Genre: Role-playing (RPG), Hack and slash/Beat 'em up, Adventure
Mortal Sin
The Oathbound Update
[p]REMINDER: Mortal Sin is 40% off right now — and this is your last chance for a deep discount! As I approach the full 1.0 launch, the price will soon increase and future discounts will reset to much lower levels. So if you’ve been on the fence, now is the best time to dive in — or gift a friend while the sale lasts.[/p][p]This is a massive update that brings the game closer than ever to my original vision. It also includes the full Quest Update Part I, which introduced new quest types built around spatial and timing-based objectives. If you missed it, read that announcement here.[/p]
🧬 New Feature: Oath System
[p]A brand-new Oath System has been added! These are powerful run modifiers unlocked through Helena’s questline. Each one drastically alters gameplay with its own risk–reward twist, encouraging unique builds and new playstyles.[/p]
[p]Oaths are unlocked as you level up Helena.[/p]
[p]At levels 2, 4, and 6, you’ll choose between two Oaths per tier.[/p]
[p]Most Oaths can be mixed and matched, but some (like level layout modifiers) are mutually exclusive.[/p]
[p][/p][p]🧩 Fractured Realm Each level becomes a branching puzzle of floor plates and locked rooms. Rewards and traps appear more frequently. Rooms from other areas always appear at the end of branching paths. Portal rooms are longer and have branching paths.[img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/5ce1d92a880462873d08dc1b8c23839495bf7408.png"][TAG-50]There's a forest in my dungeon...[/p][p][/p][p]🔥 Crucible Path Each area has fewer rooms. All rooms are replaced with arena battles. Bosses drop up to 3 skill chests per arena battle.[/p][p]💨 Divine Grace Your block is replaced with a dodge. Dodges consume guard meter and grant brief invincibility. Dodging in time triggers a dodge parry. Your next attack becomes a slow power strike dealing 400% bonus damage.[/p][p]😱 Feast of Fright Scares occur more frequently. Scares have a chance to spawn Sinful Essence, up to 5 per level.[/p][p]🧠 Gift of Insight Equipment no longer provides stats. All equipment grants skill stacks increasing with rarity.[/p][p]💪 Gift of Might Equipment no longer grants skills. All equipment provides +50% increased stats. Your stat limits are increased by 10%.[/p][p]🕳 Hollow Tribute Loot rooms no longer appear during the run. Gain +30% more gold essence.[/p][p]🌕 Providence Path Each level becomes a long winding corridor. Loot appears in each corridor and improves the farther you go.[/p][p]⚔️ Sacred Flow Only Shuffle Combos generate combo meter. Combo meter gain is doubled when performing a Shuffle Combo.[/p][p]🛡 Sacred Reflex Parries have a much stricter timing window. Parries grant more combo meter and unleash a shockblast.[/p][p]💎 Snare of Avarice Each room is either filled with traps or filled with rewards. Breakable objects have a chance to drop loot chests.[/p][p]🧬 Twisted Lineage Enemies are randomized in each room. Gain +15% chance to find rare items.[/p]
🛠 Gameplay & Content Updates
[p]Meta quest rewards like Divine Retribution and Oaths now have distinct icons and colors to differentiate them from standard rewards.[/p]
[p]Helena’s quest UI no longer closes after each reward — making it easier to claim multiple rewards in one go.[/p]
[p]Gold Essence quest reward base amount increased from 15,000 → 50,000.[/p]
[p]Skill stacking now goes beyond level 5, up to a hard cap of 25, with diminishing returns beyond the soft cap.[/p]
[p]Class list reorder: Mage is now listed above Pirate to better reflect newcomer viability. Pirate will be reworked soon, and I’m planning changes to Vampire as well based on community feedback.[/p]
[p]Auto combo improvements: You can now correctly charge a thrust or hold attack mid-combo.[/p]
[p]Arena slow motion improvement: Buffered input is cleared if you're mashing during a slow-mo finisher to keep it cinematic.[/p]
🧩 World & Level Adjustments
[p]Cave drop rooms now have elevators for backtracking, preventing softlocks in the Fractured Realm layout.[/p]
[p]Quest storage overhaul: Dying now adds quests to a global reserve pool, which is only accessed on new saves. This fixes previous confusion and bugs around quest inheritance. Otherwise, once you hit the first save point, your saved session will track it's own quest rewards on that round as well as quests that are carried over to the next round. [/p]
🐛 Bug Fixes
[p]Fixed: Divine Retribution would sometimes reappear even after being claimed.[/p]
[p]Fixed: Issues with old quest reward reserve system that would delete rewards unexpectedly.[/p]
