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Aotenjo: Infinite Hands News

Steam Next Fest Demo Now Live!

Hi Mahjong enthusiasts!

As previously announced, Aotenjo is participating in the Steam Next Fest with a new playable demo this October. Aligning with a weekend to better fit everyone’s leisure plans, the demo was updated at 8 PM PDT / 11 PM EDT, October 11. You can try it out right now by clicking the green download button on the store page, and we’ve also released a brand-new trailer. (New friends, don’t forget to add the game to your wishlist!)

https://youtu.be/vMvFPg_wbbM



[h2]Demo Content for Steam Next Fest[/h2]

Compared to the original online demo, the festival version includes the new deck—Bamboo Mahjong—and accompanying new artifacts & gadgets previously mentioned in our dev blogs. We've also added some in-game events and locations to enrich the strategic possibilities; Additionally, we’ve made adjustments and optimizations to the tutorial, UI, and animations to enhance your gaming experience. The full update patch notes are listed at the end of this post.

For further improvements, we’ll be temporarily taking down the demo after Steam Next Fest. We will collect all feedback during this period to refine and optimize further, looking forward to presenting an even more polished gaming experience next time we meet. We welcome both new and veteran players to join our Discord to exchange tips and share experiences.

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[h2]V0.1.20 Steam Next Fest Demo Patchnote[/h2]

Note: Due to the significant changes in this Steam Next Fest version, existing saves are not compatible with the new version. Please start a new save file if you have tried the old demo.

New Additions:

1. New Deck: Bamboo Mahjong
  • Gameplay: Each game cycle (four rounds) begins by drawing a Dora indicator tile displayed in the indicator area. During scoring, the succeeding tile (Dora) provides additional Fan.

2. New Japanese Patterns: Aonodoumon, Benikujaku, Choupaikou, Chousankou, Junchan, Daichishin,Beginning of the Cosmos
3. Added a lot of new artifacts
4. Added a lot of new gadgets
5. New Starting Events at the Well Entrance: Players can choose a starting BUFF.
6. New Location: Pile of Rubble: Obtain Mahjong tiles/gadgets/artifacts for free.


Adjustments:

1. Howling Mountain adjustments:
  • Howling Mountain can now enhance multiple special tiles at once.
  • After the south wind, Howling Mountain will open an advanced enhancement slot, steadily providing epic tile enhancements.

2. Balancing Adjustments:
  • The base Fu value of honor tiles reduced from 20 to 10.
  • The growth Fan value for triplet-based Patterns has been generally lowered.
  • The base Fan value for all Patterns reduced by ~30%.
  • The additional Fu value for crystal tiles reduced from 50 to 40.

3. Artifact Adjustments:
  • Xiaolongbao complete Fu value adjusted from 40 to 25.
  • Tanghulu complete Fan value adjusted from 10 to 8.
  • Collector's Amulet: Common tile multiplier adjusted from X0.5 to X0.25, Epic tile multiplier adjusted from X1.0 to X0.5.


Optimizations & Fixes:

  1. Settings interface now includes an option to switch between Chinese and Japanese Style Pattern names.
  2. Optimized the tutorial for better guidance on using gadgets.
  3. Added hover text explanations for more keywords and Pattern names.
  4. Added counters to jigsaws, origami bears, and other artifacts for more intuitive observation of upgrade progress.
  5. Shortened Pattern panel option for non-Chinese users to display only the four rarest activated Patterns.
  6. Added rarity frames to artifacts based on their rarity.
  7. Marked unbought artifacts in the store.
  8. Added Pattern category display next to Pattern names.
  9. Even if no artifacts are stored, artifact slots will still display normally.
  10. Added new Pattern package opening sound effects.
  11. Added animations for playing your hand.
  12. Optimized most artifact & tile color text descriptions.
  13. Optimized scoring animation.
  14. Optimized a large amount of the UI.
  15. Fixed an issue where scoring text was obscured by artifacts.


Localization:

  1. Added language option: Japanese.
  2. Fixed some English text errors.
  3. Adjusted the English terms for sequence, triplet, and quad.






Balatro and mahjong meet in Aotenjo, a roguelike with a new Steam demo

Gaming often dips from the same wells over and over again - we're seeing this right now with the current tide of extraction shooters - but sometimes that dipping yields fresh results. That's the case in Aotenjo, a roguelike deckbuilder that on the face of it is very similar to Balatro, but which combines it all with mahjong instead, making something altogether new. If that sounds like your jam, then have no fear as there's a free Steam demo you can play.


Read the rest of the story...

Development Update of Aotenjo

Hello, everyone!
It's been almost a month since our last demo update, and we've made great strides in developing Aotenjo. We're excited to share some of the latest enhancements with you.

[h3]Introducing the New Deck: Bamboo Bone Mahjong [/h3]
Bamboo Bone Mahjong, inspired by Japanese Mahjong styles, introduces the unique Dora tile mechanism to our game. This new deck not only adds unpredictability but also deepens the strategic play.


Here’s how it works: Indicator tiles and Dora tiles are essential to Riichi Mahjong. Indicator tiles help identify the Dora tiles, which follow them in sequence. For instance, if the indicator tile is the three of characters, the Dora tile will be the four of characters. Simple, right?

