Bark cover
Bark screenshot
Steam
Genre: Strategy, Adventure, Indie

Bark

BARK 1.4.1 (Hint and Tutorial Display Toggle Fix)

  • Fixed the settings for toggling the display of Hints and Tutorials not showing up if a save file already exists for the game.

BARK 1.4 (Difficulty Adjustments and Clarity Patch)

  • Adjusted the way the neighboring dog responds to being barked at. It will no longer chase you when barked at if it is not currently barking. This was a common misunderstanding related to how to evade the neighboring dog and has now been modified to better fit players' expectations.
  • Increased the time between the neighboring dog stopping to scan for you in chapter 7.
  • Increased the amount of time the neighboring dog will bark at you before chasing you in chapter 7.
  • Added the ability to escape a chase with the neighboring dog. This was initially not intended to increase the steaks when roaming the neighborhood, but I can see how inconvenient and frustrating this can be when trying to explore.
  • Increased the buffer period when your owner stops to listen for your movement.
  • Added and modified various hints to better help explain certain objectives in chapters 5 and 7.
  • Added a hint regarding achieving one of the 3 available endings after completing the game once.
  • Added the ability to enable and disable the display of hints and tutorials at will.
  • Fixed a bug where the objective "Get into the garage." would trigger despite having already entered the garage in Chapter 4.


NOTE: These changes have been made to make the game a more fluid and enjoyable experience. I have been made aware that the game is commonly agreed to be too difficult. I considered adding difficulty settings, but the challenge of the game plays its own part in the story. Removing or allowing the player to determine how challenging the game is will detract from the intended experience. Instead, I will continue to update the difficulty as necessary to appeal to as many players as I can! I am also aware and currently researching the reasons for crashes (most commonly seen in Chapter 5). I am unsure what is causing this, but will continue to search for solutions!

Missing Executable Bug Fixed
The executable name had changed during the previous update. This has now been fixed! Sorry for the inconvenience for anyone who tried to run the game after the most recent update! Everything should be working correctly now!

BARK 1.3.1 (Clarity Patch)

  • Made Chapter 3 a little easier to complete (since it seemed to commonly be too difficult).
  • Prevented hunger and passing out events from happening if your owner is still hunting you in Chapter 4.
  • Improved clarity of objectives in Chapters 5 and 7.


This patch is meant to help improve the clarity of objectives in specific chapters, while also fixing a few small problems / common complaints.

Update 1.3 (Several Bug Fixes)

  • Fixed a bug that allowed the neighbor's dog to jump over the fence and start its sequence in Chapter 5 while your owner is hunting you due to agitation.
  • Fixed a bug where barking at the neighbor's dog right before it is about to jump over the fence would automatically jumpscare you.
  • Added hints to better explain how to complete Chapter 5.
  • Lessened the radius of each point that your owner can navigate to when seeking or hunting.
  • Fixed the front door not opening when your owner is in close proximity during the final hunt in the house in Chapter 7.
  • Fixed your owner not opening the door to the back bathroom when successfully agitated at the beginning of Chapter 7.
  • Fixed several issues regarding leaving the house in Chapter 7.
  • Fixed a bug where the neighboring dog would not properly block both sides of Dexter St. after escaping the house in Chapter 7.
  • Added a small period of time between agitating your owner and your owner coming out to hunt to make his presence better known.
  • Decreased the amount of noise required to agitate your owner.
  • Added more hints to improve objective clarity throughout Chapter 7.
  • Stopped ambience adjusting based on the environment in Chapter 7 (inside louder, outside quieter).
  • Decreased the time it takes for the first set of sirens to start in Chapter 7.
  • Decreased the time it takes for your owner to be agitated by the neighbor's dog barking at the windows in the living room in Chapter 7.
  • Fixed your owner target locking upon successfully escaping a chase.
  • Fixed your owner never giving up a chase even if you successfully get away.
  • Fixed chase music not ever playing again after having successfully evaded a threat.
  • Fixed neighboring dog starting a chase despite the player having barked at it at the appropriate time(s) in Chapter 7.
  • Increased the frequency of hallucinations appearing when hallucinating in Chapter 7.
  • Decreased the likelihood of hallucinations falling through the floor when appearing.
  • Adjusted the location and method of triggering a set of sirens in Chapter 7.