🎨 Visual & UI
[p]Added a new loading splash screen that reflects the game’s realistic visual style. The classic version still appears if you're using legacy visuals.[/p]
🎁 Final Note
[p]If you haven’t seen it yet, the Sulfur x Mortal Sin bundle is now available! Pick it up here: Steam Bundle Page[/p][p]Thank you for playing and supporting Mortal Sin — I’m incredibly grateful to be building this alongside such a passionate community. I can’t wait to deliver a full, robust 1.0 that brings the full vision to life.[/p][p]Stay sinful, –Nikola[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/fca0578efd6e9e1e57b4ab9e4a21a080e5917804.gif"][/p]
Final 40% Discount, First Oaths
[p]The Steam Summer Sale is here, and this is your last chance to get Mortal Sin at a heavy discount. The game is 40% off, but after this, the price is going up with 1.0 on the horizon, and major discounts like this won’t be coming back anytime soon. [/p][p]If you’ve been thinking about picking it up, or want to gift a friend, now’s the time.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/9ae1bb6148f0a244bbe8df518eea24c8086e6eab.png"][/p][p]🗡️ Quest Update Part 2 — Play It Early on the Beta Branch[/p][p]The next major update is almost here. Quest Update Part 2 introduces the Oath System, letting you stack powerful modifiers that reshape each run. These include replacing your block with a dodge, various level layout modifiers like all arena battles, an enemy randomizer, and more![/p][p]There are already 11 Oaths live on the beta branch, and I’m actively looking for feedback. If you want to try it early, give it a shot and let me know what you think.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/4c6afa3ca1c82bda27ea6a1dd6ea2b4c4cf2de00.png"][/p][p] Sulfur x Mortal Sin Bundle at 20% off![/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/832d5a3faca17b6ec4b20cdfbfd17b6b6283b91f.png"][/p][p]I'm also pleased to announce that I'm teaming up with the fine folks at Perfect Random with a new bundle. Get two genre defining action roguelikes at a great price! Fun fact, when checking out the SULFUR discord, I found a lot of users that are also in the Mortal Sin discord. So clearly our players have great taste. [/p][p]Full release is getting close, and there’s a lot more cool stuff coming. Until then, grab the bundle, gift Mortal Sin to a friend, try out the new Oath System on the beta branch and let me know your feedback.[/p][p]Thanks for the support![/p][p]— Nikola[/p]
Quest Update Part I
[p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/94c5c909cc7e0b42cf6c0fdc5bfc0a1fab6711fb.png"][/p][p]This update introduces a set of brand-new quests, each built around the positional-style objectives I’ve found to be the most fun and intuitive. These quests use the special floor plate system as a base, with unique twists that encourage movement, awareness, and experimentation. I’ve also made several balance changes, gameplay improvements, and bug fixes to help smooth out the overall experience.[/p]
🔥 New Quests (8 Total)
[p]I’ve added 8 new quests, all focused on spatial challenges, survival mechanics, and dynamic enemy behavior:[/p]
[p]Aberration Defeat the mutants—faster, tougher variants with elongated limbs and aggressive movement.[/p]
[p]Seal of Slaughter Stand inside a circle while waves of enemies continuously spawn.[/p]
[p]Hold the Line Defend Divino from waves of enemies. With the reworked targeting system, enemies can now attack something other than the player. Divino won't move, but he’ll fight back as best he can.[/p]
[p]Immortal Construct Avoid getting grabbed by a slower, less punishing version of the Pursuer, while dealing with constant enemy spawns.[/p]
[p]Trail of Sin Stay out of cursed zones that spawn whenever enemies appear. If you're not careful, you'll get boxed in.[/p]
[p]Walk with Sin Follow the invincible witch Calistra while enemies spawn around you. She doesn’t help—she just looks cool and makes everything harder. I’ll likely bring her to the hub world in a future update.[/p]
[p]Devil May Run Chase a demon as it tries to flee. Unlike Calistra, the demon runs away instead of wandering—and it can be stunned to buy some time.[/p]
[p]Grasp of Horror Scares will periodically spawn near you. Avoid being grabbed by them while surviving the onslaught.[/p]
⚖️ Quest System Changes & Balance
[p]Swiftness quest now gives +1.5 seconds per enemy spawned (up from 1s).[/p]
[p]The timer now starts only after opening the exit door in curse/skill rooms.[/p]
[p]I’ve removed most of the older quests, keeping just:[/p]
[p]Timed level completion[/p]
