Hello, fellow underwater lovers! 🌊 We're kicking off this first Dev Log with huge news – something we've been quietly working toward for months...
A Demo Version is coming... and it's BIG! ✨
We're beyond excited to reveal that a public Demo of Echoes of Mora is on the way! And this isn't just a quick preview – it's a full slice of the game that offers a real feel for what's to come.
In the Demo you'll be able to:
Explore roughly one third of the full game world, including a forest and lake environment, several points of interest, and different story locations
Play through the first Echo scenes where you'll meet the main characters
Experience the dialogue and interaction system we've been building
Get a full intro to the game's story and tone
More info about the Demo release date and the Demo Steam Page will follow soon!
Besides that – we're thrilled to provide you with fresh updates on our journey developing Echoes of Mora! Things have been moving fast as we gear up for the Demo. Let's take a look at what we've been up to lately:
🎨 Art
We've been steadily improving the visuals of the world: sculpting and painting landscapes, adding erosion to make everything feel more natural, and swapping out blockout meshes for actual environment assets. That means trees, hand-placed rocks, bushes, and seaweed to make the world feel truly alive.
Also, we officially kicked off asset production! We're currently filling the world with a mix of high-quality third-party assets and our own handmade custom meshes for individual and story-relevant elements. Here's a screenshot of a Wayside Shrine that's now fully modeled and placed in-game:
🛠️ Game Mechanics
We implemented an inventory system both for the VR and PC mode – now it's possible to store several items while exploring the world. See the VR inventory here:
Our interaction and player choice system, which we previously used with placeholder text for testing, is now being integrated with real scenes from the actual script. That means we've started building proper in-game moments using final dialogue and voice lines. Players can nod, shake their head, or point at objects to interact with Mora and respond to her questions. You can see the nodding in action here:
🖥️ UI
We gave the User Interface a shiny new look by revamping the main menu, pause menu, and various interface elements:
🔮 Echo Sneak Peek
To see how it's all starting to come together, we prepared a short sneak peek of one Echo scene. This will be one of the first places where you'll really get to know the characters and see why the story plays a big role in Echoes of Mora:
📣 Other News & Announcements
We have an official Community Discord for Echoes of Mora! If you want early updates, behind-the-scenes peeks, or even access to future playtests, come hang out with us. It's also the best place to ask us questions directly! Join here or click the Discord icon below this post.
This August we'll be at gamescom in Cologne! We couldn't be more excited to meet players, answer questions, and see you playtest our game. So if you're there, make sure to drop by and say Hi!
That's it for this Dev Log. We're eager to share even more exciting updates in the weeks to come!
Thanks for your support, and stay tuned for more!
- the Selkies Team 🦭