The new major update is finally here! This patch introduces a broad swathe of new content, a new prosperity feature, and tons of small, useful, and pretty changes. Not only that, but there has been sound major overhauls under-the-hood, so this update will also technically pave the wave for many more items and activities in the future!
[h2]💍 Jewellery[/h2]
- You can now build a new structure: the jewellery
- Here you can do all whitesmithing related things: crafting precious necklaces, or ornate objects!
- To use it, you'll need the new dual tool: pliers and ladle
[h2]🪨 Masonry[/h2]
- You can also build another new structure: the masonry
- Here is where all the stone-work will now be done, whether that's a new stone table or a cosy flower pot
- To use it, you'll need the new dual tool: mallet and chisel
[h2]🌾 Prosperity[/h2]
You'll now find a new section to your book which hold key information about the prosperity and attractiveness of your town to prospective inhabitants.
There are 4 factors at play. Not all will be thrown at you at once, rather, they will progressively come into play as you scale up your town. They are:
- Housing: whether you have enough houses to accomodate new folk
- Infrastructure: whether there is enough work, pleasure, and farms available through the assortment buildings in your town
- Beauty: how well you've decorated the place
- Fulfilment: how happy and fulfilled your villagers feel
[h2]🥣 New items[/h2]
There are a host of additional items in this update:
- New instruments: drum, harp, vielle
- New food: oats, boiled egg, skewered mushrooms, porridge and variations, knot (essentially a pretzel), salad, vinegar
- New minerals: jet, fluorite, quartz
- New tools: mallet & chisel, pliers & ladle
- New miscellaneous goods: book, feather & ink, various types of swords, toy horse, watering pot, wheelbarrow, casting mould set
We actually did not get around to adding all the items we wanted, so stay tuned in the coming week or two for even more items!
[h2]🃏 New actions[/h2]
Coupled with the new items come some new activities for villagers to enjoy.
- Gardening: villagers can water the plants, bushes, and hedges in their garden
When you place a table, you'll now get the opportunity to 'lock' certain chairs next to it. When you do, villagers will see that as an opportunity to sit down at the table.
If they have the right items and inspiration, they may also enjoy new activities whilst sitting down:
- Cards: if they're sitting in front of another villager, they may occasionally start a new card game. The winner is decided by experience
- Writing: if they have a book, they may decide to start writing a new story, a historical account, or a guidebook if they feel the need to share their knowledge. After finishing it, they will name the book and you'll be able to see this underneath the item name
- Reading: of course, any book they possess will also allow them to read it whilst at the table
[h2]🤏 Smaller features[/h2]
[h3]Improved flowers[/h3]
Something we've long wanted to do is overhaul the flowers in the game! So with this update, we've changed the way that tulips, poppies, synthianam, and flax look to give them all distinct shapes! Likewise, we've updated the related bushes and crowns to fit the new style. We've also introduced LODs to speed up performance here. Oh, and the flowers also wave with the wind now too :)
[h3]Better economy[/h3]
In a major improvement to the economy, villagers can now trade with merchants and vice versa. This means villagers can finally gain access to more luxurious and rare items available only from merchants. More importantly, it means that villagers can now earn gold through the work they do which starts to solidify and grow the economy of your town.
When considering what to buy, just like with quests, villagers will aim to consider what they find the most important and useful that they don't already have. Though, it is also possible they will get distracted and just splurge on the latest merchants' delicacies.
[h3]Deleting saves[/h3]
One of the most requested quality of life features was to add a delete save button the main menu screen so this is now finally implemented! To make sure you don't accidentally click, there will be a pop-up asking you to confirm your choice to forget the adventure forever.
[h2]🐞 Bug fixes and improvements[/h2]
Of course, as usual, there was also an assortment of bug fixes and small improvements such as a less glitchy construction animation or general balancing. We've also improved our automated testing which means we caught re-appearing bugs (such as villagers forgetting to trade) and should be able to further prevent these in the future!