended NPC interaction allows cooperation game play with friendly characters and combat against demonic evocations!
Meet over 50 critters and characters with four different creature types and one new complex personality.
Support of story branching through non-linear options, resulting from direct and indirect player decisions.
Interactive dialog trees with selectable topics deepen the storyline and give hints for puzzle solving.
Various new puzzles with individual types of interaction.
7 new optional achievements to gain.
A new exclusive soundtrack by Spencer Bambrick increases the game's atmosphere.
Michelle Lewis significantly improved English language of the game. Also check out her concept art design portfolio!
...and much more. See below (or website) for more details on bugfixes and changes.
Also don't miss the brand new teaser trailer for Episode 2 here in the product description or on YouTube.
How to play Episode 2
Open Steam and let the client update your game installation. Start A Room Beyond and continue a saved game.
As Episode 2 continues Episode 1 it is not possible to directly start in 2. You have to finish Episode 1 to continue to the next chapter via the new Episode tree shown at the end of each episode:
There is no new contents (only general bugfixes) in the demo, Episode 2 content is exclusively included in the purchasable full version.
This release was tested to be stable in common. However if you find a bug, let me know so I can fix it. ːsteamhappyː
Best, -- René
CHANGE LOG for PATCH 2.0General
The full version release of the game contains the complete contents of Episode 2: “An unusual Profession”
General optimization and fixes apply to all episodes and may also be included in the free Episode 1 demo release.
New Content & Design Changes
Fighting adds a complete new gameplay element to the game. At some story points enemies appear. It is possible to fight these enemies with different weapons and strategies. Enemies’ attack and defense actions become stronger in proportion to player’s progress.
Attacks by enemies or contact with hazards now lower the main character’s health. When health is zero the character dies and the game is over.
NPCs are able to fight for or against the player.
Gameplay now supports flexible dialogs. For some characters players can choose various topics to talk about.
End of Episodes screen was completely reworked for a much more appealing look. Each episode is now represented by a node in a tree. Labels and icons show the states of the episodes, locked, unlocked/playable, completed, etc. For the demo there is also a new teaser panel that links to the shop.
End of Episodes banner were removed from the full version. In demo version they were adjusted to work as simple links to the online shop for purchasing the full version.
A new setting can be used to switch off optional background music.
A visual interface for reading books and letters was added.
Seven new achievements are included in Episode 2. For Episode 1 a new achievement is gained when completing the episode.
Episode 2 includes a soundtrack produced exclusively for the game by Spencer Bambrick.
Optimizations & Adjustments
Speech bubble icons floating over the speaker’s head now have a darker border for a more appealing look.
Texts on Credits page got some improved formatting and are rendered now in Arial font for easy reading. Design of page selection buttons was adjusted to look more like actual tab controls.
Tutorial slides system was technically improved. Additionally there is a new tutorial mode that is offering optional help in a info Button.
Design of text slide confirmation cursor was adjusted as players often missed that they have to close any text slide before proceeding.
Color of audio annotation text was adjusted to improve contrast between text and background.
Settings contain now options to limit the frame rate or to enable VSync.
Links that open a website are now indicated with a new ‘web cursor’.
Game Title at boot screen is now in high resolution.
Opening credits shaders were reset to the legacy shader model which draws the good brilliant colors from the first releases again.
Round buttons (MetaMenu, Health, Tutorial, …) were adjusted graphically to have a more consistent shape.
Text that is ‘spoken’ by any virtual character in the scene is now presented in a capsule having the best fit flag. This should decrease the risk of text cut-offs in different languages.
As complete auto save support for every camera continued to cause lots of trouble, it is limited to selected backup points now.
Bug Fixes
The Whisper Voices Tutorial slide that was missing in 1.10. It is now included again.
When the same sound clip is about to play multiple times at once, the game software now takes care that only one sound instance is played. This avoids very loud sounds resulting from adding up volumes in some circumstances.
The eye pointer is now properly centered at the mouse cursor’s hotspot.
Text labels in savegames dialogs now masks text that is too long by the available screen space. In previous versions long text was cut by word/spaces which caused an unnecessarily big loss of visible information.
Bottom ornament in main menu is no longer grayed when social network is inactive, but stays in clear white color.
A bug in startup of cutscenes was fixed. As side effect the mouse cursor now properly hides during the intro as intended.
The end of opening credits actions are played only once now. A minor bug before triggered the same script multiple times under some conditions.
When the game window is maximized on Mac using the window’s green title bar button, the game should stay playable now and no longer loose inventory display. However it is recommended to change the game resolution in the startup window to get a proper fullscreen rendering.
Cliff fog in Episode 1 now appears also when loaded from savegame.
In savegame dialog a bug was fixed that allowed to only delete the first item in the list properly.
Anchoring of the delete button was fixed in savegame dialog.
