Twilight Monk News

Join the Twilight Monk Playtest!

Hello everyone!

As we welcomed the new year at the beginning of this month, the finish line came in site as we continue to work towards a Spring 2025 release!

While we still have a bit of time before the big day, we wanted to take this chance to share what we’ve been working on for the past years. Yes, the time has finally come… for a public playtest!

From Thursday, January 30th 2025 19:00 PST ~ Sunday, February 2nd 23:59 PST, join Twilight Monk’s first public playtest and experience the game for yourself!

[h3]Content[/h3]
The playtest exclusive demo will include the first two chapters of the game as they’re presented in the final release. Enjoy exploring Central Speria and the freezing tundras of Arcturo through an immersive overworld, as well as all the vast dungeons you’ll discover along the way!

[h3]How to Join:[/h3]
・Follow this simple step by step guide to join:
・Login to your Steam account
・Go the Twilight Monk Steam page
・Scroll down
・You’ll see a banner that says “Join the Twilight Monk Playtest,” just click “Request Access”!

We’re looking forward to your participation! Be sure to fill out a survey and give us all your honest feedback at the end! Just click the image below!

- The Twilight Monk Team

Tokyo Game Show Highlights and all New Characters!

☯Hello everyone!😈

Welcome to the Official Twilight Monk Team Development Log.

Follow along and get an exclusive look at the Kung-fu fantasy metroidvania game releasing in 2025! If you’re interested to see more exclusive gameplay videos and screenshots, don’t miss out on the action on our official X page!

[hr][/hr]
[h3]Reflecting on Tokyo Game Show[/h3]
Since this month we’re working on the final chapters of the game, to avoid potential spoilers we’d like to take this opportunity to highlight the Twilight Monk exhibit at Tokyo Game Show instead!

This was the first time a full portion of the final game was made available for the public to enjoy, so the pressure was on. The whole team worked extra hard playtesting, adjusting game balance, and getting localization to a presentable state in time for the show. In the previous demo the player would start right away in the Catacombs without any context leading up or overworld exploration, it was really intended to show the base concepts of the game. This time the ENTIRE first chapter was playable, including the full overworld, many NPC to meet, and 4 dungeons total! The overall volume was enough for a full 30+ minute playthrough but guests were invited to play as much as they could within 15 minutes.

Whereas before there was only 1 minor dungeon and 1 major dungeon to explore, the TGS version included 4 total dungeons: 3 minor (Dojo Path, Hidden Cove, Rotting Burg) and 1 major (The Catacombs).

Overall we were happy to see so many Japanese fans show up to play. The response was overall very positive, with many visitors stopping with curiosity to stare deeply at the poster visuals. Those who decided to play ended up playing right up until the timer went off.

Twilight Monk being a game taking a lot of its influence from East Asian culture, we were excited to receive the feedback and reviews from those who played at TGS.

We prepared mousepads and keyrings and distributed them to anyone who played. By the end of the event we had distributed all 130 of the mousepads that we prepared in addition to all the keyholders.

Overall it was a great event! Now we’re currently preparing for our next exhibit at “Tokyo Game Dungeon 6,” an event held regularly in Tokyo specifically for Indies! We’ve prepared some new goods for the occasion: a set of clear plastic bookmarks that look really cool!

These will also be available as an event-exclusive item for anyone who stops by to play!
[hr][/hr]
[h3]New Enemies and Characters[/h3]
On the development side, we’ve been going back and adding an extra layer of richness to the adventure through new enemy types.

The giant muscular carrot is one of Trent’s (Director of Aquatic Moon) personal favorites.

Noodles the giant ethereal cat is an NPC that sometimes appears in Crescent Isle and has now been added to all chapters of the game so far. Very cute, very obstructive…

Additionally some new artwork has been added to flesh out previous locations.

The world of Twilight Monk becomes deeper with every polishing pass, we are constantly playing through and looking for what small details could make the world feel more alive and the gameplay feel more rewarding.

