The Bleakest Keep News

[p]Hi everyone![/p][p][/p][p]Thanks for playing the demo![/p][p][/p][p]As I continue to work on The Bleakest Keep, I wanted to share an update on how the game is developing and what kind of changes there will be when the full game releases.[/p][p][/p][p]First, I don't have a release date I can say yet. I do have a date in mind, but I don't want to give a date until I feel positive about it. I am hoping that the next update shared will be the release date.[/p][p][/p][p]Now for some new stuff. Its been super cool seeing the positive reception the demo has received! Now that I have seen how players are playing the game and what they are struggling with, I am making some changes which hopefully everyone will like.[/p][p][/p][p]The biggest change is ranged weapons will now have durability and can break. Weapons will now be found far more often by also being found in free chests. This is being done to keep runs more exciting because a lot of players seemed to always be stuck with the bow or found one weapon and would never change it. This should hopefully encourage players to try more weapons while also giving players more options far more often. This has been a bit difficult to balance, but I believe that overall it will improve the game. A weapon won't break until the player takes damage while its durability has run out. It will also be possible to repair weapons before they break.[/p][p][/p][p]Some perks and upgrades are being overhauled or removed. I'm removing some of the less interesting perks and also changing some of the current perks to be more noticeable. For example I'm removing the increase item use speed and adding more unique perks like increasing overall movement speed. The vampire perk, even though it was not underwhelming, was too overwhelming and was too strong. After multiple tries to change it to be more balanced, it was stuck feeling either way too strong or way too underpowered, so it will ultimately be removed. It will likely become a unique weapon instead.[/p][p][/p][p]After defeating a boss there will be another shop where you are presented with some random perks to choose from. They are the same perks you'd find in Juliet's shop and you can only choose one, however it will be free.[/p][p][/p][p]When the game launches there will also be a few new enemies! Here's a look at the werewolf enemy![/p][p][/p][p]Some other changes include the regular health potion now healing 30 HP instead of 10 HP. Stamina/roll regeneration speed has also been greatly reduced by about half and the upgrade for stamina regeneration speed should feel more noticeable.[/p][p][/p][p]Levels 3 and 4 are almost finished. Level 3 is probably the longest level in the game and level 4 is probably the shortest level. After a run you will also be presented with a rank based on how good of a job you did![/p][p][/p][p]Lastly, once everything is finished, I am planning to add unlockable outfits similar to my previous game Slay the Minotaur. Completing challenges can unlock outfits for Edward and Juliet. I'm hoping to have the unlockable outfits ready at launch and not as a post launch update. However, it is possible it may be a post launch update, but I really want to get everything I want to add to the game to be there at launch.[/p][p][/p][p]Thanks again for playing the demo! Next development update should hopefully include the release date! And don't forget to wishlist The Bleakest Keep![/p][p][/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p]

The Bleakest Keep Demo is out right now!
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
This is a pretty large demo considering it is the first 2 of 4 levels of The Bleakest Keep. Come test your skills and see how long you can survive! (There are no ranks in the demo, but you can try and score a record time!)

Not everything is final and there will likely be some changes by the time the full game releases.

If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, please head over to this discussion.

I really hope you enjoy the demo! The Bleakest Keep has been taking a bit longer to finish than expected, but I am hoping that if everything goes to plan, that the game will be out by the end of the summer.

Please enjoy the demo and remember to add The Bleakest Keep to your wishlist!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3718130/The_Bleakest_Keep_Demo/

The demo for The Bleakest Keep will be available on May 26th!

The demo will contain the first 2 levels of the game. I hope you enjoy playing the demo!

Remember to wishlist The Bleakest Keep!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3231520/The_Bleakest_Keep/

Hello everyone. Please enjoy this short devlog showing off Juliet, The Bleakest Keep's Shopkeeper!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Don't let her looks deceive you, she is actually very approachable! Work with Juliet to upgrade your abilities and save the world!

A demo is still being worked on and I am hopeful that it will be ready soon! Be on the lookout! I'm still hopeful for a summer release as well. I hope you all enjoy the demo when it comes out!

And don't forget to wishlist if you haven't yet!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3231520/The_Bleakest_Keep/

Hi everyone!

I wanted to share a short update on the development of The Bleakest Keep. But first, please watch the new trailer!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

A lot has changed since I first started working on the game. Originally I wanted this game to be pretty similar to Slay the Minotaur, where there would be 4 sections of a large map, as if there were 4 mazes you would explore and complete randomized objectives before you could continue to the next section.

This has been changed to be a lot more linear. No more objectives stalling you from continuing, the game is now a rush to reach the top of the castle. I decided to make this change because after a few months, it was becoming a bit obvious that it was not fun to play. It was taking too long for players to complete an area, trying to properly balance each area was a nightmare, getting lost trying to find randomized objectives was annoying. It goes on and on. I'm glad I tried it, but I feel a lot more confident with this new direction for the game.

This also applies to the game's horror. I originally wanted the game to be more scary and include more enemies similar to the Minotaur that would actively chase you across the level, but the horror has been reduced in favor of more action, and because the levels are far more linear now, the chasing enemies like the Minotaur were also not making sense to include anymore.

With the new level design, areas and rooms feel more unique and even though the layout of the level will be mostly static like in Slay the Minotaur, many rooms and arenas will have multiple versions to make sure each run still comes with uniqueness, including changing shop locations and enemy spawns.

The Bleakest Keep is also much more focused on ranged gameplay. In fact, there won't be unique melee weapons. All the weapons you can equip will be ranged weapons. However, before starting a run you can change your special attack/ability to fit a playstyle. So if you want an offensive heavy attack, you can equip it before the run begins. Or if you want defense, you can equip a powerful kick attack to knock back and stun enemies.

At one point there was other melee weapons, but I ran into a problem Slay the Minotaur had with its helmets where some melee weapons were clearly better which would make players just ignore all other weapons. Trying to balance this was just making the game less fun because either you have an obvious choice to always pick up or I nerf it and then players never pick up a different melee weapon. With the ranged weapons, I'm sure some will be considered better than others, but because of requiring ammo and how each type of weapon uses different ammo with different drop amounts, it easily helps balance them and should make each come with proper pros and cons.

You can now hold multiple items at the same time. There's a lot more perks. There'll be multiple bosses too! I'm hoping to get a demo out sooner than later (but it may still be a while) and release the game sometime this summer. Thanks everyone for your support and please go wishlist! This game is taking a bit longer than I was hoping it would, but I hope you enjoy it when it comes out!