Aether & Iron News

[p]Hello everyone![/p][p]We are just over a month away from Aether & Iron's full release on March 31st and wanted to release an update to make sure the demo best represents the experience you'll have in the game's full release. [/p][p]This update focuses on early-game stability, combat balance, UI clarity, and presentation polish. [/p][p]Thank you to everyone who has been playing the demo and sharing your feedback! [/p][h3]New[/h3]

• [p]More voiced dialogue in the demo (plus fixes for VO that fired at the wrong time or didn’t match subtitles).[/p]
• [p]Combat feels fairer and clearer with early-encounter balance tweaks, and improved tooltips.[/p]
• [p]UI/UX improvements for vehicle setup, inventory, tutorials, and controller play.[/p]
• [p]New accessibility warning before combat for players sensitive to motion sickness / flashing lights.[/p]
• [p]More robust save support (including behind-the-scenes improvements so saves behave more reliably between updates).[/p]

[h3]Improved[/h3]

• [p]Combat & Balance[/p]
  • [p]Early combats rebalanced for pacing and readability (including HP/AP tuning and encounter flow tweaks).[/p]
  • [p]Aura and hazard tooltips now communicate effects more clearly, including who they affect and hazard type.[/p]
  • [p]Better enemy/vehicle consistency so bystanders and enemies are easier to identify.[/p]
  • [p]Improved combat performance in several encounters (especially around turn transitions and heavier VFX moments).[/p]
• [p]UI/UX[/p]
  • [p]Vehicle customization defaults to a clearer “part map” view to help you understand what fits where.[/p]
  • [p]Storage upgrades are easier to compare, with clearer slot counts and “net gain/loss” info.[/p]
  • [p]Improved presentation for tooltips, popups, and UI text (including non-English layouts).[/p]
  • [p]More readable POI outlines across key early locations, making it easier to spot what’s interactable.[/p]
  • [p]Better handling of widescreen monitors.[/p]
• [p]Miscellaneous[/p]
  • [p]Campaign sorting order now matches your save file sorting order, so your most recently updated campaign appears at the top.[/p]
  • [p]Repairing vehicles at The Hole is now free.[/p]
  • [p]Improved translations in several key early-game areas.[/p]

[h3]Fixed[/h3]

• [p]Combat[/p]
  • [p]Fixed cases where visual effects or auras persisted after enemies were eliminated.[/p]
  • [p]Fixed several encounter-specific issues that could cause odd deaths, broken flow, or incorrect outcomes.[/p]
• [p]Narrative & Scenes[/p]
  • [p]Fixed a large set of issues where the demo could block progress, including:[/p]
    • [p]Getting stuck in certain conversations or mission states.[/p]
    • [p]Edge cases around leaving/returning to hubs and key locations.[/p]
    • [p]Several cases where interactions or POIs didn’t appear when they should.[/p]
• [p]UI/UX[/p]
  • [p]Fixed multiple issues with controller navigation (including history screens and incorrect prompts).[/p]
  • [p]Fixed issues in the control remapping UI (mouse wheel scrolling and keybinding behavior).[/p]
  • [p]Fixed UI bugs like double victory text, fuzzy icons, and misaligned roads in some areas.[/p]
• [p]Misc[/p]
  • [p]Fixed audio continuing to loop after pausing/unpausing in some cases.[/p]
  • [p]Fixed some localization edge cases (including missing characters and incorrect fonts).[/p]

[h3]Known Issues[/h3]

• [p]There are still instances of missing and/or mismatched VO.[/p][p][/p]

[p]Thank you for playing, reporting issues, and helping us make Aether & Iron better.[/p][p]March 31st is just around the corner, and we're excited to release our first game![/p][p]If you enjoyed the demo, be sure wishlist the game: [dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]And if you haven't joined our Discord yet, come hang out. We're active daily and always happy to chat:
https://www.discord.gg/SeismicSquirrel [/p][p]See you at launch![/p][p]- Seismic Squirrel & Chaos Theory Games[/p]