[hr][/hr]
For now we’ll keep making headway on the final chapter of the game, and once that’s wrapped up the whole team will take an additional pass for even more polishing and play testing. We hope you’ll check back in for the next edition!

Until the next one,
- The Twilight Monk Team

[hr][/hr]
Add to your wishlist!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1911940/Twilight_Monk/

https://twitter.com/TwiMonk_Game Twitter

https://twilightmonk.startgravity.jp/ Website

* All images represented are work in progress and are subject to change

To the Floating Islands of Japengo: Developer’s Log Vol. 7

[hr][/hr]

This past month the team has moved onto the refining phase for Chapter 5. User experience and battle adjustments have continued on since the previous month as well.

Here’s an overview of adjustments that have been made.

[h3]Progress on Chapter 5: The Japengo Islands[/h3]

Chapter 5 will feature the Japengo Islands, a series of floating islands with an exploration expedition into the Cannonballers hideout. With flying being necessary to travel through this region, we added some flying encounters into the overworld.

We were really trying to capture the feeling of the hideout being a bonafide secret base and incorporated some iconic locations with obstacle gimmicks, such as a kitchen with burning pots that spit fireballs, and a bathroom flooded with water.

Out of any of the dungeons so far we designed this particular dungeon to have the most diverging paths so players could have more freedom in what order and how they explore the dungeon, ultimately designed around opening a series of vault gates to progress deeper in the dungeon.

[h3]User Experience Adjustments[/h3]
The team have made some adjustments to the user experience this round, including a modified title screen. We wanted it to be a bit more slick and moody, the animated snowfall accompanied by the main theme instrumental really captured this well!

New NPCs were added across the main hub of Crescent Isle that give hints and reminders to encourage the player to check back in Crescent Isle to turn in Hunts, get info on the quest, earn money at the arcade, or buy BBQ boost. One example is Nora, she’ll be a character you can encounter in town. Be sure to check back in with her now and then, you might be surprised by what new information she has for you.

Two new NPCs Ketchoope and Moostarde were added for the new region. They’re a pair of adventurers constantly taking jabs at each other, a bit of a knuckle-head duo type.

We’re happy to announce there are now 28 Talismans throughout the entire game. Talismans will help improve your characters abilities but also affect your general gameplay. We really hope this will give you all a richer playthrough experience and a playthrough that feels personal to you.

[h3]Gameplay Adjustments[/h3]
Adjustments to the “feel” of battle are being handled by a dedicated member of our team now. So we are really trying to hone in on subtle elements of speed, timing, and effects to make battle feel satisfying.

For example, now the pillar attack bounces off of walls when the player is too close. The screen shakes when deflecting off of walls, and there are bigger impact slashes when the player hits an enemy, which gives an overall heavier weight to every strike and every hit.

[hr][/hr]
After a few more finalizing touches, we’ll call it a wrap for Chapter 5 and move onto Chapter 6 this coming month. Look forward to all the updates and sneak previews in the upcoming dev log!

Until the next one,
- The Twilight Monk Team
[hr][/hr]
Add to your wishlist!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1911940/Twilight_Monk/

https://twitter.com/TwiMonk_Game Twitter

https://twilightmonk.startgravity.jp/ Website

* All images represented are work in progress and are subject to change

Completion of The Dark Forest & Giant’s Crown: Developer’s Log Vol. 6

[hr][/hr]

This past month the team has been continuing work on Chapter 4 locations the Dark Forest and Giant’s Crown. At this stage they’ve both been finalized and we’re ready to move onto the next region/chapters!

Here’s an overview of adjustments that have been made.

[h3]User Experience Adjustments[/h3]
Several adjustments to the UI were made this time around including the display of NPC portraits. All NPC portraits have been moved to be along the bottom of the screen with larger images.

Though it may appear to be a small change, this was a huge undertaking as there are already so many NPCs scripted into the game, so ALL of them had to be reworked... But with this change you can really appreciate the level of detail put into each character portrait which makes it all worthwhile.

Additionally, we added a section for talismans to the inventory, these will be used for additional skills and enhancements during your playthrough.

