Hi all. It has been a hot minute since the last update, but I am back with a new build that contains new fixes and improvements. It has been quite a difficult endeavor fixing all of the annoying inconsistencies occurring with controller and Steam Deck support. For a bit of transparency, the way that the engine is built, porting controller support is easy, but ironing out all of the issues and inconsistencies is the hard part. Porting the game to controller was initially done as a player suggestion that cost a lot more time than I had originally anticipated. In short, it is essentially like developing two games at once. Rant notwithstanding, the controller and Steam Deck support is closer to being ready. I have done my best to remove any "double selection" instances from the inventory menu, but there are still locations where this is very apparent, for example, when interacting with the computer or the fake save. These will be addressed in the next patch, hopefully.
There is a new and hopefully improved main inventory menu. The menu now displays each item's description and instructions on how to interact with some objects.
Added a more unified way of interacting with objects in the inventory menu. Documents and objects that can be inspected in the inventory menu should act in a similar fashion, making things hopefully smoother and more intuitive. There are still some weird interactions; for example, when opening a big document and exiting, you will notice the selection on the controller is automatically set to the filter selection.
Added a wait timer on drawings when you interact with them to ensure double selection is not possible.
Added sounds and new notifications for specific inventory items, for example, when a key is moved as a result of inspecting an item.
Added a secondary main graphic to spare keys when they are inspected.
Added a way to make the taxidermy in the tea room stop laughing by interacting with it. I am sure this annoyed lots of people as it did me.
Improved the candle message when the timer runs out.
Revamped Tina's hints in the inventory and when used in a room.
Fixed some trigger interactions, and I will continue to look into triggers and make sure no weird jank occurs.
Fixed the clock still being disabled if you interact with the computer and then exit.
Various localization errors have been fixed, but if you see any issues, please let me know.
What is currently planned/being worked on:
New free story content plus a free DLC for Halloween. This is my way of showing my appreciation to people for being understanding amidst the incredibly dreadful release out of early access.
Adding the ability to bypass the "Use Lighter" prompt on closeups if you already have the lighter on.
Adding the ability to burn things with the lighter as well, not just with the candles.
Working on various lore documents pertaining to the bathroom interaction.
Adding some sort of icon that lets the player know when the inventory menu, or menus in general, are blocked from usage to reduce confusion.
Replacing the half baked skull spider interactions with new objectives and interactions.
Improving the ink monster interaction, or perhaps adding additional content.
Thinking of ways to add extra content around the Abomination - perhaps more context and lore or an onjective?
New music tracks for Mawie gameplay. I have always wanted to use a vintage 8 bit Casio keyboard to write a song for the Mawie gameplay and perhaps the intro, so I might just do that.
I will try to parse this content out at least once a month.
In addition, I'd like to ask any bilingual players who feel their respective language or translation is missing something or could be better, please feel free to reach out on Discord. While I cannot afford to pay you, I can offer keys, access to future games I am working on, and feature you in the credits section of the game.
Thank you all, and see you soon.
Sincerely,
Scared Stupid Inc. aka Alexandru Hagiu.