Dorfromantik News

Feedback is essential for us to successfully add new features and improve Dorfromantik together with you. Of course, it helps us a lot if you are specifically trying to test features that we have listed up in the Beta Patch Notes for the current update.

🧪 Beta: If you also want to test new features earlier and help with your feedback the development of Dorfromantik, then find out here how you can participate in the public beta.

Note: We also released update 1.0.8 on the default branch today. It's a tiny patch including only a new monthly mode configuration for October. As soon as we confirmed the stability of 1.1.1, we will release it on the default branch. Patch 1.1.1 will include a new monthly mode configuration using the newly implemented world border custom rule which will replaced the configuration released in 1.0.8.

[h2]Hey everyone![/h2]
Long time no see. We have been busy ever since Gamescom with a whole lot of things. Pre- and Post-Gamescom business, the board game announcement, Tokyo Game Show, taking some much needed time off to rest - The list is long.
But we're here and ready to give you some new things to test! We hope to be able to deploy this update to the live branch relatively soon, and then be able to resubmit for Steam Deck Validation as well.

Read more about our current news here:
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/1455840/view/3292718271335073826

:Dorf_Field: BETA PATCH 1.1.1b PATCH NOTES :Dorf_Train:

This version includes all new features and content we developed for the Nintendo Switch version of Dorfromantik.

Challenges
• All challenges can now also be completed in Quick Mode & Hard Mode
  
• Added Landscaper level 6
  
  Sakura Biome
• New biome with cherry blossom theme
  
• New house visuals
  
• New special building visuals (e.g. windmill, tower, granary)
  
  Steam Deck Support
• This version should be the one to get Dorfromantik validated for Steam Deck
  
• Implemented keyboard functionality when trying to enter custom mode seed
  
  Clarity
• Now displaying game mode icons next to ingame score and game mode label in menu
  
  Bugfixes
• When placing tiles quickly with gamepad, prevent preview for new tile to overlap previously placed tile
  
• Fixed element group segment staying highlighted in tutorial after it has been previewed connected to a highlighted tutorial group once
  
• Fixed tutorial getting stuck when entering menu while transitioning from one tutorial phase to the next
  
• Prevent tile placement to stop working when switching game sessions after using a creative mode tool (destroy tile, generate matching tile etc.)
  
  Other
• Removed exponential difficulty custom rule
  
• Improved localization for many languages
  
• Reduced radius of camera movement outside of world bounds
  
• Don't show tile limit in custom mode if world border is more restricting than tile limit
  
• Increased max volume

Some of you might remember we took a hiatus from this in the beginning of the year to rejiggle the Showcase, make it less convoluted and open it up to more people. Well, it kinda fell to the wayside with all the 1.0 preparations but it finally is time for us to bring back the Creative Showcase!



We are sorry for the delay in this months Showcase, and would like to apologize in advance for the likely delay in next month's Showcase. The latter will be due right after Gamescom and we might not be able to get it done in time!


[h3]Changes to the Showcase[/h3]

There are three main changes to how we are handling the Showcase going forward:

• The Showcase will run MONTHLY instead of being on this weird 2-3 week rhythm.
  
• No more voting! It did cause a bunch of unnecessary overhead and at the end wasn't even utilized much.
  
• We are no longer restricting the Showcase to a Theme, and are opening it up to FAN ART (Including Memes!) as well! We will still provide Themes every month for those who would like an idea to work off of, though.

What we want to achieve with this new angle for the Showcase is to celebrate the communities', YOUR, creativity. We don't need to vote on who's the most creative or anything, it's all a celebration of your awesome stuff!

We are also changing how you submit pieces for the Creative Showcase. From now on, any and all submissions have to be made via this form which will allow us to catalogue all submissions internally with all necessary info pertaining to them.


[h3]Theme Suggestion[/h3]

Not sure what to create for the Showcase? Try to limit the size of your build to a radius of 8 Tiles! We'd also love to see some #IRLromantik!




This Showcase features a mix of submissions and great screenshots found on Steam!


Dorfromantik Artwork by Byo

Dorfromantea by Sheroine (IG)


Final Stop: Arctic Circle by Wade

Winter Grain Belt by TDN_Mike

Nordic Windmill by Levy

Wetlands Village by Polite Whale

Village Scene by Mondflieder

Pretzelromantik by Alleeelex


Riverside Urban by Blackfore$t


Town huddled in a Forest by Arenpov




Thank you to everyone who submitted something for this month's Showcase!
We hope you enjoy this new, more casual format as much as we do!

Stay safe! 💙💛

We're happy to announce that we will be bringing Dorfromantik to Gamescom 2022 as part of the Indie Arena Booth!
If you are planning on visiting Gamescom, come visit us on the IAB in Hall 10.2, Booth F020g - E-021g.

If you are Press or a Content Creator and would like to set up an appointment to talk Dorfromantik or Toukana Interactive, you can use both the IAB's Matchmaking, as well as contact us directly. :)

Feedback is essential for us to successfully add new features and improve Dorfromantik together with you. Of course, it helps us a lot if you are specifically trying to test features that we have listed up in the Beta Patch Notes for the current update.

🧪 Beta: If you also want to test new features earlier and help with your feedback the development of Dorfromantik, then find out here how you can participate in the public beta.

