Surrounded News

[h2]Hi Steam Community,[/h2][p][/p][p]You guys must be some of the most patient people ever, haha, and I really appreciate it. Surrounded’s Rebuild was originally planned for release last year, but sadly that didn't happen. There just aren’t enough hours in the day, and I don’t want to rush it again. I broke your trust with the initial release back in 2023 since it launched in a messy state, so this time I want to deliver the version you truly deserve. That said, I do have some exciting news for those of you who can’t wait. In my spare time I’ve been remaking the old game, which I plan to release as a maintenance update while the rebuild continues. It’s the same game, same premise, same monsters, just with a lot more polish, optimization and no game-breaking bugs. To be clear, this is not the rebuild, but an update that makes the old game properly playable while you wait for the redesigned version. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone supporting this project. Surrounded is my dream game, and I need the time to get it right.[/p][p][/p][h3]Surrounded: Maintenance Update releasing February 2026 [/h3][p]What can I expect in february's update?[/p]

• [p]Major performance overhaul[/p]
  • [p]Smoother gameplay, higher and more stable FPS across the board[/p]
• [p]Extensive bug fixes[/p]
  • [p]The most stable and polished build of Surrounded to date[/p]
• [p]Significantly smarter AI[/p]
  • [p]Enemies react faster, hunt smarter, and punish mistakes harder[/p]
• [p]Reworked, more focused map design[/p]
  • [p]Less dead space, more tension, better flow[/p]
• [p]Greatly improved replayability[/p]
  • [p]More variation, more unpredictability, more reasons to come back[/p]
• [p]Dozens of quality-of-life improvements[/p]
  • [p]Faster interactions, cleaner UI, and a smoother overall experience[/p]

[p][/p][p]Excited to see you jumping back into Echofield :) [/p][p][/p][p]Cheers,[/p][p]Patrick[/p]

[p]I just wanted to let you all know that I appreciate your patience so much, and I'm still working on getting Surrounded: Rebuild ready for launch. This last year has been packed with a lot of work, and though I've tried to keep the Discord as up to date as possible, I figured it was time for a Steam post. This will have some new information, but also info that’s been previously accessible in the Discord.[/p][p][/p][p]First off, we’re still aiming to release this year. I'm a one-man team and the only one working on it, so it still does take some time, but progress is steady.[/p][p][/p][h2]What's new in the rebuild compared to the old Surrounded?[/h2][h3]Well, a lot. Such as:[/h3][p]For the OGs (Day & Night)[/p]

• [p]If you’ve been following Surrounded since its early TikTok days in 2020–2021, you know we’ve always planned to include a dynamic day-and-night cycle as a core feature. That feature is finally returning! Surrounded will now have a fully integrated day-and-night cycle that drastically affects gameplay depending on the time of day.[/p]

[p]Way Better Visuals[/p]

• [p]Surrounded now utilizes Unreal Engine 5’s Lumen and Nanite systems, delivering outstanding visual quality. Lumen’s advanced lighting significantly enhances the atmosphere, creating a more immersive and realistic experience.[/p]

[p]Protecting Yourself[/p]

• [p]In the Surrounded rebuild, you protect yourself not with weapons, but through strategic gameplay. Find something lying around? Throw it! Old cans, rocks, branches, use whatever you need to escape tricky situations. You’ll also be able to lock doors, barricade yourself inside rooms, or even block access to ladders leading to attics. Co-op players will be able to hold doors shut if there’s ever something on the other side trying to break in.[/p]

[p]Puzzles[/p]

• [p]The puzzles in Surrounded are vastly different from what you might expect, they aren't randomized in the typical way. Our puzzles are primarily story-driven, meaning you won’t necessarily need specific items to advance. Instead, you’ll progress by learning what to do and when to do it through exploration and gameplay.[/p]

[p]Map Progression[/p]

• [p]Progression throughout the chapter is vastly different from what you’re used to. The map is divided into zones, separated by gates that serve as checkpoints. Each zone introduces new monsters, puzzles, mechanics, environments, and lore to uncover.[/p]

[p]Reworked Creatures[/p]

• [p]The monster designs previously felt unfair and lifeless. This has completely changed in the rebuild, ensuring every creature now feels fair and balanced. Most of them have received texture updates, rescaling, and improved animations. We’ve also added some incredible new, hand-crafted creatures that we can’t wait to show you all.[/p][p][/p]

[h3]Personal Note[/h3][p]Thank you so much for reading, and I hope you’re just as excited as I am to share what I’ve been working on. Surrounded was my childhood dream game when I was 14, and I started development of it when I was 16 with no prior experience, which led to it being a mess on release, there’s no denying that. I was uneducated, unaware, and way too young to take on that big of a game, especially with the game being in "development hell," switching engines, switching routes throughout development, and never having a clear vision.[/p][p]Years later, I’m a lot older, with industry experience and a properly structured workflow, which really reflects on the final result of the game.[/p][p]I hope you enjoy these new, never-before-seen & discord-exclusive teasers of the rebuild. A trailer is also in the works![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Cheers,[/p][p]Patrick @ Nightmare Studios[/p]

Tune in to watch Formidable play Surrounded during the daily deal the 30th of August!

We've been invited to participate in a Daily Deal on Steam, which means you can purchase Surrounded at a 40% discount—the lowest price it will be for a long time.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1813170/Surrounded/

Much love, Nightmare Studios

This update aims to tackle the proximity voicechat of Surrounded.
Where voicechat would previously clip, be choppy, or not work at all, you can now expect a smooth experience both in hunted and storymode. When launching the game you'll get a popup prompting you to calibrate your microphone and select your desired input device.

We'd love to see your funny moments using voicechat in the discord!

Other than fixing and overhauling voicechat, we have also fixed a bug where the centipede would keep chasing the player indefinitely without ever despawning.



Features:

• Reworked the voice chat to increase the quality.
  
• Introduced a setup proximity voice chat section first time launching the game.
  
• You can now change the input mic in the settings menu.
  
• You can now calibrate your mic in the settings menu.
  
• You can now change voice chat volume in the settings menu.
  

Improvements:

• Fixed a lot of the roads that were floating above the ground.
  
• Corrected the items that were floating above the ground.
  

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed a bug where the centipede would get stuck & not unborrow even when player goes out of reach.
  

Optimization:

• Optimized the level of details on player characters to ensure no frame drops when walking into each other.