Hello, lovely Moonstoners! It's another beautiful week, and Moonstone Island just keeps getting better. This week, we have patch notes, a cool and cozy Steam event, and, uh, wasn't there... something else... I'm forgetting... OH YEAH WE ANNOUNCED OUR NINTENDO SWITCH RELEASE WINDOW Now I remember. It was a whole thing, we were on the Indie World Showcase, everyone was like "yay" and "woo", it was pretty cooooool. Yay! Woo!
Cozy Quest Event Starting This week we're also going to be part of Cozy Quest, a Steam event run by our good pals over at Secret Mode (they published A Little to the Left, Wobbledogs, and Loddlenaut!) Cozy Quest is a curation of the bestest-best cozy games on Steam, and runs from the 16th to the 20th November. During that time, we'll be on the front page of Steam, alongside games like Ooblets, Potion Permit, and Unpacking, and I will also personally give you 20,000 Cozy Points whenever you wrap yourself in a blanket, drink a hot chocolate, or put on slippers. (Disclaimer: Cozy Points do not have any value. They are just for acknowledging your Cozy Level.) Get cozy!
ICYMI Switch News!! In case you missed it... we finally got to announce our Switch release in Spring 2024! I don't like keeping secrets, so I'm quite glad to not have to sit on this one any longer. Spring might seem really far away (we have to do Winter first!) but I guarantee it'll come up in no time at all. And then we'll all be playing Moonstone Island in bed, as intended. We have a page on the Nintendo website, and Nintendo tweeted about us, and and and... I don't know! I've always been a Nintendo kid! So it feels really weird! And cool! And exciting!!!! I wonder if Miyamoto has ever had to say the words "Moonstone Island". Probably not, right? He's probably busy. But still. IT'S REALLY NEAT.
We're still improving the game with patches on the regular! This week's patch notes includes some rather exciting new changes, including:
Cut down wilted crops with BOOMERANG
Rotateable GATES
The Loom now has a COPY-PASTE feature
You can buy and sell in BULK
More room in town to build a HOUSE
An all-new FISHING DIFFICULTY setting
And so much more! Oooooh! Aaaaah!!!
From Crowcawcaw on Discord, a representation of how we all feel in those clutch moments:
And from Solarolai on Twitter, this adorably peaceful Fall scene. Look at sleepy Beardini!! And is anyone gonna tell them about the Moonstone right at their feet...?
A message from Mr. Morris, Studio Supersoft CEO Mr Morris has something important for you today: Meow meow meoooowww. Meow. Mr Morris, no! That's a secret. Meowww? You signed an embargo, Mr Morris! This is against the law!!! Meow!!! Ah, I could never stay mad at you, buddy.
That's all for today, Moonstoners. As always, we've got more exciting stuff coming up, so we'll see you soon for more announcements and patch notes! Love & Kisses, – Kate, Community Manager and Biggest Moonstoner of All
Rotating Gates Update is here! YEEES! - Patch notes
You know what time it is! It's time for PATCH! NOTES! STEAM POST!!!!
(audience cheers, whistles, yells WOO)
I'm your host, Kate the Community Manager! Let's take a look at our lovely contestants!
(please imagine the following patch notes in the voice of someone reading out prizes on The Price is Right, thank you)
Upgrade your gardening today with Boomerang! You can now use the boomerang to cut down wilted crops WAY faster than before!
The Decoration Station now has TABS for better organisation! (audience cheers and hollers)
You all asked for it, now you're getting it: Gates can be rotated!
Finding fishing too hard? Change the difficulty in our brand-new Fishing Difficulty option! (audience goes "oooooh")
No more tears while making wallpaper and tiling – you can now copy and paste patterns!
The New and Improved Time Dilation PotionTM now works in both the Spirit Barn and the Greenhouse!
You'll no longer have to button-mash through buying 999 seeds, because you can now buy and sell items at shops in bulk!
It's a Blacksmith Blessing: Ferra now sells Copper and Iron in both ore and ingot form, as long as you've completed both her quests!
You could go home with a brand-new fireplace that actually outputs light, because we fixed them!
You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here! Ossono's Tavern has announced that every customer is now subject to a daily limit of 5 coffee, 5 wine, 5 beer, and 3 dish of the day, because let's be real: That's plenty! (audience laughs)
You could win your very own TOWNHOME... because we took away some trees and grass in town to make room for a home! Home not included.
