Cursed Companions News

Our Cursed Companions community has grown significantly since our last update, and we've got so much feedback and love and encouragement from them all. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.❤️ We're trying our best and working tirelessly to make improvements.

After hearing from you and watching streamer feeds, we found some of the pain points, fixed some bugs, made some improvements and tweaks to the game.

Our team is small and we're trying to cover as much ground as we can, but we have to be strategic and work on those changes that can significantly improve the gameplay experience, so do forgive us if there are still bugs and things that still irk you. If there's something that can be improved, please try to reach out to us via Discord before you leave a bad review on Steam. 🙏

Since the last demo update, we spent the month and a half cooking. There have been plenty of changes and improvements. So we've put them down here. If you're too busy to read them, just see the TLDR bit. Don't forget to scroll to the end to see our roadmap for the next update.

[h2]⭐Main Highlights (TL;DR)⭐ [/h2]
Update for 0.9.7 For Public Demo, Build ID: 19382021

• New hotkey system: (1) Dungeon Codex (2) Spell Journal (3) Spell Torch (4) Healing Wand (5) Talking Skull.
  
  
• New Emote Wheel UI: Emotes & dances relocated to [Q] key or Middle‑mouse button
  
• New Talking animation now moves head accessories - you can see who’s yapping
  
• Traitor Mode enhanced - 3 new options + Misty Forest map: In response to feedback, there are now options to lock players in place in the voting hall, change win conditions and disable curse words in the voting hall
  
• Twitch Integration: Totems spawn in dungeons - Chat votes on outcomes
  
• New Graphics settings: Lower spec devices can play our game now. (We ran on a Intel N100 and hit 25-40fps on Low settings, 960px x 540px, blurry but playable🙂)
  
• Dungeon lighting made brighter
  
• Mouse sensitivity settings added and Invert Mouse option while Spectating
  
• Preloading assets on Game startup to reduce wait times on joining game sessions
  

[h2]🧩User Experience Improvements[/h2]

• Hotkey system makes key items easier to access. You still need to scroll to get to other items or treasure
  
• You can now move while Spell Journal or Dungeon Codex is open
  
• Dungeon opening/closing now requires confirmation popup
  
• Guidebook auto-hides at start; new players see a one-time instruction page
  
• Boomer Mine → now Boomer Bomb (appearance changed, same function): Players thought it functioned like a landmine and avoided going near it. So we changed the appearance and name.
  
• Whispering Grimoire → now Loudmouth (appearance changed, same function): Players thought it was a spell book so they did not realise that the creature sounds were coming out of the object
  
• Lobby codes hidden by default
  
• Settings menu now accessible in the main lobby
  
• Curses and local notification fonts increased for readability
  
• UI visuals streamlined and other tweaks
  

[h2]⚙️Settings[/h2]

• Emotes/Dances now on [Q] key or Middle‑mouse via the Emote Wheel UI
  
• Push-to-Talk does not trigger Curses and Curse Doors anymore (no more cheating!) but still can trigger Equipment and Monsters
  
• Spectator mode now has Invert Mouse option
  
• Adjustable Mouse Sensitivity
  
• Graphics Quality via XESS upscaling - this improves performance on older machines that can support XESS.
  
• Selectable Screen Resolution and Fullscreen/Windowed mode
  
• Auto-reconnect if voice chat drops - check here if you can't hear your teammates or vice versa.
  
• Controls (Keyboard) have been updated
  

[h2]🔪Traitor Mode Updates[/h2]

• Option to Disable Death and Treasure curses in Voting Hall to stop abuse
  
• Option to freeze players during voting (blocks sabotage with Sacrificial Knife or Boomer Bomb)
  
• Option to allow Companions to win if all Traitors are eliminated (one Companion must survive)
  
• Skip-vote majority now ends meeting immediately
  
• Bug preventing players from leaving Voting Hall fixed
  

[h2]📺 Twitch Integration[/h2]

• Dungeon Totems let Twitch Chat vote on outcomes (see this post - https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/3265230/view/537731883551690602)
  