[p]Kill elite enemies The original goal was to encourage unusual playstyles, but they often felt tedious or easy to miss.[/p]
[p]Timed quests now have a fixed duration of ~30 seconds, instead of scaling with progression.[/p]
🔧 Gameplay Improvements
[p]Combo Attribute Rework: Resets Ability Cooldown is now Resets Ability Cooldown Every 10 Seconds. It’s still powerful, but now encourages more varied gameplay—especially for builds like Gladiator or Reaper that could spam it constantly.[/p]
[p]Statue Reroll Costs: Rerolling skills at statues now has a fixed cost, instead of doubling each time. This gives more freedom to experiment with builds.[/p]
[p]Gold Essence Retention: Dying now keeps 100% of your gold essence between runs (up from 50%). This was a leftover system from early alpha that no longer fits, especially with an essence cap in place.[/p]
[p]Gladiator Update: Gladiators can now roll skills on armor, like other classes.[/p]
🐛 Bug Fixes
[p]Fixed a bug where the Caestus would clip through walls.[/p]
[p]Fixed the Helena bloody tear face texture to prevent discoloration.[/p]
[p]Fixed a UI issue where the class selection screen didn’t display the correct difficulty text or color.[/p]
[p]Removed an old saved texture quality setting that could still apply if it had been set in a much earlier version.[/p]
Final Thoughts
[p]This update leans into what I think makes the quest system shine: positioning, tension, and variety. I’ve also made some changes to reduce friction and give you more freedom to experiment with builds.[/p][p]Looking ahead to Part II of the quest update, I’m planning to expand Helena’s progression with more meaningful and permanent rewards beyond Divine Retribution. These will take the form of randomized, high-impact blessings that introduce powerful risk/reward mechanics to each run. For example, you might choose a blessing that completely randomizes the enemies and bosses in every area—or one that dramatically increases trap density while boosting gold essence gains.[/p][p]Thanks for playing and supporting the game—it genuinely means a lot. More is on the way soon.[/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/abe6d4ebf21db99c2c4403d9c33f083a492fd82d.png"][/p]
Hit Hard, Look Good
[p]Took some time this update to sharpen the feel and addictiveness of the core gameplay. I thought things were in a good place—until I played Doom: The Dark Ages and realized my feedback was still a bit soft. Now? Hitting and killing things has never felt better. Hopefully these changes make the experience even more immersive and satisfying. Enjoy![/p][p][/p][p][img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/310c5d1a7928b5ed94f123053b9b01dea42b347c.gif"][/p][p][/p][p]Enhancements[/p]
[p]Camera Shake Added – Hits now trigger screenshake based on their strength. This includes melee attacks, gunfire, magic staves, damage taken, and certain class abilities. You can disable it in settings—if you really want to ruin my day—but it massively improves the feel of combat.[/p]
[p]Spell Recoil – Some spells now cause minor knockback and screenshake on cast, adding punch and weight to your magic.[/p]
[p]New Enemy: Observer – The big red-headed freak from portal rooms and Maw of Sin is now a floor hazard across all main areas. Most common in the cave, where trap density was previously low.[/p]
[p]Berserker Charge Buff – Using the Charge ability outside of the Whirlwind combo now halves its cooldown (6s instead of 12s), giving Berserker more flexible and responsive options.[/p]
[p]New Berserker Combo: Ragespike – After using an ability, attacking immediately will perform a powerful charge thrust with an animation cancel. It’s a huge boost to non-Whirlwind playstyles and opens up a faster, more aggressive flow.[/p]
[p]More Slow Motion – Added slow mo effects to certain class abilities, explosions, and enemy kills to boost dramatic impact.[/p]
[p]Final Kill Slow Mo – Killing the last enemy in floor plate arenas, mid-area fights, or boss arenas now triggers a deeper, more cinematic slow motion. The intensity scales by encounter type.[/p]
[p]Global Slow Motion Speed Tweaked – Base slow mo speed raised from 0.1x to 0.35x. Combined with more frequent usage, this keeps pacing punchy and smooth while still feeling dramatic.[/p]
[p]Audio Variety – Added variation to one of the common hit sounds for weapons.[/p]
[p]Red Floor Guides Improved – Red directional lines are now much clearer, especially in Realistic visuals mode.[/p]
[p]New Intro Animation – Every time you launch the game, you’ll awaken through a stylized eye-opening effect. Flavorful. Sinful.[/p]
[p]Bug Fixes[/p]
