It's been almost six months since the launch of Mahjong Realms. Here's what's coming next for the game!
Version 1.1
Improved shuffle algorithms - I've heard the complaints about shuffling. The original intent was to stick close to the true random nature of mahjong solitaire, which requires focus and preemptive planning to ensure victory. This was not communicated clearly on the store page, and thus players looking for a more casual click-through experience ended up playing the game without being prepared for the challenge and left negative reviews. In fairness, if you don't know this and aren't making the best moves early on, later-stage board states can easily be shuffled into something unsolvable. Version 1.1 will introduce two new shuffle algorithms, allowing you to pick between:
Solvable - guarantees that the layout is solvable, but it's up to you to navigate it
Hybrid - Starts as spread matches, then switches to solvable after most of the tiles are matched to prevent unfair shuffles when there are few tiles remaining
Spread matches - matching tiles are not stacked on top of each other anywhere in a stack (the current "don't stack matching tiles" option)
Random - completely random without any kind of protective algorithm to make it solvable (current "don't stack matching tiles" unchecked)
Difficulty presets - Along with the new shuffle algorithms, there will be preset difficulty options to make it easier to choose your challenge level (including a preset for the Aeonic Ascension achievement).
New tile spacing option - Another complaint that players have had is visibility of the tiles. I'm adding an option to toggle the small gap between tiles. This helps to thin the borders between tiles, making it easier to see if a tile is next to another, or if they're actually offset on a different layer. This will be set to "none" (no gap) by default.
Improved loading - I've made significant changes to how the game handles loading all the puzzles for the menus. You should no longer see a loading spinner once Version 1.1 lands (exception: community puzzles).
There have also been some other quality improvements, as well as rich presence, so now your friends will be able to see what you're up to in-game.
Ancient Desert DLC
Along with version 1.1, Mahjong Realms will get its first DLC realm! Ancient Desert includes:
New Realm - a Sumerian-inspired theme where tiles are made from clay tablets with inscribed cuneiform symbols, offering a challenging new visual language to sift through, set on a desert backdrop with flowing sand and a soothing soundtrack
New Campaign - 10 new hand-crafted puzzles to play through
Wishlist the Ancient Desert DLC now!