Mondrian - Plastic Reality News

Mark your calendars! We're coming home to BostonFIG next Saturday, October 15. The event is free, virtual, and will take place on Gather.town. Come say hi to learn all about the latest updates to Mondrian, the ongoing Pumpkin Patch Gala, and our plans for the future of the game.

And don't forget to vote for us for the Audience Choice Figgie award!

[h3]Sign up for BostonFIG Fest here.[/h3]



[h2]About BostonFIG Fest[/h2]
BostonFIG Fest is a celebration of independent game development worldwide. The Fest showcases digital and tabletop games, with our showcase games selected from hundreds of submissions from independent game developers. Fest attendees have the chance to play digital games, tabletop games, and immersive experience games in a casual environment, for a very affordable ticket price.

Learn More: https://www.bostonfig.com/fest-homepage/

Happy Halloween and Spooky Month, everybody! This year, we're excited to step things up for our annual "Art Hallow's Eve" celebration. For those of you who are new here, every October we open up a Pumpkin Patch Gala, where you can use Mondrian's level editor, Mondrian Maker, to create a Jack O'Lantern level and compete for fun prizes! Everyone is invited to participate, whether you're using the Free Admission demo or you're a Lifetime Pass owner. The contest will run from now until November 1.

The rules are simple:

• Create a Jack O'Lantern themed level in Mondrian Maker, with or without a template (you can use our Pumpkin template on Steam Workshop)
  
• Submit one or more Jack O'Lantern levels with the Art Hallow's Eve Gala tag before midnight on October 31
  
• Don't forget to follow our basic Gala submission guidelines

Never used Mondrian Maker before? No problem! We put together a video tutorial last year on how to make a Jack O'Lantern. Give it a few minutes to get up to speed.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

You are of course welcome to submit other spooky levels to the Gala, but we will only be judging Jack O'Lanterns. Similarly, we will only be judging pumpkin-based Jack O'Lanterns as we lack the expertise to be critical of other squash, including but not limited to butternut, acorn, delicata, kabocha, and hubbard.

The prizes for the Gala include:

First Place:

• Gold Thumbnail Frame and Gold Frame tag on Steam Workshop
  
• 8400 Steam Points
  
• Your pumpkin's inclusion in next year's in-game Pumpkin Patch exhibit
  
• Your name immortalized on the Mondrian Museum site
  
• Special Discord role
  

Second Place:

• Silver Thumbnail Frame and Silver Frame tag on Steam Workshop
  
• 3600 Steam Points
  
• Your pumpkin's inclusion in next year's in-game Pumpkin Patch exhibit
  
• Your name immortalized on the Mondrian Museum site
  
• Special Discord role
  

Third Place:

• Bronze Thumbnail Frame and Bronze Frame tag on Steam Workshop
  
• 1200 Steam Points
  
• Your pumpkin's inclusion in next year's in-game Pumpkin Patch exhibit
  
• Your name immortalized on the Mondrian Museum site
  
• Special Discord role
  

All entries will receive a custom Wooden frame. and an "Art Hallows Eve 2022" POAP token upon submission Due to unsolvable technical difficulties we are unable to provide event badges as POAPs. Instead, your framed thumbnails will also be sent to you at profile picture size so you can share your work in your Steam profiles. We apologize for the inconvenience.


Keen eyes may notice that Gem Hunt mode is now "Spooky Gem Hunt." For the duration of the Art Hallow's Eve event, this mode's "Double or Nothing" selection will read "Trick or Treat." When you play a level, you'll get one of a handful of bonuses or scares. These bonuses will REALLY help you rack up those Gems, and the scares... well, just get ready. We obviously won't spoil what they are, but we think you'll have a lot of fun with them! These bonuses, combined with the Double or Nothing nature of Gem Hunt, will lead to some SERIOUS Gem boosts, so if you've had your eye on that expensive wallpaper for your Museum, now's the time to go for it.


We plan to have even more surprises during the month, so expect to see some more Events and other updates during the month. We want to see everything spooky you can creatively muster, and to have an absolutely epic October.