• Requires linking Twitch Creator account in-game
  
• Chat votes via “!number” shown on-screen
  
• If a non-Creator triggers a Totem, results are random
  
• With multiple creators, the first activator should get chat voting authority (we hope)
  
• Note: Behavior with shared chat across creators currently unknown

[h2]⚖️ Gameplay Balance[/h2]

• Spell words now rotate every 5 minutes (was 2)
  
• Curse Remover now clears one random curse only (it used to clear all curses)
  
• Trigger range reduced for Root Golem
  
• Meatgrinder damage slightly increased
  
• Healing Wand price raised to 450 Gold
  
• Sacrificial Knife damage reduced; reworded to clarify that maximum value capped at 3
  
• Watcher now applies Poison instead of high raw damage when you enter the green gas
  
• Greedy Goblets slow-down reduced to 30 seconds
  
• Gold value of Body Parts reduced by around 50%
  
• Removed less-responsive curse phrase triggers
  
• Slightly reduced spawn rates for Black Coins and Equipment
  
• New room variations for Dungeon Entrance
  
• Removed: Steam Bath, Teleportaloo, and Dungeon Teleport Circle from Traitor Mode
  
• Dark Shrine options reduced to three: respawn, treasure, or extra time (most players didn't use the other options)
  
• Player names visible from further away when you mouse over their characters
  

[h2]🐞Bug Fixes[/h2]

• Fixed: stuck in Traitor Hall
  
• Resolved: unkillable Chatterboxes and Red Annes (due to network sync)
  
• Partially Fixed (might still occur) : inconsistent dungeon generation across players (when players see a different dungeon from each other)
  
• Now possible to pick up items near dead Players
  
• Added spectate mode portal timer to display time left
  
• Late joiners (Players who join halfway when the game has started) can now spectate curse words properly
  
• Partially fixed (might still occur): falling through map in Dungeon
  
• Fixed various monster pathing/stuck issues
  
• Disabled arrow traps no longer deal damage
  
• Items from previous failed games no longer carry over
  
• Fixed: poison gas animation in Voting Hall (it wasn't visible the last time)
  
• Fixed: revived player in the Traitor mode will have the correct role (Companion or Traitor)
  
• Fixed a bug where players can play past Day 3 in the demo
  
• Fixed a bug where the arrow trap collider still kills players even though the trap is disabled
  

[h2]🧾Other Adjustments[/h2]

• Logo intro volume turned down
  
• Spike trap spikes lowered slightly
  
• Improved background image for Scroll of Praise
  
• Updated designs for Dungeon Codex and Spell Journal to improve legibility
  
• Edited tutorial text for clarity
  
• Multiple Foul Moths no longer overlap each other
  
• New prompt added when playing Traitor Mode first time
  
• Cleaned up the grammar and improved the text descriptions for the Equipment, Treasures, and notifications
  

[h2]🐞Known Bugs[/h2]

• Traitor Mode: If you revive a late joiner via the Dark Shrine, player has no role assigned in the game
  
• Late joiners - if they join a game midway - they are unable to hear other dead players (in spectate mode)
  
• Players can sometimes move when the portal open / close scene plays
  

[h2]🚗Roadmap[/h2]

• Coming Up in the next Demo: New languages - French, German, Spanish and Chinese (Simplified)
  
• Working towards Early Access
  
• Steam Achievements
  
• More Twitch integrations
  
• New maps, new monsters, new dungeons, new traps and new game modes (we're keeping this a secret)
  

Thank you for reading and getting all the way to the end, there's gotta be a special achievement for this! Our wishlists are growing and the viewership on Twitch has hit over 71,000 hours watched.

We've got a date in mind for our launch and it does depend if we can hit our goals for what we want the EA version to be. We'll update you as soon as possible. In the meantime, join our Discord (https://discord.com/invite/WpmWCmgZRz) to give feedback and as always WISHLIST US!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3265230/Cursed_Companions/

Hey everyone! Just a little update here. We've not been active much on our socials because we've been really busy with all the feedback that has been coming in due to the huge interest in our demo. Our community on Discord has grown so much and we're so happy to see the demo getting so many positive reviews! We've packed in a lot more features in the past few weeks and one of them we'd like to share is the Twitch Totem.



