Critter Cove News

[p]Our September update has just landed, bringing new quests, fresh decorative items, a shiny Codex menu, controller improvements, and of course plenty of bug fixes. [/p][p][/p][p]Even better: it arrives just in time for the Steam Autumn Sale! We'll be joining th sale a little early in fact, with a 30% discount starting this evening (Friday 26th September).
[/p][h3]New Farming Quests[/h3][p][/p][p]The farms in the enchanted biome need your help, so sail over to Port Bella and chat with Haystack to get started. And if you’ve completed the other farming quests, check in with Pitchfork or Applecore for some new requests.  [/p][p][/p][p]Alongside the one-off adventures, there’s also a new, repeatable quest from Haystack that you can do to earn more tickets whenever you’re running low.[/p][p][/p][h3]Decorative Doors and Windows
[/h3][p]Feeling a little claustrophobic? Is the lack of door color options making you a little unhinged?
[/p][p]Fear not, for you can now add a variety of different door and window designs to your homes with this charming range of peculiar portals.[/p][h3]
New Codex Menu
[/h3][p]We’ve been transforming our crafting menu into a codex, which means you’re now able to see items easier, filter different categories, and see exactly how close you are to unlocking everything:[/p][p]
[/p][p]And this is just the beginning — in upcoming updates, the Codex will grow into a full collection catalogue, packed with item info and long-term progress tracking.
[/p][h3]Quality of Life and Controller Improvements[/h3][h3][/h3][p]We’ve polished the controller experience (especially on Steam Deck) and added new options for customizing control sensitivity.[/p][p][/p][p]For the full list of these improvements, you can check our patch notes.
[/p][p]We’re always looking for more ways to improve the moment-to-moment experience in Critter Cove, so if you have any suggestions, please drop them over to us in Discord or in the forum, as we’ll be working on adding some in every single update.[/p][p][/p][h3]Population Increase and new NPCs
[/h3][p]We’ve added a brand new house for residents or the player to pick from, increasing the maximum resident population from 17 to 18 critters. Which is good news, since we’ve also added three new NPCs to the game as well: Melody, Zalika and Bolt to rescue at your pleasure.
[/p][p][/p][p]We’re already hard at work on another update for October with more quests, more quality of life upgrades… and even new music![/p][p][/p][p]See you on the island![/p][p]
Critter Cove Team[/p]

✨ New Features
Farmer Quests: Added new quests and repeatable quests.
Interior Decoration: New doors and windows.
Housing: Added another house → population cap increased from 17 → 18 critters.
Crafting Codex: Crafting menu reworked into a codex with item filtering and exact completion progress tracking (more improvements coming soon).
NPCs: 3 new NPCs added.

🛠 Quality of Life
Fish are now sent to your mailbox if your inventory is full.
You can now rename your character using a mirror.
Crafting machine timers reduced.
Options menu updated for clarity and usability.

🖥 UI
Controller navigation fixes (no more getting “lost” in menus).
Resolution selection button lets you preview options without applying them immediately.

Increased font sizes for:
Donation box info (better on Steam Deck).
Button prompts & map legend (improved legibility across languages).

Quest tracker language now updates instantly when switching languages.
Fixed UI overlaps in some languages.
Fixed bug where UI caused accidental wrong-item crafting.
Cooking menu scrollbar now follows selected items.

🎮 Controls
Independent horizontal & vertical sensitivity sliders (mouse/controller).
Holding D-pad scrolls through items quickly.
Fixed Steam controls reverting to trackpads as camera input.
B-button no longer advances dialogue (avoids accidental skips).
Y-button in cooking menu now resets scrollbar position.

