Hello Adventurers!

A few weeks ago, we shared an update about the future of Blightstone and the direction we had decided to take for the final stage of Early Access.

We explained that, after listening to your feedback and looking closely at what worked best in the game, we wanted to focus Blightstone more strongly around its core: tactical combat, build experimentation, progression, and replayability.

Today, that new direction arrives.

This is the biggest update we've made to Blightstone. It introduces entirely new systems and content, reworks several existing mechanics, and removes or simplifies others that we felt were getting in the way of the experience we want Blightstone to offer.

The result is a more focused, faster-paced and replayable roguelite, built around getting into a run, experimenting with different strategies, overcoming increasingly difficult challenges, and jumping back in to try something new.

So, let's take a look at what's changed:

Simplified Run Setup

We've significantly simplified the systems surrounding the start and progression of a run.

The Skill Tree and Ayanur Continuum Forge have been removed. Instead, preparing for a run is now much simpler and more direct: choose the Relic and Gem you want to start with and jump into the action.

Gems, already available in the previous version of the game, determine the Crystal's abilities, letting you choose how your Crystal will support your heroes during the run.

Introducing Relics

Relics are an entirely new system in Blightstone.

We've added a large collection of Relics — powerful modifiers that can change the rules of a run, alter how you approach combat, and create new synergies and strategies.

You'll unlock more Relics as you progress, giving you an expanding pool of modifiers to experiment with and making each run feel different.

A Lighter Narrative

We've significantly reduced the amount of text surrounding combat and nodes.

Story elements are now much lighter, allowing runs to flow faster and keeping the focus on gameplay, combat and decision-making.

Campfires Reworked

Campfires have been reworked to fit more naturally into the flow of each run.

Previously, Campfires appeared automatically every three nodes during the night. Now, Campfires are regular nodes placed directly on the map, and you can choose to visit them whenever one appears along your route.

We've also simplified Campfire interactions, making them quicker and easier to play while keeping the run moving.

More Variety Across All Biomes

We've added new nodes to every biome, increasing the variety of locations and encounters you'll discover as you progress through each run.

Simplified Blight & Resource Management

We've removed Blight management from heroes, so you no longer need to constantly manage their corruption throughout a run.

Resource management has also been significantly streamlined. There are now fewer resources to keep track of, making combat easier to read and letting you focus more on positioning, synergies and tactical decisions.

Additionally, skills no longer consume resources or end your turn, giving you much more freedom to combine abilities and experiment with different strategies during combat.

Meet the Barbarian

A new hero joins the fight: the Barbarian!

The Barbarian brings a new playstyle to your party, with her own abilities and new possibilities for team compositions and builds.

The Compendium

We've added a brand-new Compendium, a book where you can discover and revisit information about the heroes and enemies you encounter throughout your adventures.

More Bosses & Minibosses

We've added new Bosses and Minibosses to bring more variety and challenge to your runs.

You'll encounter a wider range of powerful enemies along the way, making each run less predictable and giving you more challenges to overcome as you progress.

Introducing Blights

Blights are a new way to customize the difficulty of your runs.

Choose the difficulty modifiers you want to activate and combine them to create the level of challenge that suits you. As you progress, Blights give you more ways to test your builds and skills on your own terms.

Loops & Crystal Levels

Finishing a run is no longer the end of the journey.

Each completed run unlocks the next Loop, gradually increasing the challenge and introducing new elements as you progress. This makes the experience more approachable from the start, with mechanics and difficulty building up progressively instead of being introduced all at once.

Each new Loop gives you a clear sense of progression while continuously introducing new challenges to overcome.

We've also simplified how the Crystal levels up during a run. Previously, leveling up required collecting Earthglass Pieces. Now, the Crystal progresses based on the number of nodes you complete, making progression more consistent and directly tied to advancing through the map.

Your progress is now clearly displayed in the new Unlocks screen, so you can always see what you've unlocked and what challenges are still ahead.

Important Note: Progress Reset

Because this update fundamentally changes Blightstone's progression and several of its core systems, existing save data will not be compatible with the new version.

This means that all progression will be reset and everyone will start fresh with this update.

We know this may be frustrating, especially for those of you who have spent many hours playing during Early Access, and we're sorry for the inconvenience. With so many systems being reworked or replaced, this reset was necessary to ensure everything works correctly with the new progression.

Thank you for your understanding and for supporting us throughout Early Access.

What's Next?

This update represents the foundation of the Blightstone experience we want to bring into Version 1.0.

Over the next weeks, we'll be closely monitoring your feedback, fixing issues, and polishing the game as we prepare to leave Early Access.

Blightstone 1.0 launches in October

Reaching this point wouldn't have been possible without everyone who has played the game throughout Early Access. Your feedback has helped us understand what works, what doesn't, and ultimately what Blightstone should become.

This update is a big step toward that final version, and we're really looking forward to hearing what you think about the changes.

Thank you for sticking with us throughout this journey, and we'll see you in October for Blightstone 1.0.

— The Blightstone Team