Steam News16 May 20261mo ago

Nerf Update

Demo Update 0.5 The learning curve for Rookie was extremely steep. While previous updates tried to address this with tutorials, this update will bring deeper changes.

Full notes

Full Rookie update

Read the full published notes in a cleaner layout. The original post stays linked below.

What changed

0 fixes2 additions4 changes0 removals

Gameplay
Performance
Balance
UI and audio

addedDemo Update 0.5Additionally, more features have been added here to give players more clarity.

changedJournalists appear laterIt turned out to be a mistake to unleash journalists on the player so early. They prevent the player from engaging with the factory which makes optimization much harder and makes the first upgrades incredibly difficult to obtain.

changedDebuffs have been “removed”At least from the first level and therefore also from the demo. Debuffs will return in later levels. They are still an important mechanic to keep runs interesting. But in the first level the player has the most to learn, so the debuff system can be skipped here.

changedNew tutorial: TrucksMy community kindly shared gameplay videos with me and I noticed that the trucks could use a tutorial as well. This is now part of the update and implemented in a way that increases the chances for players to reach their first upgrade more easily.

changedWarning when escapingI also noticed in the videos that the escape button is clicked too early. And especially when players skip the tutorial part this can happen very quickly. That’s why the game will now warn you when you try to escape while a bribe would still be possible.

addedScene transitionsWhen the player loads the factory for the first time it can take a moment. This could give the impression that the game has frozen. For this reason the game now has clean transitions to counteract that.

Demo Update 0.5

The learning curve for Rookie was extremely steep. While previous updates tried to address this with tutorials, this update will bring deeper changes.

Additionally, more features have been added here to give players more clarity.

Journalists appear later

It turned out to be a mistake to unleash journalists on the player so early. They prevent the player from engaging with the factory which makes optimization much harder and makes the first upgrades incredibly difficult to obtain.

Therefore, changes have been made so that journalists are only activated in the mid‑game.

Debuffs have been “removed”

At least from the first level and therefore also from the demo. Debuffs will return in later levels. They are still an important mechanic to keep runs interesting. But in the first level the player has the most to learn, so the debuff system can be skipped here.

New tutorial: Trucks

My community kindly shared gameplay videos with me and I noticed that the trucks could use a tutorial as well. This is now part of the update and implemented in a way that increases the chances for players to reach their first upgrade more easily.

Warning when escaping

I also noticed in the videos that the escape button is clicked too early. And especially when players skip the tutorial part this can happen very quickly. That’s why the game will now warn you when you try to escape while a bribe would still be possible.

Scene transitions

When the player loads the factory for the first time it can take a moment. This could give the impression that the game has frozen. For this reason the game now has clean transitions to counteract that.

I have ideas — how can I contribute?

It’s simple: become part of the community. There is a Discord where you can share your ideas at any time.

The easiest way, however, is Twitch: [dynamiclink href="https://www.twitch.tv/tomate_salat"]. There you can tell me your ideas directly and we can talk them through. My streaming times are:

Monday: 18:00 → 21:00 CET
Wednesday: 18:00 → 21:00 CET

Source

Steam News / 16 May 2026

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