Garden of the Sea (VR) News

[h2]Garden of the Sea 1.002 is out now! This patch will focus on quality of life updates, as well as add some new furniture for you to customize your island further![/h2]


[h3]Full Patch Notes 1.002[/h3]

Features

• Added a height slider in the settings
  
• Increased smooth turning speed
  
• The player can no longer lose track of the gems on Coral Island and Bamboo Island
  
• New furniture in the merchants stock
  
• Pillows and Picket fences are now paintable
  

Bug Fixes

• Animals will no longer steal crops that the player is holding
  
• Using multiple compost bins now works correctly
  
• Birdbath now shows correct painted colors from a distance
  
• Fixed issues related to uprooting & replanting plants
  
• Fixed some instances where Smooth Locomotion didn’t work correctly
  
• Fixed multiple issues related to items not being recovered properly when thrown away
  
• Fixed issues where merchants stock wouldn't update properly
  

Things we’re working on for future updates:

• Public roadmap! Coming very soon :D
  
• Backpack and inventory improvements
  
• In-game recipe collection
  

Thank you for all the support and help in spreading the word about Garden of the Sea! We love seeing what you create in the game and all your feedback is helping out a ton in updating and shaping the future of the game :)

You can always join our Discord if you need help or want to talk to us!

See you soon!

Love from Team Garden of the Sea

[h2]Garden of the Sea 1.0 has been out for two weeks now, and the first minor update is live! Full patch notes available below.[/h2]

[h3]Today (Friday!) we are having a big old company moot to hammer out the path forward for Garden of the Sea. [/h3]
Into consideration is as always your feedback, thoughts, ideas and wishes! We have gathered a ton of information from Discord, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, email, Steam forums and reviews, Quest 2 reviews and of course our very own survey - which is still open and perhaps waiting for your input?

The survey is open until Jan 31st, go check it out here: https://forms.gle/jb8VhdF4AGF9YwoE9



[h3]Full Patch Notes 1.001[/h3]

Features

• Added a craftable Storage Chest
  
• Watered grass will now dry up after a while
  
• Seaweed is now compostable
  
• Polaroid pictures has a new look to differentiate them from post-its
  

Bug Fixes

• Made it clearer what to do in the tutorial (added missing effects/sounds)
  
• Crystal gems will no longer reset to their original position after loading a save file
  
• The Molebert holding a crystal gem will no longer disappear after a few days
  
• The flower attached to a big crystal on Crystal Island will spawn a new crystal gem every time the player visits the island (after at least one day has passed since the last time it spawned)
  
• Fixed bug causing players to lose the ability to fast travel to the big crystals
  
• The radishes on Crystal Island will now respawn the same way other plants do
  
• The boat will no longer go in reverse if the player places a Planter Box in the boat
  
• The achievement called “The Big Blue” will now unlock correctly
  
• Added missing font characters for some of the languages
  
• The menu now displays the correct timestamp for when a save file was last saved to disk
  
• Planterbox recipe icon updated to be the same icon as the Molebert barn planterbox icon
  
• Puffkin nest recipe now shows the correct feather (You could use any feather regardless)
  
• Plants will now grow prettier (less floaty parts)
  
• Smooth locomotion is now stopped when handtracking is lost
  
• Fixed bug where the potpot by the boat did not dissappear after finishing the boatquests
  
• Potpot in the small house will no longer point towards the island wall like it wants something
  
• Stone beacon by the tomatoes will no longer despawn after saving and loading the game
  
• Collapsing bridge on crystal island will work properly now
  
• Added a broken version of the bridge to the merchant
  

Things we’re working on for future updates:

• Seated mode/height adjustment
  
• Smooth locomotion improvements
  
• Faster smooth turning
  
• In-game recipe collection
  

Currently we do not have support for adding new recipes to saves from 1.0, but heres a screenshot of the recipe for the craftable chests! They show up as intended in new saves.



...now what else? Yes!

