The Night Shift News

Hey Everyone!

I hope you have enjoyed the latest Major Update (read about that here) that dropped last week. If you haven't had the chance, because you are playing the latest Elden Ring DLC... I understand, and good luck!
Outside of the performance fixes a couple of days ago, I have been working a few things throughout the game. Only small things, but hopefully enough to improve the experience.

A couple of things in this update will add more immersion and just QoL improvements. Here are the top things from this update.

• A throbber has been added to the loading screens, just throbbing away, so you know the game isn't frozen and is still chugging away.
  
• There are more interactable items littered through the world, expect more immersion by being able to inspect a plate or a mug! Where did the plate come from? Who made the mug? These are the things everyone is wanting to know.
  
• Keycards were taking up way too many inventory slots. So now they initially take up a slot, but after first use will vanish. Don't worry, you will still be able to use it - it just won't be taking up a slot.
  
• I made mannequins a little bit quicker. Why? I want to keep you on your toes. It's not Lightning McQueen speed, but it's a little faster than before.
  
• There are a couple more scary moments littered through the new shifts released last week. So have fun with those.
  

Now here are the patch notes for the latest update.

[h3]Changes[/h3]
Added more spooks.
Added more interactable items.
Added a throbber to loading screens.
Updated garage layout slightly.
Keycards are now permanent, they no longer take up room in the inventory after first use.
Increased Mannequin speed from 225 => 250.
Lowered difficulty during the end sequence of night 2.
Updated chairs at the kitchen table.

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]
Fixed the same garbage chute dialogue playing on two separate shifts.
Fixed being able to get stuck in a corner on night 2.
Fixed being unable to inspect the safe code post it notes.
Fixed the white key having the placeholder key inventory icon.
Fixed flickering lights flickering ridiculously fast.
Fixed movies in inventory having low quality textures.
Fixed Clock Off task showing as the first task on a specific level on night 3 or 4.
Fixed some spelling errors in movie descriptions.
Fixed some items staying in the same place when inspecting them.
Fixed mannequin unable to navigate past a specific shopping cart.

Ran into a bug? Report it on the Discord or the Steam Discussion board.
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Until next time!
Marty

Hey everyone!

This a quick hotfix for the reported performance issues, I have made a few improvements to the performance which seems to have increased fps by up to 40% (depending on machine).

If you experience any issues, please report it on the Steam Discussions or Discord.

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]
- Dialogue now kicks you out of inventory or journal when having to choose a dialogue path.
- Fixed being able to get stuck in the inventory and journal while dialogue is going.
- Fixed keycards having lower texture quality in the inventory.
- Fixed keycards having the wrong roughness texture.

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Cheers,
Marty

Hey everyone!

Martyn here! These past few months have been full on, but now the time is here. The new update is has dropped and I really hope you enjoy it! Read all about it down below.



[h2]Shifts[/h2]
There are five shifts in total, four of these are new, however in a single playthrough you will only play through four of them. Whys that? I hear you ask. Well, the goal of The Night Shift is to have a unique experience each time you play. This is just the first implementation of randomized shifts, but I will be expanding on this in the future - which I am super excited for.
Each of these five shifts will take you to existing and new areas of the department store. These areas have unique tasks and thrilling moments that can only be experienced in those areas. These areas also contain some randomization with horror elements but given these are the 'earlier' levels of the game, expect an increase in horror in future levels.
These new areas take you across the store from one side to the other. You will navigate your way through the store's electronics, furniture, women's clothing, and men's clothing sections as well as the back hallways, bathrooms, and parking area.

[h2]Saving[/h2]
Now as I have previously mentioned, a proper Save and Load isn't implemented in this update. In saying that, there is a little bit of save and load going on - nothing that would carry across sessions I'm afraid.
Now your inventory carries across shifts, so all those batteries you have collected are no longer lost to a void, forcing you to start your battery collection over again. Alongside your inventory, any unfinished tasks will now follow you across to the next shift.

[h2]Achievements[/h2]
For those achievement enthusiasts, I have reviewed all of the existing achievements and updated a handful of requirements and icons, as well as fixing a couple of existing achievements from being unobtainable.
On top of this, I have added five new achievements to unlock!

[h2]Misc[/h2]
Just a couple smaller things to note, you can now disable motion blur from the gameplay settings page. On top of this, I have made minor performance and optimization improvements and fixed various issues and performance issues that were brought to my attention, this is really helpful - so if you do run into any issues, please raise them on the Discord or Steam Discussions.