And now for the quick-fire round:
BUG FIX: Exiting from the final battle through the menu will no longer soft-lock the game by using up one of the rift seals
BUG FIX: If you've unlocked the Bracelet recipes and then used a Skill Potion, you can now find the recipes in chests or purchase them from Paolo
BUG FIX: Certain ground tiles that were untillable are now tillable
BUG FIX: Fixed (definitely this time!) the bug with Wildwood not registering as banished in Spirit Research
LIGHTING FIX: Reduced the size of light spots on Jack and Jill Lanterns
LIGHTING FIX: Moved the light spot over the entrance in the fully upgraded greenhouse
CHEAT FIX: Fixed a grass exploit that would spawn multiple items
GENERAL THING WE DID: Locked the Halloween item recipes by default (for new games)
And that's all we have for today!
Wow, thanks, Kate. Those were some great patch notes. And the winner is... you! For getting to keep all these cool new features and changes. Hooray!
Kate, Community Manager and beloved game show host
Switch News!
IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING YOU GUYYYYYYYSSSSS
We're coming to Switch in addition to PC Steam! And we were on the Nintendo Indie World showcase to announce it!!!! So cool. We're best friends with Nintendo now. Maybe they will let us wear a Mario hat?
We'll let you know more when we have more details, but for now, rejoice! We finally have a release window: SPRING 2024!!! 🥳🥳🥳🥳
Thank you all for being patient. Even those of you who were not patient. We still appreciate you :D
~ Studio Supersoft
Updates & Bug Fixes - Nov 4, 2023
Yarrr, it be a patch notes. Why am I speakin' like a pirate? Because it be our eighth patch notes. Like pieces of eight. Patch notes of eight. Yarr, I don't need to explain myself.
We made EVEN MORE tweaks to the volume to fix that loud title screen – your volume is now saved globally, which means whatever you set it to in-game will also change the title screen volume
The "Tame a Spirit higher than Level 50" achievement was counting Spirits at Level 50... which is incorrect. It now only triggers if you catch Spirits of Level 51 and up. We're still figuring out numbers, apparently.
We're also constantly trying to keep up with all the creative ways people are breaking the game. The latest is being able to run along dungeon walls when there's no floor. You're not supposed to be able to do that, obviously, so we patched it out
Fixed the fertilizer so it doesn't stay on a patch of soil if you use the Alchemist's Wand to grow a plant, then harvest it (yes yes I know that's how fertilizer works in the real world, but this is a video game. Take it up with whoever invented computers)
Our glorious Final Boss was too easy to beat, so we nerfed Calm and Tangle a little bit – Final Boss is now immune to these conditions. Nyahahahaaaa
There was a Spring Temple bug that crashed the game to a black screen after defeating the boss. We fixed it
All new mines now correctly appear on the map
The Ando Tree animation now displays correctly
Rocks now drop the correct ores, which is, y'know, oresome
Oh, worm: Womr's Lawn Mowr icon now works!
And that be it, for now, ye landlubbers. Yarrrr. I loves me treasure and booty and parrots.
– Kate, Community Manager and running-out-of-patch-note-ideas writer
Haikuween Results!
Here are our Haikuween winners! You all get a copy of the Halloween DLC!
Congrats to all our winners! We'll be DMing you VERY SOOOOOON
The Village Post, Nov 2
Happy November, everyone! As I write this, it's snowing hard outside. I live in Canada so everyone expects a lot of snow, but winter doesn't normally start until late December here, so this is unusual! It's very soft and quiet, though, so I'm not complaining. Also, I am sitting next to a fireplace so I'm quite cosy. Tell us your favorite season in the comments!
Before we get to the comments, though, let's dive back into what we've been up to.
DLC/ EVENT RETROSPECTIVE
This week we had TWO events: Holoween and Haikuween!
Holoween gave everyone who played the game between 30th October and 1st November three Holo-Hunter Potions, which increased the Holo Spirit encounter chances from 0.2% to 10%.
Haikuween asked people on our Discord, Twitter, and in these Steam posts to submit a spooky haiku or short poem to be in with a chance of winning a code for our Halloween DLC!
Both events are over now, but they were both a lot of fun. If you participated in either, thank you! We hope you now have many Holo Spirits and/or an appreciation for the art of haiku. We'll be announcing the winners on our Twitter, so keep an eye out!
Just before Halloween, we released our biggest-ever update, which included a ton of new content, new Spirits, and a lot of bug fixes and much-requested updates to the game itself.
The full patch notes are loooooooooooong, so here are the highlights:
You can buy more rocks, grass, and trees to replace all the ones you destroyed
NPCs will now accept gifts on their birthday even if you've given them two gifts that week
Zed's Spirit Taming quest is easier to complete
Boss Chests will keep their appearance after you steal them
You can close mines, at last
An even bigger greenhouse
New furniture in Paolo's shop
One-click stack transfer in the inventory
Adjustable day length
A potion to reset your skills
Plus: Various accessibility changes, card tweaks, and bug fixes
Here's the new free content:
Three new Spirits: Bonfire (Fire), Catsket (Dark), and Womr (Earth)
A new Haunted House exterior
Iron Bat Archway
Gravestone
Two skeletons
Tiny skull
Tongue rug
And all of that was totally free for everyone! But if you want to spend a lil more money on supporting Moonstone Island, we also have...
