Hey guys, hope everyone’s doing great!

Over the last two months, I’ve started experimenting with some marketing, and since August we’ve gained almost 10,000 new wishlists, bringing the total to nearly 33,000! I really appreciate each one of them, thank you all for your support!

There have been quite a few changes to how things work, and I’d like to talk about them today.

The map size was fine for the demo, but it became quite a challenge to fit all the late-game buildings. So, I’ve added one more vertical level to the map and changed the sprite, while keeping the width roughly the same so it’s not harder to scroll. In the end, the buildable area increased by about 40%.

I’ve also added paths on both sides of the waterfall to make it easier to traverse the hill. This was tricky because of the original pathfinding system, so I had to write a new one. Overall, I’m very happy with how it turned out.

For a long time, players have been asking for a dedicated hauler job, and it’s finally here!

I’ve reworked how logistics function in the game. I’m trying to strike a balance between complexity and simplicity, which isn’t easy! Here’s how it works now:

• Workers still haul their own resources unless a hauler’s hut is present in the area.

• Haulers travel between buildings, collecting finished goods, delivering materials for production or construction, and stocking warehouses with the minimum required resources (more on that below).

• Carrying resources now applies a movement speed penalty.

• I’ve added new research options related to logistics.

• Haulers use a smart AI system to decide when and what to haul based on internal scoring.

• Warehouses now have storage capacity limits.

• You can now set minimum stock levels for each resource in your warehouses. If stocks drop below that threshold, nearby haulers will automatically fetch the needed materials from other warehouses (even from far away) to keep production buildings supplied at all times.

Another highly requested feature was the ability to relocate buildings, and it’s here too!

Relocating is much more convenient than demolishing and rebuilding. Assigned workers stay assigned, resources are automatically moved to the new location, and construction materials go directly from the old site to the new one (instead of old site → warehouse → new site). You only pay a small amount of gold for the relocation.
Right now, Core Buildings and Hot Springs cannot be relocated, but I’m hoping to make them movable in the future.

When you place or select a building, nearby relevant structures like warehouses, wells, markets, or trees will now pulse to show their proximity. If a new building is placed too far from the others, warning icons appear to let you know.

I’ve added a new event with real consequences and a relic that most players will be able to acquire, so everyone can experience how these systems work in the game.

Our village doggo has been feeling lonely, so now we have a cat! 🐱
It’ll be unlocked through an event or another method later (not available in the demo).

I also fixed an issue where animals wandered outside the gates at night.

On top of that, there are new decorations: reworked bonsai, customizable pots, and flower pots that bloom with different flowers each season. I’ve also added wind chimes and a few other cool details!

Some players mentioned that the game looked a bit too foggy, so I’ve increased the contrast. It’s a subtle change, but it really improves visibility. (This was actually done in August, but I wanted to share it anyway!)

I’ve also simplified tutorial popups to make them less intrusive, rearranged and split some quests, and made lots of small improvements and bug fixes.

Unfortunately, older save files won’t work with this version of the game. This is due to major, game-breaking changes in the underlying code architecture, especially related to the new pathfinding system.

Additionally, I’ve corrected the game’s save folder name, it was previously (and mistakenly) named [c]DreamDec[/c], but it’s now properly called [c]faraway_lands_rise_of_yokai[/c].

If you’d like to keep your unlocked Lords and Titles, you can manually transfer your progress files:

1. Go to your old save folder:

   %LOCALAPPDATA%\\DreamDec\\saves

2. Copy the following files:

   meta_stats.json meta_progress.json

3. Paste them into the new save folder

   %LOCALAPPDATA%\\Faraway_Lands_Rise_of_Yokai\\saves\\{steamUserId}

I’ve also enabled cloud support which now works correctly with multiple users on the same PC. I am sorry about the incompatibility! :(

I know there’s still no beta or release date, and there’s not much I can say yet, other than thank you so much for your patience. ❤️

The next update will probably cover Festivals and/or Events, so stay tuned!

See you then!

Hey everyone!

For the last four months, I've been working hard behind the scenes, pushing over 30 patches to the demo. The in-game feedback system I implemented has worked wonders! Based on your suggestions, I've reworked core systems, added new content, and implemented numerous quality-of-life improvements. Thank you all so much for your invaluable feedback!

I've launched a brand new gameplay trailer! The previous one was too long, a bit slow, and didn't show much gameplay. This new one is shorter, packed with action, and focuses on the core gameplay experience. Check it out here!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hixt1IFO7yg
Tiny Teams Festival!

On top of that, I'm thrilled to announce that the game will be part of the Tiny Teams Festival, which runs from August 7th, 6 PM BST to August 14th, 6 PM BST! As a solo developer, it's a huge honor to be included alongside so many amazing games from other small teams. I suggest checking out the other games joining the festival as well!