[p]Fixed an issue where unlocking new areas wouldn’t update the progress screen’s path display properly.[/p]
[p]Fixed a bug where some blocks and parries failed to trigger hitstop as intended.[/p]
[p]Flesh hit sounds no longer play on non-flesh objects like pots or crates.[/p]
[p][/p][p]As always, thank you for playing Mortal Sin. If you’re enjoying the game, please consider leaving a Steam review—it really helps more than you think. And if you have feedback or run into any issues, hop into the Discord and let your voice be heard: [/p][p]discord.gg/aHHjvWHKzg[/p][p][/p][p]See you in the next update.[img src="https://clan.akamai.steamstatic.com/images/39316249/fca0578efd6e9e1e57b4ab9e4a21a080e5917804.gif"][TAG-120][/p][p][/p][p][/p]
Hunter Class Update and Combat Tutorial
Welcome to all the new players! It’s been awesome seeing so many new sinners dive into Mortal Sin lately. I truly appreciate all the feedback — and I want to take a moment to address some of the common issues I’ve seen mentioned.
I’ve seen a lot of feedback from players confused about the combo system, so I’ve made improvements to the onboarding process to help new players get up to speed. This new combo tutorial is the only hand-holding you’re gonna get — so pay attention! It covers the essentials: auto combos, manual combos, parrying, and more. Most of it only triggers once, though some classes have their own unique manual combo tutorials that will appear separately.
I’ve seen ongoing feedback about the Hunter class — mainly confusion around his ability spam and awkward interaction with auto combos. While his design was unique, it often felt strange to play and was secretly overpowered and hard to balance. At this late stage of development, I’m trying to avoid major or controversial systemic changes — but Hunter was a clear outlier that needed to be smoothed out.
This update brings him more in line with the rest of the roster, with a more intuitive combo flow and normalized ability durations and cooldowns. His rapid-fire pokes are now baked into his basic attack, and you can branch into a kick combo or bash combo to chain from a whirlwind into a freezing stab.
Vanish has been reworked into a proper escape tool — it now prevents enemies from targeting you while you reposition, and opens up two distinct ability combo paths:
Shadow Step – lets you dash quickly and reset the Vanish cooldown
Pounce – "cashes in" Vanish for a powerful, explosive strike
The core idea behind Hunter remains the same — smart positioning, mobility, and ranged control — but it should now feel more streamlined and strategic to execute.
I hope you’ll give this slightly new take on Hunter a fair shot. If you have any feedback specific to the rework, I’d love to hear it — feel free to drop your thoughts on the forums or Discord.
Content
Added a new combo attribute: Hit Cancel — lets you cancel into the next attack even when repeating the same move. Currently exclusive to the Hunter class, but may be added to others in the future
Reworked the Hunter class to have a smoother, more cohesive combo flow in line with other classes.
Added a new hands-on Combat Tutorial — when you first pass by Divino, you'll be pulled into a brief rundown of basics like auto combos, manual combos, and parries. This only triggers once, though some classes have their own additional manual combo tutorials
Added a Quest Popup Tutorial that appears once when you have new quests available in the progress screen
Balance
Increased Hunter's Vanish duration and cooldown. It now makes you invisible again, helping you escape tight situations
Polish
Corrected various typos and tweaked wording across multiple text entries
Improved visibility of the Color Palette menu in visual settings — now with a subtle tween animation to help it stand out
Improved visibility of available quests on the progress screen — now with a subtle tween animation to help it stand out
Changed the intro story continue key from "Attack" to "Use" to avoid awkward swings when closing the story text
Mouse hotkeys (left, right, and middle click) now display as icons in the UI instead of plain text
Bugs
Fixed a bug where the pinned combo UI would reset its position every time you started a new game
Fixed a bug where Scares weren't dealing any damage to the player (hotfixed on 5/20)
Fixed the Game Over screen UI being misaligned on ultrawide monitors
Fixed a bug where placeholder story text would briefly appear after completing a run
Mortal Sin is getting closer to its 1.0 release, and in the coming updates, I’m focusing on making combat feel even better, expanding Helena’s quest system, and expanding the final area for a stronger finish.