Halloween DLC
Our Eerie Items DLC is also available now! It includes more decor:
Carved Pumpkin House exterior
Cobwebs
Jack-O'-Lanterns
Candles
Eyeball rug
WOW so much stuff!!!!!!!!!!
Hmm, now that Halloween is over... what's next? What's the next big holiday? We can't quite remember. Bonfire Night, right? Then it's American Thanksgiving, yeah? But then there's something else... something... big. I forget. Sure would be cool if we had another big update planned for some big holiday in the future. Hmmm.
This week's community creations have a bit of a spooky Halloween vibe! Check out this Fishbrew fanart by @MessyZandrewbert <3
...............meow.
Translation: When you stare into the Voidno for too long, the Voidno stares back.
Thank you all again for your continued love and support, and your suggestions for making the game better, which mean that we can do updates like this one. We hope you had a great Halloween, and don't forget to tell us about your favourite season/holiday in the comments! Mine's Autumn. I like hot chocolate and fires.
~ Studio Supersoft
The Holo-ween Hunt Starts Now!
Alchemists!
Go go! Grab your potions and start your Holo Hunting now until Nov 1 at 9:00 AM PST/12:00 PM EST/17:00 CET.
Just a reminder on where you can find your 3 free potions:
Happy Hunting!
~ Studio Supersoft
Holo-ween Hunt Starts Tomorrow - Get Your Potions Before it's Gone!
Eeeeeevening, Alchemists!
This is just a reminder that the Holo-ween Hunt starts tomorrow! Get your hands on 3 free Holo-Hunting potions, dropped very handily in the middle of the Town Square to snap up!
Potion specifics:
Holo-Hunter Potion - Drinking this potion increases the chances of Holographic Spirits spawning to 10%. Remains active until your day ends or until you tame a holographic spirit, whichever comes first. Does not stack.
You can grab your potions from October 30 at 9:00 AM PST/12:00 PM EST/18:00 CEST - Nov 1 at 9:00 AM PST/12:00 PM EST/18:00 CEST. Happy Holo-ween Hunting, Moonstoners!
~ Studio Supersoft
Free Content Update and Eerie Items DLC Available Today!
Welcome, Alchemists!
The Eerie Items DLC is out today! That means that you can now buy some extra Halloweeny items, including a new pumpkin house, candle decor, and a big gross tongue-shaped rug, PLUS everyone will also discover a few new (FREE) spooky decor items added to their game, but guess what?
THAT'S NOT EVEN EVERYTHING WE'VE ADDED TO THE GAME. You love patch notes, right? Get ready for the best patch notes yet...
We solved deforestation, you guys. Ofelia and Gaiana will now sell replantable trees
We solved... de...rock...estation? Yeah, they also sell rocks
Also grass. You can buy grass. No, not that kind of grass, you miscreants, the normal kind
Decorative trees will now have a planter at their base so you don't get em mixed up with real trees
You can now give an NPC a gift on their birthday, even if you've given them two gifts that week, because everyone likes birthday presents. Relatedly, it's my birthday tomorrow
No such thing as a free... hand? Not any more. Spectral Hand+ now costs 0 to play
Zed is sorry that his Spirit Taming quest was too hard. You can now tame a Spirit of any level to complete this quest, instead of level 5 or higher
If you're the kind of person who steals all the chests from dungeons, good news: Boss chests now stay looking fancy
Stone walls will no longer interfere with your garden! You should now be able to dig and plant next to them, no problems
Accessibility win: there's a "reduce flicker" setting which will turn off flashing objects such as being struck by lightning and resources being hit by tools!
(One) Peace of mind: Treasure maps now clear properly, and are marked as complete properly too
Rowan no longer wants the impossible gift of "Balloon". You can't have that, Rowan! You don't have the permits and you would almost definitely die
Oh, you thought the greenhouse was already big enough? TOUGH LUCK, IT'S GONNA GET EVEN BIGGER. Gaiana and Ofelia will now let you buy an inadvisably large greenhouse for all your plant-growing desires
Also, Paolo apparently wasn't selling, like, most of the furniture we made. Rude. We had a word, and now Paolo will sell LOADS of new furniture in their shop
Don't worry, we'll all scroll on alright: The scrollbar now works properly!
If your achievements weren't working, that should be fixed now too!