Good luck, have fun, happy Art Hallow's Eve, and thank you for playing!
- Danny

Hello everyone! The latest update for Mondrian, 1.4.3, is now available. Yes, we're overhauling the numbering system as it no longer felt like it was representing the true state of things. Instead of a Season.Episode.Update.Fixes system, it is now Season.Movement.Update, which reflects the state of the Steam Workshop tags as well. All previous patch notes are being updated to match this new system too.


So, the fun stuff. We're easing into this year's Art Hallow's Eve celebration with the inclusion of new Museum cosmetics which pay homage to the grandfather of spooky games. The Hangar wall, floor, columns, and ceilings (two of them) are now available in the Museum's cosmetics inventory.


We're also introducing a brand new feature in the Museum which allows you to paint certain cosmetics any of 18 colors (the 12 primary colors + 6 shades of gray). Currently this feature exists on the Drywall and Painted Brick Wall, and it will be coming to other cosmetics in the very near future.


You will also notice some minor changes throughout the game. We've paid a lot of attention on this update to improving the experience on Steam Deck, like introducing an animated Loading glyph, delaying the start of the point ticker in the Gem Chest, and increasing some text sizes on the Main Menu. Steam Deck players also have a more dedicated control scheme, with the left thumbpad now controlling the cursor with lower sensitivity, easing the experience in Mondrian Maker in particular. If you are playing the game on Steam Deck, please continue to send us you're feedback and we'll continue to make the experience even better!


[h3]Features[/h3]

• Global: The Loading glyph is now animated!
  
• Splash Screen: Added Loading glyph when starting the game and going to the Main Menu.
  
• Game: Added Loading glyph when leaving the Game scene.
  
• Museum: You will notice some icons in the Construction menu now feature paint splatter icons in the corner. This means these items can be painted! When you select them, you’ll then be prompted to select any of 18 colors (6 shades of gray and 12 primaries). After construction, these items will be painted in the color you selected. Painted Cosmetics are currently available for the Drywall and Painted Brick walls. This feature will be coming to even more cosmetics in the near future.
  
• Museum: Added new Hangar cosmetics for Art Hallow’s Eve. These are homages to a level of the same name from the grandfather of spooky games. They include a new Wall, Floor, Columns, and TWO ceilings!
  

[h3]Changes[/h3]

• Global: Adjusted version numbers for all historical and future versions of the game from 1.0 onward. The first number will now refer to a Season, the second a Movement (as denoted in Steam Workshop tags), and the third a minor update within a Movement.
  
• Main Menu: Increased font size on tooltips to improve readability on Steam Deck
  
• Game: There is now a quarter-second delay when a level ends to finish the fade-out. This helps smooth out the experience on Steam Decks in particular.
  
• Gem Chest: Point counter sound effects will no longer play before the fade-in has completed
  
• Gem Chest: Added a slight visual and audio fade-in for the point counter
  
• Gem Chest: The “Loading” glyph will now properly display in the lower-right hand corner when entering and exiting the screen
  

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]

• Splash Screen: Fixed a bug which prevented Data files from copying over correctly.
  
• Game: Fixed Bonus Banners not finishing their scale-out animation.
  
• Museum: Fixed the mouse cursor flickering when controllers are attached.
  
• Museum: Fixed inventory items not displaying names or prices while using a controller.
  
• Studio: Fixed Gesso color not loading as black when opening Mondrian Studio in Night Mode
  
• Steam: Fixed a bug which caused the “You Dig on Multiverses” achievement to unlock too easily. If you already unlocked it, congratulations!
  

This year, we are trying something a little different with Art Hallow's Eve. The event is set to begin automatically right at the start of October, rather than us needing to force another update. You will need an internet connection to access the event, but when you do, you'll be able to join in on our annual Pumpkin Patch Gala, AND check out the brand new "Spooky Gem Hunt" mode that will run exclusively for the duration of the month. The Main Menu and Museum will of course get their annual makeovers, but the pumpkins in the Museum will be last year's Gala entries. This is a new tradition we will be continuing going forward, meaning if you submit a pumpkin to the Gala this year, it will appear in the Museum next year!