If you’ve been enjoying the game, please consider leaving a Steam review — it genuinely helps a lot. And as always, the best place to share your thoughts or feedback is on Discord: discord.gg/aHHjvWHKzg
P.S. If you run into a bug, please consider stopping by the Discord and posting your player log — I can’t do much without it! Instructions on where to find it are pinned in the bug-reporting forum.
Localization Update: Chinese and Russian Language Support!
This update is a huge one behind the scenes—Mortal Sin now has full official support for Simplified Chinese and Russian!
I worked closely with two dedicated players to bring these translations to life. Every line was reviewed manually, and while there may still be small issues, this is a major step forward in accessibility. Feedback is always welcome.
A message from the translators:
Russian Translator: Добавлен русский язык. Перевод все еще в разработке и открыт для замечаний и предложений Russian has been added. The translation is still in development and open to feedback and suggestions.
Chinese Translator: 各位玩家大家好，很高兴这部作品的官方中文终于上线了，希望各位能喜欢我的翻译风格与内容。如果未来在游戏过程中你希望反馈一些bug或者建议，无论是游戏内容上的，还是中文文本上的，都可以在此处、Steam讨论组，或者找到我们的QQ群 858496564 留言。我会负责与开发者沟通你们的反馈，并一起努力将未来的游戏变得更好！ Hello everyone! I'm very happy that the official Chinese localization for this game is finally live. I hope you enjoy my translation style and the content.
If you encounter any bugs or have suggestions during your playthrough—whether it's about the game itself or the Chinese text—you can leave a message here, in the Steam forums, or in our QQ group: 858496564.
I’ll be responsible for communicating your feedback to the developer, and together we’ll work to make the game even better in the future!
Next up is wrapping up Helena’s story, adding new meta quest rewards, and finishing the final area—which hasn’t been touched in a while. I'm getting closer to version 1.0, and I can’t wait to share the full experience I’ve poured so much into.
For now, here are the rest of the patch notes:
Patch Notes
Added Simplified Chinese Localization!
Added Russian Localization!
Added auto combo toggle at the top of combo list along with tooltip
Update various texts for more clarity
Updated Divino's tutorial pictures and text to more accurately reflect current game state
Fix Divine Radiance color for realistic color palette
Added tutorial popups for low health, low mana, and acquiring a skill. These only appear once or twice max before never showing up again.
Fix bug where combo pinned on screen wouldn't save its position between runs
4/27 hotfix
Fixed equipped UI text on quest rewards from wrapping to the next line
Fixed pistol shot audio bug clipping pop noise
Pushed back vessel curved wall reward backing so it's impossible to get soft locked by getting wedged in between
Made hitstop reduce duration per each hit in a single animation
5/8 hotfix
Fixed a bug since the pirate update where the vessel area did not increment your overall level (which affects item level, effectively weakening your run overall)
Thanks again to everyone who's been part of this journey. And to all new players joining in from China and Russia—welcome to the fight.
New Light, New Fight: Realistic Visual Update
While I love the classic art style of Mortal Sin, I’ve heard enough polarized feedback to ask myself: "Would offering a new way to see the game make a real difference?"
At the end of the day, I care most about the gameplay—and if a new coat of paint helps more players jump in and experience it, then I’m all for it!
If you're a new player looking for a more familiar color palette—or a veteran wanting to see Mortal Sin in a whole new light—give the new Realistic style a shot!
This isn't just a recolor: It’s a full visual overhaul featuring new shaders, hand-tuned visual effects, new skyboxes, new lighting, and a bolder, grounded take on Mortal Sin’s gothic comic-book aesthetic.
When you first boot up the game after the update, you’ll be prompted to select your preferred style: Classic or Realistic. (And don’t worry—you can switch back anytime in the Visual Settings menu.)
I want players to ease into the chaos however they feel most comfortable—then branch out as they master the game.
