We just posted a blog update on the PlayHawthorn website showing some of the new animations and locomotion improvements for all 3 characters that exist in our current game build and our Village Council will get hands on with soon!
We can't embed the video in this post because Steam doesn't allow us to embed Youtube Shorts. So you'll have to head over to our website if you want to see everything.
Lukas is our Senior Animator who added new animations across all animal species. He has been improving them and adding completely new ones since the development on the Proof-of-Concept demo (that you can play as part of Next Fest) concluded more than a year ago. We are looking forward to getting our Village Council in to try them out. There's still so much work to do, but hopefully it gives you a sense of how we are constantly improving the game and aiming to make the game more immersive over time. Lukas has been helping out on Hawthorn part-time and we'd love to hire him full-time, so your direct support through our Village Council helps make that possible.
Please keep in mind that Hawthorn is being built by a small independent team, funded through a combination of our own personal savings and the incredible support of our community. The vision we have for this world is ambitious, but we're committed to building it thoughtfully and sustainably, one step at a time. That means growth will be incremental, even after Early Access begins.
Many of the character models you see today are still placeholders while we continue researching and developing our long-term character customization pipeline. One of the unique challenges of Hawthorn is supporting a wide variety of animal species and subspecies, each with their own visual identity, customization options, animations, and technical requirements. We simply haven't had the resources for a dedicated character team to fully explore and develop all of those possibilities. As a result, many aspects of our character development have progressed piece mean and in stages as we've balanced priorities across the entire project.
What excites us is not just where Hawthorn is today, but where it's headed. Every milestone allows us to revisit, refine, and improve parts of the game that we know can be better. The animations we're showing today are one example of that ongoing evolution, and there will be many more to come.
We've always viewed Hawthorn as a long-term world rather than a one-and-done release. If we're fortunate enough to earn your continued support, we can keep expanding the world, introducing new animals, adding new features, and finding new ways to bring Windermere Village (and beyond) to life. As long as players want to call Hawthorn home, we'll keep working to make that home bigger, richer, and more immersive.
We have the passion. We have the ambition. Most importantly, we have an amazing community helping shape this journey alongside us. Let's keep building Hawthorn together!
Join the Village Council and help us make Hawthorn the best version of itself!