Astral Ascent News

[p]Hello everyone! ːtaffyː[/p][p]
First of all, we wish each and everyone of you an happy new year, may 2026 be a great year for you! ːmeltadaːOn our side 2025 was an amazing year! We announced our new game Fallen Fates, we kept making great updates for Astral Ascent including new DLCs and collabs with games we love : Children of Morta and Dead Cells. [/p][p]We improved the overall game experience and it ended up being our best selling year for Astral Ascent, so thank you all so much for your trust in us and we are super motivated to keep bringing new updates and improve the game in 2026 starting today with the release of Update 2.5 : The Ravenswatch Sentinel, our 16th major update for Astral Ascent!
[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]Before jumping into the content of this update and what comes next, we wanted to let you know about Ravenswatch if you don't know about it!

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]They have an amazing set of characters, you can play it in co-op, it plays and feels amazing! They are also french developers and seeing how much they care about their game made us want to make a collab with them and we are so happy they accepted ːmelhappyː[/p][p]When we announced this collab, someone from the community made this comment :
[/p][p][/p][p]We could not agree more, they have been making great updates, great content and today they just released a new playable character : Merlin!

Don't hesitate to check their game if you haven't already ːzagplsːWe even have a bundle with them !

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]
Let's get back to Astral Ascent update!

You can find full Patch Notes here -
[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]New Room : The Hourglass of Dreams[/h2][h2]
[/h2][p]Inspired by the world of Reverie, the Sandman will allow you to upgrade your gambits rarity level for Quartz.[/p][p] [/p][p]We think it wasn't fun to refresh many times the Itinerant Merchant at Andromeda's Bar to find higher gambits to improve your builds so we came up with this idea of being able to use your quartz but to increase gambits you already have so taking a common Gambit can be useful and you can level it up later!

[/p][p]It can also make your negative gambits become positive gambits![/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]New Echoes : The Vengeful Echoes[/h2][p][/p][p][/p][p]You can take 1 of these echoes when you visit the Hourglass of Dreams room, they are stronger than regular echoes and can only be found there. They are strong but they require a sacrifice, you need to sacrifice an Echo you already have in order to get one of them.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]We think it's a great thing because if you have an echo made for a build you dont want you can exchange it for an echo that will work for your build as the 5 new echoes conver all the builds elements![/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]Improved onboarding[/h2][p][/p][p]You may have noticed we had a delay on our announced 2.5 update which was supposed to be about improved onboarding and Ravenswatch collab was supposed to be 2.6 but the delays made us merge both updates in today's update and we could not do all the improvements for onboarding we had in mind we still made some of them![/p][p][/p][p]The onboarding changes are there because you are so many telling us Astral Ascent has a lot of depth and is great to play but it also has a lot of mechanics to learn when starting the game and we hope new players can learn these mechanics more progressively to not feel overwhelmed!
[/p]

• [p]The number of Prowess choices has been increased from 3 to 4 (or from 2 to 3 with DL debuff)[/p]
• [p]The Prowess Statues now are unlocked over time to not give overwhelming informations from the start.[/p]
• [p]Imprints and blueprint spawn appear later in the game experience[/p]
• [p]Added hints about the currencies[/p]
• [p]The Star Guardians has been separated in 3 difficulty tiers:[/p]

[p][/p][h3]"Easy" ones[/h3][p]- Pegasus[/p][p]- Lupus[/p][p][/p][h3]"Medium" ones[/h3][p]- Hydra[/p][p]- Draco[/p][p] [/p][h3]"Hard" ones[/h3][p]- Monoceros[/p][p]- Sculptor[/p][p][/p][p]Now you'll have to defeat 2 times Easy bosses (any) to unlock Medium ones, and defeat 2 times Medium ones (any) to unlock Hard ones. This change has been made to balance more the difficulty of the Star Guardian for new players.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]A word about the Charity DLC[/h2][p][/p][p]Thanks so much to everyone for the reception of the Charity DLC : [/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]We have sold more than 8700 units of the DLC and we will be donating soon to the association what we collected in 2025 and doing the same every year!