Building this was a big pain for reasons we shall not discuss here. :) Happily we have completed this and rolling this out in the next demo update so streamers can give it a go. We want to give a big thank you to Twitch streamer Karin Kishimei who so patiently helped us with the testing.



[h2]Let Chat Decide Your Fate[/h2]
If you're a Twitch streamer - this is a brand-new feature that lets your viewers mess with (or help!) your game in real-time.

Here's how it works:

• Streamers (partners and affliates) can now connect their Twitch account and enable audience participation in the settings.
  
• During the game, if you come across a mysterious totem in a dungeon room...
  
• Trigger the totem, and a poll will instantly appear on screen (see image below).
  
• Your viewers get to vote in the chat – the outcome could be a blessing, a curse - let them decide!
  
• Just don’t blame us if they choose a curse every time.
  

This is just one of the Twitch integrations we plan to release. We're looking at Drops and other Twitch integrations next. If you've got any suggestions, head to our Discord and let us know!

[h2]Big thank you to the community[/h2]
We've been watching tons of streams and taking notes. Thanks to everyone who's played the demo and shared their feedback - you've helped us fix bugs, spot issues, and improve the experience. ❤️We're getting more confident on our game as we go along.

We're incredibly encouraged by the support and excitement so far. The team is super motivated and working hard as we move toward launch. 💪

Keep streaming and keep the feedback coming!

And as always WISHLIST!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3265230/Cursed_Companions/

More updates soon!

Unbelievable. This is so unreal, the last week has been quite an event for our small team!

We're so happy to share that we’ve hit 10,000 wishlists! We're overjoyed to hit this wonderful milestone! Keep em coming! Don't stop! :)

We're also happy to share that our new demo reached a milestone of 20,000 downloads and 2,300 daily players! All these in the past week! We even maxed out our servers at one point (sorry to those who had trouble playing – we’ve upgraded!).

Our Discord community has grown and grown too! So much positive feedback and so many suggestions on improvements and we're furiously writing them down!

The response has been amazing and it’s given the whole team a huge energy boost. Big thanks to our community for the support - we’re hard at work fixing bugs and adding more content. Stay tuned, more updates coming soon!

And if you haven't already done so - WISHLIST!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3265230/Cursed_Companions/

Thanks to the playtesters and going through hours of their streams, we've seen how different players handle the chaos of Cursed Companions, and some squads are really nailing it… and some, well, let's just say they need to work on their communication skills.


If you're new to the game or just looking to improve, here are some survival tips based on our own experiences and from watching playtesters play.

[h3]Start With Your Voice[/h3]
So we're not your typical shooter. Players won't have weapons at the start. But the main tool you have is your voice and at the risk of sounding cliche, your squad! So, starting with your voice:

• Speak your spells clearly (we know it's hard when you're panicking).
  
• Assign someone who can speak clearly, with clear pronunciation to be the Bookkeeper - they'll read from the spellbooks.
  
• Keep communicating. Keep talking, keep telling others what's going on
  

[h3]Squad Roles That Help You Survive[/h3]
We notice good teams assign roles to their teammates, which is something that we have envisioned all along and it's wonderful to see players naturally doing so, figuring it out as they play. So some roles that you can assign to your teammates are:

• The Torch Bearer: Walks ahead, warns of monsters, leads the group, familiar with the game. Someone who talks a lot.
  
• The Medic: Focuses on healing spells - keep everyone alive. Keep spamming those spells!
  
• The Porter: Hauls treasure and carries loot (give this player the right potions to increase their inventory slots), pair this player with the Wayhome Stone or Teleport Stone
  
• The Bookkeeper: Reads from the Dungeon Codex and Spell Books.
  

Working in pairs or trios works best. Going solo? Unless you're Sung Jin-woo, we don't recommend it.


[h3]Treasure and Loot Strategies[/h3]

• Stash treasures at dungeon exits - it's a time-tested strategy.
  
• Send your fastest player to run them home, either a player with extra speed boost or extra stamina boost
  
• If you hit your treasure goal, don't dump everything into the Treasure Chest! Save the extra Treasures for the next day. You don't get points for exceeding the quotas.
  

