Dark Hours News

[p]Hello everyone,[/p][p][/p][p]Today we’re rolling out a new regular update! Now that we’re back from the holiday break, the team has been fully focused on improving the overall gameplay experience, with an emphasis on monster navigation, level design improvements, and a wide range of gameplay, interface, and stability fixes based on your feedback.[/p][p][/p][p]You’ll find all the fixes and improvements in the detailed patchnote below.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]⚠️ Known Issues: We are aware of ongoing lobby connection issues affecting some players, particularly in certain regions of the world (including Russia), as well as performance issues that may cause lag for some players.[/p][p]We’ve also identified monster navigation issues on the Cruise Ship map, which can cause monsters to get stuck in front of doors (mainly observed with the Banshee, but not exclusively).[/p][p][/p][p]Our team is actively investigating these problems and working on improvements. Fixes will be deployed as soon as they are ready in an upcoming patch. Thank you for your patience and for your continued feedback.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Patchnote #70 for Dark Hours (v1.0.24649) - 16/01/2026[/h2][p][/p][h3]Monsters[/h3]

• [p]Freezing & Electrocution Duration Fix: Fixed an issue where freezing and electrocution durations were not correctly adjusted by difficulty.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Invisible Monster Room Fix: Fixed an issue where a monster could get stuck inside a locked room while in an immaterial or invisible state.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Improved Navigation for Banshee and Voltaic Wraith: Improved the navigation of Banshee and Voltaic Wraith in the maps. More work in progress about that point for all monsters and maps in an upcoming update.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Door Closing Fix: Fixed an issue where it was impossible to close a door when an invisible monster was standing in it.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Driftborn:
  - Electrocution Fix: Fixed an issue where the Driftborn was not properly affected by electrocution.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Trickster:
  - Locker Input Context Fix: Fixed an issue where being caught by the Trickster while hiding in a locker could leave the player incorrectly flagged in that state, causing controller inputs to open the inventory instead of controlling the Trickster's minigame.
  - Revive Overlay Sleep Interaction Fix: Fixed an issue where being put to sleep during the Trickster minigame and die, could cause the revive countdown to instantly drop to zero seconds.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Voltaïc Wraith:
  - Locked Room Spawn Fix: Fixed an issue where the Voltaïc Wraith could become stuck in a locked room and repeatedly respawn.
  [/p]

[p][/p][h3]Level Design (LD)[/h3]

• [p]Key Item Spawner Tweaks: Added more spawners in certain areas to prevent key items from spawning on the ground and being missed by players.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Grid Lift Invincibility Fix: Fixed a bug where a client player lifting a grid could become invincible to grids falling on them.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Coffee Machine Interaction Tweak: Made the coffee machine interaction easier to catch, improving usability.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Washing Machine Camera Shake Fix: Fixed an issue where the washing machine would repeatedly apply camera shake to the same player; it now only does so once when used as intended.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Door Red Light Indicator Update: Updated the intensity of the red light indicator when a door is closed to improve readability.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Cruise Ship Vault Laser Trigger Fix: Fixed an issue where vault lasers on the Cruise Ship could start triggering on their own after one of them had been activated. [/p]

[p] [/p][p][/p][h3]Gameplay[/h3]

• [p]Loot Safe Padlock:
  - General Improvements: Reworked loot safe padlocks to improve interactions and clarity when unlocking them.
  - Highlight & Interaction Update: Updated safe padlocks so they are now properly highlightable and easier to identify when they can be interacted with.
  - Replication Fix: Fixed replication issues affecting padlock state between host and clients.
  [/p]
• [p]GPS Walkie-Talkie:[/p][p] - Minimap Vent Visibility Fix: Fixed an issue where players inside vents on upper floors would not appear on the minimap.
  - Minimap Exclamation Icons Fix: Fixed an issue where exclamation mark icons on the minimap did not keep a consistent rotation like the text.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Earmuffs:[/p][p] - Defibrillation Crash Fix: Fixed a crash that could occur when a player with earmuffs in their inventory was ejected with a defibrillator, dropped the item in hand, auto-equipped the earmuffs, and later stored them in their locker in the van.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Minimap Vent Visibility Fix: Fixed an issue where players inside vents on upper floors would not appear on the minimap.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]KO Exit Fix: Fixed a bug where teleporting between the van and the level on exit while being knocked out could cause the player to respawn on a lower floor than intended.
  [/p]
• [p]Mirror Slide Passenger Fix: Fixed an issue where the passenger of a mirror slide could end up below the floor or bouncing above or below the expected position after the slide.
  [/p]
• [p]Thrown Items Re-Interaction Fix: Fixed a bug where thrown items would no longer interact with an object they had already interacted with after being picked up again.
  [/p]
• [p]Paper Code Side Menu Input Fix: Fixed an issue where a player who closed the paper code minigame with Escape, then opened the side menu while another player finished the minigame, could still have gameplay inputs active in the side menu making difficult to exit it.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Lobby Trashbag Loot Fix: Fixed an issue where trashbags in the lobby level weren't tagged as lobby items.
  [/p]