Though we don't want to discount this DLC because it all goes to charity we added it to the bundle of game + DLCs so you can have a 10% off from it if it's the only DLC you are missing!

[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]
What is coming next?[/h2][p][/p][p]Next update is supposed to be the Steam Workshop, we started working on several very cool features including sprites replacement, level design editor and more but it suffers several delays out of our control so we have to reorganize our schedule about it but don't worry we are already working on new content including Arven new playable character, the boss rush and more!

We also have many ideas to improve the run experiences and make the game even funnier! [/p][p][/p][p]One of our biggest surprise for Astral Ascent is also coming in 2026, something that has been in the work for more than a year now and it's so hard to keep the secret but 2026 is the year of the reveal so stay tuned for that![/p][p][/p][p]
To sum things up : a lot is coming, thanks so much for sticking with us, have a great time ingame and have an excellent week ːzagplsː
[/p][p]-The Hibernian Workshop Team[/p][p][/p][p][/p]

⭐Changes inspired by our community!

[h2]Major Features[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Increased the number of Prowess choices from 3 to 4
  [hr][/hr]
• New Special Room: Added a new type of Special Room: the Hourglass of Dreams, featuring characters from the Ravenswatch Universe.
  The Sandman provides the player with the ability to upgrade the Gambits on their Spells using Quartz.
  [hr][/hr]
• New Echo Tier: Vengeful Echoes: 5 New Echoes can be found in the Hourglass of Dreams room, the player can recruit one of these powerful Echoes in exchange for one of the Echoes they have.
  
  Scarlet: Applies Vulnerability and Pacification to enemies
  The Pied Piper: Applies Poison to enemies
  Beowulf: Applies Burn to enemies
  The Snow Queen: Applies Freeze to enemies
  Merlin: Applies Electrify to enemies
  

[h2]Balancing[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Onboarding: The following changes were done to improve the experience of new players, reducing the amount of mechanics presented at the start and unlocking them slowly for more digestibility:
  
  - Added a restriction to the Prowess Statues, the player must now defeat 3 Zodiacs (any) of each world to access the Prowess selection at the start of that world.
  
  - Adjusted the appearance of Imprint rooms and Blueprint loots in the early game, now they will only appear once the player has successfully reached the final boss at least once.
  
  - Adjusted the appearance chance of Star Guardians (Void Room) to reduce the difficulty of the early game. New players have to beat 2 World 1 Zodiacs (any) to unlock the Void room.
  
  - The 6 regular Star Guardians have been separated into 3 difficulty levels, new players will have to beat the first two to unlock the second two, and beat these two to find the last two.
  [hr][/hr]
• - Mana Steal gambits are not able to be evolved into astral rarity anymore, as it is too powerful.
  - Adjusted the prices for Gambit upgrades from The Sandman
  75, 150, 400 => 100, 200, 400 - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1

[h2]Interface[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Tutorial Improvements: - Added hints for the first time the player levels up
  - Added hint to the tutorial regarding the dash cooldown reset when hitting the enemy
  [hr][/hr]
• Added tips regarding room rewards (Gambits, Quartz, Keys...etc.) when selecting the next room
  [hr][/hr]
• Added the option to turn off room reward tips (on by default)
  

[h2]Narrative Design[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Russian translation has been completed - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1
  [hr][/hr]
• New Echoes description was the same for all echoes in Spanish - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1

[h2]Miscellaneous[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Negative Gambits now have their own icons.
  