[h3]Monster Survival Tips[/h3]

• Foulmoth: Keep it G-rated, channel your inner Disney. This monster does its worst when the team gets into a sticky situation and starts to panic and starts cussing!
  
• Mannequin: Communication and teamwork is the key. Once you got that down, she's pretty much nullified. Good luck if you meet her solo (most likely results in your death).
  
• Boomer Mine: This is essential, once this is unlocked in the shop, get it straightaway. It gives you that one chance to get away from the monster and survive longer.
  

Sometimes, patience is key - wait for monsters to pass before pushing forward.

[h3]Late Game Strategy[/h3]

• Use the facilities like the Bath House and items like the Teleport ring to increase your chances of surviving the tough late game.
  
• Teleport Stones = lifesavers, use them strategically.
  
• Dark Shrine = load up on the Scroll of Praise, you'll never know when you'll encounter the Dark Shrine, but if you do, it's a free Treasure if you've got the scroll with you.
  

[h3]Teamwork is key[/h3]
If you want to survive, play as a team. It can be easy if you work together.

We hope those tips help! We're looking at more of your gameplay streams and seeing how you play the game. Maybe there's something out there we've not covered, we hope to see it in your streams!

Got a clever survival tactic? Come chat with us on Discord and share with the rest of the community!

And as always - WISHLIST!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3265230/Cursed_Companions/

[h2]What's New in our latest Demo[/h2][p]It's the time of game festivals, with the South East Asian Games Showcase, Steam Next Fest and Summer Game fest all under way, we thought we'd might crash the party with a new update for the Cursed Companions demo, featuring new maps, new traps, new monsters and a whole lot of other small improvements and game balancing.[/p][p]If you've already tried the demo, it’s a great time to jump back in![/p][p][/p][p]Special thanks to all the playtesters and streamers in our Discord community giving us great feedback, recording gameplay and being so patient with us. We're so grateful.[/p][p]Here's what we have done so far:[/p][h3]Demo Version 0.9.6 Changelog:[/h3]

• [p]Added new monsters for the Demo: Chatterbox, Meatgrinder and Red Anne[/p]
• [p]Demo is limited to THREE in-game days[/p]
• [p]Added new traps: Death Curse trap[/p]
• [p]Corridors now spawn Treasures[/p]
• [p]Spectators can now see the time remaining till the Day ends[/p]
• [p]Fixed various bugs in the Traitor mode (issues that occur when players die in Voting Hall, etc)[/p]
• [p]Game balancing tweaks[/p]
• [p]Players get notified when new players join the game, when new players leave the game and when a new Game host is assigned[/p]
• [p]Improved Dungeon generation, hopefully the rooms do not overlap each other[/p]
• [p]Added more side entrance room variations[/p]
• [p]Added more Dungeon rooms with obstacles[/p]
• [p]Added a new Map: Abandoned Island[/p]
• [p]Additional UI improvements (recharging sprint bar is now grey)Increased the audio distance for players' death sound effect so other players can hear when their teammate dies[/p]
• [p]Increased the 'You Died' view duration time (so players can see what killed them)[/p]
• [p]Brand new tutorial UI to improve handholding when players play the game for the first time[/p]
• [p]Portal and Dark Shrine now spawn in random locations on the Abyssal Lands[/p]
• [p]Improved Monster AI pathing[/p]
• [p]Updated Spells phrases for English langauge (with some inspired quotes from our fans)[/p]
• [p]Dark Shrine no longer penalizes players for not saying the Queen's greeting on time. It will wait until the player greets the Queen instead.[/p]
• [p]Added some tweaks to the vignetting, grain and a little chroma at the edges of the player camera[/p]

[p][/p][p][/p][p]As always keep the feedback coming, we're getting closer and closer to our early access. If you like the demo, please leave a review on Steam or join our Discord to chat directly with the devs. We’re listening closely and using your input to shape the full game.[/p][p]And, as always - WISHLIST OUR GAME![/p][p][dynamiclink][/dynamiclink][/p][p][/p]