AK-xolotl: Together News

Hey there!

We're excited to present to you Quality of Life Update #3 with a hint of Halloween magic! As always, we've sorted out crucial bugs and tweaked the game balance, but guess what? The Pond has received a festive makeover, giving it a spooky new look! Embrace the Halloween spirit with eerie decorations and seek out the thrilling Halloween-themed axolittles!



And because we believe there's no such thing as too many axolittles, we've brought you a special treat in the form of collaboration axolittles from Revita, Moonlighter, Blasphemous, and Odinfall. Also, in response to popular demand, both Twitch drops axolittles are now available to all players! All of these new axolittles can be encountered during your runs.

Remember, our first major content update is on the way in late November, and we're eager to unveil all the fantastic new features we've been working on. So, stay tuned for that! You can also check our updated roadmap here.

In the meantime, we invite you to join our Discord server and be a part of the coolest Pond Residents. Also, If you've been having a great time with AK-xolotl, we would be extremely grateful if you could take a moment to share your thoughts by leaving a review on our Steam store page!



Here's the rundown of changes and improvements included in this update:

[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• Fixed the issue where applying a weapon specialization to an axolotl would only take effect when swapping it for another one
  
• Fixed the bug with the Moosequeteer enemy where it would get stuck in corners and take a long time to attach the player
  
• Fixed the issue where HP items and HP increase from HP room would apply to axolotls with the Chaotic class. HP related items are now excluded from the Chaotic class item pool
  
• Remapping a keybind to B on gamepad will no longer cause the settings menu to close
  
• Fixed the bug where restarting a run while the clear room reward chest is spawning would cause it to transition to the new run
  
• Fixed visual bugs with both Twitch and Chadlotl axolotls
  
• Sharpener item bullets now properly applies to snipers as well
  
• Additional, the sharpener item bullets will no longer travel across obstacles
  
• Fixed issue where rebinding the ability button would cause the original bind to still be active as well (AZERTY keyboard players will now have a better experience)
  
• Fixed a visual bug with the Big Heart item description in the item shop
  
• Astronaut Axolotl now has a proper eating animation
  
• Fixed the issue with dart traps hitting the walls when they activate
  
• Fixed collider issues in tutorial room walls
  
• Fixed the issue with some item effects transitioning to a fresh run when using the restart option
  
• Fixed the issue where restarting/abandoning a run while in a Shop Room or Challenge Room would give an error or start the new run with the player on a Challenge Room
  
• Fixed the HP cap for Axolotl mode so it doesn’t go above the intended 10 HP
  
• Fixed the bug where the Summon Ability was not spawning an item
  

[h2]Balance[/h2] Weapons:

• Phaser: damage increased from 36 to 55
  
• Scatterer: damage increased from 35 to 38 and magazine size increased from 4 to 6
  
• Pond Eagle: damage increased from 44 to 54 and accuracy improved from -5 to -4
  
• AK: damage increased from 44 to 60, fire rate increased from 0.3 to 0.28 and accuracy improved from 7 to 5
  
• Hoggen: damage increased from 190 to 195
  
• U.Z.1: damage increased from 35 to 45, accuracy improved from 12 to 10 and magazine size increased from 20 to 25
  
• Vermintor: max ammo increased from 250 to 300
  
• Regulator & Blaster: damage increased from 55 to 60
  
• All snipers: removed default piercing effect (it can still be obtained via Items)
  

Items:

• Orange Juice: shields given changed from +1 to +2
  
• Sharpener: damage modification removed (was -30% dmg)
  
• Mutant Fish: accuracy changed from -5 to -4
  
• Robo Hand: damage changed from +30% to 75%
  
• Time Based Rounds: growing overtime changed from 10% to 25%
  

[h2]Other[/h2]

• Items will now automatically equip after selecting them from the chest, instead of dropping on the floor
  
• Twitch drops axolittles are now available for all players, no matter if they participated in the event
  
• Halloween Hub decorations + new Halloween axolittles are now available
  
• New collaboration axolittles from the following games are now available: Revita, Moonlighter, Blasphemous and Odinfall
  
• Added a MAC OS build + support
  

Hey there!

We're thrilled to bring you Quality of Life Update #2. This time, we're diving into some high-priority bug fixes and making a few balance tweaks to keep things fresh. We'd like to remind you that we're already cooking up some exciting new content for a big update coming your way in November. But in the meantime, we're determined to keep refining your experience with regular Quality of Life and Bug Fixes patches to solidify the already released content in preparation for the new things coming.



As always, we want to invite you to join our Discord server and be a part of the close-knit community we have fostered there! Additionally, it will also be the best place to report any bugs you may encounter or leave your heartfelt feedback and suggestions.

Thanks for your unwavering support. We can't wait to share more with you soon!



