Arctic Level Update - Early Access Update #4

Dear Fellow Stalkers!

A world where danger lurks under every leaf. Where heroes ascend and descend. Evolve, loot resources, and craft to conquer higher levels above the clouds. Become one of the legendary Bean Stalkers and beat the most dangerous enemy, the Spirit of the Tree.

We are truly excited that the third Stalk is available now as a free update. The Arctic level update adds even more content from additional weapons and enemies to fresh puzzles, a new boss, a unique temperature system, and a completely new environment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB14T-cMR-Y

New environment:

Among the frozen waters, in the eerie shine of the Northern lights, your quest will once again set your aim towards the heights. The biggest addition comes in the form of a brand-new frozen environment complete with its own hostile climate and breathtaking arctic scenery.
The first thing you'll notice is the sound. The growling and crashing of the ice would make any normal person freeze with fear. You don't know what's out there, but you're sure it can't be good. A feeling of dread washes over you as your fingers tingle in anticipation for the unknown...

New hazards:

The cold takes a toll on your body. Beware! It will only get worse as the sun sinks in the icy waters. On this stalk, your biggest enemy will be the cold weather.
Our developers have introduced a new temperature system to the game. Now, whenever you find yourself in a cold environment without a heat source, such as a torch or a lighter, your character will begin to take physical damage. This “Lighter” system is designed to provide more experienced players with an additional challenge to overcome.

Temperature system: The temperature will come into play in the arctic as a new status effect. Players will have to maintain body temperature with different heat sources ranging from plants that exhale hot air to warm drinks that you can prepare in the treehouse.

New enemies:

The fierce cold made the creatures living on the beanstalk choose: evolve or go extinct. New species arise and you can bet they do not become friendlier. Beware, their aim remained the same: to HUNT YOU DOWN! They will try all means and stop at nothing.

In the land of ice, there live some four-legged, animal-like sneaky creatures you should definitely keep an eye on. To get you, the smaller ones will target your legs first. The larger ones will arrive in packs with either big teeth or big claws that can be used to take down prey very quickly. These creatures have many different looks, but one thing is for sure: there's always a chance that one of these animals might be near your area.

The human-like creatures that wander in the Frozen Forest are the most dangerous. They have weapons that can hurt you from far away, so keep your distance. You may be able to distract them with bait or lure them into traps if they get too close.

This is a general warning for your safety. A Dreki may attack you from the start of your journey from its hidden shelter that you might not see at first. When there is a danger, it will poke its head out and hiss before striking. This can be avoided by walking with caution in order to avoid stepping on or touching the area where it might be hiding.
Better not come close to Ugla either, because it has sharp claws and bright eyes that never sleep. The owl is the best at finding the highest and most elusive prey. It can fly to any height, be able to see what others cannot while still being able to swoop down for its dinner.

Hunang floats out of the icy shadows and latches itself to your chest. It wraps its tongue around you, drawing warmth from deep within your body. You feel cold all at once, but it's too late now. The monster has already taken what it came for...

New tools and weapons

Carry the light with you to keep you warm during frosty nights. Use the cold against your enemies. Slow them down, injure and defeat them.

Cold damage: Some of the new equipment is able to deal cold damage to your enemies. This will drastically slow them down leaving their defenses open and they will be unable to attack you effectively.

Lighter system: With the new tools in your arsenal you will be able to carry the light with you, giving you heat in the cold situations and firing up machines and puzzles all around the stalk. Some of these tools will work by themselves like the lighter but others will require a heat source to be activated.

New puzzle:

The new memory puzzle keeps the secrets of the arctic hidden from the simple-minded adventurer. But for those who seek the greatest treasures, all they have to do is to memorize the pattern and reconstruct it flawlessly.

Other changes:

Potion changes:

• You will never run out of potions in the treehouse. So just as with food and ammunition from now on you cannot accidentally use up your valuable potions.
• Potions now have infinite amounts in the treehouse. So just as with food and ammunition from now on you cannot accidentally use up your valuable potions.
• The remaining potion liquid amount now stays consistent through the game not resetting when going out or coming back from the stalk. It also keeps its state between sessions so no more infinite potion shenanigans.

Desert changes:

• Desert floating pyramids now drop gold ingots instead of gold ores.
• Desert shattered island puzzle size changed to 3x3 from 3x4.

QoL changes:

• Ore models and textures have bean updated for better distinguishability.
• Added a new camera effect when the player is invincible. It also turns off any other camera effects while it is active.
• Version number added to HUD overlay.
• Dropped tools will snap back to an empty tool slot that is available in your inventory as long as you have an empty inventory slot and all your shoulder slots are full.

Bug fixes:

• Fixed a bug where the explosive cactus stopped working when loaded into the desert map multiple times.
• Fixed a rare bug where items stick to your hand even after releasing them.
• Post-process fade will no longer switch back to full saturation when the player starts to extract with low HP.
• Tumor green sphere can no longer get visual damage effects.
• Desert detail objects restored.
• Boss fights will always spawn enemies now. They were affected by enemy spawn limits before.

We hope you will enjoy playing as much as we enjoyed delivering this special update to you! And as always, your feedback is very important to us, so join our Discord channel to help us make improvements.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1704080/Bean_Stalker/