[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• The Main Menu social icons would interact weirdly with mouse and produce a lot of noise by playing the SFX repeatedly
  [hr][/hr]
• One Andromeda challenge had visible background on the left - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1
  [hr][/hr]
• The Cursed Telescope new hint wasn't displayed - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1
  [hr][/hr]
• Auras Magic Weapon III and Warchief Bracers unique effects would conflict if the player had both auras equipped - ☄️ hotfix 2.5.1

- The Hibernian Workshop Team

• Discord Server
• Twitter Account
• Official Store

[h3]Worlds are colliding again! [/h3][p]We are beyond thrilled to announce our upcoming collaboration with the incredible world of Ravenswatch, arriving next week! [/p][p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p][h3]New Echoes[/h3][p]The heroes of Reverie join the Garden to support the fight against the Master as 5 powerful new Echoes. We’ve always been fans of Passtech Games, and adding Ravenswatch to our list of collabs is another very nice milestone for us.[/p][p][/p][h3]New Special Room: The Hourglass of Dreams[/h3][p]With this update, we’re also introducing a mystical new space: The Hourglass of Dreams, also inspired by the Ravenswatch universe, with a new mechanic for gambits! [/p][p][/p][p]We'll keep some suspense for now, but keep an eye on our Discord channel and on our socials to get sneak peeks of the upcoming content over the next few days! [/p][p][/p][h3]Mark your calendars for the 19th. The watch begins soon![/h3][p]
[/p]

[p]Hello everyone! :melhappy:
[/p][h2]Celestial Haven Charity DLC is out now![/h2][p]
[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]

[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]


Complete patch-notes:
[dynamiclink][/dynamiclink]


[/p][p]

This update is special to us and more than ever, your support is greatly appreciated as all our revenues and the one from our partners MP2 Games (porting and distributing Astral Ascent on console) and Raccoon Business (distributing Astral Ascent on smaller stores) will be entirely given to Animals Protection Association One Voice.
Buying this DLC will directly contribute to One Voice actions:
[/p]

• [p]Protecting animals from hunts (more than 1000 badgers and 100 000 birds saved this year alone)
  
  [/p]
• [p]Sanctuary for abused animals
  saved animals in One Voice sanctuaries[/p]
• [p]Shelters for stray cats with food and cares
  one of the many shelters for stray cats[/p]

[p]
---
If you want to know more about Stray Cats we highly recommend to you the manga named Cat Companions Maruru and Hachi by mangaka Yuri Sonoda which is very well documented (and very funny) about Stray Cats!


If One Voice fights speak to you, you can also make a direct donation to them on their website
And you can even directly sponsor animals if you want to!


[/p][p]

Meet 5 adorable companions who are going to come with you during your runs:

[/p]

• [p][/p]

[p][/p]

1. [p]Lupoare one of the rare animals found on Planet Lunides, often kept as pets by the royals due to their high intelligence and loyal and protective personalities Additionally, some specimens seem capable of small amounts of speech, such as saying "food" when they're hungry, and "play" when they want to have fun with their owner. Kiran says it resembles the wolves from Earth that were refugees with him on the Infinite Caravan.[/p]
2. [p]Vulpoare highly sought after due to their rarity. The last remnants of an unknown planet that were able to escape its destruction at the hands of The Master due to their high spiritual powers. These creatures are very intelligent and good at avoiding detection, and will use any trick they can think of to mislead those seeking after them, although that wasn't enough to stop The Master from capturing one of them. Octave thinks their multiple tails would get in the way of fighting.[/p]
3. [p]Panteroare prideful and strong animals, their size is misleading to those that underestimate them. Their bodies are capable of great feats of physical strength and have the capacity to enlarge their fangs to deliver fatal blows in self defense. Although they prefer to be solitary and hunt alone, they are playful and kind to those that treat them well. Although they were large in numbers on Planet Bilgames, the Planet of Leo, Sagitarrius and Aries, the ongoing drought that ravaged the planet reduced their numbers to near extinction. Ayla believes them to be the perfect companion for an Assassin like her.[/p]
4. [p]Grifoare majestic creatures spoken of in legends on many planets around the galaxy. On their home planet, they were at the top of the food chain, ruling both the skies and the earth. true to the legends that describe them. Their home planet was destroyed long ago by the Conquests of the Ancients, but Libra, who wonders if she has a soul, rescued one of them and kept it protected, until The Master gained control of her and added it to his collection. Calie relates to this creature due to its peaceful yet powerful and prideful disposition, "exactly like a true royal should be" she says.[/p]
5. [p]Draketoare dragonlings which share an ancient history with the Astral Dragons, descended from a fish that swam up the tallest waterfall on its home planet, which impressed an Astral Dragon so much that it used its mystical powers to grant it eternal life, evolved intelligence, and magic powers similar to its own. Although there aren't many of these creatures around the cosmos, they have an equal status as legendary beings as the Astral Dragons, and people often confuse the two due to their resemblance. One can say they are the spiritual descendants of Astral Dragons, which is why The Master had its eye on adding one to his collection. Yamat thinks that it doesn't matter if it's not an Astral Dragon, because it's still a Dragon, and "Dragons are cool as heck!"[/p]