[h3]Full Change List[/h3]
- Added new shifts.
- Added new tasks.
- Added certain shifts that are loaded randomly.
- Added a new task screen to check in on current tasks.
- Added minimalistic tutorial (still a WIP).
- Added 5 new Steam achievements.
- Added the option to enable and disable motion blur.
- Added painkillers in case you get hurt.
- Inventory is now kept across shifts.
- Unfinished tasks now carry across shifts.
- Adjusted the narrative and tasks for Night 1.
- Various items in the world can now be inspected.
- Decreased number of mannequins in the final section of Night 1.
- Updated existing areas with extra detail.
- Updated lockers in the hallway to now have interactable doors.
- Updated lockers in office to be the same type as the hallway lockers.
- Updated various models.
- Updated some mannequins can spawn randomly now.
- Updated the sound mannequins made.
- Updated some Steam achievement requirements and descriptions.
- Updated how many batteries are accessible each shift.

[h3]Bug Fixes[/h3]
- Fixed shadow artefacts on office chairs.
- Disabled physics of the office chairs - these were causing some weird issues.
- Fixed when placing shoeboxes, inventory does not show immediately.
- Fixed when placing a shoebox, the correct one is placed.
- Fixed the picking up keys sound playing when picking up certain items.
- Fixed ceiling in store front not casting shadow correctly.
- Fixed being able to open and close the main menu with the same button.
- Fixed being able to see through a line in the mesh of the hallway doors.
- Fixed not being able to get the No Smoking achievement.
- Fixed various collisions of objects not working.
- Fixed scaling of decals in the office.
- Fixed opening the menu during gameplay now pauses the game
- Fixed being unable to clearly see when zooming in at a fence.
- Fixed being unable to clearly see when zooming through windows.
- Fixed 'show fps' checkbox icon showing a square when toggling.
- Fixed some UI being cut off in specific resolutions.
- Fixed inventory items sometimes not having the correct icon.
- Performance and optimization improvements.

Join the community on Discord.
Follow The Night Shift on X/Twitter and TikTok.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2468610/The_Night_Shift/

As always, if you have any questions, issues, or suggestions please let me know!

Cheers,
Marty

Hey everyone!

It's almost time for the next update, it's looking like you will be able to get your hands on it before the planned update in July. I'd like to run through a couple of things that you can expect from this update, and what I have had to delay... slightly.



[h2]Shifts[/h2]
First things first, shifts. While currently there is only one level, which showcases the new direction on the Unreal engine, I had always planned to create more levels. I have been working on four levels, that will be included in this next update. These levels, take you into new areas of the department store - each with their own unique tasks and scares.
The upcoming update will also introduce a new system - branching shifts. This system allows random shifts to load after completing specific nights. Once this update drops, playthroughs will always be different from the last. As there are now multiple shifts, your inventory now carries across shifts. Picked up a bunch of batteries that you haven't used? You can now use them in your next shift.

[h2]Tasks[/h2]
Not only will there be new and unique tasks in each of these shifts, but now certain tasks will also carry over from Shift to Shift. Certain tasks won't be able to be completed in one shift, so you will be able to complete side tasks later in the shifts rather than having to complete them in a single shift.
With tasks now carrying over shifts, and the potential to have two or more at a time, you may want to review what tasks you have. Now you can! I have added a task journal (name pending) where you can see your current tasks and your goal for a specific task.



[h2]What Else[/h2]
You can expect a couple more Steam achievements, as well as polish to existing achievements. Looking at you, 'No Smoking' achievement. I have now spread achievements across all shifts, so they aren't all on the one level.
Not a fan of motion blur? I have added an option to disable it. Alongside other requests, there will be multiple fixes and performance optimisations included in the next update.

[h2]What Not To Expect[/h2]
I wanted to get save and load into this update, however, life happened and I have been unable to get it to a point that will be ready for July. I really wanted to get some new content to you, so once this update drops, I am planning to spend some time to get save and load in. In saying that, the game does save and load your settings and inventory/tasks between shifts.



You can expect the update before July, the exact date depends on how quick I can get some polish done.

Join the community on Discord.
Follow The Night Shift on X/Twitter and TikTok.

As always, if you have any questions, issues, or suggestions please let me know!

Cheers,
Marty

Hey everyone,

It's been two weeks since the new engine update and so far, the response has been great. I am appreciative of all the support and feedback you have given.
I hope you have enjoyed the experience that is currently out, this post is to let you know that I am working hard on the next update.
I want to tell you everything I have planned for The Night Shift, but where is the fun in that?

Instead, here is a little teaser of what the future holds.



Expect more levels, different areas, more story, and most importantly more Mannequins.
But what would you like to see? Anything specific? Let me know your thoughts!

Just a reminder that The Night Shift is 20% off until April 2!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2468610/The_Night_Shift/

Join the community on Discord.
Follow The Night Shift on X/Twitter and TikTok.

Chat soon,
Marty