Heard of the Story? News

Thought it would be fun to test the livestream feature on Steam for the first time! So I will be playing through a new world for fun, come check it out if you want to watch, ask questions, or just chill :)

Just a small hot-fix patch to address some issues found in the last update:

• Fixed villagers not wanting to trade some items
  
• Fixed icons of trees, bushes, and hedges slightly flickering when moving the camera
  
• Fixed right-click menu not appearing inside chests
  
• Fixed item order not being retained when dropped items into chests or house storage
  

After the previous content update, this patch has been centered on polishing the building and interaction aspect of the game. For the next update - we’ll return to working on the villager AI! Based on the Discord poll results, the most requested AI features are Villager Chronicles and Unravelling Tales, so we’ll be making a start on the former next week! For now, here are the changes in this patch 🚀

[h2]⛰️ Proper support for building on hilly terrain[/h2]



Previously, building on very hilly terrain was a problem because the bases of the buildings were not low enough. This meant that they could sometimes appear half-floating in certain situations. In this patch, we’ve added much deeper bases for all structures to fully enable these harsher conditions. Each building now also slightly terraforms the terrain so it doesn’t appear half-embedded inside it. Mountain-side towns are something that’s rather unique to this game and we want to fully support!

But not only that, we’ve gone a step beyond and actually offered multiple base types for the bigger buildings to allow extra customisation! A lot of them now support two options: adapting to the current surface, or terraforming the entire building zone for a flatter usuable area.

Additionally, the bakery and smithy also have a 3rd option: platformed terraces. These allow you to have a flat floor and stairs up to the buildings instead. If it’s something you enjoy, we can also make this option available to other buildings too.

[h2]🏡 Building configuration screen[/h2]



Some players found it difficult to tell exactly how a building would look (especially at different angles) when it’s finished. To fix this and support the ability to easily choose between building base options, we’ve added a new configuration screen for the more complex buildings that need it: the workshop, tavern, smithy, bakery, cattle barn, and tailor.

In this new architecture screen, you can:

• Choose between available base types
  
• Rotate the camera to see how a building will look at any angle
  
• Easily reposition and re-rotate to find that exact right fit.
  

[h2]👆 Revamped interactions[/h2]

We’ve improved the item and UI interactions in a few great ways this patch! First, we implemented a drag and drop feature - which also means that items will no longer occasionally re-order themselves in your inventories.

Then, we finally added a toolbar which will allow you to easily switch between different items and tools to more easily focus down your interactions and speed up decoration. To go along with the new toolbar and additional space, we increased the inventory size from 12 -> 17.



Due to this change, we’ve naturally had to alter a number of hotkeys to fit the new interaction paradigm. To summarise, the focus is now on left-click for destructive actions (such as gathering items) and right-click for interactions or destructive actions - plus a few key-binding changes. Overall, it’s a fairly big adjustment to interactions, so we’re open to hearing what you think about it.

Then, we’ve updated the cursor with a custom design which changes depending on whether you are hovering over an item, dragging, or about to contribute it to a building.



As we evolve the game, we are improving in our artistic ability to produce new content. The tooltips and context menus have far fallen behind our current quality threshold. As such, we’ve given them a visual refresh whilst giving more context options to accompany the drag’n’drop functionality.



[h2]🪰 Bug fixes and smaller improvements[/h2]

• Added a scythe hint when trying to cut a field without one
  
• Updated the look of boulders and fixed the hitboxes on them
  
• Updated the look of doors to be more rounded and have a wooden base so they won’t look floating on hilly terrain
  
• Changed tavern, smithy, and bakery to require waiting until the next day to fully open
  
• Finally fixed some items being visible through tooltips and other overlaying UI elements
  
• Updated the look of the settings key configuration menu into a tabbed view in order to be able to hold all the new controls
  
• Fixed a small subset of players potentially having issues starting the game
  
• Fixed some small items being harder to interact with when other items are nearby
  
• Fixed villagers being able to use the mine before while it’s still blocked
  
• Fixed some small UI scaling issues
  
• Fixed being able to clip the camera inside the tavern if you are standing too close to it
  
• Fixed mountain rocks having weird visual appearances when far away
  
• Fixed tutorials sometimes being underneath UI elements
  

Hey everyone, it’s been a while since our last poll, but we’d love to get your thoughts on this one! This week we are working on the last small sporadic quality of life patch before finally kicking off work on breathing more life into the hearts of our show - the villagers! Here are a few medium-sized features we’re interested in adding, which of these would you most prefer we work on next? To cast your votes, please head to the Discord where you can react to this poll with emojis of the relevant features.