We finalized some key animated sequences as well, including this particular encounter with a certain forest spirit… maybe if you were paying attention in the previous dev log you’ll know who this is!

The boss battle at Giant’s Crown has been visually finalized, too. We don’t want to spoil too much, but here’s a screenshot of the boss battle with the Sky Pirate gang’s leader, Pepperoni…

It'll be very hectic, and we played on the fact that as a Cannonballer, she can literally turn into a cannonball, so naturally… we added some pinball mechanics! This battle definitely has the most components so far.

[h3]Gameplay Adjustments[/h3]
Tons of playtesting amongst the team has led to a lot of minor improvements in level design and fine-tuning of enemy difficulty. As you play we don’t want beating enemies to become mundane, so we made a lot of adjustments so the enemies’ skills and difficulty level are adjusted to all the new skills you collect as you progress through the game.

[hr][/hr]
From here on, the entire team is focused on Chapter 5 content for the month of August (the southern Islands of Japengo). Stay tuned for the upcoming Dev Log at the end of next month!

Until the next one,
- The Twilight Monk Team

[hr][/hr]
Add to your wishlist!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1911940/Twilight_Monk/

https://twitter.com/TwiMonk_Game Twitter

https://twilightmonk.startgravity.jp/ Website

* All images represented are work in progress and are subject to change

A Mysterious Forest and City Under Siege: Developer’s Log Vol. 5

[hr][/hr]
This month we’ve been continuing refinement of the Eastern continent and two major locations that are directly pulled from the original Twilight Monk novel series! This should be exciting for fans of the books as they can see two iconic locations brought to life!

[h3]The Darkroot Forest[/h3]

Though last time we accessed the Jabah Dooba desert via boat, this time around Raziel will have to ride the very spooky ghost train to reach his destination…

We wanted the conductor to be a little comical, with some cheesy Halloween style jokes in his back pocket.

Stylistically, this has to be one of the team’s favorite dungeons so far! It took a lot of inspiration from games like Legend of Zelda which always have some sort of “lost forest”. You’ll find yourself a bit lost at times as this dungeon is particularly maze-like. Here’s a look at the result of polishing this time around.

The overworld area received a rework to have a richer purple tone, as well as a strong light emanating from the entrance to the Dark Forest so it’s a little bit easier to know where to go.

Many areas that were still in a preliminary state have been finalized with atmosphere and detail.

Refinement of new mechanics in this dungeon, as you can see there is a fireball that gets released when you’ve used the Phantom Pillar to activate it. You can kick it around and burn vine walls that block your way!

The color scheme has been adjusted quite a bit to be a little darker and moodier, and effects and details have all been added in at this stage. More NPC portraits this time around, including our cute little friend Amiku!

[h3]Giant’s Crown[/h3]

Giant’s crown is a city overrun by the “Cannon Ballers”, a group of Sky Pirates at war with the residents seeking to defend their territory - the “Blokes”.

We’ve put a lot of special attention into designing diverging paths for the player to explore. You’ll be navigating the dungeon and restoring power to various sections to activate elevators and contraptions.

Some more underwater chasms that connect to old mining areas as well! We tried to create lots of optional paths within this dungeon so we hope when you play you’ll enjoy going back and discovering all the secrets.

[h3]Additional Content[/h3]

Besides these two locations, we’ve added in some new content including these cute little guys, Bojo Birds!

They will be collectible throughout your adventures in Speria, so see if you can manage to collect them all!

To find out where they’re hiding, leave it to the “papa Bojos” who will show you the way to their locations.

Plus a few new enemies, such as these cauldron enemies which suck the life force out of Raz until he’s able to successfully destroy 5 of them.

We hope there’s something among the new content that piques your interest! Thank you always for following along and we’re looking forward to sharing more progress and sneak peaks in the next update.

Until the next one,
- The Twilight Monk Team

[hr][/hr]

Add to your wishlist!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1911940/Twilight_Monk/

https://twitter.com/TwiMonk_Game Twitter

https://twilightmonk.startgravity.jp/ Website

* All images represented are work in progress and are subject to change