When one liminal corridor closes, another one opens?
Before telling in more detail what this above banner is all about, let me say that about a year ago I made the last update to The Backroom - Lost and Found. I had fell in love with the Quraffs, but it was time to let them go their own way.
Among thousands of lessons learned during the development of the game, there were two that I want to highlight:
Making games isn't easy, but it is doable.
Making free games is doable, but not a viable long-term solution.
Also I'm going to let you in on a little secret - I'm not a horror game fan, but more of a turn-based tactical person. And to that end, let me introduce you my latest passion project, the crazy ass big game that no one person should attempt to do:
Got the Steam page up for it and I can now share the upcoming awesomeness with the whole world. If you want to support the development, go wishlist! ːsteamhappyː
Anyway, one last time I want to thank everyone who had their little run-ins with the Quraffs and played my little game. It means a lot to see people enjoy the game, and to be part of making the world a little bit more fun place to be in.
Cheers, Pony
Update 1.3.3 - Unreal 5.2
Not much to say except the game has been updated to Unreal 5.2 and some of the previous optimizations were reverted due to them potentially causing some rendering issues on AMD Radeon cards.
Thanks XBrethren for streaming the game and exposing this bug. Hopefully this patch fixes the issue without causing too much of an FPS hit!
Quraffs are here!
Ahoy my fellow Quraffians!
It is my pleasure to announce a mystical no-clip to reality for our lovin' Quraffs --- not in a form of a wooden well burning toy, but rather an adorable pendant.
A limited edition of 10 were made and if you are fast and order one right now, you'll still not be able to get it, because they are not available for sale. Sadly these guys are personal celebratory Quraffs.
It has been a journey of learning with this project for me: Everything from planning to executing to publishing to patching; and everything in between. Currently at 70k players with 88% Positive Ratings is a joyful thing, as most of those people have had the pleasure of meeting Quraffs. Spreading their joy to the world one player at time.
Thank you for being part of this journey.
Best cheers, Pony
P.S. Game was also updated to 1.3.2, fixing a minor bug with mommy.
Update 1.3.1 - Optimization
This update hopefully greatly improves the game's performance. If you have had issues with the framerate, you may want to give the game another chance.
Optimization
Reduced requirements for Chapter 2's happier endings
Added option to re-play the ending of Chapter 2 and make different choices
Minor changes in the level for better player guidance
1.3.0 Relased - The CRT-UE-???-TXT-CYOA Update
Everything from retro to weirdcore
It was supposed to be a simple update, but it ended up being likely the biggest one. From optimization to pointlessly weird features - there's a new reactive CRT effect as well as lots of improvements primarily for The Found -mode. While it is not specified whether the game takes place in the Backrooms or not, the game does now have an improved "The Backrooms" -feel. Additional ??? stuff and a completely new gameplay mode hidden into the mix of things. ... and 11 new endings.
With the introduction of the new CRT-look, the Steam page has been updated to reflect this and a two new trailers have landed!
Here's the complete list of changes with this version:
Game is now experienced through an old VHS camcorder:
CRT effect that reacts to events & locations
Toggle in the settings menu
Left mouse button can be used to zoom in
Level changes:
Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 have different endings. 8 for Chapter 1 and 11 for Chapter 2.
Area layout tweaks and expansions, including new areas
Several new gameplay mechanics primarily for The Found -mode
Other & fixes:
Unofficial ??? data on the main menu that expands upon gameplay progression
Upgraded to Unreal 5.1
Improved & optimized performance
Can't look at things through walls
When cheats are enabled, players will see it
Save location in the UpsideDown -world is closer to the switchspot
Speedrun did not calculate timestamps correctly
Lots of other minor fixes here and there
Update 1.2.3
Special thanks to all the streamers - without you I would not be able to pinpoint several problems:
Bunch of art fixes
Some feature fixes
Correcting flow fixes
When you get the full game completion achievement, you get a pop-up where Lollin' Pony is humbly asking for your help.
What is that last bullet point about? Well, simply put "Making games is fun. Advertising them isn't." As a Finnish developer, I hate(!) trying to promote the game. I'm proud of the game, but truly am not good at advertisement. Over the past few weeks the player numbers have fallen to 30% of what they were initially and I'm quite sure there's still a ton of people who'd like to experience The Backroom - Lost and Found.
Rather than trying to do something I don't like, nor am I good at, I'd like to ask for Your Help. If you've played the game and enjoyed it, please don't hesitate to plug it in any and all shapes and forms. As a reward I can only offer shared joy and possibly a dime or two for the Manatees.
Thank you, Cheers, and Best Regards, Pony
Update 1.2.2
This time the patch brings bunch of small fixes & volume adjustment:
Master Volume setting
Can run easier after liminal
Enemies are less deadly when scared
Looking at enemies doesn't wake them up immediately
Hopefully the world doesn't turn all light-and-shadowless after returning from the anymore
Minor fixes and guidance improvements
All settings are now properly saved
Update 1.2.0 - The Story Split
This is it, this is the last content patch for the game. It has been a journey to make you this game, but as they say - all good things come to an end, and this is it for The Backroom - Lost and Found. A project that started as a "I'll do it in 2 weeks", has taken about 8 months now and it is time to move on to something else. What that is... Who knows?
I'll still be updating with fixes, but no crazy expansions or edits. Here's the list of changes in this patch:
Previous normal game has been renamed to "Floor 1: The Lost", and is about 10% shorter. It is also more streamlined and easier.
And to compensate that, the previously known "New Game: The Backroom" is now "Floor 1: The Found", and is about the same length as the previous game mode, but has some twists in it.
"The Found" contains new enemies, confusing game mechanics, and disorienting locations.
Some optimization which should make the game run faster.
...and a lot of fixes and improvement everywhere.
Lastly, I would like to thank all those people who played the game. Never grow up, never stop the madness!
-Pony
Update 1.1.1
Finally squished few of the remaining annoyance-bugs and added some extra flesh to the NewGamePlus -mode. Though, no achievement for completing that, but perhaps one day.
Here's the list of changes:
Liminal space transition & "Look At" bug fixes
Additional NewGamePlus -mode content
All 7 endings have unique images
Once again, more player guiding
Minor fixes here and there
Update 1.1.0 - The story from another perspective
While I'm well aware that many players stop playing the game after just few minutes, I decided to cater the people who have completed the game. Introducing sort-of-NewGamePlus -mode which tells the other half of the story.
The first half was cute. The second... Well, things weren't quite what you may have expected. Or wanted. Changes in 1.1.0:
Additional player guiding and gating
New game mode telling the story from a different perspective. It unlocks after you've completed the game.