[h3]We have teamed up with Makeship to bring real Puffkin plushies to life! [/h3]
All plushie revenue for our part goes directly to planting trees - this is for Puffkin fans and the planet. We still need a bunch more pre-orders to wrap up the campaign! Grab yours here: https://shop.makeship.com/3FG2qMd


Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for all support and help in spreading the word about Garden of the Sea! Your tweets, posts, pictures and videos MATTER. Not to mention your continued invaluable feedback and opinions. ♥ Thank you for that, as always.

You can always join our Discord if you need help of want to talk to us!

See you all again soon!

Love from Team Garden of the Sea

But... is this it? The end?

Heck no. This is a critical juncture, a tipping point. Our little Garden of the Sea is all grown up and getting out of its nest. Will it fly? Will it fall?

This game has been in the making for several years, with disruptions when the team has been pulled into other projects to meet deadlines or simply to help bring other projects forward. Between action packed portal parkour and nerve-racking horror, Garden of the Sea has been a splash of color and a haven to unwind in. Throughout, we have been thinking "What if someone else makes this game before us? What if someone beats us to it?" but in the end it just didn't matter. We needed to make this game, and while doing it, doing things differently from how we have worked in the past.

We have learned so much and improved upon ourselves alongside the game itself. We absolutely adore Garden of the Sea and the world that it has grown into, and hope with all our hearts that Garden of the Sea will be received with as much joy as we have put into it – and that it makes sense to dig even deeper into the features we have already created, and add more content and updates for a long time.

Okay, enough sentimentality! Let's see what is new since the last update.

[h3]Changes[/h3]

• New Biome: Bamboo Island, including its own special creature
  
• Full Story (including an "ending"!)
  
• PC Graphics Update
  
• Ocean Update
  
• Dynamic shadows
  
• Grass Galore
  
• Leafy Leaves
  
• Achievements
  
• New music
  
• Audio Improvements
  
• Final House Upgrade
  
• New Breedable Animals
  
• Performance Improvements
  
• Bug Fixes
  
• New crafting recipes
  
• New tutorial
  
• New merchant items
  
• Localization for 22 different languages
  
• Auto-save functionality
  
• Improved grabbing & interactions with items in the world
  
• Credits
  
• In-game camera functionality
  

[h3]Localization & Accessibility[/h3]

The game is extensively localized and can be played standing or sitting down, in big or small play spaces, lowering the threshold of entry for as many prospective players as possible. The game allows for teleportation, smooth locomotion, smooth and snap turn, all at adjustable speeds. Audio is highly encouraged, but not required!

Languages available are, in alphabetical order: Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil and Portugal), Russian, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.


[h3]FAQ[/h3]

What will happen after release?
We will continue updating the game for as long as it makes sense for us as a studio. We love adding new content and updates for already existing players as much as we love making it. As long as the game is bringing in new players too, we can keep doing what we love.

Can I continue playing with my save file from Early Access?
No, save files from older versions of the game are not compatible with this release. However, this is the last time that you'll lose progress. All future updates will be compatible with 1.0 save files or have a way to migrate save files safely.

Any plans on multiplayer?
Oh, we wish, but it's just such a huge project to undertake. If we have the resources to look into it, we could investigate if and how it would work, but that would definitely be in the future.

Will Garden of the Sea release on X platform?
Possibly if there is enough of an audience! If you want to see Garden of the Sea on another VR platform, make sure to be loud about it and make yourself heard and we might see what we can do in the future!

Where are my save files located?
On Quest they should be in:
This PC\Quest 2\Internal shared storage\Android\data\com.NeatCorporation.GardenoftheSea\files\Saves

And on PC They should be in:
“C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\LocalLow\Neat Corporation\Garden of the Sea

Will the price increase even more?
No, there are no plans to increase the pricing any further.

Where do my ingame photos end up? Can I save them?
Photos taken with the in-game polaroid camera can now be accessed outside the game in the folder “C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\LocalLow\Neat Corporation\Garden of the Sea\Polaroids”


Until the next update, we wish you a wonderful time in Garden of the Sea! If you want to share screenshots of your garden or a fun moment you found, we'd love to see.