[p]

Each of them come with 8 color variations (there are many references to find!) and you can equip 12 effects to them like Cherry Blossom Petals, Bubbles, Electricity and more!

During the runs they will follow you, do some celebrations (when you level up for example!) but they will also sometime dig up and find valuable items hidden!

A cozy new spot also make its apparition in the main hub where the pets will hang when they are not following you in missions! And guess what, you will be able to pet them! :zagpls:
[/p][p]
Let's announce a new roadmap as the previous one is outdated now!

Update 2.5 will be pretty small and will be focusing on new players, right now there is a ton of mechanics introduced very fast when playing the game and new players often feel a bit lost about all the mechanics so we want to make that easier for new players!

Update 2.6 will be a great collaboration with a roguelike we love playing, can't wait to show you that!

Update 2.7 for Steam Workshop integration should be wild, we have made great progress for it and you will be able to do so many things with the game!

We also still have a very big announcement for Astral Ascent that we are holding for now and that should come in Q1 2026 (something that we say is a big secret thing for more than a year)

In the meantime, thanks again to all of you for your support,

Have a great time in game,

- Louis
[/p]

⭐Changes inspired by our community!

[h2]Major Features[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• The Save&Quit system has been adjusted, you can still save and quit at the beginning of a room but now if you have a crash it will automatically resume to the start of the room.
  [hr][/hr]
• Companion Pets (Paid Charity DLC): 5 Pets with 8 colors on each and 12 effects to customize them who can follow you during your runs, celebrate your victories and dig hidden treasures!
  

[h2]Small Features[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• You can now find Echoes of your hero during runs to allow you to have access to all the build Echoes
  

[h2]Balancing[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Increased Sun Pieces multiplier limit from x3 to x10 depending on Destiny Levels
  [hr][/hr]
• The Cosmic Greed Telescope bonus now gives 2 more rewards in the Sun Room instead of 1 in co-op
  

[h2]Level Design[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Two new maps from previous update had small branching paths that were easy to miss, so a little sign was added to point the player in those directions
  

[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

[hr][/hr]
• Kiran Comet! spell was not working when launched by player 2
  [hr][/hr]
• Telluric Ruins reset SFX was triggered 2 times
  [hr][/hr]
• Pendulum Telescope effect could make first spell launched not working
  [hr][/hr]
• The Banker telescope bonus making 1 item free at Andromeda's Bar was applied before the Destiny Malus Inflation is applied making them higher than supposed
  [hr][/hr]
• The Poetic Peddler's Loyalty Card echo discount was applied before the Destiny Malus Inflation is applied making them higher than supposed
  [hr][/hr]
• The Pendulum Telescope bonus could clone imprint 4 times
  [hr][/hr]
• When pressing start and trying to quit, the save icon would not remain more than 0,5secs
  [hr][/hr]
• Sometimes flying enemies would spawn inside walls on certain maps
  

- The Hibernian Workshop Team

• Discord Server
• Twitter Account
• Official Store