[p] [/p][h3]General[/h3]

• [p]Minigame Camera Exit Fix: Fixed an issue where the camera could end up looking straight upwards after leaving a minigame.
  [/p]
• [p]Minigame Mute/Unmute Fix: Fixed an issue where players could not mute or unmute audio during minigames.
  [/p]
• [p]Defibrillator Station Biker Van Fix: Fixed an issue where the defibrillator station was missing from the Biker van; it is now present as intended.
  [/p]
• [p]Grenade Decal Fade-Out Fix: Fixed an issue where grenade impact decals did not fade out correctly, improving feedback and visual clarity.[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][h3]Interface[/h3]

• [p]Arrow Minigame UI Fix: Fixed a case where asterisks could be shown instead of arrows under specific conditions in the safe minigame when playing solo. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Reputation Reward Slot Layout Fix: Fixed text layout issues in the reputation reward slot. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Contract Roulette Fix: Fixed an issue where the contract roulette could stop on the wrong contract for some clients. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Contract Player Share Heist Count Fix: Fixed an issue where the player share display on the contract selection screen did not take the current number of heists into account. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Contract Difficulty Refresh Fix: Fixed an issue where contract difficulty display was not correctly refreshed when moving the cursor away from a contract button. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Contract Player Share Replication Fix: Fixed replication issues with the player share display on the contract selection screen. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Modal Window Layout Fix: Fixed layout issues affecting buttons in certain modal windows. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Monster Names in History: Fixed an issue where monster names were not correctly loaded in the game history. [/p][p][/p]
• [p]Banned Monster List Fix: Fixed an issue where corrupted or broken save data could cause previously seen and banned monsters to appear as banned but still marked as “???”, preventing players from unbanning them. These monsters will now correctly appear as not banned so they can be encountered again.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Alpha Decals Stability Update: Added safeguards to the behaviour of decals using alpha transparency to prevent visual issues in certain situations.[/p]

[p][/p][p] [/p][h3]Audio[/h3]

• [p]Minigame UI Audio Improvement: Adjusted minigame UI audio so related sounds are now triggered from the minigame UI template, resulting in more consistent feedback.
  [/p]
• [p]Rolling Object Sound Spam Fix: Fixed an issue where rolling objects could spam sound effects.
  [/p]
• [p]Wheelboard KO Sound Fix: Fixed an issue where the wheelboard KO sound was not spatialised correctly and would not play if there was no passenger.
  [/p]
• [p]Bandwidth & Voice Echo Improvements: Reduced network bandwidth usage by fixing input-related RPC spamming, and prevented voice chat “echo” from being resent to the source player.
  [/p]
• [p]Flare Gun Drop Sound Fix: Fixed an issue where dropping the flare gun would not play its drop sound.
  [/p]
• [p]Wheelboard Collision SFX Fix: Fixed an issue where the sound of a player hitting a table while wheelboarding was not correctly replicated to other players.
  [/p]

[p][/p][h3]Winter Hacking Seasonal Event[/h3]

• [p]Winter Hacking End: Winter Hacking has been desactivated.
  [/p]
• [p]Winter Hacking End Date Fix: Fixed the Winter Hacking seasonal event end date so it now runs for the intended duration.
  [/p]
• [p]Snowball Santa Desync Fix: Fixed an issue where snowballs inside small Santa decorations could be desynchronised for clients.[/p][p][/p]

• [p]Christmas Hat Loot Spawner Fix: Fixed an issue where a Christmas hat could appear on top of a loot spawner instead of its intended position.[/p]

[h2]Patchnote #69 for Dark Hours (v1.0.24461) - 19/12/2025[/h2]

[h3]Monsters[/h3]

• Blind Ghoul Freezing Fix: Fixed an issue where the Blind Ghoul could become blocked when affected by freezing.
  
• Mummy Freezing Difficulty Fix: Fixed an issue where the Mummy could not be frozen correctly on certain difficulty levels.
  
