Game update

v0.4.4a/b/c

Substrate: Emergence Demo · published 2 Sep 2026, 14:32 UTC

All news Players around this date Read on Steam

v0.4.4a:

* Added skip button to tutorial section

* Fixed various tutorial hard-lock bugs

* UI layout bug fixes

* UI navigation improvements

v0.4.4b:

* Improvements to the first Bionet map:

- Improved balance (the rival side had a major advantage)

- Fixed bug where victory condition would be met without ever encountering the rival germinal zone

* Cryobank behavior fixes. Strains are now deducted from the Cryobank immediately when deployed in a culture

* Improved plasmodia branch behavior and greatly reduced crawl speed (should be nearly stationary)

* Fixed various tutorial hard locks

* Fixed various cryobank hard and soft locks

* UI fixes and consistency improvements

* Other various bug fixes

NOTE: The current rival AIs are dumb prototypes. More advanced opponents will be trained.v0.4.4c:

* Added maps: METAMORPH-I and METAMORPH-II

(Note: while I am updating the bionet, they won't be easy to find; one will be directly adjacent to the first bionet node. The bionet design will be updated soon)

* Re-enabled live simulation background on menu screen (WIP)

* UI bug fixes

Other announcements

All news

In-game event29 Aug 2026v0.4.4: Divide & Conquer pt. 2!Hey everyone! I am here once again to share a new update for the demo. I have been focusing a lot on improving the onboarding and accessibility of the game and in that spirit I have fleshed out the tutorial much more with dedicated tutorial levels for each mechanic. I am still adding levels, but the core lessons should be enough to teach the foundations of the game. I think it will be a massive…Game update11 Aug 2026v0.4.3a* Mutations reworks: - Background mutation rate is lowered - Increased magnitude and prominence of rare, large single gene mutation "divergence events" - Divergence events are named * Cryobank strain cap can be increased via biomark unlocks, converted to list instead of honeycomb display * Cells with no mitochondria now produce much more heat from metabolism * Plasmodia growth buffed so they no…In-game event9 Aug 2026v0.4.3: Divide and Conquer!Hey everyone! I am very excited to share another Alpha build, this time built around territorial domination! A lot has changed, and some things will be a bit rough while I patch the holes. The biggest challenge that I have been facing is that the game is confusing. Previously, I thought this was just an issue with the tutorial and onboarding, but over time I have realized that the tutorial is c…