Art Hallow's Eve will begin this Saturday, October 1. Keep your eyes peeled for another post on everything happening during the event and a bit more info on Spooky Gem Hunt and the Pumpkin Patch Gala.

In the meantime, enjoy the update, happy second anniversary, and thank you for playing!
- Danny

Calling all Mondrian Makers! A Gala of Shameless Self-Promotion is now live. Unlike our previous Gala contests, we will not be judging your creations on gameplay or artistic merit. This time we’re embracing the ways of the new millennium and we’re challenging you to acquire the one thing that obviously really matters in this world: Likes.

[h2]The Basics[/h2]
Make any creation in Mondrian Maker, with a thumbnail in Mondrian Studio, and upload them to Steam Workshop before September 2
Share your creation across your social media accounts
Gather as many Likes as you can! Top 3 most Liked creations get custom frames and Steam Points.

[h2]In-Depth[/h2]
The rules of the Gala are simple:

1. You can make any creation you like! It can be an abstract, a pixel art, or something we’ve never even seen before. You can Paint it or use the Dynamic Color Harmonies to your advantage. You can use the included Background Artworks or bring in your own. It’s completely up to you!
   
2. Your Creation, Thumbnail, and associated social posts must be Publicly visible.
3. Once your creation is complete, upload it to Steam Workshop from Mondrian Maker and make sure “Gala Entry” is set in the Share window.
   
4. Share the Thumbnail, use the hashtag #makeAMondrian, and include a link to your creation on the Social Media of your choice: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, TikTok, Minds, Gab, reddit, imgur, it honestly does not matter.
   
5. After you’ve posted everywhere you want to, add the direct links to the social posts in your Steam Workshop creation’s description. Then start gathering those Likes!
   

Gala submissions will close at the end of the week (September 2), after which it’ll be time to count up those Likes! These include:

• Likes from each, individual social media post you’ve added to your creation’s Steam Workshop description
  
• Favorites your Creation has earned on Steam Workshop (the Star button, as this number is publicly visible)
  
• Awards your Creation has earned on Steam Workshop (total number, not their value)

For the purposes of simplicity, all reactions, whether Likes, Loves, Cares, etc. will be treated equivalently, one point each. The Top 3 creations with the most Likes at the time of counting will receive a prize pack. As usual, there will be some fun prizes involved!

1. First Place: Custom Gold Thumbnail Frame, 4800 Steam Points, Mondrian Series Bundle Steam Keys
   
2. Second Place: Custom Silver Thumbnail Frame, 2400 Steam Points, Mondrian – Plastic Reality Lifetime Pass Steam Key
   
3. Third Place: Custom Bronze Thumbnail Frame, 1200 Steam Points, Mondrian – Plastic Reality Lifetime Pass Steam Key
   

This contest is open to both Free Admission and premium Lifetime Pass players, meaning you do not need to purchase Mondrian – Plastic Reality to participate, just to download the demo on Steam. All entries will receive a custom Wood Frame thumbnail in their Developer Comments on Steam Workshop and you are welcome to add this as an extra image on your Creation’s page. General Rules of Gala Submissions still apply, so please click here for more details.

Prizes will be delivered to winners early next week. We’re very excited to see what you can cook up, and as always, thank you for playing.

– Danny

Hi all! We've pushed another small update today which cleans up some more bugs. Please make sure to update for the smoothest experience!

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]

• Game: Fixed Gems bouncing off holes in the wall when Gem Shields are active
  
• Game: Added a check to stop all sound effects from playing when the level has faded out, to stop them looping into the next level
  
• Gem Chest: Fixed Point Tick sound effect playing when leaving the screen
  
• Gem Chest: Fixed sound effects looping when refilling lives in Arcade mode
  
• Gem Chest: Fixed too many lives being added in Arcade mode
  
• Museum: Restored a missing Story segment
  
• Maker: Fixed Stars not being a selectable shape