Hi everyone!
I've been spending my evenings and weekends giving Wildixir's characters and creatures some extra care. This update brings a lot of visual improvements, a small difficulty adjustment, and performance work for those moments when the screen gets crowded.
More personality for our heroes
Iva and Rowan have new boots, with better leg movement and a more natural fit. Rowan's sickle has also received a much-needed redesign.
Mora's outfit now has more depth, with a layered cloak, a new collar, and flowing hair that follows her movement.
Iva is playable in the demo. Mora and Rowan are previews of the full game.
The forest has been changing, too
I've reworked the designs and animations across the monster roster: mushrooms, moths, wooden guardians, beetles, and more—including elites and bosses.
The aim was to make each creature feel more connected and believable: feet that support its weight, limbs that belong to its body, and movement that suits its shape. Bark, shells, wings, and other surface details have received attention along the way.
Here are two examples:
You'll also find redesigned mushrooms around the healing garden. The full game's ruins have refreshed crystal decorations, too.
Smoother crowded battles
During testing, I noticed slowdowns when enemies piled up and weren't being defeated quickly enough. That led to several rendering improvements for crowds, loot, enemy health bars, and poison pools.
Heavy battles now run better on my test PC. Testing on lower-end hardware is still on the list, so I'd love to hear how the updated demo performs on your setup—especially during effect-heavy runs.
A small increase in pressure
In the standard mode:
- Enemies move 3% faster.
- The number of enemies spawned increases by 5%.
Other modes apply their modifiers on top of these updated base values.
A few more finishing touches
The intro and main menu now use the new Wildixir logo, with a smoother transition into the menu. I've also removed the hint from the journal's menu label across all languages; the shortcut still works.
The updated demo is available now. It still features Iva and the Enchanted Forest, with unlimited repeat runs.
Thank you for playing, sharing feedback, and helping me spot things that need another pass. There's still more to do, but I'm happy with how much more alive Wildixir is starting to feel.
— Alex