Hey everyone,

Early Access 8 is here. This update is about making the game easier to read, easier to learn, and a bit more yours. plus a new way to spice up your game pitches.

A proper in-game manual

There’s now a Player Guide you can open from the header (book icon) or Settings. It’s meant to read like a real manual: topics, short articles, and links between related pages, so you’re not guessing what a screen does. Many ? help buttons also point into the guide where it makes sense.

Note: we will update this going forward (as there will still be gaps in current features covered), but it is a starting point!

Who you are as a founder

When you start a new game, you’ll set up a founder profile, your background and how you lean on a few choices. That feeds into the sim and shows up on your mogul profile, so runs can feel a bit different depending on how you play the role.

Press calls (optional)

Sometimes you’ll get a media call, answer a few questions with real trade-offs (reputation, morale, the market when you’re public, that kind of thing). It’s optional; ignore it if you’re heads-down shipping. Your founder style can influence which questions show up, and talking about rivals can ripple into the news feed.

Desk & dashboard polish

The dashboard has been brought in line with a slightly clearer layout: shared card style, consistent spacing, and easier scanning, same game underneath, just tidier at a glance.

Note: this is an area that we need to spend time on to improve with time as we acknowledge it is a bit messy still, but this update was some minor polish under the hood to prepare for bigger improvements later.

Mix & themes. recipes for your games

When you start a new project, there’s a Mix & themes step: pick a handful of tags (settings, tone, props, ideas) that act like a recipe for your game. Combos can nudge reviews and interest, nothing wild, but it rewards flavourful pitches.

A big batch of tags now have artwork (icons). Many are available from day one; 81 extra tags are locked behind Mix lab research on the Progression tab (second tab: Mix lab). Research one at a time, spend cash and time, and unlock new tags for your wizard. On Mix and Review, you’ll see thumbnails of what you picked so the art gets a bit of screen time outside the tree.

Saves

Older saves load forward; mix-related data is migrated so you shouldn’t lose progress. If anything looks off after updating, let us know in this thread.

Thank you for playing, reporting bugs, and sharing ideas, it genuinely helps us prioritise. If something in EA8 clicks (or doesn’t), we’re listening.

— The ConsoleMe team