Patch note timestamp: 2026 06 24 17:06 CEST.
The previous hotfix focused on Near Miss feedback, hostile bullet readability, and leaderboard polish. This update builds on that work with a broader pass on combat readability, fairness, feedback, and the way the game explains itself.
The goal is simple: keep Nova Swarm fast and dangerous, but make the danger easier to read and the rough edges less unfair.
Highlights
- Enemy projectile visuals have been refreshed so hostile fire reads more clearly during busy combat.
- Boss damage now has stronger protection against unfair rapid life-loss chains.
- Mayhem has new reinforcement pressure moments, with warning callouts and follow-up tuning to avoid rare early spikes feeling unreasonable.
- How To Play received another major visual and wording pass.
- Hangar ship details now track and show unlock history more clearly.
- Weapon powerups and extra lives had important rule cleanup.
Enemy Projectiles And Combat Readability
- Refreshed the visual treatment for enemy projectiles, including common enemy bolts, heavy orbs, fireballs, fast enemy needles, boss plasma, boss shards, laser core/edge visuals, tractor-beam energy, and warning hazard markers.
- Added dedicated projectile visual checks so hostile shots stay readable against pickups, effects, and dense combat backgrounds.
- Fast target / rhombus enemies received focused readability and hitbox review so they remain dangerous without feeling as arbitrary.
- Improved warning and feedback coverage around high-pressure combat moments.
Boss Fairness
- Boss-owned damage can no longer drain unlimited lives in rapid succession.
- Boss life-loss is capped within a rolling window, giving players a fairer chance to recover after a bad hit.
- The protection is more generous through the earlier and mid-game boss fights, then tightens gradually in deeper sectors where pressure is expected to be higher.
- Bosses were not made tankier as part of this change.
Mayhem Pressure And Reinforcements
- Added Mayhem reinforcement overlap waves for extra pressure moments during runs.
- Added Mission Control reinforcement warning voice lines so those pressure spikes are announced more clearly.
- Tuned rare early Mayhem reinforcement overlaps so the new pressure does not create unreasonable early pileups.
- Kept the recent Mayhem score-chasing and pacing work intact.
How To Play
- Gave the How To Play screen another visual facelift.
- Improved the presentation around core survival tools and risky-play concepts.
- Clarified Phase / Dodge expectations: it lets you pass safely through danger briefly, but it is not a movement dash.
- Improved the readability of the How To Play hero layout and supporting guidance.
Hangar, Unlocks, And Codex
- Added ship unlock provenance tracking.
- Ship Details now shows unlock history more clearly, including fallback text for ships unlocked before this tracking existed.
- Existing unlocked ships remain unlocked.
- Fixed Boss Support Ship Codex destroyed tracking.
- Scout Codex persistence and profile restore behavior received additional safety checks.
Powerups, Lives, And Scoring Feel
- Removed the old 6-life maximum limit.
- Weapon powerup timers now drain while firing instead of being preserved through idle time or wave timing quirks.
- Realtime high-score target restore behavior was hardened.
- Scout Best persistence received additional coverage.
Performance And Smoothness
- Smoothed Plasma Lance combat stutter by reducing expensive work during active combat.
- Improved diagnostics around Mayhem performance and particle-heavy moments.
- Expanded full QA smoke checks around recent UI, gameplay, leaderboard, progression, and menu changes.
Other Fixes And Cleanup
- Removed a rare ambient flyby event that could distract from combat readability.
- Improved controller/menu flow checks around recent UI changes.
- Added and updated targeted checks for boss mercy, projectile visuals, powerup timing, Mayhem reinforcements, fast-target readability, combo flow, Codex tracking, Hangar unlock history, and full release smoke coverage.
- Steam/Electron bridge, profile isolation, packaged-build, and upload validation checks passed for the latest build candidate.
Thanks again for the reports, videos, and very specific feedback. Nova Swarm is still meant to bite, but it should bite more clearly and a little more fairly with this one.
Tiny Foundry