[h2]Hey there everyone![/h2]
We just wanted to say Thank You! to everybody who has provided feedback since release, and apologize Comms went a bit more silent.
Truth be told we have been, and still are, busy as bees! We're not quite ready to talk about what lies in the future for Dorfromantik, and Toukana as a studio but rest assured, we'll have more to talk about soon™! Implementing proper, full controller support has also been a bit more of a fight than we would have liked. As it turns out, not quite as straight-forward as mapping controls to some additional buttons.

We are very interested in feedback for all sorts of controllers. From the good old 360 Pads, to Dual Sense, Pro controllers and, if you're a masochist, your Community Toukan would love some reports about playability with Rockband/Guitar Hero instrument controllers!

[h2]BETA PATCH 1.1 PATCH NOTES[/h2]

Controller Support
• Added Gamepad controls for all ingame actions
  
• All Menus now fully controllable via Gamepad
  
• Creative Mode tools accessible on Gamepad via new radial menu
  
• Adaptive UI behaviour displaying buttons and UI elements depending on used input device
  
• Added tooltips displaying gamepad button hotkeys
  
• Added separate tutorial texts for Gamepad input
  
  Performance
• Up to 40% improvement in memory usage
  
• Added "Mesh Quality" dropdown to boost rendering performance
  
• Improved Undo performance
  
• Reduced game size by 15%
  
• Various other performance improvements throughout the game
  
  Usability
• Offscreen Quest Markers now display offscreen quest counts & their current completion state
  
• Offscreen Quest markers automatically appear when previewing a tile affecting an offscreen quest
  
  Clarity
• Scale Quest bubbles when zooming out to preserve their readability
  
• Improved visuals of preplaced tiles when Post Processing is switched off
  
  Custom Mode
• Added new custom rule: World Border. Play with world border to restrict playing area by given radius Note: Undo doesn't currently work correctly when tiles are skipped due to not having any available tile slots.
  
• Added new custom rule: Exponential Difficulty. Change difficulty increase to be exponential instead of linear and decide the exponential difficulty increase factor
  
  Localization
• Updated Spanish translation
  
• Updated Arabic translation
  
• Added Estonian translation
  
• Added Czech translation
  
  Bugfixes
• Fixed bug that caused Undo on Game Over screen to stop working
  
• Decoration is no longer displayed on tile stack or preview tiles when turned off in settings

Stay safe! 💙💛

Some of you might remember we took a hiatus from this in the beginning of the year to rejiggle the Showcase, make it less convoluted and open it up to more people. Well, it kinda fell to the wayside with all the 1.0 preparations but it finally is time for us to bring back the Creative Showcase!


[h3]Changes to the Showcase[/h3]

There are three main changes to how we are handling the Showcase going forward:

• The Showcase will run MONTHLY instead of being on this weird 2-3 week rhythm.
  
• No more voting! It did cause a bunch of unnecessary overhead and at the end wasn't even utilized much.
  
• We are no longer restricting the Showcase to a Theme, and are opening it up to FAN ART (Including Memes!) as well! We will still provide Themes every month for those who would like an idea to work off of, though.

What we want to achieve with this new angle for the Showcase is to celebrate the communities', YOUR, creativity. We don't need to vote on who's the most creative or anything, it's all a celebration of your awesome stuff!

We are also changing how you submit pieces for the Creative Showcase. From now on, any and all submissions have to be made via this form which will allow us to catalogue all submissions internally with all necessary info pertaining to them.


[h3]Theme Suggestion[/h3]

Not sure what to create for the Showcase? It is hot, so anything that promises some cooling off will do! We'd also love to see some #IRLromantik!



For this month, we will stay with submissions by our community. We are, however, also always looking at the great screenshots and artwork uploaded to Steam's Community Hub for Dorfromantik. 😉

To start off, here is an example of #IRLromantik by our community Toukan, Dom


The Apple Delta and Estuary Area by Sheroine (IG)


Welcome to the Apple Delta and Estuary Area, where it starts from Altitude Lake, running along Orchid River, where it reaches a lake shaped like an apple at a delta, then finally meets the sea at an estuary. You will find a few settlements inland, and a vast wilderness to explore. Be it Antler Woods or the Lost Ruins in the forest, Winter's Village or the Enchanter's Hamlet, they sure would offer you an experience you won't forget. Seafarers fear not, travel to the outer islands for the Tropical Archipelago for a surprise. Or search for the Isle of Time. Or find the Frosted Fish with a cranky old man named Ivan who lives away from the rest of town. Surely you'll find wonder, one islet at a time.
Come and explore, adventure awaits!



Island Railway by Wade

Stokespond River Delta by aKiss4Luck (Twitch)


A showcase submission by OldCuppa (Twitter)


Yippie-ya-yeah-Pacman Reviver by Covergirl1469

Estonia by Ed Keppler

A mostly accurate map of Estonia.

Winter Wonderland by TDN_Mike (As if he'd known our plans for this months suggestion!)

River Scene by TDN_Mike

Ukraine by TDN_Mike



Thank you to everyone who submitted something for this month's Showcase!
We hope you enjoy this new, more casual format as much as we do!

Stay safe! 💙💛