• Freezing Visuals Alpha Fix: Applied the correct freezing effect to enemies using alpha-transparency materials to ensure consistent visuals across all freezing cases.
  

[h3]Gameplay[/h3]

• Team Bag Score Calculation Fix: Fixed an issue where contributions to the team bag were not properly taken into account in the player’s score.
  
• Team Bag Player Count Fix: Fixed an issue where the required number of players for the team bag objective was calculated incorrectly.
  
• Thrown Items Interaction Fix: Fixed a bug where thrown items would not interact again with an object they had previously interacted with after being picked up.
  
• Taser Gun Functionality Fix: Fixed an issue where the taser gun could stop working correctly in some situations.
  

[h3]Audio[/h3]

• Rolling Object Sound Spam Fix: Fixed an issue where rolling objects could spam sound effects.
  
• Minigame UI Audio Fix: Adjusted minigame UI audio so the sounds are now triggered from the minigame UI itself, resulting in more consistent audio feedback.
  

[h3]General[/h3]

• Decal Display Update: Updated several environment assets so decals now display correctly on them.
  

[h3]Winter Hacking Seasonal Event[/h3]

• Winter Hacking Main Menu Update: Updated the Winter Hacking panel in the main menu, including layout adjustments and improved localisation.
  
• Winter Hacking Event Schedule Setup: Set up the schedule for the Winter Hacking seasonal event so it runs at the intended dates and times.
  

[p]Ho ho ho everyone, [/p][p][/p][p]It’s time to celebrate the holiday season in Dark Hours with our brand-new Winter Hacking event! From now until January 5th, we’re bringing some winter magic into your most terrifying heists! [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]🎄 Special Christmas Decorations[/h2][p]Dark Hours lobby and maps have received a full Christmas makeover! Twinkling lights, candy canes, snowmen, bells, wreaths, and piles of presents are scattered everywhere.[/p][p][/p][p]Take a moment to enjoy the warm holiday atmosphere… right before the monsters remind you that even Christmas won’t save you![/p][p][/p][carousel][/carousel][p][/p][p][/p][h2]🎁 Drop the Gifts![/h2][p]This year, Santa is making you work for your presents: earn Christmas gifts by using a monster’s specific weakness to stop them! [/p][p][/p][p]Every monster has something that terrifies them. If you manage to use the right item at the right moment, they’ll drop a Christmas gift instantly. For example, the Trickster is absolutely terrified of water. Make good use of that…[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]🎟️ Win Christmas Tickets[/h2][p]What’s inside these gifts? When you open them, you’ll receive:[/p]

• [p]Christmas tickets to spend in the event store[/p]
• [p]A chance to get an item or some loot[/p]

[p]🎁 Important note: Tickets are only added to your total when you open the gift, not when it goes into your backpack.[/p][p][/p][p]So yes, if you’re in a generous mood, you can hand a gift to a friend so they can finally grab that Santa beard they’ve been dreaming about. Will your crew share the joy… or keep every gift for themselves?[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]🎅 Unlock Exclusive Christmas Customizations[/h2][p]All the exclusive Christmas items from last year are making a big comeback. But that’s not all: we’ve added 5 brand-new festive customizations for this edition! [/p]

• [p]A Santa mask [/p]
• [p]A Santa face cover[/p]
• [p]A Christmas tree beanie[/p]
• [p]A brand-new team bag, or should we say, Santa’s hotte[/p]
• [p]A snowman backpack (yes, I love it too 😍)[/p]

[p][/p][carousel][/carousel][p]These items will only be available during the event, so make sure to grab them before they vanish with the holiday magic![/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]It’s time to put on your Santa hats, burglars![/p][p]
We hope you enjoy this special event, and we’d love to hear your feedback — feel free to share it with us on Discord and the Steam forums![/p][p][/p][p]Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays![/p][p]Raven[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]🔔 Don’t want to miss the latest news about Dark Hours? Follow us:[/p][p] Discord Tiktok Bluesky Twitter Instagram [/p][p]Or contact us at [email protected][/p]

[p]Hey burglars,[/p][p][/p][p]The Steam Winter Sale has begun![/p][p]From December 18th to January 5th, you can grab the perfect Christmas gift — aka Dark Hours, at 35% OFF! It’s the ideal moment to start your first heist or invite new partners in crime to join your crew.[/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]🎄 Reminder: Christmas Event Is Still Live![/h2][p]Winter Hacking is still live on Dark Hours, and here’s a quick reminder of what you can enjoy until January 5th:[/p]