NOTE: These fixes consist of the majority of the currently known issues! If you find any bugs beyond the ones fixed in this patch, please let me know! More patches / updates are to come as more issues are discovered! There are also some bugs that I am aware of, but will be leaving in the game because I find them to be charming (eg. cats sliding along the ground when barked at, your owner being unable to see you if you are at his feet, etc.)

Updates are coming!
BARK released Friday with very few known issues, many of which have already been fixed in the patches for the game thus far. As of today, I have discovered several bugs varying from small annoying details to game-breaking errors. I am fully aware of these issues and will be continuously working on solving these issues before any new content is created for the game!

Please be aware that the game is fully playable and everything (all achievements, endings, etc.) are possible and the game is not broken. There are some objectives, missions, or sequences that I will be tweaking due to their lack of clarity for the player. As a solo developer, it is easy to overlook how difficult or hard to understand a puzzle may be, so as players continue to play the game and experience these sequences, I will continue to adjust them and make the experience as a whole more enjoyable for everyone!

There are also some segments of the game that need some fine-tuning to make all characters, triggers, and several other functioning pieces work more smoothly and cooperate with your actions as a player much better.

In other words, MANY UPDATES will be coming to BARK very, very soon!

If you encounter any issues, please let me know wherever you can! I will be seeking out and fixing as many problems as I can over the coming weeks!

P.S. I was planning to start streaming the development of BARK this week (starting Monday), but I will most likely have to postpone this until either later this week or next week for several reasons. Either way, I will be livestreaming development soon!

Day 2 Patch (The thing I forgot to patch)

  • Fixed the "Play: Selected Extra" button in the Extras menu not replacing "Selected Extra" with the correct name.


Yes, I forgot to patch this and it was going to bother me if I didn't.

Day 2 Patch

  • Prevented "Continue" button on the main menu from showing an incorrect chapter after completing the game.
  • Fixed alignment issue regarding the high scores and stars on each extra game-mode's menu.
  • Fixed drop-down menus in settings not displaying all options when its contents cannot fit within the current screen's display size.
  • Fixed drop-down menus not disappearing when settings menu is closed.
  • The music coming from the house where the party is occurring in Chapter 7 will now fade out with the rest of the audio at the end of the chapter.
  • Shortened the potential length of time the neighboring dog can be stuck in a non-traversable area in Chapter 7.
  • Increased the time between the neighboring dog seeking and scanning its surroundings during Chapter 7.
  • Improved consistency when stepping up onto curbs throughout the neighborhood.
  • Added a method that will confirm all audio fades out at the end of a chapter or game-mode.
  • Changed the sound effect that is used when counting the number of treats collected at the end of a chapter or game-mode.
  • Increased the amount of time it takes for each hallucination to appear in Chapter 6.
  • Made the whimpering sound effect more clear when being barked at by a hallucination.
  • Removed the occasional duplicate sound effect when deactivating sense.

Day 1 Patch (The thing that didn't patch correctly)
Apparently, "Added a star to each extra game-mode's menu to indicate whether or not it has been completed." from the Day 1 Patch didn't actually go through. This time, it should be functioning correctly.

Day 1 Patch

After spending today reviewing player feedback and doing some more of my own playtesting, I have made a few fixes that will enhance the experience for all players.



What changed?




  • Hints in Chapter 1 regarding how to successfully evade your owner have been modified to be more helpful and clear.

  • Chapter 7 audio will now fade out at the end correctly.

  • In Chapter 7, a bug regarding the neighboring dog's behavior when barked at has been fixed.

  • The Neighborhood Run "Best Time" will now display properly on the Main Menu.

  • Controller Feedback / Haptics will only play if a controller is detected and being used.

  • Adjusted the way Hallucinations appear in Chapter 6.

  • Added more time between Hallucinations appearing in Chapter 6.

  • Fixed the dog whimpering sound not playing when being barked at by a hallucination.

  • Fixed neighborhood cats' meow pitch bug.

  • Fixed sirens sound not playing in Chapter 4.

  • Added a star to each extra game-mode's menu to indicate whether or not it has been completed.

  • Reduced the number of lights that can be on at one time in Hide and Seek (Normal Mode) to help with performance.

  • Fixed the "Completionist" achievement not unlocking if "Game Master" achievement has already been unlocked.

  • Adjusted the way threats navigate to points around the environment.


Thank you for playing, and I can't wait to get more feedback from all of you!
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