The Realistic palette is also included in the Random Color Cycler rotation for even more visual variety.
One of the most common pieces of feedback I've received was about the font—and I agree. Style is important, but comfort comes first when reading item and skill descriptions.
This update replaces most of the old font (except for the title logo) with a new, more readable, yet still stylized font to improve your overall experience.
This update is about choice—giving players different ways to experience Mortal Sin's fast, brutal combat while preserving its unique identity.
And that’s not all — here's a quick overview of the technical updates included in this patch:
Visuals
Added a special new color palette: Realistic. Includes new shaders, hand-tuned effects, new skyboxes, and more!
Added a first-time startup prompt to choose between Classic and Realistic styles.
New blur logic for smoother color blending.
New smart saturation system that boosts muted colors without oversaturating bright ones. (Default setting now starts with a slight saturation boost—purists can set it to zero for the original look.)
New smart contrast system for improved visual depth and colors that really pop!
Replaced most fonts (except for the title) with a new, more readable stylized font.
Optimization
Reduced build size from 4.1 GB to 2.2 GB by optimizing texture sizes. (Visual quality preserved thanks to shader effects.)
Polish
Banned durability-related curses from appearing on Hoarder characters, since they had no effect.
Bug Fixes
Fixed an issue where Hoarder characters would only receive quests from A-level areas.
Thank you for supporting Mortal Sin! This update is just another step toward making the game even more accessible, satisfying, and brutally fun for everyone.
Now... Pick your style, lock your eyes on your prey, and dive back into the nightmare.
Major Pirate Update: New Class, New Area, Guns!
Here it is – the big content update! When I say Pirate Update, I’m not messing around. Whether you're tearing through enemies with dual pistols as the all-new Pirate class, or navigating the treacherous, ghost ship–inspired zone dodging cannonballs and irate sharks, one thing’s for sure: you're gonna find that booty. This update is packed with content – practically a DLC’s worth – so read on to see everything I’ve added to the main game!
One of the most consistently requested playstyles since launch has been a gun-wielding class. At first, I wasn’t sure it was the right fit—this game has always leaned into melee combat, and let’s face it, there’s no shortage of games with guns out there. But over time, the idea grew on me. I started to see how I could put my own spin on it and make it feel unique and interesting within the world of Mortal Sin.
Unlike staves, guns can fire projectiles even with basic attacks. While they generally deal less damage than spells, they make up for it with faster projectiles and firing speed. Performing a power strike with a gun unleashes a power shot—a special bullet with increased damage, added knockback, and piercing capabilities. Additionally, performing a whirlwind allows you to rapid-fire your gun, making it a great tool for shredding through groups of enemies or quickly bursting down tougher foes.
Some guns, like the dual-wielded Pistol & Scimitar or the Axegun, feature a hybrid melee-ranged playstyle. Others, such as the dual Pistols or the Cannon, lean into more traditional ranged combat. And if your pirate ever gets overwhelmed, you’ve always got a blackpowder bomb on hand—perfect for clearing the room in a pinch.
But what’s a badass pirate without a ghostly pirate ship to raid? Ever since the early access release, I’ve felt the game needed a late-game area—something that unlocks deeper into your playthrough and offers a fresh kind of challenge. Now, by completing all of the C-variant levels for the core three zones, you’ll gain access to Vessel—a spectral, high-risk area packed with danger, gold, and exclusive loot drop boxes for those bold enough to brave its haunted decks.
While exploring the depths of this cursed vessel, you’ll encounter a new cast of dangerous foes—from your friendly neighborhood man-eating, overly buff shark man, to skeleton pirates armed with dual pistols and cannons. Stay sharp and always watch your surroundings—poor positioning might land you right in the middle of a skeleton cannon-firing squad!
I’ve decided to keep the game’s pacing intact by still requiring only three areas to reach the final level. That means the overall length remains the same, but with more route options for increased variety and replayability. To support this, I’ve done a polish pass on the progress screen—now it clearly highlights the areas you can visit, along with the path you’ve taken so far. This should make the game’s structure much more understandable for new players, and a welcome quality-of-life improvement for seasoned veterans.
Content
Added a new class: Pirate. Specializes in guns and can use his ability to throw an explosive bomb at groups of enemies. Also has a unique set of combos to learn, just like the other classes!
