Hi everyone!
When Update 1.1 came out I said it was only a start and I really meant it.
Thank you to everyone who has played and sent feedback. A lot of the changes in these two updates came directly from your comments, reviews, bug reports, and Discord messages.
Since launch I've been going through the parts of Karma Keepers that felt harder to understand or more tiring than they needed to be. Update 1.1 added Hold Assist, clearer paths through the Blessing tree, bulk summoning, and the first round of fixes. Update 1.2 keeps going.
The game itself is still the same... you restore souls, build up your economy, and slowly get your realm to run itself. These updates are about making it easier and more comfortable to reach that point.
If you liked the idea of the game but bounced off because the beginning felt confusing or too "click heavy", I'd like you to try this version.
You can just hover now
This is probably the biggest change in 1.2.
Before, looking after your realm meant a lot of clicking and holding. It worked, but after a while it could be a bit much. World interaction now uses Hover by default.
Move over a Totem to extract Faith. Hover over a Lost Soul to restore its Karma. Move over Shadows or Demons to fight them. That's it.
The old Hold Assist option has also been split into two choices.
Choose Hover or Hold for World Interaction
Choose Hold or Click for Purchases and Upgrades
You can mix them however you like. If you preferred the old controls, Hold is still there. If you want fewer repeated inputs, Hover and Click do most of the work.
Gamepads and handhelds work better too
Gamepad support got a lot of work in this update.
You can now play Karma Keepers with a controller through the menus, tutorials, and the game itself. It also works on Steam Deck and other handheld PCs.
The left stick moves the camera and the right stick moves the cursor, so it feels natural once you pick it up.
I haven't added proper gamepad button icons yet, but the controls themselves work. I know this kind of game feels nice on a handheld, so I wanted it to work there even if the UI isn't completely caught up yet.
The tutorials are easier to read
The tutorials did their job, but they could feel like a lot of text while your little realm was moving around behind them.
The panels and smaller notifications have a new look, and important resources, roles, and threats now appear with their in-game icons. It should be much easier to connect what the tutorial is saying with what you're looking at.
You'll see the same icons in upgrade descriptions too, so it's easier to follow what's what.
A more useful Ascension upgrade
The Populated Realm Ascension upgrade wasn't very useful.
It used to add 50 Lost Souls at the start of each new realm. I've replaced it with Specialist Keepers.
Once unlocked, it starts each realm with 10 Prayers, 10 Extractors, 10 Recollectors, 10 Evangelists, and 10 Warriors.
That's still 50 souls, but now they arrive ready to help. The upgrade should feel much more useful when you begin another realm.
A clearer end for each realm
I've rewritten the message that appears when every soul becomes Eternal.
It now makes it clearer that the realm is complete and what you can do next. You can keep playing in that realm or use Divine Rebirth whenever you're ready to begin again.
It also shows how long the realm took and your total time to Eternity.
Two more goals for completionists
If you're the kind of player who needs to finish absolutely everything, Update 1.2 adds two more Steam achievements.
Fully Blessed for maximizing every Blessing
Maxed Out for completing every Ascension Upgrade, Miracle, and Blessing
These will take a while. Good luck.
A framerate fix and a few smaller tweaks
I also fixed an issue that could make Karma Keepers run at the wrong framerate on some Windows displays.
If the game felt oddly slow or uneven on your setup, this may have been why. It should now run at the correct framerate on those displays.
There are also a few smaller fixes and tweaks around input, saving, sound, and tooltips.
If the game didn't click before
Update 1.2 is available now, and Karma Keepers is 40% off until August 27.
If you've been waiting, or if you tried the game before and found the beginning hard to get into, now is a good time to give it another shot.
Enjoying the game? Please leave a review
If you've played Karma Keepers and had a good time, I'd really appreciate a Steam review. I'm trying to reach 50 reviews, and every one helps.
It doesn't need to be long. A few lines about what you enjoyed or who you think the game is for can help someone else decide if they'll enjoy it too.
If you reviewed the game before and Update 1.2 changed how you feel about it, you can update your old review too.
If you'd rather talk directly, the Karma Keepers Discord is the best place to find me. You can share feedback, ask questions, show off your realm, or just say hi.
Join the Karma Keepers Discord
I'm making Karma Keepers on my own, and the feedback I've received since launch is why these last two updates focused so much on making the game clearer and nicer to play.
Thanks for sticking around. If you're coming back for 1.2, welcome back!