Stepping Into What’s Next
Performance
Over the past few updates, I began noticing performance issues throughout Castle Daybreak; inconsistent framerates, unexpected spikes during and after combat, and moments where the game simply wasn’t running as smoothly as it should. I took this seriously and spent a significant amount of time profiling, testing, and reworking core systems to bring performance to a more stable and optimized state.
While there may still be occasional spikes, the game now runs roughly 80% more efficiently than before. This update focuses heavily on improving overall stability: reducing unnecessary ticks, tightening UI overhead, refining audio and FX behavior, and cleaning up systems that were placing unnecessary strain on the CPU and GPU. The goal was simple: make the game feel more stable, more responsive, and more enjoyable without changing the heart of the experience.
Level Design
While performance was my priority for this update, I couldn’t help revisiting and improving some of the older level design. Many of the original points of interest have been renovated to feel more visually engaging and narratively meaningful, bringing them closer to the tone and atmosphere I always intended for Castle Daybreak.
Abilities Update
Abilities are a core pillar of Castle Daybreak, and this update gave me the chance to revisit nearly all of them. Many abilities have been improved or completely reworked to feel more responsive, more intuitive, and more fun to use. My goal has always been to ensure each class has a distinct identity and playstyle, and these changes push that vision forward in a meaningful way.
NPC/AI Improvements
One of the major flaws that conflicted with my original vision for Castle Daybreak was the AI system. I initially wanted large groups of enemies on screen at once, but due to my own early limitations, this caused significant performance issues. In previous updates, I had to scale back enemy counts just to keep the game stable.
I’m happy to say that this is no longer the case. After moving to a full Behavior Tree system and implementing several optimizations. Including, but not limited to, extensive object pooling. With this, the game can now support far larger numbers of enemy actors with far less impact on performance.
General Changes
Aside from the major changes, there's an incredible amount of small changes made since the previous update, and some many not get mentioned. However, here is a general rundown. There were changes made to the player to improve the way the regeneration system works to bring a more modernized touch to it. Improvements were made to some of the UI elements along with new perks and an overall improvement to the in-game story narrative.
Focus Ability-> New Ultimate Ability -> Charges overtime and remains ready until used. Recharge time can be shaved down due to certain actions during combat.Spellchecks
Bug fixes
Player control improvements
Improved tutorial level
Improved camera angle for combat clarity
Landscape improvement, including foliage
Conclusion
The update is now mostly complete, and I’m currently working through the final iterative testing phase to make sure everything is running exactly as it should. My goal is to get this update into your hands as soon as possible, and when it arrives, I want it to feel like you’re stepping into a game that’s been rebuilt with fresh energy and purpose.
Thank you,
- David