In Aotenjo, each game round starts by randomly drawing a Mahjong tile as the indicator. Additional indicator are drawn when a Kong is made, all placed in the indicator area. Scoring big? The successor of the indicator tile—the Dora—will boost your points!

[h3]New Tile Style: Porcelain Tiles[/h3]
Our journey through tiles continues beyond traditional materials like copper and crystal. Drawing from the rich heritage of Chinese porcelain, we've crafted a new set of seven Porcelain tiles. Each tile not only looks stunning but also enhances gameplay with unique effects and the keyword "Appreciate."


[h3]Ascensions[/h3]
Looking for a challenge? Our ascension modes are here to test your skills. Segmented into four levels—Heaven, Earth, Human, and Goose—each stage is designed to push your strategic limits with varied difficulty settings, score goals, and reward pathways.

We've also broadened the scope of general artifacts and introduced new locations and random starting events, adding layers to your strategic planning.

We're thrilled to announce that Aotenjo will be featured at the Steam Next Fest this October, complete with a brand-new playable demo. Stay tuned for more details!

Join Our Community
For the latest updates and a chance to engage with us directly, don't forget to join our official Discord server!

The Aotenjo Team

Patch Note 0.1.14.4

In this version, we've made the following changes:

Game Mechanics:
  • Infinity Challenge now come in a smoother curve of increasing Target
  • One may change the Pair of the Playing Hand by drag and drop the Pair Indicators.
  • Bamboo Forest has been restructured. One may buy a set of tiles at the same time.
  • The Howling Mountain is now offering upgrades at lower prices, along with a new refresh option that costs $2
  • Slightly decreased the basic rewards for each level.


Game UI:
  • A Boss Panel will show up before any boss level
  • Animation and visual performance of Pirate Chest has been remade
  • A warning panel will pop out if anything in Pirate Chest is left unclaimed
  • Description of Collector's Amulet and Guqin are shortened inside Zhou's store
  • Misc localization and description changes to improve readability
  • Golden 4-Sided Dice now display the amount of the gold earned at the end of the round


Game Content:
  • New Artifacts: Magnetite Sample, Malachite Vase, Toolbox, Cobalt Pickaxe and Ivory 3-Sided Dice are added into Aotenjo!
  • TONS of numerical adjustment regarding the overpowered performance of Patterns related to Honor, Pungs and Kongs in Aotenjo. They are scaling slower now.
  • Ink Brushes now have 1 use only.
  • Red Markers now have 2 uses.
  • Guzheng now apply the cleanse effect after boss' move
  • Agate tile now +5 Fan for every agate tile in the Hand
  • Pirate Chest will contain the biggest jackpot at 100 pirate coins. (Originally 150)
  • Bubble Tea is now a rare artifact. (Originally Common)


Bug Fixes:
  • Fixed an issue where Pattern upgrades erroneously increase Fan.
  • Fixed an issue where Guzheng abnormally transforms back ore tiles.
  • Fixed an issue where artifacts appeared in wrong position when opening a pattern pack in resolutions of 4:3
  • Fixed an issue where artifacts can't be dragged outside of the round.
  • Fixed misc localization issues.







Patch Note 0.1.13.2

In this version, we've made the following changes:

Game Mechanics:
  • Introduction of the Aotenjo Bonus (High Score Bonus): Players who achieve a score that exceeds a multiple of the target score will receive an additional reward.
  • Skip Bonus is removed
  • Additional Discards for Skipping: 8 -> 10
  • Reward for Every 8 Remaining Discards: $1 -> Reward for Every 5 Remaining Discards: $1
  • The "Malice-Sawmill": The initial price will now increase when the number of remaining tiles in the tile wall drops to 100/70/50.
  • Starting Cost for Store Refresh: $5 -> $4
  • Sold Artifacts now reappear in the Zhou's Store.
  • As the game progresses, the rarity of the Patterns (Yakus) that can be drawn from the Yaku pack will gradually increase.


Game UI:
  • The progress bar now displays the progress to the next stage of Aotenjo Bonus
  • Notification System: Displays unlocks and upgrades for Artifacts and Patterns.
  • Artifacts that have a limit on its uses will have a highlight when they can be used
  • Unfamiliar Artifacts in the Zhou’s Store will now be displayed in grayscale.


Game Content:
  • New Artifacts: Agate Dagger and Identification, 5 brand new instrument artifacts
  • Balance tweaks: Shredder, Sichuan Lian-Pu, Void Teapot, Collector's Amulet, Jade Ring
  • Removed: Crystal Dagger
  • Heartless: Now only corrupts simple tiles.


Bug Fixes:
  • Fixed an issue where Pattern upgrades erroneously increases Fan.
  • Fixed an issue with corruption of tiles abnormally reducing more Fan.
  • Fixed an issue with abnormal overflow of Jade tile values.
  • Fixed an issue where the sizes of hand tiles and scoring tiles were abnormal during scoring.
  • Fixed an issue where Artifacts could not be dragged to switch positions inside Zhou's store.
  • Fixed an issue where tooltips in Boss description were not displaying correctly.