[p]It's official. After years of development, countless hours of writing, recording, and iteration, we're thrilled to announce:[/p][p]Aether & Iron releases March 31, 2026 on Steam and Steam Deck.[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]As production wraps up, we're deep in final QA, localization into 8 languages, and finishing touches. We're committed to delivering the best narrative RPG experience we possibly can. In the meantime, wishlisting helps us immensely! Click the Star in the widget below to help us reach more fans! [/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][p]What is Aether & Iron?[/p][p]An alternate 1930s New York transformed by anti-gravity technology. You're a smuggler caught in a conspiracy threatening the entire city.
🤝 Recruit unlikely allies
🚗 Fight in turn-based vehicular combat
🎲 Roll the dice and live with the consequences[/p][p]
Start rebuilding your tarnished reputation and take your first job in our free 2+ hour demo!
[/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p]Thank you for your support. We can't wait to share the full story with you on March 31st!

See you in the skies!

The Seismic Squirrel Team &
Chaos Theory Games[/p]

[h3]Developer AMA [/h3][p]Our Art Director, Gary Jensen, will be stopping by to talk about visually designing the world of Aether & Iron from early concepts to the Decopunk style that shapes everything you’ve seen so far![/p][p]Do you have a question for Gary? Drop it in the comments here or stop by during our live AMA call on Discord! We’ll be taking questions about characters, environments, visual direction, and anything else you’re curious about.[/p][h3]When & Where[/h3]

• [p]Wednesday, November 19 [/p]
• [p]12:00pm PT / 3:00pm ET[/p]
• [p]The Seismic Squirrel Discord: Join Here![/p]

[p]We hope you'll stop by, but if you miss it stay tuned to our social media channels for clips![/p][p][/p]

[h3]Quality of Life, Combat Tweaks, and More![/h3][p]Thank you to everyone who's played the Aether & Iron demo so far and sent in feedback!! Today we pushed out our first demo update with loads of quality-of-life improvements, bug fixes, accessibility options, and several additional languages to bring Aether & Iron to even more players.[/p][p]We hope these improvements smooth out your ride down the Aetherway![/p][p]📢 Indicates changes inspired by community feedback.[/p][hr][/hr][h2]🆕 New[/h2]

• [p]Civilian vehicle variety added: 2x1 Buses and 3x1 Trucks now appear in combat to create more interesting encounters[/p]

• [p]New language support for:[/p]
  • [p]Spanish (Spain) [/p]
  • [p]Spanish (LATM)[/p]
  • [p]French [/p]
  • [p]German [/p]
  • [p]Polish [/p]
  • [p]Russian [/p]
  • [p]Brazilian Portuguese [/p]
  • [p]Simplified Chinese[/p]

• [p]Controller rumble now supported![/p]
• [p]Contraband preview: a new tooltip now shows what you’re about to hand over.[/p]
• [p]Auto-closing bark timer toggle added to Settings.[/p]
• [p]Bulk move to Stash: You can now move items in bulk to the Stash from the “Move All To” utility menu in the inventory.[/p]
• [p]📢 Combat speed setting added so you can fine-tune the pacing to your taste.[/p]
• [p]📢 Reduce Background Motion toggle now available in Settings.[/p]

[p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]🔧 Improved[/h2][h3]⚔️ Combat & Balance[/h3]

• [p]AP limit and AP balancing revisited for clearer expectations and pacing.[/p]
• [p]Hero defeat flow tightened; heroes are auto-restored and given an option to instant repair on return to The Hole.[/p]
• [p]Hazards of the same type/turn are combined into a single entry in the turn list.[/p]
• [p]Bootleg Turn and movement/jump previews updated; missing jump lines addressed.[/p]
• [p]Combat encounter objective text standardized for consistency.[/p]
• [p]Control is returned to the player (and AI units) faster after ramming, improving flow.[/p]

[h3]🖥️ UI/UX[/h3]