🐛 Other Fixes & Adjustments
Pokee now checks if you already own a watering can.
Fixed persistent robot sound bug.
Cloud save support added for non-Steam platforms.
Removed demo text where no demo exists.
Fixed multiple collision issues, missing items, and floating objects.
Critters no longer react incorrectly to disliked gifts.
“Great Crab Stone” quest no longer removes multiple diving suits.
Fixed hat hair & leaf hairstyles on humans.
Fixed turtle head mask. (This will fix Sly’s colors)
Bone dragon wings & curled tail added to the character creator.
Meowise at Carn-A-Vale is now visible.
NPCs no longer stalk players after quest rejection.
Fixed dialogue bugs in Berry Problems and tavern scenarios for athletic characters.
Poconut trees should fit better in single use planters.
Room Divider furniture item now allows for wall items to be placed on it.
Bakery food items & Soda can now be picked up if placed directly on the ground.
Changed the icon for Woolington’s quest key to look different from the keys townies give you.
You can now place some wall items to a few walls of the Workshop interior.

[p]Last month we launched our biggest update yet - the Enchanted Islands Update!

We’ve followed that up this month with a big bug fix update this month that squashes over fifty bugs and general annoyances reported by players.
[/p][p]We also sneaked a few improvements in as well: There’s a new house available for Critters to move into, and the light on the tub boat actually illuminates things now!

[/p][p]Check out the full patch notes for more info, and please continue to report any problems on either Discord or the Steam forums, we read and organise every single report even if we can’t solve everything straight away.
[/p][h3]So, What's Next?
[/h3][p]We don’t have an exact release date yet, but we plan to launch into 1.0 in Summer 2026.[/p][p]That’s a little longer in Early Access than we originally had planned – we had originally been thinking of launching towards the end of this year. [/p][p]We’ve had a fantastic reception at Critter Cove so far, and we want to make sure when we do finally launch we’re all absolutely satisfied with the finished game.[/p][p]Instead of having longer waits and throwing a lot out all at once, we’ll be working on bringing out smaller updates on a more regular basis. Not quite every month -- but close to it![/p][p]Our plan is that each update should have a mix of brand new content like new items and quests, alongside bug fixes and quality of life updates. Of course we also have several major new features planned, but more on those as we get them confirmed….[/p][h3]
New Team Members


[/h3][p]We've been quietly growing the team here at the studio -- which we've been able to do thanks to your support both in buying and talking about the game, so thanks so much for helping our Early Access be a success!

We're happy to announce our new developer Nuno (Aurelius) and QA Manager Cariolan (Cariobs) both of whom have been for a while and have played a big part in our recent updates!

And most recently of all, your very blog writer himself, Rob (DrWayward), has joined the team full time after working with us in the background for many years - pictured above at Gamescom several years ago and this very morning, wearing his Critter Cove x Gay Pride shirt.

With a new programmer, QA and hopefully - if Rob can work out all the buttons - designer on board, we've got an great team to bring the game through to launch![/p][h3]
Survey[/h3][p][/p][p]The other great thing about Early Access is that we can act on your feedback… So once again we’re asking for your thoughts on the game in a quick survey!

If you get a chance to tell us what you think about Critter Cove so far, then filling it out before August 24th will enter you into a draw to win $60 of Steam games.
[/p][h3]Consoles
[/h3][p]We plan to bring Critter Cove to consoles at around the same time as our 1.0 launch on PC. That includes Xbox, PlayStation and Switch 2.[/p][p][/p][p]We’re still looking into the feasibility of a version on the original Switch. We’d love to do a version for the original Switch still, but Critter Cove is a fairly graphically intense game and we’ll only do so if we can guarantee performance will be good.[/p]

Fix for switching languages caused a loss of resolution settings.

🎮 Platform & System Updates
* Sort saves by the most recent one loaded.


* Fixed crash when loading corrupted data.



🚢 Boats & Vehicles
* Added a spot light to the tub boat’s light so it actually acts as a light source.


* Boat icon on the map is now darker and purple for better visibility.


* Fixed holes inside cruise boat (near interior doors).


* Doors to floating shipwreck cabins should now be destructible.

📦 Inventory & Items
* Fixed issue allowing items to be placed repeatedly if only one was left in inventory.


* All bakery items should now be correctly placeable.


* Bamboo Bookcase variant colors should not revert to the original when picked up. 


* Fixed item placement and collision issues across various maps.