Added a new area: Vessel. This is a ghost pirate ship–themed area with new enemies, a new boss, new traps, new unlockables, and over 80 unique new rooms!
Added a new enemy: Cutthroat. A dual-sword-wielding pirate with a devastating whirlwind attack.
Added a new enemy: Deadshot. A dual-pistol-wielding pirate that moves quickly and fires bullets from afar.
Added a new enemy: Boomer. A cannon-wielding pirate that moves slowly but deals heavy ranged damage. He can also lob an explosive grenade to really mess up your day.
Added a new enemy: Devourer. A giant, ripped shark bro that tanks hits and can eat you alive if you're not careful.
Added a new boss: Cursed King. He is the most deadly melee boss—running at mach speed, wielding two heavy maces, and unleashing guard-breaking multi-hit strikes. Try to parry him at your own risk!
Added a new weapon: Pistol & Scimitar. Combo fluidly with your blade and finish them off with a close-range blast from your flintlock.
Added a new weapon: Pistols. Dual-wield two flintlocks, unleashing a devastating barrage of bullets.
Added a new weapon: Axegun. An axe–shotgun hybrid that combines spread fire with a deadly blade.
Added a new weapon: Cannon. Pretty self-explanatory! Deals a ton of damage, pierces through enemies, and knocks you back from the recoil.
Added a new trap: Spinning Saw. This is a rotating double-sided saw that spins incredibly fast, shredding anything that gets close. It pauses briefly every now and then to give you a chance to pass by. You can also crouch under it at any time!
Added a new trap: Cannon. There are several variants, but basically, these will fire big cannonballs at regular intervals. It would be in your best interest to avoid getting hit by one of these.
Added two "new" scares to the Vessel area (totally not reskins of older scares).
Added 12 new unlockables exclusive to the Vessel to encourage exploring all three variants.
Added a new skill: Sniper. This is a Pirate-exclusive skill that functions identically to Headhunter, except it applies only to projectile weapons rather than melee weapons.
Balance
Made Gladiator the default starting class, swapping its place with Struggler. The early experience is super important for first impressions, and I didn't feel that Struggler was fitting the bill. Gladiator is a strong fighter type, with an immediately useful ability, great auto-combos, built-in crowd control, high damage, and fewer itemization decisions to make, which makes it more friendly to a new player.
Added the basic cleaver to Gladiator's weapon spawn pool.
Added guns not only to Pirate, but also to the hybrid classes (Struggler, Martyr, and Enigma). Duelist also has a very small chance to find the dual-wield guns.
Reduced Echo and Fracture mana cost from 2% to 1.5%.
Removed projectile weapon range/radius scaling. This was always really hard to balance and would sometimes lead to projectiles getting so big they hit a wall in tight corridors before reaching their target.
Polish
Added a small crosshair in the center of the screen that is hopefully not too intrusive. If you don't like it, you can always disable it in the settings.
Updated the progress screen map to highlight both your possible level paths, as well as the paths you've already traversed.
Added unique backgrounds to the progress screen for each area.
Did polish on various other progress screen elements like the icons and borders.
New enemy projectile attacks with fast travel times (i.e., bullets and cannonballs) will show a red line-of-sight warning, giving you a chance to parry or move out of the way.
Gladiator's Battle Cry animation now shows the fists closed to project real chad strength.
Bug Fixes
Fixed a bug where bosses sometimes wouldn't drop their gold essence.
That’s all for this update—thanks so much for playing, supporting, and being part of the journey. Whether you’re a longtime player returning for new challenges or someone just jumping in, I hope the Pirate class and Vessel area give you fresh ways to explore, experiment, and have fun.
This update marks another big step toward full release. There's still more polish, tuning, and content to come, but the finish line is getting closer. Your feedback, bug reports, and support have been instrumental in shaping the game, and I couldn’t be more grateful.
Until next time—may your aim be steady, your loot plentiful, and your shark bros only mildly aggressive.
New Skills, New Curses, Vampire / Hunter buffs, Cave Art Update!
Hello! Wanted to share this nice quality of life update that spices up the game and opens some new build options to play with.
Content
Added a new skill: Chain Strike. Each successive hit in a single melee attack deals additional damage. This further encourages flicking the weapon around and also letting the entire animation play rather than cancelling it early.