• 🤝 Trusty Companions: Your cooperation with villagers will forge a bond stronger than ever before. With it, you’ll gain the option to have them loyally follow you, ready to lend a helping hand in any task you undertake.
  
• 👁️ Keen Observers: Watch as your villagers come to life, their eyes darting around, absorbing every detail of the world you've created. They'll voice their thoughts, praising your impeccable town planning or playfully teasing you about that misplaced table.
  
• ❓ Unravelling Tales: Dive deeper into the lives of your villagers with the power to ask follow-up questions. Uncover the secrets of that elusive Moorwick town (or why they’re so obsessed with crafting mallets) as you engage in captivating conversations that reveal the rich tapestry of their lives.
  
• 📜 Villager Chronicles: Keep a detailed record of your villagers' lives within the pages of your trusty book. Jot down their origins, aspirations, and the favours they've asked of you. Never forget a face or a story as you create a living chronicle of your town's inhabitants.
  
• 😈 Gifts of Gratitude and Mischievous Misdeeds: Win the hearts of your villagers through thoughtful gifts and find their trust in you grow. But beware, for some mischievous souls may stir up trouble by pilfering from their neighbours. Catch them… if you can.
  
• 🎩 Quirky Traits: From charming lisps to peculiar gaits, each villager is a memorable individual with their own quirks and characteristics. Spot the eyepatch-wearing adventurer or the eccentric soul who dons their hat backwards.
  
• 🧠 Inquisitive Minds: Experience the joy of reciprocal curiosity as your villagers eagerly seek to know you better. They'll ask about your life, your dreams, and your role in shaping the town. Engage in heartfelt exchanges and forge deeper connections with those who call your town home.
  
• 🤫 Newsplace: Stay in the loop with a new Town Board (or as some might call, the Gossip Board), your one-stop source for all the juicy tidbits and happenings around town. Discover who needs a helping hand, celebrate the latest triumphs, and unravel the tantalizing rumours that keep your town abuzz.
  
• 🏆 Echoes of Renown: Forge your legacy and watch as your actions reward you with greater control and additional capabilities. Both you and your villagers can earn fame and reputation based on your deeds and accomplishments. Will you be known as a benevolent teacher, a master craftsman, or a legendary introvert?
  

There are of course, much grander and more exciting AI features we have planned, but those are for another time 😉

The next weekly update is here! After a few much needed patches centered on polishing the game, we finally had some fun introducing new features! 😄

[h2]🧰 Chests[/h2]



One of the most requested features is finally here: additional storage. This comes in the form of 4 new craftable items: wooden chest, iron chest, large iron chest, and a special chest which I’ll leave for you to discover! Different chests offer different amounts of storage, so you’ll have to work or trade your way up to the biggest ones.

[h2]🪨 Cobble path[/h2]



Something that was really missing from the game is the ability to create stone paths! With this, you can finally pave your towns in cobble, giving different spaces a fresh look and your town more visual variation in general. However, unlike the previous dirt path, this new option requires stone to build - varying based on the length of the path.

[h2]⚖️ Upgraded trading[/h2]



Trading is a really important mechanic that has not lived up to its full potential yet, so this update also aims to significantly improve it. Since villagers have limitless inventories compared to the player, the previous trading menu would only show a small subsection of their goods which would not be that helpful and was also confusing. Now, all of their items are shown, separated into pages, giving you insight and access into their entire inventory and actually making trading way more powerful. Furthermore, a small hint is now shown at the bottom to indicate it is just unique items that are shown.

[h2]🪳 Bug fixes and small improvements[/h2]

• Decorations now start placement by pointing towards you to make them easier to position. This is useful for some items that have a particular rotation of use, for example chests and wooden logs
  
• Fixed adventure names consisting of trailing spaces or only spaces from crashing the game
  
• Fixed iron shield not giving many ideas
  
• Fixed house context menu to the left of your mouse
  
• Fixed villagers being able to give you gifts of items they are currently wearing
  
• Fixed being able to fulfil quests with items in storage
  
• Fixed being able to be pick up decorations even if your inventory was full
  
• Changed “inventory is full” hint to be more immersive
  
• Fixed vegetation respawning on top of fields
  
• Fixed villagers placing decorations on top of fields