There will also be a livestream on August 9th by a couple of Twitch streamers. I will announce the time once it's set.

Let's dive into what's new in the demo!

System Improvements

• Reputation System: The old "Popularity" system has been completely overhauled and replaced by a tier-based system with a new UI that provides a detailed breakdown of all contributing factors.

• Happiness System: This system has been reworked to provide more detailed information on villager status, including a new happiness bonus for Food Variety.

• Laborer's Lodge: "Unemployed" villagers are now designated as "Laborers." They reside in the new Laborer's Lodge building, located near the docks.

• Workplace Ambience: Decorations now provide a "Workplace Ambience" bonus, increasing the happiness of workers in nearby buildings. During their bloom season, Cherry Trees also increase the happiness of nearby workers.

• New Building - Orchard Keeper’s Hut: This building is dedicated to growing trees that provide periodic harvests after a long maturation period.

• Lord Customization: Leader portraits and their bonuses ("Paths") are now separate systems, so you can customize your lord's appearance without being tied to specific bonuses. I have also added 5 more Paths with unique bonuses and several new portraits, including five female options!

• Military Formations: Units will now automatically form formations based on their attack range when given a move order. Melee units will create a frontline to protect ranged units.

• Garrisoning: You can now order units to garrison behind your gates for better defense.

• Building Sizes: Warehouse and Well sizes have been reduced to free up more building space in your town.

• Resource Update: Hunters now collect Meat.

• Basic Starting Ship: The initial Tier 0 ship has been replaced with a more basic vessel that can only travel to nearby clans.

UI Improvements

• Town Management Hub: The top-right UI has been condensed into a single button to reduce clutter and open the new hub. You can also pin the buttons you use most to the main HUD.

• New Management Panels: The hub gives you access to several new panels:

  • Buildings Panel: View all buildings and manage their assigned workers.

  • Construction Queue Panel: View and re-order active construction projects by dragging them.

  • Town Overview Panel: Check lord info, map details, and customize your town’s global aesthetics. (You will also be able to host festivals from here in the future!)

• Collapsible HUD: The entire HUD is made of collapsible elements for a cleaner view.

• Navigation: The main navigation buttons have been moved to the bottom center of the screen for easier access.

• Clear Menu Titles: All menus now clearly display their names at the top for easier navigation.

• Updated Guides: The in-game guide and tutorial popups have been updated with clearer instructions to reflect the latest changes.

Here is Before/After of the UI:

Quality-of-Life Improvements

• Improved Building Placement: You can now place buildings directly on top of trees to automatically clear them. The UI will also clearly display why a building cannot be placed in a specific location.

• Live Building Warnings: Building warning/error icons now update live. They will also warn you if a new building is too far from essential structures like a road or warehouse.

• Improved Builder AI: The logic for builders has been improved for more efficient construction.

• Detailed Unit List: The unit list now displays more detailed status info, showing if units are filling a job, assigned to a ship, or garrisoned. You can also assign or change a soldier's squad directly from this menu.

• Mercenary Hiring Options: You now have two options for hiring mercenaries: hire them for a single day or hire them permanently.

• Soldier to Worker Conversion: A feature has been added to turn soldiers back into workers via the unit list.

• Go to Camp Button: A new button has been added to quickly send selected soldiers back to their camp.

• Tactical Pause UI: The pause UI now includes a pulsing screen border and on-screen text, making it much more obvious that the game is paused.

• Notification History: A notification history panel has been added, complete with categories and filters to help you manage past alerts.

• Detailed Resource Info: You can now see a detailed breakdown of where resources are stored or being used, as well as the average net change over the last three days.

• Visible Growth & Yield: You can now see the remaining growth time and expected yield for your crops and trees.

• Cancel Research: You can now cancel research that is currently in progress.

• Escape Key Functionality: The Escape key now deselects units, cancels building placement, and closes open panels.

Controls & Settings Improvements

• Control Remapping: The remapping system has been reworked to support key combinations (e.g., Ctrl+1) and non-Latin characters. Many of the default hotkeys have been changed to be more modern and no longer depend on the middle mouse button. New remappings have been added.

• Accessibility Menu: An Accessibility Settings button has been added to the main menu.

• New Settings Added:

  • Auto Pause Menus

  • Pause On Focus Loss

  • Invert Mouse Zoom

  • Pan & Scrolling Speed

  • Toggle Notifications

  • Adjust Notification Duration & Colors

There are also a lot of other improvements and bug fixes that I may have forgotten to add here!

My current focus is on adding more waves to the game so we can run a beta test with longer gameplay sessions. This was delayed because I've been prioritizing implementing your feedback and polishing the demo.

While I can't announce a release date just yet, please rest assured that I am working towards it. Thank you all for your incredible support!

Feel free to join the Discord! If you haven't joined yet, you can always contact me there.

https://discord.com/invite/MZWbn4vzTS