We learned to count (it took a while) so now Lightning+ says that it hits 3 times instead of 4 times
Spirits that were previously only found in mines will now hatch from eggs. I guess that means they're now yours. Instead of mines. Ha ha ha ha ha
Tired of having a gigantic, unsafe, unsightly pit in front of your house? GUESS WHAT!!!! You can now close mines!!!!! Say goodbye to that OSHA violation forever!!!!!!!
Actually let's not alert OSHA just yet, because we made the Furnace easier to start on controllers. Just press the Start button to begin the smelting process! Safety is less important than efficiency, duh
Say a thank you prayer to the god of inventory management, because stacks can now be transferred in one click
Time, mystical time: You can now adjust the day length in the gameplay settings. All those memes about "having the same number of hours as Beyonce" can finally be true
Once you've unlocked a Spirit and let it go, it will start appearing in the wild. This means that egg-only Spirits can be released into the world to repopulate and spread and... is this a bad idea? Are we disrupting the ecosystem? Hmm. Don't worry about it
Earth, Water, and Poison islands can now be found on the outermost ring of islands, which means BEEFY BOIS can be found that aren't just Dark and Fire type
Did you make a bad choice? It's okay, we've all been there. You can't change mistakes in real life, but you can change them in Moonstone Island with our new handy-dandy Skill Reset Potion! (disclaimer: do not try Skill Reset Potion in real life)
One more thing: As a thank you (a spooooky thank you) to all of you, we've added a new home exterior for free, available to all players. It's called the Haunted House, and you can find it in the Moonstone Enchanter!
NO WAIT ONE MORE THING
NEW
SPIRITS
I'm going to keep their names secret for now, so you can enjoy the surprise when you find them in game, but I love them. I love them all so much.
This is our biggest patch yet – maybe not in terms of the number of changes, but definitely in terms of quality-of-life additions. We really, really hope it makes the game even better for you, and that you love all the new Spirits as much as we do.
Thank you again, and always, for your support, and HAPPY HALLOWEEEEEEEN!
~ Kate, Community Manager, and by the way it's my birthday this weekend 🥳
The Village Post, October 26
Hello hello, my little lambs!
It's almost Halloween (and our dear Community Ambassador's birthday, which is on Saturday, don't forget) so I'm going ALL OUT CREEPY for this newsletter. I'm not good at creepy, so don't set your expectations too high.
BOO!
Ahahaha I got you. I got you so good. I tricked you. I'm actually very good at creepy >:)
Let's get into this week's news, starting with the biggest:
MOONSTONE ISLAND WILL BE 20% OFF FOR ONE WEEK TO CELEBRATE OUR MEGA HALLOWEEN UPDATE!!! What is our Halloween Update? I'm so glad you asked...
MEGA HALLOWEEN UPDATE
Let's go into a little bit more detail about what the gigantic update tomorrow will include! Some of it is new content, and some is bug fixes and quality-of-life updates, making this our BIGGEST UPDATE YET. All of this is free for all players
Ofelia and Gaiana now sell saplings that grow into full trees
Rocks and grass can also be purchased and placed anywhere
Paolo will sell you an even bigger greenhouse
A Skill Reset Potion
Updated things
Paolo has more furniture to sell
Close mine-holes
Move whole stacks in one click
Day length options
Egg Spirits in the wild
Beefier wild Earth, Water, and Poison Spirits
DLC
Our second batch of DLC is also out tomorrow! If you've been paying attention to our socials you probably already know all about this, but here's the brief:
It's $3.99/3.99 EUR/£3.49 (with a 10% discount for the first week)
Includes a Carved Pumpkin house exterior
A new eyeball rug
Candles!!!!!
Lots of different cobwebs
Two Jack-o'-Lanterns
Events
We're also running TWO EVENTS!
Holo-ween Hunt From October 30 (9:00 AM PST/12:00 PM EST/18:00 CEST) to Nov 1 at (9:00 AM PST/12:00 PM EST/18:00 CEST), hop into the game to pick up three LIMITED-TIME Holo-Hunter Potions, which increases your chances of finding Holo Spirits from 0.2% to a whopping 10%. It lasts until the end of the day, or until you find a Holo. Happy hunting, peeps!
Haikuween It's a competition! We're giving away Steam codes for the Eerie Items DLC as a prize, and all you need to do is submit a short poem or haiku about Moonstone Island (make it spooky)! You can do that through our Discord, our Twitter, or in the comments on this post and we'll enter you into the draw. The competition ends on November 1st. Haikuweeeeen!!!
Just in time for the spookiest of seasons, @ClicketyCrow brings in this eerie offering!
We think @IndiV might have a type. I mean, where Ferra is involved, us too!
