Hello everyone!
On October 10, the CaveVox demo was released and took part in Steam Next Fest: October 2025 — and several hundred players downloaded and tried it out. Thank you all for your support!
Some players experienced a black screen issue on older Vulkan versions — this was related to outdated GPU drivers and can be fixed by updating them.
Changes and improvements already made for Early Access:
Improved lighting — it now flickers more naturally like real fire (can be disabled in settings).
Reworked chunk and level generation system — now the internal blocks, items, and mobs are generated for the entire level before chunk rendering begins. This significantly speeds up performance. Chunks now save their state and can be unloaded to disk as the player moves away.
Chunk size increased from 7 to 32 — previously, size 7 chunks were very fast and lightweight, but for the starting area we needed wider, more open spaces. The new system actually improves rendering performance.
Added generators — a new mechanism for special level generation and parameter customization.
Added Floor 0 — a safe starting zone where players can rest, interact with NPCs, recruit companions, trade, and take quests.
Added game modes — now you can choose between Singleplayer and Multiplayer.
Added network lobby — gather up to 4 players in co-op and explore together! Everyone shares the same seed/world, and the host player handles the main game logic.
Added pits and ladders — players can now climb vertically or accidentally fall through holes into deeper levels.
Added player model — currently working on facial expressions, armor variations, and animations. This will also be used for NPCs and companions.
Added camera sway — for a more immersive movement feel.
Added basic leg IK system — improving the sense of grounding when walking or turning.
Updated and expanded models and item sets.
In active development:
Character skill tree
Damage types — piercing, slashing, blunt
Status effects — hunger, poison, fire, frost
Magic system with several elemental types
Advanced health bar with detailed damage indicators
New dungeon floors, biome styles, enemies, and bosses
Game introduction, starting hub, NPC interaction, trading, and quests
Inventory system, dual-hand control, dodging, and contextual actions
UI and UX improvements — item highlighting, effect discovery system, and much more
That’s all for now — thank you again for playing the demo and for all your feedback! See you soon in CaveVox Early Access — the adventure is just beginning.