* Added wonky sauce spawn locations to Wonky Burger Ruins on Carn A Vale.


* Fixed multiple issues with feet slots and swapped footwear combinations.


* Fixed some issues with peg legs and other shoes.


* No longer displaying both shoe slots if there is a shoe alt slot being used



🍳 Crafting, Cooking & Furnishings
* Crafting station image now matches the selected station.


* Loom will now play animation while active.


* Fixed issues with Solid and Advanced Forges not displaying VFX and SFX correctly.


* Fixed issue with cooking pot not displaying animation correctly.


* Added SFX to drinking animation.


* Fixed crab molding material and farmer/mushroom wallpaper (vertical stripes).


* Salt can now be used in any recipe that requires salty ingredients.



🛏️ Characters & Animation
* Critters will no longer try to align with the player when turning in an item while they are sitting


* Fixed characters facing the player incorrectly when delivering items from a ride or seated position.


* Critters should now correctly use other types of benches instead of just the Park Bench


* Characters will now sit correctly on the Rockinghorse furniture item.


* Items should no longer be stuck in Critters hands when turning in commissions.


* Items will be put away correctly during some Fetch quests for Grumpy and Weird personalities.


* Farmer blouse should no longer occlude the pelvis if worn on its own


* Increased population cap from 16 to 17 citizens.



🗺️ World, Terrain & Nodes
* Made it so a number of resource nodes on Critter Cove will not respawn after being dismantled. May have to dismantle them one last time after they respawn next.


* Added missing terrain tiles so that certain routes on the map can have more direct sailing.


* Fixed terrain seams and smoothing around the workshop.


* Radio Control Tower Quest now tells you the correct otter to turn the Control Panel into.


* Added more round ceramic planter resource nodes to the world


* Added more oar resource nodes to the world.


* Added animation to the fish and cart ride parts when dismantling


* Removed barber pole spawn.


* Sourbouys should no longer float above planters when fully grown.


* Unlocked additional player and NPC house Critter Cove.




🏘️ Collision & Placement Fixes
* Fixed issue with shovel use animation when used outside of certain areas.


* Fixed missing collision around:


* Rigg’s Outpost


* Sunken city


* Sunken houses near Port Bella


* Woolington quest rocks


* Barn near Port Bella


* Fixed issue with collision meshes not loading properly at start of new game because of a bug in character creation.


* Added additional checks to ensure loading of colliders and meshes.


* Meowise Painting and Mouse Statue should now display correctly in the museum.


* Fixed light/collision on museum ceiling lamps.


* Added ceiling lamps to the original museum wing.



🧑‍🤝‍🧑 NPCs, Dialog & Behavior
* Sprout will now have something to say when they are on the way to or from the Farmers Market.


* Added more tourist dialog for when they are moving between tourist attractions.


* Fixed error where tourists were not talking if doing Baitshop activities


* Added better behavior for when Critters and Tourists are interacting with deco plants.


* Tourists using soap boxes should have correct conversations now.


* Critters should no longer follow the player around if a home visit quest is rejected.


* Fixed duplicate scenario spawning during storm refreshes.


* Fixed issue with scenario replacement when already talking to a critter.


* Copperbottom will no longer offer his personal quest until after the player has completed Renard quest and made the pirate suit.


* Anchor’s pipe will no longer be sticking through the shutters when the port office is closed.



🧩 Quest & Scenario Fixes
* Fixed issue with being able to give character friendship bracelets before they ask for them


* Added map tracking for Farmers after quest completion.


* Fixed issue where quest completion state wasn’t saved properly after reload.


* Critters should no longer invite you over to their house if they are still living in a tent


* Rum Runner quest should no longer be repeatable. Also any duped quest should now be correctly cleaned up.


* Updated lookie-loo soup scenario.



🧪 UI, Icons, and Technical Checks
* Fixed Credits UI "Back" button missing controller mapping.


* Small islands will now show up on the maps as a special island icon.


* Fixed load game UI breaking when deleting characters.


* Improved picking resolutions in the settings screen.