Love from team Garden of the Sea

[h2]We are all thrilled to let you know Garden of the Sea 1.0 will go live on January 13th at 19:00 CET. [/h2]

This means the official release of the game that you, dear community, have been part of shaping. We want to direct a big, huge thank you to everyone who has been with us on this journey!



Going into Early Access that early was a big risk, but we really wanted players to be able to join us on the development journey. There have been ups and downs for all of us - at times the game looked like a grayish blob compared to its initial colorful first try, at times we introduced bugs galore, and at times we celebrated the coming of a new season. You have been happy, angry, playful, serious, creative, curious and so much fun to have with us. We, the whole team, want to thank you for that. Without you, the game would not have been the same. You did good, team. You did good. Now invite your bestie to play Garden of the Sea on Jan 13th! The game will automatically update for all of you Early Access-players as per usual.



Change log light (full change log will be posted at launch):

• New Biome: Bamboo Island, including its own special creature
  
• Full Story (including an "ending"!)
  
• PC Graphics Update, including ocean update, dynamic shadows, fluffy grass & leaves
  
• New music & audio Improvements
  
• Final House Upgrade
  
• New Breedable Animals
  
• New Crafting Recipes
  
• New Tutorial
  
• New Merchant Items
  
• Improved Grabbing & Interactions
  
• A ton of bug fixes & optimizations
  

We can't wait to share the final game with you all. See you again on Thursday!
Love from Team Garden of the Sea

[h3]Hi again everyone![/h3]

We're back and we're looking as fancy as ever as we're finally ready to share that sweet release window of ours!

You've probably noticed that we have given the Steam Store page an overhaul which will remain with us until launch. This means new videos, new screenshots and new store text. Phew! What do you think? We would love to hear your thoughts.

But first, let's recap what we announced during the UploadVR Showcase!

[h2]We're also launching on Quest 2[/h2]
You who watched the UploadVR Showcase with us might also have heard we've decided to include the Oculus Quest 2 as one of our launch platforms. Some of you may already have guessed this, but we hope you're just as excited as us that we're finally joining the Quest family (because we know a lot of you have been asking for this for some time now ♥)!


[h3]Missed the UploadVR Showcase?[/h3]
Fear not! You can see our spot bellow and get a preview of how the game will look on Oculus Quest 2:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3d-v6Erxkyc


[h3]PCVR is still getting the love it deserves[/h3]
We know most of you here on Steam are only here for the PCVR version and we're working on a trailer for you all as well which will showcase what the game will look at launch for you (and perhaps a comparison? We hear those are all the rage these days!).

But that will probably not reach you all until later in December and we know you all are dying to see what we have in store, so in the meantime; Have some of our more current PCVR screenshots. Hype!




Now, let's get into what you're all actually here for:

[h2]Garden of the Sea will launch soon! Like 2022 soon![/h2]
First of all, the quick facts and details:


[h3]When? Very early 2022[/h3]
[h3]Where? Steam for PC VR with Vive, Index or Rift, and Oculus Quest 2[/h3]


[h3]What happens next? [/h3]
We are currently going through rigorous QA, fixing bugs and continuing to polish all the little things. Releasing on both PC VR and Oculus Quest 2 means a bigger potential player base, which in turn means we can keep updating and adding to the game for longer! In addition, we are put to more intense scrutiny when it comes to bugs and playability, ultimately leading to a better game for everyone. We consider this a real win-win.

[h3]Localization & Accessibility[/h3]
The game is extensively localized and can be played standing or sitting down, in big or small play spaces, lowering the threshold of entry for as many prospective players as possible. The game allows for teleportation, smooth locomotion, smooth and snap turn, all at adjustable speeds. Audio is highly encouraged, but not required!

Languages available are, in alphabetical order: Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Persian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil and Portugal), Russian, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.





As we get even closer to launch, we are preparing a bunch of fun events and raffles for both old and new faces! Stickers? T-shirts? Mugs? What would you like to see?

As always we're available both here on Steam and on our own Neat community Discord server and we're always listening, so don't be afraid to say hi!



Talk again soon!
// With love from all of the Neat GotS team