Returning from in-game to the main menu is now less error-prone. By returning into interactive mode for a very short time during fadeout there was a high risk for data interferences before.
Minor fixes in language and translation. English localization dictionary was proof read by a native speaker.
I am happy to announce that production of Episode 2 has completed. The new version is currently in final testing and will be released into public soon. ːsteamhappyː
I am happy to announce that production of Episode 2 has completed. The new version is currently in final testing and will be released into public soon. ːsteamhappyː
I am happy to announce that production of Episode 2 has completed. The new version is currently in final testing and will be released into public soon. ːsteamhappyː
I am happy to announce that production of Episode 2 has completed. The new version is currently in final testing and will be released into public soon. ːsteamhappyː
Patch 1.10 is a small update implementing some user feedback. Optimizations & Adjustments The continuation chevron was removed from text panels as it seems that this suggested that this symbol has to be clicked to continue. But since the first version it was always the case t
Patch 1.10 is a small update implementing some user feedback.
Optimizations & Adjustments
The continuation chevron was removed from text panels as it seems that this suggested that this symbol has to be clicked to continue. But since the first version it was always the case that text panels can be closed by simply clicking somewhere on screen.
While the player character is walking a new cursor indicates that hotspots are not clickable while walking. Manual was updated correspondingly.
Goldwasher’s wife no longer calls herself a weak woman, but now speaks of a weak person. Although story uses intensional exaggeration of clichés which will play a role later in the game, I don’t want anyone to feel offended.
The path in the woods of Episode 1 now contains a compass stone giving hints for the exits in this screen.
Main menu contains author copyright info now.
Effect Whispering Voices was adjusted so that sparkling stars are occluded by 3D geometry which improves perception.
The game now checks if social media/steam setup is healthy and warns if any problem is found.
Patch 1.10 is a small update implementing some user feedback. Optimizations & Adjustments The continuation chevron was removed from text panels as it seems that this suggested that this symbol has to be clicked to continue. But since the first version it was always the case t
Patch 1.10 is a small update implementing some user feedback.
Optimizations & Adjustments
The continuation chevron was removed from text panels as it seems that this suggested that this symbol has to be clicked to continue. But since the first version it was always the case that text panels can be closed by simply clicking somewhere on screen.
While the player character is walking a new cursor indicates that hotspots are not clickable while walking. Manual was updated correspondingly.
Goldwasher’s wife no longer calls herself a weak woman, but now speaks of a weak person. Although story uses intensional exaggeration of clichés which will play a role later in the game, I don’t want anyone to feel offended.
The path in the woods of Episode 1 now contains a compass stone giving hints for the exits in this screen.
Main menu contains author copyright info now.
Effect Whispering Voices was adjusted so that sparkling stars are occluded by 3D geometry which improves perception.
The game now checks if social media/steam setup is healthy and warns if any problem is found.
This is a summary of the most important updates, changes and bugfixes for A Room Beyond version 1.9 which went online today. They apply to both, the free demo of Episode 1 and the Early Access full version. New Content & Design Changes A new setting is available which allows
This is a summary of the most important updates, changes and bugfixes for A Room Beyond version 1.9 which went online today. They apply to both, the free demo of Episode 1 and the Early Access full version.
New Content & Design Changes
A new setting is available which allows to disable some effects to improve framerate on low performance systems. Effects which are disabled through this setting are not essential, but only decorative.
All new effect Whispering Voices creates glitter and sparks around unexplored hotspots while hotkey Ctrl is pressed. This feature was implemented due to players’ demands and suggestions.
Main Menu now contains a link to the game manual website.
Optimizations
Subtitles are shown for audio effects which are important for storytelling now. No important detail is missed when playing without sound output therefore. Audio annotations can be turned on and off in Settings.
Episode 1 got some adjustments to avoid player confusion.
Goldwasher’s wife no longer suggests to burn the stick as this was a false hint which might be too misleading.
Graphical details were added to chestnut tree making it easier to recognize.
The forked branch in the hills stands out more clearly from the background and disappears when picked up.
Action range for some hotspots was fixed so that they are no longer accessible when they are too far away (i.e. in extreme distance).
Some characters in pixel fonts have a clearer shape now and more special characters are supported.
Episode end credits were adjusted to contain less detail and focus more on special thanks.
Render and quality settings were optimized for better performance.
The game’s icon was changed from the cat to a more colorful icon that is more related to actual gameplay.
The version of the game can now be more easily identified as the word ‘Demo’ appears behind the version number in main menu and in-game overlay menu when demo version is running.
An additional Tutorial slide introduces Whispering Voices in Episode 1.
Bug Fixes
Webupdates are restricted to unmanaged distribution channels now, as game installations by Google Play or Steam will be updated through their corresponding frameworks.
'Explore Savegame Path' is now disabled when there are no savegames.
A bug in game logic is fixed that caused a game state where the game could not be continued/finished when the chestnut is thrown away once.