Added a new skill: Combustive Rush (replaces Trapper). Starting a sprint will trigger a fiery explosion. Also explodes enemies who are knocked into traps. Not having to always rely on traps should make this much more of a build defining staple.
Added a new staff-only skill: Mana Surge. Every combo level restores some mana directly to the staff using this skill.
Added a new curse: Arcane Fragility. Item's that are reduced to zero mana will break, similarly to how it worked in the previous version. Rewards +4 item level
Added a new curse: Raging Spirits. Killing an enemy from afar has a chance to fire a projectile at the player. Rewards +3 item level
Added two new staff-only auto combos to Vampire to give a few more options if you happen to have missed your Waves of Blood combo ability reset.
Polish
Renamed durability to mana to more accurately reflect how it works now, as resource for powerful skills, rather than something that deteriorates and breaks over time.
Lowered the gravity a little bit in portal rooms, so jumping has a little more hang time.
Blood spray effects now fade out the closer they are to the camera, so they don't obscure the action.
Did a pass on all of the cave textures and colors so it's brighter, more aesthetically pleasing, and has better contrast with the enemies.
Damage numbers are bold and outlined so they stand out a little more.
Balance
Reworked Hunter Vanish a bit. It no longer grants critical strikes, but does trigger a shockwave on use and also grants very brief invincibility. I've seen a lot of comments confused why the ability triggers so often during auto combo. The answer is, it allows you to attack faster than you otherwise would by cancelling the attack animation, and also is a key component in every Hunter combo. I believe making it an actual attack will make it feel less strange, and also adds the benefit of not leaving you vulnerable for the moment it's active.
Added Heavy Strikes, Vortex and Body slam to Hunter in case you want to try more of a whirlwind style build.
Increased elite enemy scare attribute cooldown so it doesn't spam as frequently.
Iron Grip and Clarity now use a percentage of the skill's reduced cost, rather than a flat percentage. This way, faster weapons aren't drained disproportionately faster compared to slower ones.
Soul Cleave and Manifest Weapon now hit on every rotation like they used to. Manifest Weapon has been buffed significantly in particular, with longer duration and many fast spins for high damage.
Moved Berserker Rage from weapons to gloves (with small chance for other armors as well)
Moved Bloodthirst from weapons to helmet (with small chance for other armors as well)
Moved Combo Mastery from boots to gloves (with small chance for other armors as well)
Doubled Sin Ward cross duration so you have more time to accumulate them
Reduced parry health gained from Unyielding Faith slighly from 25% to 20%
Bug Fixes
Spirit Drill now correctly applies critical strike damage.
Alchemist now shows up on gloves like it was intended (instead of being solely a passive skill)
I'm beginning work on new enemies / levels, but also trying to think of a way to introduce these piece by piece instead of going silent for two months and dropping it all at once. Stay tuned for more exciting content additions!
Skill Update Addendum - No More Breaking!
I've been reading all the comments closely, particulary those having to do with the durability rework that went along with this update. I was admittedly a little concerned about how these changes would go over, considering durability is already a controversial feature in most games. Although most sustainability issues can be mitigated through various skill choices, I get it, it can be stressful to keep checking on your durability in the middle of a hectic fight and the penalty is pretty harsh for ignoring it even for a few moments.
Here are some changes that I think will help a lot to make the overall experience smoother:
Equipment that is reduced to zero durability will no longer break, and will still keep its stats. However, it's skills will be disabled until you drink a wizard oil
Any weapons that are depleted will turn red and deal 50% damage until you repair it
Any staves that are depleted will not be able to cast until you repair it
Now if your equipment is depleted, you atleast still have a functional weapon until you have a moment to drink a potion, and most importantly, won't lose it permanently. For the future, I want to consider some more non-durability drawbacks such as health draining effects, penalty for using certain types of items over others, etc. I've also heard suggestions to rebrand durability, which I think may be appropriate especially now since durability is essentially a mana bar for that item. For now though, I believe this will help with most issues people have mentioned.
Here are some other fixes and changes as well:
Fixed unkillable enemy bug (Had to make an educated guess, please send a bug report in discord if you still get this issue)
Fixed a bug where quests wouldn't load if you had a innate skill quest reward from an older version
Cheat death drains 100% durability and also has a chance to break a random piece of equipment on use. The chance to break something goes down with each stack, all the way to 0% to make it more appealing to stack.
