New Update!
Finally!! The feature that's been stressing me out the most is done!
This update…I'd say about 90% of the time went into controller support. Since Emberward's demo launch, a lot of players have been asking about it. But if every time I add something new I also have to make sure controller support works perfectly, it would make development way more time-consuming and harder to iterate on quickly. So I decided to wait until we're closer to 1.0 and handle it all at once.
Which means…after two years of stacking up hundreds of UI elements and game objects, it basically turned into development hell 💀. But I'm really happy I was able to keep my promise and add it to the game! This is my first time implementing full controller support. I've looked at how a bunch of other games handle it, but I'm sure there are still things I missed or weird edge cases I didn't think of. So if you try it out and run into anything strange, or have suggestions, please leave a comment below.
This update also adds five new towers. Originally, I planned to save them for the next patch, but it felt weird to release an update that only added controller support. So I spent a bit more time adding something new to play with. I've seen some feedback from players asking for more ways to deal with fast enemies, so part of the new tower mechanics this time are related to enemy movement speed. You might need to think more carefully about your maze layout and enemy paths when using them, but if used well, they can be really effective against fast monsters!
That's all! Hope you enjoy the update!
- Refi
New Features
Controller support
A reminder: if you previously adjusted your Steam settings to play on Steam Deck, you may need to restore them to the default configuration.
Towers
Added 5 new towers!
Dynamite Tower (1×1): Throws explosives that stick to monsters and deal increasing damage as the targets move.
Ballista Tower (2×2): Has a VERY long range, and the damage of its giant bolts grows with flight distance.
Balloon Tower (2×2): Releases homing balloons that chase enemies and explode on impact.
Fort Tower (2×2): Built on a reinforced base, this tower can be placed without a block and is immune to Malfunction effects.
Electro Gate Tower (1×5): Uses a powerful electric field to continuously attack passing monsters.
Game adjustments
Save system changes
Playing in Endless Mode or the Enigma Sanctum no longer interrupts your progress in the campaign mode. (Which means you can play the Daily Challenges without worrying about losing your map progress!)
Frost Ruins mechanics
The "Sliding Ice Block" mechanic has been removed.
Although I really liked this mechanic, it didn’t have enough impact on players’ tactical decisions, so it has been removed for now until I find a better way to improve it.
New mechanic: Frozen Treasures: In some levels, you can find treasures hidden inside ice blocks. You can break the ice with towers to retrieve them. (sometimes they even open new paths!)
Hotkey changes
The game speed controls are now [Space], [Z], [X] and [C].
Pressing Space toggles between 0.5x and normal speed.
Character skills are now activated with [R], [F] and [V].
Based on player feedback that Ctrl+1/2/3 was difficult to use, I updated the hotkeys while working on controller support. They should now be easier to use while keeping your left hand on WASD.
Added a new option in the settings: Show Maximum Path Length. This displays the longest path length in the lower-left corner of the screen and should be helpful for some achievements!
Added a new keyword: Vulnerable, to indicate effects where monsters take an additional X% damage for X seconds.
Bug fixes
Fixed an issue that caused pathfinding problems when Blackhole Tower and Stun effects were triggered at the same time.
Fixed an issue where the Chaos Transmuter selected the wrong tower to transform in Endless Mode.
Fixed a path‑blocking issue that could occur when upgrading towers.
Fixed an issue where “Build X Towers” quests could select towers with build limits.
Fixed an issue where copied character skill buffs would consume usage counts while having Echo Crystal.
Fixed an issue where Scrap Master might not receive full experience or level up properly at the end of a stage.
Fixed an issue where Skeletons summoned by the Necromancer could ignore walls and spawn on the other side.
Fixed an issue where the "Mute In Background" option would not persist when switching scenes.
