Hello,
It has been a while since the the game launched in the end of 2016. Today, nearly ten years later, a major update is here, free for everyone who owns the game.
We added new coat of fresh paint with refreshed visuals, different color palettes, hint system when you're stuck, settings menu and bunch of languages.
Due to the scope, there is a refreshed steam page with a new trailer.
We have added full support for gamepads back in the day, but game works flawlessly on SteamDeck and also has full Steam Input support for all major controllers (like Steam Controller, XBOX or Playstation). We also added support for keyboard - just in case ;)
A little help when you're stuck comes a long way. Many players of Minimal struggled at times, so we are introducing a hint system where you can ask the game to do a move for you every 30s. Don't worry, if you make a wrong move before, it will reverse the move ;)
A fresh coat of paint has been added to how the UI looks (font rendering, scaling, button layout, QoL...). The game feels more modern and is overall smoother. Also, we have added a collection of color palettes (or call it themes) to the settings of the game - Bright theme included!
We are also introducing special set of themes for people with sight disabilities, so everyone can play.
We are introducing a big set of languages to the mix, so people from all around the world can play the game comfortably. The game was always readable, but quotes, settings and credits were in English only. Game is now available in English, Czech, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese. This is the first time we are doing something like this and we would appreciate very very much any feedback (or propose fixes) as this was translated via Google Translate and not an agency.
When the game launched we tried to truly keep it "minimal", which meant you had to rely on ALT+Enter or other means to setup the window. Now you can set all kinds of things like Display Mode, Frame-rate, UI Scaling, Palettes, Intro skip and more. If you are coming back to the game after years and you forgot how to play, we got you covered by "Reset Progress" button in the settings as well. If you don't want to reset, your existing progress carries over, so you can pick up where you left off.
Gameplay and progress
Added a Hint button that performs one move toward the solution.
Hints have a shared 30-second cooldown that continues through resets, level changes, and menus.
Hint moves can be undone like normal moves.
Added stars on the map for levels completed on par.
Added a new animation after solving a level.
Kept level information visible longer and made it dismissible on the first click.
Added an option to reset level progress and records in Settings.
Steam Deck and controls
Tested the update on Steam Deck. Valve Verified status has not been awarded (yet?).
Updated Steam Input integration.
Improved keyboard and controller navigation on the level map.
Added controller actions for hints and settings.
Improved keyboard controls for navigation and common puzzle actions. (WSAD or arrow keys)
Added horizontal trackpad panning on macOS.
Improved tile-focus behavior: the keyboard/controller selection fades when inactive and hides when using the mouse.
Visuals and accessibility
Reworked background rendering for nicer smoothing.
Improved font and icon rendering and adjusted their scale.
Added more color palettes, including color-blind palettes and patterned tile options.
Added adjustable interface size and a background visibility setting.
Added hover labels for buttons and turn/par information.
Settings
Added volume and language controls.
Added windowed, borderless, and fullscreen display modes to Settings.
Added resolution, VSync, and frame-rate limit controls.
Added a palette picker.
Added an option to skip the intro.
Added a quit confirmation dialog.
Languages
Expanded localization and language selection for English, Czech, French, German, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese.
Both Steam Spanish selections use the same Spanish translation.
Platforms and performance
Added a universal Mac build for Apple silicon and Intel Macs. The updated Mac build requires macOS 11 or later.
Improved font loading, audio initialization, and map rendering efficiency.
Added Steam Rich Presence for the current level.
Fixes
Fixed inconsistent map navigation with a controller.
Fixed button-label positioning and animation.
Fixed level-number scaling when hovering over the map.
Fixed tile animation when moving the mouse over the same tile.
Fixed transitions when a level is solved quickly.
Corrected wording in several quotes. (and replaced some quotes)