A labyrinth tower I see in my dreams,
Without fault, ideal - no edges or seams.
Welcome, Dreamseekers,
It’s been a while since our last post, and a lot has changed, mainly on the visual side.
Some of these changes are subtle. Others… less so.
We’ve expanded the world of Flawless Abbey, both in terms of where you can go and how everything looks and sounds while you’re there.
But more importantly, we’ve been reshaping its direction.
Let’s unpack the changes we’ve made regarding the visual side of the game with Kseniya Mika:, Game Director of Flawless Abbey.
A SHIFT IN DIRECTION
From the very beginning, Flawless Abbey leaned into a more abstract, atmospheric kind of horror. Something that’s closer to a presence than an active threat.
Now we’ve decided to push that further by amplifying the psychological tension, adding more distinct horror elements, and grounding that feeling in the world itself. One thing worth noting is that this doesn't mean more jumpscares or chase sequences. Instead, the horror comes from what surrounds you.
Through what shouldn’t be there.
THE LOGO
First, the logo, of course.
The game kept changing and evolving before our eyes into something a little bit different from the initial demo. The concept, the story, the visuals… everything is the same at its core. But richer. More complex.
Kseniya Mika: Change is inevitable. It’s the only way forward. Flawless Abbey is an example of that through and through.
UI & READABILITY
As for the game itself, we’ve started with redesigning the UI dialog system. As you can see now, the options are more distinct and less prone to misclicks.
They’re also more present within the scene itself. Dialogue is no longer just an interface layer, it becomes part of the composition.
LIGHTING, MATERIALS & ATMOSPHERE
To make the locations more dynamic and feel more alive, we’ve played with lighting and colors, as well as reworked the materials themselves.
Visually, the biggest change here is probably how surfaces behave now. To achieve this, we developed two distinct material systems:
- A pencil-based look (we’ve prepared a sneak peek at the end of this devlog!)
- Watercolor system used throughout most of the game
Kseniya Mika: The new material lets light react differently to wet and dry watercolor paper. Even flat surfaces gain depth.
Combined with bloom and softer lighting, the world now feels more like something drifting, unstable… just like a dream that can’t fully hold its shape.
THE TOWER & THE JOURNEY
The Tower
For the Tower view from the Night Express we leaned further into that dreamlike quality.
The Tower now circles in a sea of colors under crescent moonlight.
Kseniya Mika: We’ve committed to a more expressive visual language here, echoing patterns between the Tower, the surrounding space, and the environment itself.
The Tower Gate
This is a good example of how we approached existing locations.
The mechanical clockwork-like corridor has been reimagined into a more mysterious viaduct-like structure with arches opening up to the magnificent view outside. A greater sense of grandeur and considerably more depth.
We’ve changed the design of some characters as well, like our dearest Girl in Yellow. This came as a result of some changes in the narrative. You’ll notice that she now wears a mask, has longer hair, and features more intricate details. Perhaps she's become even better at playing her role.
Okay, now time for one of the most exciting pieces that we really wanted to show off.
Out of floors location. A dream and a draft of a dream bleeding into one another.
The idea of that space was very clear to us from the start. Hand-shaped forms as if hinting at remnants of a creator’s will, glitches, tears and lost dolls. But the execution? That’s where we kept experimenting. We wanted it to feel like a draft, a sketch, but still have a personality. Something distinctly different from other places. A little bit haunting. Somewhere where a dream is not quite sure whether it’s becoming a nightmare.
And as a bonus, a completely new location you haven’t seen yet. Something whose existence was implied.
The Dreamcatcher Corporation offices.
A timeless brutalist visage cementing the idea of bureaucracy in paper-like stone, it spans across numerous hallways filled with countless doors and codes. The walls and ceiling are covered in patterns and vines, corrupting the building to the point where no one notices whether out of helplessness or sheer carelessness.
And your capsule.
To hold your body while your psyche travels beyond this realm. This was really interesting to carve into reality.
On one hand, this is intrinsically technological. Hence all the pipes and tubes and a lot of seemingly important equipment hidden in the surrounding darkness. But at the same time, it is about diving into dreams. And that can’t just be pristine and futuristic.
Kseniya Mika: Dreemseeker's existence is impossible without rituals, that's why they silently reshape the space they work in, and you can see it in every detail we added.
This is just a quick look at our current progress!
We’ll keep you updated as we continue working on more mesmerizing environments, animation, and everything else we’re preparing for launch.
The Dreamseeker Corporation wishes you a productive day.
Night is sacred. But not endless. So don’t be late to your dive,
Bed Head Games & CRITICAL REFLEX
