Hey Friends,
The second major update hits shelves today! This update focuses on new difficulty settings to tailor the game more closely to your desired level of comfort and includes other improvements.
Take a look at the new features awaiting you in Magical Delicacy:
Difficulty Settings
The game now prompts you to select a difficulty upon starting a new game. Existing savegames will default to the normal difficulty but can be adjusted from the settings at any time. You'll be able to select from three presets and tailor those more to your liking in the game's settings. The difficulty modes include:
Relaxing - The relaxing preset offers a more easygoing experience. You'll start with additional items and keepsakes (Keepsakes are used in the game to unlock new features and abilities.) Easy Platforming will be enabled by default.
Normal - The normal preset offers a balanced experience. Based on the feedback on the game since its release.
Challenging - The challenging preset offers a strongly unguided experience. This aims to provide a more difficult experience, as envisioned in the original release, focused on limited resources and exploration that requires deep engagement with the map and mechanics to progress.
These presets determine your starting gear, enable or disable a few customizable difficulty settings, or even adjust the pricing and balancing of a few items you'll encounter.
In addition to these difficulty presets, there are other new options available in the settings, some of them already set to different default values depending on the preset:
- General Adjustments tweak a variety of parameters in the game to adjust the overall difficulty.
- Easy Platforming is moved from the accessibility section to the difficulty settings. Easy Platforming disabled most platforms with timed elements and various level hazards.
- Successful Wares Hint indicates for each of your created wares whether they can be delivered to an active order.
- Delivery Directions shows you the direction towards characters with actively pinned orders while in the same level with them to help you find that last stretch of the way.
- Faster Plant Growth decreases the time needed for plants to regrow within the town and in your garden.
- Disable Equipment Limit allows you to use all equippable keepsakes simultaneously.
- Increase Inventory Capacity allows you to double the inventory limit.
- Instant Cooking eliminates all cooking times and prevents burning.
- Rewards allow you to adjust the amount of beads you receive for delivering an order.
All these settings can be adjusted at any given time. Please be aware that the starting items given to you, depending on the preset selected at the start of the game, will remain unaffected when switching difficulty for that save game. Additionally, the difficulty menu is only accessible while being in-game and is set per save. Achievements can be earned with all difficulties.
Note: Many expressed concerns and frustrations with the gameplay have already been strongly improved with previous updates. This update aims to alleviate almost all remaining points of frustration. With inclusions such as enabling instant cooking times and receiving additional help with deliveries, you'll be able to tailor the experience to your desired level of comfort. The addition of the challenging preset aims to restore the exploration and trial-and-error aspect that some press and players praised when the game first came out while still maintaining access to newer comfort features.
Adjustable Tutorial
Together with the adjustable difficulty, the game now prompts you to adjust the amount of tutorial hints that are displayed by selecting different presets:
- Normal shows the full amount of tutorial hints.
- Reduced removes a lot of tutorial hints aimed at basic controls and easily understood mechanics for anyone who's familiar with similar games.
- Minimal shows as few tutorials as possible for anyone who wants to find out on their own - except for some very specific explanations in select cases.
Teleport Home
The new "Whistle of Crows" Keepsake allows you to return home to the storefront at almost any moment. You can get it by purchasing it from Tauno. Once equipped, you can travel home by using the map.
Note: While almost its own comfort feature on its own, the new Whistle Keepsake can reduce time waiting or spent running back and forth significantly so you can focus on the fun parts, though it needs to be acquired first.
Other Improvements
- Silas will now be available as a merchant and sell Ancient Cap after giving some out for free.
- The inventory can now hold up to 99 (previously 19) ingredients of a single type - inventory limit still applies.
- Significantly increased amount of compost that can be stacked in the compost.
- The Altar now shows the required item rarity once the first item is placed.
- Cooking Modules will now show before purchase if they can be used to enhance ingredients.
- Improved the guide graphic for the "determining flavors" entry to more clearly display the specific intensities of flavors.
- You can now set the game to mute all audio while in the background/unfocused. You can find this setting in the audio settings. (Only on PC)
I hope these new features can increase your comfort in the world of Magical Delicacy, but don't be afraid to face up to the challenge of playing without!
Delivery, ahoy!
Steven