Spin-off Another Tale Launches Aug. 19 + New Protagonist Portraits & Sale

Hello, everyone!

We’ve just rolled out a new update featuring a brand-new set of wuxia-inspired pixel art for the protagonist, complete with character portraits, facial expressions, sprite animations, and more. We’ve also continued to support the Canvas of Heroes DLC after launch, and hand-drawn portraits in the same style have now been added to the DLC as well. Update the game and check them out if you’re interested!

But more importantly, we have some big news to share today! Our spin-off, Hero’s Adventure: Another Tale will launch on August 19, with a two-week launch discount bringing the price down to $16.19. A bundle with Hero’s Adventure: Road to Passion will also be available at launch, giving existing players an additional discount.

Meanwhile, Hero’s Adventure: Road to Passion is also available at its lowest-ever discount, running through August 27 to see you through the final days of summer.

The announcement may seem sudden, but it’s actually been a long time coming. Tomorrow marks the second anniversary of Half Amateur Studio becoming truly independent! It’s thanks to all of your support that we’ve been able to build a team of our own and keep developing the series. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported us, especially our longtime players who shared so much valuable feedback during playtests, offline events, and beyond!

We’ve also put together a fun video and a little tune of our own, using the newly updated portraits to look back on the journey of the original game. It’s just something we made for a bit of fun, and there’s also a sneak peek at the Hero’s Adventure: Another Tale trailer at the end.
https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1mMgL6EEeV/
(The song featured in this video was created with AI assistance. All music and art assets used in the games themselves are original works created by human artists.)

Back to Another Tale. What you’re probably most interested in is how the game has been shaping up lately.

New Pixel-Art Portraits

The most noticeable change is the addition of pixel-art portraits for the entire cast. Our art team gave every major character a wuxia makeover. They’re available at no additional cost, and you can choose your preferred art style right from the start or switch it at any time during the game. There’s simply no substitute for the charm and warmth of pixel art, and we’ve certainly felt just how much love and appreciation you’ve shown for the pixel-art style of Hero’s Adventure.

Some players may also have noticed a female protagonist joining the cast in the new key art on Steam. At the start of the game, you’ll be able to choose between a male or female protagonist. Both can be freely customized, including their appearance and outfits. The choice is yours.

No Nobody, No Tragic Backstory

As for that “your whole family dies at the beginning” bit in the demo: that impression was purely the result of the demo’s limited length. The full context will be revealed by the end of Chapter 1 in the full release, and we won’t spoil exactly how things unfold here. What we can say for certain is that this isn’t a cliche wuxia story where the hero’s clan gets wiped out right at the start, so there’s no need to worry about that.

Unlike the original game, the protagonist this time isn’t a nobody with no past to speak of. The companions you meet along the way also have their own goals. Everyone comes from somewhere, and everyone has somewhere they’re headed. Your companions are no longer characters whose stories effectively end the moment they join your party. They’re fellow travelers with skills of their own. Some are skilled in Medicinal Pills and Elixirs, while others excel at Observation—abilities shaped by their own backgrounds and experiences.Joining your party isn’t the end of their story, but the beginning of your journey together.

And of course, this isn’t a gacha game. You won’t just pull a new companion and have them instantly join your party. You’ll meet them one by one as the story unfolds. Some may play bigger roles than others, but we’ve made sure that every companion gets their own moment to shine.

We’ve also seen some of you wondering whether the demo doesn’t quite feel like Hero’s Adventure, and we’d like to say a little more about that.

The jianghu of Road to Passion offers a great deal of freedom. There are no quests tying you down or telling you where to go. You can do whatever you please. But we’ve also noticed that, for many players taking their first steps into the jianghu, that freedom can sometimes leave them standing at the village gates, wondering where to go next.

With the new game, we’re trying something a little different: giving the protagonist a clearer background and sense of direction at the beginning, so the story has a chance to find its footing first. But that doesn’t mean we’re leaving behind what made Hero’s Adventure special in the first place. Quite the opposite, we hope this approach will help more players find their way deeper into the jianghu. And once you venture further into that world, the familiar Hero’s Adventure experience will still be there.

At its heart, Hero’s Adventure: Another Tale is, like many wuxia stories, simply the journey of someone who longs for the jianghu, meeting countless people and crossing paths with countless stories while searching for what it truly means to be a “hero”. We also don’t want the word “spin-off” to give anyone the wrong impression. You’ll certainly see some familiar faces in Another Tale, but it is a completely standalone game. You don’t need to have played Road to Passion, and there’s no required play order between the two.

We’ll be hosting a Release Giveaway to celebrate the launch, so stay tuned to our Discord & X. With launch just around the corner, we’ll be staying in close contact with the community over the coming days. If you have any questions about the latest update or Hero’s Adventure: Another Tale, feel free to drop by our Discord and let us know!

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V1.2.0812b75 Update Notes

Added a new protagonist appearance option. (Available only during character creation for new save files. Existing save files cannot be changed to this appearance.)