• [p]Fully decorated Christmas maps & lobby[/p]
• [p]Monsters drop Christmas gifts when you exploit their specific weakness[/p]
• [p]Open the gifts to earn Christmas tickets[/p]
• [p]Exchange your tickets for exclusive Christmas cosmetics[/p]

[p][/p][p]Read more about the event: [/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][carousel][/carousel][p][/p][p][/p][p]Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays, [/p][p]Raven[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]🔔 Don’t want to miss the latest about Dark Hours? Follow us:[/p][p] Discord Tiktok Bluesky Twitter Instagram [/p][p]Or contact us at [email protected][/p]

[p]Hello everyone,[/p][p][/p][p]Today we’re rolling out a new regular update! Over the past few days, the team has been fully focused on improving the overall gameplay experience, especially when it comes to monster behavior and several connectivity issues you've reported.[/p][p][/p][p]You’ll find all fixes and improvements in the detailed patchnote below.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]What We’re Working On Next[/h2][p]We’re not done yet! Some issues are still being actively investigated, including:[/p][p][/p]

• [p]Microphones: With version 1.0, we transitioned from the Steam SDK to the EOS SDK for microphone and audio management. This now allows players to configure audio settings directly in the game — something that wasn’t possible before. However, we’re still working with EOS support on a few reported cases where players lose microphone functionality between the lobby and missions, or directly within the lobby. We’ll continue tracking these issues and will release a fix as soon as possible.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Online Connectivity: This patch includes improvements to multiplayer connectivity. We’ve resolved some issues related to Steam Friends invites and identified the causes of ghost lobbies that previously prevented players from rejoining their friends. Some connection issues are occasionally caused by temporary interruptions in EOS services, which are beyond our control. Others might be related to firewall configurations, which we’re currently investigating. We’ll keep working to improve stability — if you’re still experiencing connection problems, please contact us so we can better understand and address the root cause.[/p][p][/p]
• [p]Crashes: With the addition of new features and content, a few players have reported crashes. Some appear to be GPU-related and are still under investigation. Most of the other crashes have been resolved, but we’re aware of a rare issue that can occur during “Sabotage” missions. If you experience a crash, please share your crash dump files with us to help the development team complete their debugging and improve stability.[/p][p][/p]

[p]We’ll keep pushing updates as we make progress on these bugs. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Keep Sending Us Your Reports[/h2][p]Thank you again for your incredible support, it truly helps us improve the game, fix bugs, and deliver the best experience possible.[/p][p]
If you encounter any issues, please reach out through:[/p]

• [p]Steam Forums[/p]
• [p]Discord (#bug-report or #support channels)[/p]
• [p]Email → [email protected][/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][p]Good luck on your heists![/p][p]Raven[/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[h2]Patchnote #67 for Dark Hours (v1.0.24361) - 16/12/2025[/h2]

[h3]Monsters[/h3]

• Trickster:
  - Teleport Fix: Fixed a bug where the player could become stuck if the Trickster was countered while teleporting to his dance.
  - Taser Reaction: Fix some Trickster’s reaction miss to taser hits.
  - Taser Animation Fix: Fixed an issue where the Trickster’s taser animation could be interrupted incorrectly depending on difficulty.
  - AoE Visual Update: Updated the Trickster’s dance AOE visual effect to improve readability.
  - Electrocution Feedback: Adjusted and improved electrocution feedback on the Trickster.
  
• Stone Stalkers:
  - Grid Fix: Fixed an issue where Stone Stalkers could pass through a security grid instead of correctly reopening it.
  - Closed-Door Teleport Fix: Fixed an issue where Stone Stalkers could cross closed doors.
  
• Driftborn:
  - Locker Teleport Fix: Fixed an issue where Driftborn could teleport behind closed locker doors.
  
• All Monsters:
  - Door Stuck Fix: Fixed a case where monsters would stop moving after being blocked between specific doors.
  - Door Blocking Change: When a monster is halfway through a door, players can no longer close it; the monster will automatically open it instead.
  - Navmesh Recovery Fix: Fixed an issue where monsters that left the navmesh but passed through a door navlink would not recover a valid navigation position.
  

[h3]Level Design (LD)[/h3]

• Casino Maps:
  - Patio Fountain Softlock Fix: Added colliders to prevent players from getting stuck when thrown into the fountain by an electric shock.
  - Parking Wall Navmesh Fix: Corrected a specific case where the navmesh near a parking wall caused navigation issues.
  
• Auction Houses Maps:
  - Art Exhibit Pillar Clipping Fix: Fixed a pillar in the art exhibit of Auction Houses that was clipping through a backroom wall.
  
