On March 13th, Ash & Rust is leaving early access and launching version 1.0!
You'll find lots of new content and plenty of improvements, including:
Over a dozen new Dungeons attached to all the major regions to explore, with their own unique progression systems.
A new campaign progression system tied to all the decisions you make along your journey, accompanied by a rehaul of the Dialogue system.
World improvements such as dozens of new enemies, waypoints for convenience, and hidden rewards.
Performance improvements, especially the implementation of "Dynamic Resolution."
UI, animation, and vfx improvements.
A Dye system to change outfit colors.
Unique minion visuals for all the different types of Summons.
Many more Hand items, such as rings and quivers.
Balance changes and fixes.
And much more!
Notably, 1.0 will not include multiplayer or its associated end-game mode. These still need lots of testing and fixes, but after launch I plan to resume Multiplayer implementation and release it as soon as I can.
Localization and voice acting will also not be included. Due to the large size and nature of the game, I did not have the budget or time to satisfactorily execute it. The game has lots of procedurally generated augment descriptions that were proving difficult to localize, as well as over a hundred dialogue interactions, massive menus and UI, achievements, and just so much text. I will definitely continue trying to rework the text systems so they can better handle localization, but mostly it will depend on if I earn enough money to afford the translations and voice-overs.
So why 1.0 now?
After pausing on development for the first half of 2025 to get through some personal upheaval, I decided to focus on and finish the single-player experience. I now feel that as such, AnR has finally reached my vision that I had for it over 7 years ago. There are layers of deep progression systems, hours of content to explore, and multiple unique ways to play through the game and push your build to the limit. And after nearly a decade of development, I'm finally ready and proud to call it done!
And, of course, that doesn't mean the end of the journey: working on AnR is still my greatest passion, and I'm eager to support and update it for many years to come. The final pillar of my original vision, "dungeoning with your friends" will be my next focus and release. I'm really excited about some innovative ideas in this regard, including a "friend finder" that will help you connect with people and potentially facilitate life-long friendships. More on that in the future.
The official launch announcement post will be coming at the end of the week, but I wanted to share this early update with you on Discord and Steam - in part because the price of AnR will be reverting back to it's original $25.00 USD at the end of the week in preparation for 1.0 launch. Thank you all so much for your support over the years and I can't wait to share 1.0 and beyond with everyone.