So, here’s the list of changes and improvements coming in this update:


[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• Fixed the issue where hazards (spikes, acid barrels, etc.) could damage the player multiple times and invulnerability time wasn’t being applied
  
• Fixed the issue where re-rolling items in the shops made them appear without a price, so players could get them for free
  
• Eldritch Meat recipes should no longer be displayed in red in the Cooking menu if the player has enough currency
  
• Damage items should now properly apply to explosive weapons
  
• Boony death explosions will now properly display below the enemy and should no longer chase the player
  
• Total save slot playtime will no longer reset
  
• When swapping weapons while using a gamepad, crosshair should no longer randomly change direction
  
• When swapping weapons while using the “Player” focused camera, the camera will no longer do a snap animation
  
• Fixed the issue where reloading the main weapon and then swapping to the secondary weapon would grant players with additional ammo
  
• The “pet” prompt should now be properly displayed when approaching your Axolittles
  
• The “black screen” issue that was happening to some players should now be fixed
  

[h2]QoL (Quality of Life)[/h2]

Big Paws (bear enemy):
• Big Paws has taken a breather and decided to stop the nonstop firing frenzy!
  
  Other:
• Chest no longer have collision (this will avoid bosses/enemies getting stuck in chests or doorways being blocked by chests as well)
  
• Added a confirmation window before deleting a save file (say goodbye to those accidental deletions!)
  

[h2]Balance[/h2] Weapons:

• Unlock price for Epic Weapons has been reduced
  

Items:

• Mutant Fish: from -50% dmg and -7 accuracy to -50% dmg and -5 accuracy (bullets will go in a more straight pattern)
  
• Beer: from -40% dmg and -4 accuracy to -30% dmg and -2 accuracy (bullets will go in a more straight pattern)
  
• Glutton Bullets: from +80% dmg to +50% dmg
  
• Battery: from 75 dmg to 100 dmg
  
• Pendant: from 20-150 dmg to 60-150 dmg
  

Shops:

• Hyena shop will now show higher rarity Items and Weapons
  

Enemy Adjustments:

• More Caterkillah spawns during biome 1 and 2
  

We are excited to share that we are participating in Steam SHUMP Fest! It's time to pick up your weapon and blast your way through the animal kingdom in AK-xolotl!

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/34987/AKxolotl__Soundtrack/

We would also like to use this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to the community for your unwavering support. Be sure to stay tuned, as we have even more exciting updates planned for later this year!


Stay connected 💚

Hello Pond Residents,

To begin, we'd like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who have supported our game throughout its development journey, and even now, following its official launch. The positive feedback has reinforced our confidence in this project, and the constructive criticism has only fueled our passion to continue to work and make it even better.




Since launch, we've been collecting feedback from various sources, including Steam, our community Discord server, and other social media platforms. This "Quality of Life Update" arrives just one week after launch and primarily focuses on addressing bugs and making immediate quality of life improvements. But rest assured, this is just the beginning. We're committed to our promise of delivering regular updates, not only to address bugs but also to introduce new content and refine existing systems, all based on your invaluable feedback.

To each and every person who has purchased the game or supported us in any way, we extend our heartfelt appreciation. On behalf of the entire 2Awesome Studio team, we want to say: THANK YOU!
Lastly, we want to invite all of you to join our Discord server, where you'll find dedicated channels for feedback, bug reports, game discussions, and more. Become part of our extended family; we'd love to have you with us!



So, here’s the list of changes and improvements coming in this update:


[h2]Bug Fixes[/h2]

• Faith ability now deals damage to bosses
  
• Fixed the issue of players taking damage during boss execution cutscenes
  
• Fixed the issue where sometimes picking up the same weapon was decreasing your ammo
  
• Items picked up during runs will now properly display on the left side of the screen
  
• Ghost Bullets item will no longer make bullets go through the 5th boss wall tentacle attack (so you will now be able to damage them)
  
• Fixed Capitalism item issue where your damage would drop drastically after buying something from the Hyena shop room
  
• Helmet item will now properly protect against all kinds of explosions
  
• Fixed the issue where older saves were not unlocking shops in the HUB
  
• Snake boss projectiles no longer push the player away
  
• Fixed the issue where players couldn’t buy from the Hyena shop room even when having enough Doraditos
  
• Fixed the issue with the Devil Croakker flame hitting the player after 2 extra seconds after disappearing
  
• Fixed the issue with the level report screen showing wrong information and the game not saving the currency that the player got during the run (no more crocodile has killed you in level report after beating the boss)
  
• Reduced the size of spikes hitboxes
  
• Fish axolittle is now properly evolving (was evolving to Mud Whooper axolotl previously)
  
• Fixed the issue where flying enemies weren’t being hit by explosions
  
• After finishing a run, buttsliding across the hub and talking to an NPC will no longer block the dialogues
  

[h2]QoL (Quality of Life)[/h2]

Blisstaker:
• Moved Blisstaker closer to the axolittles area
  
• Reduced Blisstaker time to appear condition (from 3 runs after hatching a baby to 1 run)
  
  Weapons:
• Reduced Pond Eagle primary weapon unlock condition (from 4 runs to 1 run)
  
  Other:
• Cooking pot and Blisstaker menu now have a red text instead of gray when the player can't afford something
  
• Nugget, the chicken got tired of all the clucking and is now silent
  
• New MAX HP Up room icon as many people were confusing it with a healing only room
  

[h2]Balance[/h2] Weapons:

• Ratvolver: Damage reduced from 80 to 70
  
• U.Z.1: Damage increased from 32 to 35
  
• Hoggen: Damage reduced from 190 to 180
  
• Beheader: Attack speed reduced from 0.9 to 1
  
• Katana:Attack speed reduced from 0.7 to 0.8
  
• Axe-lotl: Attack speed reduced from 1 to 1.1
  
• Hydra & Hammerhead: Damage reduced from 700 to 600
  
• Zap-Cannon: Damage increased from 80 to 120
  
• All Secondary SMG: Damage increased from 28 to 30
  

Axolotls: Reduced grind on weapon spec selection, cost goes down from 8 to 5 Cookies

• Classes: Modified to make them more different from each other
  
• Chonky: Health changed from 3HP/2 Shield to 5HP
  
• Slippery: Health changed from 1HP/2 Shield to 2HP/2 Shield
  
• Greedy: Health changed from 1HP/1 Shield to 3HP
  
• Maniac: Health changed from 2HP to 2HP/1 Shield
  
• Rager: Health changed from 2HP/1 Shield to 4HP
  

Abilities:

• Cancel: Charge reduced from 6500 to 5000
  
• Lotzilla: Charge reduced from 12000 to 10000
  

Enemy Adjustments:

• Adjusted the score given by the enemies, there was a manual error, and all the enemies were giving 10 scores after biome 2
  
• Bull Lee: Movement speed reduced from 3 to 2.5
  
• Sock It Snake: HP reduced from 16200 to 15000
  

Cooking: Values modified to reduce the grind in the early game

• Slightly Spiced Salad: Ingredients changed from "25 Herbs" to "15 Herbs"
  
• Veggie Fish: Ingredients changed from "22 Herbs and 24 Fish" to "17 Herbs"
  
• Courageous Potatoes: Ingredients changed from "28 Herbs and 21 Salt" to "16 Herbs"
  
• Salt-Baked Bass: Ingredients changed from "20 Fish and 26 Salt" to "14 Fish and 16 Salt"
  
• Rice with Things: Ingredients changed from "24 Fish, 26 Mushroom and 25 Eldritch Meat" to "12 Herbs, 10 Fish and 13 Mushroom"
  
• Sweet Grilled Shroom: Ingredients changed from "31 Honey and 27 Mushroom" to "11 Herbs, 5 Honey and 15 Mushroom"
  
• Sauteed Tentacles: Ingredients changed from "31 Mushroom and 33 Eldritch Meat" to "15 Salt and 14 Eldritch Meat"
  
• Honey Cream: Ingredients changed from "20 Herbs and 25 Honey" to "12 Herbs"
  
• Vegan Muffin: Ingredients changed from "25 Herbs" to "14 Herbs"
  
• Anchovy Juice: Ingredients changed from "34 Fish" to "13 Fish"
  
• Pit Candy: Ingredients changed from "32 Fish and 33 Eldritch Meat" to "15 Fish and 15 Honey"
  
• Salty Lollipop: Ingredients changed from "36 Salt and 36 Honey" to "11 Salt and 16 Honey"
  
• Hallucinogenic Pie: Ingredients changed from "22 Mushroom and 33 Eldritch Meat" to "18 Herbs, 13 Honey and 14 Mushroom"
  
• Cursed Ice Cream: Ingredients changed from "30 Salt and 39 Eldritch Meat" to "15 Eldritch Meat"
  

[h2]✨AK-xolotl OUT NOW✨[/h2]

The long-awaited moment has arrived! AK-xolotl is now officially available on Steam!

It's been an incredible journey, and we can't thank our fantastic team and this amazing community enough for making it all happen.

During the launch period, AK-xolotl is available at a 10% discount, so grab it fast!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1479140/AKxolotl/



[h2]💜Twitch Drop💜[/h2]

But that's not all! We're thrilled to announce a Twitch drop event to unlock EXCLUSIVE axolotls! Simply watching for one hour will grant you Axolotl_TTV, and after an additional two hours of viewing, you'll unlock Gigalotl. Hurry, as this event concludes on September 21st, so don't miss out!





[h2]☀️Post Launch Roadmap☀️[/h2]

Wait, there's more! The launch is just the beginning of our journey together. We've unveiled the post-launch roadmap, and there are A'LOTL exciting things on the horizon. Expect new rooms, challenging bosses, and limited-time only Axolotls for you to unlock! We're bursting with excitement to reveal all the amazing surprises!



[h2]💚AMA💚[/h2]

Any questions that you want answered about AK-xolotl? Hop onto our Reddit AMA session that will be hosted on:

September 14th 11am PT/ 8pm CET

• r/Games: https://www.reddit.com/r/Games/
• r/PS5: https://www.reddit.com/r/PS5/
• r/XboxSeriesX: https://www.reddit.com/r/XboxSeriesX/

September 15th 11am PT/ 8pm CET

• r/Nintendo Switch: https://www.reddit.com/r/NintendoSwitch/

We genuinely hope you enjoy AK-xolotl, and we eagerly await your feedback and suggestions for the game. If you haven't already, please join our Discord community and share your AK-xolotl experiences with us!

Thanks for the support, and let's dive into this adventure together!


Stay connected 💚