• Cruise Ships Maps:
  - Several optimisations, see "Optimisation" section below
  
• Toilet Climbing Fix: Fixed an issue where players could climb onto toilets using the toilet seat interaction.
  
• Player Spawn Fix: Fixed a rare bug where the player occasionally failed to spawn back from a mission, causing a black screen in the lobby.
  
• Rain Improvement: Improved the visual quality of rain on glass, especially when using FXAA.
  

[h3]Gameplay[/h3]

• Team Bag Score Value Fix: Team bag score value is now consistent across all players, even after multiple games.
  
• Player Revive on Team Bag Fix: Fixed an issue where reviving a player who fell on top of the team bag was difficult.
  
• Bomb Planting Explosion Fix: Players who remain inside the building during the final explosion now die correctly and transition properly to spectator mode.
  
• Teleporter Pads Reset: Teleporter pads are no longer kept between levels.
  
• Teleporter Pad Positioning Fix: Pads now appears below the player when dropped to avoid to be thrown in difficult positions.
  
• Teleporter Pad Cleanup Fix: Pads are now removed when their button no longer exists.
  
• Mirror Slide Camera Fix: Fixed an issue where the player camera could break while sliding with mirrors in spectator mode.
  
• Hacking Minigame Variations: Added new hacking minigame variations.
  
• Drawer Interaction Fix: Fixed interaction issues with small white drawers.
  
• Taser Interaction Fixes: Fixed rare cases of infinite electrocution and incorrect behaviour on some abilities.
  
• Permanent Freeze Fix: Fixed a bug where the frozen effect could remain permanently.
  
• Taser VFX Persistence Fix: Fixed multiple cases where taser visual effects persisted.
  
• Electrocution Feedback Rework: Reworked electrocution feedback for clarity and responsiveness.
  
• Lightstick Intensity Tweak: Adjusted brightness for better visibility.
  
• Locker Capacity Fix: Fixed incorrect locker space calculations.
  
• Teleport Input Mode Fix: Fixed incorrect input state after teleporting from van with pause menu open.
  
• Inventory Auto-Close on Knockout: Inventory now closes when knocked out.
  
• Dropped Items Persistence Fix: Fixed item disappearance when a player leaves mid-mission.
  

[h3]Online[/h3]

• Platform Invite Connectivity Fix: Fixed Steam/EOS invite connection issues.
  
• Lobby Tracking Fix: Fixed a backend issue causing lobby tracking loss.
  
• Ghost Lobby & Rejoin Fix: Fixed bug where disconnected players showed as ghosts and couldn't rejoin.
  
• Rejoin After Kick Fix: Fixed issue preventing rejoin after being kicked during a leave.
  

[h3]Optimisation[/h3]

• Door Navigation Optimisation: Door state changes now AI update cost instead of recalculating full navmesh.
  
• Laser Performance Optimisation: Prevented laser effect overload, especially for puzzle game in Cruise Ships.
  
• Navpoint Search Optimisation: Skipped unnecessary navpoint spawn during procedural generation, optimizing point searches for monsters.
  

[h3]UI[/h3]

• Revive UI Glitch Fix: Fixed KO UI showing revive prompt.
  
• Locker Menu Auto-Close: Menu now closes if the player moves too far.
  
• Reputation SFX Fix: Sound now only plays when reputation is gained.
  
• Reputation Gauge Position Fix: Gauge now starts at the correct scroll position.
  
• Customisations Improvements: Better equipped item display, body selection buttons, and mask color fixes.
  
• Audio Settings Screen Cleanup: Removed outdated Steam Audio mention.
  
• Contract Slot Exit UI Update: Exit screen contract UI improved.
  

[h3]Audio[/h3]

• Microphone Switching Fix: Fixed USB mic capture bug after device change.
  
• Minigame UI Sound Pass: UI sounds improved for minigames.
  
• Physical Object SFX Updates: Improved audio for object interactions.
  

[h3]General[/h3]

• Player Camera Fix: Fixed incorrect vertical rotation clamp.
  
• Head Wobble Removal: Removed idle head wobble to reduce discomfort.
  
• Door Knock Screen Shake Adjustment: Reduced proximity screen shake from knocking on door.
  
• Extinguisher Handle Fix: Fixed fire extinguisher handle position after breaking.
  
• VSync Enabled on Start: Enabled by default on first launch.
  
• Anti-Aliasing Quality Settings: Quality now tied to method used.
  
• Game Rendering Improvements: Image quality improved by correcting resolution scaling.