• [p]“Stash” can be selected as a destination from the Move To menu at The Hole.[/p]
• [p]Part equip/unequip UX made clearer; warnings appear if a part doesn’t fit.[/p]
• [p]Turn list auto-scrolls to the active combatant.[/p]
• [p]Update the 'Welcome' popup in the demo [/p]
• [p]Combat ability description copy pass (consistency + readability).[/p]
• [p]“Civilians” have been renamed to “Bystanders” in combat.[/p]
• [p]Settings tabs can now be scrolled, as there are more settings in them![/p]

[h3]🛠️ Misc[/h3]

• [p]Campaign sorting order now matches your save file sorting order, so your most recently updated campaign appears at the top.[/p]
• [p]Repairing vehicles at The Hole is now free.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h2]🐞 Fixed[/h2][h3]⚔️ Combat[/h3]

• [p]Fixed zoom-out lock after lane splits.[/p]
• [p]Reinforcement Incoming tiles no longer display as guaranteed-destruction warnings.[/p]
• [p]Combat no longer ends before all actions/SFX/FX are complete.[/p]
• [p]Skip to Player Turn no longer delayed by certain NPC attacks.[/p]
• [p]The missing movement line when jumping between grids has been fixed.[/p]
• [p]“Move All To” on the combat rewards screen works as expected.[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue that could cause Gia’s action bar to disappear for a turn.[/p]

[h3]🎭 Narrative & Scenes[/h3]

• [p]Fixed an issue where the wrong character would highlight during dialogue, in some instances.[/p]
• [p]Fixed the black zone in the camera on Percy's zoom-in in Cress's garage.[/p]
• [p]Fixed room panning not working in The Hole on narrow aspect ratios.[/p]
• [p]Room panning works correctly on 4:3 and narrower aspect ratios.[/p]
• [p]Skip-to-choice no longer triggers Parade post-cutscene dialogue early.[/p]
• [p]KO lane display issues addressed.[/p]

[h3]🖥️ UI/UX[/h3]

• [p]Select SFX no longer fires when new options appear in dialogue.[/p]
• [p]Fixed various breadcrumb and minor UI inconsistencies.[/p]
• [p]Fixed an issue where inventory SFX would play louder on first open.[/p]
• [p]📢 Fixed an issue where the feedback screen would get wider when typing.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h2]📝 Known Issues[/h2]

• [p]There are still instances of missing and/or mismatched VO.
  [/p]

[hr][/hr][p]Thank you again for supporting our development by sending feedback, reporting bugs, and sharing your kind words with our team. We're listening!! [/p][p]If you have something to report, you can use the in-game form, visit our Community Hub here on Steam, or join our Discord.[/p][p]Now get back out there!! Defeat some bad guys and smuggle some contraband in the name of resistance! ːsteamhappyː[/p][p]- Gina[/p]

[p]October was an exciting month for Seismic Squirrel! We sponsored Episode 2 of Critical Role’s Campaign 4. We released our Composer Reveal Trailer, announcing that Christopher Tin and Alex Williamson are composing the score for Aether & Iron, which is an incredible honor! We also sent a representative to Brasil Game Show, our Product Manager, Josh, attended TwitchCon, and our co-development partners at Chaos Theory were busy networking and promoting the game at both SXSW Sydney and PAX Aus. But the biggest and most exciting moment of all was finally putting our demo out into the world for Steam Next Fest![/p][p][/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]And all of that was just on the marketing side! Our engineering and design teams have been hard at work on improvements and new implementations. They’ve enhanced readability and controls across the world map, refined combat visuals, polished post-battle screens, improved tooltips, and made quality-of-life updates to the inventory system. During our latest showcase, we also got a sneak peek at the new layered combat music, which dynamically reacts to the flow of battle and ramps up the tension as things heat up. And, much to my inner goose’s delight, you can now press H to honk and during combat vehicles have a small chance to honk as they pass each other. This is the important stuff, people!![/p][p]Jokes aside, we can’t thank everyone who has been playing and sharing feedback enough!! Your reports and comments are helping us make Aether & Iron even better -- so please, keep them coming![/p][p][/p]